I Chronicles 16:8 says, Give thanks to the Lord, call on his name;
make known among the nations what he has done.
(NIV) Centuries ago William
Law wrote: “Would you know who is the greatest saint in the world? It is not he who prays most or fasts most; it
is not he who lives most, but it is he who is always thankful to God; who
receives everything as an instance of God’s goodness and has a heart always
ready to praise God for it.”
As we move into this holiday season
I want to take a minute to be specifically thankful for the great opportunity
that God has given us at Mount Pleasant to literally be involved in ministry
that changes the world one life, one family, one opportunity at a time. Whether we’re talking about the lives and
families that are changed right here in Greenwood and the Southside of
Indianapolis through the many ministries/outreaches of our church or the lives
that are changed in different corners of the world like India, Poland, Mexico,
Russia, China, Canada, Romania and Africa.
Just this past week we participated in a celebration of 30 years of
ministry at CICM (Central India Christian Mission) where Ajai and Indu Lall and
their family have been our living link partners for many years. During the past 30 years over 1,000 churches
have been planted and on any given Sunday over 250,000 people gather to worship
as a result of this mission (and that’s just one aspect of the mission). God has used our partnership to help make
this happen. . In addition we are currently involved in new
church plants in both Canada and Poland. We are always looking for new
opportunities to expand our ministry and witness around the world.
While we are full of thanks to God
for the great work He is doing abroad, we are also very grateful for the work
He has chosen to do through Mount Pleasant Christian Church right here in our
own community. Locally we have entered
into a very special “God At Work” expansion plan that will add 185 parking
spaces to our main campus; build a new Community Ministry Center for our food
and clothing ministries; add 11 adult classrooms to enhance our new plan for
“focused discipleship” called The Journey, and build a maintenance building
One of the ways we can demonstrate
the reality of our thankfulness is through a special weekend offering scheduled
for the weekend of April 20/21, 2013. (Note: We had originally targeted one week earlier, but this date has been changed for scheduling purposes.) We will use this offering to help offset the cost of this God At Work expansion plan. I know that this is a busy time of year but I want to encourage you to take time to be thankful for the ministry of Mount Pleasant Christian Church and begin to pray and plan for your participation in this special offering. This offering is about so much more than just covering a cost; it’s about saying “yes” to our continuing mission to change the world one life, one family, one opportunity at a time.
Jesus cares,
Pastor Chris
