Discipleship, Teaching | by Pastor Craig Sturm

Downtown Cornerstone,

The Holy Spirit, through the inspired pen of James, reveals this grand truth: “Every good gift and every perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of lights, with whom there is no variation or shadow due to change.” (James 1:17)

Our consistent challenge is to live and order our lives in such a way that honors God, the Great Giver, by being good stewards of the entirety of our lives—including our financial resources and our various seasons of life.

Starting this week, you have an opportunity to learn a biblical perspective on these two topics through two helpful classes:

• Financial Stewardship: During this five-week class, we’ll examine what Scripture has to say about our finances, how we’re to use them, and the dangers to avoid. We’ll also cover practical topics such as budgeting, saving, getting out of debt, investing, and more! This class will be taught by Pastor David Parker and DCC members Bryan and Lisagrace Alsbury. Register here
• Singleness: This five-week class will cover a basic theology of singleness, and tackle questions like "What is the gift of singleness that Scripture talks about?" and "How can I find contentment amidst singleness?" Singles are encouraged to join in but this class would also benefit anyone who lives in community with singles. This class will be taught by Kyle Stewart, DCC staff member and deacon. Register here

Both these classes begin this Wednesday, February 10th at 6:30PM. To ensure availability, and to help us better prepare for the start of class on Wednesday, we ask that you register by Tuesday, February 9th.

Let me strongly encourage to take advantage of whichever of these you deem would be most helpful for you in your life right now. I truly believe that the investment of your time will yield the fruit of spiritual growth in your life.

Lastly, if you are new with DCC, I would encourage you to start with the Foundations Class which takes place at the same time. If you have any questions, email us at .

For the increase of your joy in Jesus, and the more clear magnification of God’s glory in your life,

Pastor Craig

Missions | by Pastor David Parker

Downtown Cornerstone,

As Pastor Adam preached on this past Sunday, one of our prayers from the beginning of planting this church is that we’d be a church-planting church. Meaning, that we’d be able to raise up and send out our people to be a part of planting other churches, both in this city and in cities around the world.

To that end, we've created intentional discipleship pathways for developing ministry leads, community leads, women's discipleship leads, deacons, elders, church-planters, and pioneer global missionaries. All so that more people would come to know, love, and trust Jesus—and be equipped to make other disciples!

Because there are still thousands of people groups around the world that have never heard the gospel (and live in some of the hardest to reach places), it means that Jesus' church (us!) need to spend extra effort in considering how we might be able to take the gospel to these places.

In light of the immense task that is still unfinished, a few years ago we created our Global Missions Development Pipeline to help provide a pathway of learning and growth for those considering becoming pioneer church-planting missionaries.

Maybe after the sermon this Sunday, you are wondering if the Lord is inviting you into being one of the ones that "goes?!" Or perhaps you are interested in learning more about frontier missions so that you could be a better sender and equipper. Whatever the case, let me give you 5 opportunities that you could begin exploring today:

#1 Pray

Visit the joshuaproject.net and begin praying for the thousands of unengaged and unreached people groups that have never heard the Gospel.

#2 Become a member

Begin serving, become known by a pastor, and start growing in learning how to love and serve our family here first. Our next Foundations Class starts in two weeks, and you can learn more and register here.

#2 Learn

Join one of our quarterly missions meet-ups or our next missions class to grow in your love and heart for the nations. Our next meet-up will be on Sunday, March 14th, and the next missions class will start on Wednesday, April 14th. Registration forthcoming.

#4 Read

A great place to start learning about how our church defines missions, and how the local church is central to God's unfolding story, is by reading Missions, by Andy Johnson.

#5 Join the Missions Cohort

If you're already a member of DCC, and are seriously exploring what it might look like to give your life for the greatest cause in the world, learn more here, and talk to one of the pastors about joining the Missions Cohort.

DCC, because we are all gospel carriers, let’s keep praying that Jesus would raise up more men and women in our church that want to live and proclaim the gospel boldly and that we’d get to see more churches planted in Seattle and around the world!

-Pastor David

Ethnic Harmony, Event, Teaching | by Pastor Justin Keogh

Downtown Cornerstone,

Conversations on topics of race, justice, and racial reconciliation can be challenging, even within the church. It can be hard to know where to start, hard to approach sensitive topics that are politically charged, and hard to love those whom we disagree with. Yet, such conversations are an essential step in growing in our ability to bear one another's burdens (Gal. 6:2) and building one another up in love (1 Thes. 5:11), and especially so, as we are an increasingly diverse people in an increasingly diverse city.

Over the last few years, we've had many opportunities to engage topics of racial injustice and racial reconciliation, including pastoral notes, forums, writings, sermon illustrations, and book studies. We want to continue creating space for us as a people to think biblically about these topics—understanding the sins of racism (Jas. 2:8-9), understanding the equality and value of all humans as God's image-bearers (Gen. 1:27), and understanding God's heart for the marginalized (Isa. 58:6-11). We want to grow in our ability to speak the truth in love with each other (Eph. 4:15-16) and seek to demonstrate love toward one another as brothers and sisters in Christ (Jn. 13:34-35).

A Forum on Racial Harmony | This Sunday at 1PM

This Sunday, as part of our New Year Essentials sermon series, Pastor Adam will be preaching on 1 John 4:13-21, highlighting the need for God's love to shape our racial reconciliation. That afternoon at 1pm, we're going to host a Forum on Racial Harmony, as an opportunity to continue the conversation with one another, anchored in the text and sermon that morning. This forum will be a combination of small group discussions and larger Q&A with some of our elders. Whether you've been engaging in this conversation for decades or you're just getting started, I'd highly encourage you to join us on Sunday.

REGISTER HERE

Additional Opportunities to Engage With Us

#1 Book Study
Following the forum, in February, we will be starting a new book study discussing Dr. George Yancey’s book Beyond Racial Gridlock. This book has been helpful to many in our body as we seek to understand each other’s perspectives on racial issues and work together to create a distinctly Christian approach. If you’re interested in joining this study, please fill out this brief form by Friday, 1/29.

#2 Church Center Group
We have a Racial Reconciliation group on Church Center to help us connect, share and discuss content, and ways to take action together. Join the conversation by signing up here.

#3 Racial Reconciliation Resources
We've also assembled a number of helpful resources on our Racial Reconciliation page. You can find past DCC sermons, pastoral notes, and blog posts on topics of race, as well as recommended books, podcasts, and articles from a variety of gospel-centered voices.

I am praying that our church would be built up through this event and our continuing dialogue as we listen, love, and act together. I hope you’ll join the conversation!

In Christ,
Pastor Justin

Mercy Ministries, Mercy Update | by Pastor Justin Keogh

The Mercy Ministry Updates are a regular snapshot of our Mercy Ministries in DCC, where we are working to serve and uphold the value and dignity of God’s most vulnerable image bearers in our city. For more regular updates in each focus area, please request to join our Mercy Focus groups in Church Center (linked below).

Gospel Framework

The Bible, as God’s inspired word, displays God’s good design and our radical need for a savior, found only in Jesus, and calls us to live out our new identity in Christ as we engage the world around us.

“Is not this the fast that I choose:
to loose the bonds of wickedness,
to undo the straps of the yoke,
to let the oppressed go free,
and to break every yoke?
Is it not to share your bread with the hungry
and bring the homeless poor into your house;
when you see the naked, to cover him,
and not to hide yourself from your own flesh?
Then shall your light break forth like the dawn,
and your healing shall spring up speedily;
your righteousness shall go before you;
the glory of the LORD shall be your rear guard."
– Isaiah 58:6-8

In this passage in Isaiah, God is rebuking the people of Israel for their platitudes of worship. They had been fasting and "going through the religious motions" without a heart set on God nor a life lived according to his instructions.

Israel was God's chosen people—chosen not because of their works but because of God's grace—and God gave them a clear picture of how he wanted them to live as a shining example among the nations, which was characterized by their worship of God (celebration of their vertical reconciliation with God) as well as their care for their neighbors (a demonstration of love in their horizontal relationships).

Jesus, when asked about the greatest commandment, replied similarly, saying that the first thing we must do is to love God with our whole being, and the second thing, inextricably linked, is to love our neighbor as ourselves (cf. Matt 22:34-40). We too, as God's adopted sons and daughters, freely given grace upon grace, are called to love others, even our enemies, in word and deed, as an overflow and reflection of God's love for us in Christ.

MERCY MINISTRY TRAINING: This Sunday, January 17th @ 1PM

Scripture is full of imperatives for us to serve others—not to earn God’s love, but in response to God’s lavish and gracious love for us. But how exactly are we to go about serving those around us in our city? With so much need, where do we start? How can we serve in this challenging Covid season?

In this training, we’ll look at the imperatives in Scripture to serve others as a response to God’s love for us in Christ. We'll introduce our current mercy ministries, discuss ways to serve and pray for those most vulnerable in our city.

If you’ve not had a chance to connect to our Mercy Ministries yet, or perhaps want to learn more about how we’re serving in this challenging season, this training is for you! This will be a live, virtual session, so please register below.

Register

CARENET FUNDRAISER: Through Saturday, January 23rd

This year, coinciding with our annual focus on the sanctity of human life, we are hosting a fundraiser to support our pro-life partner Care Net of Puget Sound—to help assist with the essential needs and services they provide to women facing unplanned pregnancies. Contributing to Care Net helps them operate their many services, from ultrasounds and STD screenings, to prenatal and parenting classes (and much more!)—to anyone who needs them, free of charge.

Our prayerful hope is to be a tangible blessing to Care Net through this fundraiser, helping them as they seek to help women facing unplanned pregnancy choose life for their babies.

Donate

All contributions are tax-deductible, and Care Net will receive 100% of your donation, less any processing fees (if applicable). Please select CareNet Fundraiser as the fund when you donate. A gift acknowledgment will be included in your year-end giving statement.

Stay Connected

Learn more about our Mercy Ministries HERE. Join the focus area city groups in order to hear more regular updates, events, and opportunities to serve:

• Mercy Focus: Foster Care & Adoption
• Mercy Focus: Homelessness
• Mercy Focus: Juvenile Detention
• Mercy Focus: Life Project
• Mercy Focus: Refugees

For the Kingdom,

Pastor Justin