Easter At Reliant 2017

Easter is always a special time of year as we celebrate the resurrection of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.  It can also feel a little intimidating for those who haven't been in church for awhile.  So what if you could come to church as a regular person and didn't have to worry about all the religious stuff? If that sounds good to you, then Reliant is the place for Easter.

Reliant Church meets at CK Danceworks in front of Seven Hills on Cedar Crest.  We are very excited about this Easter service for many reasons.  We believe that God is going to pack out the house with visitors and guests. People just like you.  So I want to give you a quick rundown of what you can expect.

1.  We are a friendly bunch so you will be greeted at the door and directed to the kids area if needed.
2.  The RKidz (our children's ministry) staff is amazing and your kids will love the Easter lesson and fun they have prepared.
3.  Your kids are checked in and checked out for safety and all the workers have been background checked.
4.  The dance studio is very nice and relaxed as you grab a cup of coffee.
5.  The auditorium is set up in more of a living room style with no bad seats.
6.  The worship music is modern and exciting as we celebrate the day.
7.  And I will bring a message about the resurrection that you can use on Monday morning.

We don't use any high pressure tactics to try and make you do something you don't want to do.  Our goal is to let you experience God in a refreshing new way that invites you to come and see us again.

I hope to see you all Easter morning @ 9:30 & 11:30.

Bill Easter 2017 from Reliant on Vimeo.

Getting to the Core: Kingdom Builders

If you have been with me through the journey of the core values of Reliant Ministries, you can see why I'm so excited about starting this new work of the Lord.  It is so easy to get off track and get away from the biblical pattern of ministry that we must continually remind ourselves why we do what we do.  The truth is there are lives at stake.  It's one thing to start a business where the end game is to make as much money as possible.  If it fails, life goes on to the next adventure.  But when you are talking about the work of God and the ministry of reconciliation, what we do and how we do it will have everlasting consequences.

Here are the 5 Core Values of Reliant:

1. Disciple Makers: We will make every effort to multiply our faith through evangelism and mentoring.
2. Bible Believers: The Bible is our final authority for all life and practice.
3. God Pleasers: By faith we will please God and trust him with our lives.
4. Community Engagers: Ministry runs on the rails of relationships.
5. Kingdom Builders: We will take every God-given opportunity to advance His kingdom in this world.

There is no doubt that God is advancing His Kingdom in this world and is using the Body of Christ to do so.  Every time a person receives Jesus as Lord and Savior, the kingdom is advanced.  I remember the first time the U.S. invaded Iraq after the bombing of Kuwait.  When the Iraqi solders saw the U.S. troops coming at them, they would lay down their weapons and throw up their hands in immediate surrender.  I'm afraid that too many Christians do the same thing when it comes to advancing the kingdom of God.  When times get hard or demanding, God's people are too quick to surrender and the kingdom is not advanced.  We must get in the fight for the souls of men.  God is not willing that any should perish.  Those Iraqi solders knew that if they came under the protection of the so called enemy, they would have a life they could only dream about.  So it is with those we win to Christ.  Once you surrender and enter into the kingdom of God, you find it is everything you ever wanted.

We must be intentional in our pursuit of the lost and the advancement of God's kingdom.  Therefore, we will take every God-given opportunity to advance His kingdom in this world.  But to truly be kingdom builders we must have a trained army that can carry out the commands of the Lord and win the war for the souls of men, women, boys and girls.   We are Kingdom Builders!

Online Giving Here

Getting to the Core: Community Engagers

Our tagline for Reliant is "Ministry Runs on the Rails of Relationships."  We use a set of railroad tracks to illustrate the thought of people walking parallel to each other in this life connected at different points for different reasons.  The longer the tracks go, the closer they come together, and so it is with the relationships of this life.

One thing I know for sure is that all of life is about relationships.  A person is happy when their life is full of good healthy relationships and a person is sad if his or her relationships are not healthy or non-existent.  God tells us that we were created in his image and likeness which tells me that God is relational as well.  God has no desire to be alone but to share his life and creation with people who will share their love and life with Him. God cares so strongly about having these relationships that it drove him to sacrifice his own Son so that these relationships could be restored and maintained for all of eternity.  This in itself should reveal how valuable these relationships are.  I think it is a shame when people take the death, burial, and resurrection of Jesus as a ticket to get out of Hell or condemnation and never give God the relationship for which He died.

Our core values at Reliant are:

1. Disciple Makers: We will make every effort to multiply our faith through evangelism and mentoring.
2. Bible Believers: The Bible is our final authority for all life and practice.
3. God Pleasers: By faith we will please God and trust him with our lives.
4. Community Engagers: Ministry runs on the rails of relationships.
5. Kingdom Builders: We will take every God-given opportunity to advance His kingdom in this world.

As we look at the pattern and example of Jesus in his earthly ministry, we don't see him building a big building and inviting people to come to it.  What we see is him walking the streets, going from house to house, spending time in the market place, or in the social gathering places (bars and such).  He was where the people were, building relationships with them.  This was one of the main differences to his ministry and that of the synagogues.  Jesus could preach anywhere.  Jesus was willing to go anywhere (John 4). He didn't need a structure to define him, his message defined him.  As he traveled he didn't travel alone, he had hand chosen 12 men to walk by his side and learn the ministry.  These disciples didn't learn to build buildings but to build people.

I don't believe anyone can effectively accomplish the ministry of Christ and not engage your community.  Christ's ministry was not a christian Walmart where consumers can come and find whatever they want and need.  Ministry is in the trenches with other people, loving them right where they are; finding the lost and shining the light of the gospel.  We can no longer sit back and hope that the blind wonder into our buildings.  We must follow the command of the Lord and go into all the world and preach the gospel.  We must seek and save that which is lost.  We Must Be Community Engagers!

Online Giving Here