Even when ministry differences became apparent and separation occurred between Paul and Barnabas (Acts 15:39), this did not hinder Paul's commitment to remain interdependent with the church. As he and Silas "traveled from town to town, they delivered the decisions reached by the apostles and elders in Jerusalem for the people to obey" (Acts 16:4). This caused the churches "to be strengthened in the faith and grow in numbers daily" (Acts 16:5). The evidence for "interdependence" in the early church between congregations is indisputable. As the church organized itself into culturally conditioned forms (both Jewish and Gentile churches), those churches never sought to operate independently from each other. Everyone operated with a deep belief in the interdependence of the church. The movement of God through the people of God was too valuable to allow the non-essentials within the movement to divide them.
To maintain and grow this same spirit of interdependence, we are gathering churches by Mission Area. We have held one Mission Area gathering, with five more to come. This will also be a time of annual reporting and prayer for the ministry of each church by other pastors and leaders. We will be capturing each pastor's report on video for future use in our weekly CIA Insights, District Assembly, etc. Thanks to each pastor for your preparation to report.
Denise and I are very much looking forward to seeing every pastor, associate, church board members and others at one of the following six times:
North/Northwest Mission Area Gathering
Date: January 18, 2020 9:00 am - 11:30 am
Location: Elgin Church of the Nazarene
12N101 Berner Dr., Elgin, IL 60120
Central Mission Area Gathering
Date: January 25, 2020 6:30 pm - 9:00 pm
Location: Manteno Church of the Nazarene
698 N. Locust, Manteno, IL 60950
Southern Mission Area Gathering
Date: February 15, 2020 9:00 am - 11:30 am
Location: Potomac Church of the Nazarene
206 E State St, Potomac, IL 61865
Chicago Mission Area Gathering
Date: February 22, 2020 9:00 am - 11:30 am
Location: Chicago Northside Church of the Nazarene
1900 W. Leland Ave, Chicago, IL 60640
Hispanic Mission Area Gathering
Date: March 14, 2020 9:00 am - 11:30 am
Location: Mt. Prospect International Church of the Nazarene
1501 W. Linneman Road, Mt. Prospect, IL 60056
This will be a VERY special time of connection and reporting to each other. Here is the format. We encourage you to arrive 15-30 minutes early for fellowship
and light refreshments. Depending on the number of pastors and churches, every lead pastor will have 5-7 minutes to share a report from your church. We encourage you to do 7 things:
1. Introduce yourself and your church
2. Introduce the other ministers and/or church staff with you
3. Introduce the members of your church board
4. Introduce any other leaders from your church who are attending
5. Share a ministry highlight or answer to prayer from 2019
6. Share your vision or prayer for the church in 2020
7. Allow the members of the Mission Area to pray for you and your church!
As we have talked to other districts, we have found this kind of Annual Mission Area Gathering becomes a powerful time of connection in preparation for our 2020 District Assembly. As time permits, we will also use this time to update our churches on the wonderful movement God is creating among us in multiple locations!
We ask that you RSVP for your Mission Area Meeting by
clicking here
.
"We thank God every time we remember you. In our prayers, we always pray with joy because of your partnership in the gospel...we are confident that He who began a good work in you will carry it on to completion..." (Philippians 1:3-6). You are loved. You are prayed for. We look forward to seeing you soon!
