There are many encouraging “people scenes” seen around our church on a regular basis. For example…
- The fellowship that takes place before and after the start of a worship service.
- A very tall Sunday school teacher, down on one knee, laughing with and listening intently to a young boy as he shares the excitement of his week.
- Teenagers interacting with senior saints in a servant-minded manner.
One of the scenes I’d like to share is a newer occurrence in our church’s life, but one that I believe is opening doors to the spiritual enrichment of individuals and families.
Picture a dad and a son, looking through various materials displayed on a wall, searching for insight on how to better communicate with one another. Next, a weary woman, burdened from caring for her aging parents, needing encouragement on what to do next. A young couple expecting their first child, brimming with excitement yet filled with questions. A teen struggling with identity or self-image issues, wondering what God has to say about their doubts. These quick snippets occur weekly at our church and are an exciting prelude to the powerful potential of biblical intentionality.
In our foyer area we have designated space to a ministry we call “Faith@Home.” The concept did not originate with us, but the implementation of this ministry is specifically tailored to our church family. Our Faith@Home Center is filled with various resources that biblically speak to a multiplicity of relevant subjects, no matter where one finds themselves in life’s journey. Why does your church need a Faith@Home ministry? The following compelling reasons answer this one question and should motivate your church to invest in this highly profitable ministry.
Reason #1 – It is a way for your church to publicly introduce biblical intentionality into the lives of your people.
We recognize the importance of people “purposing in their hearts” to grow spiritually. It doesn’t happen by accident. Introducing a Faith@Home ministry in your church is a very public way to elevate biblical intentionality among your people. It encourages believers to take seriously their responsibility to mature in their faith and create an environment in their homes that prioritizes spiritual development above all else.
Reason #2 – It is a way for your church to proactively invalidate unbiblical worldviews in the lives of your people.
Our culture today is inundated with countless voices speaking against absolute truth. Every day your church family is confronted with antagonistic, anti-God rhetoric that permeates every aspect of their daily interactions. It is impossible as pastors and teachers to address every issue our people may face at any given moment. Faith@Home provides your church people with immediate access to resources that speak biblically and succinctly to any number of topics prevalent in today’s culture. The provided resources will initiate discussions among your church people and their families, causing them to study the Scriptures together to flesh out their position as believers on any given subject. This encourages exactly what a thriving church should want, its people to hold a biblical worldview because they’ve studied God’s Word and believed it for themselves.
Reason #3 – It is a way for your church to personally inspire biblical intentionality in the lives of your people.
One of the natural results of the Faith@Home ministry is focused attention is placed on an individual’s spiritual development, no matter the demographic in which they find themselves. From an initial spiritual assessment to help a person evaluate their own biblical intentionality, to Faith@Home Center hosts who provide direction to those looking for specific points of intertest, to targeted campaigns that will capitalize on holidays or purposefully designed themes, Faith@Home provides the opportunity for your church to challenge themselves to greater intentionality in their personal spiritual growth. The beauty of this ministry is its simplicity. Every person needs to grow in their walk with Christ, and Faith@Home is a tool we can encourage each other to use to help accomplish that goal.
Reason #4 – It is a way for your church to practically implement biblical intentionality in the lives of your people.
We’ve all heard this adage, “If you give a man a fish, you feed him for a day. If you teach a man to fish, you feed him for a lifetime.” This is the mindset and the goal behind Faith@Home. Faith@Home doesn’t just talk about intentionality, it provides resources that give individuals and families ideas on HOW to be biblically intentional in every area of life. For example, Faith@Home provides what’s called FaithPath Kits. These 13 kits are specifically designed for children corresponding to their developmental stages, from birth to 18. They have activities, discussion topics, and other types of family planning ideas to facilitate spiritual formation into their lives. There are resources that speak to singles, giving them purposeful suggestions on how to think biblically, cultivate biblical relationships, and remain encouraged and eternally focused in the midst of this season of their lives. There are date night ideas for couples, for families, for parents with their kids, and for empty nesters, all pointing to challenging one another in their spiritual growth. There are topic driven resources related to numerous special circumstances we all face in life that help people to biblically navigate through their thought processes and choices. Faith@Home provides your people with the means to help them implement biblical intentionality into their homes almost immediately, they just have to be willing to take the resources and use them. Which brings us full circle. I’m encouraged in more ways than one about the “people scenes” that relate to Faith@Home, not only because I see people personally interacting with each other, but because I know that these interactions are impacting individuals and families for eternity. What wonderful scenes they are!
How you brand this ministry is solely dependent upon your creativity coupled with the needs, personality, and culture of your church family. Faith@Home works for us here at Cherry Street. Whatever your church chooses to do, my desire is that your church would recognize the vital importance for individuals and families to be personally responsible and diligently intentional about introducing, implementing, and encouraging spiritual disciplines and development into the fabric of their homes. As Paul writes to the Ephesian believers in Chapter 4, we as pastors and leaders in our churches are responsible for equipping the saints, with an end goal of every believer living a life of spiritual maturity. Our Faith@Home ministry has proven to be an effective method of fulfilling our equipping responsibility and can be for your church as well.
If your church is interested in obtaining more information about how to establish a Faith@Home ministry, you can visit drivefaithhome.com. This website contains pricing plans, answers questions, and equips you with the necessary considerations from planning through implementation. If you have any questions about how Cherry Street runs the Faith@Home ministry, feel free to email us at info@mycsbc.com.
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