Duplicated

I had the incredible opportunity to sit in on an event for pastors yesterday, where over 600 pastors and church leaders came together to be refreshed and receive serious amounts of knowledge from a healthy, respected, stable church leader or pastor. (And by healthy, I'm talking about spiritual, emotion and mental perspective)                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                  
As I shared on social media last night, the wisdom this Senior Pastor imparted wasn't gold...
​but Platinum!

I walked away with such a wealth of insight and profound perspectives on the church as preachers of the gospel, it's purpose as an organization and on prayer. I'm not sure there's a way for me to avoid not using some of it, as a catalyst for the next few days worth of posts.

Time flies so fast, that perhaps it was a few months ago, now as opposed to a few weeks, but we prayed one #missionsFriday on the topic of "won by one". How much of the burden could be relieved in ministry by believers reaching out and sharing the gospel? This was essentially one of many points made by the Senior Pastor that shared in the first "session".  The body of Christ should be reaching places of spiritual maturity where we are duplicating ourselves and not relying soley on the church, the pastors or the missionaries to do the work for us. 

It was a great reminder that the body of Christ, much like it can't get rid of other members, neither can it keep to itself. We must remain to true to Christ. We must remain true to preaching the gospel of Christ. We must remain focused on Christ as we lead others to do the same.

On this #misssionsFriday, the world doesn't need more of the church, but more of Christ! Thus pray to that end, that ego and personality, belief and doctrine, teaching and practice would stand in the way of people hearing and receiving the truth of the gospel of Christ. May we be careful to not get so caught up in doing church that we neglect the reality that we are called to be the church. Pray God would help us to relieve the burden of ministry on pastors and misionaries by reaching out to those around us as witnesses of the grace and mercy of God and the forgiveness of sins through repentance. May the truth of Gods Word be illuminated and revealed to those who have no frame of reference or concept of who God is and what Christ' life means for us today.

Duplicated.
As we take personal initiative to expand the kingdom of God.
As we are called to do.
For the gospel is not about us,
But Christ alone; and Him crucified.
For the glory of God.

- PNC