Blessing Our Communities Stan Reeder, USA/Canada Regional Director Jeremiah 29:7 “Also, seek the peace and prosperity of the city to which I carried you into exile. Pray to the Lord for it, because if it prospers, you too will prosper.” Recently, I was pondering this verse and how I might live it out in the city I live in. There are many people around the world living in exile, and I am not one of them. But I do feel the tension of living as a Jesus follower in a world that lives much different than I do. That wants to pull us into its orbit. It would be easy to just socialize with people in our churches, who think the same way as we do and close ourselves off to the world. But that is not what we are called to, and as leaders we have to set......

Read More

Happy New Year! I trust you are off to a great start in 2024. Twelve NEO Churches are beginning the year focusing on seven markers of spiritual maturity for those following Jesus: Bible Engagement, Passionate Prayer, Wholehearted Worship, Humble Service, Joyful Generosity, Consistent Community, Organic Outreach. It is important to remember that these are a recipe, not a menu. We cannot pick and choose among them. (I heard that one of our churches passed out chocolate chip cookies in the middle of the service last Sunday to emphasize the importance of all ingredients being included 😊). The focus this week is Bible Engagement: learning to know, love, and follow the teaching of Scripture. All three actions are important, aren’t they? John Wesley was a prolific reader of books, yet he described himself as a man of one book. Only one book was his authority for faith and life. I am......

Read More