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THE E-COURIER
NEWS & EVENTS
May 21-27, 2023
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This Week at Christ Covenant |
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If you are unable to join us in person, we hope you will join us on the livestream.
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Morning Worship at 10:45 am
"For I Am the Lord Who Sanctifies Them"
Leviticus 21-22
Kevin DeYoung
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Evening Worship at 6:00 pm
Ascension Celebration Concert
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You can prepare for worship this week by listening to the music we will be singing. The links below have music playlists of what we will be singing this week!
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Livestream Options
If you are unable to join us in person for either morning or evening worship we hope you will join us on the livestream on either YouTube and or our website at christcovenant.org/live. |
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Giving Thanks for our Interns |
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Sunday morning we will have a time to honor our interns that are answering God's call for what is next in each of their lives. Christ Covenant Church is richly blessed to have pastoral interns that serve alongside our staff while they are here studying at Reformed Theological Seminary (RTS). Join us in thanking the Lord and in praying for these pastoral interns who have completed their internship and are beginning new chapters in their lives. |
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John Robert Biggs
John Robert, Mary, and little Annie Lou moved to Charlotte in July of 2017 and have attended Christ Covenant since. John Robert started working on his Master of Divinity in preparation for pastoral ministry in the Spring of 2018. He has served as an intern for five years and on the CCYM staff for almost two years. During that time the Biggs added four more children (Gilbert, Francis, Dorothy, and Elaine), and have felt the Lord’s goodness through the support of his people at Christ Covenant. John Robert will be serving as the Reformed University Fellowship (RUF) Campus Minister at Oklahoma State University starting June 1. The Biggs recognize the bittersweet nature of going out from Christ Covenant but trust that it is much more a sending than a leaving.
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Caleb Johnson
Caleb grew up in Augusta, GA and received his bachelor’s degree in criminal justice from Georgia College & State University. He was able to work closely with the ministry of Campus Outreach at GCSU after college during his initial career in restaurant management. In the summer of 2018, he moved to Charlotte to pursue a Master of Divinity at Reformed Theological Seminary. After graduation, Caleb will continue to work full time at Christ Covenant as the Small Groups Coordinator, as well as the Young Adults and 18|22 College Ministry. If you’re interested in getting involved in any of these ministries, he would love to hear from you!
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Alberto Paredes
Alberto (MD, 2017; Mexico) married Laura in 2018. Church and family confirmed his call to ministry when God opened doors at RTS Charlotte and Christ Covenant as a pastoral intern. Alberto and Laura have two children: Pía and Lucas. The state of Hispanic and Latin American theological education led Alberto to consider further education to serve as pastor-scholar in due time. Alberto and Laura started “Enviados” in 2018—a resource ministry with now 250+ theological articles in Spanish. He has contributed to academic and church projects both locally and overseas. Having completed his MDiv and MATS, he was offered a place as a PhD student in Theology and Religious studies at Cambridge (UK) under Dr. Peter Williams. Alberto and his family are raising funds to continue serving the church now and in the future.
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Daniel Pollorena
Daniel has been accepted into a PhD program at Universität Wien (University of Vienna) to begin in October 2023. His research focus will be in the field of New Testament. As they navigate the logistics of what lies ahead, Daniel, Katie and their son, David, ask for your prayers so that the Lord may provide all that is needed. The Pollorena’s are grateful to God for this beautiful church.
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Ben Traynor
A (non-golfing) native of Scotland, Ben lived and worked in both Edinburgh and Aberdeen before he and his family moved to Charlotte in the fall of 2019 to study for an MDiv at Reformed Theological Seminary. Upon graduating, Ben and his family will return to Scotland where Ben will look to serve in full-time pastoral ministry. Ben is married to Sarah and they have four sons and one daughter.
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Class Location Change for This Week
For Sunday, May 21, we have a class location change. "Financial Stewardship for Those Getting Started (and anyone else who is interested)" taught by Will Ertel will meet in the Community Life Center room 5. Trusting our Bible Translations taught by Will Ross will meet in the Community Life Center room 6.
We have a variety of classes that began at 9:00 a.m. We hope you will find a class that will benefit your relationship with Christ and connect you with others. To learn more about each class and its location, we encourage you to either pick up a Sunday School booklet found on the tables going into the sanctuary or online by clicking here.
Our pastors are looking forward to hosting a time of fellowship and prayer each Sunday morning as we begin class. Regular discipleship and fellowship is a vital part of learning to stand on truth and walk in grace together. If you have any questions about Sunday School, please email info@christcovenant.org. |
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Monthly Day of Prayer
Tuesday, May 23
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All are invited to participate in the Monthly Day of Prayer on Tuesday, May 23. There are two ways you can participate. One is to come in-person for your prayer time to room 105 in the worship center anytime between 7:30 am - 7:00 pm. Prayer guides are provided for you in the prayer room. Another option is to pick a time slot and pray where you are, whether that’s at home or at work. The day is divided into 30-minute segments for individuals to sign up and pray for supported workers and for the needs of our congregation. You can select the time that best fits your schedule by clicking here. We also hope you will take time to submit your confidential prayer requests online by clicking here or by email at prayer@christcovenant.org. |
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Ascension Celebration Concert
Sunday evening, May 21
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On Sunday evening, May 21, at 6:00 pm, it will be our joy to honor Jesus Christ as the ascended King and to give thanks for the gift of the Spirit. We hope everyone will invite a friend and then join us for an evening of praise and worship, sacred music, spirituals, and more. Please pick up invitations on the tables outside the sanctuary to use as you invite friends, neighbors, and family! |
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Recognizing 2023 Graduates
Deadline for Information is Tuesday, May 23
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We want to publish the names, schools and plans for the immediate future (i.e., college, military, career, postgrad) of our high school, college, and post-grad members of the Class of 2023 so our church family can celebrate these milestones with you. Please send your graduate’s information (name, graduating from, going to, degree, military) to communications@christcovenant.org. We will publish all grads and their future plans in the courier and recognize our graduates during morning worship on May 28. Deadline to submit graduation information for the courier is Tuesday, May 23. |
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A New Church Directory is Coming!
Deadline to send in Pictures is Wednesday, May 24
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We are working on an updated directory for all Christ Covenant church members. Each member will have their picture, first and last name, email address, and children’s names with ages listed in the directory.
If you would like to include an updated picture in the directory, please send an email with your name and picture to communications@christcovenant.org. The last time we produced a church directory was in 2019, so please consider sending in an updated picture! If you prefer not to have your picture or any of the personal information listed above in the directory, please send an email to communications@christcovenant.org. Information and photos are needed by Wednesday, May 24, 2023. |
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18/22 Kick-Off Cookout
Wednesday, May 24
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For all students home for the summer from college, we hope that you will come and check out our 18/22 ministry! We meet every Wednesday over the summer from 6:00 pm - 7:30 pm to hang out, discuss a biblical topic, and play some ultimate frisbee. Each week we’ll be looking at a topic from Scripture and how it applies to the present season of college life. We will be using the poetry of George Herbert as our guide! A book will be provided free of charge, so just bring yourself and something for jotting some thoughts.
There are several other events in store for the summer, so we hope you will join us! The Kick-Off Cookout will be on Wednesday, May 24, at 6:00, at the Campus Outreach House (which is the white house on the corner of Fullwood & Highway 51).
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Combined Sunday School
Sunday, May 28
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We hope you will make plans to join us for a combined Sunday School with middle and high school students and all adults on Sunday morning, May 28, at 9:00 am in the sanctuary. Our special guest speaker is Paul McNulty, President of Grove City College, who is speaking on “Faith, Calling, and Christian Education: A Conversation with Paul McNulty.”
The Honorable Paul J. McNulty is the ninth president of Grove City College. Prior to returning to his alma mater, McNulty spent over 30 years in Washington, D.C., as an attorney in public service and private practice. You can learn more about our guest speaker Paul McNulty by clicking here. |
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Ministry to Men Fellowship Breakfast
Saturday, June 3
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All men ages 16 and older are invited to join us on Saturday, June 3, from 7:00 am – 8:30 am at Stack’s Kitchen for the Ministry to Men (MtM) Monthly Fellowship Breakfast! Come for food and fellowship with your brothers in Christ. Our speaker is Neil Simpson, who will be discussing "Loving Your Family to the End by Performing Some Basic Estate Planning Matters." RSVP by noon on Friday, June 2 by clicking here. The only cost is your breakfast. |
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Save the Date! Congregational Meeting
Sunday morning, June 4
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The Session has called a congregational meeting for the purpose of voting on officer candidates and returning sabbatical officers. It will be held on Sunday, June 4, immediately following morning worship services. Please note that those who attend morning worship in-person on Sunday, June 4, will be voting on these nominees. We will not have online or advance voting available. We look forward to your participation in electing new officers. Candidate biographies are available to pick up at the tables outside the sanctuary. You can also view the candidate biographies by clicking here. |
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'O Nights' - Christ Covenant Church Outreach
Tuesday, June 6
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Everyone is invited to join us on the 1st and 3rd Tuesday of the month for Christ Covenant Outreach Nights, called O Nights. Our next one is this Tuesday, June 6, from 7:00 pm - 8:15 pm. One O Night per month will be outreach/evangelism in the community with people going into different sections of the community to share their faith. The other O Night each month will have some time of training to equip our people, but for those that are comfortable with evangelism and don’t need the training, they will still have the option of going out to do surveys/evangelism.
Our desires are to provide different spaces where we can learn more about our community while at the same time care for people, take steps of faith to engage others, and avail ourselves to opportunities to share the gospel. It also gives us the opportunity to serve together, pray for our community, and see God work in another way.
We will meet in the south lobby of the worship center. If you do not feel comfortable walking, we would love for you to participate by praying on our campus. Please bring your small group, family, etc. and join us! If you have any questions, contact Michelle Gustavson at mgustavson@christcovenant.org. |
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If you crochet or knit, Children’s Ministry needs you! |
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Did you know that the Children’s Ministry delivers a baby basket to each new baby born to our congregation? In each of those baskets is a blanket handmade by one of our members. Right now we have more babies coming than we have blankets! If you love to knit or crochet and would be willing to share your gift with the families of our congregation, would you reach out to Mindy at mthornton@christcovenant.org? We would love to partner with you to bless our littlest ones! |
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Afghan Refugee Outreach Opportunity |
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Members of the Christ Covenant Church Afghan mission team have been working with four Afghan women to teach them the basics of driving. These women are almost ready to begin formal driving lessons. Would your family, your small group (possibly joining with another small group), your prayer group, or Bible study group be willing to sponsor one of these women's cost of driving lessons? If you would like to do more, maybe you or your group could do something like having the Afghan woman you sponsor and her family over for a meal or a park day. Sponsorship can be whatever your group(s) decides. If interested, please contact Angela Pacey at apacey0505@yahoo.com for more details.
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Pickup Basketball Fellowship and Outreach |
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Men's Ministry is starting Pickup Basketball Fellowship and Outreach this spring. We are playing Saturday mornings from 8:00 am - 10:00 am in Covenant Day's Aux Gym located in the A building (next to the playground). If you are interested in participating, please reach out to Robby Bell at robbybell30@gmail.com for more information.
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Women’s Ministry Summer Bible Studies |
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Registration is open for women’s summer Bible studies! Don’t miss this great opportunity to be in the Word and to have fellowship with other women during the summer months. To learn and to register, click here. |
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Envision Capital Campaign |
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We are hoping to have 100% of the congregation participate in the Envision capital campaign. We are currently at 79%. It’s not too late to turn in your pledge card for the Envision capital campaign! Pledge cards and information about the many upgrades and changes we hope to accomplish through Envision can be found in the brochures and booklets in the worship center and online. You can also make a pledge online at christcovenant.org/envision. We currently have 76% of families participating and $1,181,357 pledges toward our goal of $1,500,000.
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Thank you for your tithes and gifts to all of the ministries of Christ Covenant.
Please continue to pray for God’s provision throughout 2023.
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This email is our e-Courier weekly newsletter, which complements with the printed copy, The Courier, which can be picked up on Sundays at the doors outside the sanctuary. After it goes out by email, it is made available on the News page of our website. On that page, you can read past versions of the newsletter as well as specific news items about our events in greater detail.
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All are invited to join us for worship either in-person or on the livestream at 10:45 am each Sunday morning and at 6:00 pm each Sunday evening. The livestream can be found on ChristCovenant.org or YouTube. |
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