During
our Generosity of Giving Campaign, we are evaluating what we do; why we do it
and how does it serve the purposes of God. A particularly good formula for asking these types of questions begins
by focusing on two of the most important words in our Biblical narrative; “So
that.”
Salem
in Ballwin will have a choir so that
“______________.”
“So
that” our worship maintains its traditional character and it remains
distinctive from the other churches in the area who have praise bands.
We
have always had a choir “so that” is why we have one now.
Nothing
wrong with any of these statements but as we make ministry decisions about the
worship and the choir, there needs to be a clear focus on the mission guiding
those decisions. We
might say:
Salem
in Ballwin will have a choir “so that” worshiping hearts and minds can
connect with the good news through music and singing.
Having
a clear “so that” statement helps to keep everyone focused on the end and not
just the means. Ultimately,
we need to be able to connect everything we do with a meaningful and purposeful
“so that.” A good place to begin to have
more of these conversations is by starting with
two of the ultimate “so that’s.”
For God so loved the world that he gave his only
Son, so that everyone who believes in him may not perish but may have eternal
life. (John 3:16)
God’s love was
revealed among us in this way: God sent his only Son into the world so that we
might live through him. (I John 4:9)
In
these two passages we not only name the action of God in Christ - God gave his
only Son - but
it also names God’s ultimate purposes - so that we might
live through him. Everything
that we understand about the mission and purpose of God is wrapped up in these
two verses.
In the next two weeks, we are going to
be focusing on what resources Salem in Ballwin can contribute to this work. We are also going to be asking you as
individuals to evaluate what financial resources you personally can contribute
to this work..."so that."
---Pastor Suzanne
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