Why Preview Gatherings?

News | by Pastor Adam Sinnett

This fall Downtown Cornerstone is hosting three preview gatherings that form a mini-series, “The City of God”, in which we’ll unpack our core values as a newly forming church in the downtown core of Seattle. You can learn more here. Some have asked, “Why have preview gatherings? Why not just start services?” Those are good questions. The reasons behind this particular strategy are as follows:

First, offering weekly Sunday gatherings requires substantial time, coordination and resources. By offering monthly gatherings we are freed to focus our primary energy on multiplying communities, continuing to build relationships in the city and raising necessary funding.

Second, monthly gatherings allow others to drop-in, learn more about what we’re doing, and consider joining us at the ground level. We’re still in the formative stages as a church, and monthly gatherings will give us an additional channel by which to grow the Downtown Cornerstone launch community.

Third, monthly gatherings will allow us to introduce a new rhythm of gathering corporately into our church life, while also working out inevitable production rough spots. We believe in centrality of the corporate gathering and the power of the preached word.

Fourth, we are not quite ready. If we were to go to a weekly gathering format now, many of our people would be tied up volunteering and unable to participate. This would inevitably lead to burn out and compromise the mission.

Fifth, we know that many folks may not be comfortable joining us in community but would be comfortable joining us in a more public setting. We want to connect with all people of the city.

Sixth, we’re holding all of this very loosely. We are praying and planning to a weekly gathering format by mid-January, but may maintain our monthly gatherings should certain benchmarks not be met.

To be honest, this is much less about strategy than giving this young church ample time to take shape and live on mission with Jesus in the city.

But you are a chosen race, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people for his own possession, that you may proclaim the excellencies of him who call you out of darkness into his marvelous light. Once you were not a people, but now you are God’s people; once you had not received mercy, but now you have received mercy. (1 Peter 2:9-10)

We hope you’ll join us as we continue to follow Jesus in building a great city through the gospel for the glory of God, beginning this Sunday (Oct 24th) at 5:00pm. More information here.