Did you miss one of the flights? Please stand by for rebooking instructions!

To recap: CovenantAIR took off at each of the three weekend services and landed in a 40-acre neighborhood in West Greenville. In so doing, we got a close-up look at our emerging ministry to our Greenville neighbors just 3.5 miles from our Main Campus. Walter Strathy, Director of Outreach, shared about the lives that have been changed as a result—both ours and the neighbors we have been meeting. Valerie’s testimony combined with video clips from inner city missionaries was also a powerful witness to what happens when we live out Jesus’ call to care (Matthew 25).

On Saturday night, more than 700 of you came out for a special event we called Family Fiesta including 1200 tacos, several piñatas, a Caribbean band and mission-focused crafts. What a great way to celebrate in the DR!

With this first story told, a video helped us imagine another flight to the Dominican Republic and to our South Campus in La Romana. We sang some worship songs, learned more about this great country and saw a montage of ministry pictures from past Covenant trips. What a joy it was for all of us to see and hear Mark Lykins share stories about his ministry’s progress in meeting the physical needs and taking the Gospel to a Dominican neighborhood as well as to a handful of Haitian batays. As expected, Mark powerfully challenged each of us to consider how we might “Go” into Christ’s world and make disciples.

Our regular worship times ended in the DR, and folks were invited to come back Sunday night for the “return flight” back to Greenville and Covenant’s 40-acre campus. It proved to be a great night of worship along with a word from Branson. He laid out a very clear, three-step challenge if we are to join God’s mission to our neighbors both near and far. Lots of folks were present Sunday night, but some were not and didn’t hear his timely message.

Obviously, it was a unique and purposeful weekend: to clarify for our church community why we exist and where we are going.

If you missed all or a portion of the weekend, you can still catch the flights on our special travel site, connect2covenant.com/air. If you flew with us on Saturday night or Sunday morning, but you missed Sunday evening, we’re sorry you’re still stuck in the DR. Your return flight is waiting for you, which includes the special flight plans Branson delivered for our own hub called Covenant Church. If you missed the whole weekend, plan to book a getaway soon, and spend some time traveling with us, discovering where God is summoning Covenant to “go” on His behalf.

Please take the time to catch these video flights on connect2covenant.com/air if you missed them live. In so doing, you will fully understand Covenant’s mission and vision. What an honor it is to serve a congregation that takes Jesus’ words seriously and seeks to follow them intentionally!

I hope you will join me in worship this weekend as Branson begins a new series titled, PREPARE: Getting Ready for Easter. And, together, let’s continue to learn what it means to be “All In.”

Only Through Grace,
Charlie

As a church, we’ve been asking ourselves the question, “Who is my neighbor?” Over time, we’ve discerned the Holy Spirit leading us to focus our neighborly efforts in three places: West Greenville, the Dominican Republic and our Main Campus.

This weekend, we’ve prepared an innovative worship experience to take you to all three of these strategic locations via our fictitious CovenantAir.

On Saturday night and Sunday morning, we will “take off” for West Greenville where all of us will be participating in a neighborhood block party right here on campus. There will be music, dancing and drama that will be out of the ordinary for a Covenant worship service, but I think it will be obvious that what God is doing on one city block in Greenville is truly the work of the redemption of individual souls and of a part of our city.

We’re then going to “fly” you to the DR, where for the last four years, our church (hundreds of Covenant people) has been concentrating our efforts in La Romana in one of the poorest neighborhoods in the world. Partnering with a number of local Methodist pastors there, we are connecting with these neighbors to make a physical and spiritual difference that has truly eternal value.

We’ll have a layover in the DR and then, Sunday night, I strongly encourage you to catch the return flight at 6pm as we fly back to our main campus to continue to share what God is calling us as a church to do in Greenville and beyond, including a very special and intentional Night of Worship. It will be a night that you will not soon forget!

A couple of reminders:

Remember that we’re inviting everyone to arrive 10 minutes before the flight begins!

Also, remember that we’re encouraging families with children to come to the Saturday night service this week and stay for the Fiesta to follow!

See you this weekend!
Branson

But there is one thing I do love about snow in the South: it changes my priorities for the better.

First let me confess that I am a Type A personality. Per Wikipedia, these types are “impatient, time-conscious, highly competitive, business-like, having difficulty relaxing; and are sometimes disliked by individuals with Type B personalities for the way that they’re always rushing. They are often high-achieving workaholics who multi-task, drive themselves with deadlines, and are unhappy about delays.” So normally, I wake up on Saturday mornings early and with a very full agenda for the day. No time to relax, got to get cracking!

With the city-stopping snow on a recent Friday night, I woke up Saturday morning and got a fresh taste of sanity. Instead of manically chasing my self-imposed deadlines, I just chilled. My blood pressure dropped, and I slowed down like I haven’t in months. I took a walk in the snow and just listened to the sounds; it was totally quiet. There were no horns, no engines, no airplanes, nothing. You could hear the breeze blowing through the trees, and it seemed to breathe renewed life into my spirit. I was also more attentive to Mary Lou and my neighbors. Instead of being preoccupied with chores, I tuned into family and friends.

So why does it take snow and ice to reestablish family-friendly priorities?

Unfortunately, the world I live, and so easily get caught up, in does not prioritize people. It’s about stuff. It’s about speed. It’s about climbing ladders. It’s about racing. It’s about consuming. And more often than I would like, I reflect these values.

But God’s world is completely opposite. It’s about relationships. It’s about compassion. It’s about patience. It’s about sharing. It’s about investing our lives in people, “loving our neighbor as ourselves.”

So what was your experience with the recent snows? Did it make you a better neighbor? Join Branson this weekend in worship as he continues to unpack what it means to honor Jesus’ command to love those around us. It will be good to experience the fresh winds of the Spirit together and catch up with our Covenant neighbors.

And don’t forget our upcoming Family Fiesta on Saturday night, February 27th. We will have a special and creative worship time followed by a great opportunity to hang out with friends while enjoying family-friendly games, creative activities and a few tacos!

Slowing down with Jesus,
Charlie