A few years ago a family generously donated some beautiful wooded land to Harvest Bible Chapel of Rolling Meadows. Camp Harvest, about 45 minutes north of Grand Rapids, Michigan, is located out in the middle of nowhere. Seriously. Cell phone coverage? If you stand in just the right place you might get a signal. Internet access? Forget about it. But that’s the way a retreat should be. It’s about getting away, right?
Well, that’s exactly what over 25 Harvest Bible Chapel pastors did this week at the Harvest Bible Fellowship Senior Pastor’s retreat. We got away for a time of fellowship, worship, prayer, instruction, encouragement, sharing, and fun. And in typical Harvest fashion, we went all out. We laughed hard, we played hard, we ate grand, and we competed in games hard. We even slept hard...if not much.
I thank God daily that He has put me in a fellowship of humble, Godly men who love God passionately, proclaim His Word courageously, and care for God’s people deeply. There is a genuine warmth and authenticity in this fellowship of pastors. I always leave Harvest gatherings encouraged and emboldened to carry on diligently where God has called me to minister.
God is doing amazing things around the globe through Harvest Bible Chapels. Though we are not many, we are growing rapidly. It’s remarkable that eight years ago there was just one Harvest Bible Chapel. Within a year from now we may have over forty!
It’s one thing to talk about growth of the number of churches, but what really excites me is the health of these churches. People are worshipping God in spirit and in truth, God’s Word is being boldly proclaimed, and lives are being changed. It’s exciting to hear the many testimonies of hearts being transformed by the power of the Gospel. God’s hand is on this group of churches. As Ron Zappia (Harvest Bible Chapel, Naperville) reminded us this week, part of the reason is because we are simply, “getting the Word out.”
I admire and applaud the vision and leadership of Pastor James, the elders at Harvest Bible Chapel of Rolling Meadows, and the leadership of the Harvest Bible Fellowship (Kent Shaw, Gordon Zwirkoski, David Jones, and Bill Molinari). God is doing something special through the Harvest Bible Fellowship and I’m excited that my family and the wonderful people of Harvest Bible Chapel of Jacksonville get to be a part.
Thursday, June 12, 2008
