A recent article said that a "strategic monkey reserve is exactly what we needed to deal with COVID." Find out why Whitewater Crossing needs a strategic ministry reserve, so we can make room for more!
Did you know there is a strategic monkey reserve?
I didn't either. I read about it in an article this week. Here was the quote that caught my attention: "The strategic monkey reserve is exactly what we needed to deal with COVID, and we just didn't have it," said Keith Reeves, a principal investigator at the Center for Virology and Vaccine Research at Harvard Medical School. He told the New York Times that a shortage of lab monkeys hampered COVID-19 vaccine efforts. Now there's talk of creating a "strategic monkey reserve," similar to what the US has done with oil and grain.
If we need a strategic monkey reserve, you know for sure we need a strategic ministry reserve as well. Now is the time for all of us to step up, step out, and serve Jesus like never before! We need some key volunteers - especially in Harbortown KIDS. Over the last month, we have been experiencing another wonderful problem! Folks are starting to return to in-person worship little by little each week. We hosted over 800 for the first time since the pandemic started. Although we will continue to lean heavily into our online presence and campus, (we have record numbers of folks watching online), we have to also make room for more so we have a strategic reserve of seats!
While we celebrate this increase, we also want to prepare for more people to return between now and Easter, especially those who have been watching online, and may be visiting us on campus for the first time. We are at capacity at the 11am service and actually had to set up chairs in the back for that service last week. If you are attending at 11am, would you be willing to move for a while to 9am? Here's a chance to step up and make room for more!
Easter
I mentioned Easter, and we are preparing now for our greatest Easter experience ever. (For service times and registration for attending in-person, click here.) We will celebrate Graveyards & Gardens!
We are also looking for people wanting to be baptized this Easter - the ultimate picture of death, burial, and resurrection. Please email Shannan Davis (sdavis@whitewatercrossing.org) to get on the list. As I was typing this, I got word from Shannan that we have our first confirmed Easter baptism (Ashley) at the 11:30am service. May her tribe increase!
Jesus in Art
I also appreciated the emails and texts this week about my wonderful artwork last Sunday as I drew Jesus on that whiteboard. I'm glad most of you caught the main lesson, which was, we should always be pointing people to Jesus. That's exactly what John the Baptist did with Jesus. Member, Becky Schneider sent me a couple of Italian Renaissance paintings of John the Baptist that she saw in Italy and France, with John pointing the way to Jesus. They are fascinating (and a tad creepy, too)! Here are two she sent.
Whether you are a European artist or not, let's keep 'pointing' to Jesus! Here's a unique way to do that! One of our members recently ordered and received a new license plate. He wanted to testify as to how great our God is. Love it.
Hope you have a fantastic week as things warm up in (and out of) the church. Let's keep pointing people to Jesus and building up our strategic ministry reserves - including dollars. If you are not a giver in the mission of God at Whitewater, you can sign up here to be an E-giver. Your dollars translate to disciples. It is the greatest investment and reward in the entire world!
Contact Info:
Website: http://whitewatercrossing.org
Email: info@whitewatercrossing.org