An Invitation….
Come Join Us In the Way of Jesus
When you become a disciple of Jesus these are some of the changes that will come to your life:
· Jesus will become the Lord of your life and you will have a new relationship with God, our heavenly Father. Being with Jesus is all about peace and right relationships with both God and the people around us. Being with Jesus is not about religion or doing religious activities, obeying certain laws, or doing ceremonies and traditions.
· When Jesus is Lord of your life you will begin to lose your desire for evil things like stealing, lying, wrong sexual relationships, violence, evil talk, idol worship and sorcery. In your heart you will know these things do not belong to the Christian life.
· When Jesus becomes your Lord and in your own life you know He has forgiven you and loves you, His grace will enable you to:
· Have a deep love for other people,
· forgive others when they do evil to you,
· return good for evil,
· leave violence and the desire to harm others,
· leave bad habits like drinking wine, talking filthy language and speaking evil of others,
Once you begin to learn about the Way of Jesus, and if you are serious about your desire to leave behind the kingdom of Satan and become a disciple of Jesus, you will be invited to become a member of the Mennonite Church. You can publicly acknowledge that you are now a disciple of Jesus by being baptized.
We have these expectations of people who are members of the church:
1. You will repent from your sins. That means you will turn away from sin and seek to live life as Jesus lived it- a life that pleases God our Father.
2. You will be very happy you have found Jesus and you will have much joy because of your new life in Him. The peace and joy you have will make you eager to share the good news of Jesus with your friends & family.
3. You will allow the Holy Spirit to continue the transformation of your life so it becomes more and more like Jesus. This transformation happens not because you are obeying laws but because of God’s grace active within you.
4. You will fully participate in the life and ministry of the church. You will use the gifts and abilities God has given you to minister to the needs of others and to help others find their way to Jesus. We will expect you to be present for church activities including worship services, bible studies, prayer meetings and other times of fellowship.
5. Rather than judging, criticizing and condemning others you will get down on their level and help them to reach out in faith to Jesus. You will be dedicated to helping others find the hope and healing you, yourself have experienced in Jesus. Like Jesus, we understand ourselves to be servants, not masters in relation to other people.
6. You will be a peacemaker. You will help others know the peace and forgiveness of Jesus. You will join with Jesus and other believers in breaking down walls that divide us and cause people to be enemies. You will help to end conflicts between families, tribes and nations, between men and women and between rich and poor.
7. You will use your resources to help create a better life for your family and neighbors. God doesn’t want to make us richer and more powerful than others but He does want us to have a fair share in the good things He has created for our well being during our sojourn in this life.
