Life Bridge Enjoys a “Rest Stop”

This past Monday, July 10th, some people at Life Bridge gathered together to enjoy a “Rest Stop.”  The evening’s activities, which lasted from 7 until 8pm, included a time of worship, a message from Pete, and a celebration of what God has done in recent weeks.  The time was designed to help participants Rejuvenate, Celebrate, and then Accelerate back into the many ministry activities in which they all participate.  The time was well received and many of the participants that evening stayed well beyond the 8pm finish time – talking and celebrating all that the LORD has done in and through His people.

A time of rest before and after intense ministry is not unusual.  In fact, we find the pattern throughout Scripture.  God gave the Israelites a day of rest, a year of rest, and even a year of Jubilee when they began walking with God in the wilderness.  Moses spent 40 years of rest before going up against Pharaoh.  The prophet Elijah had down time of rest before and after his encounter with the prophets of Baal.  Even the Apostles were told to wait and rest until the Holy Spirit empowered them to go out on the day of Pentecost.  It is good to take the time and live out what the Psalmist said, “Return to your rest, O my soul, For the LORD has dealt bountifully with you” (Psalms 116:7 [NASB]).

Rest Stop began with a time of acoustic worship with choruses and hymns that helped all of us let go of the details of life and focus completely on God.  It was followed by a message just for mission-mined members who are participating in any of the many ministries that Life Bridge does to serve one another and its surrounding community.  We celebrated what God has done in and through Life Bridge members in recent weeks and then concluded the time giving it all over to God in prayer.

Rest Stop clearly is filling a need in our ministry-busy community, so we will continue offering this as a monthly opportunity to rest.  Service opportunities will not be offered this one time each month, so that ministry supporters, participants, coordinators, servant leaders, and builders can take the time to rest in the LORD.

Rest Stop will occur on the second Monday of each month.  The scheduled time together will last from 7 until 8pm, but participants are welcome to remain as long as the Spirit leads them.  Our next gathering will be August 14th @ 7pm.

See you at the next Rest Stop!

The Church’s Economic System

Now that we’ve looked at God’s Original, Old Covenant, and New Covenant Economic Systems, we can no focus in specifically on God, work, and money in the Church.  It all starts with God’s mission for the Church.  The Church, as we mentioned in earlier posts, is supposed to be a visible embodiment of God’s Kingdom here on earth just as it is in heaven.  While this was the mission of Israel under the Old Covenant, the Church under the New Covenant is also charged with the mission of actively bringing new people into God’s Kingdom.

New Covenant Economic System

God’s Original Economic System needed to change when people began living together in cities and started to develop into nations.  People needed to learn how to live in close proximity and get along as God designed and desired.  The Old Covenant Economic System, set up with the Israelites, allowed us to see how it can and should be done.  When they did things right, the way God told them to do it, they were set apart as a Holy Nation for the rest of the world to see.

Old Covenant Economic System

In my last post about God’s Original Economic System, we looked at the way God designed the economy with Adam and Eve living in the Garden of Eden.  In this system, God provided for all their needs (Genesis 1:29; 2:10-14).  They needed to work, which gave them a sense of purpose, but the work was easy (Genesis 2:15).  They developed loving relationships with God and one another (Genesis 2:25).  In this system, there was plenty for their children, too, so they could be fruitful, multiply, and fill the earth (Genesis 1:27-28).  When they sinned, they were kicked out of the Garden (Genesis 3:23-24).  Childbirth became painful and work much harder (Genesis 3:16-19).  But the same economic system would be in play for many, many years.  God provided.  They worked the way God said and they had everything that they needed.

God’s Original Economic System

Often times, when I am trying to understand God’s design for an area of our lives, I go back to God’s original picture in the Garden of Eden.  Work and finances are no exception to this rule.  God gives us insight into His original plan for our lives.

Now no shrub had yet appeared on the earth and no plant had yet sprung up, for the LORD God had not sent rain on the earth and there was no one to work the ground, but streams came up from the earth and watered the whole surface of the ground. Then the LORD God formed a man from the dust of the ground and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life, and the man became a living being. (Genesis 2:5-7 NIV)

When God breathed the first breath of life into the first person, God had already prepared the earth to sustain what this man would need to live.  Air was provided for the second breath and the third.  Water was prepared for the first drink and a water cycle was put in place to keep a fresh supply of water coming.  Food was even prepared and then the man was placed right in the middle of this continuous food supply.

Now the LORD God had planted a garden in the east, in Eden; and there he put the man he had formed. The LORD God made all kinds of trees grow out of the ground--trees that were pleasing to the eye and good for food… (Genesis 2:8-9a NIV)

God provided everything man and woman would need.  This provision, though, came with a sense of purpose each day.  The garden would provide food to eat, water to drink, and air to breath.  But, the garden would need to be worked and cared for.  This would be the job of the human beings. This would be their reason to get up in the morning.

A river watering the garden flowed from Eden; from there it was separated into four headwaters. The name of the first is the Pishon; it winds through the entire land of Havilah, where there is gold. (The gold of that land is good; aromatic resin and onyx are also there.) The name of the second river is the Gihon; it winds through the entire land of Cush. The name of the third river is the Tigris; it runs along the east side of Ashur. And the fourth river is the Euphrates. The LORD God took the man and put him in the Garden of Eden to work it and take care of it. (Genesis 2:10-15 NIV)

What was God’s original design?  It was simple.  Human beings would live together in the Garden of Eden.  God would be with them as well.  They would have a sense of purpose as they worked in and cared for the Garden of Eden as well.  Their lives were perfect.  There was nothing hidden and nothing to hide from God or one another.  This was God’s economic system in the Garden of Eden.

An Example (2015)

I mentioned in an earlier post that often times “we look at church finances the same way as we look at finances in politics, business, or non-profit organizations.”  I also stated that “none of these comparisons actually matches the pictures we find in Scripture.”  These are big statements that merit further investigation and explanation.  Rather than diving right into the Scriptures, though, I’d like to set up our investigation into the Scriptures with a real-life example.  We’re going to look at a slice of the financial picture of Life Bridge Christian Church for 2015.

Business Perspective

Businesses exist to make money.  They find or develop a product or service that can be sold for a profit.  Income from the sales support ongoing business expenses (like staff, buildings, equipment, and office expenses), ongoing business investments (like consumer and trade marketing), as well as research and development for future business endeavors. The profits from the company are used to provide a return on investment for the owners/shareholders.