Sermon Central
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Embracing An Exciting Future Series
Contributed by John Baker on Jan 12, 2006 (message contributor)
Summary: Series on Christian Stewardship. This sermon was written to introduce our move to two services. It was written to help us realize we are stewards of lost people as well and need to do what we can to bring them into the kingdom.
Title: Embracing an Exciting Future
Place: Oakdale Wesleyan Church
Date: February 20th, 2005
Subject: Living the Uncomplicated Life
- Stewardship of the Lost
Introduction
What are you thoughts about the future? For years now Hollywood has been depicting the future. With the advent of Star Wars movies, Star Trek, and many other science fiction movies Hollywood has attempted to give us a glimpse in the future. The fascinating things is that we are now creating that future. For those who grew up on Star Trek they are now the Engineers and inventors of today and many of the things that you see around us, like sliding doors at the super market, were a result of Hollywood’s depiction of the future.
The future can be exciting but can also be scary. We don’t really know what is out there or what tomorrow will hold. So while tomorrow holds all sorts of dreams, possibilities, and opportunities, it also can hold disaster, disease, sickness, pain and loss. So we approach the future with both excitement and fear.
Today we are going to talk about the future of our church
- I’m departing a bit from the scheduled plan during our series
- still goes hand in hand with stewardship
Purpose of our church
Reach the lost
Disciple those whom we have reached
Engage them in personal effective ministry inside and outside the church
In order to fulfill our mission as a church means that we must constantly be shifting and changing what we are doing.
Church four year plateau
It’s time to take the next step!
Going to give you three challenges when done
Explain Easter Sunday – largest service of the year (Mother’s day and Thanksgiving 2nd)
- Two services to offer choices and to help alleviate crowding
- Lay out service plan
Service 1 Cook
Breakfast eat
Service 2 Clean-up
Explain trial period and layout services
Explain service options
- Earlier service – traditional
- Pot-luck for traditional oriented folks to explore service options
- Second service – Raze, Skillet, Cadman’s Call, News Boys
- Jr. Church and Nursery only in second service
Explain time frames
- Trial until June
- Evaluation, changes, shifts… summer
- Start two service mid-August to get us back into the pattern
- Official launch date of two service – September 11th
Questions – let me know
Challenges:
Challenge #1: It’s just as much about them as it is about you.
Are we as a church going to be driven by what makes us comfortable and alleviates our fears or will be driven by the calling God has placed upon us.
Challenge #2: Pray for the harvest
Matthew 9:36-38 – Pray for harvesters
Challenge #3: Simply invite
Closing Prayer Time
