If you were not in church last Sunday you missed the longest sermon in Orchard Hills history. Fortunately it was not from me but Mike Massey who swore to me that it should have only been 25 minutes instead of the 40 plus minutes it actually was. I loved giving Mike a hard time especially since he always gives me one for the first sermon I preached at CHS as we were starting Orchard Hills. My mistake was using the wrong font size, Mike’s was just having too much ‘good stuff’ to share. I thought he did a great job of breathing new life into a familiar story although he left the second service attendees with a visual image that we would all love to forget.

At the end of the service Mike announced that he, Shenna , Cole, Rachel and Jake along with the Fishers, Fountains and Goodpastures have felt led to start a new church in Salem. While it is sad to lose such great leaders and friends I have a great peace that this is exactly what they need to do. I believe God is challenging all of us to continue to keep our focus outward instead of inward and to hold all things and people loosely. God’s plans are bigger and better than our plans and the tighter we try and hold on to our desires and plans the more painful it becomes when He pries our fingers open to accomplish His will.

I believe now is a time to rejoice with the Masseys and the others whom God will call to go. Going is never easy and staying behind often seems the hardest, but we will only be separated by a few miles. Our relationships may not be as close but they will never pass away. Be encouraged at this time because God is doing great things! Who knows whom God may be raising up to take Mike’s place and set a new longest sermon record?

German philosopher Immanuel Kant loved to take long walks on summer evenings to meditate and think. On one occasion he was sitting in a park when a policeman noticed that he had been there for several hours. The policeman came up to him and said, “What are you doing?” Kant answered, “I’m thinking.” The policeman said, “Well, who are you?” Kant replied, “That’s precisely the problem I’ve been thinking about.” (Excerpt from, “The Jewel in the Crown of God’s Creation.”

“Who am I?” This is probably the hardest question that each of us has to answer. It goes beyond your name, who you are married to, what you do for a living or what culture you live in. It asks to be informed of the reason for your individual existence.

Question 1 from the Westminster Confession of Faith- Shorter Catechism asks, “What is the chief end of man?” answer: “Man’s chief end is to glorify God and to enjoy Him forever”. That is very helpful for me to know that God created me for His glory and so ultimately that should be my goal as well. I know from God’s Word that this can only be accomplished through putting my faith and trust in the death and resurrection of Christ, but it still leaves me asking, “Who AM I to you God?”

If you come from a big family, you probably know that your Father loves his children of whom you are one, but there is that place in your heart that needs to know you are known and loved individually. Perhaps this would lead you to ask, “Father, who am I to you? Am I special to you in any way?” I love Psalm 139 because it reveals to me God’s personal and intimate heart for me. It gives me joy and peace to know that He personally “knit me together, in my mother’s womb”. Romans 8:16 promises me that the Spirit of Christ within me testifies that I am a child of God so I can ask Him the question, “Who am I?” I encourage you to ask Him to reveal to you who you are to Him.

I believe it is vitality important to know why I am here and how do I bring Him glory? Each of us has been created with talents and gifts given to us by our Father and creator. When we are being what we have been created for then we will be able to “glorify God and enjoy Him forever”. This is how the body of Christ is to move forward in joy and in power. Each member living into the purpose for his or her creation.

GOALS:

The small group model is an integral part of the life and body of the Church of the Holy Spirit-Orchard Hills. Our church has been founded upon the group model and has benefited from the intimacy and discipleship, which results from meeting together in a small group environment.

Groups are designed to create a safe and inviting environment for individuals to share common experiences and grow in relationship with Jesus Christ and each other through fellowship, Bible study and prayer. They are for adults of all ages, stages of life and spiritual maturity.

Two types of groups available at Orchard Hills:

Discipleship Groups—are small groups of 4 to 5 individuals of the same gender

Home groups—are comprised of 12 to 15 people who meet weekly in the home of one of the group members.

If you are interested in joining a group, please contact Mike Moffitt at (540) 977-6800 or mike@chsorchardhills.com.

“As iron sharpens iron, so one man sharpens another” Proverbs 27:17