It is hard to believe that summer is almost over. Fall will soon be upon us and with it, ministries at Calvary Church will be in full swing. Sunday School, Youth Group, Kid’s Club, and a host of other programs will begin another year of teaching children and adults about Jesus. Choirs and musical groups will bless our worship services. Opportunities for mission and outreach seem to multiply every year. Calvary Church has a very full program! But program, by itself, will not grow (or even maintain) a church. There also needs to be an intentional seeking of God’s direction and purpose.

In the last year, the elders and staff have been engaged with Vision New England in a process to discern God’s direction for Calvary Church. We have come to believe that Calvary’s future largely involves recovering an intentional focus on the core of what the church has always been about: loving God. . . loving Others. . .and making disciples. As a result of this process, the Session has adopted the following vision statement for the life of Calvary Church:

Calvary Church: A Christ-centered community living God’s Kingdom
through Loving God, Loving Others, and Making Disciples.

We are called to be a community of believers centered in Jesus Christ, who are seeking to live and extend God’s purposes in our own lives—in our life together and out into the world. The primary way in which we do this is through growing in our love for God and our love for people, and in drawing others more deeply into this life of discipleship.

A VISION ONE team has been working since last summer to move us toward that vision. The focus of both the Advent and Lenten seasons were designed to encourage each of us to grow in our personal devotional life. The Disciple Making Journey seminar and small groups engaged over 50 of our members in learning, prayer, and mutual encouragement to equip us for the task of reaching out.

This fall’s focus on the Gospel Revolution was strategically chosen to encourage us to grow in loving God through a deeper understanding and experience of the Gospel. Although this theme will be the focus of the Sunday morning messages, I encourage you to take advantage of the opportunity to delve deeper into it through participating in one of the Gospel Revolution study groups beginning September 20. The Gospel is the key to the Christian life, and this study will give a deeper appreciation of its gracious, transforming power.

I am excited about the path we’re on, and I invite you to join in what God is doing. Join us by participating — come take part in the Gospel Revolution! Join us through prayer — asking God to continue to guide us, transform us, empower us, and use us that Calvary Church may continue to shine the light of Jesus into our community and world.

Grace and Peace,
Pastor Steve