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May 13, 2018

Circle Together

Micah 5:2
Draw the Circle – Part 6 – Circle Together

Romans 15:30 ~ May 13, 2018

 Introduction

          This morning, I am coming to you in a very different vein than what you normally get. This morning, I am coming to you not so much with teaching, although I will do some of that. More importantly, I am coming to you with a plea this morning.

          Now don’t get scared or uncomfortable…yet! Many times, when someone is coming with a plea it means they are asking for money. Relax, I am not asking for money…this week…but I am asking for something from you. I am asking for something all of us can do no matter what season of life we find ourselves in.

          This morning, I am asking you for a commitment to pray for me and for your church.

          This morning, we are heading into to final six days of this 40-day prayer challenge. Does anyone feel like it has passed quickly? I certainly do!

          Let me remind you that this challenge has never only been about 40 days of prayer. In fact, in the first message on April 8, I told you that these 40 days were all about building a habit of prayer that would continue on day 41 and beyond.

          As I prayed and thought about this series, I had distinct impression that God wanted me to share the details of something I have only alluded to in the past. I sensed that God wanted me to share the details of the vision he laid on my heart in the summer of 2014. Let me fill in some background for those who are new to Trinity since January 2015.

          In 2014, Trinity celebrated its 100th anniversary. Such milestones are natural times to assess where we’ve been, what God has done and to think about where we are going and what God wants to do in the future. I spent the summer of 2014 doing just that.

          God laid some very specific things on my heart and up until now, I have only shared some of them. I am going to share the whole thing in just a few minutes. Until today, only our deacons, staff, my wife, and my closest friends have seen or heard this list in its entirety.

          This is not our mission statement – to help people take the next step on their spiritual journey. This is not our vision statement – to be a welcoming place of love and acceptance where people can find grace and healing as they are reunited with God and His family. This is not our ministry process – (1) meeting the family (2) getting to know the family (3) committing to the family (4) serving the family and (5) leading the family.

          All of those things came to be as Pastor Troy and I worked to prepare for our 100th year and beyond. Those of you who were present on January 4, 2015, and the weeks after that heard me say that we are not trying to write a new book in our next 100 years, but we’re simply moving on to the next chapter.

          Before I outline the list of things I first shared with the board in October 2014, I want to share the introduction that preceded it.

          What I am sharing with you now is the culmination of a journey I started in June of this year. I have spent the past three months praying, dreaming, listening, journaling, and waiting as I sought to understand what God wants to do at Trinity as we embark on our second century.

This has been a slow process that has caused me to question my calling, my abilities, and even my sanity at times. It has been a draining experience as my human family has faced spiritual attacks that sought to derail the process of understanding God’s will for our church family.

However, I am convinced that I have heard from God and that I clearly understand the vision He wants us to pursue. For many years, I have prayed for myself and others this prayer concerning God’s will: God, help me know your will, understand your will, and do your will. I offer that same prayer now as I outline for you the vision God has planted in my heart.

I will caution you that parts of this vision will sound presumptuous, parts will sound absurd and much of it may seem impossible. However, as sure as you and I are in this room together right now, I know with every fiber of my being that this is of God. He has graciously confirmed that fact through multiple people and events over the last three months.

I understand that there will be mixed reactions to what I’m about to share. Some folks will be excited. Some will undoubtedly be underwhelmed. Some may question my ability to hear God. I get all that and I invite you to come to me with any questions or concerns you might have.

These are not Rob Culler’s best ideas for Trinity. You don’t want that and neither do I. Having said all that, here’s what I believe God has given me for our next chapter. Beyond that, only He knows what He has for us.

Dreams for Trinity

We will create a faith-based artistic culture in Western Maryland and the surrounding area.

  • We will develop worship teams/bands 
  • We will develop instrumentalists, vocalists, and musical groups 
  • We will develop a dramatic arts ministry for sketches, plays, and musicals 
  • We will develop other arts-based ministries as needs/opportunities arise. 

We will serve as an extension center for students from FSU (and other schools) to use their talents and skills to serve the kingdom in media, communication, arts, and other areas 

We will be a training center for ministry  

  • We will pursue the opportunity to become an extension campus for the University of Valley Forge (or another school) 
  • We will host ministry interns  
  • We will train and release members of our Trinity family to pursue God’s call on their lives through missions and/or other ministries

We will serve as a resource center for area churches 

  • We will provide materials 
    • We will produce the highest quality materials that we can produce. 
    • We will freely share them with churches/ministers who cannot afford them. 
    • We will share them for reasonable fees to churches/ministers who can afford to pay. (These funds will be used to produce other materials.) 
  • We will provide training 
    • Some of the training will be produced by Trinity 
    • Some of the training will be hosted by Trinity 
    • Some of the training will be paid for by Trinity (We will provide scholarships for area pastors who cannot afford to participate.) 

We will provide ministry teams – these teams will minister in area churches and other venues that open to us.

  • Music
  • Arts 
  • Teaching/preaching 
  • Children’s ministry 
  • Student Ministry 

We will be a hub for missions activity 

  • We will continue to offer missions opportunities at home and abroad 
  • We will plant churches (Say CHECK on that one!)
  • This category feels like it’s going to get much bigger than it already is

We will develop a ministry targeted to Frostburg State University
By impacting the campus… 

  • We will impact our area 
  • We will impact other areas of our state 
  • We will impact other states in our nation 
  • We will impact nations of the world 
    (Say CHECK on that one!)

We will host a diversity of support and recovery ministries based on the needs of our church family and community, including but not limited to…

  • Divorce recovery 
  • Grief recovery 
  • Life-controlling issues 

We will provide counseling services to members of our Trinity family 

  • Pastoral counseling 
  • Professional counseling 

          Folks let me make an honest assessment of where we are: In some ways, we live in podunk nowhere. In fact, while trying to account for God’s blessings on our church in an area with of aging population and economic depression, Gary Morris asked the question, “Why Midlothian?” and we have settled on this answer, “Why not Midlothian?”

          When I think of that question and answer, I can’t help but think of God’s words through the prophet Micah (5:2):

“But you, Bethlehem Ephrathah, though you are small among the clans of Judah, out of you will come for me one who will be ruler over Israel, whose origins are from of old, from ancient times.”

Let me offer a paraphrase:

          But you, Trinity Midlothian, though you are small among the towns of Maryland, out of you will come works that defy your size and condition and bring glory to my name.

           Folks, I don’t fully understand why God called me to ministry. I don’t know fully know why God has called us to these things. Most of this is beyond my skill and ability as your pastor. I don’t have much to offer. It would seem that our area doesn’t have much to offer. But remember these things:

  • God anoints that available.
  • Where God guides, God provides.

To that end, I ask you to commit to praying for your church and your pastor. In asking that of you, let me share six benefits of praying together.

Benefits of Praying Together

  1. Praying together brings a sense of belonging.[1]
  2. Praying together brings new passion and understanding to a need.[2]
  3. Praying together brings a greater sense of unity.[3]
  4. Praying together increases the faith of a congregation to believe God for the miraculous?[4]
  5. Praying together moves people from seeking their own purposes to desiring God’s purposes.[5]
  6. Praying together binds us together when we share an answered prayer.[6]

 Conclusion

          Let me close by echoing these requests from the Apostle Paul:

30 I urge you, brothers and sisters, by our Lord Jesus Christ and by the love of the Spirit, to join me in my struggle by praying to God for me. (Romans 15:30)

 

[1] Connie Lee, “The Power of Praying Together,” Guideposts, https://www.guideposts.org/faith-and-prayer/prayer-stories/pray-effectively/the-power-of-praying-together, accessed May 13, 2018.

[2] Lee.

[3] David Mathis, “Nine Profits of Praying with Company,” https://www.desiringgod.org/articles/nine-profits-of-praying-with-company, accessed May 13, 2018.

[4] Jonathan Graf, “The Benefits of Praying Together,” https://www.prayerleader.com/resources/articles-2/the-benefits-of-praying-together/, accessed May 13, 2018.

[5] Graf.

[6] “10 Benefits or Praying with a Group,” https://fruitfulwords.wordpress.com/2010/12/06/10-benefits-of-praying-with-a-group/, accessed May 13, 2018.

Series Information

This series is based on Mark Batterson's book, Draw the Circe: The 40 Day Prayer Challenge. 

We are embarking on a 40-day journey to develop the habit of prayer that will continue on day 41 and beyond.