The Next Faithful Step

If you keep track of such things, I’ve used this phrase (“the next faithful step”) quite a few times in these articles, and I’ve done a few sermon series on this theme, including the current one. There’s a good reason for that—I have found it to be a useful idea for nearly everything I do.
 
When I first came to First UMC Fox Hill in 2010, I had all kinds of ideas about what we needed to do, when we needed to do it, and how we should go about it. Some of those ideas were good, some were misplaced, and some were excellent, but the timing was off. It is entirely possible to do the right thing at the wrong time.
 
You see, I wanted, above all, to help grow First UMC Fox Hill. But there was a problem: we had too much conflict, too many differences of opinion, and too much friction among our people for a focus on growth to be viable at that time. More than that, I’ve since come to believe that growth is not the purpose of the church. Rather, being faithful witnesses of Jesus in today’s world is our ultimate purpose, and growth will result from our witness and from learning how to love—not always in the way or at the time we want, but in God’s time and in God’s way.
 
We are in a good place now, with people who look after one another, people who are eager to help each other, and people who love each other. Indeed, while we have not grown significantly in Sunday morning attendance, we are blessed with an expanding cadre of children and youth, especially on Sunday evenings. As I write this, a large contingent is heading to Knoxville to be a blessing to the city in the name of Jesus, and last year many of those same youth traveled to the Navajo reservation to bless the people there.
In my humble opinion, it seems to me that we have a couple of next faithful steps we can take now. First, I would like to see how we can connect our youth and children with the rest of our congregation so that we can become more intergenerational. Second, I’d like to encourage us to take advantage of some of the opportunities we have to witness to one another and to thecommunity, especially around the Pumpkin Patch—for instance, by planning community events such as a Pet Blessing Day. Third, I believe we need to continue to love and serve one another well and learn how to include our newest members and guests in that love.

My point isn’t to lay out a multi-point plan, but rather to find the next faithful step in each area. If you have ideas—and particularly if you have the energy to help carry out those ideas—please catch up with me. I don’t keep regular office hours because crises happen when they happen, not when I plan them, but I am generally in the office on Monday through Thursday afternoons, and I respond to texts, emails, and calls.
 
While we are not numerically the church we were when I arrived in 2010, with God, not only are all things possible, but the best days are yet to come!
 
As always, I am privileged to be your pastor and a fellow servant of Christ alongside you.