{"id":6396,"date":"2024-09-03T13:02:57","date_gmt":"2024-09-03T17:02:57","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/disciplescef.org\/blog\/?p=6396"},"modified":"2024-09-03T13:10:55","modified_gmt":"2024-09-03T17:10:55","slug":"hear-god-fifth-christian-church-finds-new-life-mission","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/disciplescef.org\/blog\/hear-god-fifth-christian-church-finds-new-life-mission\/","title":{"rendered":"‘OK. We hear you, God!\u2019 Fifth Christian Church finds new life in mission"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"\"When Fifth Christian Church (Disciples of Christ)<\/a> in Cleveland, Ohio called Rev. E. Regis Bunch to serve as Transitional Pastor, its community of faith stood at a crossroads.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cThe congregation knew they were experiencing a deep decline, but they didn\u2019t have consensus on what to do,\u201d Rev. Regis recalled.\u00a0<\/span><\/p><\/blockquote>\n

Located in the largest Black, middle-class neighborhood in Ohio, the deaths of several church members due to COVID-19 left this place of worship struggling.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Then God started moving. Disciples Church Extension Fund<\/a>\u2019s New Beginnings<\/a> Director Rev. Gilberto Collazo was conducting visits in the Ohio Region<\/a>, so he and Pastor Bunch had lunch. That meeting began the journey toward New Beginnings and uncovered new possibilities for Fifth Christian Church.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Collazo advised Rev. Regis to prayerfully consider what God might be up to among them and to utilize New Beginnings to start again.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cIt was an in-depth, powerful assessment process,\u201d Rev. Regis shared. \u201cNew Beginnings was exactly what we needed. I said, \u2018Ok, God. I hear you!\u2019\u201d\u00a0<\/span><\/p><\/blockquote>\n

\"\"The assessment helped the faith community examine its current resources \u2013 people, property, and finances \u2013 and identify its neighborhood\u2019s needs, from helping with extreme poverty to addiction recovery.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

It also named the harsh reality that Fifth Christian was not only mourning the loss of congregants who had passed, but also the glory days of its 60-year-old church.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

As Fifth Christian Church began to heal, it found that it could tap into other parts of its identity that had long been dormant, such as lay leadership.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

New Beginnings saw the congregation engage in some difficult conversations, but it also \u201chelped us count our blessings,\u201d Rev. Regis revealed.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cOur building is not large, but it\u2019s relatively new,\u201d he explained, \u201cand it\u2019s paid for!\u201d<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

\"\"With the influx of additional participants, which Rev. Regis gathered to help breathe life into the church, old programs were re-ignited, including Disciples Men and Women\u2019s ministries. Rev. Regis was asked to step into the senior pastor role full-time and see the congregation through the process. Ultimately, the congregation voted to pursue redefining its mission. A small group gathered to write its future story, which would help the church imagine its future. New deacons and elders have been ordained to lead the relaunch guided by a new, clear mission: to be a sanctuary for those who have also suffered through pain and trauma. As the church embraces its journey of death, mourning, and ultimately, healing, Rev. Regis is hopeful. They are by no means out of the woods, but he knows the congregation is listening for the Spirit\u2019s guidance to learn how they can use their journey to support others.<\/p>\n

\u201cOK, God. We hear you!\u201d he laughed.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

Is your church in need of a new beginning? We can help you find your way. Connect with Rev. Gilberto Collazo, gcollazo@disciplescef.org<\/a>, 800.274.1883, today.<\/i><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

When Fifth Christian Church (Disciples of Christ) in Cleveland, Ohio called Rev. E. Regis Bunch to serve as Transitional Pastor, its community of faith stood at a crossroads.\u00a0 \u201cThe congregation knew they were experiencing a deep decline, but they didn\u2019t have consensus on what to do,\u201d Rev. Regis recalled.\u00a0 Located in the largest Black, middle-class […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":11,"featured_media":6397,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_et_pb_use_builder":"","_et_pb_old_content":"","_et_gb_content_width":"","om_disable_all_campaigns":false,"_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_active":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_note":"","_monsterinsights_sitenote_category":0,"footnotes":""},"categories":[1,5],"tags":[165,167,166],"acf":[],"aioseo_notices":[],"yoast_head":"\n'We hear you, God!\u2019 Fifth Christian Church finds new life in mission<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Located in the largest Black middle-class neighborhood in OH, the deaths of many members left Fifth Christian Church struggling.\u00a0Then God started moving.\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/disciplescef.org\/blog\/hear-god-fifth-christian-church-finds-new-life-mission\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"'We hear you, God!\u2019 Fifth Christian Church finds new life in mission\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Located in the largest Black middle-class neighborhood in OH, the deaths of many members left Fifth Christian Church struggling.\u00a0Then God started moving.\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/disciplescef.org\/blog\/hear-god-fifth-christian-church-finds-new-life-mission\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"Disciples Church Extension Fund\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2024-09-03T17:02:57+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:modified_time\" content=\"2024-09-03T17:10:55+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/disciplescef.org\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/08\/Fifth-Christian-featured-image-1024x576.png\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:width\" content=\"1024\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:height\" content=\"576\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:type\" content=\"image\/png\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"Nadine Compton\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"Nadine Compton\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"3 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\/\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/disciplescef.org\/blog\/hear-god-fifth-christian-church-finds-new-life-mission\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/disciplescef.org\/blog\/hear-god-fifth-christian-church-finds-new-life-mission\/\",\"name\":\"'We hear you, God!\u2019 Fifth Christian Church finds new life in mission\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/disciplescef.org\/blog\/#website\"},\"datePublished\":\"2024-09-03T17:02:57+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2024-09-03T17:10:55+00:00\",\"author\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/disciplescef.org\/blog\/#\/schema\/person\/261addc56a3c765121fb87edb1633629\"},\"description\":\"Located in the largest Black middle-class neighborhood in OH, the deaths of many members left Fifth Christian Church struggling.\u00a0Then God started moving.\",\"breadcrumb\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/disciplescef.org\/blog\/hear-god-fifth-christian-church-finds-new-life-mission\/#breadcrumb\"},\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"ReadAction\",\"target\":[\"https:\/\/disciplescef.org\/blog\/hear-god-fifth-christian-church-finds-new-life-mission\/\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"BreadcrumbList\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/disciplescef.org\/blog\/hear-god-fifth-christian-church-finds-new-life-mission\/#breadcrumb\",\"itemListElement\":[{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":1,\"name\":\"Blog\",\"item\":\"https:\/\/disciplescef.org\/blog\/\"},{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":2,\"name\":\"‘OK. 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