Who is this Junius fellow?

If any of you are wondering about who this guy is in my wedding photos, let me point you to a recording of him telling you about himself:  Junius' testimony
Junius team-taught a church history class this past Spring.  The staff asked Junius and Mark to conclude the class with their personal reflections on how their study of church history has affected their faith.  The recording is from the day Junius shared.

wedding shots

I have been a wee bit busy lately so I haven't written, but here is a shot or two of what I've been up to.  For more about the wedding, check out the wedding blog.

The New Sign

Yay!!! We have a new church sign. This has been quite long in the coming between all of the decisions to be made about the sign and obtaining the money with which to get the sign, but it is finally here! The new one is bigger, faces sideways from the original so that it can be read by those driving as well as those on the sidewalk. I have included a photo taken of Junius and I with the old sign in February. Knowing that we were getting a new one any day now the sign had fallen into disrepair so look closely and you will see broken glass, faded wording, rotten trim, and mud. The new sign is simpler and therefore less likely to fall apart.

in VA

Hey y'all,

Junius and I are in Virginia right now preparing for his mother's funeral. It has been a rough week. We came down when we heard she had entered the hospital but she probably never knew we were here. Please be in prayer for Junius and his brother, Ralphael, as well as their extended family and her friends. Thank you so much for your concern.

Rebekah

the Hill plant

     Christ Pres has a vision for a small large church.  That confusing sentence is trying to express the vision of having one large church with all of its shared resources and all of the individuality and efficiency of a small church.  That would be accomplished by having one city session ruling several different congregations.  It is very presbyterian, though not in the way presbyterianism is usually practiced.  Each congregation would have its own diaconate and session, but would also have members that sit on the city session.  Each congregation would be responsible for handling its own style of worship, its own programming, its own staffing, etc., but would also be responsible to the city session, such that all resources among the city would be shared.  All of the congregations would have the same core values and hold to the same confession, but individual congregations would need to make decisions about what that looks like for them.  By sharing resources there is a lot that together we can accomplish.  We can care for the widows and orphans in New Haven in a way that a congregation by itself cannot do.  We can think strategically about the gospel going forth, not simply for one neighborhood but for them all.

     This is the vision that has driven CPC to plant a second congregation - CPC Hill.   Rev. Wills has begun a Bible study and various other community activities to prepare for the planting of this congregation.  It is growing rapidly and many thanks go out to those who are holding it up in prayer.  He has been able to spend time hanging out in the neighborhood really getting to know the people and the pace of the place.  The Hill is one of the lowest income neighborhoods in New Haven.  It is also one of the oldest; being near the water it used to be home to sailors and captains and immigrants fresh off the boat.  Now it has residents a few generations back from people who did construction on Yale buildings during the Great Depression.  It is largely African-American with a quickly growing Hispanic population.  

To reach this neighborhood CPC began holding a VBS soccer camp two years ago with the help of Independent Presbyterian Church of Memphis, TN.  It was such a blessing to have members of my home church come here and share their talents.  We repeated the camp this year on our own and hope to expand into several camps in 2009.  The kids from the camp have been so excited about the church plant and many of their families are part of the core group.  

    We've been searching for property lately, a place for offices, for a cooperative store, and the Bible study.  We will probably need a separate worship space soon.  The cooperative store will sell secondhand items inexpensively.  The merchandise will largely come from the CPC Whitney congregation, as we've begun calling ourselves, and other generous folks in New Haven.  The store will be manned by residents of the Hill community to create jobs and keep dollars within the neighborhood.  It is an exciting mission and we look forward to seeing God's hand at work in it.  We appreciate your prayers for Rev. Wills, this congregation, and this neighborhood.  

Winter Is Here! sort of

So it snowed twice already but we've also been able to play golf this week. It is no surprise I, and everyone else I'm friends with, have gotten sick in the last 10 days.

Still it is beautiful when it snows and Kristy, one of my roommates, has a new camera! She's been learning about lens and aperture, etc. and here are a few photos of our apartment. Don't miss the Charlie Brown Christmas tree!

Hot Off the Press

Here are some photos of Hot Off the Press, one is from our November coffeehouse which featured Nick Lauer, one of the glorious beans themselves, one of the Poppery, the popcorn popper turned coffee bean roaster, and a couple from the reception after the Christmas service. You get to see all the equipment, from the stately Poppery, to the sleek grinder (I'm emptying it), to the elegant press pots. You even get the lined brown paper bags that keep the coffee fresh for the coming week.