12 Mar Leadership Clusters Part 5 Christ – Centeredness
Steve King
Sr. Pastor, Cherrydale Baptist Church, Arlington, VA
Part 5 – Christ – Centeredness
Christ-centeredness is a non-negotiable! There are many needs and pressing issues in our communities that could bring us together but nothing trumps Christ-centeredness. When Jesus Christ is in the center we are compelled to humble ourselves, love each other, value differences and persevere in working together.
We have discovered a format for our weekly meetings which naturally reinforces Christ-centeredness. After greeting each other we invite a brother to open in prayer and then we each share “a word from The Word”. Each person is invited to briefly share from God’s Word an insight, a promise or a teaching that has been meaningful to them in the last week. I often jot down notes and am fascinated to get a front row seat each week to what God is revealing to the shepherds of His flock in our area. After we share “a word from The Word” we ask one of the pastors to lead us in prayer for the advancement of the gospel in our area.
Next we divide into groups of 2-3 and share our hearts with each other and pray for each other. We often share “highs and lows” from the week and the others sincerely listen. Once a bother shares another one prays for him. This format enables each person to be heard and prayed for and at the same time reinforces the Christ-centered call to listen and pray for others.
Jesus said he came to seek and to save the lost (Luke 19:10) and he told his disciples, “follow me and I will make you fishers of men.” (Mark 1:17). Being Christ-centered compels us to work together to take the gospel in word and deed to every person in our metro area.
Consider times when you experienced deep spiritual friendship and a sense of God’s presence in your conversations and prayers together.
- How real and often do you have such a “tri-alogue” (a dialog with Christ seated right there)?
- What impact would you have in your life if you experienced this with regularity?
Check out the OneHeartDC Leadership Cluster Covenant.
We are praying for you – that you and your colleagues are experiencing a heightened sense of Christ’s presence, personally and in your Cluster, and with all the peace and joy that this entails!
Pastor Steve King has been serving as the Senior Pastor at Cherrydale since October 2 of 1983. Entering his third decade of ministry, the challenges and opportunities are as inspiring to him today as they were more than 30 years ago. Pastor King has watched God accomplish marvelous things in the lives of His people, and under his leadership at Cherrydale, the church family reaches out to all areas of the Northern Virginia/Metropolitan DC region and throughout the world.