January 2004

Dear Friends in Christ!

For 15 years now, God has been calling us to grow here in Virginia. We are a young congregation in our first church building. As we all know, the community we serve is rapidly expanding. The growth of our congregation has been remarkable - strong evidence of the work of the Holy Spirit in our midst. What an exciting time for us all as we celebrate life together as God's family!

God's call to growth is not simply one of building a larger church. God's call is a deeply personal call to each of us, to grow closer in love and trust of Jesus the Risen Christ, and to share that love with others. God calls each of us to grow -- and to go -- for the sake of the world.

One year ago we "Resurrection People" voted to spend a year focused on growing as faithful stewards of all that God has given us. We called this our "Awakening" program, which had as its theme: "Planting seeds for the Future." Those seeds are the word of God, as described so well in the 4th chapter of the Gospel according to Mark. We encourage all to reread this Gospel as we close out our year of "Awakening." Are we awake yet?

Some of the seeds Jesus tells us about fell by the wayside, some fell on stony ground, some fell into thickets…but some fell on good and fertile soil! Please search your hearts, and evaluate how you personally have received these seeds. We pray that you will join us in breathing deeply of the Holy Spirit and join us in answering God's call to grow.

May the Peace of God, which passes all understanding, keep our hearts and our minds always in the Risen Christ Jesus!

Rev James C. Kniseley and Rev Carol H. Kniseley

February 23, 2003

Dear Friends In Christ,

Our "Awakening" program at Resurrection begins with an excellent study for personal spiritual enhancement called " Sharing the Journey and the Joy."  Your study guide has been placed in your mailbox at the church, and we pray that you will find time each day for prayer and reflection in the readings.  We encourage you to participate fully in one of the many intentional small groups which will be meeting each week for 6 weeks - but if you can't, know that you can at least through the study guide as a family or on your own.  Our sermons each Sunday for the next six weeks will reinforce what you have read during the week.  Pastor Joel Borchelt will be preaching at both services on March 2nd, in effect "kicking off" our year of stewardship.  We are really excited about this program, which is designed to touch the hearts of every member of our flock, both young and old.

Our congregation is at a very important threshold.  We are entering into a year-long, emphasis on stewardship focusing on four major themes:

• Discipline
• Vision
• Resource Development
• Last Transformational Value

We know that the Lord is leading us in exciting ways.  It is our task to build upon what we have together and seek to be as faithful as we can - to God - and to one another.

In the early stages of our "Awakening", we will facilitate a process to identify the feelings, perceptions, and attitudes of our family of faith through an assessment study.  Leaders of our congregation are preparing a brief questionnaire that we will be asking you to complete during the worship service on the 16th of March.  The questionnaire is anonymous, and will take only about 10 minutes to complete.  We will shorten the service to provide time for you to do this in the church - with a nice selection of background music!  The result of this Awakening Assessment will provide valuable input as we choose the next best steps to be take for the future of our congregation.

Please be with us for worship each week, and faithfully participate in the Sharing the Journey and Joy.  Our next big milestone will be our Mission Rally Sunday on the 6th of April at which we need all families to make a commitment to our congregation's future.  We look forward to starting our journey together!

In Christ,

Pastor Jim and Pastor Carol