Purpose

I often use the illustration for finding our purpose here on earth as follows. What is the one thing, as a Christ follower, we can do on earth that we will not be able to do in Heaven? There is one primary thing – that is to evangelize, to lead the lost to God. Does that mean we should not spend time doing the heavenly things – worship, fellowship, personal growth, communion with God and leadership? No! What this indicates is the reason we are not swept into heaven upon becoming a follower is the work God has for us here. That work is sharing the Good News, obeying the great commission. A story goes “People on a plane are stuck on the runway due to weather and conversations start. When one woman discovered the man next to her was a minister she asked him why he did not take care of the weather. He responded to her that she was mistaken; it was not his department, but rather management’s. His department was sales.” Our department is sales. Not in the negative sense, but in the sense we can point them to the solution to their biggest problems. In the past we tried to “sell” by scaring people with their eternal destination. The eternal destination is important, but most people’s immediate problems are so big they cannot see past them. We must show them that God cares about where they are now and can give them the power and resources to overcome. This is not to be confused with the genie concept some apply to God – He is not our servant, but as it is often illustrated in the Word, He is our loving Father that wants what is best for us.

The bottom line for GCIC is we will follow God. If ever we find we are going against God or the Bible we will change. We seek to expand the Kingdom of Heaven with godly men and women. If the people of GCIC claim to be Christ followers, yet their life does not reflect that, then we will have failed. We are not interested in creating a group of people that claim the name, but do not practice the walk. There are some groups out there that do these things, but we are not one of them. Our desire is for any fellow Christian that feels we are off track to come to us and show us where. To stand on the sidelines and criticize without reaching out to offer correction or guidance in love is not a reflection on GCIC, but rather a reflection on that person’s intent. Help us to be the best we can be for God.