FORWARD 2.0
April 2024
Dear Friend of Atlantic Shores,
These continue to be exciting days in the life of our church. Did you hear the big news the elders and I shared on Vision Sunday? Atlantic Shores Baptist Church is now Crossway Church.
Our new name matches the fresh vitality in our ministry, just in time for the grand re-opening of our renovated facilities, which we anticipate happening this summer. Officially, we will begin operating as Crossway Church on the first Sunday we return to our main building for worship.
In the meantime, learn more at wearecrossway.org, and bookmark our new website. Also, stay connected by following Crossway Church on social media (@wearecrossway on Instagram and Facebook).
The months ahead are both exciting and critical as we move into our renovated facilities and transition the ministry into the future, giving honor to God every step of the way. I shared the following short-term way forward for our church on Vision Sunday.
- Personal Consecration (May-Jun)
- Building Dedication (Jul-Aug)
- Congregational Celebration (Sep-Oct)
Following Vision Sunday, we begin a season of spiritual preparation with a new sermon series called Spring Cleaning: A Call to Personal Consecration.
FORWARD 2.0: Going the Second Mile
Due to inflationary pricing following the global pandemic, the elder body wisely chose to temporarily delay some aspects of our campus renovation to get the 18-month project started and remain on budget. Now that we are near completion, we believe it is time (and necessary) to add back two renovations which are critical to our future ministry operations.
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Increase our Kid’s Ministry capacity by building out half of the second floor of the kids ministry building, which had been used little by the church and mostly by Atlantic Shores Christian School.
- Build out the administrative wing for ministry staff offices.
After careful consideration and calculation, the elder body believes an additional $500,000 is needed to complete these areas. Our goal is to have these additional spaces ready by the fall, but our contractor says we must begin soon to meet that deadline. However, we can only get started if we know it is paid for by additional church family giving.
Thus, FORWARD 2.0 is a generosity initiative that invites the entire church family to go the second mile by making a short-term (12-month) financial commitment over and above our regular giving. Some can do more than others, but we are praying that everyone can and will do something.
Before Joshua led the Israelites across the Jordan River and into the Promised Land, he challenged them by saying, “Consecrate yourselves, for tomorrow the Lord will do wonders among you” (Joshua 3:5). Expectations are high that the Lord is about to do wonders among us, but not until we consecrate (meaning “devote” and “dedicate”) ourselves completely to Him.
I am asking you to consecrate your finances, as Cathryn and I will do, and prayerfully consider going the second mile by making a FORWARD 2.0 commitment for the next 12-months. If you are new to the church, this is a great opportunity for you to go the first mile by reaching FORWARD to what lies ahead, if you haven’t already done so.
On behalf of the elder body,
Dr. Ron Jones
Lead Pastor
P.S. Prayerfully fill out the confidential FORWARD 2.0 commitment form below, and submit it to the church on or before May 31, 2024, to help the elder body make wise financial decisions about the future of the church. Please calculate your FORWARD 2.0 giving over and above your regular giving.
