News From The Pastor
Three Rivers Collaborative- Cross Denominational Learning
Over the course of the past year, our church has been a member of what johnson University is calling Three Rivers Collaborative. This was their first year trying this(now in the second year) with 12 area churches in the surrounding Knoxville area. The goal of this learning opportunity is to “Reframe” “Rethink” and “Relearn” the ways of Jesus and send the churches out on God’s mission of reconciliation.
Last weekend all the participating churches(now 19 churches) came together and learned and discussed what Knoxville area churches could be doing differently to better represent the church we see painted in the book of acts. We discussed everything from current events, to the reality of how things will be shifting in the American church over the course of the next 10 years.
Three areas we discussed that you can be in prayer with us. 1) The ugly will get uglier, and the beautiful will get more beautiful- as we look at the church of america, what breaks our heart as christ followers will more than likely get worse. The joy is that the beautiful things will shine all the brighter. Where will CCLC find itself in 10 years?
2) The unification, or the separation of Prayer and Practice- the churches of America will have to make a choice, will they take active steps to be the change they want to see in their cities? Or will they simply pray and ask God to be the hands and feet? Will CCLC be recognized by the community for its reflection of Jesus in what it does, or will it be a place that says and believes the right things but does nothing to multiply that? 3) The Next Generation Has A Good Sniffer- there is no question that Gen-Z wants to see change, it may not be the change that lines up with scripture but they do want change. They also know that you cannot take a person by their word because they were raised in a world that is known for its lies. The church will have to show the next generation that they can trust the servants of Jesus Christ with more than just words. The next generation wants to see change, the church has to show them that the best change that brings the most good is the one offered in scripture.
Celebrate Recovery- Helping A Hurt In Loudoun County
As it stands if the court system wants to get someone into a drug or alcohol recovery program they actually send them to Roan County. Through our partnership with “Prevention Alliance'' and “Align-9” our church can serve as a catalyst for faith based recovery in our City. As it stands Virgenia Tharp, Dondie Kerr, and Carol Sandusky are leading the charge for this change and are actively looking for people who would like to help make that a reality. This team is currently receiving training and should start meetings soon. See how you can help make this happen by speaking with the church or any of these three ladies!
Church’s Vision For 2023- His Kingdom Come
As discussed the past two Sunday’s in service, Jesus says we are “close to the kingdom” when we love God with all our heart(giving Him the love He deserves), and love our neighbor as ourselves(consider the people who show you love well). Jesus also says he gives to us the “keys to the kingdom” when we believe Jesus is who He says He is. We want to be a church that serves to open the door for God's kingdom to people in 2023 by intentionally loving 8 people over the course of 2023 pointing them to Jesus and His church. We can, If we try.
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