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What is the meaning of Connect4Change (Connect For Change)? What are we praying to accomplish?
Connect
When we say "Connect," we are thinking of how unconnected many of us have been through the years. We share the seven "ones" that Paul listed in Ephesians 4: one body and one Spirit, one hope, one Lord, one faith, one baptism; one God and Father of all, who is over all and through all and in all. We have the same heart: to fulfill the Great Commandment and the Great Commission.
Our lives have been changed by Jesus, and we want the same for others. We have the same goal: We want to see the number of disciples increasing. And yet we have often not been connected. Some of us have been more isolated and insular than others, but whoever we are and wherever we are, we can discover that the goal of being used by God can be served by greater connection--by knowing what others are thinking and doing.
Change
When we say "change," we mean to change into the image of Christ. This journey toward Jesus is not one we are to take alone. The more connected we are, the more we all can change into his likeness. Scripture tells us that maturity is in large part measured by and produced by unity (Ephesians 4:12-16). When we encourage each other, fellowship our faith, and speak truth in love, we will grow up into him.
When we say "change," we also mean to change the church. Astonishingly, Jesus has given to his church the responsibility of representing him on earth, and given to her titles like his "body" and his "bride." But the church is always in need of restoration and change. God loves her and uses her in her imperfection, but he always wants us working together so he can shape her into what he wants.
When we say "change" we also mean to change the world. We don't have the financial resources of a Bill and Melinda Gates or their friend, Warren Buffet. We don't have the remarkable global influence of an Oprah Winfrey. But because we have been given the Spirit of God and the message the world most needs, we can change the world. As idealistic as it may sound, the power of Jesus is that great. But his last prayer showed that it would take us being connected for him to accomplish such a thing.
And so we will use this place on the Net to connect, in order that we might change. We believe everyone with a humble heart and a passion for Christ will be changed by what we do here to the end of helping others to be changed.
What to Expect
At the beginning, we will focus on the following areas and will expand these as the site evolves.
An Examination of Different Church Cultures. As some of us have ventured out of our comfort zones and have begun to be with other Christians, we have discovered that in all the years we have not been talking to each other, we have developed different ways of worshipping, different ways of organizing, different ways of being involved in the lives of other Christians, just to name a few areas. We will seek articles that will help us to understand what is going on in:
- Churches of Christ (who have historically been acapella in worship)
- Independent Christian Churches
- International Churches of Christ
As we take a look, what we may find is that there are strengths and weaknesses in the way we all do things, and that we can learn from each other and change for the better! For that to happen, we will need to suspend a judgmental spirit and pray to have teachable hearts.
Personal profiles. We will encourage participants to make themselves known to others. For many of us, our connections have been limited to those in a small circle of folks who have the same history and background as we do. Many of us do not know a single person outside our "fellowship." It will be profitable and unifying to see names and faces and to hear stories of the spiritual journey that others outside our sphere have taken. Our prayer will be that as a result of sharing ourselves, correspondence will begin and relationships will develop.
Stories of Growth and Victory. There are some great stories out there that need to be told. We may start off with interviews of those that we hear are making a difference. Eventually we hope there will be regular submissions from those who want to share what is happening where they are. We expect that some readers will be surprised and even amazed to hear some of the things that are being done.
Information, Links and Resources. One of our goals is to make participants aware of places to go where they can get help, inspiration and ideas in a variety of areas. Too many of us are still trying to reinvent the wheel when we could be benefiting from what others have already done or have already learned. With a world to win, we can hardly afford to be duplicating each others' efforts when we need to be building on what is already there. We will seek to make others aware of books, Web sites, articles, resources, mission efforts, educational and training programs, ministries to the poor, conferences and seminars.
Articles, Studies, Papers. Our goal is for the material on this site to stimulate, challenge and excite. We will seek writers who will address theological and practical topics with a concern for solid biblical foundations. Undoubtedly, this will sometimes lead to a healthy exchange of different perspectives or conclusions, but we will look for ways to present such dialogue in an irenic spirit that shows respect for the faith and conscience of others. Our hope is that the first paper will be a study of biblical baptism that is currently being used as a position paper by a church-planting network being sponsored by Independent Christian Churches.
Romans 15:5-6 has to be once of the great texts on unity. It is our prayer: "May the God who gives endurance and encouragement give you a spirit of unity among yourselves as you follow Christ Jesus, so that with one heart and mouth you may glorify the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ." Much prayer is behind this effort we are making. It can succeed only through the working of God's Spirit. However, with a radical openess to what the Spirit wants to do we can find unity that might have seemed impossible.
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