From Our Pastor

School has started; summer is fading; vacations, for many of us are over; and our families are getting back into the routine. Will your church participation and attendance be a priority in your family’s new routine? I sure hope so.

There is a lot going on at Cornerstone Baptist Church. The Vision Committee (made up of the Church Council and a representative from each of the Sunday School classes in the church) has been meeting since the middle of July and we are making progress. Our charge is to examine several aspects of our church (worship, discipleship, missions, facilities, staff, outreach and others) and develop strategies for progress and growth in these areas.

We are off to a good start, but there is much work to do. Please pray for this group and the task at hand.

The first area we have focused on is worship. This is an aspect of our church that affects everyone – even at the same time. This is also where many of our guests first become acquainted with us.

Many have viewed worship in this way: the pastor and staff and choir, etc., are the performers and the congregation is the audience. So if the sermon isn’t too hot that day, or the choir misses a few notes, the congregation is disappointed - worship is compromised.

Soren Kierkegaard proposed a different model some years ago. What if in worship the pastor, staff and choir are the prompters, the congregation are the performers and God is the audience?

Have you ever thought of worship in this way? If this model were the case, how would you prepare differently to perform your acts of worship before God on Sunday morning? How would you approach singing and tithing and praying and the sermon differently?

Worship is one of the things we have the privilege of doing together each and every week. And one of the ways we can enrich our worship is for each of us to come prepared and with great expectations of meeting God here. So, I hope to see you here Sunday and I hope we are all ready to worship.

Peace,

Ande