Do you recall the story of Paul’s Macedonian Vision? It is one of the pivotal moments in the church’s history.
We’ve discussed it in great length through the SGI process. But to jog your memory: The church leaders, the very people who walked with Jesus, discerned and voted that Paul and his companions should return to the churches he had helped establish. So, the old apostle and his companions set out to do just that. Except, the Spirit of God would not let them accomplish this task. They came to a roadblock and could go no further. That night, God gave Paul a vision of a man from Macedonia that was begging him to go and bring the Gospel to them.
This Spirit-led shift led to one of the most significant expansion of the early church, leading hundreds of thousands to Christ. All this was possible because Paul was willing to be led by the Spirit of God in a moment of crisis; a moment where he was stopped from doing what the church had discerned was the right thing for him to do.
For the last five months, we have been on a journey of discernment through the Strategic Growth Initiative. Twelve teams have zeroed in on how we can be led by the Spirit of God to elevate our capacity to connect with people of all ages, enhance the Spiritual Formation of UBC, expand our ability to love our neighbors through the Mother’s Day Out, nuance the way we care for guests, and explore new ways to diversify our worship experience.
Over one hundred church members have joined the collaborative initiative by sharing their passions and giftedness.
Teams are developing measurable goals and objects to implement to what the Spirit of God is leading.
And then, well, COVID-19 arrived.
Could this be another roadblock on the way to our Macedonian Vision?
We can choose to be frustrated, disillusioned, and disappointed that this crisis has thwarted the progress made in this discernment process. We would be fully justified in feeling this way.
We can also choose to turn to the Spirit of God together, earnestly praying for guidance and courage to do what is right.
My prayer is that you, along with your SGI teams, will join together over the phone and through video calls to see how God might use you in this roadblock on the way to our Macedonian Vision.
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