You've probably heard the old story about the little boy who was sick and stayed home from church on the Sunday of the annual Easter program. Upon returning from the service, his brother stated," You should have been there... Jesus showed up today." The little boy was so disappointed and proclaimed loudly, "I had to miss the one Sunday that Jesus showed up at our church." Well, let me ask you, when was the last time God showed up at your church?
Emmanuel is so blessed to see people being saved, baptized, and added to our church on a regular basis; but that wasn't always the case. Just as Aachan's sin spoiled the blessing for an entire nation, sin among our staff stifled our growth at one point. Just as division between Jews and Gentiles split divided the early church, we, too, have experienced division and discord. Just as Judas refused to buy into Jesus, we've had some refuse to buy into our efforts to share Christ. Some of the difficulties have moved out of town, some now bless other churches, and some continue to bless us; but others have selected to put aside the conflict and reconcile with God and others. PRAISE THE LORD!
I personally believe that God desires to work in every church, but He can't; because of the lack of unity! This Peacemaker series has helped us to celebrate our differences, agree to disagree (agreeably), focus on Christ, and renew our vision. It has taught us how to resolve conflict. It's brought a sweet, sweet spirit into our church family and we know that it's the Spirit of the Lord! Our prayer is that God will help us continue in unity, strive to live peaceably, and unite in our passion to share Christ, and reach a lost world.
Thank you, Lord, for the wonderful work you are doing at Emmanuel! Please dwell among us and use us to impact eternity!
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