Everyday we rub shoulders with people who are wounded, broken, and in need of spiritual healing. At times, we are merely unsettled by their condition and other times we are completely ruined over their brokenness. Matthew tells us in his gospel that, “When he (Jesus) saw the crowds, he had compassion on them, because they were harassed and helpless, like sheep without a shepherd” (Matt 9:36). Jesus was and is moved in his inner being when he sees the harassed and helpless condition of people. When was the last time you were deeply moved by the spiritual needs of those around you? Do you spend time thinking and praying for friends, neighbors and family members who do not know the living God? Are you moved in the deepest parts of your heart by the spiritual brokenness of others?

One of the most important ways that Jesus chooses to meet the needs of broken people is through his harvest workers - the Church. In verses 37 and 38 of the same chapter, Jesus tells his disciples, “The harvest is plentiful but the workers are few. Ask the Lord of the harvest, therefore, to send out workers into his harvest field”. Our world is ripe for a relationship with Jesus Christ. Disease, tragedy, addiction, poverty, pornography, materialism, and worldliness fill a gap in the hearts of broken people where only Christ should reside. God has graciously invited and sent us, Christ followers of Westbrook Church, to be a part of his harvest.

Pastor Dan had an opportunity to meet with a young man in need of spiritual counsel. The young man revealed that as a result of a work accident he was struggling with an addiction to pain killers. Through his addiction and subsequent depression from the injury, he began attending the Westbrook Sunday morning worship services with his family. The Holy Spirit began speaking to this young man through the preaching and he came to know that something was missing in his life. Pastor Dan shared the gospel with him and this young man gave his life to Jesus there in his office. This young man subsequently moved out of state, but stays in contact with Westbrook because of the role that we had played in his spiritual journey.

In a letter we received from him, he shared of his growing faith... He goes on to share that his family was continuing to worship at Westbrook and that he had entered a Bible college, prepared to go into ministry. What a harvest!

Westbrook has been and will be the church whose hearts are deeply moved and whose feet are compelled to action by the brokenness that surrounds us—a church that reaches out to the harassed and helpless people of the Lake Country area in highly intentional, effective and cooperative ways. Our church presses on as one that communicates the restorative hope of life in Jesus Christ to those who cannot see beyond their day-to-day struggles, beyond merely surviving, to the fullness of life lived in relationship with their Creator and Savior. A church offering individuals the ability to imagine a future with a purpose, an opportunity to reflect their unique embodiment of the image of God to their world. A church modeling community where we can belong before being fully developed, being Jesus to those that walk through the door and those we meet beyond our walls. A church pouring itself out to mourn and rejoice in fullness of relationship to the people God calls his “beloved.”

Is there anything else you would rather do than be a part of God’s rescuing work in this world?

I have always wondered why certain people come to faith in Christ, but never seem to move from spiritual infancy into adulthood. When God saves us through Jesus Christ he removes the guilt of our sin and restores us to wholeness, but his work does not stop there. God saves us from something, sin and guilt, but he also saves us for something: a growing, productive life in him. As we are rooted and established in his love, we begin to grow in our likeness of him. Our lives begin to match up with his life and we begin to produce “fruit.” In John 15:5 Jesus tells us, “I am the vine; you are the branches. If a man remains in me and I in him, he will bear much fruit; apart from me you can do nothing”. We are not called in our Christian life to try harder or attempt to be better people, but simply to remain in him. I would love to make a bumper sticker that would read, “Fruit Happens!” Our lives will naturally bear fruit and fruitfulness as we stay connected to him everyday. Growth will be the beautiful byproduct of spending time with Jesus in prayer and in his word.

We are seeing God do amazing things in people’s lives here at Westbrook. I have a friend Jeanette who came to faith. For many years she had rejected God, feeling that he was not an intellectually compelling option. Through a series of events she gave her life to Jesus and the fruit of her life-changing decision continues to grow. Jeanette is involved in various Bible studies at Westbrook and is actively involved serving in various capacities. She is using her gifts as an artist, photographer, and poet to add to the fruit basket of Westbrook. As a voracious reader and thinker, Jeanette is devouring the Word of God. Her growth is evident to all who know her, as they see the fruit falling forth from her life. You are compelled to be encouraged when you spend time with her. Her new faith is infectious and she is impacting lives by simply abiding in him. And she is not alone, there are hundreds of people at Westbrook just like my friend Jeanette.

I have another friend at the church, who went through a difficult divorce. She began attending Westbrook with her three young children. She shared with me the pain, embarrassment and guilt she has experienced from her failed marriage, yet she is daily being transformed into His likeness. She shared her thoughts with me recently in an e-mail, “If I believe in providence, as much as I don’t grasp it, and if God means what He says, then I think I’m just beginning to get what it means (kinda) to glory in my weakness, my broken marriage, my inability to “get it right”... He got it right... He took my shame. It’s very good to be a fellow sojourner... searching for more of who Christ is, who I am in Christ and how to let Him live in and through me.” The Holy Spirit is deepening his life through my friend and we are seeing the fruit!

The Apostle Paul tells us in 2 Corinthians 3:18 “And we, who with unveiled faces all reflect the Lord’s glory, are being transformed into his likeness with ever-increasing glory, which comes from the Lord, who is the Spirit.” We are being transformed daily to resemble him more and more. This transformation is something that God is doing in us—he is the one doing the transforming work. I am excited to see what God does in our lives individually, and corporately as we, the particular church known as Westbrook, allow him to develop us as his apprentices.

Our natural response to God’s goodness is to allow the abundance to overflow from our lives. Jesus says, “If anyone is thirsty, let him come to me and drink. Whoever believes in me, as the Scripture has said, streams of living water will flow from within him.” (John 7:37-38). Once we have tasted the living water of Jesus Christ, our lives are never the same. We never know where the living water will flow or what channels it will create. As we are deployed in His service, the living water will create ripples in our local and global community.

There are many ways the living water can create ripples of Grace. Whenever we use our time, talents and treasures for God’s purposes, his living water flows out from our lives and creates channels of grace into the lives of others.

Hear how God’s goodness is flowing through the lives of these people who call Westbrook home:

A group of high school students, led by Phil and Kym Schank, traveled down to Mound Bayou, Mississippi. Nine students and four adults traveled to serve in an after-school program and in many other capacities. These kids willingly gave up their spring break to serve strangers in need, joyfully offering their time, talents and treasures. These Mississippi children matter to God and they matter to these Westbrook teens. Each year as they freely serve, the living water flows out from their lives.

Thirty Westbrook members, lead by Greg Kraemer and Pallin Allen, traveled to the Dominican Republic this year to build a basketball court for a community in need. These moms, dads and grandparents braved the humidity and small sleeping quarters to tackle the immense building project. The impact made on this Dominican Republic community will have lasting effects, as its people now have a place to gather and to enjoy the game of basketball. With great joy, the living water flowed out from their lives.

I have some friends whom God has gifted with generosity and sacrificial giving. I sought them for suggestions on how we might communicate the church’s financial needs to the congregation. In the course of our conversation my friend eagerly offered to contribute to our financial need. In his joyful desire to give, the living water flowed out from his life. He said, “We love to give—God has blessed our family and it is such a joy for us!” The living water flowing from my friends created a ripple effect impacting more than just our financial needs as a church. This living water was creating new channels allowing the Church leadership to dream and refocus on our future vision, opening up new possibilities for Westbrook!

We want to be a more generous church community where the goodness of God flows from our lives. Wouldn’t it be great to see the goodness of God flow even more readily through us as we are deployed in His service locally and globally? I get excited thinking of what Westbrook will look like a year from now, what the Lake Country will look like as we use our time, talents and treasures to serve the source of living water—Jesus Christ. Let’s allow our journey be a blessing to the whole world!