Dear Friends,
"I am a member of the church, and I shall take time to share my faith with my neighbor so I see belief grow."
Do you notice anything different in the format of this one? Instead of "Each member shall…", it is "I am a member of the church, and I shall…" Moving from being an abstract 'core value' to becoming a personal vow of membership to our neighborhood is the intent.
This shall be the presentation of the Anchors in "the Dove", as personal statements of intent.
The first four anchor statements are about demonstrating our faith, this last one is about sharing our faith. Each of these Anchors is about how to build our neighborhood in the Kingdom of God.
Sharing our faith with someone is the Great Commission. It is what we are called to do as disciples of Jesus Christ.
Some may challenge the order of our Anchors. It may be argued that we need to lead with sharing our faith, that building our Neighborhood follows the sharing of the faith. And while we may argue that our Anchors are not in a particular order, sharing our faith is last on the list.
Our church is about living out the Kingdom of God as it came in with Jesus. It is not complete, but the elements are in place. Our Rabbi, our Teacher, has instructed us on how we are to live with one another. He conducted a ministry of healing and preaching that we carry on in a world full of pain. Most importantly, He took the greatest step, giving His life on the cross that, by the power of His blood, our sins are forgiven and we are made right with God.
This is the life given to us in the death and resurrection of Jesus. This is the life we bear witness to in the world that surrounds us. Not simply by our words, but also by our deeds, by the structures we create, by the way we order our Neighborhood, we are spreading that grace around.
We begin by showing how Jesus has changed us, not just talking about it. May God bless us, may God grow our numbers, may God use us to carry the life-giving message of salvation in Him to a world in need.
In Christ,
Rev. Peter Hofstra
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