Destination; Eternity

I just performed a wedding recently. Star-eyed lovers; everything is bliss, and the whole world is their oyster. I think everyone that gets married hopes that their marriage will stand the test of time, and in the end they will live happily ever after. Not to be a downer, but let’s look at reality: nothing comes easy, especially if it’s important. Building a solid marriage takes a whole lot of work, and there is one thought that comes to mind: it will be messy.

Somewhere in the horizon is our point B. We are all looking at our point A, and it would be nice if we can just get to where we want to be in life. Goals and desires are attainable. Many of us have reached many milestones in our lives, but there was a cost wasn’t there? There was no short cut to our destination. There were challenges and minor miracles to get us to our destination. As many points we have come to, there are still more to go.

As Christians, until we are in our eternal home, there are always one more point to aspire to. Every step in our journey is marked with toil and effort. For every victory in life, there were many hardships and frustrations that lined that road. Looking back in life, it was challenges in our journey that make our destinations so rewarding. Nothing worth having in life comes easy, but because have sacrificed so much for that goal, it is so fulfilling.

For I consider that the sufferings of this present time are not worth comparing with the glory that is to be revealed to us. Romans 8:18

I have told our staff and church board, that growing a church is like building a plane while we are flying it. I guess it would make most sense to build a plane first, but a church is almost like a living organism. The church is not a building, it is the various people that make up our church. Building and growing a church will be messy. There is no way around it. We are not really sure what kind of plane we are, and are not sure how we will get off the ground to our final destination. God just tells us to go; He will take care of the details. Dealing with leaders, volunteers, children, and every different kind of person can be almost impossible. The greatest miracle in human history, is not the family, but the church. How do all these disparate people work together for a common cause? With all the bumps and disagreements in the way, how do all these people work for greatest mission ever?

The church is the greatest evidence that the Holy Spirit is real. Only with His guiding hands does He lead this church to where it needs to go. The Holy Spirit knows what kind of plane we will need to be to do the work He wants us to do. Every church is different, like every family. Every community has special needs that His church can meet. The Holy Spirit is creating in us what Hillsboro needs that we can share the gospel with power and grace. We have become the instrument of His good work. Church might look confused and erratic at times, but if God will do His work here, we can trust Him to lead us, day by day, to our final destination: Home.

Connected to the Vine

-Pastor Danny