The Gathering

Let’s look at this morning’s cliché: God Helps Those Who Help Themselves. To be clear this sentence is not found anywhere in the Bible. It actually comes from one of America’s founding fathers, Benjamin Franklin. If we look at Scripture, we can certainly find passages that, at first glance, seem to support this idea. But the Bible was never meant to be read this way. Let's unpack this together.

It is easy, and natural, for us to make decisions based on our present circumstances, commitments, obstacles, and desires. But sometimes we have to make decisions not based on where we are, but based on where we think God is calling us. We make decisions now, that build and define the future. In this last week, we will talk about what lies ahead for The Gathering, and the importance of seeing beyond the present to the future church God is calling us to be.

Building on last week, the author of Hebrews ends the “remembering the past” section with a present day call. Since so many people have made faithful decisions that have made a difference for you, let us also make faithful decisions, right now, that will impact others. Defining moments aren’t just in the past, they are all around us, right now. We will talk about the way present day decisions at The Gathering can leave a legacy far beyond what we can imagine.

Hebrews 11 reminds people of faith of a few things - they didn’t get here alone, small defining moments can have a huge impact, and ordinary people can make an incredible difference when they step out in faith. This week, we will remember faithful decisions and defining moments from The Gathering’s past and talk about what it means for us who call the Gathering home today.

Many of you might already know, but the first and most important ‘rule’ in improv—the foundational law of the stage—is “yes, and…” It is the mechanism of acceptance and creation. And this notion of acceptance and creation is actually very deeply rooted in scripture and the very nature of God!

I find myself thinking about this concept constantly because life rarely hands us the script we rehearsed, thought we wanted, or planned on existing. Some of us might expect God to look at the mess we’ve made and say something to the effect of "no, this isn’t what we planned or had agreed to. Get off the stage." But instead, we find an eternal truth: that this is a God of improvisation, a God who can pivot, a God who never gives up on us. God is the ultimate improvisor and in this life there are no dead ends.