This coming Sunday, May 22, 2016, we celebrate the 20th Anniversary of our church, and I will share the most unusual message I have ever given.

 

As I reflect this week on twenty years of ministry in Manhattan through Heritage Baptist Church a multitude of memories have flooded my mind.

 

So many precious people!  Some have come and moved on and we still keep in touch. People have come from all over the world to Heritage, from every continent, culture and ethnicity.  Thankfully, many others are still with us from the early days of Heritage and it is a joy to serve Christ with them.  Many new servants have come who do mighty works for God.  One thing is for sure at Heritage: we are team of God’s people who minister together by His grace and for His glory.  Glory to God for His love to the world!

 

So many fabulous opportunities!  We have serve Christ in so many varied ways: on the streets and in the subways, in evangelism and discipleship, in Vacation Bible Times and hospital visits, on mission trips, celebrations, marriages, baptisms, fellowships, Lord’s Supper services, and countless classes and church services.  Glory to God for His church!

 

So many challenging moves!  Our church has met in and moved from YMCA’s, private schools, public schools, and other places.  God has always been faithful to us to provide a place when we have had to meet to worship Christ.  Glory to God for His amazing provision!

 

So many thrilling adventures!  Thanks be to God for answers to prayer and thrilling mission trips with souls saved and goals fully accomplished.  It was a joy to live in a Russian orphanage, to preach the Gospel in the mountains of Southern Palawan, Philippines, to build a house after the devastating earthquake in Haiti, and knock on doors in Lucan Village, Ireland. Glory to God for the power of the Gospel!

 

So many victories and hurts, too!  Through the years, I remember the mistakes I have made, the hurts I have experienced when people have left our church, and the joys of victories won.  Even in failure and hurt, God is faithful!  He continues to reveal His presence, demonstrate His grace, give strength by His Spirit, and speak to us through His Word.  Glory to God for His steadfast love!

 

The message this Sunday will be interspersed with testimonies as I recognize beautiful servants of Christ in Heritage. Some have gone to be with the Lord.  I will reveal how our church is the answer to the prayers of a precious saint of God.  I will share a miraculous answer to prayer as God healed a sweet believer in our church family. We will honor a new graduate of our Heritage Discipleship Institute, give thanks to God for our faithful proclaimers of God’s Word, and we will give special thanks to a number of incredible servant leaders of Heritage.  Through it all, I believe the best days of Heritage Baptist Church are not behind us, but before us.  Why?  Because Jesus is always building His church.

 

I want you to come. I hope and pray you will come, by His grace, and for His glory!