Regional News (Page 10)

January 1, 2020 Dear Regional Pastors: I greet you with resilient hope and high expectation for a new decade! As pastors, you lead congregations with astounding strength—evidenced by a steadfast commitment to mission and witness while struggling to balance budgets and slow down the decline. Each week, you gather with your community of faith for worship with a central focus on the Lord’s Table. God’s vision emerges during your times of worship and fellowship as a gift of God’s extravagant love. Congregations are unique in the way you receive and live out God’s vision. Your uniqueness is the real celebration that I have witnessed—a unified body with individual characteristics. Our theme for 2020 is “And God Saw That It Was Good.” This phrase is repeated seven times in the first chapter of Genesis, in response to God’s producing word. This initial action-response of God speaking, and those words producing something calls for reflection upon God’s covenant-keeping character with creation and humanity and asks us to consider our covenant-keeping character with God. The good of creation that God saw—light and stars, earth and seas, swarms of living creatures, flying and swimming, and roaming upon the earth—everything God made was very good. In light of God’s profound love for us and hope in our ability to choose God above a piece of fruit (and what that fruit represents), how might we realign our commitment to creation care? This year, the Christian Church in NC, will spend time seeking out the good that God sees in our ministries, programs, gatherings, camps, conferences, and retreats, and promote their health and well-being through educational realignment. Who is the Christian Church in North Carolina, and what do we do in covenant relationship with our fellowship of churches? This is a significant question we will address this year. With the anticipation of the good we will see in 2020, your Regional staff eagerly announces the first educational initiative for 2020, a Leadership Launch! This event will be held on February 1, 2020, at First Christian Church, 207 Tarboro Street, NE, Wilson, NC. We will gather over coffee at 8:00 am, and after an inspiring devotion, we will engage in-depth and hands-on learning experiences for pastors and leaders. To close our time together, we will host a ‘thank you’ lunch for you. It is our deepest desire that you leave with resources that benefit your work and with a renewed sense of unity among the Region of NC. Each pastor is invited to bring up to five members of your church’s leadership team with you to the Leadership Launch. This educational and inspirational event is complimentary, and there is no registration fee. Your registration form and itinerary are included. You may also register online or click on the image below for a paper registration. We look forward to meeting you in Wilson on February 1st for what promises to be a time of strengthening for the leaders of our region. Peace be with You! +Valerie J. Melvin, Regional Minister …