Quarterly Update: Don’t be afraid; Go and Tell

Happy Easter Season!

Every year at this time, I can’t help but feel renewed in my spirit and in my call to serve people and the Church. Pondering and proclaiming the resurrection of Jesus energizes me as I think of that first Easter morning, the women expecting to find a body, instead finding out Jesus is alive. I hear those words, “Do not be afraid.” “Go and tell” (from Matthew’s gospel, Chapter 28). And I hear those words spoken to me as well. Don’t be afraid, but go and tell the world that Jesus is alive, that we are all forgiven and loved, and that God’s kingdom is here. 

I know that each of us serves and leads in different contexts, some that have a traditional church experience, others that are more relational and community-oriented, others that are in the trenches with people who haven’t yet known the Kingdom of God in their lives. Nevertheless, our mission is the same. To share God’s love with everyone, equip those who are ready to serve, and make God’s Kingdom known throughout our city. 

We have been on this journey together for about a year now. And in one year, I’ve learned a lot about leading leaders, starting many new things, the different pockets of our city, and I’m convinced once again to not be afraid, but go and tell. I hear these words from a few different perspectives right now. 

The first is in the wake of starting a new faith community Second Chance. This new community seeks to be a spiritual home for people who might need a second chance in life (due to addiction, incarceration, or anything else we assume disqualifies us) or who might be ready to give the church a second chance. The message is the same, as it is for all of our faith communities: God’s love is for everyone and God’s church can be a safe place to encounter God’s kingdom. 

The second perspective is in leadership of a new Collective of Communities. I have to admit, and if you have ever had a conversation with me you have seen me hide a little, that I am shy when it comes to sharing the vision for Open Church. I’m afraid of what I might find. I’m not sure how people will receive the vision. Where do we go from here? But I have been reminded recently of why we are a Collective. We are better together. We all have unique communities that wouldn’t be here today if we didn’t think God was doing something through Open Church. I still walk away confused and amazed when I see how God has shown up sometimes. And all I can do is thank God for choosing me to be a witness. 

And then the final place I am hearing these words in my life right now is the need to share our story with others. You all have shared with us ways that you’ve seen God show up, the message shared, and lives transformed. I want to be better at collecting these stories and sharing them with our Collective and others as well. The first place that is requesting this is our denomination. As a new church in the UMC, we are held accountable for some metrics to track our stewardship of the resources we have. Some metrics they are asking for are: Total attendance, # of people serving, # of baptisms, Total donations received, and # of donors. 

As a Collective, this information is a little more tricky to acquire, so I’m asking for your help. Not only do these numbers represent real people and real impact in each of your communities, but it allows Open Church to share widely about the different ways that people are being discipled, gathering for worship, and serving in the world. We get to show the Church that there are a lot of ways to be the church! 

Each of our communities are different, so there will be different ways we’ll track this information that works for everyone. I’ll be reaching out one-on-one in the coming days to check-in and talk through what this can look like for you. I’d love to hear your thoughts and ideas as well! If there is someone in your community other than you that you’d like for me to connect with about this, let me know!

As we move forward and recommit to the vision of Open Church in year two, there are a few upcoming events and trainings to put on your calendar! Please share with your communities and let me know if you have any events, studies, or volunteer opportunities you want us to share with the Collective. 

💦May 18, 10:30am - Baptisms at Second Chance. If there is anyone in your community who would like to be baptized or if you want to come and celebrate baptisms with us, please let me know! 

👩🏼‍🎓May 31 - Allyssa’s Ordination as an Elder in the United Methodist Church. Celebrate with me and hang out with other Open Church-ers on May 31, 5-9pm, at my home: 838 Campbell Ave. Text to RSVP: 614.365.1202

🌱June 21, 3-5pm - Planting Forward event on starting new faith communities. My husband is hosting, and Timothy Cho of City of Refuge (one of our faith communities) will be on the panel. Learn more here: https://www.joegraves.org/plantingforward [Want to help out and volunteer for the event? Sign up here.]

✨July 10, 6-8:30pm - Hope Dealer Community Fundraiser (benefiting Hope Gathering faith community and Linden Outreach mission venture). Event will be at Simply Plated (1160 W Broad St.)

🎉August 15 - Catalyst Leader Development premieres on Compassionate Leader Academy. More information to come! Learn more about CLA here: https://www.compassionateleaderacademy.org/ (password: CLA) [website and CLA are still being developed. Let me know if you want to learn more or get involved!]

Again, I’ll be following up in the coming days to talk more about all of this and hear how you are doing. Please reach out in the meantime if you have any questions! 

I am so grateful to be a part of this mission with you! 

Blessings,

Allyssa