The question was like a glass of cold water in my face. I was talking to some family members, laying out MY timeframe for starting up RiverChurch. I had a date for our next VisionMeeting, a date for our first LaunchTeam meeting, and a tentative date for our official launch. When my wife’s 85 year old Grandmother asked, “what are you waiting for?” Well I fuddled around with an answer, as best as I could, and moved on to another subject, but her words kept echoing over and over and over in my head:
“What are you waiting for?”
So we went about our business, got up this morning to go to church, and in the back of my head I could still hear that annoying question on repeat over and over and over and over and. . . .you get the point.
As I listened to that question, I began to realize that I’ve been moving forward with this whole church planting thing with a very scientific, calculated, human efforts approach. I’ve been trying to plan meetings, events, and strategy planning sessions, mean while the clock keeps ticking, the sun rises and sets, wrapping up another day. And today, someone else needs Jesus. Today, someone needs hope. Today someone needs to find a group of people who can provide a safe place where they can be encouraged and strengthened in their faith.
Now the calendar for RiverChurch has a weekly prayer time starting tomorrow (Monday) night, then the following Monday a VisionMeeting, then in August our first official LaunchTeam meeting and all of those dates are still on, but I think its time to pull the trigger. Its time to move forward, without delay.
So, tomorrow, Monday June 1, 2009 at 7p will mark the first official WEEKLY meeting of RiverChurch Chattanooga. We’re going to devote our first couple of months to prayer. Praying for the City of Chattanooga, RiverChurch and the planting process. More importantly we’re going to pray for one another. We’re going to pray for miracles, for healing, for salvation, for deliverance, for God to work wonders in the lives of the people who are gathered, and that’s what we’re going to do consistently for the next couple of months. After that, we’ll see what God says next, but for now, this is where we are beginning.
So let me be the first to invite you to the first weekly meeting of RiverChurch tomorrow night. We’ll be at 1934 Bay Pointe Drive, Hixson, TN 37343. Email us at riverchurchchatt@gmail.com if you need directions or more information.
Next Monday (June 8 ) will still be our VisionMeeting at the Tennessee Riverpark Pavillion at 7p, and our regular weekly meetings will pick right up again on June 15.
“What are YOU waiting for?”