Continuing our journey though the Gospel of John

22 After this, Jesus and his disciples went out into the Judean countryside, where he spent some time with them, and baptized.23 Now John also was baptizing at Aenon near Salim, because there was plenty of water, and people were constantly coming to be baptized.24 (This was before John was put in prison.)25 An argument developed between some of John’s disciples and a certain Jew over the matter of ceremonial washing.

26 They came to John and said to him, “Rabbi, that man who was with you on the other side of the Jordan–the one you testified about–well, he is baptizing, and everyone is going to him.”
27 To this John replied, “A man can receive only what is given him from heaven.28 You yourselves can testify that I said, ‘I am not the Christ but am sent ahead of him.’29 The bride belongs to the bridegroom. The friend who attends the bridegroom waits and listens for him, and is full of joy when he hears the bridegroom’s voice. That joy is mine, and it is now complete.

30 He must become greater; I must become less.
31 “The one who comes from above is above all; the one who is from the earth belongs to the earth, and speaks as one from the earth. The one who comes from heaven is above all.32 He testifies to what he has seen and heard, but no one accepts his testimony.33 The man who has accepted it has certified that God is truthful.34 For the one whom God has sent speaks the words of God, for God gives the Spirit without limit.35 The Father loves the Son and has placed everything in his hands.

36 Whoever believes in the Son has eternal life, but whoever rejects the Son will not see life, for God’s wrath remains on him.”

The crowds are beginning to leave John and heading to Jesus as he begins baptizing as well.  When confronted about it John is joyous.  His ministry is not in competition.  What if we could see everything we did as paving the way for others, and be glad when they both join us and lead us?

v34 – God gives the Spirit without limit.  Reflect on this statement next time you’re feeling inadequate.

At Mosaic, no matter who you are, or where you’re from, you are welcome with us. Our hope is that we can create a radically inclusive space where even those who may often feel most on the fringe can also feel a deep sense of belonging.

While technically we do offer ‘memberships’, if you’re not a member, we want to re-iterate that there is nothing you need to do for us to love you or accept you. Our membership provides no benefits or privileges other than additional opportunities to give and to serve.

We try to stress that members at Mosaic are in fact ‘partners’ because they are committed to joining God and participating in actively living a life of faith, love, and hope for the good of the world.

If you’d like to join us as a member and partner, we’d love to have you on board. Feel free to speak to us personally about doing so. You can also find an application form here.

If you’ve already been partnering with us this past year, we want to say a collective Thank You for being a part of this great adventure and taking us thus far! We don’t keep an unending ‘membership roll’ as we understand that people transition to different life stages and communities. We ask that you reflect and recommit to Mosaic as an active Christ-following partner in the community each year. Annual Renewal Form.

We’re currently also making an open invitation for nominations to our leadership team. This entails being an active partner as well as spiritually and strategically guiding our community. Nomination Form

All these forms and more can be found on our partners page. If you need the password or have any questions feel free to leave a comment or contact us.

I was shocked to read Pastor Sandy’s sharing: “Missions Destroyed My Ministry”. It reminds of what’s happening in Mosaic. If you want know how missions destroyed his ministry, please visit this link: http://cmalliance.ca/missionsdestroyedministryp2454.php

If you’ve been wondering what on earth we’ve been exploring together in some of our gatherings, here’s a quick clip.

Here’s a thought on christian leadership

Here’s another message that was hard hitting for me that is spoken directly to pastors and church planters but I think it applies to all those who seek to minister to others in the name of Christ.

Our church has scheduled “Community sharing” once a month or more in the whole Sunday service, so do “community sharing” is important, yes…however, sharing can be done by using 10 minutes during worship, or after church, before church, any time during the week night, cell group (has not been set up yet), coffee time gathering ,etc etc . I alway and strongly believed Sunday worship is the day that God pass his words throught Pastor’s mouth. ( Is there any christian not agree !), but definitely we want God’s word on Sunday no matter what, it happening yesterday and same as today and tomorrow.

There’s lots of great re-telling of Israelite history in this chapter… if you want a quick summary of the Old Testament, Acts 7 is great to go through.

My only reflection at the moment is from one section

v39 – “Our ancestors were unwilling to obey him; instead, they pushed him aside, and in their hearts they turned back to Egypt…”

v40 “Make gods for us who will lead the way for us…”

It is so easy to go back to what is familiar, even if it enslaves us.

We all want others to lead.

Except not just any leaders, we typically want leaders or ‘gods’ to take us where we’ve already been. That don’t call us out, and keep us in comfortable places.

When we’re not leading ourselves, we don’t need to take responsibility of our actions.

We can go with the motions, while our hearts are turned back to somewhere else.

Mosaic, you’ve likely left things behind in your journey.  Possibly even good things.

But what would it mean, for each of you (yes, you) to personally lead while moving ahead forward together?

“It was a good sharing on the ministries that are on-going at this little village of Lugala in Tanania. But still, this is just another one of those stories of missions. What’s the big deal? There are tons of needs around the world and this is just another one. Anything else, let the pastor, the church board or the missions committee worry about it. Missions and Africa is just not the cup of my tea. I have much to care about in my life already.”

Then it seems that this presentation is more than a sharing on a missions project.  God is actually challenging us with the following question: what am I currently doing as a Christ follower in terms of making disciples of Jesus Christ?

On the surface, this seems to be just another missions project. When you reflect deeper into the birth of this project, it is not simply a missions project. It is a project of a disciple of Jesus making disciples of Jesus. Do this sentence sound unpolished, rough but familiar? Oh, yeah. It is the motto of Mosaic Baptist Church. “disciples of Jesus Christ who are moved to help others becoming disciples”

Bob Meinschenk, who came out with this project as the chair of his church’s outreach, has shown us what it is like when one truly lives out this motto. He is neither the pastor in charge nor higher ups in the hierarchy. He initiated a project to the higher ups and the birth of Partnership Tanzania took shape. He did not wait for directives from someone else in the church to initiate a project. Yes, I know. He is the chair of outreach and that should be his job. Then I also know that many chair on many church committees will not do anything unless directed by the pastor.  

With a 5 year commitment to this project, a village is literally being built.  With this, there comes the realities of making disciples of Jesus Christ. For those people who are involved in Bob’s project, they have slowly evolved into disciples of Jesus Christ as well. In 2007, a hostel for visitors and teachers is being built, 200 mosquito nets were distributed to protect lives, maize were distributed to families with HIV/AIDS victims, 10 heifers have been purchased to build a quality herd, 55 young people attend school ofr the first time, and a micro credit fund has been approved. Disciples of Christ take the gospel into action. Bob is making disciples of Jesus Christ through this project.

What is also amazing of this project is that only 3 cents per dollar is used to cover the cost of transferring funds and minimum costs in Tanzania. All contributions go directly to support the fore mentioned projects. What a story!

I hope that one day your story will be told in the style of Bob Meinschenk. It is because he holds true to our motto. If I am a part of Mosaic Baptist Church, what am I currently doing as a Christ follower in terms of making disciples of Jesus Christ? Am I living out the motto of our community?

Watch video.