Friedens Lutheran Church, Gibsonville, NC

      Last month we talked about renewing our relationship with Jesus through repentance, belief, and following. Repentance digs out old, habitual behaviors. Belief begins to fill the hole with Jesus’ love and values. Following leads us to let Jesus use us to fill holes in the lives of those we love.

      As we move through this Advent season we continue in Jesus’ way. Jesus was greatly inspired by the prophets. For example, do you remember his inaugural sermon (Luke 4:16-19)? Here Jesus uses the words of the prophet to declare God’s judgment and also declare God’s restoration. Jesus and the prophets were people of hope. Jesus and the prophets could see God’s activity among God’s people even when the people could not see it themselves.

      This past Sunday (November 15) we embraced a prophetic word inspired by God to give our community even greater hope. Just as Jesus used the broad brush strokes of Isaiah’s prophecy to declare the nature of his ministry, so we have used the broad brush strokes of Godly inspiration and scripture to declare the nature of our ministry. Our strategic plan is now in place to give us direction as we navigate an unexplored wilderness of our world.

      We have six major compass bearings that will help us in following Jesus on His way.
1) We will be developing initiatives that will enhance interaction between all our members. In working together, we discover who we really are and experience the joy in serving our Lord.
2) We will be developing ways for each person to grow spiritually by focusing on Bible study, generous giving, prayer, service, sharing faith, and worship.
3) We will develop a long-range facilities plan to improve our grounds and plan for the future.
4) We will explore and activate ways we can care for our creation by conserving energy and reducing waste.
5) We will embrace a renewed focus on stewardship that involves coming to know the many, many different ways to give to our Lord.
6) We will develop small groups; avenues for people in our faith community to share the experience of a daily walk with Jesus in the safe confines of a group dedicated to helping each person grow in their faith.

      As we move through this Advent season inspired by hope, may we follow the direction Jesus intends for us to travel.