"If I go up to the heavens, You are there;
if I make my bed in the depths, You are there.
If I rise on the wings of the dawn,
if I settle on the far side of the sea,
even there Your hand will guide me
and Your right hand shall hold me fast."
-Psalm 139:8-10
I'm sure most of you reading this are familiar with one of the great pastimes of childhood -- "connect the dots." Whenever I was sick in bed as a child, my father would always bring me a chocolate milkshake, a giant "Connect the Dots" workbook and some new crayons. Heaven!
Remember the feeling -- staring at a page and trying to see the picture hidden in the maze of dots? Once you see it, you are overjoyed, and then get busy connecting those dots and adding colorful artwork to make it your own. As a staff member here, I have a front row seat to view some exciting new activities where church members are connecting the dots in their lives and for this church.
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Albert Cheng, along with many CCPC members such as Sandy Detweiler, Troy Caldwell, Judy Hammer, and others have been diligently working to establish a Multicultural Ministry (MM) at CCPC. At a recent picnic hosted by our MM Fellowship, more than one hundred people showed up!
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Just this week, I received this amazing E-testimony:
I am trying to open my mind to Jesus. In fact, my family background is Buddhism but in contrast, my wife's family are very faithful Christians... Since I arrived in the United States three years ago, I have met many Christian pastors and seminary students and visited many... churches in Dallas. However, I have not felt comfortable. This church is very special to me as well as my family. I really like the multicultural ministry and the members because they have open minds. In addition, Live316 has made me more comfortable to be with Christians.
Jean Lenhardt and an army of volunteers from the Membership Committee just completed an effort to make personal phone calls to every member of the church. Not only were invitations extended to participate in our upcoming Pictorial Directory, but for those who haven't been here for awhile, our callers encouraged many to reconnect to the life of our church. And -- many have! Glenn Miller, for example, has been shepherding several returnees. Sometimes, all it takes is a phone call to help someone connect those dots!
God has a vision for each one of us, and also a vision for this church. If we team up with God, that vision can suddenly and clearly emerge from the sea of dots. Some years ago, I experienced a significant transformation from a busy Christian to a follower of Christ. Up to that point, I was doing all the right Martha sorts of things -- committee meetings, mission outings, etc. But the countless dots swirling around in my life didn't connect in a meaningful way until I adopted the spiritual discipline of devoting the first thirty minutes of my day to God -- through Scripture reading, prayer, journaling, and some open space for dialogue.
Normally, these eSpirit devotionals end with a written prayer. Today, I simply entreat you to begin your next prayer time by inviting God to come and hang out with you. Give God some open space for a two-way dialogue. If you are interested in finding out more about contemplative prayer techniques, a great Christian "connect the dots" book is When the Soul Listens, by Jan Johnson. Be ready to get your crayons out! Heaven...
