Heading into 2020 and beyond, we are undertaking a building renovation project. But not in the traditional sense. Instead, of bricks and mortar, we are putting living stones—people who love God but feel disconnected to any church family—back in place. Watch the short video below.
God has given us the mission of reconciling people to Himself and one another through Christ’s Love. Simple. It's who we are and it has been ever since we first started meeting as a church family in 2001. Our heartfelt desire to meet people where they are at compels us to embrace the disconnected and remind them of who they truly are in and through Christ:
“As you come to him, the living Stone—rejected by humans but chosen by God and precious to him—you also, like living stones, are being built into a spiritual house to be a holy priesthood, offering spiritual sacrifices acceptable to God through Jesus Christ.”—1 Peter 2:4-5
We want to remind people that they are living stones—chosen by God and precious to him—with the divine purpose to build God's kingdom on earth.
Where This Vision is Leading Us
Quite simply, we want to establish a visible and active ministry of presence in Boone. With a simple focus on reaching the displaced church, we see the benefits of adding one large gathering downtown. We'd like to launch Spiritual Formation Groups focused on serving the downtown community. And we want to establish and strengthen our relationships with area businesses, organizations, churches, and campus ministries.
These are just a few ideas we have. There are many more. And we'll spend time together as a church family talking about other ways we can engage the heart of the High Country. We hope you can come to a special Vision Event at the newly renovated Appalachian Theatre on Wednesday, November 20 from 6-7:30pm. Mark your calendar and plan to attend. Parking downtown is free after 5pm.
What Remains the Same
Yes, we want to move forward with a keen focus on actively weaving ourselves into the fabric of downtown Boone. But this does not come at the expense of being fully present in the other places where so many of us work and live.
It's true that a large concentration of people can be found within a 1-mile radius of King Street. But engaging the heart of the High Country extends well beyond the limits of geography. Any missional initiatives we come up with can and should include everyone we come into contact with who feels disconnected from a church family, wherever we might find them.
And while Appalachian Theatre is helping to carry the idea of our building renovation campaign, it doesn't mean that we are leaving Watauga High School. We plan to continue gathering together on Sundays at 9am and 11am at WHS for as long as they will have us.
That being said, we would like to regularly host special events at App Theatre as often as possible. We envision this new cultural jewel becoming a beacon for theHeart as we invite people into a loving relationship with God, Christ, and ourselves.
Come Prepared to Engage
Before you come to the Vision Event on Wednesday, November 20, we encourage you to download our new mobile app. Simply text "theheart app" to 77977.
We will use the app to request your reactions and responses to the ideas we share at the event itself. It will also be a helpful resource for you as we move forward into 2020 and beyond. You will have access to teaching messages, announcements, blog posts, online giving, and more all in the palm of your hand.
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