Acts 16:6-12

About 5 years ago, the church was given a pearl necklace. It looked very old and we hoped valuable. But I had no idea what you do with a pearl necklace so we put it away safe for two years in a vault. We finally made a trip to an appraiser. I even felt worried about carrying the necklace on the subway. And the appraiser said, its worth about five dollars.

The best pearls are found in the waters of the Arabian gulf. And until 1940, there was no way to get them except for divers to take a deep breath and risk death.

Listen to this description from 1761 -- “ the methods of diving have not changed since they were described by fourteenth-century travellers. Each diver wears a clip like a clothes-peg to close his nostrils, leather sheaths protect his fingers and enable him to (wrench) the shells from the rocks underneath the sea. He descends on a rope which has a stone weight attached to it. This is hauled up when he reaches the bottom. Round his neck is slung a string bag, which he fills with shells, attached to a rope with which his comrade, the puller, draws him up again when he gives the signal. Divers remain below the surface for nearly a minute and a half, and they descend about 10 times in one day, often to a depth of 80 feet.

 The Bible has a story about a pearl of great price and how people will do anything to acquire it.

 And that is what the Word of God invites our church to do now. Our church is 90 years old. It has gone through incredible change from a historically white church of 1960 to the diverse congregation we have today. 95% of all churches which start this change fail. Our church did not fail. Harry Potter is known as the boy who didn’t die. And we are famous as the church that didn’t die.

 But there is a time when we stop being amazed by our history and sense a new purpose of God for days ahead. God is calling us to band together with our gifts, prayers and service because the Lord will use us in a major way to offer hope in Jackson Heights.

 Like a pearl diver, I am asking each of you to be on the team. You received two letters this fall on finding a way to volunteer and now we are asking for a new giving goal as well. These are not easy requests. But what you receive if you make the dive is the pearl.

 There is no satisfaction greater in life than seeing the goal, making the effort, and being a winner. When the marathon is over today, the first one across the line will not think about the training, the tiredness, or the pain – they will only feel the prize.

 God offers our church another chance for the prize. You will hear more about it in the scriptures this morning and I urge you to prepare your heart now to accept a part. Your sacrifice will bring salvation to someone who is lost, empowerment to the newcomer, and a witness of peace in a world at war.

 We have used a motto over the last five years for this church. I am convinced that we should keep it always in front of us. ‘Building a new community in Jackson Heights.’ Jackson Heights is a changing community. It continues to change. With the jostling of 14 major language groups, we are at ground zero for the most dynamic ethnic area in the United States. What we have today is not what we will know tomorrow. The South Asian community is growing. Who can say what will be next? So it does not surprise me that God calls our church to an important role. We need to be the people who say that community can come out of diversity. We need to be the people who live out what others hope for. We are the pearl divers who know that the best pearls wait for us 90 feet down. Robert Kennedy said, 'Some men see things as they are and say why. I dream things that never were and say why not.’

 There are two elements of a passionate purpose that we can see in the Acts. If we are going to take this godly call for our own lives, we must follow the True Call, and the True Way.

 First, we see in Paul’s life the True Call. The True Call for Paul was preceded by the True No. Paul wanted to go to Bithynia. I’ve never wanted to go there which shows that my visions are not grand enough. Bithynia grows mulberry which silk worms love. It is an unusually fertile area on the south shore of the Black Sea and has a huge crop of oranges. It’s a delightful place.

 What it meant for Paul is that when you are looking for the True Call, you may have to try a few things. I want each of you to have a volunteer ministry. That does not mean that the first thing that you try is your true call. J Vernon McGee said, ‘The steps of a good man are ordered by the Lord. But so are the stops.’

 Then the True Call includes the ‘yes.’ The ‘yes’ came to Paul as a vision. He did not sit down and make a strategic plan. He had a dream about the need in Macedonia and knew in his heart that God had spoken. Paul acted on the vision.

 I am praying that as we add to our volunteer ministries, try to be more careful with absentees and visitors, put more effort into our children and music – that you are going to feel the True Call in your own heart. It is when the Pearl Diver believes that the oyster is there waiting that they can make the dive.

 In addition to the True Call, there is also the True Way. The problem of Macedonia was that Paul was already in Turkey. It was easy to go to Bithynia and treacherous to go to Samothrace. The straight course across the sea has so many currents and storms created by the mountains of Greece that even today it is waters that ships prefer to avoid.

 Following the True Way may feel like risk. I see some institutions in this community who did nothing while the community changed. Some of you remember restaurants that did not make it because they feared the risk of change. Some of you remember clothing stores that did not make it because they feared the risk of change. And there are even churches who see the change and fear the risk of change.

 Paul made it to Samothrace in two days of sailing across open water – a record. It proved that God’s hand was on the mission.

 And Paul now includes Luke who was already in Troas and joined the trip. The True Way for this church is to go together. Our Purpose that God is giving is too big for a pastor to do. It is too big for a staff team to do, Building a new community in Jackson Heights. Our purpose is too big for church leaders to do. God is gathering us all together right now. We are living in a moment of history for this church and I want you to be one of the people who dives with us. We need you.

 Finding fulfillment in life is one of the great promises of the Gospel. Most people never experience that fulfillment but God promises it to any who believe in Christ. Even if your day job is just a way to pay the bills, you can still find fulfillment. You simply have to join some Passionate Purpose.

 God is offering Community Church a Passionate Purpose. We are building a new community in Jackson Heights. I believe we will have Disciple Groups in several languages to support our diversity. I believe we will have a full time worker with spiritual needs of children. We need to take our excellence in music and build a choir on both sides of the stage. I want a second service with the Pipe Organ and communion while this one gets bigger and louder.

 It is an opportunity for each of us to be like those pearl divers – willing to sacrifice and risk. I truly hope that God is speaking to you this morning because if you feel the passionate purpose – it is an essential step for us to join together and work for the Kingdom’s sake.