Dear Lighthouse,

 

            I want to take a moment to give glory to God, thank you, and lay down a challenge.  Many exciting things have been happening within the Lighthouse Fellowship recently.  As I mentioned in last week’s e-mail, we have had 4 baptisms, 2 memberships placed, and several new people attending Sunday School all within a couple of months.  Additionally, in the last year we have had 2 other baptisms and a have increased our Sunday School attendance by nearly 50%.  Why all this growth?  Simple: God is at work.  God is at work when you see these things.  Look at Acts and the early Church.  We can read about many people coming to Christ in baptism and in fellowship, many people sharing their gifts for the common good, and whole regions of the world lighting up with the Gospel being taught.  God was at work then as He is now.  He hasn’t changed.  I praise God for the work His Spirit has done.  He has called people to obedience and hope.  He has encouraged people to enter into a relationship with Him.  He has given insight in discussions and lessons being presented.  (Acts 2) God has been so good to us, I just wanted to give Him honor and thanks.  I ask you to do the same in prayer this week.

            But, then, I guess my mind is not satisfied with acknowledgement; I wish to know why He has been at work in the Lighthouse.  Again, I come to a simple conclusion: Obedience.  You in the Lighthouse, and those receiving this e-mail, have been obedient and the fruit of that is being seen now.  God outlined the process in I Corinthians 3:6 when Paul writes that one person plants a seed, another waters it, but it is God who makes it grow.  That is what we are dedicated to in our Fellowship and I thank you for carrying out this work.  Several people have been involved in each of those baptisms mentioned above.  They have planted and watered.  Several people are involved in the shepherding of new and old members of the Lighthouse Fellowship - they send the cards and letters and make the calls.  Above all, we have been relentless in our presentation of the Gospel- the true and living Way to God.  I submit that if we continue to open the Word, teach directly from it, challenge those who are listening to higher levels of obedience and commitment to Him, and humble ourselves before God, giving Him praise, honor and glory for His work, then we will continue to see this kind of growth and fruit.  Call me naïve (which is almost my name backwards!) but I believe that it is that simple.  So, after giving God the glory I wanted to give you thanks.  You men and women are, as I Corinthians 3:9 says, “God’s fellow workers; you are God’s field, God’s building.”  Way to go!

            Now for the challenge.  Where do we go from here?  People talk about “mountain-top” experiences with God and “valleys”.  You know what the most dangerous part about being on the “mountain-top” is?  Falling off!  Too many persons and churches have started strong out of the gate and then slacked off and failed to finish.  What about you?  Many of us in the Lighthouse are new Christians now.  The Fellowship itself is only a few years old.  How we will grow and how we will finish is up to God and us.  We must never lose the connection with the vine as we grow.  I Corinthians 3 continues with Paul giving these caveats: “each one should be careful how he builds…”(3:10) “his work will be shown for what it is…” (3:13) “for the wisdom of this world is foolishness in God’s sight…So then, no more boasting about men!…(3:19-21) and on and on.  Paul really nails the church in this book.  But it was for the purpose of getting the church’s mind back to God and obedience.  I challenge you then to not give up or give way.  Continue to write Scripture in your heart by daily study.  Continue to foster your relationship with the Father by daily prayer.  Continue to be salt and light in this dark world by sharing the Gospel at home, at work, and at church.  Continue to plant and water and let God give the increase.  We must hold each other accountable as we grow.  Not only do we all have a responsibility to those new to the faith, but we all are under the commands to share our faith (Matt. 28:19), encourage others (Titus 1:9 & Hebrews 3:13), and produce fruit (Galatians 5:22-25).

            I ask for your prayers and ideas in the coming months.  The Lighthouse Fellowship is yours.  How do you want it to grow?  We need more space.  We need more visitors and more members.  We need more discipleship happening at the ground level - personal contact and modeling.  We need the fellowship, support, encouragement, and yes even the discipline of each other to keep us going strong.  Why do we need all this?  Because God is working here.  So, let’s keep Him in good supply of available servants!  I leave you with Jesus’ own words from Matthew 9:35-38 (the book for our next lesson series):

 

When He saw the crowds, He has compassion on them, because they were harassed and helpless, like sheep without a shepherd.  Then He said to His disciples, “The harvest is plentiful but the workers are few.  Ask the Lord of the harvest, therefore, to send out workers into His harvest field.”

 

Are you ready?