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Easter Jam: An at-home Easter celebration BIG enough for the whole family
Guest post by Brad Bogue, Senior Director of Family Ministry This year, Easter will look different—way different than any of us ever could have imagined. For many of us, Easter has always meant massive Easter egg hunts, family gatherings, going to church and dressing...
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The Gospel of Easter: We are going to make it
Guest post by Dr. Maxie Dunnam, Minister-at-Large The Gospel is the proclamation of an event -- the event of Jesus Christ. In the Christian view of reality, Jesus is final. Not only is He the revelation of God, He is the revelation of persons. In this event, God has...
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A different kind of Easter but the same cross
Guest post by Douglas Turner, Coordinator of Group Life Yesterday afternoon my daughter shared a dream she had the night before that brought me to tears. This is her last year at Christ Methodist Day School, and for those of you who are not familiar with the school,...
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Confound this virus!
Guest post by Dr. Maxie Dunnam, Minister-at-Large At 10:30 a.m. on Tuesday, nine people gathered for an interment service for my brother-in-law who died the past Saturday. Jerry and I could not be there because the virus has limited all of our coming and going. But we...
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Quarantined, but not down!
Guest post by Jan Ferguson, Financial Secretary, HR Coordinator & Accounting Specialist NOTE: Now that the church staff is working from home and not at 4488 Poplar, we asked several of them to answer this question: How are you quarantining? We will share responses...
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Where is God in this raging Coronavirus?
The following is a sermon Dr. Dunnam presented on 3/26/20 via LiveStream to the residents of Kirby Pines in Memphis, TN Guest post by Dr. Maxie Dunnam, Minister-at-Large The love of Jesus in me greets the love of Jesus in you, and brings us together in the name of the...
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Manna for tomorrow
Guest post by Lance Ingram, Marketing & Communications Specialist Like everyone else, our country’s current health status has me rattled. Since this all started I’ve battled with anxiety, fear, doubt, restlessness and frustration. Where is God in the midst of all...
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Douglas Turner’s creative ways to stay “together”
Guest post by Douglas Turner, Coordinator of Group Life As news reports change daily, we continue to consider ways to do life a little differently to stay connected to friends and relatives. I’m sure many of you are missing your Sunday school friends like I am! A...
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No gym needed: Averwater’s tips for isolation fitness
“May God himself, the God who makes everything holy and whole, make you holy and whole, put you together–spirit, soul, and body–and keep you fit for the coming of our Master, Jesus Christ.” (1 Thessalonians 5:23, The Message) Social distancing as a result of the...
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Serving Memphis during the Coronavirus pandemic
Guest post by Grant Caldwell, Director of Local Missions While cancellations and social distancing might have little effect on many, this comes at a great cost for many of the families we serve through our local ministries. A lack of schools for an additional week...
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FamilyServe opportunities teach children the importance of serving regardless of age
Guest post by Brad Bogue, Senior Director of Family Ministry Randall and Brian Kessler enjoy working with our golf cart ministry on Sunday mornings. The father/son duo loves giving rides and greeting people before and after services. It is not enough to simply tell...
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Confirmands tackle deep questions while having fun at annual Confirmation Retreat
Guest post by Mackay Lee, Director, Student Ministries/Middle School A few weeks ago, our 6th grade students, sophomore student Table Leaders and adult leaders attended our annual Confirmation Retreat. This retreat is a time for our confirmands to deepen relationships...
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60 minutes & 4,000 Easter eggs
Guest post by Mary Ann Thurmond, Lamplighter Communications Coordinator It was 2014 when the church held its yearly Easter egg hunt on the grounds. How fun watching our grandchildren and the different ages run and squeal while picking up the hidden and not-so-hidden...
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Congregational Care has a new name: Care Ministries
One of Christ Church’s five values is Care: Doing Life Together. Rev. Dr. Jacky Gatliff joined the Christ Church staff in December as Director of Congregational Care. As she listened to staff and volunteers who have been involved in this ministry, she realized that...
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CMDS & Scouts Sunday honors the rich tradition of CMDS, Boy Scouts/Girl Scouts
Sunday, Feb. 9 is one of our favorite Sundays of the year as we worship with our Christ Methodist Day School families and also recognize our Boy Scouts and Girl Scouts during the 9:45 service. CMDS is Christ Church’s oldest ministry, and CMDS Sunday was founded to...
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Hospitality to Hope: H2H bags for the homeless
After working with the homeless at Highland Heights UMC for more than 10 years, Christ Church member Linda Headley became acutely aware of the homeless situation in Memphis. “Those on the streets must carry their belongings with them day and night for fear of theft,”...
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Awaken: Unifying the church to pray for and bless the city, one person at a time
In February 2019, God moved in a mighty way as hundreds of churches and tens of thousands of people set aside an entire month to pray and fast for every person—by name—living in the Greater Nashville Area. Awaken, this city-wide movement of prayer and fasting, focused...
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Ukuleles from Christ Church team to Uganda bring music to refugee camp
Al Jazeera, the largest news organization in the Middle East, published this story featuring the Bidi Bidi Refugee Camp that a team from Christ Church visited last summer. Our team took the ukuleles that the translator continues to use to teach music to the children....
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BreakThru ’20: Retreating away from distractions to draw closer to God
Guest post by Mackay Lee, Director, Student Ministries/Middle School It’s 7 p.m. on Monday night. Students are gathering outside of the chapel, anxiously awaiting the doors to open so that they can rush in to get the best seat. The doors finally open -– students storm...
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Celebrating 2019
There’s so much to celebrate as we’ve seen God at work in and through the life of our church this year. Below are just a few highlights as we close out 2019. Please consider us in your year-end giving, and if you have yet to turn in your commitment card for giving in...
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Get to know Rev. Dr. Jacky Gatliff, Director of Congregational Care
We are excited to welcome Rev. Dr. Jacky Gatliff as the new Director of Congregational Care at Christ Church. Jacky and her husband, Mike, lived in Memphis for five years until she accepted a position as the Associate Pastor of Stanwich Church in Greenwich, Conn.,...
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Join in the prayer revolution
God calls us to be a people of prayer, desperately depending on Him to move and transform hearts and lives. At the recent Gather. Train. Pray. Pastor’s Prayer Revolution Breakfast, Senior Pastor Shane Stanford challenged attendees to join him in making Christ Church a...
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Teaching kids JOY in a ‘me’-focused world
Tyree brothers recognized for service by Tennessee governor and first lady NOTE to PARENTS: Don’t miss a special opportunity to teach your children how to develop a heart for serving. Register now for our Families on Mission class on December 6-7 taught by our Local...
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Greg Spillyards lives life on vocation
Our church recently began a survey to collect vocational information. We hope to establish a database for sharing opportunities for the intersection of faith and work. We know that our work is important to God, and we are to be good stewards of the opportunities He...
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