This weekend, the Columbus Church of Christ celebrated its 10th anniversary. Ten years ago, 25-30 would-be-disiples (Inside joke for my ICOC readers) came from Chicago, Detroit and Cincinnati to start this church. My wife and I quit our jobs and packed our stuff and 18 month old Jessica and moved to Columbus. It happened almost that fast.
We had interviewed to be on the mission team earlier in the summer (the trip to Chicago for that was an adventure in itself) and then told at the beginning of August that we weren’t chosen. We were disappointed, but understood. We were living paycheck to paycheck and had a fair amount of debt at the time. Not ideal candidates to drop everything and go on a church planting.
A week or so later we got another call. “Bro, you know how things go in the kingdom! Ha ha ha! We’ve decided that we’d like you to come after all. I know it’s late notice, but if at all possible, we still need you there by the end of August.” (After we arrived, they ‘asked’ us to lead the children’s ministry. Now we knew why we were suddenly wanted.)
So, we gave less than 2 weeks notice to our jobs, wiggled out of our apartment lease, packed our stuff and headed onto the unknown. We had no jobs lined up, no apartment lined up (We stayed in my sister’s basement the first month) and the day we left, we found out Maria was pregnant with Emily. And we had just left our health insurance with our jobs.
Twenty some others did the same thing and 10 years ago we had our first service in the basement of the minster’s home. Amazing things happened those first months and years. Faith stretching, mind expanding, unbelieveable things. For just us personally, we got a nicer townhome that was cheaper and bigger than out apartment in Detroit (with no income to report for the lease. “I’m sure you’ll do fine” the landlord said.), I got a great job that really launched my career (and had health insurance that covered that pre-existing pregnancy) and friendships that will last forever. It was an amazing time, I’ll have to tell some more of those stories some day.
So this weekend we had a celebration of all that God had done in the last 10 years. Four of the five ministers who served here were there on Sunday, missing was AT Arnesson, the first. For a while we were on the 3 month plan. Back in the day when leaders from above would, and did, shuffle ministers around at will, AT stayed for 3 months and Darryl Reed after him for another 3 months. When Tom Caswell passed that mark and entered his 4th, we all rejoiced. I’m not sure the actual breakdown, but I think that Tom, Greg Miller after him and now Doug Geyer each served for about 3 years, give or take.
Darryl was here from Washington DC and took us to the cross and Greg, in from Washington state, preached a great lesson, pointing out that for many of us, 10 years is nothing compared to how far we have to go. We are a relatively young congregation, mostly in their 30’s and 40’s, so most will serve Christ here on Earth for another 30, 40 even 50 years (for the teens – 60, 70 or even 80!). Puts this anniversary, and my 18th spiritual birthday in perspective. He asked if we will have the freedom to choose in heaven? He thought yes, we have freedom to do so here, why not there? If so, why won’t we sin? Because we will be with God and will see Him clearly and there will be no wordly pleasures to tempt us. We cannot excape the world, so we must keep seeking God and to see Him for who He is to make it to the end. Hopefully, his message will be on the web site soon.
We saw a video montage of still pictures and video snippets from over the years. It was funny to see the old pictures & hairstyles (or just hair) and sad so see the faces that are no longer with us, for whatever reason. We saw pictures of a couple of the teens who were baptized this year when they were in kindergarten or 1st grade.
It was very good to see old friends, especially the Millers who now live in the Tacoma WA area and other friends and family from Missouri, Washington DC, Toledo, Cincinnati, Cleveland and Minnesota. If only others from Wisconsin and Kentucky could have joined us, taht would have made the day that much more special.
It was a good day. As I looked at the larger-than-normal crowd from on stage where I was helping with the song service, and I listened to the voices raised in song, I imagined the crowd of angels hovering over the building singing & rejoicing with us. Even without hearing the heavenly song, the singing was incredible that day. It did my heart good and tears threatened to fill my eyes (Being an emotional guy, I’m pretty good at the art of looking for distractions to keep the emotions at bay. Look, there’s a ceiling tile loose. And a light bulb out. Should tell someone about that.)
God has been at work here, in spite of our sin. I can only hope that for the next 10 years, there can be more of the former and less of the latter.