It's the Stories...

Statistics and numbers are good to know in any church. We use them at PCC and make no apology for it. We often talk about the numbers of souls saved, marriages put back together, baptisms, and new adult members, etc. They provide us with critical information about PCC and help us to plan, improve our systems, and upgrade our ministries. But it is the stories that paint the true picture of PCC. I’m talking about stories of real people, with real issues, who have experienced real life-change. These stories open a window into a person’s life and reveal the operation of God.

At PCC I hear wonderful stories all the time of what God is doing or has done in someone’s family. There are hundreds of these stories. Each one is a miracle. I wish you could hear them all. In fact, I don’t even hear them all – there are so many. They occur everywhere; in our small groups’ ministry… in our children’s ministry… in our teen ministry… in the Sunday morning services…. in your homes… everywhere. Many are dramatic and leave me stunned. Others are less earth shaking. But all of them are amazing. More importantly, they are occurring all the time in a myriad of ways. This is simply God doing what He does – delivering His people and all those who will place their trust in Him.

During December of last year we filmed some testimonies of people in our church family who had stories to tell and used them in the Sunday services. Then there was the cardboard testimony service. Another eye-opener. These stories were deeply moving. Yet they barely scratched the surface of how wide-spread the operation of God is in our church family.

You have a story to tell too.

One man said to me, “This church has saved my life.” Now, I know what he meant when he said it. I realize this statement was not “theologically correct.” It was actually “God” that saved his life. Right? But this was a wonderful insight into his life – a relatively new believer who is bursting with gratitude because of a total turnaround in his life and his family. If you knew his story, your chin would hit the floor…. and you would understand why he said it the way he did. It’s just another example of God’s amazing grace.

There are so many other stories yet to be told…. and others are being written right now. Pace Community Church is a living miracle. Know why? Because so many miracles are taking place in our church family.

It’s the stories that count…