January 2000.  Our church wrestles with the question of whether or not to close its doors.  The once vibrant church, planted in 1986, had grown to well over 100 before the storm hit.  Division and conflicting visions caused the church to quickly fall to 40 people.  The church building, purchased in 1992 was now too big for us as we sat in a neighborhood that no longer wanted us.  The choice: close the doors or start over from scratch.  After much fasting and prayer, the leaders feel called by God to sell the church building, call a new pastor, change our name, and find a fresh vision.  We handed over the keys to the building in the fall of 2000.  We headed to a new community with a new zeal as we got a "fresh start."  We rented a school gym for our services, thinking we would only be there a few months until we found a new facility. 

Fast forward now to May 2007.  We are still in the same school gym.  Many of the people who set out on this journey have now left, but God has brought in others to join us.  We are now up around 50 people.  The school that we have called home for the last 6 and a half years is scheduled to be torn down in the next few months.  We cannot afford to pay the going rates for commercial properties in the area, yet is an unreached area that we feel called to work in.  None of us expected this journey to be quite as challenging as it has been.

For almost 7 years now, God has tested us, shaped us, convicted us, and taught us.  As I write these words, I am not sure where we will be holding services at the end of the summer. 

We don't have a lot of people.  We don't have our own facility.  We don't have a lot of programs to offer.  Our office is on top of a sports bar.  Most of our people do not have a corporate business mentaility.  The pastor (me) is young and naive. 

Nevertheless, God has placed us where we are to disciple believers and build them up in the Word and to preach the Gospel to lost sinners.  God has simplified our understanding of what being a church is all about.  We have come back to embrace Acts 2:42 as our model...

Our adventure in faith has been challenging.  We have pinched pennies.  We have perfected the art of setting up and tearing down every week.  We have laughed together and cried together.  And, so far, it has been a ride of a lifetime!  I would have loved it if the road we have traveled had been smoother.  And more difficult days may still be ahead.  But I wouldn't change a thing of what God has done so far because of the lessons He has taught us.  He has stripped us of all the "extras" of church life and has boiled us down to a hunger to study God's Word a verse at a time, loving one another with a genuine love, keeping our eyes on Jesus and seeking God's face in prayer.  We will continue to do these things and leave the results up to God.  This summer, I am praying that God use our 50 people to share the Gospel of Jesus Christ with at least 1,000 people.

As God builds this church, there is not one of us who can take any glory or credit for ourselves.  We will quickly profess that we are nothing, but that it was God who brought the increase!