Calvary Chapel of Morris Hills

website- www.ccmorrishills.org
On Sunday, June 18th, we attended worship at Calvary Chapel of Morris Hills in Dover. This new congregation is less than two years old, so we got to see how a church operates in its early phases of ministry. I was pleasantly surprised at how much was accomplished at so early a stage. The Pastor, "Pastor Jim", spoke on the opening verses of Paul's letter to the Galatians. It was a clear teaching, with many applications to our lives at this point. Especially, I was impacted by his reminder of Paul's CALL to be an Apostle, and the fact that God's calling is RECOGNIZED, not VALIDATED (or invalidated) by man. Then, we as believers recognize what God has already done, and we move ahead based on God's calling despite the obstacles, problems, or criticism that we may receive in the fulfillment of God's call. That's a good reminder for all of us. God HAS a calling for all of us, and we need to find out what it is, and do it!
Calvary Chapel is a church planting movement based on the vision of Chuck Smith in the mid-1960's, and the Calvary Chapel in Costa Mesa, California. At that time,"Contemporary Christian Music" was unheard of, and there was little to no outreach to the "hippies" and young people who were searching for answers in the mid-1960's. Chuck Smith formed one of the largest churches in America at that time, reaching out to the "hippies"- and thus, the "Jesus Movement" was begun (of which I am a product). The movement still seeks to reach many of our young people who are "counter-culture" in our day, who have been turned off by traditional churches. Pray that God continues to bless this wonderful new church in our area.

Vroom St. Evangelical Free Church, Jersey City, NJ

On June 11th, we attended worship at the "Vroom Street Evangelical Free Church" in Jersey City, NJ. The pastor, Bill Sweeting has been a friend through the "Concerts of Prayer" organization. His wife, Katie, is the assistant director of Concerts of Prayer- New York. This was truly a picture of what a "multi-ethnic" church should be. In attendance were white, black, Hispanic, Philippino, Asian Indian, etc., etc. You could see how the church has made "adjustments" to accommodate the other groups. The blending of all of these people into one congregation has been both a challenge and a blessing. It is a truly balanced ministry, and it was inspiration to experience the richness of many traditions into "one church". Pastor Bill spoke plainly and powerfully about how God speaks to us today- especially through His word, but also through Godly friends and family, through circumstances, even through suffering. Katie and Bill have a definite vision for multi-ethnic ministry, and for work in the inner cities. Pray for them, and for this ministry as the congregation is in a "rebuilding" phase, and is a church in transition from a dying congregation into a live, vital ministry that is beginning to grow again. As an interesting side, Eric's (Sarah's fiancé's) grandfather, Pastor Neil Brohm, was the pastor of the Vroom St. Church in the mid to late 1970's. I believe that he would be proud of what that church has become, and how it has adjusted to minister to the community in this neighborhood of Jersey City. Another side- this church is also 3 blocks away from Sue's and my sister-in-law, Soni! Soni & her mom attended with us and loved it.