I like to listen/watch sermons from other preachers. The other day I decided to watch a sermon by the Senior Pastor of Colonial Baptist Church in Cary. I have heard he is a gifted expositor. He is. I believe Colonial was planted by Pastor Davey in the 80’s. It is a large church and has experienced significant growth through the years, which has entailed several building projects. I have driven by their campus once, and it is indeed beautiful. Clearly, many have been quite generous to establish that kind of brick and mortar presence as a post for the gospel in the Triangle.
Back to that sermon. There was a moment in the sermon I watched where Pastor Davey was recollecting the early years. He recalled how that much smaller group of people had a vision for a church in the future, and they sacrificially gave because they had the people in the current church in mind. I believe Pastor Davey looked at the people in front of him and said: they had you in mind and they were generous for you.
I love that. I love the picture of a group of Christians who are willing to dig down and give generously for people they have not even met yet. I imagine savings were liquidated, vacations were simplified, used cars were purchased instead of new ones, niceties were forgone for a year or two, and/or people who did not give began to give even though it initially felt alien. Why? To glorify God, I hope, but in that vein to bless future generations who would be impacted by the Gospel in that church.
I pray that would be our heart here at CHBC, too. As we consider expanding our facilities, it is our desire not to use the Triangle to make us a great church; but for our church to be useful to the Triangle, for Christ’s sake. Imagine with me a church five, ten, fifteen years down the road. Imagine people impacted by the Gospel who will be part of our community and mission in large part because we enabled our facilities to impact and bless them.
May we love forward.
Gospel Obsessed 