C2 - Moving Forward

As some of you probably sensed, I have been worn down by the events of the last few years. The good news (actually great news) is that my Sabbatical has been a gift of encouragement and refreshment as I was able to relfect and just focus on Jesus.

I am now looking forward more than ever to what God is going to do at New Song. I believe that God wants us to reach more people for Jesus than ever before as we focus on our C2 goal of growing complete in Christ. In the spring of this year, we were in a neutral gear as God healed and transformed us.

Now, I believe that God is calling us to move forward in a BIG WAY. The key verse that I mediated on while I was in Southern California is Isaiah 43:18-19, which says, "Forget the former things; do not dwell on the past. See, I am doing a new thing! Now it springs up; do you not perceive it? I am making a way in the desert and streams in the wasteland."

In this verse, God is describing his desire for Israel to stop going over their history in their minds. God wants them to be alert and present because he is about to do something brand new. God is telling them to forget the past, because it is nothing compared to what he is about to do in their future. In a sense, God is calling them to have hope!

In recent months, I have dwelled a lot on painful memories of the past. I have thought a lot about how things used to be at our church. I was hurt by the response of some to our struggles in 2008 and also felt a spirit of discouragement. As this verse describes, I believe that God is calling me (and our church) to set aside the past and let him do a new thing. If I continue to dwell on the past I'll miss the good thing that God wants to do today. In a sense, this is how hope works. We take our focus off of the past and put it on God who wants to do a new and better work in our future.

Because of this passage I have stopped dweling on some painful memories and I am now moving forward. Now, I am moving forward as I believe God is making a way in the wilderness and a stream in the desert for us.

What about you? Do you have a painful memory that God is calling you to stop dwelling on so that you can see him work in your life today? Maybe a friendship at New Song that is gone or an expectation of how things are supposed to be? Maybe a wound from your past that is keeping you from seeing the miraculous thing that God wants to do in your life today.

On Sunday, August 2nd, I'll be returning to New Song and I look forward to sharing with you some of the exciting ways we are moving forward as a church. We'll be starting our new series, "Disciple: No Christians Allowed." I guarantee that you will be challenged and equipped to grow in your faith and personal relationship with Jesus. I look forward to seeing you then!