1. Worship
To love and serve God with all your heart, soul, strength and mind.
Matt 22:37, Matt 4:10, John 4:23, Rom 12:1
A. Daily Worship: Worship is a daily activity, not just a Sunday event.
- Have a quiet time during the day to read the Bible and talk to God. You can use the bulletin devotional & prayer guides.
- Listen to worship music when you are stressed, worried or upset.
B. Corporate Worship: Worship as the church, as the body of Christ.
- Make weekly worship services a schedule priority.
- Strive to understand the importance of participating and to be a participant, not a bystander: special music, testimonies, prayer requests.
- Focus on worshipping God not performing for others.
- Encourage your kids to be involved in worship too!
C. Lifestyle Worship: Worship is not just a special activity, it is the very way we live.
- Dedicate your body to be a “temple of worship” to God: modesty, sexual purity,
healthy habits with eating, drinking, exercise, stress.
- Ask yourself, “Am I the same person at church as I am during the week?”
- Repent of any hypocrisy, inconsistencies or excesses in your daily life and find
an accountability partner.
2. Growth
To mature in knowledge, faith & action; being conformed to the image of Christ.
2 Cor 3:18 II Pet 1:5-8 2 Tim 3:16-17 Eph 4:13
A. Knowledge: Know God more!
- Read the Bible through in one year. Memorize Scripture.
- Attend a church Bible Study.
- Read a book that teaches you how to study the Bible more deeply, or take
online Bible classes.
B. Faith: Faith is what turns our knowledge into action.
- Commit yourself to grow more. Don’t be satisfied with staying where you are.
- Identify areas where you are weak and depending on your own strength and ask
God to lead/give victory in those areas.
C. Action: Obedience to Christ is the key to understanding the truth about him!
- Ask God for help to remove bad/sinful habits that need to be broken (speech,
thought or deed). Pride, greed, gossip, unforgiveness, worldliness, overeating/drinking.
- Evaluate your commitment in financial giving. Are you a cheerful giver?
- Be active encouraging the spiritual growth of your children: family devotions;
pray, sing & read the Bible. Help them pay attention during services.
3. Fellowship:
To be in a loving & supporting relationship with other believers as part of God’s family (also called: Body life).
I Cor 1:9, I John 1:3, Acts 2:42, Eph 2:19, Phil 2:4, Heb 10:24-25, Eph 4:32
A. Reciprocate: Love, pray, encourage, comfort, serve, trust, forgive one another.
- When people do a good job or even if they make mistakes, encourage them!
- Use the bulletin to pray for everyone in the church by name.
- Attend a church small groups such as prayer meeting or Bible study.
- Don’t hold grudges: Repent, apologize and forgive.
B. Initiate: Don’t wait for others, you act first or start the conversation.
- Learn everyone’s name and greet them.
- Get to know the people you don’t know well.
- Get together with people during the week outside church events.
- Lead or host a small group prayer meeting or Bible study.
C. Dedicate: Make a commitment to trust & protect your brothers & sisters in Christ.
- Share your burdens: Share your needs & prayer requests.
Let people get to know you - do not suffer silently.
Let people know when you are sick or going into the hospital!!!
- Avoid anything that would break the unity within the body.
4. Ministry:
To use your spiritual gifts to serve God and man.
Matt 5:13-16; 20:28; 22:39, Eph 2:10, Gal 6:10, II Cor 9:12
A. Ministry in society: We must love our neighbor as ourselves.
- Look for opportunities to serve the community both individually & as a
church. Hospitals, Nursing Homes, Charity Concerts, Volunteer Work.
- Be involved in community organizations and events as a witness for Christ.
B. Ministry in the church: Do good to all, especially to the family of believers.
- Commit to at least one responsibility in the church: MC, music, cleaning,
prayer, teaching kids, church rep, maintain the church website, etc.
- Seek to understand your spiritual gift through service in the church.
What type of ministry has God given you a burden for?
- Look for and start new ministry opportunities for the church this year. Are there necessary ministries that are being overlooked?
5. Outreach:
To make specific effort to bring the good news of Jesus Christ to nonbelievers.
Rom 10:13-15, Matt 28:19, Phil 2:10-11, II Cor 5:17-21, Acts 1:8
A. Family:
- Pray for the salvation of unsaved family members.
- Ask your family what they believe about various spiritual topics: God, evolution, life after death, heaven & hell, how to get to heaven (Often they will return the question to you and you can share naturally)
- Look for opportunities to introduce your family to and spend time with the pastors, missionaries & other believers. (At times it is easier for spiritual conversation to start with a non-family member. Going to The Way Cafe together is one example.)
B. Community:
- Pray for the salvation of the people in your neighborhood & at work.
- Develop relationships with people in your immediate community.
- Invite people to special events: Christmas, Concert, Ladies Luncheon.
- Think of creative activities to deepen relationship for the gospel: fishing, golfing, hiking
- One Bring One: Pray for God to give you one friend you can bring to church.
C. Kagawa & Japan:
- Pray for the gospel to spread in Kagawa and all of Japan.
- Support financially or volunteer with nationwide Christian efforts (Gideons, disaster relief efforts) or our joint evangelistic efforts with other churches: New Year’s Bible seminar, Ladies Luncheon, Shimin Christmas, SHINE, Street Live, etc.
- Distribute Bibles and evangelistic literature.
- Use special opportunities to be a witness: Wedding, funeral, speeches.
- Pray for the other churches in our city and prefecture.
D. The World:
- Pray for missionaries & the spread of the gospel in the whole world.
- Learn about the missionaries our church supports. Study the church display & read newsletters.
- Mention their prayer requests in Bible Studies and Church services.
- Try to hear missionaries speak when they visit our church.
- Learn about and pray for a specific country as a family.
- Consider missions: Read books, view movies, go on a short term mission trip.