Updates from Philip and Heidi Rose June 15, 2018
“Make a careful exploration of who you are and the work you have been given, and then sink yourself into that. Don’t be impressed with yourself. Don’t compare yourself with others. Each of you must take responsibility for doing the creative best you can with your own life.” (Galatians 6:4-5, The Message)
Greetings, Brothers and Sisters in Christ
Summer is finally here in full swing! The Living Well kicked off the unofficial start of summer with an old-fashioned church picnic on Memorial Day—lots of food, fun, games and conversations. In so many of our churches, the arrival of summer means a time to relax and take a three-month break from ministry.
But here at The Living Well, even though we do want to enjoy God’s gift of summer, we want to do that without forgetting that we are a people on mission with Christ. So we continue to press into our goals for this 2nd phase of our launch process:
- Continue to grow spiritually, missionally & numerically
- Continue to create healthy community and commitment in the launch team
- Continue to define and develop systems, teams and leadership for ministry
- Implement outreach strategies that build upon the principles of the Starfish Movement
- Complete building renovations, repairs & improvements at 5475 Ravine by August 1, 2018
Our target date for our grand opening is still October 7, 2018. We will begin public outreach events on our property when the building renovations are completed, including four “preview services.” The first preview is scheduled for August 5. Between now and then, we want to keep growing and keep going.
KEEP GROWING / KEEP GOING
June 2-3 our team was officially commissioned during the weekend services at our parent church, the Bridge. Like a young adult child who is getting ready to go out on her own, we literally left our “parents’ basement” at the Bridge with their blessings, prayers, and continued support. We have added 18 new partners to our Launch Team (9 adults and 9 children), bringing our total number to 85! And we continue to pray for the Holy Spirit to bring us more. We hope to have 100 men, women and children on our team by the time of our grand opening on October 7. Those numbers aren’t intended to be impressive, but they are important.
Our calling as followers of Jesus is to BE who God created us to be; DO what God created us to do; and GO where God created us to go. That’s not just true of each individual disciple, but it is also true of all of us together as The Living Well. Each new partner God adds to our number is a part of who He is shaping us to be, what He is equipping us to do and where He is sending us to go. The Holy Spirit is increasing our horsepower and our capacity for ministry and mission. We will grow more as we go more and we will be able to go more as we grow more. And so the work continues.
THE WORK CONTINUES
We continue to work on the building renovations and maintenance at 5475 Ravine Road. The progress has been amazing! Our project manager is a building contractor who also happens to be part of our Launch Team (see how God provides?) Brian has done an amazing job of keeping us on track and on budget. While construction is underway, we are continuing to meet in whatever parts of the building we can. Our goal is to have all of the work completed by August 1 so that we can begin to hold events and services inside and outside the facility. We still need to raise a whole lot of money before then. If you want to consider a way to help our church move forward in ministry without the weight of a big debt, please donate to our building fund. We promise every bit of it will be used to further God’s glory and mission here in Kalamazoo.
In addition to the building work, we are also getting ready to launch our website by July 1. The address for the site will be www.thelivingwellkzoo.org. Stay tuned for that! All of the details of getting a building ready, meeting twice a week with our Launch Team, assimilating 18 new people, etc. can be a daunting task! Through all of this season I don’t want any of us to lose track of what God is really calling us to be, do and go. And so the work continues in our congregation and in our community as well. We continue the work of our spiritual growth (Phil. 2:12). We continue the work of becoming disciples who love one another (John 13:35). We continue to live our lives in Christ (Col. 2:6) and testify to the world around us of who he is and what he has done (Acts 4:33). We do this through our everyday connections and conversations. And we do this in the power of the Holy Spirit. As our vision states, “We are a group of people who find real life in Jesus Christ, celebrate that life in community, and share the life with everyone around us. That is our prayer, and I invite you to join us in that promise—find the life, celebrate the life, and share the life.
For all of us at The Living Well, may God bless you as you bless others!
Pastor Philip
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