The elders met for our monthly meeting on Tuesday, November 18. Uncharacteristically (and thankfully), this month did not have a lengthy administrative agenda enabling us to spend more time on other things. We continued in our discussion of readings from The Multigenerational Church Crisis by Bryan Chapell. The readings this month contemplated how different generations view the culture they grew up in; the older generation of evangelical Christians grew up in a time where the culture was thought to have a Christian majority while the younger generation of evangelical Christians are maturing in a culture where Christians are most decidedly a minority. These two perspectives may provide differing, and on the surface conflicting, viewpoints on how to achieve the church's mission. However, the author points out three major things that he observes that bind different generations of evangelicals together. “First, the Bible is our only infallible rule of faith and practice,” second, “a commitment across generations to the sanctity of life,” and third “the glory of God and the goodness of his gospel are to be made known to all the world.” ¹

The bulk of our time together consisted of discussing pastoral care and praying for our church. Even in the church we are not immune from sin. As we discuss the situations where sin and its effects are evident and how to minister well, it is easy to become discouraged. However, as we continue to discuss and pray many hope-filled encouragements are also revealed. There are a number of people who are considering baptism and membership (and several who were recently baptized). There are a number of new faces joining us to worship God. People are expressing an interest in leadership and ministry. The season of Advent is upon us. Hope is a gift from God!

Romans 15:13 May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace as you trust in him, so that you may overflow with hope by the power of the Holy Spirit.

¹Bryan Chapell, The Multigenerational Church Crisis, pages 110-111