Well, the time has come; the journey has begun. Of course, the Journey began a long time ago, in the imagination of an immensely creative God. His mission and purpose is so much bigger that we could ever possibly imagine. It is far bigger than the launching of one church in south Calgary. I think it's important as we set out on this leg of the trip to remember that this is not our project, our ministry, our vision. God is the great initiator, all human activity has it's root in what He has already done. Our call is to respond to the work that He began, a work of grace in the world and in our hearts.
Troy gave an invitation to us all in his message on Sunday. It is the voice of Christ calling to each of us, whether we are taking the first steps of our trip toward God, or whether we've been walking that path our entire lives. It is a voice that calls to us everyday that we walk in this world. Christ says simply, "You are invited. Follow me. Learn to be like me, learn to love like I do. Walk in my steps. Learn the rhythms of grace as we walk towards God together." It is a path of love and grace and joy unspeakable. Of course, this invitation to follow Jesus requires that we cease to follow all of our other "leaders". When walking, if you come to a place where the road splits, you've got to choose which path you are going to take. It is impossible to follow two paths simultaneously. The same is true in the journey of faith. We can follow Jesus, or we can follow something else.
The question then, is this: What path are you on? Is God calling you to abandon a particular "rabbit trail"? What is the next step for you to respond to the invitation of Christ?