For the first time ever on April 9, 2023, City Coast Church gathered to celebrate Jesus’ resurrection.
I [Charlie] told the serving teams beforehand that I wasn’t sure in the fall of 2022 whether we would still be gathering for worship on Easter 2023. We ‘soft launched’ these gatherings with faith that God would sustain the movement He was initiating.
I also told them that we weren’t promised an Easter celebration in 2024. It’s entirely possible (and preferred) that Jesus will return before next spring! We are a resurrection people living with a restoration hope. So City Coast celebrated Easter 2023 with gratitude and urgency.
Grateful to be together in this place, at this time.
And, aware that this may be the only time we get to do it.
I wonder if that’s the posture we’re to take in all our worship – and in our lives at large. Grateful for the ways we’ve seen God move. Aware that the present moment is a true gift.
The central element of our worship gatherings is the Table. Our time of communion each week is a tangible expression of gratitude and urgency.
We remember the life, death and resurrection of Jesus with the bread and cup. And we pull the past and future into the present while commemorating, confessing, and celebrating together.
This practice, more than the songs we sing and sermons we preach, is forming our community of faith. It connects us to the Church universal and centers our soul on all the promises of God.
Around the Table, we are reminded of who we are and why we exist. We find our identity and purpose.
We overflow with gratitude and live with a sense of holy urgency.
