News and Giving
| OCEF Church Planters P.O. Box 2489 Grants Pass, OR 97528 (tel)541.660.1790 ocef@charter.net |
OCEF church planters
Do you want your church to grow?
When asked the question: “do you want your church to
grow”, most church members will quickly answer “YES!” I am
confident that all Christians want the church to grow and
increase but if most church members could be confidentially
honest, many would say, “It would be okay for the church to
grow to some degree, as long as the new people don’t make
any changes to church as I like it”. Some believe it would be
great for the church to grow as long as the growth takes place
in Africa, China, India, or in some other town. For others the
word GROW has become one of those words which shouldn’t
be used in church circles. For them the idea of growth
somehow carries the underlying theme of change and losing
control.
So perhaps we could look at this whole growth topic from
another angle. Do you want to be “like Christ”? Do you want to
be “Christian”? To be a Christian is to be like Christ; which is
to believe and obey and to carry out the greatest command (to
love God and love others) by carrying out the great
commission (to make disciples who will make disciples).
Maybe the issue isn’t “Do you want your church to grow”, but
who have you brought to Jesus this year and who have they
brought to Jesus since being discipled by you? If every
person who loves God would love those around them who do
not yet know Jesus by introducing them to Jesus the issue of
growth would be a non-issue because (as in the book of Acts)
the Lord would be adding to our number day by day and the
gates of Hell could not stop the advancement of the Church.
For the success of the mission of Christ,
Bob Wood
Executive Director
• Plan on attending Ascent Christian Churches 3rd birthday
in Prineville on November 6th!
• Reminder: We will be sending out the newsletter every
other month. The next newsletter you receive will be in
November.
When asked the question: “do you want your church to
grow”, most church members will quickly answer “YES!” I am
confident that all Christians want the church to grow and
increase but if most church members could be confidentially
honest, many would say, “It would be okay for the church to
grow to some degree, as long as the new people don’t make
any changes to church as I like it”. Some believe it would be
great for the church to grow as long as the growth takes place
in Africa, China, India, or in some other town. For others the
word GROW has become one of those words which shouldn’t
be used in church circles. For them the idea of growth
somehow carries the underlying theme of change and losing
control.
So perhaps we could look at this whole growth topic from
another angle. Do you want to be “like Christ”? Do you want to
be “Christian”? To be a Christian is to be like Christ; which is
to believe and obey and to carry out the greatest command (to
love God and love others) by carrying out the great
commission (to make disciples who will make disciples).
Maybe the issue isn’t “Do you want your church to grow”, but
who have you brought to Jesus this year and who have they
brought to Jesus since being discipled by you? If every
person who loves God would love those around them who do
not yet know Jesus by introducing them to Jesus the issue of
growth would be a non-issue because (as in the book of Acts)
the Lord would be adding to our number day by day and the
gates of Hell could not stop the advancement of the Church.
For the success of the mission of Christ,
Bob Wood
Executive Director
• Plan on attending Ascent Christian Churches 3rd birthday
in Prineville on November 6th!
• Reminder: We will be sending out the newsletter every
other month. The next newsletter you receive will be in
November.
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Access past newsletters! Click here to see how God has worked
through the ministry of OCEF.
through the ministry of OCEF.
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