A Church With a Strong Core

Hi Church Family,

Since the retreat, I been imagining what a church in Durban would look like if we were all fully engaged. What struck me on Saturday morning at the Retreat was just how much we all long for that. Yes, life gets busy. We get tired. Sometimes temptation gets the better of us. And before long we find ourselves out of rhythm with God and what He is doing in His community. And yet, there we were on Saturday morning, deeply longing for God to meet us in our weakness and draw us back into the life of His church.

Community Engagement

We were reminded in Acts 6:1-7 that the church, even when faced with challenges, doesn’t tap out, it steps in. When people serve and play their role, the word of God spreads. Andy challenged us to take up that role of service. To build the kind of habits that build an engaged church. One of the habits he mentioned was being committed to regular church attendance. To help build that habit he challenged us to be committed to coming to church every Sunday for the next 8 weeks. Come when you are feeling great, come when you are tired, come when the weather is inviting you to do something else. Healthy church is surprisingly ordinary in Acts 6. There are problems, there are people recognised for their wisdom and faith, there are people stepping up and engaging, and there is the word of God spreading. Life giving community isn’t something we just consume, it is something we build together. Built through ordinary habits: showing up, giving, serving, caring, seeing.

So… Over the next 8 weeks will you join us in being committed to coming to church every Sunday?

CREED

Of course healthy church is not just about what we do. It is also about what we value, what we treasure, what we believe. So along with the habit of church attendance we have started an 8 week series called CREED where we will be answering some of the questions you have been asking. Namely what do we believe. And with that we will be going through the Apostles’ Creed. Reminding ourselves that we come from a rich history of belief. Harbour City is not trying to be a novel island. The latest cool church for you to attend. No we are part of a rich heritage of belief connected to those before us, those alongside us and connected to those will come ahead. So Take a moment to read through the Apostles’ Creed:

APOSTLES CREED

I believe in God, the Father almighty, creator of heaven and earth.

I believe in Jesus Christ, his only Son, our Lord, who was conceived by the Holy Spirit and born of the virgin Mary. He suffered under Pontius Pilate, was crucified, died, and was buried; he descended to hell. The third day he rose again from the dead. He ascended to heaven and is seated at the right hand of God the Father almighty. From there he will come to judge the living and the dead.

I believe in the Holy Spirit, the holy catholic* church, the communion of saints, the forgiveness of sins, the resurrection of the body, and the life everlasting.

Amen.

By working through the Apostles’ Creed we are not going to cover the most fashionable topics right now, or answer every question you may have. We are not trying to be novel. But I think that is the point. Going through these deep beliefs is like strengthening your core. You are not building the muscles that look flashy at first glance. You are building the kind of strength that really matters. Strength that helps bring your body into alignment, strength that brings health.

We want to be a church with a strong core!

We will also doing something different in this series. At the end of each sermon we will have the opportunity to ask questions.

REFLECTION

Romans 10:9-10

Christian belief is more than mental assent, more than checking off a list of things to be true, more than a statement of faith. The beliefs we want to form capture the heart. The beliefs that truly form us go deeper than that. They capture the heart. They shape the things that we love and treasure.

So this week, take a moment to pay attention to what you love and treasure. What occupies your thoughts? What are you afraid of losing? What do you find yourself hoping will make life okay? And then ask yourself: what do I truly believe, not only with my head, but with my heart?

Thank you, Harbour City Church, God bless and much love, Jamie