07-29-25

ECCLESIOLOGICAL ETCHINGS
July 29, 2025
I cannot believe my sabbatical is coming to an end. It wasn’t exactly what I expected, but that’s not a negative. Anytime you have surgery as I did, you’re not absolutely sure how you’re going to respond. Most of it has gone well, but there have been some quirky things… though I’m quirky. For the most part, I’m looking forward to being back, but I’m also feeling a bit overwhelmed as I think about how I will return. You’ve probably returned from a wonderful vacation with lots of stories and pictures to share. People are interested, but they didn’t go on the vacation and do not bring the same enthusiasm. I have a bad habit of turning on the firehose when most people are only able to sip a little at a time. The area you’ll probably hear about the most in the months ahead is visitor engagement. In the past three weeks, I’ve had the privilege of meeting many insightful and gifted individuals who have shared their expertise on this topic. Each of them has been incredibly helpful, and it’s clear that there’s no single, one-size-fits-all approach. However, what stands out as crucial is the importance of intentionality and organization. But equally important is a basic, yet necessary idea that needs to take hold within the congregation as a whole. That idea is that there are at least a few hundred people within a few miles of Cypress Creek Christian Church who would find the message and mission of CCCC to be transformative. There are people whose lives would be significantly better if only they were able to find their way into our community. Yet how does the invitation go out and how do we meet them when they arrive? I have felt a new sense of responsibility, might I even call it a sacred burden. I use that word, not out of some heavy-handed demand from above, but in this joyful sense of purpose. I have been convinced that what CCCC is doing, not only with the Love First Life, but our work of radical inclusion, is exactly what God wants us to be doing in this moment. And if just one life, someone who has only known a god of vengeance and hate, a god built on guilt and fear, suddenly glimpses the power of unconditional and limitless love, then we’ve done the very thing Jesus called us to do. And though it breaks my heart, there is not just one such person in a few mile radius of our church. There are hundreds! 

Give us eyes to see and hearts that are aware of the real needs and yearnings of those we meet each day. You have provided this amazing Gospel, Lord Jesus, and I believe it has a specific purpose for a moment just like this. Amen.