All Christians are called to a life of mission. A life that demonstrates who they belong to and who they serve. This is called the Great Commission and is found in Matthew 28:19-20. Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age.
Acts 1:8 – But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes on you; and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth.
These are the last words that Jesus ever spoke while on Earth. Everyone who considers themselves a follower of Jesus is to be actively living out their faith by sharing the reason for the hope that they have. Jesus has commissioned, commanded and empowered us to be His missionaries where we are.
There are others like me, who are privileged to experience another calling by God to get to serve Him vocationally in His church. This is no small thing. In July 1997 I was wrestling with some college decisions and my plans for the future. I was in Grindelwald Switzerland on a mission trip and I began reading the book of Jeremiah in my daily time with God. I had been praying for clarity and guidance on what God was leading me to do with my life. He answered in one of the most unmistakable ways and for that I am eternally grateful!
These are some of the most precious verses in the world to me because they confirmed what I was already sensing God leading in me and gave me the courage to take a giant leap of faith and start over in this new direction in life.
Was it difficult? Absolutely! Was it inconvenient? Most definitely! Was in necessary? Without a doubt! I am living proof that the adventure of surrendering your will and desires for God’s is the greatest life plan that anyone could have. Everything good in my life I owe to this decision of stepping out of my comfort zone and trusting that God knew what He was doing.
The God of the Scriptures hears and answers prayer! There is no prayer too big, no prayer too small, to pray – especially if our greatest desire is to see the will of God be done here “…on earth as it is in heaven” (Matthew 6:9-13).
In the Bible, prayer is sometimes accompanied by fasting. Fasting is willingly doing without food, a portion of food, or a specific activity/necessity, for a set period of time in order to invest our energies and focus in prayer.
We are launching into a 40-day journey asking God to move powerfully in our personal relationship with Him, in our church, in our community, nation and the world. We would like to for someone to be fasting and praying for all 40 days during this time.
Why 40 Days? Throughout scripture, God used 40 days to prepare someone for His purposes.
Noah’s life was transformed by 40 days of rain.
Moses was transformed by 40 days on Mount Sinai.
The spies were transformed by 40 days in the Promised Land.
David was transformed by Goliath’s 40 days of challenges.
Elijah was transformed when God gave him 40 days of strength from a single meal.
The entire city of Nineveh was transformed when God gave the people 40 days to change.
Jesus was empowered by 40 days in the wilderness.
The disciples were transformed by 40 days with Jesus after His resurrection.
Why fast? For spiritual preparation: Fasting is a discipline that is often seen in Scripture as preparing us for our next season.
Before a major project. Nehemiah fasted and prayed before setting out to rebuild the walls of Jerusalem (Nehemiah 1:4).
Before a time of spiritual renewal. “Blow the trumpet in Zion, declare a holy fast, call a sacred assembly. Gather the people, consecrate the assembly” (Joel 2:15–16a).
Moses fasted for 40 days while receiving the Ten Commandments (Exodus 34:28).
Daniel fasted for three weeks before receiving his vision (Daniel 10:2–6).
Elijah fasted for 40 days before receiving fresh direction from God (1 Kings 19:8).
Jesus fasted for 40 days in preparation for his new season of public ministry Matthew 4:1–11).
There is a story about four people named Everybody, Somebody, Anybody and Nobody. There was an important job to be done and Everybody was sure that Somebody would do it. Anybody could have done it, but Nobody did it. Somebody got angry, because it was Everybody’s job.
Everybody thought Anybody could do it, but Nobody realized that Everybody wouldn’t do it. It ended up that Everybody blamed Somebody when Nobody did what Anybody could have.
The story may be confusing, but the message is clear: no one took responsibility so nothing got accomplished. Have you ever said something like this: somebody should help them; Somebody needs to tell them to stop; Somebody needs to step in; Somebody needs to go talk to them.
The fact is, everyone of us in our lives, if we haven’t said that, we’ve thought it. Somebody needs to just do something.
To be a somebody we’ve got to open our eyes and see what’s there. There are needs all around us. Physical needs, emotional needs, and spiritual needs. We know that ultimately what every person needs is to be connected with Jesus, to receive the hope and forgiveness that only Jesus can bring. Sometimes before we can introduce someone to Jesus to meet their spiritual needs, we try to connect with them by meeting other types of needs. That is why we serve our community.
Pleasantview is going to be a church of somebodies. We are going to do whatever it takes to make an eternal impact in our communities!
Have you ever had the thought that I am only one person, how much of a difference can I truly make?
You have probably never heard of Edward Kimball.
It was the year 1855 in the city of Boston. Edward Kimball was a young Sunday School teacher who made it a habit to personally give each student in his class an opportunity to accept Christ as their Savior. He was concerned about one of his students who worked in a shoe store. One day, Kimball visited the young man at the store where he found him in the back stocking shelves and led him to Christ. That young man was Dwight L. Moody.
D.L. Moody become one of the greatest evangelists of all time. At Moody’s funeral service, Theodore Cuyler estimated that, on average, Moody spoke to 40,000 to 50,000 people a week. During one of his meetings, he traveled to England and awakened the heart of a young pastor —F.B. Meyer.
F.B. Meyer became one of the great Bible expositors, came to the U.S.A. and preached on college campuses, and was used to convert a student to Christ—Wilbur Chapman.
Wilbur Chapman attended one of Moody’s meetings in Chicago and became D.L. Moody’s coworker. Wilbur Chapman employed an ex-baseball player as his assistant—Billy Sunday.
Billy Sunday became a great evangelist and preached in Charlotte, North Carolina, and helped organize the Christian Business Men’s Committee (CBMC).
CBMC invited an evangelist to Charlotte; his name was Mordecai Ham.
Mordecai Ham preached in the tent meeting where Billy Graham was saved.
What is amazing is that God knew Edward Kimball. When he was faithful to be who God created him to be and share about the hope that he had in Jesus, God was able to use him to change the world. You never know how God’s plan for you is going to unfold. That person that you are faithfully discipling and investing in, may seem like just one to you, but may be the beginning of God’s much greater plan. Stay faithful, don’t give up! You are making a difference when you invest in God’s Kingdom! There is no other cause more worthy and more able to change the world than that one. You just might be the next Edward Kimball, who sets things in motion that ultimately leads to millions of people around the world hearing and accepting the Gospel.
How do we as a church make a real difference when the world seems so intent in destroying itself? That is what God has called us to do, be light in the darkness.
Once I meet the characters in the story, Sometimes I turn to the end of the book to make sure everyone doesn’t die or that I like the ending. If I don’t like it, I probably won’t read it.
Unfortunately, in life we don’t get to read ahead and see how things will turn out. Sometimes we have to trust even when things don’t make sense. It would absolutely make life easier if we could see how the story ends before we make the decision.
But that’s not how God works. Look at what he said to Abraham. “Go to the land I will show.” He didn’t tell him in Advance where that land was or how long it would take to get there. Abraham just had to completely depend on God to provide what he needed when he needed it.
One of the lessons that I’ve learned about following God is that there will be times when you must step out into uncertainty to let God take you where he wants you. You must be willing to do this to let God accomplish what He wants in and through you.
In 1 Samuel 14 we find an unusual story of incredible faith. In this situation there were no weapons in the whole army except for the swords that Saul and his son Jonathan possessed.
So on the day of the battle not a soldier with Saul and Jonathan had a sword or spear in his hand; only Saul and his son Jonathan had them. Now a detachment of Philistines had gone out to the pass at Mikmash. 1 Samuel 13:22-23
Saul and 600 men were hiding in caves from the Philistine army. This army had them vastly outnumbered.
Jonathan said to the young man who carried his armor, “Come, let us go over to the garrison of these uncircumcised. It may be that the Lord will work for us, for nothing can hinder the Lord from saving by many or by few.” And his armor-bearer said to him, “Do all that is in your heart. Do as you wish. Behold, I am with you heart and soul.” 1 Samuel 14:6-7
It may be that the Lord will work for us—This expression did not imply a doubt; it signified simply that the object he aimed at was not in his own power—but it depended upon God—and that he expected success neither from his own strength nor his own merit.
Faith Requires Action – 1 month ago my family took a leap of faith and moved to Derby. About 5 months ago your Pastor Search Team took a leap of faith and contacted us and began this entire process. Some of you are here because of different steps of faith in your lives. That faith required action on your part not just to believe this was where God wanted you, but to get up and show up. James 2 says that faith without works is dead.
Then Jonathan said, “Behold, we will cross over to the men, and we will show ourselves to them. If they say to us, ‘Wait until we come to you,’ then we will stand still in our place, and we will not go up to them. But if they say, ‘Come up to us,’ then we will go up, for the Lord has given them into our hand. And this shall be the sign to us.” So both of them showed themselves to the garrison of the Philistines. And the Philistines said, “Look, Hebrews are coming out of the holes where they have hidden themselves.” And the men of the garrison hailed Jonathan and his armor- bearer and said, “Come up to us, and we will show you a thing.” And Jonathan said to his armor-bearer, “Come up after me, for the Lord has given them into the hand of Israel.” Then Jonathan climbed up on his hands and feet, and his armor-bearer after him. And they fell before Jonathan, and his armor-bearer killed them after him. And that first strike, which Jonathan and his armor-bearer made, killed about twenty men within as it were half a furrow’s length in an acre of land. And there was a panic in the camp, in the field, and among all the people. The garrison and even the raiders trembled, the earth quaked, and it became a very great panic. 1 Samuel 14:8-15
They did what they could do by coming out of hiding and risking everything, and God did what only God could do. He caused an earthquake and panic in the camp. All because of these two men…
The second principle is this: Our Action gives God the opportunity to respond – God is God and he can do anything he chooses. He could have sent the earthquake and rescued Saul and his men anytime. But he showed his power only after Jonathan and his buddy stepped out in faith, where only God could. God chooses us to be the messengers of his truth to people. He doesn’t need us, but he chooses to use us.
I have known people who are looking for a job and consider themselves to be a Christian, and they are believing that God is going to provide them a job. And they wait and pray and pray and wait, and they never send out a resume, they never apply for jobs.
By doing nothing they are not giving God the opportunity to respond. I could have known that I was supposed to move here and join Pleasantview. Kristin and I could have prayed and prayed and studied about the city, but until the church was obedient to God and called us, and we were obedient to God and moved here, nothing would have changed. I can’t make it happen; you can’t make it happen. Just like Jonathan and his friend couldn’t survive unless God made it happen.
Only God will make Pleasantview a catalyst for people beginning a relationship with Jesus and seeing their lives changed forever! But if we aren’t the ones that take action to invite people to our services, to share the gospel with those we encounter, to pray and serve, to make Pleasantview a safe environment for new families to come and feel welcome; if we don’t do that, they may not have a chance to hear the message of the Gospel. That’s why God says in Romans 10:12-14: Jew and Gentile are the same in this respect. They have the same Lord, who gives generously to all who call on him. For “Everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved.” But how can they call on him to save them unless they believe in him? And how can they believe in him if they have never heard about him? And how can they hear about him unless someone tells them?
Our action gives God the opportunity to do what only He can do!
The third principle that we can learn from this passage: God doesn’t need large numbers. Just boldness and willingness from people to lay it all on the line for him. Then Saul and all his men assembled and went to the battle. They found the Philistines in total confusion, striking each other with their swords. 1 Samuel 14:20
The Philistines were, by the power of God, set against one another. The Philistines were very secure, because all the swords and spears were in their hands. Israel had none except what Saul and Jonathan had. But now God showed them the folly of that confidence, by making their own swords and spears the instruments of their own destruction.
Because of the faith of two men…in verse 23 we see what the result was. So on that day the Lord saved Israel, and the battle moved on beyond Beth Aven.
When you think about the church what is it that you see? What you see is your vision for God’s church. Vision should be so grand that it extends beyond your capacity to do on your own and beyond your lifetime. What do want to leave for your kids and grandkids?
Here are three realities about vision that must be understood if we are to get on board with God so that He can build an effective, vibrant church.
1. Vision always requires faith. Usually, it requires more faith than we are comfortable with. George Mueller, one of the great men of Christian faith said, “Faith does not operate in the realm of the possible. There is no glory for God in that which is humanly possible. Faith begins where man’s power ends.”
To accomplish the God-sized vision, we have to take a risk and attempt something that we cannot do with our current skill set. That is when God gets glory.
2. Vision usually unfolds progressively. There are rare times when you perceive the big picture vision along with the little steps needed to get there, but most of the time, vision unfolds over time as you act on a glimpse that opens another possibility you did not think of previously.
3. Vision usually drives everyone to a new level of prayer. As in everything that is worth pursuing, vision provokes the enemy to attack before the vision can become reality. This drives people to their knees, asking God to help them fulfill the vision that is so grand in scope they must have His help.
Here is the Bible’s definition of faith: Hebrews 11:1 – Now faith is being sure of what we hope for and certain of what we do not see. 2 Corinthians 5:7 – For we live by faith, not by sight.
Our faith brings certainty and assurance to our vision.
The church today needs visionary people who are willing to trust God to do what only He can even when it seems impossible.
The whole Bible is a testimony of God doing the impossible. Let’s get ready to experience that at Pleasantview. I believe that God is calling our church to deeper levels of faith and commitment than ever before. I believe that as everything seems to be falling apart around us, it is just like God to say trust me even more with everything you are and everything you have. I believe that God is building something in and through Pleasantview that will transform all of us. It will be scary, it will take faith, but it will change everything in ways that only God can.
Are you ready to say yes to whatever God asks? I am
Let me share a glimpse of what I see when I think about the days ahead for our church.
I see a church that has an undeniable impact on her city.
I see a church that has baptisms every week because people are coming to faith all the time.
I see a church that is raising up the next generation to be world shapers and world changers.
I see a church that is filled with zealous followers of Jesus, running wholeheartedly after him, worshipping him with passion and authenticity!
I see a church where prayer is a ministry and a lifestyle.
I see a church where families are restored, relationships mended all because of people fully surrendering to Jesus!
I see a church with multiple generations growing together, united through Christ.
I see a church filled with people growing in their relationship with God, discipling others as they grow.
I see leaders raised up and developed for ministry.
I see resources leveraged for God’s Kingdom.
To accomplish a God-sized vision, it will involve stepping out in faith and risk as we attempt something that we cannot do in our own abilities. That is when God gets the glory.
As in everything that is worth pursuing, a God-sized vision provokes the enemy to attack before the vision can become reality. This drives people to their knees, asking God to help them fulfill the vision that is so grand in scope they must have His help.
I am begging God to allow me to be part of a movement like that. To see God do something that would amaze us all.
No matter where you are in your relationship with God, you have a next step to take. As a new year is beginning, what next step do you need to take in your walk with Christ? Think about that for a moment. What is it that you know would strengthen your relationship with God?
This can be the moment when everything changes!
Maybe you’ve been hit and miss in church attendance over this past year. Make 2023 the year you committed yourself and your family to being found faithful at church!
How about connecting with other Christians? Is that it? Maybe you’re one who actively attends worship but are not engaged in one of our Groups. The best way to grow in your faith is through a small group. This is where you can learn, ask questions, be encouraged, be prayed for and build community with other believers. We all need this!
Some may say that it’s their prayer life that needs a recommitment this year. Is that you? Then commit to it this new year!
How about baptism or church membership? Our next Baptism opportunity is coming soon and you can let us know that you are ready to take that step of obedience and be baptized.
Our next Membership Class is January 22.
How about taking your next step in generosity? Maybe regular giving is your next step. Commit to making 2023 the year you became an extravagant giver!
Could it be that stepping up and serving in a ministry is what you need to do in 2023?
It’s also a possibility that that there’s been a lack of consistency in your personal Bible study over this past year. How about committing to a bible reading plan in 2023? If you need some help finding one that works for you, let us know and we would be happy to give you some options.
Who are those people in your life that you know need to accept Christ? Are you praying for them daily? Are you committed to inviting them to church with you where they will hear the Gospel presented? Are you ready to share your personal testimony with them?
Or are you someone whose next step is the first step in beginning a relationship with Jesus?
Most of us know what it is we need to do; it is just not always easy to step out and do it.
So, what is it for you? What next step do you need to take on your spiritual journey in 2023?
We are here to provide opportunities, resources, encouragement and accountability to help you make 2023 your greatest year of spiritual growth yet! But you have to take that next step.
I’m looking forward to seeing what God does in day ahead!
My name is Lance Montalbano. I am a follower of Jesus, a husband to Kristin, dad to Riley, Seth and Hope, and believer in God's church to share the hope of Jesus with a world that is desperate for the truth.
