Stories…they’re the stuff of life.  They make life interesting.  They engage the mind and often touch the heart.  Who doesn’t love a good story? 

Apparently God loves stories too.  He’s been writing His for thousands of years.  And truth be told, you and I are part of His story.  Like saints of old, God is writing us into his divine love story with his bride, the church. 

Starting this Sunday, we’ll be embarking on thirty-one weeks of The Story, a chronological arrangement of the history of God in dealing with humankind through biblical stories from Genesis to Revelation.  The kids in Sunday school will be learning the same stories we’ll be studying in worship service.  Small groups will be digesting more of that story even as devotional readings will parallel the same passages.  It will be an opportunity for all of us to share how God’s story is intersecting with our stories week by week.

So I have a couple of challenges for everyone.  First, pick up a copy of The Story next time you come to Mosaic and start reading it every week as a part of your personal time with God.  (Copies are available at the resource table.  The suggested donation is $5-10 book.) And take a look at some of the other resources while you're at it.  Seeing how the Bible flows in a chronological way will give fresh life and perspective to your spiritual journey. 

Secondly, change up your spiritual routine a bit by taking advantage of the opportunity to fellowship with others around the same biblical texts.  Join a home group that will dig deeper into the weekly passages together.  Use the family devotionals on-line that will help your whole family process life together.  Incorporate the daily devotionals into your personal devotional life.  [Go to http://mosaicspokane.com/thestory and scroll to the bottom of the page for those materials.]  

Finally, don’t just sit in the bleachers or cheer from the sidelines this fall.  Become engaged in ministering the life of Jesus Christ to someone else by being part of a ministry team at Mosaic.  You can do that in a number of ways such as…

• becoming a helper or teacher with some of our amazing kids and youth on Sundays.
• hosting or helping lead a home group at your house during the week.
• joining one of our Set-Up, Security, Sound, Video, Music or Tear-Down teams for Sunday worship.
• helping with the planning or leading of Men’s or Women’s Connection monthly gatherings.
• getting to know and bless our downtown community by joining one of the Community Connection teams that ministers in the downtown residential buildings. 
• volunteer at the Mosaic Bike Shop and help us become a positive, spiritual asset in our city’s core. 

Don’t let this fall become just another season of spectator spirituality.  Join the team!  Engage in the spiritual workouts that bond you with brothers and sisters in the Lord.  Let God write you into His story of kingdom building here in Spokane. 

See you in The Story.

Pastor John