Circle of Hope

Submitted by Nichole Jackson

One of the things that I think makes being a part of Circle of Hope great is the fact that we stay committed to our proverb, “We are called to move with what the Spirit is doing next.” (for a list of all of our proverbs, either go to http://cirleofhope.net/Jesus/about/proverbs/ , or go to the “About Us” section on our website and click on “Convictions.” I find that reading these over every once in a while keeps me encouraged and connected to the Circle of Hope vision, and I encourage you to check it out periodically!) One of the most significant ways that we live this out in real time is our Mapping Process. Every year in the fall, we gather in our communities to pray and listen together about where God is calling us in the upcoming year.

The process starts at the cell level, our weekly small gatherings where we share life together. Once all of the information is gathered from the various cells, we then have gatherings in the homes of people in our network to discuss the gathered information over dinner and discuss where we feel God moving us. We had these discernment dinners on 11/11/11 this year, and we gathered in 22 groups of 7-10 people from all of our congregations. (The picture on the right is from the meeting I attended, hosted by Toni Thomas and led by Lauren Stichter). More gatherings will take place to continue to refine our findings, and then we finalize the map in January. That map is used to guide everything we do in the upcoming year.

So what’s so great about doing a mapping process each year? Well, for starters, this mapping process helps us to have vision, and it helps us to allow God to direct our efforts as a community. It helps us to grow and to be always re-evaluating what it is that we are doing, helping us to avoid stagnancy. Most of all, it helps our community to be actively engaged in the mission of Circle of Hope. Every person who is connected to Circle of Hope is valued, considered, and given an opportunity to utilize their voice. The mission of our community is not controlled by a small group of people, but is shared and directed by our entire community. It is incredible to be part of a church body that shares leadership in that way.

Join us on December 3rd at our Marlton and Crescent meeting space (3800 Marlton Pike, Pennsauken, NJ 08110) at 11:30 a.m. for the next open meeting to refine our map! It is truly an exciting time.

submitted by Lauren Ingalls Stichter

Submitted by Jess Shoffner

This past spring our doorbell broke and it was the biggest blessing! Until all the ding-dong, ding-dong, ding-dongs were absent we had not realized how numerous they were. The children in our Kensington neighborhood not only loved to come to our house but they loved that doorbell. The best part about it being broken was that for a while it was still very intact on the outside of the house but no sound would occur. It was genius!

But in all seriousness all those little fingers that would ring our bell (that now knock ferociously) belong to beautiful children. They are like us all, broken and in search of being cared for and accepted into community.  In the summer of 2009 my two roommates and I, with a few volunteers started Kids Club. It provides a time that we can very intentionally invite the neighborhood kids over to our home to share music, art, games, Jesus, and healthy snacks. In 2009 we were hanging out with about 7-9 kids. This year is the start of our second full year meeting on Sundays and we have about 18-27 kids weekly. However, there is a pool of about 60 kids that show up on occasion. God is building the Kingdom in Kensington!  Though Kids Club is a special time, spending time with some of these children one on one is what I love most. We cook together, talk about issues at school, have difficult conversation, admit my faults, and play a lot of Sorry (the board game). Come on over Sunday at 1:30 or have dinner with us sometime if you would like.

This month the Compassion Core team is hosting a food drive for the Thayer St. Kids Club. With the food, we will be cooking for volunteers, sending food home with kids and supplementing our dinners with them. We are excited to do this with you all.

Please be in prayer with us, as Kids Club has outgrown our house and we are trying to figure out how to split into two or more groups on Sundays.  Pray that our homes and streets would be places of love and not hate. And most faithfully pray that the children in Kids Club would grow up to be men and women of peace in our neighborhoods.

For more information about the food drive find the food drive box at your local congregation. Contact Jess Shoffner at shoffnerj@gmail.com if you would like to visit or volunteer.

Love Feast by Teresa Carter

submitted by Nichole Jackson

Every quarter, we take an evening to gather as a church family to celebrate and feast upon the love and goodness that God has given us across the network in the past three months. We call it the Love Feast. This time is also used to “welcome into the family” those that have decided to walk with us through baptism and entering into covenant with us. It is a time that epitomizes what it means to be a part of such a community, a community that is devoted to loving God and each other. It is a feast of feasting.

This past Love Feast, 13 people from across the network decided to enter into covenant with Circle of Hope, including Grace Ciak-Linton, Patrick Ciak-Linton, Suzi Sheriffs, Rebecca Geller, Grace Johanson, Kyle Zieba, Will Poskitt, Brandon Youndt, Andrew Yang, Becca Channing, Josh Mints, Margie Green, and Tammy Werron. Each person spoke about the love, community, and commitment to God that they found in Circle of Hope, and we warmly welcomed them. It was a great night to be had at the Berean Institute at 19th and Girard, the first Love Feast held at our newest congregation. We worshipped God alongside each other. We shared our lives. It was pure sweetness.

Let us keep on loving one another until we feast again!