Last week I preached at a local church in my robe.  After processing down the aisle and giving the obligatory handshakes, I quickly disrobed and headed back into the sanctuary to grab my gear.  A worshipper commented as I slid past, “Wow, you get changed quickly.” To which I flippantly replied, “It’s time to move on.”  I realized there is some Biblical truth to that statement.

When I used to serve a tall-steeple, formal church in town, I had perfected the ability to “quick-change” from my formal worship attire into my biking kit and slip out the door.  One Sunday in particular, a retired pastor of that church stopped me in the parking lot saying, “If my congregation had seen me in those clothes they would have run me out of town.”  While the biking shorts may have been a bit much, the truth was I was in a hurry to go biking with a group of men in town.  I was hungry to get onto the mission field.

It’s my hope that Waypoint Community Church, our new community, will be a place where people all arrive in the attire they feel comfortable–suits, Sunday dresses, jeans, Mountain Khakis, whatever–but that we all leave in our workout clothes eager to hit the mission field and get dirty.

In Acts 1:11 two angels appear to the disciples after Jesus ascended to heaven, and say, “Men of Galilee, why do you stand here looking into the sky?  This same Jesus, who has been taken from you into heaven, will come back in the same way you have seen him go into heaven.”  In other words, get your heads out of the clouds and get onto the mission field, because that is where Jesus is heading.

A waypoint is a brief stopping point along the trail.  Jesus didnt linger, but was always on the move inviting people to follow Him.  Therefore, our churches are not the destination, but merely a place to get our bearings, see where He is heading, strap on our running shoes, and get out onto the mission field.

Quite frankly, after worship, we should all be eager to change out of our Sunday suits and into our workout clothes.