Overview:

For many (students, teachers, families), September / Fall is a time of starting a new year or restarting back at work after some summer vacation time.  In life, sometimes you just have to stop for a moment so you can make a fresh start at things (clearing your desk off, a new computer set up, a fresh coat of paint in your room, etc). “Start” doesn’t mean breaking away entirely from what was yesterday, but it may mean re-focusing and re-committing and moving into a forward gear.

Summary:

9/1  – Start Fast – Shared Meal & Fasting

9/8 –  Start Straight – The Why Question – Vision / Mission alignment energies activity

9/15 – Start Steady – The How Question – Healthy culture knows itself and builds from it’s character

9/22 – Start Moving – The What Question – Coordinated action turns chaos into team work

9/1 – Start Fast – breakfast on 9/1 introducing the idea

This is communion Sunday.  Perhaps instead of a full service with a sermon we have an introduction time and then enjoy a light breakfast type meal together down stairs.  It will be heavy lifting, but it will have these benefits:  No Sunday School this week as all our workers are away.  If we eat together, we don’t need it.  Light attendance due to three day weekend, this weekend is often time people take on last trip out of the city.  Its communion Sunday and communion used to be a meal (a long time ago).  It could include a time to ask for dedicated prayer, fasting for a few weeks.  I was thinking of asking people to fast specifically  for three weeks, one day a week from food if they are able, or one meal if not AND one day a week from entertainment / digital addiction / social media.  So three times during the three weeks, carving out two different types of cravings (food and entertainment) and asking God, for ourselves and for the church, what our part in God’s kingdom is right now and how we can step closer into that.  What actions do we each need to push ourselves toward, what commitments do we need to make, what things do we need to stop doing, what good things may need to be paused to make room for better things.  The other real advantage of this is that we have so many people now who are new or new-ish and we may need some shared face to face interaction that is more intentional.

9/8 –  Start Why – Beginning with proper stance and balance, knowing why exist is critical to staying on track – Eph 2a

9/15 – Start How – Re-establishing goals and priorities is important but How we do them is more important.  It makes our culture. and if our culture is healthy then the mission will be carried by it well. – Maybe a Nehemiah text.

9/22 – Start What – Finding our hills to take will require us to come together around some shared passions and it may mean that we support each other’s causes knowing that others will join our causes too. Maybe spiritual gifts passage, Romans 12 with James 2 or Great commission passage breaking down how our continued life as a church brings ACTION to the work of the great commission.