REMARKS FROM THE THIRD ANNUAL PARISH MEETING
Location: The Cenacle, Jerusalem, Roman Protectorate of Palestine
Date: March 23, 30 AD
Time: Shortly after Dinner
First of all, I think we need to extend a hearty thank you to our hosts, Mary and Jude. I know they weren't expecting this many people, but their hospitality has been absolutely wonderful. You say you’re bringing a "few friends" and 13 folks plus some extras show up, that's a lot to deal with.
Thank you. And that bread and wine were *chef’s kiss.* Like they were delivered from heaven. Seriously, I'll never have anything better. Thank you for your hospitality.
This is the third annual meeting of our little family and a lot has changed in the last year. Friends have come and gone and come again. Seriously, Laz is doing much better, but keep him and Mary and Martha in your prayers. They're still dealing with a lot. The scent for one. [Wait for laughter.]
We have a lot to celebrate. After crunching the numbers with Judas this morning, it seems like we have a decent surplus. 30 pieces of silver to be exact. Between the nard overspending and all the ever-increasing travel expenses, it seemed like the budget might have been shot, but we're ending the year in the black.
Let's extend our thanks to Judas for all his hard work. Managing the purse is a thankless job, and Dad knows, we're short on accountants… or really anyone who can count at all. It's a tough job, but he's really taken it by the horns and done a fabulous job. Let's give him a hand. I know he had to leave early. That guy's always working. He'd do anything to keep us going.
For the last three years we've been focusing on a few key themes. Repentance. The Kingdom of God. And how I'm the Messiah. It seems like some real gains have been made. Our membership has exploded. Average Saturday Attendance has ballooned to around 77, but the big events brought in over 5,000 men. It seems like the potluck was a real draw, but we're going to have to be better about finding ways to not only engage and keep women and children, but to remember to include them in our counts.
As a team, we did several hundred pastoral visits and saw 70 demons cast out, 30 lame-born folks healed, and over 150 general healings of sight, deafness, and leprosy, to name just a few. There’s probably more we could be doing, but there's only so many people we can visit and touch in a day. To make a bigger impact, we'll need more.. and I know I sound like a broken record about this… but people. Volunteers. Laborers for the harvest yadda, yadda, yadda. Every new member is a potential volunteer: so keep inviting, keep bringing folks in, and let’s get folks into leadership positions. #invitewelcomeconnect
We really ended the year on a high note. Even I wasn't expecting the reception we got at the city. Seems like our advertising campaign and local mailings had a real impact on turn out. And whoever thought to grab the branches: great touch! It really helped brand the event to give it staying power.
Lives are being changed. People are being healed. The Good News about me is being proclaimed. This is really really good news and we have a lot to celebrate.
But we're facing some challenges as well. As always, money is an issue. We are spending more and all of the money that comes in. If we're going to prepare for the future, we might want to stop selling everything we have and start being more intentional about setting aside money for an endowment fund. I won't be around forever and we can only get by on the brand and personality for so long.
We're also running into some resistance. Look, when you start to try to change the culture, and things begin to move in the right direction, people who can't accept the change are going to act out. We can expect this. But if we stick to it, and keep moving towards health, they'll either get on board or get out of the way. As long as we avoid triangulation and secrecy, we'll survive and thrive. What's the worst they could do?
All this is to say, I'm not sure what the next year is going to bring, but I'm excited for the challenge and for the ways Dad is working in and through all of us. We've got a big couple of days, but if we stay the course, pray without ceasing, and keep the main thing the main thing, we'll have another blockbuster year.
I just want to end by offering my love and thanks for each one of you. No one knows how long we have together, but I'm thankful for all of you and the work you've put in in the last three years. We all need to be a little nicer to Simon Peter and we should probably include James-Two and Nate in more things, but we have a nice little family here.
I'm reminded of what Dad said through the scribes and histories: if we but ask "Oh Lord, bless me indeed, and enlarge my coast, that Your hand might be with me, and that You would keep me from evil, that it may not grieve me!" Dad did that for Jabez. And he'll do it for us.
Thank you again. We'll now hear from Matthew about next year's budget, then we'll head out of town for an executive committee retreat. Let's take a five minute chamber pot break and reconvene.
