A letter to the church at West Ridge.

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I’m no apostle Paul, but I do have some thoughts for my church in Paulding County, Georgia.

To the pastor:

You are my brother and friend. I have always believed the reason God has blessed WRC is that you have a pure heart for His glory. You are a strong visionary leader who isn’t afraid to dream and tackle difficult paths. You continue to grow and change with the demands of the flock. You are a good shepherd to your staff and people. You’ve got what it takes. I love you, my friend.

To the elders:

At 7am on the first Saturday morning of each month I would make my way to the church office to meet with you. Each meeting we prayed, laughed, debated, and studied together. We tackled the challenging biblical and shepherding issues of our church together. And in eight years, we always ended up coming together, because it was not a meeting of the minds - it was a group of men seeking the mind of Christ. I love you, my friends. I will always consider myself an elder-at-large of WRC. And I promise – next meeting I’LL bring the coffee!

To the staff:

For eight years we have done life and ministry together. We have been through the fire and flood together, through spontaneous baptisms, ‘chupah’ services, staff retreats to Chattanooga, and weekly times of laughter and prayer. You people are pure hearted, talented, dedicated, and a joy to serve with. We challenged each other to grow and reach for the next level. Above all, we knew “its not about us, not about WRC – its about Jesus and His kingdom.” Keep shepherding the sheep among you, and remember – “its about the sheep, stupid!” I love you.

To the people:

You had the courage to come to a different church, one that is not strapped by tradition. You have seen, studied, and practiced a biblical Christianity, one that is marked by loving, growing, serving and sharing. A religion that is pure, freed by grace and freely offered to our neighbors in Paulding and Cobb counties. Continue to live different, keep crossing the line and taking the inward journey. I believe that Jesus is pleased with your heart and work.

Finally, let me borrow some words from the apostle Paul to express my thoughts to you:

I thank my God every time I remember you. In all my prayers for all of you, I always pray with joy because of your partnership in the gospel from the first day until now, being confident of this, that he who began a good work in you will carry it on to completion until the day of Christ Jesus.

 It is right for me to feel this way about all of you, since I have you in my heart; for whether I am in chains or defending and confirming the gospel, all of you share in God’s grace with me. God can testify how I long for all of you with the affection of Christ Jesus.

 And this is my prayer: that your love may abound more and more in knowledge and depth of insight, so that you may be able to discern what is best and may be pure and blameless until the day  of Christ, filled with the fruit of righteousness that comes through Jesus Christ—to the glory and praise of God. [philippians 1]

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