Community Church planned a special...
Illustration
Community Church planned a special celebration for its 150th anniversary. Several
people did research, sharing information with the congregation on what life was like in
the mid-nineteenth century. Displays, complete with drawings and old pictures, were
placed in the narthex as part of the yearlong celebration.
For the celebration, people were encouraged to dress as people would have at the time of the church's founding. Former pastors were invited and asked to say a few words. Members who moved away or were once part of the congregation were also invited for the grand celebration.
It was a former pastor who spoiled the event. He reminisced about the founding of the church as well as his years as pastor. He should have sat down then, but he continued. He told them that they could not rest on their history but needed to continue to reach out to people moving in the neighborhoods near the church. Looking at the gathered congregation, he asked who among them would be around in 25 years to celebrate their 175th anniversary.
He might have simply let them enjoy the moment, but what he said was true. If we fail to reach out to the next generation with the love of Jesus, the church will be in trouble.
When our Lord ascended into heaven, the believers stood gazing upward toward heaven. Two men (angels) challenged them, "Why do you stand looking up toward heaven?" In other words, why are you looking to heaven when there is work to be done! Let's be about the church's business.
For the celebration, people were encouraged to dress as people would have at the time of the church's founding. Former pastors were invited and asked to say a few words. Members who moved away or were once part of the congregation were also invited for the grand celebration.
It was a former pastor who spoiled the event. He reminisced about the founding of the church as well as his years as pastor. He should have sat down then, but he continued. He told them that they could not rest on their history but needed to continue to reach out to people moving in the neighborhoods near the church. Looking at the gathered congregation, he asked who among them would be around in 25 years to celebrate their 175th anniversary.
He might have simply let them enjoy the moment, but what he said was true. If we fail to reach out to the next generation with the love of Jesus, the church will be in trouble.
When our Lord ascended into heaven, the believers stood gazing upward toward heaven. Two men (angels) challenged them, "Why do you stand looking up toward heaven?" In other words, why are you looking to heaven when there is work to be done! Let's be about the church's business.
