So Long Old Friend…

Watershed, the Saturday evening worship gathering of the Mt. Union Wesleyan Church, has been a time of refreshment and renewal for me, over the course of the last few months. The music has been refreshing. Worshiping and preaching on Saturday evening has both afforded me the opportunity to rehearse and revise my message for Sunday mornings, as well as helped me to be more mentally prepared for worship on Sundays.

However, what began (on March 7th), with a steady and consistent group of 25-30 people, has since dwindled to a handful. Admittedly, there are plethora of reasons for this. Area colleges dismissed for the summer, meaning that some of our steady core group have returned home for summer vacation. Summer baseball leagues are now in full-swing. Many people, therefore, have found their Saturday afternoons and evenings to be rather full- so, rather than attending on Saturday evening, Sunday mornings have become the most ideal time for worship. These are just a few of the many reasons.

Regardless, last night, as a leadership team, we decided to press the “pause button” in regards to Watershed. We are going to discontinue meeting together, during the summer months of 2009, with plans to tentatively resume our Saturday evening worship gatherings in the Fall of 2009. We have determined to do this for a couple of reasons:

1) We hope that by doing so we will not lose the momentum that we have gained;

2) Our desire is to reevaluate what we are doing, with the hope that when we resume things will be even better;

3) We feel as if this hiatus will allow us to spend some time in prayer, which might result in us taking things in a new direction;

4) Our goal of creating a space where members of our community can come and worship has not been achieved- we have primarily attracted already “churched” individuals.

So, if you are reading this, I would encourage you to keep us in prayer. As we pray, reevaluate, and re-envision things we desperately desire for God’s Spirit to blow wherever it pleases. Whatever we do, and whatever is decided, our prayer is for God’s good, pleasing, and perfect will to be accomplished in His church and in this community.

Tags: http://www.mountunionwesleyanchurch.org, Mount Union Wesleyan Church, Watershed
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Watershed: Why I Love Saturday Evenings and So Should You

It’s Saturday afternoon. We’re just hours away from the fourth of our new Saturday evening worship gatherings.

It has only been three weeks and we have yet to experience a committed, cohesive group but there are still a number of reasons why I am loving our Saturday evening, Watershed, worship gatherings and why you should as well.

1. We are seeing new people come to our church on a weekly basis. Some have returned. Some have not. But regardless, it is always great to make new friends.
2. Saturday evenings tend to be more relaxed. It feels good just to let your hair down and come before God as you are.
3. Saturdays really set the stage for Sunday. Not only do I have the opportunity to refine my message between saturday evening and Sunday morning, but I also have the opportunity to be better prepared and more focused for our worship on Sunday mornings.
4. Q&A adds an entirely new aspect to things. I love knowing that on Saturday evenings I will be able to hear what people are thinking, what they heard as I spoke, as well as the questions that still remain.

Tonight, at 6:30, I will be at Watershed- where will you be?

Tags: http://www.mountunio, Watershed
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