First, because of the many weeks spent dealing with money and giving during the Exponential Project, we have chosen not to have our annual Celebration Dinner (of course, we have been celebrating each week all that God is doing in our church!). It seemed asking again for pledge cards (for the 2012 budget) from people so soon after the campaign may be both confusing and overwhelming. However, we still need to know what financial commitments we have toward the 2012 budget, so there will be a time in January for all of us to make that commitment. You will be hearing more about this soon.

Second, we have come to realize many people wait until the end of the year to make extra financial gifts to the church. That’s great! If you are one of those people, we want to encourage you to give either to our regular operating budget or you may direct your year-end giving specifically to the Exponential Project. As you know, we are keeping the campaign alive for the next three years and are still working toward our goal. Just make your check out to “Cornerstone Church” and put “Exponential Project” in the “for “ line. If you would like to give through a stock donation, we are prepared to handle that as well.

We are so grateful for the generosity of our church. It’s important for all of us to remember that when we give out of love for Christ, obedience to Him and a desire to see lives changed, something spiritual happens in our church. God takes our gifts and uses them as a part of His redeeming work in this world. The result is a child who hears that God loves them from a teacher in a creative, fun Kidztown environment, a youth who finds a safe and encouraging place to grow in Christ, a college student who is strengthened by our ministry to withstand the pressures of college life, a marriage that remains intact because of the love and support of couples in their small group, an outreach to our community that brings light to dark places and a partnership with people in Buloba, Uganda, that is bringing hope to the hopeless and raising the bar on our understanding of the call of Jesus to “go and make disciples”.

We’ll leave you with this from Galatians 6:9, “Let us not become weary in doing good, for at the proper time we will reap a harvest if we do not give up.”

Pressing on,

Nic Cofield, Finance Team Chairperson

Rusty Hutson, Lead Pastor

80 @buzzyouth boxed 50 boxes for #FD12. An offering was taken, & now 15 more will be filled. #KingdomWork #ChristmasPartyWithAPurpose #fb — Christopher Slagley (@c_slagley) December 12, 2011

First of all, Christopher is doing a phenomenal job of leading our youth to know and serve Jesus (he’s doing this while traveling and working at his full-time job). I’m so impressed with his servant’s heart and “make it happen” attitude.

Secondly, I am equally impressed with our youth who continually rise to the challenge when our church puts out the call to do something big. They get it! I think about Paul’s words to Timothy…

“Don’t let anyone look down on you because you are young, but set an example for the believers in speech, in life, in love, in faith and in purity.”

Many times our young men and women are jumping over whatever bar we set! They are setting an example for all of us.

Great job Christopher and Cornerstone Youth!!

Rusty

I can’t think of a better way to celebrate Jesus’ birthday than by serving others in our community! I think He is pleased and honored to watch his followers offer mercy, compassion and kindness in a way that shines a bright light into the darkness of our world.

I’m excited to be a part of a church that loves sharing Christ by filling a box (or boxes) full of food and feeding families right here in East Alabama who will be struggling in the first part of the new year. I love watching people carrying these boxes into the worship space with a big smile on their face. Then there is always the question – “how many do we have so far??”. As of right now we probably have around 170 filled boxes in the worship space and around 800 boxes that have been taken but not yet returned to the church. We would really like to have 1,000 boxes in the worship space by Christmas Eve (hint, hint!). My family and I are working on putting ours together this week. Also, remember we will have the little gift boxes available again this Sunday with the card you can send to someone if you would like to put together a box of food in their honor. For more information on the food boxes, go to Food Drop 2012.

There just seems to be a lot of “buzz” and energy within our church right now as we are filling boxes, wrapping gifts for free and preparing for the launch of our new site in February! I just want to say “thank you!!” I really appreciate the way we are all responding to God’s calling on our church as we exponentially impact the people around us for the sake of the Gospel.

Rusty

So here’s a snapshot of what the process of identifying this person has looked like:

1. Our Multi-Site Team met to study the profile and basic responsibilities that would be required of this position. Then after more conversation, the team came to the very obvious realization that we have the right candidate already in our church, on staff, and literally in the room. The candidate is Josh Agerton. The vote was unanimous to recommend Josh to both the Personnel and Executive teams for this position.
2. Our Personnel team met, discussed the recommendation of the Multi-Site Team and confirmed this decision, voting unanimously for Josh.
3. And finally our Executive Team met confirming all of this as well and deciding unanimously on Josh.

Bottom line – Josh clearly fits the profile for this position! We believe God has strategically positioned Josh at our church to fulfill this role. While he will be giving direction and attention to our new site, this does not mean that Josh will no longer be a part of the leadership team. He is still very much a part of giving leadership to the church as a whole. Remember, we are becoming one church in two locations, not two different churches. Having said that, some of his responsibilities will change over time (actually this new church strategy will require that we rethink our entire staff structure at some level). Our Personnel Team is aware of this and already having conversations about how best to handle the responsibilities that Josh may need to let go.

So, pray for Josh and all the decisions that will take place as we continue through this process.

Pressing On,

Rusty

Since the announcement was made on Sunday, May 15 (find the podcast here), several things have happened…

• Our Multi-Site team has met to discuss next steps. This is the team (chosen by the Executive Team) that will take the lead on helping us add another location. The members are Jack Fisher, Michael Moore, Nick Cofield, Jason Belcher and Ken Lott. Obviously, all of the staff, lay leadership and many others will be very involved as we journey through this, but these are the folks who will give regular attention/direction to the process. They comprise the administrative areas of our church that will have to sign-off on many of the decisions that will need to be made.

• We have begun the process of identifying the right person to be our site pastor. This is a very important position. It requires someone with our church’s DNA and understanding of our mission. They must have leadership qualities, but not have a desire to be a senior pastor. They must be an initiator, team player, mobilizer of volunteers, and a good communicator (all of this, plus a pastor’s heart). This is a very unique and specific position. Please be praying for God to direct us to the right person.

• Our Executive Team has identified and hired two outside individuals to partner with our leadership over the next 7-12 months. One to help guide a financial campaign this fall and another to help guide us through the complexities of becoming a church with multiple locations. Both bring a great deal of wisdom and experience to the tasks before us. (More about this in the next blog post).

• We have begun to identify locations for this site. Any ideas we have right now are very preliminary, but we will keep you posted.

That’s where we are right now. Please keep checking this blog for more information.

As we move through the busy weeks and months ahead of us, I’m keeping this prayer of Jesus in John 17 in front of me for our church, “May they be brought to complete unity to let the world know that you sent me and have loved them even as you have loved me.”

Rusty

Just a quick reminder that we are moving to 2 worship services for the months of June and July. Those times are 9:00am and 10:30am. Some of you may be asking, “what’s up with that?” – good question! In looking back at our worship attendance during previous summer seasons we have noticed worship attendance is up and down (up at the lake and down at the beach -ha!), but mostly down.

No problem, this is true of most churches and we recognize the reality of kids out of school, vacations, new life schedules, etc. In order to keep the good vibe going on Sunday mornings we thought it would be better to fill up two services than have three semi-full services. Also, this will give volunteers and staff a little breather. The response has been interesting. Basically, every time I have mentioned this idea to people in our church the response has been a fist pump and “yes!!”. I’ll take that as a good thing.

So, pick a time, they’re both good. Thank you for your commitment to being a part of what God is doing around our church and helping us make these changes go smoothly.

It’s going to be a great summer! See you under the ball.

Rusty

1. For listening to God’s call to come and lead our youth for a time.
2. For loving our kids; our staff; and our church.
3. For giving so much of herself for others.
4. For living out the values of our church (especially authenticity).
5. For genuinely caring about the young men and women she has been entrusted with.
6. For being such a great team player on our staff.
7. For listening to God’s new call on her life and courageously choosing to follow it.

I am so grateful for what Amy has accomplished with our youth. God certainly led her to that position for a time and a purpose. She has been a special servant. The great thing about this transition is that she’s not going anywhere! So, she will continue to be a special servant around our church. While we will miss her on the staff team, we look forward to serving right along side in her volunteer role.

As Amy pursues her new career in counseling let’s pray God’s continued direction and clear leading in her life. She has so many giftings in this area and I am confident she has chosen the right path.

Our Personnel Team, led by Ken Lott, has already begun creating a plan for this transition to take place. A search is now underway for a new youth minister. We hope to have this position filled by this August. The search is being handled by a team led by Josh Agerton. Please pray for this team, the process and that God would be preparing the heart of whoever that person is who will be giving leadership to our youth.

Last thing. I just want to also say a big “thank you” to the youth volunteers who so graciously and selflessly serve our youth! They are an amazing bunch. They are so generous with their time and committed in their service. We are blessed to have them!

Alright, let’s keep pressing forward in our incredible mission of leading people to know and serve Jesus! See you under the ball.

Rusty

“The Executive Team is responsible for giving overall direction and guidance to every aspect of our church’s life. This team is charged with passionately advancing our mission of leading people to know and serve Jesus by protecting our values and beliefs, following our commitments and trusting in God’s leadership.”

This is the same purpose they have always had, just under a different name.

The members of this team are:

Frank Oprandy – Executive Team (ET) Leader

Rebecca Gaston – ET Secretary

Robert Taylor – Lay Leader

Jason Belcher – Trustees Team Leader

John Feehan- Personnel Team Leader

Nic Cofield – Finance Team Leader

John Atkinson – ad hoc

Paul Hansell – ad hoc

Michael Moore – ad hoc

Bruce Shelton – ad hoc

Christopher Slagley – ad hoc

Jennifer Stephens – ad hoc

Elizabeth Yost – ad hoc

Amy Coxwell – staff

Michael McClendon – staff

Julia Farrow – staff

Jill Harris – staff

Brian Johnson – staff

Jack Fisher – staff

Josh Agerton – staff

Rusty Hutson – staff

We will soon have their pictures, biographical information and ET role description on our website. This team is here to serve the church! Please encourage and pray for them often.

See you under the ball!

Rusty

Devastation in Haiti

“Devastation” seems to be about the only way to describe what happened in Haiti this week as a result the 7.0 magnitude earthquake. While an earthquake in any part of the world is a problem, in a country like Haiti it is a catastrophe. Consider the fact that 80% of the 9 million people in the country live below the poverty line.

Consider the fact that only about 50% of the population is literate. Consider the fact that most of the buildings constructed on the island are significantly below proper codes and standards. These statistics just make a situation like a major earthquake even more of a crisis with a much longer recovery time.

Let the Church Be the Church

This is the time when the church should be at it’s best. After all, we are Jesus in this world today. I believe He would bring help to the people of Haiti. So, this Sunday we are preparing to take up a special offering to assist in the relief effort. If you are going to write a check, you can make it out to Cornerstone United Methodist Church and put UMCOR in the memo line. UMCOR stands for United Methodist Committee on Relief. They are one of the relief organizations on the ground in Haiti right now. Your money will go directly to helping those who have been affected by the earthquake.

For more information on our collective response as a church, please go read our news release, Responding to the Haiti Relief Effort, posted earlier today.  Thank you in advance for your generosity and helping our church be Christ to a hurting people.