By Tony Lambert
Correspondent
Truly, March 20 was a day that changed everything. A vision conceived three years ago had been clarified, condensed, and we believe became compelling. With a desire to see God bring dramatic Gospel impact in our lifetime, First Church, Picayune, embraced the vision of “Encouraging Influencers with the Gospel.”
Five categories were identified: educators, health care providers, leadership, responders, and — at the heart of the vision — families. March 20 marked the launching of a five-year plan for encouraging influencers with the Gospel globally, and the conclusion of the first ninety days of preparation for every group encouraging influencers locally.
Following a Vision Night, the church spent 30 days praying and fasting for unity and for God to lead each group to adopt influencers in our community. The next 30 days were spent discerning where God was leading and developing plans for three Gospel expressions in the next year. Forty-three groups representing hundreds of people committed to the vision and were commissioned by the church March 20 to encourage influencers with the Gospel. A few examples of groups embraced include bus drivers, city council members, entire schools, the police department, and the local hospital staff.
[That] only touches the tip of the scope of this day. In my 45 years of ministry — including three megachurches — I have never witnessed this kind of unified mobilization of the body with the Gospel. It was, and is, a beautiful experience.
Lambert is senior pastor of First Church, Picayune. He may be contacted at tonyl@fbcpic.net.
