December Update

Faithful Friends,

Merry Christmas and happy New Year! I pray the end of 2011 offered you opportunities to enjoy the gifts of family and friends and of remembering God’s presence, provision and comfort in the year past. As I think back over the last year I am amazed at all that has come to pass and how clearly God has been in the midst of a whirlwind of change in our lives. A year ago, Amy, the girls and I were enjoying the awesome gift of a dynamic church and incredible community of friends in Southern Pines; we were waiting for confirmation that we would indeed be sent to begin a new work in Durham; and we were anticipating the immanent expansion of our family with the birth of a new baby. In the months that followed began concrete planning for the The CityWell, we built a new home in Durham, we said goodbye to our beloved church and friends in Southern Pines, and we welcomed John Coleman May III into our lives. In the midst of those transitions we grieved (and are still grieving) the loss of our amazing sister-in-law, Katie Noel Parsons May.

Needless to say with all that going on, The CityWell began with fits and starts, but we really began finding rhythm and picking up steam (forgive the mixed metaphor) in the fall, and what an adventure this has been! Amy and I are continually amazed to see all God is doing in the birthing of this new church, and we are deeply grateful to be a part of this. In previous updates I have mentioned the centrality of mission in our life together, the hope that we will be a people who look like the Kingdom of God as traditional dividing walls (race, ethnicity, economics, etc...) come down, and our intention to develop an integrated rhythm of life in which our identity as the church pervades every element of our lives. In December I was captivated by another component of our life together that I pray will remain a part of our communal DNA: an Advent freedom of speech. Along with churches throughout the world, we spend the four Sundays of Advent remembering that the Christ who came, comes to us still, and will come again. Within this tri-fold promise we found the freedom to begin naming the brokenness of our lives, our community and our world. In every time of worship we gave generous amounts of time to the vocalizing of our gratitude for Jesus’ coming and blessings, our dire need for His continued presence, and our confident longing in the face of messy lives that He will indeed come again to make all things new. Several times I found myself amazed at the power of the things shared, the courage and freedom found to publicly name sin and brokenness, the willingness to put away pretense for the sake of a truthful rendering of our lives before God and one another. The freedom of speech that so moved us was not only in the content of things shared, but in the space created for all to share, in the opening of the air to any and every voice. This open and un-scripted element of corporate worship has been unique in my experience of church and I am excited to see where this will go.         

On Christmas Eve we decided to trade in a candlelight service for a more unconventional way to remember the birth of Jesus. Once again we partnered with Open Table Ministries and at noon gathered for an absolutely decadent feast with friends from Grace Park Church and nearly 30 members of a homeless community that lives in the woods here in Durham. We met in an open space of grass on an access road next to the highway; we listened to Christmas music booming out of a PA; we ate wayyyyy too much; we made new friends; we sang carols and Christmas hymns and laughed together; we spoke of the amazing gift of God in Jesus; and strangers who otherwise would never likely meet became friends through the unifying gifts of food and song. It was simply wonderful. 

Finally, on the very last day of 2011, a year that involved an unprecedented amount of change in our lives came to an unexpected and thematically appropriate climax as we welcomed a beautiful foster baby into our family. Noah Andreas was two days old when we joined us and we are already coming to love him deeply. Please pray for Noah, his mother, and for God’s will in the outcome of this placement.

Yes, it has been quite a year, and through it all, God has been God – faithful, generous, tender, funny, and always surprising. Oh, what will 2012 hold?

Grace and peace,

Cleve