Vision and the Holy Spirit
And Isaac dug again the wells of water that had been dug in the days of Abraham his father, which the Philistines had stopped after the death of Abraham. And he gave them the names that his father had given them. - Genesis 26:18 (ESV)
By now you have heard the news that Opendoor Church is buying the Immanuel Baptist Church property in Greenville so that we can develop another campus. This is going to allow us to expand the spiritual footprint we can imprint on the land that God has placed before us. It is a partial fulfillment of the vision that God placed on our founding Pastor’s heart and now is beginning to flesh out under the leadership of the Holy Spirit in the life of our Senior Pastors and our Elders.
Recently, Connie and I had the privilege of visiting Paris and the Normandy region of France. It was a trip we will never forget and has left us with many more images of the impact of the Christian faith on our world. One of our stops was the tiny village of Les Andelys, along the banks of the Seine river. This little village’s claim to fame is the Chateau Gaillard, a castle started by Richard the Lionheart in 1196. He was simultaneously the King of England and the Duke of Normandy.
The castle was built as a fortress from which to see enemies approaching from a long way off. The castle sits about 1000 feet above the river banks and has incredible views of the curves of the river and the hillside that surround it. In the event of an attack on the little village, the townspeople could make their way up to the castle for safety and protection.
To care for the needs of the soldiers, who could not leave the fortress, and for the villagers, who might have to stay an extended period, a well had to be dug. I have a picture of the mouth of that well. It is just under 1000 feet above the river and then, of course, had to go even deeper to hit water to furnish the well. This well was dug by hand.
Can you imagine the effort and man hours it took to dig that well? They had no light to put in the well so they dug in the dark. No ventilation system existed as they dug deeper and deeper. There was no certainty of how long or if they would even hit water. What an incredible undertaking.
Now, the well is filled with dirt and plants are growing out of it. It would take an incredible amount of time and effort to reopen it. All that is left are the ruins of a castle and a dirt-filled well.
The Immanuel Baptist Church started in 1915 in downtown Greenville, next to the Cupola building on 8th Street. It moved to its present location around 1960-61. At that time, they were bursting at the seams and having to use space at Rose High School, across the street, for Sunday School space. (Now Eppes Middle School). They would have over 100 college students on a given Sunday in worship. It took a lot of vision, hard work, and sacrifice to make that happen.
Now, having just celebrated its 109th anniversary, the congregation is about 40-50 people who are mostly over 65 years of age. God is allowing Opendoor to go in and replenish the well, not move them out. As they go through the grief of releasing their facility, they are also excited about a return to college students worshiping there. They want to hear children laughing and running down the halls. They want to know that as they give up the leadership of the building, the Kingdom’s work will continue. We are being given the opportunity and privilege to do so through the power and working of the Holy Spirit.
PRAYER: Thank You, God, for the faithfulness of the Immanuel Baptist Church family. Thank You, God, for giving and fulfilling a vision to our church family at Opendoor. May the work we do replenishing this well honor the Legacy of Immanuel, expand Your Kingdom, and give glory to Your name.
Ask yourself:
What will my role be with the expansion of our new campus?
How can I honor the hard work that has already been taking place on that property?
Where is the Holy Spirit leading me in the Kingdom’s work?
Recently, Connie and I had the privilege of visiting Paris and the Normandy region of France. It was a trip we will never forget and has left us with many more images of the impact of the Christian faith on our world. One of our stops was the tiny village of Les Andelys, along the banks of the Seine river. This little village’s claim to fame is the Chateau Gaillard, a castle started by Richard the Lionheart in 1196. He was simultaneously the King of England and the Duke of Normandy.
The castle was built as a fortress from which to see enemies approaching from a long way off. The castle sits about 1000 feet above the river banks and has incredible views of the curves of the river and the hillside that surround it. In the event of an attack on the little village, the townspeople could make their way up to the castle for safety and protection.
To care for the needs of the soldiers, who could not leave the fortress, and for the villagers, who might have to stay an extended period, a well had to be dug. I have a picture of the mouth of that well. It is just under 1000 feet above the river and then, of course, had to go even deeper to hit water to furnish the well. This well was dug by hand.
Can you imagine the effort and man hours it took to dig that well? They had no light to put in the well so they dug in the dark. No ventilation system existed as they dug deeper and deeper. There was no certainty of how long or if they would even hit water. What an incredible undertaking.
Now, the well is filled with dirt and plants are growing out of it. It would take an incredible amount of time and effort to reopen it. All that is left are the ruins of a castle and a dirt-filled well.
The Immanuel Baptist Church started in 1915 in downtown Greenville, next to the Cupola building on 8th Street. It moved to its present location around 1960-61. At that time, they were bursting at the seams and having to use space at Rose High School, across the street, for Sunday School space. (Now Eppes Middle School). They would have over 100 college students on a given Sunday in worship. It took a lot of vision, hard work, and sacrifice to make that happen.
Now, having just celebrated its 109th anniversary, the congregation is about 40-50 people who are mostly over 65 years of age. God is allowing Opendoor to go in and replenish the well, not move them out. As they go through the grief of releasing their facility, they are also excited about a return to college students worshiping there. They want to hear children laughing and running down the halls. They want to know that as they give up the leadership of the building, the Kingdom’s work will continue. We are being given the opportunity and privilege to do so through the power and working of the Holy Spirit.
PRAYER: Thank You, God, for the faithfulness of the Immanuel Baptist Church family. Thank You, God, for giving and fulfilling a vision to our church family at Opendoor. May the work we do replenishing this well honor the Legacy of Immanuel, expand Your Kingdom, and give glory to Your name.
Ask yourself:
What will my role be with the expansion of our new campus?
How can I honor the hard work that has already been taking place on that property?
Where is the Holy Spirit leading me in the Kingdom’s work?
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