The mantra of the modern multi-site/multi-campus church is ‘One Church, Many Locations.’ Personally, I have so many extremely diverse thoughts around that statement. Although I could dip my toes into some pretty heated conversations around this idea, that is not the goal today. Recently I had a new thought around this idea which was pretty encouraging. For around two years I have met with a group of local pastors on a regular basis. There is no doubt that each of the churches represented are either a little different or significantly different in the ways they each do ministry. Yet God has done something really awesome amidst those gatherings over the past two years. Sure, it has taken some time and there is so much more left…. the surface is really yet to be fully scratched. God has created one very unified heartbeat which functions as the glue of these relationships. That heartbeat is to ‘unify the church to consistently demonstrate and communicate the gospel of Jesus Christ to every man, woman, and child in the greater Katy area.’
To unify the church to consistently demonstrate and communicate the gospel of Jesus Christ to every man, woman, and child in the greater Katy area.
As we have journeyed through deep and honest conversations, our unity and passion around this mission has forged God-glorifying relationships between us. Amidst all of the times I have waxed my own philosophical musings around the statement ‘One Church, Many Locations’, I now feel like I am seeing something come to life that feels like it represents a New Testament picture of that phrase.
Although we represent different gatherings of people, who experience their church engagement in various ways, and have different individuals preaching, leading, and shepherding – we are ONE Church. We are the people of God in our community who have been sent on the mission of God. As I have repeatedly read and studied the book of Acts and the picture of the New Testament Church, I find encouragement in how God is moving through one Church with many locations in our Katy community. The churches that surrounded Ephesus would have all looked a little different and each needed leaders equipped to shepherd them well. Yet, all of them were the people of God who were on the mission of God using the gifts that God had provided.
I would like to share this video with you so that you can be encouraged as you pray for God to bring an undeniable wave of gospel transformation to our Katy community. Would you begin to pray and ask God how He has uniquely called and equipped you to play an awesome part in demonstrating and communicating the gospel of Jesus Christ to every man, woman, and child in the greater Katy area?