This is the fourth week of our Reimagine campaign. Yesterday was Commitment Sunday, and to everyone who brought a commitment card, prayed, or simply came along to worship: thank you. This week there are no extra events, but there are still a couple of things worth knowing:
This week: there is still time to respond. If you haven't yet completed a commitment card, it's not too late. You can bring the form in your information pack next Sunday or fill in the online form.
Sunday 8 November: Celebration Sunday. We'll announce the combined total of commitments and celebrate together what God has done.
Prefer to listen? Here's the audio version.
Most of us have a few things we try to fill our lives with: a good job, a nice home, great coffee, the next holiday. They're good things, and for a while they feel like enough. But somehow there's always a next thing, and the satisfaction never quite lasts.
What if the hunger underneath it all is pointing us somewhere?
On Commitment Sunday evening we welcomed Ger Jones, pastor of Vintage Church in Los Angeles and a long-time friend of Tim and Melissa's, as part of our Reimagine series. As we came to present our commitments, Ger's prayer for us was simple: "Lord, do immeasurably more with this." He took us to John 6:1-13, the feeding of the 5,000, and to the verse that has anchored this whole campaign:
"Now to him who is able to do immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine, according to his power that is at work within us." (Ephesians 3:20)
A boy's lunch in the hands of Jesus
A great crowd has followed Jesus to the far side of the Sea of Galilee, and Jesus asks Philip where they can buy bread for everyone. Philip reckons more than half a year's wages wouldn't buy enough for each person to have a bite. Andrew finds a boy with five small barley loaves and two small fish, and asks what all of us would ask: how on earth will that go around so many?
Jesus has the people sit down, gives thanks, and shares out the bread and fish. Everyone eats as much as they want, and there are twelve baskets left over.
The disciples were shocked. And Ger suspects the boy might have been too, perhaps quietly wishing he could keep a bit of lunch for himself. But he handed it over, and Jesus did what Jesus loves to do. He takes the five loaves and two fish of our lives, the time we can give, the talents we can offer, the treasure we want to give, and does immeasurably more with them.
Ger was also clear that this miracle points beyond a free meal. Later Jesus says, "I am the bread of life." Ger lives in a city where people try to fill their hearts with everything the world has to offer: leisure, pleasure, treasure. That's the story of Los Angeles, he said, and he suspects it's the story of Melbourne too. However much we shove into our souls, it doesn't satisfy. Meaning and purpose are never quite there until we eat of the bread of life.
"Do not rob me"
Ger and his wife met at seminary in Canada and then moved to Raleigh, North Carolina. A few years later they were praying about what came next, and Ger's wife told him she was open to anywhere, "except Los Angeles." The very next day their denomination asked them to pray about planting a church in Los Angeles. Ger didn't dare tell her straight away.
In time they both sensed God's yes. But they had no money, no team and no contacts in LA, just one or two students who were keen to help. So they began asking their church in Raleigh for support.
One day Betty, one of the church's much-loved seniors, came into Ger's office holding a blue velvet jewellery box. She had recently lost her husband, Jim. "I can't come with you to Los Angeles," she said, "but I want to invest. I want to be part of the story of what God's going to do there." Inside the box was a stunning pendant, probably the most valuable thing she owned.
Ger's honest first thought made everyone laugh: "I can't be the pastor who takes jewellery off old women." So he said no, thanked her, and asked her to pray for them instead. Betty left disappointed.
The next day she came back with her son, Jim Jr, and said these words:
"Do not rob me of participating in what God is doing there. Do not take that away from me. I want to play a part in that story."
Ger felt the rebuke of Betty, and of the Lord. It was her five loaves and two fish, her way of asking, "Could you bring the bread of life to Los Angeles with what I'm able to give?" Ger believes the story of their church goes back to that moment.
Divine appointments
The family arrived in Los Angeles in 2011 with three small kids, an apartment with no furniture, takeaway pizza and a desperate prayer: "God, you've got to do something."
That same day, walking around the neighbourhood, Ger passed a church called the Church of the Nazarene and felt a nudge from the Holy Spirit that it was important. Later, Amy, the graduate student helping them, came home excited about a new church plant of 30 or 40 people meeting just up the road. Ger was annoyed. Why would God bring them here if there was already a great church plant nearby? He put on his best Christian smile and went along.
They walked in at the back just as the pastor was telling the group that he had to return to his home church to take over as senior pastor. Unless God provided a miracle, the plant would close. They were praying for someone who was already there, could fund themselves for a while, and shared their mix of solid theology and openness to the Holy Spirit, a lot like Ger's own background in England. Ger insisted this was no preacher's exaggeration. His prayer was, "God, pick me!" Betty's five loaves and two fish were starting to become immeasurably more.
Then, just before their Easter launch, they lost their evening venue and couldn't find anywhere to meet on a Sunday morning. Los Angeles is a very hard place to rent space, and most schools and businesses won't rent to churches. On the Monday before Easter, another church rang to say they were moving out of their space, and it was available for Easter Sunday. Another divine appointment.
"If God wants to give us a building..."
Around five years later, the church was overflowing. At one of their regular Q&As, someone asked whether they would ever buy a building. Everyone was tired of setting up and packing down. Ger said probably not: this was Los Angeles, they had no money, and he didn't want debt. "But if God wants to give us a building, that'd be great."
The next week an email arrived from a man called Barry, from an address that looked so fake Ger assumed it was spam or a joke from someone in the church. Barry was an elder of a small, faithful, older congregation with a big building and very few people, and they were wondering about merging with a church that didn't have a building.
When they met and Barry described where the church was, Ger was dumbfounded. Of anywhere in Los Angeles, it was the church where his son went to preschool, just around the corner from home. And the week before, Ger's wife and their son Sam had laid their hands on that very building and prayed for God to give Daddy a building. Ger had been getting up at four every Sunday morning to collect a truck and haul all the church gear.
The two churches merged. Jesus was doing immeasurably more with Betty's five loaves and two fish.
A city begging for help
Ger knew straight away that the building wasn't for them. As Tim has been saying through this series, Reimagine isn't about buildings, it's about what God is going to do through them. The church was to be a kind of feeding centre, where people could come and taste and see that the Lord is good.
Ger felt God give him a word from Acts 16. Paul, unsure where to go next, has a vision in the night of a man of Macedonia "standing and begging him, 'Come over to Macedonia and help us.'" God didn't send an angel or write "Macedonia" in the sky. He showed Paul a person begging for help. Beneath all the leisure, pleasure and treasure of a sophisticated culture, hearts were empty without Jesus.
"Melbourne thrives, is well-renowned for its culture and its coffee. And yet you can enjoy all of that, and without the bread of life your heart is begging for help."
So they raised money, as we are now, to fix up an older building that needed new electrics, new plumbing and a lot of love. Not just to fix it, Ger said, but to get it ready to welcome a city begging for help.
Three people in mind
As they prepared, Ger had three groups of people on his heart.
Teenagers. With three kids of their own, Ger and his wife knew the battles teenagers face at school, from drugs and sex to the pressure of a secular culture. They wanted a space where young people could feel safe and normal, and simply follow Jesus without having to hide it, "a safe haven in a sea of opposition." They built a great youth space, hired great leaders, and watched teenagers run to the building, not want to leave, and bring their friends.
Single mums. Parenting in LA is tough, and there are many single mums. Ger pictured a mum on a Sunday morning, wondering if she had it in her, finally getting the kids dressed and into the car while they fight in the back seat. What if she pulled up to find a car park saved for her, a safe and lively kids' ministry, and a church family saying, "We've got you"? Over the years their family ministry has grown so much that families who would normally leave the city for a bigger house are choosing to stay, because what they've found is "far more important than a fourth bedroom and a football field."
People exploring Jesus. Like Melbourne, most of Los Angeles doesn't follow Jesus, and walking into a church can feel intimidating, awkward and judgemental. This, Ger said, was the immeasurably more he most longed to see.
Zacchaeus' house
Ger reminded us of Zacchaeus, who climbed a tree to see Jesus. He was small, but he was also an outcast, a tax collector who had worked with the Romans against his own people. How could he explore Jesus safely?
Jesus didn't tell him to come to synagogue or the temple. He knew that was the last place Zacchaeus would want to go. Instead he said, "Zacchaeus, I'm coming to your house." Jesus came onto his turf, where he wouldn't feel shamed or judged.
So Ger's church raised money to make their building feel like Zacchaeus' house on Tuesday nights for Alpha, a course where people can explore questions of life and faith in a relaxed setting. They call it their "second Sunday service", the Sunday for the city. They take down the posters and tidy away the church things so it feels like neutral ground.
Carly's story
Then Ger told us about Carly, his hairdresser from a few years back. She was very Los Angeles: crystals on the bench, bright red hair, sleeve tattoos, piercings and 1960s dresses, and happy to tell Ger that they were all one big spiritual family. Someone else from the church invited her to Alpha. She loved the space, felt safe, and at the end asked if she could do the talks next time and share what she believed. Ger wasn't sure that's how Alpha works.
They lost touch. Then, about a year ago, Carly turned up on the third row at church. Life had been really hard, she told Ger, and she couldn't stop remembering that "the only place in this city I felt safe and loved is here." She did Alpha twice more. Then one Sunday she asked for a minute after the service. Ger knelt down on the stage, and she told him, "I'm all in with Jesus." Now she's there every week, learning to worship and follow him.
Because a few people gave their five loaves and two fish, God did what he always loves to do: immeasurably more.
Always five loaves and two fish
Ger didn't know what any of us would give to Reimagine, but he promised that God would do immeasurably more with it. Some of us might feel our gift is tiny. That doesn't matter, he said. You can still say, "I want some skin in the game. I want to be part of this story." Others might give a lot. But:
"According to God's riches, whatever you give will always be five loaves and two fish."
Ger finished with the boy going home after the miracle. "How was your lunch?" "Well, Jesus took it." "Jesus took your lunch? I'm going to have a word with him!" "No, Mum, don't. Let me tell you what Jesus did with my lunch." That day would have changed his life forever.
We may or may not see what God does with our five loaves and two fish here, Ger said. But one day we'll hear "Well done, good and faithful servant," and perhaps Jesus will lean over and say, "Do you remember that Reimagine campaign? Can I show you what I did with it? Can I show you the immeasurably more?"
One way to live it out this week
Ger talked about our time, our talents and our treasure. This week, choose one of the three you don't usually think of as something to offer God. It might be an hour of your time for someone who's struggling, a skill you could use to serve, or simply your attention for someone exploring faith. Offer it to God in prayer, then act on it once before Sunday. Whatever you've already decided about Reimagine, this is a way to keep giving your five loaves and two fish.
A prayer for your week
Jesus, you are the bread of life,
and our hearts stay hungry until we feast on you.
Thank you that what we bring is never too small for you.
Take our time, our talents and our treasure,
and do immeasurably more than we could ask or imagine.
Make One Church a safe place for everyone who is begging for help.
Give each of us a story like Betty's.
Amen.
7 Things to Pray for This Week
Take these with you this week: download the printable prayer points (PDF)
Monday 26 October: Our five loaves and two fish.
Give thanks for every commitment brought yesterday, large or small, and for every quiet prayer behind them. Pray that God would take what we've offered and multiply it, just as Jesus did with a boy's lunch.
Tuesday 27 October: Alpha.
Pray for everyone exploring faith through Alpha (our course for people with questions about life and faith) and for the team who run it. Pray that more room would mean more people can come and ask life's big questions.
Wednesday 28 October: Youth Church.
Pray for our teenagers as they find a faith of their own, and for the leaders who walk alongside them. Pray for spaces where they can gather, worship, ask questions and grow.
Thursday 29 October: A city begging for help.
Pray for the people of Blackburn and Melbourne behind closed doors and drawn curtains, carrying loneliness, anxiety, broken relationships or grief. Ask God to open our eyes to their need, and to make One Church a place where they're welcomed and fed the bread of life.
Friday 30 October: Our Food Pantry.
Pray for the individuals and families who come to our Food Pantry, and for the volunteers who serve them each week. Pray that it would be a place of dignity and welcome, and that some who first come for food would find friendship and faith here too.
Saturday 31 October: Young adults.
Pray for our young adults community at a stage of life full of big decisions about study, work, relationships and faith. Pray for those finishing their year in our Leadership Institute, that what they've learned would stay with them, and for those who will join it next year. Pray that they would grow as disciples and leaders.
Sunday 1 November: A warm welcome.
Pray for our welcome team and for everyone walking through our doors today, especially anyone carrying loneliness. Pray that our foyer becomes a place where people feel at home.
Personal Reflection
What do you tend to reach for when you feel restless or empty? What would it look like to bring that hunger to Jesus instead?
Betty said, "Do not rob me of participating in what God is doing." What would it mean for you to see giving as a privilege rather than a loss?
Of your time, talents and treasure, which do you find hardest to offer God? Why?
Small Group Discussion
Read John 6:5-13 together. Philip sees the cost, Andrew sees a small lunch, and both doubt it will be enough. When have you looked at a situation and thought, "This will never be enough"?
Ger said that however much we try to fill our souls, "it doesn't satisfy." Where do you see people around you, or yourself, chasing the "next thing"?
Ger's first instinct was to refuse Betty's gift. Why do you think we sometimes find it hard to let others give? What might we miss when we do?
Ger described several "divine appointments" in Los Angeles. Have you ever experienced something that felt like God had gone ahead of you? How did it shape your faith?
Ger's church takes down posters and tidies away the "church stuff" on Alpha nights so it feels like neutral ground. What makes a church feel welcoming or intimidating to someone exploring faith?
Carly said church was the only place in the city she felt "safe and loved," long before she believed. What does that suggest about how faith often begins?
Ger said, "According to God's riches, whatever you give will always be five loaves and two fish." Do you find that encouraging, humbling, or something else? Why?
Whatever you've decided about Reimagine, where do you sense God inviting you to trust him with your "five loaves and two fish" this week? Share what you're comfortable sharing, and take time to pray for one another.