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March 8, 2006

A Kingdom Church

I first learned of the Great Church Conference to be held at All Saints, Beverly Hills in Beloved eNews. My first thought was "Great! I'd love to go to southern California!" After perusing the website, I realized that there were many topics to be included in the conference that were of great interest to me. So I was honored and thrilled to be able to attend.

All Saints is a beautiful facility located in the heart of Beverly Hills. The conference was extremely well organized. There were many informative, helpful volunteers, many wonderful members of the church staff and several interesting outside speakers.

The speaker that Clifford has already introduced to you in the February 22 eNews, Dr. Reggie McNeal, made the greatest impact on me. He is a good Southern Baptist (I can't deny my church roots) who spoke from the heart about the future of the Church. Since our return from the conference, I have had several weeks to really digest what I heard. I want to share with you some of Dr. McNeal's thoughts and then tell you how this conference impacted me.

Dr. McNeal said that there has to be a shift in the wider Church's focus. We must realize that the Church is not our destination but the Kingdom of God is. In fact, Christ only mentions the Church twice in his teachings but speaks of the Kingdom of God ninety times. Church-centered theology can't see beyond its walls; even worse, the Church may grow but have no Kingdom impact. It's not how many show up but how many have been touched. So what should we do as a Church?

We can't sit still in our beautiful, fine church buildings or even in our home at Community House Middle School. We must go where God is and that is everywhere. To build the Kingdom we need to partner with God. We should join God in the streets and bless those in the community. We shouldn't wait for people to come to us. If you bless people in the community, they will want to know why. What better way to tell them about the love of God and to tell them that they are truly beloved children of God? So there needs to be a shift in the wider Church and its thinking.

I attended several workshops that were of particular interest to me. One centered on building a prayer team and a prayer culture. This session was helpful to me not only because I realized that our prayer team is providing valuable support for Beloved, but I learned of ways that we can expand the participation of our members in various prayer team opportunities. A second workshop that I attended dealt with creating a lay-led pastoral care ministry. This is one of the easiest and most abundant ways of allowing people to be disciples that make disciples. Hopefully in the near future we will be able to implement some of these opportunities to serve others and bless those in our church as well as our community.

So what did I learn from all this? What did I hear in the addresses, workshops and conversations that will help Beloved become a better church? I had a great revelation four weeks after attending the conference: Church of the Beloved could have hosted this conference! All Saints is a wonderful place but Church of the Beloved is just as wonderful. We are in the business of blessing each other. We care for each other. We encourage and support each other. We are striving to meet people where they are. Look at Beloved Garden. What a wonderful way to go into the community to meet the people, bless them, and share the love of Jesus. We have given to the community and the world through our offering basket tithe, special gifts and outreach projects. With the leadership of our own Deacon Deb, we are forming a group to plan our future outreach projects. We are the presence of Christ in the world.

We don't have a fancy "church building" in which to worship. Personally, I hope that when God chooses for us to build that we will consider constructing a facility that can accommodate community activities during the week. We need to be in the community and not wait for the people to come to us. There are many spiritually hungry people right here in southeast Charlotte. It is my prayer that we can plant ourselves right in the middle of the community and listen for God to speak to us. He will guide us to bring others to the Kingdom, not just to the Church.

Anna Moore

A Spiritual and Physical house cleaning...For these two weeks following Ash Wednesday, from Sunday, March 5 - Saturday March 18, we have a wonderful opportunity to transform spring-cleaning into a spiritual exercise as we pray and meditate while we clear out the physical clutter in our lives. Want to learn more about Beloved's I Sold it project? Click here.

Around Beloved...Beloved's own Tom Friend was welcomed home last Sunday with a festive reception given in his honor after serving his tour of duty in Iraq with distinction. Thanks so much to all who worked so hard to make this event such a special one for Tom and his family...Softball anyone? Ed Fox is looking to form a Beloved team for the city's church league this summer. Costs at this time are unknown. Any adults (male or female) or children (with parental permission) who would like to play, click here or sign up on Sunday in the hospitality area...Sunday Christian Formation resumes this Sunday...Beloved's Worker Bees (youth 9-12) and metamorphosis (youth 12-15) each have a Movie Night coming up next week; the younger group on Friday (3/17) and the older group on Saturday (3/18) beginning at 6:30pm at Beloved Garden. Don't forget to bring $3 and a friend...Ministry of Money (from the metropolitan Washington, DC area) and the Servant Leadership School of Charlotte are presenting A Money and Faith Retreat at Christ Episcopal Church on March 24 and 25. Through presentations, discussion, scripture, prayer, song, laughter and silence, participants are engaged and encouraged to look at how we are called as Christians to live out our faith in a society that places such a high value on money and material things. A previous participant writes, "What a refreshing workshop! Leaders helped focus questions, but nobody applied any pressure on anybody. The whole retreat was a wonderful celebration." Cost for the retreat is $100 (includes all materials, Friday supper and two light meals on Saturday). If you are interested in attending, please contact the Development Office this week for an application.

Cookie Baking in Lent?...Absolutely, especially when these treats can lead to a saving relationship with Jesus! Over the years, Beloved has enthusiastically supported Rick Jordan and Ricky Jordan in their work with Kairos, a ministry that shares the love, grace and forgiving mercy of Jesus Christ with those serving time in Kershaw Correctional Institution, by joining others in baking hundreds of dozens of cookies for each renewal weekend. Cookies should be normal in size, contain no fruit or nuts and cannot have sprinkles or sugar on top. Rick and Ricky have made a significant commitment to this ministry that involves extensive training, prayer and preparation for weekends that occur twice a year. Rick will lead the fall 2006 weekend and will intern with the leader of this spring weekend. Containers for the baked cookies will be available for pickup this Sunday (3/12). All containers filled with cookies should be returned next Sunday, March 19.

Serving at God's Altar this Sunday at Beloved...Angel Army Team 5; Acolytes: Ashley Fox, Olivia Fox, Mackenzie Wynn, Morgan Wynn; Reader: Betsy Fox; Presenters: Dave and Penny Crawford; Eucharistic Ministers: Frank Reid & Mary Reid; Offertory Basket Passers: Kameryn Fincher, Hannah Friend, Benjamin Lamb, Jeremy Lamb; PowerPoint: Forrest Boylston.

In our Prayers...for Molly Mellon, who is recovering from a dog attack...for Jessie Powell who is hospitalized...for Rachel Herring who is suffering complications from her tonsil and adenoid surgery...for Howard Stephenson, Janie Lownes, Dan Blackwood and Richard, Ginger Leppert‘s father who are recuperating from surgery or hospital stays...for those serving in Iraq, especially Scott, Dan Hood's brother...for Tom Friend's safe return home...for Nancy and Tony Hodgson's granddaughter, Emily...for Marilyn Doyon and Marie Duty who are expecting babies this upcoming year...for Dorothy, Mary Reid's sister who is fighting lung cancer...for Ruth, Shana Blake‘s cousin...for Ed and Jean, Dick Reif's parents who are in declining health in Oklahoma...for Bill, Lee Frickhoeffer's uncle who has terminal cancer...for Bryan McCarthy, Lauren Skrobot and Katrina West as they continue medical testing...for Chet Rose who is to be married...for Timothy, son of Fr. Bill and Melodi Steinberg of Raleigh, who was killed with three other senior classmates in a fiery auto crash. Rest eternal grant to Timothy, O Lord; and let light perpetual shine upon him. May his soul, and the souls of all the departed, through the mercy of God, rest in peace. Amen.

Upcoming Calendar...click here