Dear church,
Eight months ago our church asked God to work powerfully through us for the sake of the Gospel and His glory among the people of the northwest suburbs of Chicago. We joined together with the hope of seeing 50 people become followers of Jesus Christ. Knowing that God calls those who worship Him to spread the greatness of His name across the earth and to serve others with the compassion He has shown us, we also committed to praying for 50 short-term missionaries to be sent out globally and locally from our church family. Finally, desiring to see more people connected with Gospel-centered churches, we set a goal to begin the process of planting a new church. While we recognized that it may take us a little longer to plant a church, by faith, we committed to accomplishing these other goals in three years.
For a church our size, these are ambitious, faith-filled goals. So, now the question eight months in is, “How are we doing? We have a little less than two and a half years to go. Are we making progress?” The answer is, “Yes, by the grace of God!” I could spend a few minutes giving you some facts, listing statistics, and writing down a few stories, but I would much rather tell you in person. This Sunday, as we prepare to kick off our ministry year, we will take some time together to celebrate what God has already done and what we believe He is leading us to do in the coming year at our Three50 Fiesta.
In just a few days our fall ministries will launch into high gear with discipleship classes for adults and children on Sunday mornings, various Bible studies, and small groups that meet throughout the week. Our youth ministry is primed for another great year and we’re really looking forward to continuing to build on the strong momentum of our AWANA ministry from last year. This is an exciting time in the life of our church.
I hope you will be there this Sunday morning. I hope you will stay for one of our discipleship classes following the service. All of our teams do a great job of preparing and presenting these opportunities to grow as a follower of Jesus Christ. I especially want to encourage those of you who are parents of children and students to make it a priority to have your whole family in these discipleship environments. I know firsthand how many pressures there are and things that can get in the way, but it is worth it to teach your children to know and love Jesus. I hope you will be there this Sunday, but I hope it’s not just this Sunday, but every Sunday. Our Saviour is a great church with a huge heart to love people, teach God’s Word, and impact the world for Christ. It’s important for me and my family to be there and I believe it’s important for you and yours to be there as well.
So, Saturday night, set out the kids’ clothes, stack up your Bibles by the door, set your alarms, and pray that God would be glorified. Don’t forget, everyone is invited to the Three50 Fiesta, with a great taco bar lunch following the discipleship hour. It will be a great time together, celebrating God’s goodness, and anxiously awaiting what’s next. I can’t wait!
For the sake of His name,
Pastor Adam
