Fr. William's "Annual Report Sermon" from Annual Meeting 2021
The Apostle Paul’s offers here a stunning prayer, asking God to transform the Ephesian Christians into EVERYTHING they’ve always wanted to be in the Lord, and everything Christ saved them to become. The Ephesians were living in the shadow of the MASSIVE cult of Artemis, strangers in a city that cared nothing for their God or Gospel. They were up against so much, and their journey of faith was so hard. Yet 2,000 years later, there is no more cult of Artemis…but there is still a church of Jesus Christ. God must have answered Paul’s prayers, and given the Ephesian Christians all they needed to persevere, grow, and flourish. And when I think about what God has done in the past year of our life together at The Mission Cincinnati, I believe God’s provision and movement in OUR midst TODAY, has been similar to what He did amongst the Ephesians. That through the challenges, pivots, and hardships of 2020, God was faithful to answer our prayers to grow us more fully into the church family we’ve always TALKED about being, the church Jesus died for us to become.
Specifically, I think God has moved to do 4 things in our midst this past year:
1) He’s given us CHRIST’S LOVE for one another
2) He’s given us servant-hearts
3) He’s made us generous to the world and
4) He has raised up new leaders and systems
He’s given us Christ’s love for one another. We often TALK about real friendship across difference and being a church who actually likes and does life with those we worship with. And this year, even as COVID made it hard to gather in large groups, God grew us together in SMALL ways. What I remember best from 2020 weren’t big loud events, but personal moments with small groups: sharing communion at a picnic table with 6 guys on our Men’s rafting trip, welcoming first-time visitors in the circles of our park gathering, hearing the testimony of Sarah Gorak experiencing God’s love and welcome through Bekah & Charles’ Intersection group. Watching the Mission Moms pack hygene kits for the Evanston Food pantry in the darkness just because they wanted to serve and bless others. Hearing of the joy of those who moved to the city and experienced welcome in our church, and the overwhelming amount of love some of you have felt when you’ve been hospitalized and others in our church prayed for you or made you meals. There’s a difference between saying you love someone and FEELING affection for them. Jesus wept when he heard that Lazarus died because he not only loved him in the churchy spiritual way God is SUPPOSED to, but ALSO because Lazarus was his friend for whom he FELT affection, and whom he MISSED. In these days, I believe Jesus has ministered to our church by growing the affection of Jesus in our hearts for one another.
He’s given us servant hearts. I cannot express how PROUD I am of this church for the ways you have SERVED in this year. You’ve kept showing up to worship Jesus across 4 worship locations. Some of you who have never used cameras before filmed liturgy segments and sent them to us so we could include you in online worship. Our musicians spent hours recording tracks used in our own online services as well as 2 National Anglican conferences and the South Avondale School Christmas program. You’ve given rides to church, the grocery store, and doctor’s appointments to those who can’t drive themselves. Charlene Davidson has started a ministry of writing care cards to those in our church who are hospitalized or celebrating newborns. For 3 months a faithful group of intercessors from this church gathered out of nowhere to start PRAYING for YOU, for US and for our city. Our Community Group leaders opened their driveways and backyards, went on walks, and shared zoom calls just to make space for people to be together. 8 of our church’s medical professionals gave time to advise us on COVID-19 protocols for gatherings. You’ve reached out to each other with words of encouragement, you’ve stacked chairs and run sound and done everything possible to ensure that Jesus is glorified, and people are welcomed and loved. Christ understood His identity as a servant, as one who had come not to BE served but to serve. This year, God worked in our hearts to grow our capacity and desire to serve…in the image of our servant King.
God has made us generous to the world. Looking at your annual report, you’ll see that in 2020, God allowed us to give away over $24,000.00 to meet the needs of our congregation, community, and local and regional ministry partners. Even as our own church’s income was less than expected due to COVID, and the moving away of several very generous members, we tightened our own belts and opened our hands. We received a PPP loan that helped us meet our financial obligations. We reduced expenses, and were good stewards of the generosity of those who believe in us. And God blessed us with opportunities to help purchase a bus for FOCAS ministries to rescue women out of sex trafficking, to provide 20 baskets of school supplies to needy elementary students, to buy all of the healthy snacks for the whole summer for all of the 36 kids at the Evanston Rec Center’s summer program, to purchase, pack, and deliver 590 hygeine kits for the Evanston Food Pantry and Queen City Prepratory Academy, to cover utility payments and emergency housing and clothing for our own members and others in our city, to support the ongoing work of local ministry partners like Urban Young Life, CCO, and our regional diocese. Jesus taught that it is more blessed to give than to receive. And this year God has shown us that. You, church, have given joyfully out of love for Jesus and neighbor. And God has given back to us more through His Holy Spirit than we could have ever imagined.
Fourth and finally, God has raised up new leaders and systems. Among other things, today we are celebrating the fruit of God’s work over this past year in-and-through our Mission Council members to craft new bylaws that will help protect and steward well the people and resources God has entrusted to our church. We also celebrate the leaders God has raised up from among our congregation to help oversee our finances and guard and advance our church’s vision and mission. We also celebrate the launch of Mission Pathways and the 50 adults who are moving through this process…which over the next year, we believe will raise up so many new leaders for serving teams, small groups, future vestry classes and other ministry. We still have much room to grow as a congregation in pursuit of Christ—we are not yet financially self-sufficient as a church, there are many important ministries we need to create in order to truly make disciples and love our city well, there are many leaders we still need—but by God’s grace we are GROWING STRONG and our future in the Lord is bright. We are truly a maturing church plant…and today is a benchmark and celebration of that growing maturity.
And so, I invite us to celebrate what God HAS done in this past year, and to prayerfully expect all He WILL do in this next year. Let us lift up our own hearts and lives before the Lord with open hands and ask with John Wesley in His covenant prayer for the Lord to “put us to what He will in 2021.” Mission Cincinnati, may the Lord bless you and keep you…and may He establish the work of your hands…even as He is faithful to work in and through us all to build His church here at The Mission…for God’s glory and our world’s good.
Fr. William Eavenson