Our Why
Every year, I like to take a moment to revisit our “why” as a church — who we are and why we exist. There will be other times when we talk about what we do, but today was about remembering our identity.
Ten years ago, during a season of prayer over God’s vision for Chicago Heights, the Lord said something I wasn’t expecting: be missional. That one word changed my trajectory. We dove into reading, praying, and talking with others about what it means to live and lead a missional church. God gave us clear direction.
This morning I asked the question: Why is missions important?
I shared a story about a young orphan rescued from a burning house by a stranger who climbed a scorching hot pipe to save him. The man’s scarred hands became the undeniable proof of his love. Friends, that’s a picture of Jesus — the One who left heaven, entered our brokenness, bore the pain, and still carries the scars of His love for us.
In Luke 4, Jesus reads from Isaiah 61:1–2 and declares His mission — to bring good news to the poor, liberty to the captives, sight to the blind, and freedom to the oppressed. He didn’t just go out on His own; He was sent and empowered by the Spirit. And just like Jesus, we’re called to continue His mission.
Here at Family Church, we summarize our mission in three points: Welcoming the Broken, Building Believers, and Impacting the World. Welcoming the broken means making room for everyone — the homeless, the addict, the recently incarcerated, the immigrant, the mentally ill, the poor, the wealthy, the black, the white, the Hispanic, the Asian — everyone. This is not a church for perfect people. We are, in many ways, a “ghetto hospital” for those seeking the healing touch of the King.
Mission isn’t about complaining about the brokenness we encounter — it’s about stepping into it with the hope of Christ. God has placed us in a community with deep needs, and we are here to meet them in His name.
Jesus also proclaimed “the year of the Lord’s favor” — a reference to the Jubilee year, a time of freedom, restoration, and new beginnings. That’s what mission is all about: showing people that in Christ, there is a fresh start on the other side of faith.
We may not be able to reach everyone, but we can make an eternal difference for the one. That’s our mission — and that’s why it matters.
Luke 4:14-22
Ten years ago, during a season of prayer over God’s vision for Chicago Heights, the Lord said something I wasn’t expecting: be missional. That one word changed my trajectory. We dove into reading, praying, and talking with others about what it means to live and lead a missional church. God gave us clear direction.
This morning I asked the question: Why is missions important?
I shared a story about a young orphan rescued from a burning house by a stranger who climbed a scorching hot pipe to save him. The man’s scarred hands became the undeniable proof of his love. Friends, that’s a picture of Jesus — the One who left heaven, entered our brokenness, bore the pain, and still carries the scars of His love for us.
In Luke 4, Jesus reads from Isaiah 61:1–2 and declares His mission — to bring good news to the poor, liberty to the captives, sight to the blind, and freedom to the oppressed. He didn’t just go out on His own; He was sent and empowered by the Spirit. And just like Jesus, we’re called to continue His mission.
Here at Family Church, we summarize our mission in three points: Welcoming the Broken, Building Believers, and Impacting the World. Welcoming the broken means making room for everyone — the homeless, the addict, the recently incarcerated, the immigrant, the mentally ill, the poor, the wealthy, the black, the white, the Hispanic, the Asian — everyone. This is not a church for perfect people. We are, in many ways, a “ghetto hospital” for those seeking the healing touch of the King.
Mission isn’t about complaining about the brokenness we encounter — it’s about stepping into it with the hope of Christ. God has placed us in a community with deep needs, and we are here to meet them in His name.
Jesus also proclaimed “the year of the Lord’s favor” — a reference to the Jubilee year, a time of freedom, restoration, and new beginnings. That’s what mission is all about: showing people that in Christ, there is a fresh start on the other side of faith.
We may not be able to reach everyone, but we can make an eternal difference for the one. That’s our mission — and that’s why it matters.
Luke 4:14-22
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