Dear Christ Community

Dear Christ Community,

It’s so fun to watch God work in and through your lives!

The Lord loves you all so much, and it shows in all these little intimate ways He’s orchestrating your stories.

It only seems right to begin with the stories told by those who proclaimed their faith in baptism yesterday! Christy, Isabelle, Isaac - God is so pleased! Not just with what you did in telling your stories and getting baptized, but in who you are. It strikes me that each of you came to the Lord after what seems to be a season of wrestling down this God who was pursuing you. And for each of you, He gave you the faith and certainty you needed to die to self and follow Him. Physically yesterday and figuratively going forward, we stand with you all in Christ!

From there, I only wish I could more effectively share how encouraging it is to hear about how God has put so many of you on the front lines of sharing and shining for Jesus through suffering. The number of you who are enduring really hard seasons is astounding. What’s more astounding is how, through tears, you continue to faithfully share how Jesus is meeting you in those moments and using you in those moments and bringing glory to his name. It’s like nothing I’ve ever been around before.. I can only sit back and think how much the Lord loves you as he helps you endure.

Last night, some of us were singing at stargazer. Others were worshipping at the Come and See event. All of us were practicing for that parade into the city that is to come.. I’ve heard people ask the question, “Are we just going to sing in heaven? Like, for an eternity?” My answer is always, “I don’t think so. I think that’s just one way we’ll worship the King.” I do know this: the older I get the more I find joy in simply hearing the collaborative voices of people praising God.

As much good as there was in gathering with you yesterday, church, I also had a sense of heaviness when it was all said and done. I had to wrestle that down, and could only come to this conclusion: Spending time wrestling with spiritual darkness is heavy. 

I didn’t really care for that feeling, but I didn’t feel good casting it away or dismissing it either.

Even more, I left burdened about sharing that burden with you all, Christ Community.

And then, slowly, I realized that it’s in carrying the burden of spiritual darkness that the weight of purpose was being rightly restored in my own heart - and prayerfully, in our hearts. What a gospel grace to us!

I’m thankful for the Holy Spirit who helps me live the sermons I preach..

Speaking of.. I found it helpful to head back to the map and pray for another group this morning. I spent time interceding for some a people group living in Nairobi, Kenya.

Later in the morning, I received a picture of some young men praying for the Mala Pulayan in India!

Jump in with us:

You are the light of the world, Christ Community.

And as I type that sentence, my 10:10 alarm to pray and ask God to rouse the spirits of nearly 40,000 Shelby Countians who have not responded to the gospel is buzzing..

Let’s carry one another’s burdens while also faithfully carrying the beautiful, purpose-giving burden of being salt and light given to each of us by our Savior.

Go.

Be the Church.

And what comes next?

That’s a question Kaleb Nab is asking as he does some lyric work as one of our talented worship leaders. Here’s the full request:

“All my Christ Community people out there.. If you had to add a tag to go right after ‘go be the church,’ what would it be? Also, there’s a catch: you can only use 7 syllables. Just whatever comes to your mind when you think of the phrase..”

Love it. Here’s the post on Facebook:

How did I start this letter? Oh yeah..

It’s so fun to watch God work in and through your lives!

The Lord loves you all so much, and it shows in all these little intimate ways he’s orchestrating your stories.

Keep joining Jesus in going out to make disciples.

Love y’all.

Blake