Yesterday was a great day! Foothills Baptist Church is now eight months old and we had an opportunity to go back to Sevier Heights last night. It was such a relaxing time to be able to sit through a service and have no responsibilities!! Pastors need to be fed as well and I would encourage all my pastor friends on occasion to attend a worship service in which they had no responsibilities. The time was definitely a need for me.
Planting a church has been the most challenging and rewarding act of faith in my life. The one thing that is consistent with a church plant is inconsistency (as one experienced planter told me a few weeks ago). We have had ups and downs, endured a church changing their name very close to ours, we are preparing for our first baptism, we have witnessed God work a miracle in the lives of a faithful couple, we have seen a steady flow of visitors, and have had an amazing time building relationships with our core members. As one could imagine the last eight months have been very busy for us, at times demanding—yet it has been a time of great blessings and amazement as we have seen God's working hand in our family's life and in the life of the church He has given us.
Again I would reiterate from personal experience that one of the greatest leaps of faith is to be part of a church plant. We have been focusing recently on establishing a firm foundation for Foothills Baptist Church. This is a foundation based upon the inerrancy of Scripture and its infallibility. We are committed to encountering the culture with the Truth of God's Word. Not just the parts of Scripture that we are comfortable with but also the parts that cause us to confront our sin. Victory in life can only occur when sin is defeated and for that to happen we must be forthright and honest with culture regarding sin. In a culture that redefines Scripture and God to reflect their desires, we stand firm on the Truth of God as so beautifully detailed in the Bible.
We are still praying for families to come be part in laying the foundation for a ministry that wants to see lives changed for the glory of Christ. If you desire to create a legacy for your family, this is a great opportunity. We have seen a lot of progress over the past year. We planted our church with no pre-existing structure (meaning we did not take members from a parent church nor did we have a financial support system). Now…the books and "experts" will tell you that this is not how a church is supposed to be planted. But in the course of praying and determining God's will for us and the church—we did not want our decisions to be based upon our level of comfort. When God asks that we take a leap of faith it's never based upon how comfortable we are. Thus we began our journey and allow me to be openly honest with you…there was a lot of fear on my part.
But God is faithful and has worked. We have made a lot of progress and over the past few months it has become clear to me that there is indeed a need for a church plant like ours in today's time. Many churches are making "rock stars" out of their pastors and setting them up to fail. Many churches are compromising the gospel in order to draw a crowd and make everyone feel good. Our goal is to be relevant in culture and not be morally relative.
Back to yesterday…we had a low crowd in a huge building. However I noticed that our spirit was the same. Our people served the same way. Every week I grow more thankful for the commitment and dedication of our people. Last night as we sat in our chairs at Sevier Heights…I grew more thankful for Foothills Baptist Church. Not because of anything negative about SHBC (I love that church and Hollie Miller) but because God showed me that even with low numbers, low budget, and smaller ministries that He is still the same God we worship on Sundays and throughout the week. The dream we have for FBC begins right now with a group of believers dedicated to the Gospel and building a foundation of service to the Lord. One day I pray that FBC will expand her ministries and be a beacon in the community in a similar capacity of Sevier Heights. But that begins now with faithful service and prayer.
FBC crowd…we love you all more than we can express!! To my friends who I hope will read this…would you consider praying about coming alongside us in our adventure? Remember it would be one of the greatest leaps of faith you will ever take!
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