How good and pleasant it is when brothers live together in unity. Psalm 133:1
This Sunday Celebration Church will join our New Life family in a merger of two churches and we are thrilled to welcome them. For the past few months, the elders and leaders of Celebration have sensed that a transition was happening with their Senior Pastor Barry Farah. Several options were considered, but after much prayer, the team decided to encourage their congregation to join New Life.
It is truly remarkable to see such unity among two churches in the same city. Instead of competing and comparing, we have decided to complement the work that is happening in both congregations. Many of the ministries happening at Celebration will continue on our campus and they will also strengthen and come alongside the existing works at New Life.
This certainly was not an easy decision to close the doors of a successful and healthy church and I am sure the transition for many of the Celebration members will be emotional and difficult at first. At New Life, we are hoping to create a welcoming and warm environment to help them feel at home right away. We are setting aside some reserved seating for a few Sundays so they can worship with familiar faces and we are hosting a lunch for them the first week so they can meet our ministry team.
The leaders at Celebration have done a thorough job of communicating and answering questions, but still, blended families take time to bond and trust one another. I do feel God’s smile on this, though, because I am certain God loves when his people dwell together in unity.
For there the Lord bestows his blessing, even life evermore. Psalm 133:3