Seeing Growth
Greetings Evergreen Bible Church family! Construction on our Phase II Addition has begun in earnest. As I type this note, I can hear the bulldozer pushing dirt across what used to be our field.
One of the things that makes construction projects so exciting is that you can see the work happening. Most of it is wonderfully visible. Yesterday I watched an excavator rip stumps out of the ground, like an ancient dinosaur devouring its prey. It was awesome! I expect I will be getting out of my chair even more than usual for the next year to see the project coming together.
One of the things that makes kingdom ministry so challenging is that we typically cannot see the work happening. Most of it is largely invisible. Jesus said to expect this. He likened the growth of his kingdom to yeast rising in the bread dough or a garden seed growing to maturity. Watching bread rise might be a nice way to relax, but it’s not exciting. The growth is undeniable, but it happens so slowly we cannot see it. Plant growth is even slower, requiring weeks of patience.
Thankfully, bakers and gardeners alike can look forward to special moments when their patience pays off in visible ways. After several hours, the baker can see the dough is ready for the pan. An hour later they can taste and see that the Lord is good. The gardener delights to see the first shoots of green weeks after planting, but the real thrill is plucking the ripe fruit at the peak of harvest. All the hard work and patience was worth it!
Last weekend, 164 of our people gathered at Misty Meadows for Family Camp. We have been making this annual pilgrimage for nearly 30 years, and I have had a lead role in most of them. After loading and unloading all the gear year after year, I naturally have moments when I wonder about the eternal significance of it all. Is kingdom growth happening? Are we making disciples? I am usually quite confident the answer is yes. But it is especially encouraging to report growth you can see.
At our Sunday morning riverside worship service, six young people testified of God’s work in their lives and were baptized. One by one, they shared in their own words how God has led them to trust Jesus Christ as Savior and Lord. Our church family has been involved in their lives in significant ways, some of them for many years. Sunday school teachers, Awana leaders and youth leaders have invested in them for years. And of course, the lion’s share of the work has been done by their parents. Growth was often difficult to detect during these years of labor, but Sunday was a day to see and celebrate that God has been doing his work. What an encouragement to carry on in the work of the Lord!
Pastor Toby
Categories: Evergreen Connection