Building a Community Not Drawing a Crowd 2

Sometimes when I am preaching though a series at church I wonder how we will look back upon it. Will it be remembered fondly or will it leave less of a mark. Our belief is always that on any given Sunday God will have some transforming work to do in our hearts, through His Word. We long for people to come with that sense of anticipation. I can't help but feel that we are in the midst of a particularly significant season in the life of the church. New people are coming regularly and becoming part of our church family and there seems to be something about this series on the book of Acts that I think we will look back on in years to come and say that it was used by God to build this church up and to send this church out.

I've been reflecting more on the idea of building a community versus drawing a crowd and thought it would be useful to share how we are seeing something being built cohesively and closely as God works to increase the breadth of our ministry. Here are some things we have tried to put into place to increase the sense of community amongst people in the church.

Keep the vision in easy reach. At Harvest we talk about the need for clarity, simplicity and urgency. Whether it is four pillars, three w's (worship Christ, Walk with Christ, Work for Christ), small groups being the heartbeat of the church or any of the other little things we use to help people identify what our main things are- we want to leave it so that people can easily and rapidly reach and recall the nuts and bolts of our vision.

Easy reach is not just that it is catchy but that it is constant and consistent. The vision for the church as a whole informs the vision for each of the ministries of the church. So our kids are learning to worship, walk, work and our men's and women's ministry make it an aim to have unapologetic preaching. Our small groups are building in times of worship so that Jesus name is lifted high there and all our ministries are looking for ways to be bold with the gospel and to extend compassion to those in need. Every now and then I get an e-mail from someone which is a real blessing and shows the impact of how God is at work among us doing things that we could not do ourselves. I shared this on Sunday during our message on Acts 4:32-5:11.

'I just wanted to drop you a line to say how encouraged we are by Harvest. I have told several people recently that it's only since coming to Harvest that I think I've come to an understanding of what church actually is and should be, as far as a true community of believers equipping each other and striving for the same goal. We've gone to other churches with great teaching and sound doctrine, but none so unified and committed to serving one another in love for the purpose of bringing glory to Christ.'

Keep giving opportunities to build relationships. To the fore in this is without doubt our small group set up. People speak regularly about building deeper relationships quicker than they ever have done in their lives. These are real relationships where grace and truth are extended, where people have been blessed by having something authentic- soon I will write something on the importance of building relationships and friendships.

Also key has been an event we call Party with the Pastor. We know it sounds a bit cheesy, but that is kind of the point. Let me say here and now that much of this part of building a community at Harvest Glasgow happens because Alison, my wife, is awesome at hosting these things and manages to pull of things in our home in a way that is exceptional. Our men's and women's ministries serve to provide other opportunities and, coming on the final week of the month when small groups are not on have provided an opportunity to mix away from small groups, share some food and be taught together. We want to say enough of relationships which are arms-length, superficial and shallow. How about something that is faithful AND fun. If we love one another we should desire to learn with one another and be humble enough to learn from one another. If we laugh hard with one another it is likely a sign that we will love one another when things get hard.

Keep serving Jesus in the church as an obvious role. We want the vision of the church, what it is and how it is held, to say to people- you can play a part here, you can belong; this can be your home and being here can help your heart. We all know that the time when you get to know people best is when you are getting your hands dirty with them. If you are tracking with us you will know that we are looking for a building to call our own. It is interesting that one of the things that are often given as benefits of this kind of move may actually turn out to be something that we will miss. At present we set up the church and then take it all down after the service. In many ways I think we will miss that time of easy access, hands dirty, everyone involved service. One of the key things we have done is to underline that a healthy disciple works for Christ and to give people opportunities to serve in ways that they may never have done before (most of our guys serve in Higher Ground, our kids ministry for example).

All that said our desire is to see a church that exists to bring glory to God and we would love you to be a part of it. So why not come visit and see if Harvest Bible Chapel Glasgow may be the church family that you are looking for? We would love to see you.