We are still receiving encouraging feedback from our recent Annual Celebration at Mt Hermon. I’m grateful for our speakers and for the great job our staff did in telling part of the story of what God is doing through our NextGen churches.

The opportunity in our region is great--it’s God-sized! With the growing diversity of our region, we have the world at our doorstep. San Jose, Oakland and San Francisco (1,3, 9 respectively), are in the top 10 most diverse cities in America--and that diversity spills out into our region. The churches of our region have the opportunity to touch the world--daily!

I’m a part of NextGen because I believe that we can do this better together than any of us can do separately. Acts 1:8 tells me that our Lord has given us a responsibility for our region, as well as our local community and world. Many of you, like me, have other local networks that you are a part of. We don’t believe that NextGen is the only game in town--nor do we want it to be.

But we do believe that the network of NextGen plays an important role in this region. We exist, not to serve ourselves as an organization/association. We exist for the church--to serve Christ’s church. We are simply here to facilitate relationships for our common mission. We think that’s the model of the church.

When Paul sent a letter to Colossae, it was for Ephesus too--and visa-versa. When the church in Jerusalem was struggling, Paul and others leveraged the relationships that the churches in that region had to serve that hurting church. I believe that we need to do the same.

Stanley Grenz writes, “The community of love which the church is called to be is no ordinary reality...Our fellowship is nothing less than our common participation in the divine communion between the Father and the Son, mediated by the Holy Spirit.”

And let us consider how to stir up one another to love and good works, 25 not neglecting to meet together, as is the habit of some, but encouraging one another, and all the more as you see the Day drawing near. Hebrews 10:24–25 (ESV)

We believe that as we are intentional, we can do ministry better together. We can accomplish our mission to empower churches and their leaders to discover and achieve their God-given mission.

Our heart is for relationally and strategically connected churches--not as an end in itself but as a means to see churches multiplying, growing in health and leaders being developed. Our recent time together was an encouragement that God is doing that work in our midst.

It’s a privilege to serve with you!

Dave

Our 2013 Worship Team was led by Jane Liddle (Church on the Hill), Billy Morin (Morgan Hill Bible Church), Janet Yang (Church on the Hill), Jeff Eitzen (First Baptist Watsonville), Robb Lentz (Bridges Community Los Altos) and Geroge Cox (Morgan Hill Bible Church)