In and Out (Vision Sunday 2023)

This past week I ran into a friend in the morning and asked what he had going on that day.

“Going to the doctor.”

For a moment I was concerned. Everything okay?

“Oh yeah — just having some blood work done. Kind of a checkup.”

I assumed it was for work. I know where he works, and I figured maybe they required it. So I said something to that effect.

“No, no. This is my own choice.”

I paused. “Just… making sure everything’s fine?”

And I thought, that’s awesome. That’s amazing. That’s also weird.

I’m too much of a guy, I guess. I just don’t go in. I called my doctor recently to get something and they looked at me and said, “You haven’t been in for two and a half years. You’ll have to re-establish yourself as a patient.”

Good grief. I’m not going through all that. I’ll just stay sick.

So I was genuinely impressed that my friend was simply being smart about it.

And that expectation isn’t only in medicine. Your dentist wants to see you twice a year. Some of you need to get to the eye doctor. Your mechanic expects your car every three to five thousand miles — not just for an oil change, but to look everything over.

There’s this shared understanding that it’s wise to get a checkup.

Today, Vision Sunday is Riverwood’s checkup. It’s our chance to look at the mission God has given us, ask how we’re doing at accomplishing it, and figure out what we need to do to keep laser focus on what He’s calling us to.

Our Passage Every Year

If this is your first Vision Sunday, you may be wondering what this is all about. But if you’ve been with us before, these next words won’t surprise you.

Open your Bible to Ezekiel 47.

Ezekiel 47:1–12 is our key passage. As we read it, you’ll see where we get the name Riverwood — but it also shapes how we do ministry and how we approach inviting people to find and follow Jesus.

A quick note on context. The “he” in verse 1 is an angel. Ezekiel has been receiving a vision — a guided tour of the new temple God is going to build. That tour started in chapter 40, and by chapter 47 it’s coming to an end.

Then he brought me back to the door of the temple, and behold, water was issuing from below the threshold of the temple toward the east (for the temple faced east). The water was flowing down from below the south end of the threshold of the temple, south of the altar. Then he brought me out by way of the north gate and led me around on the outside to the outer gate that faces toward the east; and behold, the water was trickling out on the south side.

Going on eastward with a measuring line in his hand, the man measured a thousand cubits, and then led me through the water, and it was ankle-deep. Again he measured a thousand, and led me through the water, and it was knee-deep. Again he measured a thousand, and led me through the water, and it was waist-deep. Again he measured a thousand, and it was a river that I could not pass through, for the water had risen. It was deep enough to swim in, a river that could not be passed through. And he said to me, “Son of man, have you seen this?”

Then he led me back to the bank of the river. As I went back, I saw on the bank of the river very many trees on the one side and on the other. And he said to me, “This water flows toward the eastern region and goes down into the Arabah, and enters the sea; when the water flows into the sea, the water will become fresh. And wherever the river goes, every living creature that swarms will live, and there will be very many fish. For this water goes there, that the waters of the sea may become fresh; so everything will live where the river goes. Fishermen will stand beside the sea. From Engedi to Eneglaim it will be a place for the spreading of nets. Its fish will be of very many kinds, like the fish of the Great Sea. But its swamps and marshes will not become fresh; they are to be left for salt. And on the banks, on both sides of the river, there will grow all kinds of trees for food. Their leaves will not wither, nor their fruit fail, but they will bear fresh fruit every month, because the water for them flows from the sanctuary. Their fruit will be for food, and their leaves for healing.” (Ezekiel 47:1–12)

A thousand cubits, by the way, is roughly 1,500 to 1,700 feet.

We read this passage every year as our checkup. Maybe you feel like everything’s going great at Riverwood — and I’m genuinely grateful we’re a healthy church. But if anything, I need this checkup. I need the reminder of who God calls us to be and the mission He’s given us, and a chance to honestly assess how we’re doing and what we need to stay focused on.

Each year we tend to land on a different aspect. A couple of years ago we looked at the salt in verse 11. A few different times we’ve looked at the trees mentioned in verse 7 and discussed further in verse 12.

This year I feel like we need to go back to the core of it — those four depths Ezekiel walks through.

The River Is Jesus

But before we can discuss those depths, I need to lay a foundation. Here’s the key thing you need to know: I believe the river in this vision represents Jesus.

Notice the whole passage is about this river. Which helps explain why we talk about being a Jesus-centered church — we want Him at the center of who we are and everything we do.

But why do I believe this river is Jesus? Several reasons.

First, verse 1 tells us the river comes from the temple. The temple was understood to be the place of God’s presence, the place people came to worship. And Jesus comes from heaven — the ultimate place of worship, the ultimate place of God’s presence.

Second, the river passes by the altar. Verse 1 says it flows south of the altar. The altar was the place of sacrifice, where people brought their animals to be killed for the forgiveness of sin through the shedding of blood.

And Jesus went through the cross — the ultimate place of sacrifice. He died there in our place. And it wasn’t us who brought Him; it was God who sent Him, and Jesus said He went willingly to pay the penalty for our sin. Unlike the animals, which covered past sin, Jesus paid for all of it once and for all.

Third, verse 2 tells us the river flows out through the east side.

When this vision begins back in chapter 40, God enters in chapter 43 — through the east gate. Then in chapter 44 God declares that no one may use that gate. It’s now so holy it’s reserved for Him alone. There’s a small allowance for the prince of Israel to sit at the east gate, but nobody passes in and out of it.

And yet this river flows out through the east side.

Maybe you noticed that when Ezekiel goes to see it, the angel leads him out through the north gate, and they have to go around and come back down.

If you went to Jerusalem today, the east gate is completely walled off. They don’t want to risk anyone using it. It’s for God alone — and they aren’t worried, because when the Messiah shows up, walled or not, He can open it and pass through.

To me, a river permitted to use the east side is an indication of divinity. Jesus is God the Son. He has the right to use that gate.

But most convincing is verse 9. The river crashes into the Dead Sea.

If you know anything about the Dead Sea, it’s so saturated with salt and minerals that nothing can live in it. People who can’t swim can walk out into it, lie back, and simply float. No plants live there. No fish swim there. It’s dead.

And when this river crashes into it, verse 9 says it becomes teeming with life. So many fish, and such a wide variety — like the Great Sea, the Mediterranean — that from Engedi to Eneglaim, from north to south, fishermen can spread out their nets to dry. In what had been dead.

Jesus tells us in John 10:10 that He came to give life, and give it abundantly. Ephesians 2 tells us we’re all born in our sin, but that because of God’s great mercy He made us alive in Christ.

Jesus brings life. Spiritual life to people. That’s why I’m convinced this river is Jesus.

The Four Depths

Which means the four depths Ezekiel walks through represent spiritual growth — going deeper into Christ.

That’s why during our 21 Days of Prayer our theme this year was Gospel Growth, and we spent the entire first week praying for you as an individual to go deeper into Christ. That God would keep growing you. That you’d go deeper into this river.

Ankle Deep: Salvation in Christ

At Riverwood we call the first depth salvation in Christ.

Someone is standing on the shore, not yet having stepped into these life-giving waters. Then they realize the life Jesus offers, and they step in. They find life in Christ. They move from spiritual death to spiritual life, and everything at the spiritual level changes completely.

Outwardly things may not look that different at first. But inwardly they are a new creation, as 1 Corinthians tells us.

If you’re not a follower of Jesus and you’re here this morning — or connecting online, or listening on the podcast later — we want you to find this life in Christ.

We did not start Riverwood to try to pull Christians out of other churches so we could have something nice and comfortable. We started Riverwood for you. We’re on a mission to invite the spiritually disconnected — those who feel apart from God — to find Jesus, step into this river, find life in Him, and begin following Him.

So if that’s you: get off the shore. Let today be your spiritual birthday. Step into the river and give your life to Jesus.

Most people, when they realize this whole story about Jesus is true, take a moment to confess. They confess their sin. They admit they’re separated from God. And they express a desire to follow Him — realizing that if Jesus gave His life for them, they now want to give their life to follow Him.

So let today be your spiritual birthday. Step into the river and let God begin the work of washing and changing you.

Knee Deep: Growing in Christ

But notice you don’t step into the river and stop. The current of the river beckons you deeper.

I see this as the work of the Holy Spirit — what theologians call sanctification. Just because you’ve found salvation in Christ doesn’t mean God is finished with you. He wants to keep making you more like Jesus. So the current pulls you deeper.

The next depth is knee deep: actively seeking to grow in Christ.

At Riverwood we talk about a two-handed approach to spiritual growth. We want to see you growing both personally and through relationships.

Personally, we’d love to see you develop personal spiritual disciplines — Bible reading and prayer. I’ve titled today’s message “In and Out.” On an individual level, that’s spending time with God in prayer and in the Scriptures. You read the Scriptures and take it in. You pray and breathe it out. What a relationship that is with God.

But God did not design your walk with Christ as a solo endeavor. He created you for relationship with others.

It’s like riding a bike. Yes, you can ride one-handed — but if something juts out in front of you, you’ll have far more control with both hands on the bars.

That’s why we want to see you in relationship with others. It’s why we have growth groups. Get into one and let God use it — because it will help you follow Jesus, and God will use you to help others follow Jesus.

And if none of our current growth groups fit your schedule, then find one person. Invite them for coffee or lunch or breakfast. Open the Scriptures together. Study. Pray for one another. Help each other pursue Christ and grow in the gospel.

Waist Deep: Serving Christ

But the river keeps beckoning. Knee deep isn’t enough — it wants to draw you to waist deep.

When you’re waist deep in a river, you can still walk around, but you really begin to feel the current.

We identify waist deep as serving Christ. And a great way to serve is to open your FIST: your Finances, your Influence, your Skills, and your Time.

These are the things we so often clutch and keep for ourselves. God wants us to open our fists, live generous lives, and give these things to Him and to others — because that’s living like Christ. As you give of these things, you’re letting God have more influence and more impact. He’s moving you, calling you deeper.

We want to see you living that kind of generous life, because that’s part of what it means to go and be a blessing to the world.

Pause and Give Thanks

The last depth is in over your head — and we’ll come back to that.

But before we do, I want us to pause and simply celebrate being in Christ.

I think we so often focus on what we want to get from God that we forget to stop and recognize what we’ve already received. If you’re a follower of Jesus, you have stepped into this river. Whether you’re ankle deep, knee deep, or waist deep — you are in this river. And that deserves a thank you.

So as we take communion together, here’s what I’d ask.

Before you take the elements, ask God: Where am I in the river? Let Him show you where you are, and thank Him for getting you to that spot.

Then after you take them, ask: Now what do You want to do to take me deeper?

If you’re ankle deep, ask what He’s calling you to do to get to knee deep. If you’re knee deep, ask how you can move to waist deep and give more of yourself over to Him. And ask how He wants to call you to pick up your feet, get in over your head, and be fully surrendered to Christ.

If you’re here and you’re not a follower of Jesus, don’t worry about the elements. This isn’t about the elements — it’s about Christ. The bread represents His body; the juice represents His blood. When we take them, we’re saying His story is my story. If that isn’t yet who you are, we don’t want you feeling manipulated into it.

Instead, use this moment to pray. Ask God: Is it all true? Is what that pastor is saying an actual true story, or just something out of history or fiction?

I believe it’s true. I believe God is inviting you to step into this river and find life in Christ. I would love for today to be your spiritual birthday.

In Over Your Head

So the river beckons us deeper — ankle deep, knee deep, waist deep, and ultimately to the place where you’re in over your head.

I’ve asked this question many times at Riverwood, so if you know the answer, stay quiet and give the first-timers a moment to think about it.

If you are in a river with a strong current and you cannot touch the bottom — who or what is in control?

The river.

The river can take you wherever it wants. Ezekiel said it was a river he could not pass through. The moment your feet leave the bottom, the current is taking you.

And at Riverwood, we believe that current is taking you into your workplace. Into your school. Into your home. Into another community. Around the world.

So wherever you’re going, we hope that if you’re in the river, you’ll come to see that you are being sent there by God.

This isn’t just a job to earn an income. It’s a place for you to represent the life-changing gospel among your coworkers. You aren’t just at school to get an education. You’re there as an ambassador for Jesus and a delight and blessing to others.

Wherever you’re going, you’re being sent by God.

Where Do Rivers Go?

Now I want to stretch this idea a little further with a question I’ve never asked here before.

Where do rivers go?

To a bigger body of water. A lake. A sea. An ocean.

Rivers don’t narrow down to a trickle and quietly end. That’s often how they start. But as more streams and tributaries pour in, they get bigger and bigger, until they flush you out into the ocean.

God has not called you into this river only so He can do something in you. He’s also sending you out to make a difference.

Another way to say it: we are to be immersed in Christ, immersed in the gospel, immersed in this river — so that we can be dispersed out.

Now you understand why every week, as we close our worship gathering, one of our worship leaders says, “Now go and be a blessing. Go follow Jesus.” We’ve been together — immersed in song, in Scripture, in communion, in prayer — and now we’re dispersed out.

This isn’t meant to be a time of entertainment. It’s meant to be a time of filling and investing, so you can go out and be a blessing and make a difference.

Family as Practice

When my kids were little, I used to tell them that one reason God put them in a family was to practice.

Have you noticed it’s much easier to be nice to people you see occasionally than to be consistently kind to the people you live with? Maybe that’s just our family.

That’s why we told our kids: if you can figure out how to love one another here, care for one another here, serve one another here — you’re going to be amazing out there. Everyone will want to hire you. Everyone will want you in their clubs. Everyone will want you at their school. Because you’ll have practiced loving, and people will want to be around you.

This is exactly why God calls the church a family.

If you can love one another, serve one another, care for one another, and bear one another’s burdens — if you can live out Romans 12:9–21 right here — you will be amazing out there. (If you’re not familiar with Romans 12:9–21, write it down and read it later.)

If you’ll immerse yourself in a church family and let God use that church to knock off your uneven edges and shape you into the image of Christ, then when He disperses you out, you will be remarkable.

Which means you have to let God immerse you into a church family.

If Riverwood isn’t that family for you, that’s okay. We can’t be the church for everybody. But we want you in a church where you immerse yourself — so God can use those people to shape you into the image of Christ, and use you to shape them.

Because something happens when our lives rub up against one another. God uses the friction, the serving, the helping, the loving, all of it, to accomplish something deep in you — so you’ll be amazing out there and He can do something great through you.

Going Deeper Here

A number of you are already deeply immersed in the Riverwood family. You’re a big part of why we’re as healthy as we are. You’re serving. You’re in a growth group. We are so blessed because of you.

Some of you have been on the edges — and that’s okay. I just want to invite you: how can you go deeper?

Because going deeper creates the opportunity for God to keep doing this great work in you.

For some of you that means starting to serve. Some of you are already serving but sense God calling you to serve more deeply. Some of you need to get into a growth group. And some of you need to help us start another growth group — a couple of ours are getting a bit large, and some of you may be the ones to help launch the next.

Because as you get into a group, as you start serving, as you interact with the people of Riverwood, God uses it to do something great in you.

Too often when a church asks you to volunteer, it sounds like the church wants something from you. For us it’s the opposite. This is not about what we can get from you. We believe God has something for you. This is part of your spiritual growth.

Which Means We Need to Multiply

Here’s what happens when we let God do this gospel growth in us as a church, and we love one another in a Romans 12 kind of way: when we’re dispersed out and we’re genuinely good to be around, people will want to come to the church we’re part of.

They’ll like you first. Some will get curious about the gospel and want to learn more. Some will find Jesus because of you and want to be part of the church you’re in.

Which means we could see more people become part of Riverwood — which means this year and beyond, we need to see more out. And to see that, we need to multiply.

I want to talk about three areas where I believe God is calling us to multiply.

1. Multiply Volunteers and Leaders

As more people come, we need to keep providing an environment on Sundays where people are welcomed and sense God’s love through us — and where we can invite them into growth groups that shape them into the image of Jesus.

But we have some amazing volunteers, and it would be deeply irresponsible to simply pile more onto them.

Let me give you an example without naming names. One of our elders serves in an extraordinary number of ways. Every Wednesday I get the joy of watching this man love you by praying for you. He’s genuinely concerned for you, and he’s a gap-filler — he sees a need and wants to help, because he believes in the mission God has given us. He is truly an elder.

But he isn’t only here Wednesdays to pray and carry that burden. Immediately after our worship gathering he helps lead a growth group. (Which, by the way, is the easiest growth group to join — you’re already here, you get a great leader and a bunch of good people. Go get involved.) He also recognizes that finances are a significant area for a church, so he helps lead our finance team — the budget that was rolled out came from him and that team. He also volunteers once a month in preschool. And when we bought this building, one person mowed the lawn every single week our first year here, which is far too much for one person, so he built out a rotation schedule — and put himself on it.

And I’m sure I’m missing a couple of areas.

I could have used several other people as the example. Which is exactly the point.

The last thing we want is to pour more onto our existing volunteers. Right now he serves with a lot of joy — but if we keep loading him up, he’s going to lose some of that joy. And I want him to keep that joy, because he’s a blessing to so many of us.

That’s why we have to multiply volunteers and leaders.

Now, if you’re new to Riverwood and you’ve only been here a few weeks and you’re not sure this is your church yet, please don’t think I’m twisting your arm. I’m speaking to those who are saying, “This is my church. This is where God has called me. This is where I want to grow, and where I want to help others find and follow Jesus.”

If that’s you, start helping. It could be as simple as ushering once a month. Jump back into kids. Help out with the café. Find an area and jump in — so we can keep improving an environment where people are welcomed and given every opportunity to step into this life-giving river.

2. Multiply Space

Some of you noticed that over the course of this fall, this place started getting really full.

Part of that is because we chose over the summer to have our kids start the gathering with us. So this room fills with kids from Kids Creek, and right now a number of our fifth and sixth graders are with us because it’s the fourth Sunday. They take up seats. It’s been great and wonderful — but it also meant we were pulling out extra chairs most weeks. Which is why you’ve noticed we no longer have stacks of chairs. We just put them all out.

And that’s fine. But the rule of thumb is that when a room is 80% full, first-time guests feel like there’s no room for them.

Yes, we could find them a spot. But how many of you genuinely enjoy walking into a brand new place and sitting right next to a total stranger? Some of you extroverts are thinking, “That sounds great!” The introverts are thinking that sounds like a door away from somewhere much worse.

Most people don’t enjoy it. So when they come in and it’s really crowded, some of them will feel like there just isn’t space for them here — and now we’ve lost the opportunity to minister to them and disciple them.

So we need to ask: is this the best seating arrangement? We’re actively working on that. What else do we need to do? Kids Creek has been packed, and we’re figuring out how to do it better and more efficiently. We’re also starting conversations about whether we’re using our square footage as well as we could. I think we’re doing a good job — that doesn’t mean we’re doing it perfectly.

We have to find ways to multiply and maximize our space. Because if we’re being dispersed and people are finding Jesus and wanting to follow Him, they’ll want to come be part of this — and we want to be faithful to love, support, and disciple them. Which means making room.

3. Multiply as a Church

The last one is that we need to multiply as a church — to plant another one.

A couple of reasons why.

First, new churches have proven to be one of the most effective ways to help people who don’t know the gospel find Jesus. And they’re a phenomenal way to help those who already know Jesus grow deeply in their faith. I could tell you about a number of people — whether through Riverwood or other churches — who would have said they were ankle deep, and then got involved in a brand new church and suddenly went knee deep, waist deep, and then found themselves in over their heads.

So if God uses churches to accomplish this, it’s something we need to be part of.

However. Nationally, last year there was a net gain of about 300 churches. Roughly 4,000 churches were started in America, and about 3,700 closed. And that was a gain — in 2020 we saw a net loss, and the year before that was the first time in roughly two decades that more churches were planted than closed.

But even with a net gain of 300, just to keep pace with population growth in the U.S. we would have needed over 900 — nearly a thousand — new churches. Which means the church is falling farther and farther behind.

I do believe God is at work in this. I think He’s purifying and helping people realize church isn’t something you merely attend on a Sunday, but something meant to be woven into your life. So some of this may be a purifying effect. But some of it is simply not good — because if church planting is one of the most effective ways to help people find and follow Jesus, then we need more churches.

I was on staff at a church where, my first year, I heard, “In five years we’re going to plant a church.” The next year: “In five years we’re going to plant a church.” The year after that: same thing. After I’d been there five years, it was still five years away.

By then I’d caught on. I don’t think this is ever going to happen.

Even when I told them God was calling me to plant a church, the response was, “That’s great. Good luck.” And to this day they still haven’t planted one.

I don’t want us to be the church that talks about it. I want us to be the church that does it.

The Clock Starts Now

We’re not going to plant in 2023, barring an incredible miracle. But 2023 is the year we’ve been given a deadline. Let me explain.

When my wife and I first sensed the call into church planting and our church decided not to be part of it, we started a nonprofit. We weren’t part of any network or association — we’d been in non-denominational churches our whole lives — and we wanted accountability for any money given toward church planting. So we started what we called the River Tree Project, based on Ezekiel 47.

We formed a board. The board oversaw it. People began contributing. And it was through that nonprofit that we found Waverly, planted Riverwood, and got established.

Around the time we found Waverly, we heard about Converge, and many of you know we ended up joining. We’re part of the region known as Converge North Central.

When they and I first started having conversations, we realized it was a good partnership. They told me they give a $10,000 grant to every new church. Now, I knew of other church planting organizations giving $25,000 or $50,000. So I didn’t join for the money — $10,000 would barely have bought us a sound system, and thankfully we were gifted one anyway.

But there came a point when I realized that $10,000 would really help right about now. And I kept wondering when it would arrive, since we’d already signed on. The answer was, “We don’t have the money right now. As soon as we get it, we’ll give it to you.”

It wasn’t until Riverwood was eleven months old that the gift finally came.

About two years ago, Converge North Central brought on a new president — some of you got to meet him last July. And he recognized the same thing: if one of the most effective ways to help people find Jesus is church planting, and one of the most effective ways to help people grow is church planting, then we need to fund these better and spur our churches on.

So he started a church planting escrow fund.

Here’s how it works. Churches are encouraged to commit funds to escrow — the recommended amount is 3% of your annual budget. Once the money is in, you have five years to use it. If you use it within five years, they match whatever you’ve put in, up to $50,000. And if you have a church planter raising funds for salary or staff, they’ll match his fundraising up to another $50,000. So there’s a potential of $100,000.

He also realized this would require a much bigger pot. So one of the first things he did was go out and fundraise — and he’s raised nearly two million dollars to serve as that foundation, so churches can start pouring in and there’s money available to double it.

When I learned about this, I realized that Riverwood has been putting 3% of our budget into the River Tree Project since our inception, saving for a future church plant. We had reached about $18,000.

So I went to the River Tree board and said, “Converge is rolling out this escrow fund. If we gave this money to Riverwood to put into escrow, that $18,000 could become $36,000.”

They immediately saw it. Better stewardship, plainly.

So last September the River Tree Project board voted unanimously to close the nonprofit and gift that $18,000-plus to Riverwood. Our elders then voted unanimously to put that money into the escrow fund. And we’re setting it in motion now, in January.

Which means we’re about to write an $18,000-plus check to Converge North Central, with the hope of seeing it doubled and used to plant another church.

And it means we have to do this by 2028. Five years.

If we don’t use it, that $18,000 doesn’t disappear — it rolls into church planting generally and gets used through the general fund. But we lose our opportunity to use it.

I don’t want to lose that opportunity.

I have no idea where we’ll plant this church. I have no idea who it will reach. I have no idea whether some of you are the ones we’ll get to send out to help plant it.

All I know is that I want to see people find Jesus, and I want to see your faith grow and get activated. And this is one of the best ways to do it.

So the timer starts. We’re on the clock. Five years.

And this is part of our gospel growth, because we need the reminder: it’s not about us. Whatever church we plant probably won’t be “Riverwood Church, Clarksville campus.” It’ll have its own name. It’ll be its own church. We’ll do everything we can to resource it, support it, and pray for it — and then we’ll send them out knowing God is going to work there to reach another community with the gospel and activate more people in their faith. And we’ll get the joy of watching it happen.

For the last five years we’ve had the joy of financially and prayerfully supporting a church planter in North Minneapolis, and it’s been so much fun to hear what God is doing there. This week, during our 21 Days of Prayer, some of you emailed him just to say you were praying. I texted with him on Wednesday and he said the timing could not have been better — he’d received a really difficult email that morning, with complaints against the church, and then you all flooded his inbox. He said it was exactly what he needed.

It has been such a joy to support that work. I want to see it go even deeper for us — because if we’re actively part of not just sending money and prayer but sending people, it becomes part of us. It will take us deeper than ever before, and we’ll be dispersed out and be remarkable.

Where We’re Headed

So in 2023, I want us to keep going deeper in the gospel and in Christ. I want us to do whatever we can to help you keep going deeper — until you’re in over your head.

Because then the prayer is that we’ll get the joy of sending you out. And as you go, you’ll be a blessing as you follow Jesus. And hopefully within five years, that leads to another church being established, and this keeps growing.

A Prayer

Heavenly Father, thank You for what You’ve done here in starting Riverwood. To think this began with just me and my family, and to see how You’ve grown it — Lord, it’s humbling. It’s awe-inspiring. Thank You.

And yet, Lord, I know the mission isn’t finished, and that what You’ve given us is for the church globally. So I pray You’d bring our hearts in sync with Yours. May we be about what You’re about. And if You are about reaching people with this life-changing gospel, then we want to be part of that — right here in the Waverly, Shell Rock, Janesville, and Denver area, and going out beyond it to see You do what only You can do.

Help us as individuals live this in-and-out life: immersed in You, and dispersed out to our workplaces, our classrooms, and wherever You send us. And God, do it for us as a church, too. May we be a church that immerses itself in You and Your gospel, and a church that is dispersed — carrying this life-changing gospel with us.

Would You please do this for Your glory and for our joy? In Jesus Christ’s name we pray, amen.