Pastor Josh introduces our brand new RE: Series, a reimagining, rethinking, and reclaiming of the language of faith for Progressive Christians. Throughout the COVID-19 crisis, GracePointe will be gathering online at gracepointe.net and at Facebook.com/gracepointetn. Follow @gracepointetn on every social media platform for regular updates and Progressive Christian content, and text "GracePointe" to 77977 to partner with us.
Read MoreDear GracePointe Family,
It is no secret that our way of life is swiftly but temporarily changing due to the coronavirus pandemic. The Leadership Council and Staff have been working furiously over the past 48 hours to create a proactive plan to minimize our community’s exposure to the pandemic, much like we have seen our local and state governments do with respect to school closures, sports cancellations, and limitations on group gatherings. Your safety, health and well-being are our utmost priority.
Our community is not about buildings or houses we gather in–rather, it is about loving on each other and walking together, no matter what the venue or forum. In the interest of our community’s health, we have decided to temporarily suspend in-person gatherings for the rest of March. Starting this Sunday at 10:45am, we will be offering a live-stream service in lieu of in-person services, which will be exactly like you experience when you attend at Clementine, but from the comfort of your home. Believe us when we say that we would much rather see each other in person, hug and love on one another, and share laughs together. But these are unique times that call for drastic measures to protect the community. We will look forward, with even more hope, for our April gatherings, which will include three services on Easter Sunday.
Finally, for the same reasons, we are temporarily suspending all of GracePointe’s community activities through the end of this month. We hope to gather with you again in person come April, whether it is at Re:Construct, Care Groups, Young Adult Meet Up, Books & Brews, or any one of our many other community gatherings.
Please stay safe and healthy. For the most up-to-date information on the coronavirus, please visit https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-nCoV/index.html. Stay tuned to GracePointe social media pages for further updates on gatherings. We love you all dearly and look forward to sharing our Sunday morning services with you online.
In peace and gratitude,
The GracePointe Staff and Leadership Council
Read MoreJust as loving your neighbor starts with loving yourself, forgiveness starts with you. What does forgiveness look like as a practice for Progressive Christians? Pastor Josh dives into the subject for Week 8 of our Rhythm Series. If you're interested in joining in person, we gather every Sunday at 9:00AM and 10:45AM at 4710 Charlotte Avenue, Nashville. Follow @gracepointetn on every social media platform for regular updates and Progressive Christian content, and text "GracePointe" to 77977 to partner with us.
Read MoreIn one of the Genesis Creation Stories, God is said to have placed humans in the Garden of Eden not to dominate or exploit it, but "to farm it and to take care of it." This leads us to ask: How we can embrace Organic Theology? We are dependent on our world and all that is in it, so what if we began to view Creation as a transformative experience? If you're interested in joining in person, we gather every Sunday at 9:00AM and 10:45AM at 4710 Charlotte Avenue, Nashville. Follow @gracepointetn on every social media platform for regular updates and Progressive Christian content, and text "GracePointe" to 77977 to partner with us.
Read MoreFasting and feasting are ancient, sometimes confusing spiritual practices many of us have experienced at one point or another. This week, we ask: How can fasting and feasting inform our practice as Progressive Christians? Note: This recording began slightly later in the message due to a technical error. Our apologies for the inconvenience! If you're interested in joining in person, we gather every Sunday at 9:00AM and 10:45AM at 4710 Charlotte Avenue, Nashville. Follow @gracepointetn on every social media platform for regular updates and Progressive Christian content, and text "GracePointe" to 77977 to partner with us.
Read MoreHospitality is transformative because it connects us to one another. Let's cultivate a personal and corporate practice of welcome, invitation, and openness. It has the power to transform not just our individual selves, but the world. If you're interested in joining in person, we gather every Sunday at 9:00AM and 10:45AM at 4710 Charlotte Avenue, Nashville. Follow @gracepointetn on every social media platform for regular updates and Progressive Christian content, and text "GracePointe" to 77977 to partner with us.
Read MoreHow do we make meaning of Scripture? What purpose does the Bible serve in our spiritual journeys? Join us for Week 3 of our Rhythm Series as Pastor Josh Scott navigates this important subject. If you're interested in joining in person, we gather every Sunday at 9:00AM and 10:45AM at 4710 Charlotte Avenue, Nashville. Follow @gracepointetn on every social media platform for regular updates and Progressive Christian content, and text "GracePointe" to 77977 to partner with us.
Read MoreWhat do we do with prayer? How does it work? Does is it even work? Pastor Josh Scott shares some perspective on this ancient, universal spiritual practice and relates it to a Progressive Christian reframing of faith. If you're interested in joining in person, we gather every Sunday at 9:00AM and 10:45AM at 4710 Charlotte Avenue, Nashville. Follow @gracepointetn on every social media platform for regular updates and Progressive Christian content, and text "GracePointe" to 77977 to partner with us.
Read MoreFor many of us, the practices that grounded our Christian spirituality took on new meaning as we considered a progressive reframing of faith. What are some transformative practices for Progressive Christians? Join us for our Rhythm Series! If you're interested in joining in person, we gather every Sunday at 9:00AM and 10:45AM at 4710 Charlotte Avenue, Nashville. Follow @gracepointetn on every social media platform for regular updates and Progressive Christian content, and text "GracePointe" to 77977 to partner with us.
Read MoreDear GracePointe family,
What a year 2019 has been for our community! As we wind down another year, and look forward to what’s next, I wanted to begin with my gratitude for the way you have embraced our family. The transition into the Lead Pastor role has been smooth and I’ve felt so wonderfully supported. That comes as no surprise, because that is just who GP is–a place of welcome, love, and inclusion. May these things always be present in our relationship to one another!
Looking back on 2019, we have much for which to be grateful. Some of those amazing highlights include:
In the past eight months, our community has more than doubled in size! To accommodate this new growth we added another service time, and have seen more growth since we began this new two-service schedule.
We currently have 17 Care Groups with more than 200 people participating.
This Fall, we added a group for young adults (20-35ish) called “YAM” (Young Adult Meet-up) that regularly has more than 30 participants.
Also, we’ve recently added a Community Care page on our website that allows our leadership to stay up to date on the needs and joys of our GracePointe family.
Finally, just this week we celebrated Christmas Eve together in a jam-packed room at Clementine, in what was one of the most meaningful moments for me in my short tenure here.
Our hope is that, together, we can build on the momentum and growth 2019 brought our way. Some of the opportunities ahead of us include getting a livestream of our gatherings up and going, bringing on an additional staff member to serve our youth (6th-12th grade), and committing ourselves to the good work being done in the world, both locally and globally, by allocating a percentage of our giving to be invested in organizations like Open Table, Room at the Inn, Blood:Water, and other good causes that arise.
GracePointe stands as a beacon of hope for so many, even beyond those of us who participate locally in the Nashville area. We regularly hear from people all over the world, from the West Coast of the US to Australia, who depend on the content we create because they don’t have access to a Progressive Christian community in their own context. It is both an honor and a responsibility that we take seriously. All of these hopes and dreams we carry for the future of GracePointe are dependent on our commitment to engagement and participation. Specifically, we are all invited to serve our community by using our gifts to love, encourage, and support one another. We have forty-plus volunteers that make GracePointe Kids happen each week–you can connect with Lisa at lisa@gracepointe.net. We also have set-up and tear-down crews that make our beautiful space ready for our gatherings. If you’d like to connect in that way, please contact Nathanial at nathanial@gracepointe.net.
The other essential component is our committed and consistent financial support of this work. I mentioned in a teaching back in November that in 2019 our community has more than doubled in size, but our giving has not kept that pace. Since then, we’ve seen improvement, but we aren’t quite there yet. We are so grateful for those who regularly support our community financially. We literally couldn’t do this without you! If you haven’t yet begun to participate in this way, I would ask you to consider the role GracePointe plays in your life and spiritual growth, and commit to supporting in whatever ways you can.
Our hope is to begin 2020 on strong financial footing, so as you make your final 2019 tax-deductible contribution, please consider setting up a recurring payment via PushPay. It is the easiest way to consistently provide support to the GracePointe community, and it also assists us in budgeting throughout the year. We are grateful for each of you and look forward to connecting more deeply with you in 2020!
Gratefully,
Josh Scott
GracePointe’s Lead Pastor on behalf of the Leadership Council and Staff
