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Happy Birthday to us!

By David W. Shelton | July 17, 2006 |

I wanted to take a minute to congratulate Church Street Freedom Press on its 2 year anniversary. CSFP is Nashville’s premiere GLBT newsweekly. I’ve long had a soft spot for the folks at CSFP since we’ve gone through the same kind of ups and downs together.

The commitment that CSFP has shown to the GLBT community in Clarksville has shown the kind of leadership that is sorely needed across the state. We are indebted to them in more ways than I can count.

It wasn’t too long ago that I realized that we shared a birthday with CSFP here at Christian Community Church of Clarksville. And, like CSFP, we have been hit with all kinds of verbal violence from those who might have otherwise loved us. Where the paper has gotten all kinds of verbal abuse from another local gossip column, the churches in Clarksville have been abuzz about us. “It’s an antichrist church,” one local pastor said. “It’s a false church,” said another. Oh well, we can only take the hits and move on.

When we founded CCC-Clarksville just over two years ago, Rev. Jerri Ewell and I quickly found agreement and a shared passion for reaching those who have been told they’re not welcome in other churches. Jerri asked me to write a mission statement for the church. I prayed long and hard about it. But in the end, the Lord gave me seven simple words:

Jesus, People, Love, Grace, Outreach, Diversity, and Home.

The “seven words” has been the core of our ministry ever since, and it will remain such. Everything we do falls within those seven words. If a proposed ministry does not somehow touch on all seven of those words, then it won’t be done.

Sound difficult? Not at all. My understanding of Scripture and of the call of Christ on my life has been to embrace all aspects of this ministry in every way. Our first love is of course the Lord Jesus Christ. He alone is the fixation of our eyes, and He is the author and finisher of our faith.

Jerri and his family have since left the area to pursue a long-time dream of theirs in a small retail shop in East Tennessee. While we miss them very much, the calling of our church remains the same. I’ve since been asked by the board to serve as pastor of the church, so we’re not only going to press on in our mission, but our vision is with a renewed sense of passion and purpose.

But why isn’t “faith” one of the seven words? Let me explain. Faith is a ministry as much as it is a belief system. It is required to see the vision and call of this church, and it is required to help fulfill it. Thus, it is a ministry of this church.

Our focus isn’t faith in Christ. It is Christ Himself, where faith can be built. As we fix our eyes on Jesus, we will focus on loving those around us, operating under the power of His grace, engaging in outreach across the city, embracing the vast diversity of the body of Christ, and providing a home for all Christians.

Thus, you begin to see the vastness of our vision and its power of its simplicity. I truly believe that God has brought us here for such a time as this; a time where GLBTQ people are finally beginning to realize that they can indeed be welcome in the body of Christ. And for all who love Jesus and serve Him, we provide that home.

So let me talk about some specifics. First, our primary focus is worship—of the living risen Lord Jesus Christ. My key focus has been to “fix our eyes on Jesus,” as Hebrews 12:2 says. But worship is a lot more than music and singing, it is passionately pursuing all that he has for us as individuals and as a body. This can be done whether it’s two or two hundred… or two thousand.

Our next goal is to build a committed body of believers who will stand arm-in-arm under the banner of Jesus Christ and Him alone. This group of Christians will not be identifiable by their race, sexual orientation, or their sex. They are Christians, period—followers of Christ. We will provide education, Bible studies, and information to help build their faith and understanding of the mission of this church.

Next, we will stand with all of those who will stand with us to bring about unity and strength across the entire community. Outreach is not only for individuals, but for other churches. We do not exist in a vacuum or on an island; but rather as a part of the body of Christ as a whole.

Our ultimate goal is to provide physical outreach to those who are in need; whether with HIV-related issues or homeless, or just down. Counseling will be offered by qualified people and we will do all we can to meet people where they are.

I’m proud to be associated with people who have such a clear vision for reaching the community. It’s hard sometimes, but it’s worth it.

So…happy birthday, Freedom Press. Happy birthday to all of us!

About David W. Shelton

Posts by David W. Shelton are copyright (c)2006, 2007, 2008 by the author. All rights reserved. David W. Shelton is a writer, speaker and activist in Clarksville, and serves on the Clarksville Human Relations Commission. His passions include film and complete equality for all people, and he has worked in various capacities to work toward this goal. He is currently an illustrator, graphic designer, trainer, and is the owner of Imagine Media Solutions. He is an Adobe® Certified Instructor in Photoshop®.

Web Site: http://www.skippingtothepiccolo.com/

Email: dwshelton@att.net