[A lot has happened since I wrote about this in 10/12. To read more about where this day has taken us, be sure to see the update at the end.]
There are key moments in the history of all church plants that make the leaders stop and pause, and we’ve had a number of those moments at The Gathering already. The first salvation, the first baptisms, the first Sunday with an overcrowded sanctuary. But this past Sunday was such an incredible moment that I have had to literally take a few days to even try and process what we all saw happen.
It was a line in the sand moment. A DNA-revealing moment. A moment when who we desire to be as a church became who we are as a church.
It was rare, holy, and inspiring.
How many church plants give away a year’s worth of rent in a one-time offering? There may be a lot, but I only know of one for sure, and I couldn’t be more proud to lead it.
All of us have heard the expression “put your money where your mouth is” more times than we can probably count, and the reason we’ve heard it so much is because it’s true. So many times people talk a good game, but when it’s time to put up or shut up, the talk is revealed as words only, and the Bible has some pretty strong things to say about only talking:
“If anyone has material possessions and sees his brother in need but has no pity on him, how can the love of God be in him? Dear children, let us not love with words or tongue but with actions and in truth.” (1 John 3:17-18)
Still, we say a lot, don’t we? And if we’re honest, the sheer volume of words from churches in America make us wonder if there is any real conviction behind those words. We read books like Radical by David Platt and hear messages from modern-day prophets like Francis Chan and we applaud – shoot, we even say we agree with – the messages that they espouse, but at the end of the day, we take the material possessions that we have as churches and use them on ourselves first and then give the needy our…
…leftovers.
Let me ask the question again: how can the love of God be in us if we live and operate like that? According the the Scriptures, it can’t.
Let that sink in a bit. Ouch.
But what happened on Sunday is exactly what reveals that the love of God is in us, both individually as well as corporately. When we live for The Other Six days of the week and understand that Sundays are the least important days, we start to give to the need before we give to the greed. We make sure that our brothers and sisters worldwide have something before we have everything. And when a church has that kind of DNA, moments like Sunday morning will happen on a regular basis.
Do we need a larger space for our services? Absolutely. Do children in India need milk and nourishment more? Yes. Will God take care of our space issues when we give a year’s worth of anticipated rent payments to provide over 190,000 cups of milk to those children? You better believe it!
Thank you to all of you who call The Gathering your home, to all of you who give generously on every occasion and to all of you who allow us as a church to bring glory to the Lord with the gifts you give. We have the awesome privilege of being part of something bigger than ourselves, and if you know someone who is tired of the typical “us first” religious experience, why not invite them to come and join a movement that lives for more than a 2 hour experience one day a week.
Invite them to walk with us as we follow Jesus on the other six days, too.
UPDATE: What an honor to know that this wasn’t a “one time shot” for our church. Now, 16 months removed from this amazing day, we have continued to support not only the persecuted church in India, but many of those in need right here where we live.
One of our Core Values at The Gathering says “we value simpler living and expect a lifestyle of contentment to enable greater and more generous giving.” Not only have we continued what I wrote about at the end of 2012, but we gave more in 2013, with almost 1 out of every 4 dollars that came in going right back out to help take the gospel to those far from God. Not bad for a 2-year old, toddler church plant. Not bad, at all.
Thank you, Gatherers, for truly putting your money where your HEART is. It’s MY HONOR to pastor you!
