By Burt Braunius
October 17, 2014This weekend was the 50th anniversary celebration of Faith Church (Dyer, IN). Marlene and I attended the Legacy Dinner on Saturday night and the first of two morning worship services. We had been there for Faith Church’s 10th anniversary celebration in 1974. At that time, I was the first full-time staff person at Faith, serving as Director of Christian Education from 1974-1977.
Faith Church is a multi-site congregation with over 7,000 worshiping each Sunday at their seven venues. This Sunday all of the sites came together for two morning services of celebration at the Star Theater in Merriville.
One of the many “take-aways” from the service that we attended was at the end where pastors from each of the sites shared a blessing from Scripture. Here are the blessings.
The Lord bless you, and keep you;
the Lord make his face shine on you, and be gracious to you;
the Lord turn his face toward you and give you peace.
Numbers 6:24-26
May the grace of the Lord Jesus Christ, and the love of God, and the fellowship of the Holy Spirit be with you all.
2 Corinthians 13:14
And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.
Philippians 4:7
May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace as you trust in him, so that you may overflow with hope by the power of the Holy Spirit.
Romans 15:13
Let the message of Christ dwell among you richly as you teach and admonish one another with all wisdom through psalms, hymns, and songs from the Spirit, singing to God with gratitude in your hearts. And whatever you do, whether in word or deed, do it all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through him.
Colossians 3:16-17
To him who is able to keep you from stumbling and to present you before his glorious presence without fault and with great joy— 25 to the only God our Savior be glory, majesty, power and authority, through Jesus Christ our Lord, before all ages, now and forevermore! Amen.
Jude 24-25
To him who loves us and has freed us from our sins by his blood, and has made us to be a kingdom and priests to serve his God and Father—to him be glory and power for ever and ever! Amen.
Revelation 1:6
Sharing God’s blessing with others is a privilege and an opportunity for spiritual leaders. As you begin a new week, ask the questions, “With whom will I have the privilege of sharing God’s blessing?” And then, “What will I share?”
Church Leadership Center has been working for three years with Faith Church in their Pastoral Leadership Residency programs. We have designed similar leadership development courses with other congregations. Our approach provides contextualized courses, facilitator training, and online resources. Reply to this email if you would like information about this individualized approach to leadership development.
CLC supports pastors, churches, and other ministry groups to prepare congregational leaders for advanced levels of service. We do this by means of assessment interviews and reports; personalized training plans, classes, and certification so that participants are able to increase their effectiveness in all areas of church life. Click here for more information from our web site and to read previous blogs. To view videos about Commissioned Pastors and those who support them, click here.
