191 Backpacks and a ton of newhopers in Ministry and Small Groups

To say the last two weeks at newhope has been CRAZY GOOD is an understatement. This is a church of people wanting to live lives of Olympic style faith. Way to go, newhope.

Last Sunday, we collected 191 bookbags slammed with school supplies. We have established end roads into the area schools and principals have agreed to get them in the hands of the most needy children. Please pray for those 191 children and their families, not to mention the teachers and administrators who sense God's love through the hands and feet of Jesus' body!

Also, last Sunday, I saw one of the most amazing sites ever at newhope. I shall never forget seeing all the newhopers pouring down front to grab a white hand towel to symbolically represent surrendering to God and becoming a servant! I was in awe of the commitment and potential. And that happened not once, not twice, but in three different Worship Celebrations. Go God!

If you were one of those, or just hearing this makes you want to be involved in the ground swell movement taking place in central North Carolina for Christ, DON'T MISS OUR STARTING POINT CELEBRATION ON WEDNESDAY, SEPTEMBER 17 AT 6:30 PM AT THE CHURCH. All the pastors and staff will be present and we will offer ministry opportunities and hands on training! You all stepped up on Sunday and our team has responded. Of course, you do NOT have to wait until September 17 to get involved.

As I have reflected on last Sunday, I remember reading Max Lucado's book, Just Like Jesus. It begins with this question:

"What if for 24 hours Jesus wakes up in your bed, walks in your shoes, lives in your house, assumes your schedule?...What if for one day Jesus lives your life with his heart?"

Have you ever thought about that? Let's do it for just a minute. Think of how your day begins, your morning routine. How would it be different? We know that if Jesus was living his life inside you, the morning routine would include prayer: "Very early in the morning, while it was still dark, Jesus got up, left the house and went off to a solitary place, where he prayed." (Mark 1:35) This is how Jesus began his day; it's how he would begin yours.

What else would happen? How would he speak to your family? Would he be on time for work? How would he perform your job? What would be his attitude? How would he spend your money? Imagine what it would be like to live one full day to complete perfection: No mistakes, no blunders, no regrets.

Maybe it's not so far-fetched. Of course, we will never (this side of heaven) be completely perfect, but the Bible does teach that we can be like Jesus -- and we are commanded to follow his example. [Philippians 2:5-11]


What does that look like? What would our church look like? I think it would look a lot like it did on Sunday as hundreds and hundreds and hundreds of people took on the role of a servant to follow in the footsteps of Christ. More specifically, as I study the life of Christ, here is what it looks like to live fully devoted to Jesus Christ:

1. The Jesus style of leadership is to direct glory to God.

Jesus is God in the flesh. He's the second person of the Trinity. He's the very God of very God, as the Nicene Creed says. He has existed for all eternity, he is the creator of all things, in him all things are held together, and his name is above every name in heaven and earth. One day, the Bible says, every knee will bow and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord.

Yet, when he was here on earth, he didn't seek out praise, and he didn't seek to draw attention to himself. Several times when Jesus healed someone he said to them, "Don't tell anyone about this." This is hard to understand, because if most of us performed a miracle, we'd want everyone to know. We'd issue a press release, write a book about it and hire an agent to negotiate film rights. Sometimes it's hard for us to understand his lack of self-promotion.

Jesus didn't want all the attention directed toward his earthly ministry, he wanted the attention directed to his Father in heaven. He made it clear: "I don't speak on my own authority. The Father who sent me gave me his own instructions as to what I should say." (John 12:49 NLT) Another time he said, "I'm not teaching my own ideas, but those of God who sent me." (John 7:16 NLT)



2. The Jesus style of leadership is motivated by love.

There's a simple comment Mark included in Mark's gospel as Jesus deals with a man who had accumulated large amounts of wealth. Mark's gospel is the shortest of the four, but he has such a flair for uncommon details. He says in mark 10:21, "Jesus looked at him and loved him."

The church has a cultural responsibility today to love people, no matter what. Yes, we must be faithful to proclaim the truth of the gospel of Jesus Christ. We never compromise truth. But sometimes we make a terrible mistake. Sometimes we proclaim truth not from a position of love and compassion, but from a position of disapproving self-righteousness. On the outside, many people's impression of the church's message is: "We're right. We're always right. You're wrong, and you'll always be wrong till you become just like us." FYI - that is not a good approach for outreach in the 21st Century :-)

Some Christians think standing up for the truth means verbally bashing their opponents. Others think that standing up for the truth means picketing a movie theatre. Others think that it means letting the whole world know that they will not, in any way, tolerate offensive behavior in society. What do you think is the motive behind these attitudes and actions? Is it the same kind of love that Jesus felt for this wealthy man? We need to speak the truth, but as Paul said in Ephesians 4:15, we need to "speak the truth in love."

Just writing this fires me up about the future of our church! Just imagine the newhope movement spreading out across central North Carolina and then gathering on Sundays to serve like Jesus! Imagine us serving to direct glory to God and serving in the spirit of love! With a church like this, THE BEST IS YET TO COME.

Can't wait to see you Sunday...