Our church, West County Assembly of God, will be holding a Missions Convention in a few weeks. As far as I can tell, this is the first one in which just this church will try and excite, inspire, cajol and motivate our folks to look beyond our walls. Through the years, the traditional way of being involved in missions was to send money to missionaries around the world and here in the U.S. to do the work of ministry. Sending our money around the world really worked! Today, in the Assemblies of God family, there are 57 million members and adherents with more than 295,000 churches and preaching points. However, paying people and building buildings hasn't been too successful here in the U.S. Overall church attendance is down, and sinking every year. Our churches lose most of their high school graduates when they either leave to go to college or join the workforce. It isn't that there is less interest in spiritual things, it's just that young people today are exploring the almost unlimited religions, plans and personalities that are all competing for their young lives. Somehow, we haven't helped them grow in their relationship with Christ to the point of not getting restless or feeling the need to explore other forms of spiritual interaction.
Today, I'm excited about the thousands and thousands of people around the world coming to Christ. Today, I'm frustrated because we can't seem to get our act together in this country. Oh God, help us listen to your heart...and join with Your creativity as you help us reach across the street.
No comments:
Post a Comment