I love pastoring a smaller church. It’s all the “feels” of community and relationships; real face-to-face friendships. That’s hard to find in these days of on-line friending. It’s what makes us special. You can feel the Holy Spirit among us. In a smaller church it’s easy to get involved and use your God-given gifts. As visitors come in they are warmly welcomed. New relationships are formed. We meet our new neighbors and often run into old friends. Those who come genuinely looking to encounter God and find a community are blessed. Being connected to the Global Methodist Church provides a foundation for our vitality. The church I pastor in the beautiful North Greenville area, Mountain View GMC, has about 120 committed and faith-filled members and growing.

But there are risks to a smaller church; things that can cause us to get off course. The most common risks are to focus inwardly and lose sight of our responsibility to God’s mission and evangelism. To be independent without connection to the GMC would exacerbate these challenges and cause us to use our precious time and limited resources on church management. This would tie us up and cause the church to become stagnant. Without connection to the GMC, a smaller church over time could lose sight of its Spirit-driven purpose and Wesleyan identity.

Other risks come from outside such as cultural ideologies. When the church starts to look more like the culture, or the latest trends, we have a problem. I came across a quote on Pinterest: “If Paul could see the church in America today, we’d be getting a letter.” Christianity in America today has its issues, that’s for sure, but apparently so did the church in Colossae. They got a letter from Paul.

There were lots of problems in the Colossian Church. The early church was confronted with new variations of the gospel. People were going about the faith according to their own desires. Paul didn’t want them to be led astray by “hallow and deceptive philosophy” (Col. 2:8). His approach was to re-center them back to the basic principles of the faith - Christ is at the center. Paul reminded the Colossian Christians of Christ’s supremacy over every person, thing, and ideology and that they were set apart for a life of holiness in Him.

That’s how the Global Methodist Church helps us. It helps a smaller church keep our focus on Christ and living out our call to holiness and servant ministry. To be a part of the GMC is exciting, bold and inspiring. It holds us to the authority of scripture, the Lordship of Jesus Christ, and our orthodox Wesleyan doctrines. It ensures that the future teaching of adults and children of all ages will be biblical and foundational.

In the GMC we get the blessings and benefits of a Christ-centered community connection. We’re more than a fellowship and a building. We have a goal and a vision. The GMC brings a sense of freedom and a fresh new perspective to serve as the hands and feet of Jesus Christ. One of the laity at Mountain View put it this way, “One small ‘yes’ from one-of-us can spread world-wide.” We are free to focus our time and resources on our purpose as a church and discern the path the Spirit lights for us.