10 Goals for 10 Years

What will New Prospect look like in 2020? What kind of church will our children and grandchildren inherit from us? If we want the coming generations to rise up and call us "faithful," then we must begin now.

Earlier this month I outlined a vision for our church family's next decade together. These are ten goals that we want to strive after in order to be a biblical church. We strive after these things for the sake of our own souls, our children, our community and our Savior's glory.

1. Expositional Preaching - If it is the hearing of the Word that converts us, convicts us and changes us, then it is the Word alone that we want in the pulpit. Thus, we affirm expositional preaching that takes the point of the passage as the point of the message.
(2 Timothy 3:16-17, Hebrews 4:12, Ezra 8:8)

2. Commitment to the Biblical Gospel - The Gospel has been watered down and compromised to such a degree that in many cases it is almost unrecognizable in the American church, particularly in the South where we live and minister. Thus, we affirm the following:
The biblical gospel is by grace alone... we do not deserve it.
The biblical gospel is by faith alone... it is not by a human work or action.
The biblical gospel is in Christ alone... receiving Christ as both Savior and Lord.
(Romans 3:21-26, Ephesians 2:8-9)

3. Dependent, Expectant Prayer - This is God's church, so we must rely wholly on God to move and act in it. He has promised to do great things when we will ask in faith for them.
(Matthew 7:7-11, John 14:13-14, Acts 1:13-14)

4. Bible-Based, God-Centered Worship - Public worship is a time to exalt Jesus Christ and to be edified and equipped to go spread His good news. Thus, we want every element of our worship gatherings to point us and others toward God.
(Acts 2:42, 1 Corinthians 14:24-26)

5. Community and Accountability - We want to live life together... to move beyond superficial Sunday relationships. We want to help one another physically and spiritually. And, though unpopular, we want to love each other enough to confront sin.
(Matthew 18:15-17, Acts 4:32, 1 Corinthians 5:1-13)

6. Family Ministry - The Bible teaches that the primary evangelists and disciple-makers for children and youth are mothers and fathers. Thus, we want to equip and assist parents in training their children up in righteousness. We should not take this responsibility from them.
(Deuteronomy 6:4-9, Psalm 127:3-5, Psalm 78:4)

7. Biblical Counseling - The sins that we commit and the sins that others commit against us leave deep scars. The church should be known as a place where hurting people can go for help and answers. Thus, we want to make biblical (not therapeutic) counsel available to both church and community members.
(John 17:17, Colossians 1:28, 2:8, Hebrews 4:12-16)

8. Launch Pad for World Missions - God has called us to make disciples locally and globally. We want to be consistently sending workers into the harvest, and we want to sacrificially give of our finances to support the important work of world missions.
(Matthew 28:16-20, Acts 1:8, Psalm 67:1-2)

9. Every-Member Ministry - Every believer is made for ministry and has a God-given place for service. Ministry should never be viewed as the job of "trained professionals."
(Ephesians 2:10, 4:11-16, James 1:27)

10. Plural, Servant Leadership - Multiple pastors/elders who respect and value one another and who serve God's people in humility must lead the church.
(Titus 1:5, Acts 20:28, 1 Peter 5:1-8)

These goals for the next decade have the potential to transform our church, our lives and our world. I hope you'll join me in asking & striving for these 10 things over the next 10 years... and beyond!

Happy New Decade!

Yea, yea yea... I know it's a new year. But in my mind that is totally eclipsed by the fact we're beginning a new decade! There are only so many decades a person sees. Maybe seven or eight... possibly nine. This new decade will be my third. The children of the 80's are turning thirty!

I think I'm finally starting to see that life goes by in a hurry. Things that seem like they happened just yesterday actually took place in the year 2000... 10 years ago! So we've only got so long to live for Christ. There's only so long that we can wait to get things done for the kingdom. As 2010 rolls around, the Lord is giving me a sense of urgency about His work.

People don't live forever; they need to hear the Gospel... today!
Your spouse/your parents won't always be here; they need love... today!
Those kids grow up too fast; they need a godly upbringing... today!
Youthful zeal doesn't last long; use it up... today!
Christians struggle in bad churches; they need biblical churches...today!
Our nation is quickly fading; they need a strong Gospel witness... today!

"Behold, now is the favorable time; behold, now is the day of salvation." (2 Co. 6:2) We need to recapture that sense of urgency as we move one decade closer to Christ's return. We need to get moving!

At the same time, though, we must remember that we have a very patient (long suffering) God. 2 Peter 3:8 says, "Do not overlook this one fact, beloved, that with the Lord one day is as a thousand years, and a thousand years as one day."

There's much to be done. Much to be done in my life, in my marriage, in my home and in my church. But, thankfully, God works on a far greater timescale than me. He is carrying out His great plan of redemption with perfect and precise timing. I just don't want the few decades that I have (that you have) not to count for eternity. So as we enter this new decade, rejoice that God is patient (2 Pet. 3:9), but remember that the day of the Lord is coming (2 Pet. 3:10)... faster than we think.