Envisioning a Christ-like Church

Starting a brand new church like Lake Hills requires the church planter (a term referring to one who starts a new church) to learn to “see” or “envision” the church as God would have it to be.  Some people say this must come to the church planter supernaturally and others say it comes through the scripture.  I personally don’t see these two as being mutually exclusive!  From wherever the inspiration may come, one thing is certain: God must be the author.  After all, Jesus did say, “…I will build My church, and all the powers of hell will not conquer it.” (Matthew 16:18 NLT)

The following was written recently by David Kendall, one of the world leaders in the Free Methodist Church with whom we are associated.

“I envision a church that reclaims our design and destiny as created in God’s image and participates in God’s plan to reclaim, restore or recreate all that is.  I envision a church that reflects the beauty of that image in the person of Christ, and that God empowers by his Spirit to carry on the very ministries of Christ.  I envision a church that follows Jesus Christ to the people, to all the people, in such desperate need, a church that finds a way to speak and act to address and eliminate the siege [of. poverty, wars, diseases, ethnic hatred and terrorism]. I envision a church that understands the call to holiness and to make disciples in just these terms because that is most consistent with the clearest picture God gives us of what God has planned—the person of Jesus himself.”

“Such a church will step up, meet the challenges of the present moment, and give the world cause to wonder whether the message we preach isn’t good after all!”  (You can read the entire article here.)

I envision Lake Hills Community Church to become such a church by the grace of God — a church modeled after the person of Jesus himself.

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