January 22, 2012

Dear Members and Friends of Covenant,

Last November, Covenant was approached by a leadership team from Impacto de Fe (Impact of Faith), a Latino Assembly of God congregation here in Athens, about the possibility of using our facilities for worship, Christian education, and fellowship on a temporary basis. Currently Impacto de Fe has about 125 members and is housed at the Cornerstone Church on Lexington Road. However, because of schedule changes there and the fact that Cornerstone is trying to sell their current property in order to build a new campus, a move for Impacto has become necessary.

I shared this request with the Session, which in turn charged Randy Parish, Peter Givens, and myself to meet with Impacto’s team and consider the implications of such a partnership. After several productive meetings and a consultation with presbytery, we are now in the process of drafting a covenant between our two congregations. Once completed, the Covenant Session will discern whether or not to move forward and welcome these neighbors to make use of our facilities. While the details of that covenant have not yet been worked out, we want you to be aware that no long-term commitments will be made beyond an initial six-month trial period. It’s also important to note that Impacto de Fe’s long-term goal is to acquire a building of its own, and not to remain “nested” here at Covenant.

At present, their desire would be to use the building three days a week: a Sunday afternoon worship service from 2:30 to 5:30 pm, and Bible study/fellowship gatherings on Tuesday and Friday evenings from 7 - 9 pm. They have also requested use of either the sanctuary or fellowship hall on one Saturday per month (depending on our schedule) for a revival service. Over and over their pastor, Rev. Javier Manrique, and the elders on the leadership team have emphasized their intention to be flexible so as not to interfere with our current programming or building use by community groups that already meet here. They have also agreed to make significant financial contributions towards utility and upkeep costs, while assisting with any maintenance or refurbishing work we need to do.

My hope is that, if our two congregations are able to achieve a workable covenant, we can enter into a fruitful partnership in ministry, learning from one another about the ways and wisdom of God, and discerning how best to be faithful disciples of Jesus Christ in a city where our neighbors are from every part of this good and multicultural planet. Please make this potential partnership a part of your prayer life, and feel free to express any questions, concerns, or celebrations you may have to me or members of the Session. We’ll keep you posted on how this conversation develops.

Grace and peace,
Mark Harper, Pastor