SEPTEMBER 14, 2023
Dear Central Church,
Sitting on my back deck this morning, I noticed something was different in the air. The cooler temperatures, the delayed sunrise, and the handful of leaves scattered in my yard signaled that autumn was coming. As seasons transition from one to another, it reminds us of the earth’s annual renewal cycle.
I find a similar process at work in our journey with Jesus. A vibrant and growing relationship with Jesus will experience seasonal and regular changes. Jesus remains the same, but we are growing people who learn new things and adapt to new situations. We should not expect to be the same person we were when we first came to faith. By grace, we can be more like Jesus today than we were yesterday.
A few years ago, I discovered a book that describes these changes in the life of the believer, and I’ve found it to be incredibly helpful in my life. It’s called SoulShift: The Measure of a Transformed Life, and it describes seven different shifts that happen on our journey towards Christlikeness. A SoulShift is a change in the deepest part of our being that makes us more like Jesus and less like our old selves. Becoming like Jesus is to absorb the mind of Jesus into ours until we think and act like him without even trying.
No one is too young and you’re never too old to experience a “soulshift.” Join us this Sunday as we begin this new sermon series, and let’s trust God together to use this experience to draw us closer to Him and to each other.
By the way, these are exciting days at Central Church. Here are a few things I especially think you need to know about:
Welcome Pastor Bethany Tibbs!
Pastor Bethany Tibbs and her family have safely moved to Kansas and are getting settled in their new home in Gardner!
We are excited to welcome Bethany, Travis, and Charlie to the Central Church Family. Their first Sunday with us is THIS Sunday! We’ll have a reception for them in between services. Plan now to bring them a welcome card and let’s shower them with gift cards as they begin their new life here. If you’d like to connect with Pastor Bethany or want to send her a note of welcome, her new Central Church email is: btibbs@centralchurchonline.com.
Celebration Sunday - September 24
In this special service, we will celebrate the spiritual milestones of baptism, baby dedications, and church membership. Each one marks a particular season in our lives and represents God’s grace at work. I especially want to encourage you to consider baptism if you have never taken this step in your walk with God. It’s an “outward sign of an inward grace.” Let others know what God is doing in your life and allow your church family to celebrate that with you. For more information about baptism or any of these spiritual milestones, click here.
Engage Day - October 7
Jesus said in John 21, “As the Father has sent me, so am I sending you.” We are a “sent” people, and we are called to engage our world with the good news of Jesus. Engage Day is when we come together and extend to others the life-giving community we have experienced from God. It’s filled with meaningful service projects that impact our community for Christ. We have several different ministry partners in the greater Kansas City area that are eager to partner with us. Engage Day is October 7 and begins at the church at 8:30 AM with breakfast and devotional time. We are then sent to our various projects, most of which will conclude around 2 PM. To see a list of available projects and to sign up, click here.
We are especially encouraging Life Groups to sign up together for a project. Groups that serve together, grow together!
Faith Promise Sunday - October 8
Being a “sent people” also means that we engage our world! By participating with Nazarene missionaries around the world, we are connected to what God is doing in places we could never go. On Faith Promise Sunday, we’ll hear from Rev. Astrid Camacaro, who is the regional coordinator of compassionate ministries for the South American Region. She will share how our support of the World Evangelism Fund enables local churches in global contexts to transform their communities through ministries of compassion and justice.
Through this annual emphasis on the global and local mission of the church, we have the opportunity to participate in what God is doing around the world. We call it “Faith Promise” because we are challenged to make a financial promise in faith to support these efforts. Please begin thinking and praying about what God would have you do over and above your regular tithes and offerings to support His mission at home and around the world.
Until He’s Finished,
Pastor Mark
