This week, I get to begin my second year of partnering with you in ministry. Every day, I thank God for the honor and privilege of being your preacher. You continue to treat my family with an unconditional love fitting for a church who calls itself a place to love and be loved. You have shown me kindness, grace, forgiveness, hospitality, and so much more. Thank you for letting me serve the Mandarin Family.
This first year has been amazing in many ways, yet I recognize that it’s just one year in the three decades plus of this church’s existence. I know that there were amazing days before me, and there will be amazing days after me. Our challenge is to make the most of the moments we get to share together right now.
So, over the next year, we’ll talk a lot about how we can most effectively carry out our mission of working together to guide people into a growing relationship with Jesus. We’ll talk a lot about our core principles of adoring God, belonging to each other, caring for our world, discipling intentionally and evangelizing authentically. Here are just three questions I’ve been thinking about a lot, and I hope you’ll start thinking about these questions as well:
1. Where is the Holy Spirit leading us when it comes to connecting with our community?
2. What will it take for us to be so in love with an irresistible Jesus that we can’t stop talking about Him?
3. With so many new faces around here, how can we deepen our connections with each other?
I can’t wait to see what God does in the year that lies ahead.
Mike Johnson
Don’t forget to ‘Take 5’