Grace…We Need to Make Space at the Table for Others.

“Enlarge the place of your tent, stretch your tent curtains wide, do not hold back; lengthen your cords, strengthen your stakes. For you will spread out to the right and to the left; your descendants will dispossess nations and settle in their desolate cities.” – Isaiah 54:2-3

Grace Family,
When our children were little, Dana’s wish was for a large dining room table to be able to have people to our home for dinner. Although we didn’t have a lot of money, she saved up and bought us a table at a yard sale that fit 8 people… a large step up from our small dining table that could only fit 2 adults, 3 small children, and a highchair off to the side! We were so excited to be able to host people for dinners. After a few years of hosting friends and family for dinner, that new table became too small, and Dana began to feel the need for a bigger table. That Christmas, I built Dana a much bigger table that could seat 12-14 people. It took a few weeks to build, a few splinters, several trips to Home Depot… and to be honest, it cost a little more than I anticipated. But what now seems like moments of inconvenience has resulted in a place where many of you have sat over dinner and laughed, cried, talked, joked, played games…and we are all better for it!

As a church, we’re finding one of our “tables” is getting a little tight. Our second service has become quite full… in fact, we’re almost out of room. We’re also getting tight in some spaces in the kid’s ministry & nursery during the second service. This is an incredible blessing from God as people like you and me have found their place at Grace…and we’ve been transformed. But, if we are going to continue to impact people, we need to make more room at the table for them! The only way Grace will continue to be successful in transforming lives is if we continue to have the heart to make room for others. Just as we were welcomed, we need to make more room for others.

To make space for others, I’m asking for 10-12 families who attend the second service to make a commitment starting this week to move to attend the first service. For those who commit, I’m asking for you to make a 1-year commitment to this change. In short, I’m asking for some to step up and make space for others. I know it can be inconvenient and might cost you a little sleep or a change in your routine, but the rewards (like building our bigger dining table) will be eternal. One of the changes we’ll be making for our services is that both services will now hold our special events (like baptisms, child dedications, and more), so both services will be planned the same. Those able to make this change will allow us to continue to reach more people with the transforming message of Jesus Christ.