Sunday Reflections

December 15, 2009

Sunday Reflections

 Rick Cline

Wow! To God be the glory! Amazing! Incredible! Praise God!

Just some of the verbal responses to Sunday’s announcement of financial commitments to our “Now Is The Time” campaign:

$981,556

When we began this campaign five months ago, we felt like Abraham when it says in Hebrews 11:8 that “By faith Abraham…obeyed and went… even though he did not know where he was going.” We began this journey not sure just where it would take us, and not clear as to how we were going to get there. We did believe that God had led us to the decision to remain in this location of downtown Wichita. We did believe that God was calling us to be more intentional about ministry outside the walls of our building. We did believe that God was ready to help us move into an exciting new future of ministry in the city. It was time for us to do like Abraham, who by faith “obeyed and went.”

We have prayed a simple prayer the last five months: “Lord, what do you want to do through me?” We give God glory for the answer received last Sunday, a result of so many RiverWalk households responding to God’s whisper and nudge.

Sunday was one of the great days in the 106 year history of our congregation.

Now we turn our attention to the use of these funds in expanding our outreach in the downtown community, and upgrading our facilities for more effective ministry. We will be announcing some “next steps” in early January; there will be opportunities for more RiverWalk members to be involved in helping us turn dreams into reality.

Five months ago we went out, not entirely clear as to where we were going. Last Sunday we experienced the blessing of faith that dares to embrace the truth of Ephesians 3:20, 21: “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, forever and ever! Amen.

Immeasurably more than ALL we ask or imagine…to Him be glory!

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The Present Future

December 15, 2009

The Present Future

 Scott Waltman

Our last class period focused on reality #4 entitled “The Return to Spiritual Formation.” Philippians 3:10 states “I want to know Christ…” McNeal, in his book says that despite that example from Paul, we have “turned our churches into groups of people who are studying God as though they were taking a course at school or attending a business seminar. We aim at the head. We don’t deal in relationship. And we wonder why there is no passion for Jesus and His mission.” Many church leaders (myself included) have made it their goal to develop better church members, when God would have us about the business of developing followers of Jesus. How can we turn that around? Jesus said that He “didn’t come to be served but to serve.” Maybe that’s a starting point! I think God smiles when we are serving others. I think we look more like Jesus when we serve others. And “spiritual formation” is really all about having Jesus formed in us, isn’t it? (Romans 8:29-30)

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WOW

December 15, 2009

Wow!

 Scott Waltman

An amazing Sunday morning. The culmination of lots prayer, hard work, and decisions that will frame the future of this community of people for years to come. Approximately $1,000,000 committed over the next three years to ministry and updating ministry areas of our building. Seeing the amount committed was in itself an amazing thing to me, but the most amazing thing to me was seeing the faith of so many. I’ve been privileged to rub shoulders with so many people of faith over the years, but now I’m rubbing shoulders with people of “great” faith. We are not, by and large, a wealthy congregation but we are a blessed congregation. One of the first descriptions of this family that I heard over 22 years ago was “when there is a need, this family comes through.” I think we’ve proven that to be true one more time. God is good! God is faithful! God is at work in His people! God is at work in our world! So many promises of God, through scripture, are flooding my mind right now but the verse that keeps coming to the top is from Luke 6:38, “Give, and it will be given to you. A good measure, pressed down, shaken together and running over, will be poured into your lap. For with the measure you use, it will be measured to you.” I can’t wait to see what God will do with the money committed and with those who gave. Thanks to all in this family who have believed God’s promises.

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Sunday Reflections: One of those Moments

November 23, 2009

Sunday Reflections: One of Those Moments

 Rick Cline

You know the feeling…there is an event approaching, there is a lot of build-up to it, you know it’s an important opportunity, you have done everything humanly possible to prepare for it, and you have spent weeks calling upon God to bless this moment as only He is capable of doing. You try to imagine how it will look and feel, what the response will be. And the moment arrives…

Last Sunday morning (November 22) was one of those moments for me. It was commitment Sunday for our “Now Is The Time” campaign. The ground work for this day began months ago; and since August dozens of RiverWalk members have invested time and energy, preparing the church for this day. For months we have had a simple prayer: “Lord, what do you you want to do through me?” The last 24 hours leading up to “the moment” were spent in prayer–every time slot was spoken for as we called upon God for His glory to be made known among the RiverWalk family.

Near the end of  the Sunday morning assembly, we called for commitment cards to be brought to the front of the auditorium. I bowed my head, closed my eyes, listened to the song that was playing, and prayed for hearts to be moved. And they were…people came from all over the auditorium to place their commitment cards in the basket.

It was incredible! It was amazing! It was God answering so many prayers,  putting His power and glory on display through RiverWalk members. It was everything I thought it might be…and so much more!

When God shows up, the ordinary becomes extraordinary. When God is present, the routine is suddenly energized. When God shows up, our human effort is multiplied many times over by the power of the Holy Spirit. When God makes His presence known, lives are changed.

God made His presence known last Sunday. It was one of those moments.

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Prayer Walk for RiverWalk

November 20, 2009

Prayer Walk for RiverWalk

 Rick Cline

Beginning tomorrow morning (Saturday, November 21) at 9:00 a.m., and continuing through 9:00 a.m. Sunday morning, November 22, the RiverWalk family will be engaged in a 24 hour prayer vigil. RiverWalk members have signed up for fifteen minute time slots. Where and how we pray will be personal preference, but I want to encourage you to take advantage of two opportunities that would take you outside your home, and into different environments, for your prayer time.

First, you can come to the church building and pray through various prayer centers that have been set up to help us focus on different elements of our “Now Is The Time” campaign. One center focuses on our community outreach, another on our mission efforts, another on RiverWalk children. There is a center where you can jot down or journal some of your thoughts and ideas about the whole experience. The building will be open from 10:00 a.m. through noon, and again from 4:00 — 8:00 p.m. Even if your prayer time does not correspond to those times, plan to drop by the building for a few minutes and pray around some of the centers.

Another way to spend your time in prayer is to take a walk around sections of the city that are the focus of much of our community outreach. You could walk around the Franklin Elementary School neighborhood; or take a walk through parts of the downtown area. You could journey along the river walk behind our building. But as you walk, pray–for people, for families, for our efforts at Franklin Elementary, for our outreach into the downtown area.

In 2 Kings 7:1 Solomon prays at the dedication of the Temple: “When Solomon finished praying, fire came down from heaven and consumed the burn offering and the sacrifices, and the glory of the Lord filled the Temple.” Fire coming down from heaven would get our attention, wouldn’t it? But is it possible that even without the visual effect of fire, we can still experience the glory of the Lord filling the temple during our 24 hours of prayer? After all, the New Testament says that each of us as Christ followers is a temple or dwelling place of the Holy Spirit (see 1 Corinthians 6:19,20).

May the glory of the Lord fill our hearts–our temple–this weekend as together we pray for God’s guidance and blessing.

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Present Future

November 18, 2009

Present Future

 Scott Waltman

Tonight we will discuss last weeks lesson “The Shift from Church Growth to Kingdom Growth.” Many of us grew up being taught that the “church” and the “kingdom” were the same. Seemingly, we read right over verses such as Luke 17:21 which stated “the kingdom is within you.” We even were taught to rephrase Jesus’ prayer to “Your kingdom HAS come” thinking that church and kingdom were the same (at least I was). Jesus only mentioned church twice in His recorded ministry but continually referred to the kingdom. We’ve developed our view of the church and made it something God never intended (at least that’s my opinion) and have spent very little time trying to understand what this “kingdom” Jesus talked about was. Two very simple definitions: “church” means the called out, the gathered, the gathering, the meeting together. “Kingdom” is when God makes a decisive intervention in a person’s life. God’s kingdom becomes real to us when we decide to become “living sacrifices” by being transformed (Romans 12:2). The church gets to be God’s partner in His redeeming work in the world. The church is not the destination, the kingdom is. I know I haven’t articulated this as well as someone else could, but the bottom line is that we’ve spent far too much energy, time, and money on trying to build the church and not on trying to build the kingdom. That’s why we’re so frustrated when someone says “the church culture” has collapsed. People in the present generations are not wanting to join what they see as the “traditional church” but they do want God in their lives. Thus, we must move from thinking about “church growth” to seeking “kingdom growth.” What do you think?

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Elders’ Message ~ November 2009

November 18, 2009

Elders’ Message ~ November 2009

What a blessing to be at the all-church dinner Sunday night, November 15th, at Exploration Place. Listening to our brothers and sisters who spoke and shared their hopes and dreams of what we can do for our Lord’s Kingdom was faith-building. We have remarkable talent, and we have a true love for God that lifts and inspires us. It was so encouraging to see the growing pledges of money to serve our Lord. I watched Melody at the next table sign messages for our deaf brothers and sisters and I see the mission to be open and bring the good news and fellowship to all. RiverWalk is so thoughtful and willing to serve all who come. White and black and hispanic, young and old, rich and poor, all were present and part of our church family. I feel that the Holy Spirit is at work and will open new hearts in Wichita to the Lord. God’s Kingdom can grow from this campaign and our individual walk with the Lord. With unselfish motives that seek to save the lost, we will build on the wonderful foundation we have inherited and leave to those who come after us a living and growing Lord’s Kingdom. May the Lord watch over you and bless you.

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Where Is God Leading Us? (continued)

November 12, 2009

Where Is God Leading Us? (continued)

 Rick Cline

I recently read these words on a blog post:

“Being filled with vision doesn’t always mean that God is inspiring us…but rather that He’s disturbing us!”

That gives another spin to vision and pursuing God’s dream for RiverWalk, doesn’t it? Being disturbed isn’t exactly what we are looking for. We prefer that things come easy; we would rather be in smooth water as opposed to 5 foot swells; we would like for the dots to already be connected, instead of having to connect them ourselves. We really aren’t looking to be disturbed.

But think about how God often worked in the lives of Bible characters. Moses was disturbed that his people were being mistreated, and it turned his world upside-down. David was disturbed about Goliath making a mockery of God and Israel’s army, so he went toe-to-toe with the giant. Esther was disturbed that her people were going to face an ancient holocaust, which led her to put personal safety and convenience aside and risk doing the right thing. The prophets were disturbed about the spiritual and moral condition of God’s people, and they made tremendous sacrifices to clearly speak the word of God to people. The apostle Paul was disturbed about religious rules trumping an authentic relationship with God, and it eventually cost him his life.

God’s vision for the future of His human creation led to the ultimate “disturbance”:  sending His Son, Jesus Christ, to die on the cross for our sins. It wasn’t smooth, or convenient, or safe, but it was the only way His vision for us could be realized.

Our vision for RiverWalk–a church compelled to saturate our community with the boundless love of God through words and actions–is not meant to make us comfortable.  God is not calling us to convenience, but to conviction. He is looking for action, not excuses.

When our hearts break over what breaks the heart of God, we will be disturbed.

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PRESENT FUTURE

November 11, 2009

Present Future

 Scott Waltman

In tonight’s video (Nov 11), Reggie discusses the shift from “church growth” to “kingdom growth.” He says that the wrong question for church leaders to be asking is, “How do we grow this church?” The harder question that we should be asking is, “How do we transform our community?” He asserts that it is hard for church people to understand that God loves the world (John 3:16) as much as He loves “church people.” In fact, God chose the family of Abraham as his special people for the purpose of “being a blessing to all peoples on earth.” (Genesis 12:3) During the century before and during the time of Jesus, the Pharisees prided themselves as being God’s spokespersons. They saw religion as being something private, not to be shared. They drew very small circles and allowed few to enter. Instead of understanding that God wanted them to be a blessing to the world they attempted to isolate themselves from the world in order to stay “pure” or keep the doctrine pure. Jesus was always confronting the Pharisees for their misunderstandings of the heart of God. They just didn’t get what God wanted them to be about. But the majority of the modern church seems to have taken their cue for doing church from the Pharisees and not from God. We too, have often become a club, with rules to keep people out, rather than being a launching pad (or outpost) to send people out to bless the world. We are often more comfortable in our “holy huddles” than we are in engaging the world in conversation and relationships. This is a very challenging video presentation. Come and learn.

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Lightning Strikes

November 4, 2009

Lightning Strikes

 Rick Cline

A new documentary film has just been released that examines the lives of individuals who have been struck by lightning or who have had close calls. The film is called “Act of God,” and besides offering a spectacular visual of lightning strikes, it also gives survivors the opportunity to talk about their near death experiences. In addition, the filmmaker explores the emotions experienced when someone they knew was struck down by lightning.

One survivor described the experience with these words, “It changed my way of looking at the world.”

A lot of us have had “lightning strike experiences” that altered the way we see the world, people, our own lives, even God. We were in the middle of an unexplained convergence of circumstances that became an answer to prayer. We were on the receiving end of a blessing from God that was totally unexpected. A “God thing,” we sometimes say; a “lightning strike experience” that changed how we looked at life.

It doesn’t take surviving an actual lightning strike to see how God is at work in our lives. He is always present, working in ways we may not easily discern. He is always at work to accomplish His purposes (Philippians 2:13). We don’t always “find” God in the spectacular; He sometimes chooses to show up as the “gentle whisper” experienced by the prophet Elijah (1 Kings 19:12). It’s up to me to keep my eyes and ears open for God’s presence and guidance.

Whether God reveals Himself in a lightning strike experience or a gentle whisper, that moment has the power to change my perspective on life.

Where have you seen God at work today?

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