Ah, fall is in the air. With the advent of cooler days and the faint hint of hardwoods changing colors, it’s time for so many things. It is time for the beginning of school. It is time for the end of vacations and the resumption of a “normal” routine. It is time for new Sunday School classes and the beginning of choir practice. Today as I write, it is time for our home town Chiefs to begin their season filled with hope on a lazy Houston afternoon. For each of these things, it is time. And this time seems normal, right, even welcome. It is a kairos moment.

     The Greeks used two words when they spoke of time. The first was chronos. They used this word to mark the passing of events; the flowing of one day into another. The second word was kairos. In its biblical context this word had rich connotations of being in the time prescribed by God. It was God’s right and proper and favorable time. It is the moment when God brings to fruition that which he has been preparing. It is normal, right, even welcome.

     At our Quarterly Business Meeting Sunday, our conversation continued about Grace Baptist Church intentionally choosing to adopt a missional church approach as our design for working together as a church. In many of our first communal conversations we have attempted to try to visualize what the missional church might look like. Yet, this is no easy task; for the missional church is not so much a recognizable organizational style as it is a living relationship between God and His people. Yet, even without being able to fully comprehend what the missional church might look like at Grace, I continue to hear our congregation say, “We are ready….” We are ready to share Christ with others; we are ready to grow in our walk with Christ; we are ready to pursue God’s purpose for our church; we are ready to serve Christ and His church with our spiritual gifts. God has been preparing Grace for a kairos moment.

     We are ready to share Christ with others; we are ready to grow in our walk with Christ; we are ready to pursue God’s purpose for our church; we are ready to serve Christ and His church with our spiritual gifts. In Colossians 4:5 Paul writes, “…make the most of every opportunity (kairos).” This moment is the opportunity that God has been preparing for Grace Baptist Church for the last 50 years. It is for us to choose to join God in this moment that He has been preparing. Start with prayer. The plan for moving forward with the missional church proposal is to bring the adoption of the concept to the next Quarterly Business Meeting for discussion and a vote. Please be praying for God’s guidance and discernment for our church family in the interim. Next, join in on the church-wide conversation. I will be hosting two “fireside chat” opportunities (even though I do not own a “fireside” and I don’t consider my self very “chatty”) to allow people to talk about their excitement and concerns about the missional church concept and to honestly address any questions. The first date is Wednesday, October 3, at 7:00pm; the second is Sunday, November 11th at 6:00pm. If neither of these dates fit your schedule, please contact me and we can talk about the possibility of a third chat time.

     Remember, God is calling each of us for a specific ministry here at Grace. As we continue to pursue our conversation with God and each other about the possibilities that God is leading Grace into, may we make the most of this moment that God is preparing.