Letter from Pastor Bruce

Celebrating the Past – Building for the Future

Liberty Street Church of God –- Trinity Point Church of God

May 2011

Dear Friends,

We are coming to a pivotal point in the life of our congregation and fulfilling God’s purpose for us at this point in time. The Scripture says, (Acts 17:26 NIV)  From one man he made every nation of men, that they should inhabit the whole earth; and he determined the times set for them and the exact places where they should live. It is no coincidence that we are here together, each one of us, at this very time, at this place, following our Commander’s orders! God planned it that way. It’s no coincidence that we are outgrowing our present facility.

In this packet, we have all the necessary information that has been compiled over the last several months for our congregation to make a final decision about moving forward with building our new facility, “The Trinity Point Church of God.” This final decision is not up to me or the leadership of the church; it’s up to each one of us to hear the same thing from God.

Four things we need in order to fulfill God’s direction for our congregation:

1). Vision for the work of the Kingdom. The vision has been cast.  We believe that God has directed us thus far, and will continue to direct us in the future. The vision is to expand the ministry and our ability to reach more in our community because we have outgrown our current facility.  We will also be helping to set up the generations that will follow us to continue to labor for the Lord.

2). Sacrifice. Webster’s Dictionary defines sacrifice as 1). An offering, as of life or object, to a deity. 2) A giving up of one thing for the sake of another. This is a twofold sacrifice we are being asked of God to take on.  First, we are being asked to give sacrificially to the Capital Funds Campaign (CFC), over and above our tithes, to pay for the new facility.  Secondly, we are being asked to give of ourselves—with our time.  This twofold sacrifice, time and money, is for the sake of furthering our Christian influence in our community.   

3).  Commitment, both to God and to one another. The Bible says, (Prov 16:3 NIV)”Commit to the LORD whatever you do, and your plans will succeed.” When we take on a task that God has assigned us, it is important that we all work together to that end.  The reason we need to commit to one another is because we have taken on this responsibility together.  We are the body of Christ.  We are to make sure we take care of one another and the way we do that with respect to building a new facility is to work together, share the burden together, and see it through together. 

4). Prayer. C.H. Spurgeon said, “Whenever God determines to do a great work, He first sets His people to pray.” We are seeing God do great things because of the prayer ministry of our church family both corporately and individually. (James 5:16 NIV) “……The prayer of a righteous man is powerful and effective.” This is the key to our effectiveness in our community, and the key to the unity of the Spirit.

There are three things we need to be aware of:

1). We need to be on guard against the attacks of Satan on our congregation.  Satan would like nothing more than to disrupt the plans that are in place and to see us go into a state of chaos and confusion. He would like to see us discouraged and beaten down. He would like to use the circumstances that are around us to keep us from growing. The Scripture says, (1 Pet 5:8 NIV) “Be self-controlled and alert. Your enemy the devil prowls around like a roaring lion looking for someone to devour.” Dear friends, Satan infiltrates the ranks through people, sometimes those that appear to be the Saints of God. We have to keep watch and persevere in the task God has called us to. 

2). We are here for people!   People are always more important than buildings.  We have to always keep at the forefront of our thinking the need to focus on ministry, not the building. The building is important to our future with respect to reaching the lost, but it is a tool for ministry. It is a great financial investment into the Kingdom of God. The reason for buildings in the life of the church is for the good of people.

3). Don’t get burned out!  We need to pace ourselves.  We are running a marathon, not a sprint.   This endeavor goes along with all the other responsibilities we have to our families and other activities we have in our lives. But I want to remind us that the Bible says, (Heb 12:1 NIV)  “Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a great cloud of witnesses, let us throw off everything that hinders and the sin that so easily entangles, and let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us.” And (Gal 6:9 NIV)”Let us not become weary in doing good, for at the proper time we will reap a harvest if we do not give up.”

I am grateful for this challenge that we have before us, and I hope you all will embrace our continuing to fulfill God’s purpose as we plow the fields and reap the harvest of souls for God and His Kingdom. 

In His service,

Pastor Bruce