Tag: coopersburg

Church Signs

Hi my name is Dave and I’m a pastor. I say that because of something I am about to confess. While I live my life to honor God, there is something that could drive me to a life of crime. It’s bad church signs. Every time I see “God answers knee-mail” on one of those signs with the changeable letters, I dream of breaking in to the church’s office and stealing the book they got it from. The reason is really simple. People already think the church is behind the times and irrelevant–no sense adding fuel to the fire. We are the children of the Creator, and it’s time we got creative.

I love my church sign and I can say that in humility because I am not responsible for its content. One of the members of my congregation, Lucy Cascioli, does our sign. She has since before I got here and she does a great job. The church sign was pretty much the forerunner of the Tweet. Say something of value, to a media bombarded culture passing by quickly, in probably 50 characters or less. It’s a very specialized form of communication, and Lucy handles it masterfully.

Our sign currently says “Do what you can, with what you have, where you are.” I love that message. It’s the essence of ministry. If we are a people that trust God, then we trust in His faithfulness, and if we trust in His faithfulness then we can trust in His provision. We don’t have to worry about whether we have enough of whatever. We don’t have to wish we had what we don’t have or lament how successful we could be if we just had X, Y, or Z. Instead we look at what God has provided with great gratitude and put it to work to His glory, trusting He will make provision in any area where we have need.

Do what you can, with what you have, where you are.

I an’t wait to see what comes next on our sign.

We’re On a Mission From God!

It’s only a few weeks away from our annual mission trip. We are doing disaster relief work this year in Columbia, South Carolina and we are praying for a blessed time serving the Lord. Mission trips are great. They allow us to go somewhere and help people in trouble. The other benefit is they allow us to build camaraderie among the mission team. Because being part of the church is very much about relationships, projects like this are vital to the church and I am really looking forward to making this trip.

But there is something more. These trips entail one to two weeks a year. What about the other 50 or 51 weeks? Well the truth is, as Christians we are on a mission all day every day. It’s a mission to serve others. It’s a mission to help people in need and more than anything it’s a mission to take the Gospel of Jesus Christ to this community, this region, the state, the nation and the world. This is our 24/7/365 mission and every single believer needs to be working in this regard.

We believe Jesus Christ is the source of hope both in this world and the only hope of an eternal life to come. As such our mission is to spread the Good News of Jesus. This is our God commanded mission—to take His Gospel to the ends of the earth. South Carolina will be the beneficiaries of our efforts on the first week of August, the rest of the time, our mission field must be Coopersburg, Springfield Township, and to the ends of the earth,

Pastor Tony Evans of Dallas Texas said it best at a Promise Keepers event a long time ago.

If we want to see things change out here,
we’ve got to start in our homes.
A messed up man will produce a messed up family,
that will produce a messed up church,
which will result in a messed up neighborhood,
that will cause a messed up city,
that will bring about a messed up county,
that will result in a messed up state,
that will reside in a messed up country,
that will bring about a messed up world.
So if we want a better world composed of better countries 
inhabited by better states, 
made up of better counties,
that are composed of better cities,
inhabited by better neighborhoods,
illumined by better churches,
made up of better families,
we better go home better men.

Let’s be people on a mission from God.

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So Tell Us About Your Church…

It’s one of the first things people ask and to tell you the truth it is harder than you think. How do you describe a great group of people, who are kind loving and passionate about God’s Word? Maybe just like that.

I came to this church as an interim pastor. My plan was to stay a couple months and help get them ready for their next permanent pastor. It didn’t take long for plans to change. I felt such love for them and from them and I witnessed them showing that same love to everyone who walked through the doors. Jesus said, “They will know you are my disciples by the way you love one another.” This is a congregation that lives that out.

We’re not the coolest church in town. We’re not flashy, not that there’s anything wrong with flashy, it’s just not us. Our worship is a blend of traditional and contemporary, but mainly it’s just authentic. We’re not perfect, but we’re growing. We’re serious about following Jesus, but we have a lot of fun while we do it. We’re active, but not hyperactive. We don’t have a ton of programs, but we encourage our folks to minister in their gifts and talents. We’re all about empowering people to try knew things.

Bottom line, we’ve learned that we can’t be all things to all people, but if you’re looking for a place where you’ll be welcomed and loved as you grow in your faith, we might just be the church for you.

Come and see,

Pastor Dave Weiss