“Open the wells of grace and salvation,
pour the rich streams deep into my heart.
Cleanse and refine my thought and affection,
seal me and make me pure as thou art.”
Three deep-rooted CMC churches (Cherry Glade, Maple Glen, and Oak Dale), along with one Morgantown, West Virginia, church plant that is just beginning to germinate, gathered in Southwestern Pennsylvania on October 22-23 for CMC’s third Mature & Multiply Summit.
The CMC Summits are designed to help churches and individuals who are ready to engage more deeply with the Mature and Multiply vision. Clusters of churches gather for some input, interactive discussion, prayer, listening to the Lord and each other, and some next steps processing, with the intent of being purposeful in participating in the Great Commission Jesus entrusted to his Church.
Friday evening, as those gathered sang the words of the familiar hymn, “Lord, I Am Fondly, Earnestly Longing,” the richness of the call for the Lord to “open the wells of grace and salvation” resulted in an unplanned theme song for the weekend. The group was challenged to reflect on several questions. What are we seeing as God’s people? Are we looking for God’s grace at work or is our focus elsewhere? Are we committed to proclaiming the gospel of Jesus to “call dry bones to life?” Are we listening to the voice of Jesus and obeying, putting into practice what he says?
Much of the day on Saturday was spent praying and listening and discerning what the Lord may be calling the congregations to focus on in the months and years to come. As each church began to share with the larger group, similar themes began to emerge. A call to committed personal and corporate prayer, creating opportunities for the sharing of testimony, intentional discipleship and mentoring, and creating space for intergenerational interaction in smaller groups was consistent with each congregation represented.
Saturday afternoon Scott and Crystal Miller shared some of their story and vision for “City On a Hill Church,” a church plant in Morgantown, West Virginia. Scott and Crystal have spent the past three and a half years living in Morgantown. Life there has been a mix of making good friends, seeing several people commit their lives to following Jesus, and also experiencing times of struggle and loneliness.
In January, Scott and Crystal participated in the first intensive CMC Church Planting Assessment, led by Ron Embleton and a team of assessors. The Millers were encouraged to take some sabbatical time, work at some specific areas of personal and ministry life, and do some revisioning of the budding church in Morgantown.
The CMC Church Planting Team is fully committed to supporting City On a Hill as one of the fifty church plants that we are praying for in CMC by 2030. Scott and Crystal would be thankful for an opportunity to communicate with any individuals or churches who would have a sense of call to partner with them in the vision of “increasing the worship of God and proclaiming the gospel of Jesus Christ in both word and deed.”
Do you or your church have a fresh desire for the Lord to “open the wells of grace and salvation and pour the rich streams deep into hearts?” We would be glad to talk about church planting or planning a Mature & Multiply Summit in your area. Please contact CMC Church Planting Catalyst Jerry Sauder or me at the CMC office.
One Response
This is exciting! So grateful to see this CMC initiative and those who are responding by going and by giving. May this kind of vision “go viral”. That’s the kind of virus we want to be infected with!