In describing the “latter times,” the Old Testament prophet envisioned a faith community that is motivated by God-inspired dreams and visions of multiple generations:
28 "And afterward,
I will pour out my Spirit on all people.
Your sons and daughters will prophesy,
your old men will dream dreams,
your young men will see visions. Joel
Are you living out God’s dream and vision for your life? Are you assisting our church family in living out God’s dream and vision for our congregation?
The word “dream” has frequently been used as an acronym. For example, to promote learning, DREAM means “Discover the Reality of Education for All Minds.” In communication, DREAM means “Dynamically Reconfigurable Energy Aware Media.” In engineering, DREAM can represent “Distributed Routing Effect Algorithm for Mobility.” In local government, DREAM can refer to “Downtown Restoration, Enhancement and Management.” In
What does DREAM mean for our church? As we rise to new levels of commitment to confront the opportunities and challenges of our day, I suggest that DREAM means “Doing Risky, Encouraging, and Authentic Ministry.”
Let’s break down the DREAM:
- Doing- Be doers of the word and not hearers only. James
- Risky- So we all agreed to choose some men and send them to you with our dear friends Barnabas and Paul— men who have risked their lives for the name of our Lord Jesus Christ. Acts 15:25-26 NIV
- Encouraging-Therefore encourage one another and build each other up, just as in fact you are doing. I Thessalonians
- Authentic-Summing it all up, friends, I'd say you'll do best by filling your minds and meditating on things true, noble, reputable, authentic, compelling, gracious—the best, not the worst; the beautiful, not the ugly; things to praise, not things to curse. Philippians 4:8a MSG
- Ministry- But you, keep your head in all situations, endure hardship, do the work of an evangelist, discharge all the duties of your ministry. II Timothy 4: 5 NIV
This Sunday we will examine Mark 10:35-45 and think about “God’s Seating Arrangements.” As we embrace God’s dream for us, we will celebrate Communion in each of our worship services. To better enable us to serve The Lord’s Supper, it will be helpful and appropriate to sit close together, symbolizing our unity as a spiritual family. In the mid-morning service, we request that everyone help us fill a front section of the main floor for this important experience of worship.
I look forward to seeing you this Sunday as we gather around the Lord’s table.
