Being part of a church is a beautiful thing – we’ve been invited to be the body of Christ, a physical representation of God on earth. When the Church captures that beauty and fights for it and protects it, the people in that community of faith grow from just being members on a roster – to being empowered partners with Jesus. A true part of the bigger thing. Not just a warm body filling a seat on Sundays.
Church shouldn’t be a club, where you have to have the right credentials or status to be a part of it. It’s not just a place you come to take part in religious experiences. You shouldn’t commit to the institution or place of Pulpit Rock, but instead, commit to being a part of the people of Pulpit Rock. And so when we talk about what it means to belong at Pulpit Rock, we don’t use the word “membership.”
We think this is really more about PARTICIPATION– participating in the life and ways of Jesus alongside of us this year, as we all grow in our journeys together.
This idea means that we participate in 3 key ways…
1. Participate in Formation. We are actively seeking to grow in our relationship with Jesus.
Each of us is responsible for our own spiritual growth journey and we have been given the Holy Spirit to shape and free us to be what He’s created us to be.
2. Participate in Healthy Relationships. We are working at community that is a reflection of God’s love, kindness, and grace.
This looks like relating to others with humility and grace. Allowing others to think for themselves and trusting that the Spirit is at work in their lives. Seeing and loving people for who they are, understanding we are all on a journey. Allowing room for struggles and failures – no matter how complex or ugly. Committing to one another as a community.
3. Participate in Partnership. We are practicing God’s work in the world by investing our resources of time, money, and talent.
God is inviting us to partner with Him on something that matters, that has eternal significance. God has created each of us with gifts, talents, perspectives and experiences that are unique to us. And when we follow the Spirit’s lead into ways to pour those God-given things about us into the lives of others – we find purpose.
When we participate in these ways, church is beautiful, but they definitely don’t just happen. They take commitment and they take intentionality and without them we can tend to drift, finding ourselves just sitting in the seats on the sidelines.
Would you pray about your participation at Pulpit Rock? Whether you are new around here or whether you’ve been here for years, we ask you to consider these things the Spirit is leading us to participate in.
This is not about committing to attend. This is about participating IN.
We want you to be a part of this amazing group of people.
We want you here. This is what it means to be a part of the people of Pulpit Rock Church.
