This past Saturday was the first official outreach event for Continuum Church!

We had 23 show up at Bethany Christian Church on the east side of Columbus at 8:45 on Saturday morning. This is a stellar turnout when you consider that the average attendance at our weekend gatherings is 50. It’s fantastic to be part of a community of believers who have caught the vision for social justice, and are ready to really do something about it. Everyone was on time and excited to get to work!

We were part of a larger group at least 100 people who were partnering with the Windchangers organization to address several different needs in the area. After a welcome and explanation of neighborhood dynamics from Pastor Elaine Fennell, the Continuum Church group split up into two teams, affectionately known as “Team Sheep” (my team, pictured above) and “Team Goat” (Adam’s team). We were going to be part of the neighborhood clean-up team, working in partnership with Keep Columbus Beautiful.

The incredible amount of partnership and cooperation on display on Saturday was probably one of my favorite parts. Christians from across the continuum (wink!) of denominations worked together, and partnered with secular organizations as well. We know that God’s dream of reconciliation is for the whole world, and if we are going to accomplish it, we have to stop judging our brothers and sisters on matters that don’t really matter. (Anyone else ready for the the chorus of “Come Together”?) Anyway …

Before heading into the neighborhood, armed with safety vests, gloves, trash bags, grabbers, brooms and rakes, our group talked about our core values for outreach at Continuum Church. Unfortunately, I don’t have three clever words that all start with P (or R or D) to describe them, but I still want you all to know what we think about:

1. We are going to be flexible. We know things aren’t always going to go exactly as planned, or exactly as we hope. But we’re going to just keep working, knowing that, through our obedience, God’s purpose for the day’s work will be accomplished.

2. We’re here to join our neighbors. We know that when we work, we are serving PEOPLE, whom God loves, whose lives matter as much as our own, and whose spiritual journeys are moving along just like ours. Relationships are important to us, and we want to come alongside those in need, not drop in to quickly provide some temporary assistance.

3. We are doing spiritual work. On Saturday, we picked up trash. We didn’t talk to very many of the neighbors. But we know that what we did had eternal significance, for us and for them. All the work that we do for the sake of Jesus and in his name, IS part of seeing God’s Kingdom come here in Columbus.

Check out this great story in the Columbus Dispatch, featuring one of our fabulous Continuum Church members, pictured below (who, by the way, was on Team Sheep).

Overall, the morning was a great success. Rain was forecast for the whole day, but it held off until we’d finished our clean-up, returned our tools, and got back in our cars to go home for a nap.

I’m working to build some relationships with other churches our area so that we can do more projects like this. Thank you so much to those of you who are supporting me financially. Your generosity made this weekend project possible, and I’m looking forward to reporting on many more this year!

Here’s the text from an e-mail sent to our Continuum e-mail group this week. For those of you who aren’t in Columbus, you’ll find some more information about our outreach, as well as how you can pray for us.

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We’ve been talking together on Sundays about the mission of Jesus, and we have an opportunity to put our beliefs into action through our first “Roll” event. We believe that there is nothing more beautiful or powerful than a community of Christians working together to overcome injustice and pain in the world. Now THAT’S worth getting out of bed for! So let’s go …

What: Continuum Church’s first outreach event

Where: Meet at Bethany Christian Church, 1130 E. Livingston Where is this?

When: Saturday, April 19

What Time: Please arrive by 8:45 a.m. so that we can get started right at 9:00. We plan to be done by 12:30. Lunch will be served afterwards for $5 per person.

How: We will join Bethany Christian Church and the Windchangers organization to serve our neighbors in the Old Oak Community. There is a great opportunity in this area to meet basic needs. We’ll be connecting spirituality and social justice through projects such as cleaning up neighborhoods, tending a neighborhood garden, fixing up playground equipment, visiting homeless neighbors in transition, and assisting other churches. We’re going to work hard, so please wear clothing and sturdy shoes that can get dirty, and bring work gloves if you have them. We’ll provide the water and snacks.

What Now?: E-mail Beth to confirm that you’ll be there.

What if you can’t be there?: Use the following prayer guide, based on the outreach’s activities, to join us in spirit by asking God to help make this a success!

Monday - (Serving Local Churches) Pray for the churches in the Old Oak Community, especially our partner Bethany Christian Church. Ask God to give them creativity and compassion as they meet the needs in their neighborhood. Ask God to provide the resources they need. Pray that they would all be inspired by God’s plan for good to triumph over evil.

Tuesday - (Neighborhood Clean Up) Pray for the families in the neighborhood. Ask God to keep them safe outside and inside their homes. Pray that relationships would be strong between husbands and wives, and parents and children. Pray that the power of God’s truth and goodness would be stronger than the systems of violence and malice.

Wednesday - (School Playground Maintenance) Pray for the schools in the neighborhood. Ask God to protect the students while on school grounds. Pray that the teachers and staff would be good role models as they teach, mentor the students, and consult with parents. Pray that God would provide the resources the school needs. Pray that the students would have open minds and would learn the information that will help them to be productive members of their community.

Thursday - (Neighborhood Garden) Pray for the tangible need of food for those in the community. Pray that God would help the churches and agencies that provide food. Pray that Bethany Christian Church’s neighborhood garden would be a project that provides food as well as teaches about nutrition and fosters relationships between church and neighbors. Pray that God would also fill the spiritual hunger of the neighbors.

Friday - (Visiting Transitional Housing) Pray for those in our community who are homeless. Pray that God would keep them safe while they are on the streets, and ask him to provide the food they need. Pray for the churches and agencies who serve these neighbors, asking that God would give them the resources and volunteers they need. Ask God to direct the homeless neighbors to the places where they can receive help. Ask God to help these neighbors be aware of his presence and his desire to overcome the pain in their lives. Ask God to help you not to look past these neighbors on the street.

Saturday - (The Event) Ask God to help all aspects of the event to be successful. Pray that the weather would be nice enough for us to work outside, and that enough volunteers would show up. Ask God to help the volunteers to be united in our desire to serve, and to make new friends as we work together. Pray for us to have opportunities to meet neighborhood residents, and that when we do they would be encouraged by the proof that someone cares for them.

This past Sunday was our Invitation Sunday. We’ve graduated to a larger theater, one that has actual seats so we’re adjusting to sitting in rows. We had 59 people, and some really great discussion about we as a the human race have reached our point of crisis, and how Jesus is the solution to our problems.

Of course, new space means new challenges (lighting, sound, group dynamics) but this is part of the process of growing. And even with new challenges, it’s exciting to grow.

Please continue to pray for our relationship with the new theater management. We believe this is the space we are supposed to use, and so we need some wisdom as we renegotiate our lease.

Last week Adam and I went to the Central Ohio Sectional Council. It’s basically the business meeting of pastors where they elect their new sectional presbyter and sectional secretary. Now, call me a skeptic, but I wasn’t exactly thinking that this would be the most entertaining way to spend the evening. I’m glad to say that I was wrong.

(See the post on the Sectional Meeting for background). During some of the downtime during vote counting, Pastor Jim Palmer reminded the rest of the pastors that April 6 was Continuum Church’s Invitation Sunday. He encouraged the other pastors to participate in partnering with us by showing our video and taking an offering to support our mission in the city.

During the next break, they invited Adam to come to the front and share who we are and what we’re up to. During the NEXT break, they specifically prayed for Adam and I and Continuum Church. And then, during the break after that, retired Pastor Norm Nethers stood up and asked how the churches would go about sending their offering to Continuum Church. Very practical question, and we answered it. But then he said, “Well I’m going to kick this off right now. I sold my last motorcycle and I’ve had $500 sitting in a coffee can since December. I’ve been holding on to it, but now I know THIS is how God wants to use it.”

Adam cried. I laughed.

So it’s weird. We didn’t expect to get this much attention. But it’s wonderful to have all the churches unified and supporting a church plant whose style is so different. We really are blessed to be working with such good pastors.

On Tuesday of this week, the pastors from the Central Ohio section had their regular meeting in our theater. Adam had the opportunity to share our vision, and it was incredible to feel the support of 30 other pastors from a variety of ages and church styles. We spent a good chunk of the meeting in prayer, and the presence of God was palpable.

Adam did a wonderful job explaining our mission using a metaphor of “translation.” We hope to draw people to Continuum Church who have no faith background, which means we need a different way of explaining what we believe. Some of the language that immediately makes sense to us makes no sense to them. Really, if you’d never been to church, “There Is A Fountain of Blood” would be a truly disturbing phrase!

People get stories. And Jesus has the best story ever. And the story of good still triumphing when evil has done its worst is a story that everyone wants to hear. And that’s the story we want to tell.

So thank you, Pastors, for believing in what we are doing. Thanks for making room for another church so we can make room for more people in God’s Kingdom.

If the first week holds true, this whole year is going to feel like one long string of Saturdays and Sundays. I really need a schedule, and an office. I’ve discovered that I have a very difficult time getting myself going in the morning when I’m all alone, and I’ve found the QVC channel (who knew?!), and no one is counting on my being anywhere before 1 p.m.

But, for all of you who have asked: I’M OK. We made it here safely, despite dire weather predictions. All the highways were clear, and most were even dry for the whole trip.

Church is at 10 a.m. on Sundays, and last Sunday’s service was definitely the best way to start. My first welcome was a an enthusiastic hug from Jeff Alexander, Chi Alpha pastor at Ohio State and another member of the church advisory council. He’s a generally-enthusiastic sort of fellow, which I can absolutely appreciate. He told me that he had already asked three other women “ARE YOU BETH?!” before he found me that morning.

After the general welcome to the service, Adam announced that I had finally arrived. As he invited me up to the platform he said to the church, “Let’s all give Beth a ‘Royal James River Welcome’!” And yes, the whole room jumped to their feet cheering and whistling and clapping. It was utterly fantastic. I was laughing (and I think clapping too - force of habit). Adam told me later that they had no idea what they were doing, beyond the fact that he told them I would really appreciate it. And they had practiced it for two weeks before I arrived! Now THAT’S what I call a welcome!

Monday morning, Jill and Luke and I got a pretty late start in terms of getting them on the road. … And that’s all I have to say about that. We’re OK.

Overall, it has been a productive week. I can now find my way to my new Curves club, several choice coffee houses, Target, the grocery store, the awesome-stand-alone-Chick-Fil-A, the library, and the post office. That should get me by for a while.