I am very excited to start a new, 5-week sermon series this Sunday, “1Mission”, on our new Mission / Vision / Value statements. Proverbs 19:18 tells us that, “Where there is no vision the people perish.” I have made it a priority to work with our Elders to craft a mission for our church that reveals a biblical purpose and plan for our church. We are not asking you to commit to our church just because we have a service by the beach and really awesome facilities. We are asking you to commit to this ministry because we have a God given mission to fulfill. And, there is nothing more rewarding in the Christian journey than knowing you are part of God’s mission in our own community and around the globe. Here are those new statements:

Mission Statement:
Kure Beach First Baptist Church exists to worship God as creator and redeemer, and to love others as Christ has loved us. Guided by Scripture and the Holy Spirit, we make disciples of Christ by reaching our community, our region, and the world with the Gospel.
We do this by demonstrating God’s love through words, actions, and prayer, inviting them to become disciples of Jesus. We commit to spiritual growth, equipping leaders, and strengthening ministries, so that every member can live out their faith, leading others to Christ.

Vision Statement:
“Worship God, Love people, Grow in Christ-likeness”

We start this Sunday by looking at the end goal of the Christian life and the Church; To worship God. Anything we do as it relates to mission is always for the Glory of God. If we miss that fundamental point, we will fail in our mission. Not only is worship of God the end goal, it has to be the starting point. If we start the “doing” of mission before we engage in the worship of God, we will be busy doing something, but that something will not fulfill the mission God has called us to. In our text this Sunday we see the famous account of two sisters, Mary and Martha, who are hosting Jesus, with his disciples, in their home. Martha focuses on the “doing” of serving while Mary chooses to sit at the feet of Jesus in worship, listening to his words before she engages in “doing.” Mary understood the necessity of fixing her eyes, heart and mind on Jesus first, for which Christ commended her. In this short passage we will see all the points of frustration Martha experienced by missing this critical first step of discipleship. Perhaps you will be able to relate to some or all of those. The mission of Jesus calls all disciples to worship Him first so that our doing can be done with the correct focus, attitude and purpose. Join me Sunday for the start of this exciting new series on the mission we share together at KBFBC.