The Spirit of the Lord is upon us!
The spirit of a church is hard to truly measure. It is subjective and intuitive to make determinations about how a community of believers are responding to God's movement. Through the years as a consultant, I have assisted organizations with assessments of their ministries and the spirit of their community. Pastors would say, "it feels different around here," or "people are just excited to be here with one another." While the phrases differed, the meaning was the same. God is doing something that we cannot clearly articulate.
How does a community know when things are going well; when the future is bright, and they are experiencing the blessings of God? I have often said, “It is something you know when you experience it.” Hillspring is experiencing the blessings of God! It is not because we have weekly visitors, or that we just raised $1.5 million for community engagement and campus enhancements, or that we have QuadW interns this summer. These are all results of God's movement and our response. It is our openness, awareness, and willingness to listen, learn, and respond to the spirit that is rooting us in God's blessings.
The sign of a healthy church is that it thinks beyond itself to focus on others and their needs. A healthy congregation opens itself to the movement of the Holy Spirit. Imaginations are guided by grace and empowered by a belief that God is within us. A healthy church looks beyond what has been and considers what can be.
Hillspring is experiencing a fresh movement of God, and like those of the past, we are called to be good stewards of what God is doing. There are many things ahead that will challenge us as a congregation. The fall elections, an increasingly divided and polarized country, and reaching deeper into communities that are different from ours will present us with opportunities to live our faith and provide a greater witness for those who would turn the Christian faith into a political organization. The challenges before us are great, but if we continue to respond to the movement of God’s Spirit among us, we will overcome barriers and challenges.
The Spirit of the Lord is upon us! Let us be good stewards of the blessings of God. Let us be witnesses of faith. Let us be light in the midst of darkness.
Steve Lewis