Dear Beloved Child of God,
I know what it is like to struggle. Ever since the moment I was born, people tried to kill me, stop me, or hurt me. There wasn’t a waking moment that was easier than the last. Yet, in that struggle something happened. Something magical and radical. In the midst of that struggle, beauty began to rise.
Life began to rise. Right when people thought Christianity was dead, there was a burst of dedicated followers that exploded into the world. Nobody could explain it until they saw it. They saw Him. The One who started it all. The One that began His earthly journey as a baby in a manger and brought forth a kingdom of restoration.
I wonder, have you seen His kingdom?
The kingdom that finds the lost. The kingdom that frees the enslaved. The kingdom that restores life to the dead. The kingdom that pays the price for the ones who feel worthless. The kingdom that prays for the powerless. The kingdom that feeds the hungry. The kingdom that forgives. The kingdom that loves. The kingdom that Jesus brought through His life, death, and resurrection.
Allow me to speak on behalf of Jesus when I tell you that you have a home. You are accepted to the biggest family on earth. I’m not talking about that one cousin that got-on-your-nerves type of acceptance. I am talking about the brother or sister that you would cry-laugh-and-smile-with-until-your-last-breath type of accepted. You are truly accepted here because I am more than a building. I am the people that surround you on your worst day and celebrate with you on your best.
You do not have to worry about your mess anymore. Jesus has taken that weight. If that weight does come back, then I will be here to help you through it. There is no shame, nothing to hold you back from the life God has called you to. Your family will always be here for you.
There are only two guidelines in this family:
- Love God with everything you are
- Love the people God put in front of you
These guidelines are to produce Heaven on earth. A place of peace, of hope, of grace, of mercy that you can call home.
Are you willing to invest in your home?
No, I’m not pleading for you to financially invest. What I’m asking is for you to invest in creating a culture that loves God and loves others. Invest in creating a place that you are proud to call home. Invest to create a place others want to call home. You don’t need a bigger building. This is not a “Build it and they will come” moment. Find a community that loves others like Christ, and then, invest in that community.
Jesus replied: “‘Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind.’ This is the first and greatest commandment. And the second is like it: ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’
Matthew 22:37-39
If you invest in me, then you will always gain more than you give. I am not here to drain you, but to build you up to be a mature follower of Christ. You have to trust me to do the very thing I am here to do–love.
Love,
The Church
The church is here to be hope and a home to the lost. Let’s commit to making it a place of belonging. If you need prayer, please visit the Contact page and let me know so I can pray for you. If you have a message that God wants you to share so others can listen, then visit the Guest Posting page.
For Your Name is my name and my name for Your Glory,
Forever and Ever, Amen.
nick settles 