Dreaming of a Church Plant (Part 1)

More than we ask or imagine…

 Now to him who is able to do immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine, according to his power that is at work within us, to him be glory in the church and in Christ Jesus throughout all generations, for ever and ever! Amen.  Ephesians 3:20-21 (NIV)

 God has been teaching me to look beyond what circumstances say is possible.  God thrives on raising up unlikely heroes and creating something out of nothing.  Replay through your mind the great moments of Biblical history. 

A nation is established through a couple who is well beyond child-bearing years.  

The ancient world (including the line of Christ) is saved from famine through Joseph, a Hebrew slave-become-prisoner and the dream of a pagan king. 

Oppressed and powerless people go freely from their slave-drivers and take rich plunder with them.  It was not a revolt led by a fearless leader.  It was an exhausted and doubtful people with a frequently reluctant leader (Ex. 4:13; 5:22-23).  God did far beyond what anyone could have expected.  His glory was revealed.

Samuel anoints the young David as king.  He doesn’t look the part, though his brothers might.  But there’s another problem here—there’s already a king.  Nothing happens for years and years.  In fact the anointed one is persecuted, chased down, and lives life in hiding.  Was that prophet Samuel loony?  No, He trusted a God whose time schedule is different than that of the world—a God who will accomplish His purposes at just the right time.

So many more examples could be cited.  The Bible is filled to the brim with examples of God using His people to do what only He can take credit for.  I trust in the God of unlikely endings to stories, unlikely means of rescue, unlikely heroes.  I trust in the God who prefers an armorless youth with confidence in the LORD rather than a skilled warrior with state of the art weaponry—and confidence in himself.

These are some of our most capable leaders

In many ways Living Hope is weak and incompetent.  We don’t have finances.  We’re not astoundingly professional or knowledgeable.  For the most part we’re run by busy college students who are just beginning to learn about ministry. 

But God has done supernatural work in our lives.  He’s given us new eyes to see that we are unclean people who live and work among unclean people, and he’s given us a heart to cry out desperately for the kind of transformation that is needed.   Like He did for Isaiah, He showed us His glory, atoned for our debilitating sins, and told us, “Go.”  He’s given us a heart for a specific place, a small piece of NE Minneapolis where needs are visible and, frankly, insurmountable by human standards.  No worries!  He’s given us the ability to trust the God of the unlikely to do far beyond what any of us could ask or imagine.

For a long time, those who have a heart for this place have been asking God to plant a church here and to use it to show His matchless power and glory to the watching world.  Now Steve has asked us to begin a 40-day period of prayer and fasting.  We are committing to come together in crying out to God relentlessly and listening to His voice quietly. 

We begin these forty days on Tuesday, January 18.  Let me know if you’d like to join us in this and get emails from Steve through this time.  And keep checking this blog, as I will be posting about what excites me as I dream of a church plant here.  Who knows what God will do?  But I trust that He will honor our humble prayers, and I’m going to expect Him to do even greater than what I ask or imagine!