The opportunities and challenges of a new year

 As we approach a new year many of us wonder what it will bring. This past year has brought increased inflation, a growing divide between Americans, a new strain of Covid, a Federal government with some of the lowest approval ratings in modern times, new threats coming from Russia and China, a rising distrust of the media and our political leaders, and a rejection of the church and traditional biblical teachings from many Americans. Since no one has a crystal ball or is able to predict with any certainty of what the future holds, I guess we'll have to wait and see what transpires in the coming year. But, there are some things we can know with certainty.

First, God is already there. While we may not understand why He allows some things to happen, we can be certain that nothing that will occur will catch Him by surprise. He remains the omnipotent, omniscience God. Whatever the future holds, we can trust Him. Our God is sovereign over all.

The second thing we can know with certainty is that the church has a role to play in the events that will take place. Our role is to continue to speak God's truth to a world that wants to reject that truth. Our role is to offer hope to a world that will find hope in no other place. Our role is to invite people to become part of God's family. Our message may not be a popular one in the time in which we live, but we are called to faithfully proclaim it regardless of its popularity.

A third thing we can be assured of is that people are going to be looking for something to believe in as this world continues to implode all around us. This is the opportunity. As we are inundated with lies from the media and our political leaders, people are going to be seeking truth. As some churches abandon the biblical teachings of Scriptures, people are going to want to hear a clear message of hope and salvation. This is not a time to be timid. God has called the church to such as time as this, a time to speak boldly about the the Kingdom of God and to invite people to enter that Kingdom.

I am not a prophet, but I can see people growing weary of the pain and confusion of living in a world that offers them no real hope of a better life. The church has been given such a message to proclaim. We sometimes hear that the time of the church has ended. Don't you believe it! Our time is now! This is the time for the church to step up and be the church God has called it to be. Many are ready to hear a clear message of salvation. Preach it! Let 2022 be a year when many will come to Christ through the faithful ministry of your church.

Caring for the caregivers

So often churches duplicate the ministries they offer their communities. Almost every church has a children's ministry, and many of them offer preschool programs. Many have food and clothing banks. More and more churches each year provide back packs for children returning to school and fill these back packs with some of the supplies the students will need. The list of ministries churches provide goes on and on, and each of these are wonderful ways to impact communities. However, there is one ministry need that often goes unfulfilled in many communities and that is providing assistance to caregivers.

In the small community in which I live I know several people who are caring for spouses who suffer from dementia, Alzheimer, or another debilitating illness or accident. My father provided such care for my mother after she suffered a major stroke. Others provide around-the-clock care for children who have been injured in accidents or suffered other types of problems making it impossible for them to care for themselves. With the numbers of people suffering from Alzheimer rising we are going to see more of these caregivers, and yet, in many communities there is no one in private industry or the church providing any type of respite care or assistance to them. What a wonderful opportunity for a church to make a difference in people's lives.

These caregivers often find it difficult to leave the person they are caring for in order to go to the store or work. In some situations the person simply cannot be left alone so the caregiver has to find someone who can stay with the individual while they leave the house. Churches could provide such people. This could allow the caregiver to not only go to the store or work but also give them an opportunity to go to the movies or do something else relaxing to help them relieve some of the stress associated with providing constant care for someone.

This could be a wonderful ministry for someone with the gifts of healing, mercy, and helps. It would also show the community that your church cares for those who are struggling in life. In my community many noticed this winter that no plans had made been made to help the homeless survive the cold weather. On social media there was a lot of chatter that none of the churches cared about these people. Personally, I know that isn't true, but that was the perception some had, and they were very vocal about it. Having a ministry to come alongside caregivers sends a message to the community that your church does care about people's real-life struggles.

No church can do everything, but every church can do something. Perhaps this is a ministry that your church could provide. I encourage you to pray about it and talk about it with others in your congregation.

New decade arriving soon

Before you know it we will enter 2020, a new decade that will be filled with opportunities and challenges for our churches and those who lead them. No one knows what the new decade, and those following it, will bring, but I think it is safe to say that we will see challenges that our churches in the West have not seen before.

It is no secret that many people do not like the church very much. Like one book in my library reminds us, They Like Jesus but Not the Church: Insights from Emerging Generations. The church does not find many fans today, especially among young people. Many traditional churches find themselves getting grayer and smaller every year, and I'm not sure that will change for many of them.

We see tighter restrictions placed upon churches and freedom of worship imposed by courts and local governments, and that is likely to increase in the days ahead. Some churches find it difficult to get building permits to relocate or expand their buildings. Christian values are increasingly rejected by school boards, courts, local governments and other organizations as preference is regularly given to those who hold different values. I don't see this improving as a new decade emerges either. In fact, it is likely to get worse.

I believe there will also be tremendous opportunities for churches in the coming decade, however. More and more people are going to realize that the lifestyles they are living and the worldviews they have been holding are not, and cannot, provide them with the quality of life they seek. Many of these individuals are going to be seeking a different path than the one they have been on, and some of them will find out that path leads them to Jesus Christ. Those churches that are living out the Great Commission will find the fields are truly white unto harvest.

The question for every church is are they prepared for both the challenges and the opportunities that will be before them in this new decade? One way to answer that is to ask yourself how is your church different as we close out this current decade from what it was in 2010? Has your church grown in the past 10 years, or is still talking about how great it was in 1950? What did your church specifically do to fulfill the Great Commission in the past 10 years, and what was the results of those efforts? As you look at your current members would you say that the majority of them grew in their faith in the past 10 years? What new ministries were begun in the past decade that brought positive change to your church? How many new leaders rose up from within your church in the past 10 years? What new vision for ministry has triggered excitement among your church in the past decade?

Sometimes the greatest predictor of the future is what has happened in the past. If a church has drifted along for the past 10 years it is likely to drift through the next decade as well, doing nothing but complaining about how difficult things are. If a church has actively been engaged in ministry during the current decade it is more likely they will do the same in the next one.

Your church is what it is today because of decisions it made ten and even twenty years ago, and your church will be ten and twenty years from now what it decides today it will be. Choices have consequences. You can be defeated by the challenges or you can be energized by the opportunities. You can drift along hoping nothing really bad happens or you can proactively have a positive impact on the people in your community. The choice is yours.

A new decade is coming. You might as well get ready for it.