 |
|
|
Weekly Update from Damascus Road Community Church
October 11, 2007
The Beauty of God
Dear Church,
What a blessing you are to this leadership! We are sincerely honored by the way you have responded to what God is doing in our midst. We sense His pleasure in the growing hunger and maturity of the Damascus Road body. Again, these are exciting times! To God be the glory!
Here’s the hard truth: the closer we walk with God, the more it will change our will, intent, understanding, and reason. This is the Beauty of God. The process is painful to our natural man, but the result is that His intent becomes fulfilled in us, that His glory might shine through us.
As the elders of this church, we want you to understand that, to the degree we’re honest with God (and ourselves), He is dealing with each of us at an even deeper heart level than ever before. As we are seeking to be fully honest with God, we want to be fully honest with you. No spin, no frills. These are beautiful and hopeful times. But in the natural, they’re also difficult times because God is bringing our “stuff” to the surface – things we must deal with.
We want you to know one of the things God is addressing in the midst of our staff, specifically in Richard’s life. God has revealed to Richard that he has not fully released the responsibility for leadership of our church to Him, and has carried too much emotional responsibility for the church for too long. The unhealthy stress of this burden has brought on significant health issues, including extended lack of sleep and other severe physical symptoms. Because of this, he needs to step back from his pastoral and teaching responsibilities while he receives the help necessary for his body to rest, emotions to heal, and this deeper work of handing over the church to God.
During this interim, Pastor Rajendra, along with Paul Foss and the elders, will continue to lead our body as the Holy Spirit directs. Thanks to Richard’s desire for checks and balances, our church government is structured in such a way that is does not rely on one person’s leadership for us to continue growing as a vibrant, healthy body.
We don’t know how long this will take, but we will keep you informed as we work together toward all God is doing among us. Richard is a fully devoted follower of Jesus Christ, an exceptional leader and a dear friend and brother. We are calling you to help lift his arms, as Aaron and Hur did for Moses, during this season by continuing to pray and fast for God’s revelation. Richard has poured out his life to serve God and this church. Because he cares so deeply for the souls and lives of our congregation, he has struggled for years to maintain a healthy work/life balance. Because of his strong teaching on the gospel, we all know that God is a God of mercy, forgiveness and transformation, and it is now our turn to support Richard as he personally seeks a deeper level of surrender and healing for his own life.
Again, we are excited about what God is doing in our church, and are thankful that God has provided much depth of leadership so that His church can continue to mature and bring glory to Him. This is an opportunity for God to pour into each one of us the deep knowledge that He is the head of his church, we are His bride, and every member is a valuable part of God’s whole church. While Richard, one valuable member, needs to seek personal healing, our head, Jesus Christ, will continue to lead each of us as we support Richard and step up to new levels of contribution to the Body.
We give thanks and praise to God. He is everything He claims to be! In asking God what He wants, we are drawing nearer to Him; and He is drawing nearer to us! We are being refined so we can be aligned. The staff, elders, and trustees are excited about what God is doing in this situation and we claim all the promises that God offers us in Jesus Christ. We are sure you agree with us that the best is yet to come!
The Damascus Road Elders
|
 |
