February 2011 – Page 2

Challenge #4: Increase Giving

Posted on February 21, 2011 by johnmarkum

Edgewood Challenge #4: Increase giving by 1%

People in church always act funny when you talk about money. This is the point in my blog when I make it clear that I am only addressing church folk. If you don’t have a relationship with Christ, then the following excludes you. We have way bigger concerns for you than finances, and quite honestly, your money is the last thing we want.

But for those who claim the name of Jesus, we are commanded to be generous, and to trust God in our finances. Jesus taught us that “where your treasure is, there will your heart be also.” God tells us that there is a direct relationship between our heart and our wallet. I can likely guess what you value most with a high degree of accuracy just by glancing over your bank statement. What we are asking is, for our church to increase our giving by 1%. For most of us, that means an increase in giving of $2-$10/week.

Statistically speaking, only about 3% of church goers tithe. That’s it. One of the most fundamental acts of worship, showing gratitude to God for providing for our needs, and demonstrating faith that He will continue to provide, and less than 1 out of 20 Christians are being obedient… We’re better than that, church!

We’re not pushing this challenge because we want something from you. Jesus promised that He would build His church. He is ultimately responsible for meeting the needs in the church, just as He is in your home. So the churches financial needs are going to get met with or without my giving or yours. We’re challenging our church to do this because we want something for you. We want you to experience the fullness of living by faith and seeing God come through for you. We want you to experience the power of relying on God more than 1/10 of your paycheck.

We did happen to notice that there is a recession going on. We know that many people have cut back or completely cut out giving to church as a result of lost hours, wages, and jobs. What better time and opportunity to reach out to God and find that He is enough… just like He promised He would be. You say that you trust Jesus with your soul and eternity. Doesn’t it make sense that He can handle your offerings as well.

My wife and I went through an intense time of testing a few years ago. Financially, we were strapped. But we were able to experience that God was faithful even when we had a mortgage, 4 mouths to feed, and no clue where our next paycheck would come from. So from experience I’m telling you: God can make 90% of your income go much further than you can make 100%.

For some of you, this challenge means that you take a baby step and simply start to give something. For others, you have been trusting God with your tithes, and this is less of a challenge for you. Regardless of where this challenge hits you, be obedient to what God is calling you to do. Together, through our generosity, we can change the world.

Blessings,

John

Challenge #3: Share Christ

Posted on February 21, 2011 by johnmarkum

Edgewood Challenge #3: Share Christ: Lead one person to the Lord.

This is one that I am particularly excited about! This task may seem daunting to many of my readers so I want to give you 3 levels of evangelism and ask each of you to graduate through all 3 levels as you have opportunities to do so.

1) Pray

Anyone can pray. Make a short list of people that are already in your sphere of influence that are far from God and need to experience new life in Christ. Pray for them daily by name. Ask God to soften their heart and to give you the opportunity to take the next step with them.

2) Pursue

This requires you to open your mouth and say something to them. It only has to be as awkward as you want to make it. We offer invite cards to many of our services (including The Awakening on Saturday nights, and Elevate on Sunday mornings for teens). Use an invite card and simply say something like, “It would really mean a lot to me if you came to this with me this week. I hope you’ll at least consider it.” Maybe they will come. Maybe they’ll be impacted by the Gospel. Maybe they’ll give their life to Christ right then and there. Don’t underestimate the power of a sincere invitation. The “Pursue” level can be summed up in 2 words “Invest” in your relationships, and “Invite” them to a worship experience.

3) Pursuade

Given the opportunity, you should always be willing to “give an answer for the hope that is within you.” You don’t have to know a ton of Scripture, though knowing a few verses can definitely help. Bottom line though is share your faith-changing experience of when you came to Christ, and give them an opportunity to do the same. Edgewood is working on some classes in the near future to help you do that and feel less awkward about it. In the meantime, just tell them how you gave your life to Christ.

I believe that as our church becomes faithful in sharing Christ, that we will soon begin to hear countless stories of life change. How beautiful are the feet of those who bring good news. Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord!

Blessings,

John

Challenge #2: Pray for the church

Posted on February 16, 2011 by johnmarkum

Edgewood Challenge #2: Pray for the church one hour a week.

Ok, so earlier I talked about our first challenge as a church – to read through the entire Bible over one year. But this second challenge requires us to pray in addition to read the Bible. I already know what you’re thinking. And I totally agree! Read the Bible and pray?!? Man, some churches are so demanding!!! And not just pray for an hour a week, but to pray for an hour a week for the church. That doesn’t even include praying for other important stuff, like our food 3 times a day! So why are we doing this and how do we actually accomplish it instead of adding to a list of New Year’s resolutions that have already been broken?

Well we’re doing it because we understand the power of prayer. A praying church is a healthy church. We’re also asking the entire church to take this challenge because, as a church, we are dependent on the supernatural, Holy Spirit power of God moving among His people. That’s not something we have direct control over. So you and I better be in touch with the One who said He would build His church. In Acts 5:34-40 we read the story of Gamaliel warning the other Pharisees not to be to hasty in punishing the apostles who were preaching the Gospel and he made this observation in verses 39 and 40, “If this is of man, it will come to nothing. But if it is from God, you cannot stop it. You my even find yourself fighting against God!” The same is still true of the church today: If we attempt to do this “out of man” it will come to nothing. But as individuals, and as a church, if we become a part of what God is doing, we are unstoppable!

So pray for your church! 1 hour broken up between 7 days comes out to about 8.5 minutes a day. But let’s not count minutes with God and just round it to a nice even 10 minutes! How do you pray for your church for 10 minutes every day? Great question. Glad you asked! Here are some ideas to pray for 10 minutes for your church everyday.

Monday: The staff and our families. To see who we all are and what we do, click here.
Tuesday: Our Children, Teens, and Families.
Wednesday: The Sick, Elderly, Widowed, and Home-bound.
Thursday: The people in the Quad Cities who are far from God and need to know Christ.
Friday: Our Friday night program, Celebrate Recovery
Saturday: Saturday Night Service (The Awakening)
Sunday: Sunday Morning Service and the Youth Service (Elevate)

With each of these, try to get specific. So for Mondays, maybe focus more of your 10 minutes on a different staff member each week. On Thursdays, think of specific people that you are going to invite to a service with you this week. On Tuesdays focus on the kid’s program coming up, or the teen’s summer camp trip. You get the idea. You’ll find that 8.5 – 10 minutes is easy to fill. Aditionally, you’ll feel closer to God and your church family.

Where there’s little prayer, there’s little power. But with much prayer, there’s much power. Let’s be a power house in the Quad Cities!

Blessings,

John