MessiahLutheranChurch
The Future Story
Revision 3(2/15/09)
Note: This is one of many potential future stories for Messiah. This is about what Messiah can look like as we move as a congregation towards our vision and mission. It does not tell how we get there. It simply paints a pictureof one possibility for Messiah’s future. If you have your own pieces for Messiah’s future vision to add to this story, contact Bill McNeese, council president, or any of the council members. Your comments are welcomed.
Jack and Lisa moved into the Cy-Fair area a little over 5 months ago. As a family with young children, they talked often about the need to find a new church home. Lisa had reviewed the cards they received from local churches welcoming them. She thought about attending the one called Messiah. This church had arranged a “Get to Know Your Community” gathering and were featuring speakers from the schools, representatives from local sports associations, and civic leaders as well as activities, food and music. She would have talked Jack into going had it not been her mother-in-law’s birthday. A few months later, right after Christmas, Lisa was driving home on 290. She noticed a sign for church. All it said was
“Have you found your home?”
Then she saw the name of the church at the bottom: MessiahLutheranChurch. She remembered the card and the gathering. It reminded her of the need to find a church. And the New Year was approaching. A perfect time for a new year’s resolution to find a new church home, she thought. When she got home, she searched the internet and found Messiah’s website. It was easy to find things and provided all the information she needed in a few minutes. After entering in a little information about her family, she had a list of what was happening at Messiah on the next Sunday as well as activities during the week that the family might be interested in. Not to mention, she printed a map of the church layout so she would know where she was going. Lisa printed out the directions to the church from the website. She told Jack about what she had found. Lisa, Jack and the children were going to church on Sunday.
Brad will also be at church on Sunday. Brad has attended Messiah, off and on, for a couple months now. He found out about Messiah from a member who was working at a food bank – one of Messiah’s needs-based outreach programs in the area. The member had invited Brad to come visit and even drove him the first few times since Brad didn’t have transportation at that time. Brad has been down on his luck, personally and financially,for awhile. He is divorced and only recently found work again – and a new car, a 2002 Honda with 200,000 miles on it. Brad has attended the worship services as well as a few Sunday school classes. He is not comfortable with the gospel yet but finds Messiah a welcoming place – regardless of a visitor’s lot in life. He struggles with the few Lutheran tenets he has heard so far, the latest being that Lutherans believe we are both saints and sinners. How can that be, thought Brad the first time he heard this. A saint as a forgiven sinner?How can a person be two opposites at the same time, both saint and sinner? The mystery of the Lutheran faith is difficult to understand for Brad, but he is attracted to a faith that allows him the space to wrestle with the hard questions and supports him in his journey to find the answers.
It is Sunday, 7 AM. The sun is not quite up, but there is light becoming visible over the trees in the east on January 5th, the first Sunday in 2014. Sunrise doesn’t officially occur until 7:18 AM. Within an hour, the parking lot at MessiahLutheranChurch will nearly be full as the morning services begin. The first wave of members and visitors are attending one of two early morning services. A traditional service, usually led by the Senior Pastor, takes place in the sanctuary. The Fellowship Hall, renovated three years earlier, holds the other concurrent service. This non-traditional service, usually led by the Associate Pastor, has an almost coffee-house atmosphere featuring guitar and piano music – and, of course, the gospel.
Lisa and her family arrive in the parking lot a little before services begin. As she leaves her car, she seesa welcoming table and smiling members, one of which looks like she is not more than 10 years old. Perfect for Lisa’s family with her two children, a ten-year old boy and 7 year-old daughter. They are welcomed once they reach the deck by one of the members who explains the two services taking place. The member also gives them a map of Messiah and a list of what is going today and for the month at Messiah. Then, the ten-year old member makes sure that the visiting family gets a “Church Survival Kit.” And they are invited to come to the Library Coffee Spot after service. Brad arrives just as services are beginning. He is greeted at the welcoming table with familiar faces and heads to the traditional service to find what has become “his” seat in the next to the last row.
The members at worship this morning, like most members of Messiah, understand the meaning of being a Christian and a Lutheran. We cannot obtain forgiveness of our sins before God by our own actions or work. We receive forgiveness of our sins before God by grace through Christ’s suffering, death, and resurrection. The members know the gospel and respond to life with grace. They have opened themselves to the Holy Spirit. Members realize that they can make a difference in the lives of others and help transform the lives of others with the good news of Christ.They understand themselves to be the hands of God for His work on earth, and they reach out to all people with compassion and a willingness to serve. Not all people at Messiah are on the same place in their faith journey, and that is all right. Messiah members respect each other and move together toward the center of their faith, Christ, supporting each other on the journey.
The visitors, like Lisa’s family, on this Sunday morning feel the warm and inviting atmosphere of Messiah. Those visitors in the sanctuary note the up-to-date audio-visual equipment in use to enhance the worship experience. It is easy for visitors to follow the service. Those in the Fellowship Hall also take note of the audio-visual equipment in use as well as the unique atmosphere of the worship experience. The equipment is portable so it can be utilized in the many different settings of the diverse groups that use the Fellowship Hall.
By the end of the two services, the parking lot is totally full and overflow parking is being used. Within a few minutes, Sunday school classes will be beginning. Classes are held for all ages from 2 to adult. There are individual classes for grades 1 through 10 with a senior high class for 11th and 12th graders. There are multiple adult classes to choose from each week led by the Senior Pastor, Associate Pastor, or Associate in Ministry. The adults represent a healthy mix of ages as well as culture. These classes are one way that Messiah continues to remind members and educate new members on what it means to be a Lutheran. One new adult class starting this Sunday is on Martin Luther’s insight that God’s word comes to us in two ways – the law and the gospel. As Luther stated: “The law says, ‘do this,’ and it is never done. Grace says, ‘believe in this,’ and everything is already done.” Brad is going to this class.
Traffic moves in and out of the parking lot as the morning continues. Sunday morning concludes with one more service. This service, held in the sanctuary and led by either the Senior Pastor or the Associate in Ministry, is a contemporary service featuring Christian and gospel music. This is actually the fourth service of the weekend. The first was held the previous night in the Fellowship Hall. It is a Spanish service led by the bilingual Associate Pastor and reflects the growing diversity within the community and the church. Over the past five years, the Hispanic population has grown in Cypress and Messiah reflects that growth. Messiah recognized the need to do something fundamentally different to bring the Gospel to the surrounding community. This is reflected in Messiah’s appeal that goes beyond “traditional” Lutherans. Total attendance on the fourweekend services averages 500 people. On the ELCA website, Messiah ranks high in percent attendance.
Music plays a key role in all worship services. Messiah’s choir and men’s chorus sing each Sunday. In addition, there is a children’s choir and a youth choir that enhance the worship experience on a regular basis. The bell choir performs monthly at several services. A highly skilled team of vocalists and instrumentalists lead the music at a contemporary service. The musical gifts at Messiah are vital parts of helping Messiah grow.
By 1 PM, the parking lot is almost empty. Lisa’s family has returned home with a great feeling about their experience. But on this Sunday, there is more to come. Once a month there is a vesper’s service led by the youth of Messiah. The youth group meets weekly to grow together and to plan and to participate in youth projects. Yearly, the youth take an extended trip during the summer to see new places, to meet new people, to make a difference in the lives of others, to grow spirituality, and to help bring the Gospel to others. The youth are active participants in the congregation. They continue to be active after confirmation.
In reality, the parking lot is seldom vacant at Messiah. Each day and night, there is activity at the church. Throughout the week, the facilities are used for programs with small groups that touch all ages. Messiah’s adult small groups address a variety of relevant topics. Study groups, like Beta, continue to flourish with a focus on the scripture and how Lutheran’s interpret the message of God. Messiah repeats the old Alpha class, now called “So What’s Christianity All About Anyway?”. There is an active single group that meets regularly at and outside Messiah.
Messiah also shares it facilities with community groups whose values align with ours including AA, the Boy Scouts of America, cancer support groups, and counseling center. Chrysalis, A Grace Place for Children, continues to be a well-respected preschool and after school program in the Cypress community. This outreach ministry provides Christian care and education to a diverse population of children in the area. The programs are filled to capacity and more space is needed.
When you come to the church office during the week, you will find a vibrant open office environment. There are many activities all geared towards to serving our members and our community. The staff at Messiah has grown in recent years. There are the Senior Pastor, the Associate Pastor, the Associate in Ministry, and the Youth Director as well as the Director of Chrysalis. Music is lead by our Director of Music, our organist, a contemporary music team,and the Children’s/Youth Choir Director. There is the Office Manager and an office secretary.
There are two part-time positions: a volunteer coordinator and an Outreach coordinator. The volunteer coordinator helps match the spiritual gifts of members with the needs of Messiah. This is what one ministry leader said of the volunteer coordinator recently: “I don’t think any Ministry Leader would not go to her first when looking for candidates for volunteer positions. It is not like the old days when we kept thinking of the same 25 people when we needed to get something done. This position is one reason why Messiah can proudly say that we are an active church with more than 50% of our members meeting and doing something to enrich their lives or the life of others at least once a week outside of regular church.” The Outreach coordinator helps with planning and publicity for Messiah Outreach events. Messiah’s focus is on making a difference in the Cypress community and surrounding area through needs-based Outreach. Members are actively involved in many aspects of the community including Habitat for Humanity, Second Family Care Ministry, Bear Creek Assistance Ministries, and Cypress Assistance Ministries. Messiah has a very active seniors group calledServing Seniors. This group works in the community to assist all ages – from nursing home visitation to assisting children with homework. Messiah members support those who have lost love ones and those who are shut-ins.
Messiah continues to actively support one missionary overseas. A return mission trip to Hungary is being planned for this summer. Messiah helps touch the world through its tithing yearly to Synod and other worthy organizations and causes.
The congregation financially supports Messiah. There are sufficient funds to support Messiah’s goals. A trust fund has been started; the proceeds used to help with part of Messiah’s operating expenses. In its last meeting, the congregation approved a capital campaign to raise funds for a new, two-storybuilding to house staff in one area, a youth center (with a gymnasium), additional classrooms and more storage. The congregation has a growing recognition of God’s “Gifts of the Spirit” and that our stewardship is a recognition that we are all here for God’s purpose. Members actively find the gifts that God has given them and use those gifts to help Messiah and the surrounding community. Members realize that there is something very special in each and every one of them.
As the first Sunday of 2014 comes to a close, Messiahs’ future is bright. Lisa’s family will be back, Brad will be back, and Messiah will continue its unique role in the community. It truly is a place of grace, a growing, diverse community of followers of Jesus Christ, empowered by the life-changing gospel.