Reaching Out

"Can a mother forget the baby at her breast and have no compassion on the child she has borne? Though she may forget, I will not forget you! See, I have engraved you on the palms of my hands;" - Isaiah 49:15-16

How many of our friends and neighbors have lost touch with a church and are out in wind? How many feel as if they are neither here nor there, surrounded by many, yet alone? Maybe it's a stay-at-home mother feeling isolated from the world, a young couple struggling with marriage issues or just a believer feeling out of place in his own church.

We are not alone in this world. As members of God's household, He has provided us with brothers and sisters, an extended family that is the local church. At New Life Bay Area, we desire to reach out to the community, and draw them into a church that worships together and raises each other up in the likeness of Christ.

Worshiping Together

"As each one has received a gift, minister it to one another, as good stewards of the manifold grace of God." - 1 Peter 4:10 

We know that we come to church to worship the Lord together, but offering up our best worship to the Lord requires a united effort. We strive to worship as one body, but it's not just about participating. Being a covenant community means we serve together, help each other and bless one another. It's not just a question of whether the church meets our needs, but whether we are faithful in using the distinct gifts God has given to each one of us to minister to one another.

1 Corinthians 12 describes the church as being one body made up of many parts, and that each part has distinct roles to play. There are many means by which we can, as members of the body, help the congregation offer a united worship. Some ways are more obvious, such as the pastor, the praise team, and the ushers. Others are less visible, such as the ones who come early to set up the chairs, prepare the slides, or record the sermon, but it is clear from 1 Peter 4:10, that each one of us is enabled by God as ministers of His grace.

Maturing in Faith Together

"Let us not give up meeting together, as some are in the habit of doing, but let us encourage one another, and all the more as you see the Day approaching." - Hebrews 10:25

United we stand, divided we fall. There's no "I" in TEAM. Two heads are better than one. Everyone understands the importance of teamwork. So it is within the church. The passage from Hebrews doesn't just ask us not to leave the fellowship of believers. It's not enough just to be together. We need to encourage one another, we need to build each other up, run the race together.

Here at New Life Bay Area, we hope to be church that is an extended covenant family in the model of the church described in Titus 2; a church that instructs all of its members, old and young, in the ways of the Lord, as well as a church where the older members are also called to set an example for and mentor the younger members who will then mentor the generation after them.