I dream of a church where all of the “other people” are welcomed and embraced. Those who are poor, homeless, rich, ugly, beautiful, pleasant, unlpleasent, stinky, fragrant… I dream of a church where the body is united and committed to the gospel of truth, not the gospel of self…

I dream of church…

Where their is absolutely no prejudice…
Where all of God’s children love one another and forget about all the small things of religious organization.

I dream of a church where people are loved like Jesus loves us.

... the tares all sleep in on Sunday!

I dream of a church . . . where Jesus is the only focus and only reason we are there.  A worship which is filled with the presence of the Holy Spirit because we are awed at God’s blessings and presence in our lives over the past week.  A worship in which Jesus is actively sought and exalted, not ourselves.

I dream of a church where woship is a lifestyle not a music style. Where people can be everything God wants them to be and not be judged for their uniqueness. Where the presence of God matters more than Sunday socials and friendly gatherings. Where having an experience with God is manifested in a real and tangible way and expressed when the people gather together to worship. Where people run not walk to find there seats. Where the love of God is sincere from the leadership. Where people can truly set aside differences in order to fulfill the great commission. Where men and women of every race and culture can universally join together and give God praise for the good things He has done. Where humility stems from the understanding that God has saved us by grace. Where hurting worriors(church leaders) who have fought countless battles and are wounded from Satan’s attacks can find refuge, strength, and courage again. Thus empowering them to once again believe that God’s not dead. Where sinners aren’t judged for their sins but loved and embrassed that they might see Jesus as someone who loves and cares for them. Where the sick are healed and lame made to walk. Where the lost and homeless find shelter from the storms of life. Where people are equal and valued for who they are and not for what they have or can give. Lastly and certainly not least I dream of a Church that functions in one mind and one accord as God guides and leads his people that in all things done for the glory of God. Praise His Holy Name! Someday, I will see this dream come to pass. If not in this lifetime then in the next. I don’t know about you but I’m so ready for it.

I’ve enjoyed reading your dreams, they are refreshing and encouraging. I dream of a church that doesn’t argue over worship style, it just loves to worship whether contemporary or traditional. God is honored in all that we do, and He is our focus. I dream where freedom to see Deliverance ministry as not a penecostal or charismatic term, but ministry embraced for all who are oppressed by hurts and damage of the past or demonic influence. I dream of a church where people really love and strive with each other, through thick and thin.

Imagine a church where God is pleased.
What would that church look like?

I believe that church would have a heart for Him.
And how would that heart for Him show up?

· Everyone would have a love for God individually… everyone who called themselves a Christ-follower would have a hungering heart that sought Him in a deliberate way each day.

· And the next outflow of that love would be their spouse… marriages would become tangible examples of the love Jesus had for the church – mutually sacrificial and submissive to His leadership and love.

· Families and kids would not take a backseat but get cared for as everyone’s first and primary ministry.  There would be a healthy environment of conversation where spiritual issues get raised and figured out together.

· The community and region would feel the impact of all of this.

--- Homes would become spiritual lighthouses in the community, causing neighbors to feel loved on, appreciated, and inspired to ask questions about Christianity or for prayer (maybe even without believing in either… yet).

--- Offices, cubicles, factory lines, and the workplace as a whole would transform from a place where we “did our jobs and got a paycheck” to “mission fields where we got paid by the world to use our marketplace skills while God used us as His representatives in those fields.”

--- People would know the message of Jesus in the region, perhaps without even knowing why.  Maybe this is in play because they saw a billboard or a movie ad someone took out that highlighted the Name of Jesus.  Or perhaps it just because when they go to certain places and interact with certain people, they get a sense of a kind of care and concern unlike anything they’ve experienced.

· And the church itself would be an environment of worship and relationships unlike any other.  The neighborhoods, communities, and region would know that God was doing something special in and through it in that it had a 7-day of the week kind of impact inside and outside the building.

--- Inside the building, the church would be a biblically-founded worship community where church leadership and volunteers worked together to proclaim a fresh breath of Life from the Word.

----> Messages would be Scripture based, life-applicable, and engaging to the regional culture.  Out of our desire to allow the sacred, holy, living words of Scripture breathe hope into lives we would do everything creatively possible and appropriate to help others share in the digesting of timeless, life-changing Truths.

----> Hard questions would be raised, godly counsel and direction would be given, and intentional recognition of God’s mystery and majesty would be in play.

----> Music would be a catalyst and a culmination for praise and worship that happened every day of the week.

----> God-inspired surrender would be a regular occurrence, as would a regular sharing of stories of those whom we were communicating Christ to.

----> People would feel like they were valued for who they were and not what number they represented.  Visitors would be invited back; attenders would be invited up; members and leaders would be invited to invite others.

----> Staff would be loved for who they are not what they do.  They would feel appreciated, empowered, invested into, and a part of a team where they serve in the unique way God has wired them up.  There would be freedom for each individual to grow “out loud” in their journey with Jesus Christ and not feel in any way that they had to pretend to be someone they were not.

----> Prayer would be a natural conversation we had about everything we did, be it the everyday elements we were keeping after to the God-sized risks of faith that took us even more frequently to our knees.  These risks would be prayed up, thought through, and still a bit messy so that it would only succeed if God was in them.  (And if things didn’t turn out the way we thought they would, we would celebrate the learning curve and thank God for the process.)

----> God-inspired life change would be a regular occurrence, as would people active in serving as life changers who communicate Christ as best as they know how.

----> Stewardship of time, abilities, and resources wouldn’t be held back but extended as each person found they couldn’t help but give back to God all that He has given them.

--- Outside of the building, we would still be the church.  We leave it still internalizing truths… still investing in each other… still taking the next step.  Because the church is not a building but it is made up of people… people who are committed to Jesus Christ.

----> They would continue to grow with Him, regularly giving up habits and sin.  This would be to appease a sense of guilt or look more “Christian” but because they are Christians – Christ-followers who want to surrender that much more themselves.  Each person would develop a desire to say yes to God more quickly today than they did yesterday. 

----> Relationships would exist where people agreed not to pretend to be someone they were not.  This would happen Christian to Christian through accountability and community, as well as Christian to pre-Christian (because that’s the way we would see the lost and broken) as a way to show people we are real people interacting with a real God.

----> Those a part of the church would engage in intentional ministry that happened out of the overflow of their hearts.  They would find ways to raise questions in others by extending the grace they have experienced for themselves.  They would willingly be contagious in their faith – not because they took a class, but because they can’t help it.  Courageous risks of conversation would become the norm, with each person taking daily risks to communicate their faith.

----> We don’t quit until everyone is in the Kingdom and on board.

I believe that this is the kind of church that pleases God.

A church that measures success by quality of a relationship with God… the growth curve of Christ-like character… the authenticity of community… and the willingness for us to communicate the Gospel regardless of competence.