Hello Church Family,

As you all know, in the past seven years, we accomplished two significant steps for our church by paving the parking lot and paying off the mortgage. Most recently, with the help of Nazarene Youth Conference teen and adult participants along with some dedicated volunteering church members, the exterior of the building received a new coat of paint and the land around the church has been cleared of some overgrown brush and trees

Though there have been many changes through the years at our church one thing that has not changed is the heart to come together as one with the community around us and share the love of Jesus thus offering them a "place of calm in a world of chaos." 

The impact of that simple motto has encouraged us at Spring Hill Calvary to work as one to accomplish the mission of community mindedness for God’s greater purpose.  We are making room for more each year, and more people are taking steps toward a life of discipleship and ministry alongside us. Now, once again, we're faced with another challenge.  There have been some updates to the building in forty-nine years of its existence, but it is really starting to show (and feel) its age and it is time to really put some effort into making some significant changes that will see us through for years to come.     

We have seen attendance-growth across the ages and various ministries.  In an effort to keep up with that growth and to focus on connecting with children and youth and their families, it is apparent that staff who are trained and dedicated to this cause would greatly benefit the continued growth and connection of those families as they work directly with the kids, teens and their families.  Last year alone, we saw 312 first-time guests and many of those were children accompanied by their families!  Lastly, and most importantly, in the last three years, we have seen 27 people make first-time decisions to follow Jesus! Several of those new followers of Jesus are among those at our weekly elementary school outreach, the Good News Club.

While we have seen growth and continued impact, we are also aware that tens of thousands of people within 15 minutes of our church are not yet following Jesus. We believe that God has placed us here for this very reason and that we must engage our community and world in new and fresh ways. With prayer and planning, the CCNaz leaders are proposing a solution to act from the parable that Jesus shared in Luke 15:4:  "If a man has a hundred sheep and one of them gets lost, what will he do?  Won’t he leave the ninety-nine others in the wilderness and go to search for the one that is lost until he finds it?”

To do this, we have some big goals for this year, and we will all need to make the same kinds of sacrifices made almost fifty years ago when our church was planted. We will need to commit to reaching those around us by giving of ourselves and giving of our resources.

The first step in making that happen is the launch of The ONE INITIATIVE. The word ONE was chosen to highlight how everyone has at least ONE person who does not yet have a relationship with Jesus.  We need to journey with them in friendship and we need to create spaces to connect with them where they are so we can invite them to where THE ONE - God wants them to be. You'll be hearing more about The One Initiative in the coming weeks.  

• We'll be launching The One Initiative the week after Easter Sunday, April 7th, and the sermon series will be seven weeks long, concluding with a celebration weekend on Pentecost Sunday, May 19th. 

• During this time, you will all be invited to a Dessert Night to ask questions and receive even more information than we have time to share in a worship service. 

• We will also have an unforgettable night of prayer and worship on Wednesday, May 1st at 7:00 pm. 

I want to encourage you to commit to joining us for worship for all seven weekends, attend one Dessert Night, and attend our night of prayer and worship. The One Initiative is a season in our church you won't want to miss! 

Let me close by thanking each of you for your service, dedication, investment in, and commitment to what God is doing at Spring Hill Calvary. We couldn't be where we are today without people like you doing great things for God. 

With Anticipation for What God Will Do,

Pastor Ed Leanza