Ben

1. Exterior signage

2. Pulpit/platform

3. Entry/canopy

4. Roof

5. Trim

Emily

1. Front entry

2. Windows in sanctuary

3. Landscaping

4. Update narthex

5. Banners and artwork

6. (Bathrooms)

Bill

1. Sanctuary lighting

2. Steeple

3. Sinks in bathrooms

4. Soundsystem

5. Nursery

Bob

1. Lighting (interior)

2. Nursery

3. Bathrooms

4. Carpet

5. Parking lot

Sherry

1. Nursery

2. Bathroom sinks

3. Carpeting

4. Glass panels in doors

5. Front door

6. (Locks on snack cabinets)

Steve

1. Sound system

2. Nursery

3. Carpet in fellowship hall

4. Sanctuary lighting

5. Entrance

George

1. Sanctuary lighting

2. Nursery

3. Fellowship hall carpet

4. Sound system

5. Signage

6. (Bathroom)

1. Paint!

2. Banners!

3. Outdoor pavilion

4. Get rid of or replace ceiling tiles.

5. Exterior signage

6. Trim – interior and exterior

7. Five top priorities according to different committee members

1. Defined entry

2. Library in narthex

3. Nursery – high quality

4. Buzzer

5. Number up front

6. Clear-intuitive interior signage

7. Names of people on doors (Sunday school teachers, etc.)

8. Update bathrooms

9. Connect nursery with a bathroom

10. Make a two room nursery with a door between

1. Paneling

2. Front entry (not defined)

3. Nursery too small

4. Small rooms – too chopped up

5. Brick in sanctuary

6. Windows in sanctuary

7. Not enough electric light

8. Not enough natural light

9. Duct taped carpets

10. Mildew in fellowship hall

11. Power and heat waste

12. Sealed windows – would like to open.

13. Steeple – stained

14. Landscaping – fences must go!

15. Parking lot – needs updating

16. Lighting outside

17. Need more grassy area

18. Roof is an eyesore

19. Chairs – furnishings

20. Sound system needs reinforcing

21. Need whiteboards

22. Need glass panels in doors

23. Metal doors going outside are rotting

24. Bathrooms need updating

25. Handicapped accessibility – fellowship hall

26. Platform area – needs to be opened up.

27. Projection system would be nice to have in sanctuary

1. Location

2. Parking lot

3. Lots of rooms

4. Weird and quirky

5. Big sanctuary

6. Big narthex

7. AC

8. Good size fellowship hall

9. Outside grounds

10. Kitchenette

11. Ceiling in sanctuary

The Gospel is the ultimate action adventure story.  When the Lord Jesus calls us to follow him he is calling us to join the adventure.

Good stories have happy endings.  But to enjoy the story one must pass through all the twists and turns of the plot.  A good author doesn’t tell you how things will work out – you just have to follow along and find out.

The same thing is true of the gospel.  And since we’re still in the middle of the story we have to trust the Author and walk by faith and not by sight.  along the way there will be victories followed by set-backs and seemingly hopeless dilemmas followed by last-minute rescues.  And, sadly, some of the best characters will die before the end.  But we have faith and courage to follow along because we already know that in the end the Author will make certain that there is a “happily-ever-after” ending — the resurrection of the dead and the glorification of God’s elect.

The world is sold to sin but God has bought it back in Christ.  The redeeming work of Christ works through his redeemed children to redeem the world.

Redemptive outreach happens when we evangelize those living under the slavery of sin; it also happens when we perform works of mercy to those feeling the pain of sin’s rule; and finally, it happens when we perform every deed in every sphere of life with the purpose of bringing that sphere under the subjection of the Redeemer King – the Lord Jesus Christ.

Sometimes preachers and theologians speak of “the priesthood of all believers.”   That’s a fancy way of saying that God has tasks for all his children to perform.

But since those tasks are varied, he gives a variety of gifts to his children to perform those tasks.  And since he wants us to work together, he never gives any child everything needed for the job.  He gives only enough for one person to do one part of the job; he gives another gift to another to do another part of the job, and so on.  This is why we value our gifts – especially when we put them together and get things done!  

When God saves us he does all the work.  But when he saves us he also begins a good work in us.

He uses Bible reading and prayer, Sabbath worship and communion, among other things, to perform that good work.  He uses these things to form us and make us more like our Lord and savior, Jesus Christ.

In our entertainment crazy culture it is easy to think that the church is just one more place to be entertained.  The seating does remind one of a theater, after all.

But precisely the reverse is true.  We are not the audience; we are the performers.  God is not entertaining us when we worship him – we’re worshipping him to glorify him.

The very name “worship service” should clue us in that everything from the singing to the sermon is all about the service of God.  We strive to help people do their part in the worship of God.  The delightful surprise is that when we truly worship him we get something better than entertainment – we get joy.