40 Days Possibilities

By Pastor George Antonakos

Wow! Haven't we been on quite a ride so far in 2003?! Rewind back to February when it was suggested that the days we are in were "preparing for prime time." Lent and the days leading up to Easter were the "sanding and scraping stage" of discipline through life-journaling. Easter began 40 Days of Purpose which served as a "primer coat" of inspiration, making Central Church ready for a nice shiny "finish coat," that will be applied as a new pastor is identified and Central takes bold steps into the future.

We are in a celebration mode marveling over what the Holy Spirit has done in us in just four short months. Just like "Arnold" said at the congregational meeting on January 26, 2003 - "We need to get in shape" (supply Austrian accent). We have seen the fruit of spiritual discipline and we are being called to "excel still more." We have been reminded that spiritual growth takes time, but it also requires us to balance God's five purposes for our lives and our congregation - Worship, Fellowship, Discipleship, Ministry and Evangelism.

We will always be seeking to balance the five purposes, but a question I ask as Interim Pastor is - "What should be emphasized more as we move into the summer of transition?" One could make a case for a focus on any one of the five purposes but I am inclined toward Fellowship. You may recall that doesn't just mean "chewing the fat" around the coffee pot with each other, but a deep, progressive commitment to the Body of Christ locally.

How can that best happen? For starters the call is out to become part of the membership of Central Church. If you have not formally united with us then I invite you to be present at our one-day new member class on Saturday, June 14th. Elsewhere in this publication you will find information about the class. This class is being compressed into one day for the following reasons:

1. It is a structure that facilitates present and future growth in that it can be offered more frequently;
2. It is being planned as one part of a larger discipleship process, not an end in itself;
3. It will allow more people to assess whether they are ready to make a commitment to membership at Central; class attendance does not require a decision and some may be encouraged to wait if they cannot subscribe to a membership covenant.

Secondly, fellowship that invites progressive growth toward community will always be marked by healthy relationships. For this reason I want to challenge each of us to remain in small groups of some kind. If you are not intending to stick with your 40 Days group then why not start a Life-Journaling group with three or four others? Or why not do both? You can meet to do devotions and share together in the space of 60 to 75 minutes (or more) anywhere - in homes, at the mall food court, at Barnes and Noble, Panera, church, anywhere. And you can meet at anytime convenient to those in the group. Remember that discipleship at its most basic level is discipline in doing devotions.

Thirdly, for the remainder of my time at Central, and in concert with others, our summer sermon focus will deal with relationships - I'm calling it "Life's One Anothers." This too will allow us to bring our Fellowship Purpose more into balance.

So, there you have some post forty day possibilities -

1. Join or recommit to Central,
2. Stay in small groups and/or start a Journaling group and
3. Don't miss worship this summer as we focus on relationships from many angles.

Can't you just hear Arnold now? "Do these things and you will be extraordinary, fantastic, unbelievable!" - in fellowship together!