But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you, and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the end of the earth. — Acts 1.8
Cornerstone Church exists in order to…
reveal the glory of God through real relationship with Christ and one another. The way we see this mission is fulfilled is through RELATIONSHIP! First with God through Christ, then through the one another's of His bride the church. Jesus said it this way in the Great Commandment and Great Commission:
Love God = Connect to Christ
Love People = Be in Community
Make Disciples = Engage in the Call
I wanted to take a minute and share with you how very proud of you I am as your pastor to see how your faithfulness through this hard season has allowed us to continue to take the Gospel of Jesus Christ to the community we live in and the nations around the globe.
During this 'season of uncertainty' (but our God is always CERTAIN) many churches have chosen to play it safe, hunker down and ride it out. But NOT YOU! Because you have been so generous with your time and talent and treasure; because you have led with love and extended grace, we have seen His Holy Spirit work in power among us as we gather as His Kingdom people. And we have seen Him continue to provide in abundance in very tangible ways as we have doubled-down on our commitment to make a Kingdom impact at home and abroad.
Here are just a few of the highlights of what I mean. I share them so that YOU can share in the joy and so that GOD CAN GET the GLORY:
YOU have increased your giving to the Center for Arizona Policy who, among other things, works on our behalf to help us have the religious freedom to gather in this time.
YOU have supported the children in our community by helping to fund the Head Start summer program to help the at risk students of the Deer Valley School District.
YOU have doubled your support of Choices Pregnancy Center that is on the frontlines of the fight for the unborn and has seen a massive increase in the number of people seeking counsel in their decision to keep the life God is knitting together in them.
YOU have touched the lives of countless families experiencing hardship we cannot fathom in Costa Rica by TRIPLING your support to our ministry partners Mark and Meg Kuzdas and the Christian Light Foundation.
Through your generosity, more than 300 bags of groceries have been delivered to families in the impoverished areas around the La Finca Feeding Center were we also provide 200+ meals to children each a week. Here are some testimonials from families who received the grocer bags this past week:
Thank you very much the good that you are doing with what God has given you. Thank you for helping us, the families that truly need the food at this time!
Thank you for this blessing. It has arrived just in time.
Thank you for this extraordinary blessing! I don’t have anything in this humble home, not even cooking oil. I’m crying tears of joy and relief to see God’s love demonstrated in this bag of groceries. (They said this lady could not stop sobbing.)
Thank you for this much needed food. I am thankful to God for it and I am sharing it with another family that is also in great need. May God bless you!
YOU have gone half way around the globe to help Pastor Geoffrey who runs a little known or supported orphanage in Kenya Africa get their first-ever bathroom. They are digging it by hand, but you are providing much needed support for the materials.
Cornerstone Church! WAY TO GO!!!! Truly! I simply could not BE MORE PROUD to pastor such a precious people. I have NEVER had more fun in my 14 years of full-time ministry even in all the exhaustion and heaviness that we are feeling in this COVID season. I thank YOU and praise the Holy Spirit of our Great God for this!
Beyond any of this, I know that His best is yet to come. So hang on! Hang on to Him!! Hang on to each other!!! And lets continue to ride this wave WITH HIM above the storms of this world. Satan may be a lion on the prowl. But he is also a lion on a leash. Our Savior is THE LION on THE THRONE. And He has already won! We will overcome by the blood of the Lamb and the Word of our testimony! I hope this helps you see that YOUR testimony in Christ is making a difference for His Kingdom!
MUCH love!
—doug