Update and Prayer Letter

Greetings, Brothers and Sisters.

Thank you for your continued prayer and encouragement. The missus and I are tremendously blessed, knowing that we have friends and prayer warriors interceding for us from SoCal and Seattle to Sterling, Virginia. We know our prayers are not in vain, because our Savior's work was and is not in vain.

In the first quarter (Oct-Dec) of my two-year call to Falls Presbyterian Church (now referred to as "Falls Church: An OPC Family"), I sought to integrate myself within both the church and community in order to get to know both better, as well as establish some outreach "baby steps" within the church.

During that time, I joined the American Legion and Toastmasters, took over two local Meetup groups, and visited a host of local social spots. I also started visiting with individuals from the church and community and by the time we settled into our new home, joined my wife in having folks over on a regular basis.

With our outreach "baby steps," individual members of our church were given the opportunity to distribute invitation cards to our church, thus making their faith a more explicit part of their daily lives. The church also had a booth at the town "Christmas Market," where we distributed hot chocolate and free literature. We also hosted two unofficial 5k runs, which each drew about 10 people.

A few highlights:

1) We had 18 volunteers at the Christmas Market, and interacted with several dozen people.
2) Our Facebook is now followed by over a thousand people (was at 120).
3) The running Meetup group is followed by 160 people (was at 110), now draws between 4-8 runners on a regular basis, and has become known as the official Falls running group.
4) The discussion Meetup group has exploded from about 120 followers to 320.
5) We had a housewarming party with 40 people--20 from the church and 20 from the community.

These are all venues, direct and indirect, for building relationships, trust, and communicating the Gospel. As you have read in this blog, there have been lots of hard-hitting Gospel discussions by God's grace.

We are now halfway through the second quarter (Jan-Mar) and my goal here centers upon hospitality. I recently taught a class at church on this topic, reminding our people that hospitality is not only at the heart of God-glorifying fellowship within the church and God-glorifying outreach outside of the church, it is at the very heart of God himself.

To this end, my family has upped our own hospitality, hoping to better know friends and strangers alike, as well as model what a blessing this lifestyle brings! Over the past three Sundays, we have hosted our new "Growth Committee"--four couples who are committed to the aims of outreach, hospitality, and discipleship. They will join us in spreading the hospitality culture.

This will include promoting the church in the community, arranging events, guiding and engaging visitors at the church, providing meal invites to members and visitors alike, and nurturing the bonds of our church on a deeper level. They will be helping me represent the church at the community's annual chili cook-off this Saturday, and started rolling on the hospitality.

A few highlights and additional plans for this quarter:

1) Through my work with a local political organization, I am receiving invitations to pray, read Scripture, and offer devotions at local political events and through local outlets.
2) Just today, a member of our running group set up a Facebook page for the group. This will not only raise the profile of the group, but demonstrates a level of commitment to this group, making it more self-sustaining.
3) This Sunday, we will have a member at the back door, ready to guide any visitors through the church and connect them with people who are ready to receive them. We will also start having a Sunday lunch invitation at the ready for any visitors.
4) A graphic designer is creating a new logo for the church in consultation with the session. A logo, like a website and FB page, is for the 30 year old what a properly manicured lawn and outdoor sign is for the 50 year old.
5) We will be sending out mailers and actively promoting our senior pastor's Easter sermon series. In conjunction with the new measures to fully welcome visitors, we are ready to receive those who the Lord brings to us in this high-visitation season.

John Piper once said that missions exists because worship does not. In the same way, outreach exists because worship does not. Our aim at Falls Church is to draw more worshipers to the living, loving God of the universe through Jesus Christ.

Please pray for the following:

1) That the Lord would encourage our hearts with His grace, regardless of visible outcomes or perceptions about progress.

2) That the Lord would keep us faithful in our methods and hopes--seeking His glory first and foremost!

3) That the Lord would make us fervent to employ every gift of this diverse body in service of His kingdom.

4) That the Lord would give us wisdom with each interaction, event, and endeavor.

I will keep you posted with some details along the way, and expect another report and request for prayer in a few months!

Yours in Christ,
Pastor Stephen Roberts (Evangelist, Falls Church; Chaplain, US Army Reserves)

Love is Rebellion

At Toastmasters last night, I gave a speech on some of my experiences in Afghanistan and Dave Lyon, the young man who was killed. I won't repeat the speech here because many of you have heard me speak of Dave on many separate occasions.

But I concluded on this note: As much as the loss of Dave hurt, I am grateful to know that love still exists. This world is broken, all love is in some form broken, and one day, all love will be love lost. Yet, even in this type of world, love still remains. What a testament to God's grace!

Later on, we had our "Table Topics" time when random subjects are introduced and people are asked to speak about them. I raised my hand for the subject of special memories from a past Valentine's Day.

On Valentine's Day in 2004, my nephew was born. Now I have lots of nephews and nieces at this point (which is awesome!!!) and each of their births were special. The really cool thing about this birthday is that it connected love with life. The natural outworking of love is life.

In the Bible, we are told that "love is as strong as death" (Song of Songs 8). One practical outworking of that comes in the form of life. Death in this fallen world is inevitable, but as long as love persists, so does life. Love becomes our rebellion against our fallen condition and the death that ensues.

Connecting my formal speech with my brief Table Topics one, I cherish again the fact that the Lord, knowing he would take close His hand upon Dave in this world and open it upon the world to come, gave Dave and Dana their final couple of days together in Afghanistan. There is also a logic behind the baby boom that so often occurs after a deployment. Soldiers see the rising tide of brokenness crash over precious lives, so they come home and start anew. To put it crassly, the pleasures of the marriage bed are combined with the purpose of the marriage bed--to turn love into life.

John 11. Jesus, looking upon the tomb of his friend Lazarus and two grief-stricken sisters, wept with great, heaving sobs. The Son of God made flesh, weeping. Why? Did He not know that He would raise Lazarus up just a few moments later? Sure He did, but He also knew what the world was like when it was created through Him--what men had made of it--and it all ended with a tomb. He felt the brokenness in His mortal bones. He then waged a rebellion of His own against death. Surely He knew the words following "Love is strong as death...Many waters cannot quench love; neither can the floods drown it." With that, the Lion roared, the stone rolled away, and the dead man was raised.

Soon after, the Lion would become the slain Lamb--an object of ridicule before a rebellion world. But through that humiliation, He would forever turn back the tide of death upon itself. He will forever be the slain Lamb and the roaring Lion. And one day, the Lion will return and bring death to death and life to life.

All of this, we consider with the reminder: God shows His own love for us in this, while we were still sinners, Christ died for us. His supreme act of love for death-destined sinners was to bring them to life through His perfect life and sacrificial death. With His own resurrection from the tomb, He reminds us that a final Day is coming. Until that Day, dear Lord, when You rend the heavens and roar...