Wednesday, February 1, 2023

Within months of becoming a Christian, the associate pastor at my church invited me to go with him and a small group of our members to plant a new church. As I prayed about it, I felt like God was offering me this opportunity to grow as a Christian as we grew our new church.

Talk about small beginnings! There were only about 20 adults and a bunch of kids. We started meeting and praying, praying and meeting. About nine months later, we held the first service of what has become CedarCreek Church. We sure didn’t have the numbers that Purpose Church did their first weekend, but we were very excited about the people God had brought.

It was rough going for the first few years, but God was growing and strengthening us in ways we never anticipated. And he used people whom we never thought he could use—like me! We never, in our wildest dreams, thought that God would grow this small seed into such a large and vibrant community of believers! But as he tells us:

Zechariah 4:10
“Do not despise these small beginnings, for the Lord rejoices to see the work begin, to see the plumb line in Zerubbabel’s hand.”

We needed that plumb line because as our founder, Pastor Lee Powell, was so fond of telling us, he didn’t know what he was doing! God was faithful to bring the people we needed, when we needed them. He provided the resources, and we celebrated each milestone, honoring his faithfulness. We figured out a way to make the most of everything he gave us.

He met every need—sometimes, just in time! A few times, we got off track, but our leadership used the plumb line of God’s word in combination with much prayer for wisdom and compassion to guide us. We are 25 years in, with six campuses, a strong media presence, and upwards of 10,000 people in attendance. We have successfully transitioned from our founding pastor to another strong leader whom God provided in Pastor Ben Snyder.

Each challenge has been an opportunity for growth. Guided by God’s spirit, we are going, and growing strong! As Pastor Ben pointed to this weekend, you win each day by leveraging the opportunities in your reality! I will always be grateful that I chose to follow the Lord’s leading and had a part in planting the church that has become CedarCreek! You seldom get such an opportunity! I hope if you get one, you’ll jump at it!

Questions:
What opportunities has God set before you? Does it involve some risk? Can you jump?

Next Steps:
Invite God to reveal the plans he has for you. They might be scary, but if he calls you, he will equip you!

Prayer:
Gracious Father! How good you are to offer us these growth opportunities. We pray for the courage to take you up on your offer! Show us the path to take, for we have entrusted our lives to you! Give us courage to jump, strength for hard decisions, and cover all of our efforts with your grace and love. In the beautiful name of Jesus, amen.

This post was written by Lauri White. Lauri is one of the 25 people that God used to start CedarCreek in the Fall of 1995, and was on staff until 2013. Lauri loves Jesus, and loves helping people, especially women, live out of the truth about who we are in Christ. She and her husband Mike live in Oregon, but now spend winter months in Florida near daughter Kelda and her family.