Being a People of Vision

"The vision at Constance Free Church is to influence OUR world in many locations with the Christ's love and good deeds."

I love our vision statement! It is so personal! It paints a reality of each one of us, in our unique worlds, walking in step with the Father, taking each situation of our lives as an opportunity to share Christ with others. To truly be a church and people of influence.

Oswald Chambers shares some thoughts about the everyday circumstance of our lives:

"The true test of a person’s spiritual life and character is not what he does in the extraordinary moments of life, but what he does during the ordinary times when there is nothing tremendous or exciting happening. A person’s worth is revealed in his attitude toward the ordinary things of life when he is not under the spotlight....

It was said of Jesus — 'He will not fail nor be discouraged . . .' (Isaiah 42:4) because He never worked from His own individual standpoint, but always worked from the standpoint of His Father. And we must learn to do the same. Spiritual truth is learned through the atmosphere that surrounds us, not through intellectual reasoning. It is God’s Spirit that changes the atmosphere of our way of looking at things, and then things begin to be possible which before were impossible. Getting into God’s stride means nothing less than oneness with Him. It takes a long time to get there, but keep at it. Don’t give up because the pain is intense right now— get on with it, and before long you will find that you have a new vision and a new purpose."

This is my desire for us as a body of believers, namely that we would allow God's Spirit to transform how we view our world. That the impossible becomes possible as people are attracted to the love and good deeds of Jesus Christ that are lived out through his people. Pray and Watch God work through your lives.

I look forward to worshiping together this weekend. There is a tremendous blessing and encouragement when we come together as a church family. Make this a priority for your weekend.

Sharing in the Vision,

Pastor Randy

Transitions Continued

Last week Pastor Jim Barber announced that he would be resigning his position as a Sr. Associate Pastor at Constance Free Church. Pastor Jim senses a strong call to use his gifts, talents and learnings to encourage other churches to grow as a full time church consultant. You can read more in last week's Log Eye and in Jim's Blog.(Link is in last weeks Blog)

Many of you have asked what will we do next in this transition. After looking at different options we are transitioning to manage Constance Free Church through a common model of having an Executive Pastor. I have asked Pastor Jim Scott to serve as my Executive Pastor. I believe that Jim is the right man for the job and look forward to all God has for us as a church as he serves in this new pastoral position.

This means we will begin a search for a Church Business Administrator. Within a week or so we will have the job description written and posted. Pray for Pastor Jim Scott. He was scheduled to return from the Berlin Church Planting Summit last Friday but due to the volcano is now scheduled home this weekend. Once he gets back Jim and Jim will write a position description and continue the transition.


This week most of our ministry staff spent a day at our North Central District Conference(our Free church association). Our speaker was Pete Scazzero who has authored the book Emotionally Healthy Spirituality. I recommend this to you. I warn you it is not a book you will read quickly. It is a book designed for your long term life in Christ. If you have found your Christian life stalled or feel that transformation is not happening in your life I recommend this study to you. I know it will bless and change you in Christ's image.

I look forward to seeing you this weekend as Pastor Sean leads us in considering a question every one asks, "What Happens When We Die?" I am sure your friends are asking this question. The question may be asked when a friend or relative dies, or when they see a tragic event on the news. I encourage you to invite a friend -it might be the beginning of a great conversation.

What a blessing we all have to know Christ and to live life fully in him.

God's Rich Blessing

Pastor Randy

One Way

Is Jesus Really the only way to find God?? An important question. This will be the question we will address this weekend. The answer really does affect the way you live life whether you are a follower of Jesus or still a spiritual seeker. I encourage each of you to invite a friend. This question for seekers is an important one and second only to "Why does a loving God allow suffering" in spiritual investigation.

Thank You- for your participation in making Easter a special day of life change for the many who attended. Many of you invited a friend. Statistically speaking people accept over 80% of Easter invitations so thank you for inviting your friends. We hosted almost 1000 extra people on Easter.
Many of you went to Saturday night and Sonrise service on Easter weekend and allowed for better traffic flow and space in our parking lot. Thank You for your service in this way. Continue to Pray and Watch for your friends. I know God is working.

This week we are also announcing Pastor Jim Barber's transition to full time church leadership consulting. I have posted a full story on this in an earlier blog post and you can read Pastor Jim's story in full on his blog site as well.

God Bless

Pastor Randy.

Transitions

On March 1, 1995 Pastor Jim Barber walked on the Constance Campus as a pastor called to minister to this local body. He was leaving a successful business career at Honeywell /Alliant Tech and sensing a growing interest in a call to ministry that led him to join the pastoral staff here at Constance Free Church. He had already been serving as an adult teacher, growth group leader and chairman of the elder board.

On March 16, 2010 Pastor Jim Barber tendered his resignation as a Pastor at Constance Free Church. In his words “As you know, I have had an interest in church consulting for some time now. My earliest leanings this way were ten years ago. I think it has been seven years since we agreed that this could be a part of my ministry. After careful consideration, prayer, and agreement with Cheri, I have concluded that I am again at a crossroads in my calling. I plan to take formal steps to become a church leadership consultant …”

Since I’ve had the privilege of knowing Jim for the past 23 years, I too acknowledge God’s leading and calling in his life. I know God has gifted him, placed this desire in his heart, and fully support this calling of God in his life.

On a personal note, I am so thankful for having had the privilege to serve these past 15 years with Jim. Thanks Jim for faithfully using your spiritual gifts and talent for the Glory of God. Your service to God has been a huge blessing to me and Constance. Thank You so much.

To learn more about Jim’s journey, I would encourage you to read the rest of the story on his blog.

Pastor Jim will continue serving full-time until September 1 and thereafter continue to serve as the President of BridgeLink (as well as assisting Constance in the transition period). I will offer additional details about the transition next week.

God Bless

Pastor Randy