When my family and I moved out to one of the most expensive regions in the country, we became very fortunate and were able to rent a nice home, in the middle of our target area, with a yard… under budget!
So I have our first event for LifeCity Church coming up – a “Meet & Greet” in our home to develop some important connections with our new community. The back yard looks great, including a nice paved-in patio with an awning, and a nice green lawn. The front yard is a slightly different story. There are several nice, healthy plants, but the grass is dry, and slightly over half-dead. It became obvious that the previous tenants favored watering the backyard where they likely spent more time. But I want both yards to look good as I get ready to invite guests into our home, so I’ve been spending some extra time and attention cultivating the front yard back to life.
If you’re not from the Bay Area, then you should probably know that we get practically no rain over the summer. It’s not nearly as hot as it tends to get in other parts of the country. In fact, it’s actually quite pleasant in the mid 70’s – mid 80’s most days. But nothing lives long without water. I’ve been watering the lawn by hand since we’ve moved in, partly because it’s convenient for meeting my new neighbors as they walk past my house. Today I made a few observations that seem to uniquely correspond with our new mission field:
- The ground is thirsty. Holding the water over one spot for several seconds, leaving it and coming back a mere two minutes later and it seems like it was as dry as before you watered it. I could practically here the ground begging for more. My new home is clearly thirsty for the Living Water, so much so, that I realize it can’t be over-watered.
- It takes time. No matter how much I water it today, I’ll have to do it again tomorrow. And the next day. And the next day. Even now after nearly a week, I see minimal improvement. I know that one day, I’ll have a lush, green, healthy lawn. But right now, that’s only a vision of a preferred future. Between now and then there will be a great deal more of watering, seeding, fertilizing,… and time, the most painful ingredient. The South Bay is so spiritually parched that, while each life touched is a great gain, the long term, city-changing fruit we’re praying for is a long trip through blood, sweat, tears, prayers, serving, and repeating it all.
- I can’t make it grow. Growth is a byproduct of health. Things that are healthy grow. That’s true of grass, plants, livestock, children, and especially churches. My job as a pastor and church planter is not to grow what Jesus said HE would grow, but rather to cultivate the ground to be healthy, allowing Him to bring the increase. I can’t even make my lawn grow! But I can see to it’s heath, which will lead to it doing what it does naturally on it’s own – grow.
If you can’t tell, I’m eager to see what God does here through us over the next few weeks and months as we get further into our mission to see the people of the South Bay fully experience life in Christ! If you live around the San Jose area, come join us! If you’re one of our friends from around the world, thank you for all your prayers and support! We will have pictures coming as we have some of these events.
Blessings,
Pastor John