REGISTRATION IS NOW OPEN! 19th Annual LiLY Women’s Conference
Hosted by Grace Communion Cleveland
“Rekindle” For this reason, I remind you to fan into flame the gift of God, which is in you through the laying on of my hands. For the Spirit God gave us does not make us timid, but gives us power, love and self-discipline. 2 Timothy 1:6-7
“Following God’s lead has never been boring or easy, but it has always been filled with an overall sense of peace and joy that can only be explained through God’s presence along the way.” –Mat Morgan
Join us in congratulating Mat on his retirement! We are very grateful for his good and faithful service.
Mat is an elder who has worked for GCI and GCS in various capacities for more than 40 years. He has worked closely with the last four GCI presidents and has served on the Board for many of these years. After receiving his MBA in 1994, he worked in both the legal and financial areas and has been in his current position as Chief Financial Officer since 2005. He is married to Pam, GCI’s Operations Coordinator. Together they have two children, Mathew (wife, Natalie) and Jessica (husband, Johnny) and two grandchildren.
He considers it a privilege to have worked for the church during some challenging years of transition because he has seen God’s hand in the journey at every stage and has “served with some of the most wonderful people in the world.” He looks forward to what God has in store for GCI in the years ahead.
Read on, as Mat’s coworkers pay tribute to him.
“It has been a pleasure and privilege to work for Mat these many years. Never a dull day! I wish him the same busy schedule in his retirement, only with an itinerary of grandkids, fishing, hiking—and not too many difficult questions to ponder—even from a grandchild!” –Cheryl Corson, HR & Risk Manager, Board Secretary, Executive Assistant to the CFO
“I have had the great privilege of working with Mat for the past two years. He has been an excellent leader because he has sought first to be a follower of Christ. It is the love of Christ, his love for him in return, and his compassionate care for God’s people that compels him to serve. I am incredibly thankful to Mat for all of the faithful work he has contributed over the years. Mat’s willingness to participate in Jesus’ ministry has directly impacted my ability to be where I am, serve where I do, witness where God is at work in this moment, and anticipate the future he is leading us towards.
Thank you Mat for the gift you have been to all of us throughout GCI. May you experience abundant blessings and joy in this season ahead of you.” –Cara Garrity, Development Coordinator
“Mat has been such a blessing to our denomination. He helped guide us through some of the darkest times of our transition from legalism into grace. My heart always ached that a man with such a huge heart was put in such a difficult position—but I am extremely grateful for him and his heart.
Mat is one of the most faithful, godly men I have ever had the privilege to work alongside. Mat is the real deal. What you see with Mat—is who he is. He is faithful and consistently striving to be the best follower of Jesus he can possibly be. He works behind the scenes with great humility, constantly pointing people to Jesus and not to himself.” –Mike Rasmussen, Superintendent, North America & Caribbean and Regional Director, Central US
“Mat Morgan has been the consummate steward on behalf of GCI for the past quarter century. I came alongside Mat in 2014 as Superintendent of US & Mexico. Mat and I sat through many meetings together over the past decade, with follow-up meetings to decipher what we heard and to determine what seemed good to the Holy Spirit and us. And we then executed many projects together (some more difficult and complex than others).
Mat and I have different personalities, and yet those differences proved to be complimentary and a benefit for the denomination. We have been a good team and brothers throughout it all. The brotherhood will continue beyond active employment.” –Greg Williams, President
On January 26, 2023, Grace Communion Cleveland took part in a weekend community art event hosted by Coventry Peace Campus, along with other tenants in the building. Our congregation holds worship services each Sunday in the Coventry Peace Campus building.
The band scheduled to play cancelled a few days before, and the trio, “Half Craic’d Brothers,” stepped in to provide the musical entertainment. They are a Celtic band whose multi-talented string and bodhran player is Dan Hulse, our Hope Avenue champion.
Our members interacted with the community as the lively music filled the space. Our popcorn machine from the 1980’s era sent a wonderful aroma of fresh popcorn through the building and supplied a delicious snack for all in attendance.
Lake Erie Ink, a creative writing place for kids, and Artful Cleveland, a group of artist’s studios who also lease space in the building, held interactive workshops during the evening as well.
It was a fun evening for all who attended.
Pat Shiels Love Avenue Champion, Cleveland, OH, US
And be kind to one another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, even as God in Christ forgave you. Ephesians 4:32 (NKJV)
Ash Wednesday begins our Lenten journey to Easter. A reoccurring Easter Preparation or Lenten theme is forgiveness. We remember the words of Jesus from the cross, “Father, forgive them, for they know not what they do,” as an invitation to receive and extend forgiveness.
Perhaps your heart has a hard time embracing forgiveness. We have all been hurt or offended by someone in our lives, and the thought of forgiving them seems like an impossible task. Well, guess what? You’re right. It is an impossible task on your own. It is only through participation in the forgiveness that has already been done by God that we are able to forgive. When Jesus said, “It is finished,” he was speaking of forgiveness as well. God’s forgiveness is unconditional.
When the Father sent his one and only Son to reconcile us and bring us back into a relationship with him, Jesus took full responsibility for all our faults, failures, and sin and dealt with them on the cross, once and for all! It’s a done deal and you had absolutely nothing to do with it. There is no condemnation. There is no record of wrongs. There is only mercy, grace, and love.
As we allow these revelations to take deep root within our souls, we begin to enjoy God and revel in his sheer goodness. When we are able to “live” in the reality of the Father’s forgiveness and acceptance in Christ, our hearts are able to relax and extend grace and forgiveness to others.
Prayer Merciful God, help me experience the full weight of grace and forgiveness in my heart, so much that it simply and easily radiates out of my very being to those around me. Amen.
As we find ourselves in the season where we rehearse the earthly life and ministry of Jesus, it turns my mind toward the way Jesus equipped and developed the disciples. He used a dynamic combination of teaching and modeling to pour into their lives, and all the while wrapped into a relationship of interaction and friendship.
Jesus did not allow ministry to be a spectator sport. He used everyday opportunities to train his disciples to see and serve (“see” because people have value and worth). The feeding of the 5,000 is a marvelous narrative of how Jesus equipped his followers.
In John chapter 5, Jesus spent a lengthy session of teaching about his authority and how he is doing the work of the Father. These works testify to who he is, the Messiah. Then we read in chapter 6:
Sometime after this, Jesus crossed to the far shore of the Sea of Galilee (that is, the Sea of Tiberias), and a great crowd of people followed him because they saw the signs he had performed by healing the sick. Then Jesus went up on a mountainside and sat down with his disciples. The Jewish Passover Festival was near.
When Jesus looked up and saw a great crowd coming toward him, he said to Philip, “Where shall we buy bread for these people to eat?” He asked this only to test him, for he already had in mind what he was going to do.
Philip answered him, “It would take more than half a year’s wages to buy enough bread for each one to have a bite!”
Another of his disciples, Andrew, Simon Peter’s brother, spoke up, “Here is a boy with five small barley loaves and two small fish, but how far will they go among so many?”
Jesus said, “Have the people sit down.” There was plenty of grass in that place, and they sat down (about five thousand men were there). Jesus then took the loaves, gave thanks, and distributed to those who were seated as much as they wanted. He did the same with the fish.
When they had all had enough to eat, he said to his disciples, “Gather the pieces that are left over. Let nothing be wasted.” So they gathered them and filled twelve baskets with the pieces of the five barley loaves left over by those who had eaten.
After the people saw the sign Jesus performed, they began to say, “Surely this is the Prophet who is to come into the world.” Jesus, knowing that they intended to come and make him king by force, withdrew again to a mountain by himself. John 6:1-15 NIV
Notice all the times Jesus involves his disciples in serving and interacting with the people during this event. It began months earlier with his original invitation to come and be with him, and in a sense, be his traveling entourage. Inviting others to participate is the first step.
Second, he asks questions of the disciples. I’m guessing he had the challenge of feeding the people already figured out, but he intentionally asks the disciples for their perceptions. Philip recognized they did have sufficient funds in their ministry budget, but then Peter saw the young boy with the fish sandwich “Happy Meal” and thought this could be a partial solution. [A “Happy Meal” is a child’s meal from the fast-food restaurant, McDonald’s.]
Jesus knew that he could work with the fish and loaves. But now he pointed the disciples back to the people: organize them, have them sit in an orderly fashion. Once Jesus had given thanks for the food, the disciples began distributing the food to the people. Have you ever considered that the “all-you-can-eat” supply of bread and fish continued to be multiplied in the hands of the disciples? This went on for a great while, because serving 5,000 people with only 12 waiters is a long lunch hour. Then when the remains of the food were gathered, there were 12 “doggie bags” for 12 disciples—how thoughtful of Jesus. [In the US, a doggie bag is what a restaurant guest uses to take home leftover food.] This was the third step: let the followers be hands-on and learn by doing.
During this miracle, the disciples were learning about the heart and power of Jesus. This story demonstrates how Jesus continued to reveal who he really is. Aren’t we on this continuum as well?
Jesus modeled intentional, practical actions in his relationships with people. He could’ve had the crowd line up and receive the blessing of food from his hands only. Instead, he gave the disciples a hands-on experience in learning to care for others, and get this, how to participate with Jesus. It’s a tangible intuition we need as we operate under his authority and presence as we serve others. This is a much-needed step that demands our attention. And I believe it to be the most important aspect of getting out of the way and providing the clear view to Jesus, the true Prophet and King. You noticed in our story that the crowd did not confuse the disciples for the Lord.
So, what are places and ways we can give our proteges the opportunity to join us, and ultimately join with Jesus as we seek to serve the purposes of the kingdom of heaven? This can be a great conversation among our ministry leaders and ministry teams. It can be as simple as recognizing a need, then seeing a child with simple provisions that can turn into a solution for a crowd of needy people.
The bottom line is that we want to disciple others like Jesus, all the while realizing that we cannot do this without his presence and power. Lord, help us follow in your tracks so that others follow as well, amen!
Lessons from the man with the impure spirit (Mark 5:1-20).
Easter Preparation is the 40-day (not counting Sundays) season preceding Easter in the GCI worship calendar when we individually and corporately acknowledge that Jesus is saving. This year’s dates are February 22 to April 8. During this season we seek to open ourselves to more fully appreciate our deep need for Jesus as we nurture a posture to receive the overflowing graces of Good Friday and Easter.
For some, this season may bring to mind somber traditions of fasting and sacrifice, shame and scorn, striving and suffering, or worst of all, no coffee! For this reason, many of us may be particularly hesitant about this liturgical season. Thus, we miss out on an important time of renewal.
This season is about more than sentiments of suffering, feelings of unworthiness, or acts of arbitrary self-sacrifice. It’s about Jesus and going deeper into relationship with him. We go into the season under the reality and the hope of the resurrection, which changed everything,
In Jesus’ resurrection we encounter humanity’s great hope—the good news that makes sense of the past, gives peace for the present, and provides hope for the future. By leading us to encounter our need for Jesus, Easter Preparation prepares us to receive the good news of our risen Lord anew each liturgical year.
Opening ourselves to an appreciation of our deep need for Jesus is a humbling experience. The Gospel accounts are full of examples of those who came before Jesus in humble recognition of their deep need. There is one account in particular that I want to explore to illuminate Easter Preparation season.
In Mark 5:1-20, Jesus encounters a man with an impure spirit that was beyond the help of human effort. No one was able to save him or even ease his suffering. He lived his life in the tombs amongst the dead. Upon meeting Jesus, the impure spirits knew they had finally met the only one who could save the man they had seized. After an unusual exchange between Jesus and these spirits, we read that the man is found “dressed and in his right mind.” Beyond the help of human hands, this man was saved by Jesus alone.
I believe that in this account, we encounter the heart of Easter Preparation. In more ways than we care to admit, we are beyond the help of human effort. While we may not find ourselves in the exact predicament as this man, apart from Jesus we are also the ones who live our lives in the tombs. We are in deep need of Jesus, and he is the only one who can save us. Read More
The somber recognition that we are like this man from the tombs, beyond the help of human hands, in desperate need of Jesus’ saving grace, is part of Easter Preparation. But the true wonder of Easter Preparation is to recognize that Jesus meets this man right where he was—in the tombs. Jesus meets this man in his most desperate state and gives him new life.
Easter Preparation is the time when we acknowledge that resurrection life comes only beyond the tomb, both Christ’s tomb and our own. By the power and leading of the Holy Spirit, we acknowledge the tombs of our own lives, confronting the things of our lives that lead only to death, as well as the ways in which we live as though we were dead, and we focus on our desperate need for newness of life in Jesus Christ.
It is easy to misuse this season in a way that turns our focus inward towards either shame and scorn for ourselves and all humanity because of our helplessness, or towards efforts to make ourselves worthy by trying to earn our salvation because of a fear or hatred of our helpless state. This is not the heart of Easter Preparation. It is true that by our own efforts, we and all humanity are helpless to save ourselves. Thank God that in Jesus Christ we are not abandoned to this state. In the depth of our helplessness, God found us worth saving, so we do well to surrender self-hatred as well as the idolatrous belief that we can earn our own salvation by good Christian behavior as we encounter our need for Jesus this Easter Preparation season.
Because of who Jesus is, we can boldly encounter our deep need for him in confidence that it is his good will and pleasure to meet our need. During Easter Preparation, we can meet him in the tombs of our own lives, the places of our deepest desperation and need for a Savior, confident that Easter is coming, and indeed has already come. When we allow Jesus to meet us in the places of death in our own life, we will find ourselves prepared to receive more fully the overflowing graces of Easter because we have intimately encountered our need for resurrection life. In recognizing our own tombs, Jesus’ resurrection becomes more than just a nice sentiment or Christian doctrine, but our great and only hope.
Fellow believers, my prayer this Easter season is that we would allow Jesus to meet us in our own tombs, confident that he is our risen King who is eager to share his resurrection life with us. I pray that the Spirit would embolden us to appreciate our desperate need for Jesus in preparation to receive the answer to our desperate state on Resurrection Sunday.
Practically speaking, what does it look like to meet Jesus in the tombs of your life and acknowledge your deep need for him this Easter Preparation season? Here are some spiritual practices to get you started:
Read one of the Gospel accounts with a connect (small) group. As you read, identify with those who express their desperate need for Jesus and pay attention to how Jesus responds to their need for him.
Practice the spiritual disciplines of solitude and silence, paying attention to the tombs in your life where Jesus is seeking to meet you.
Journal without fear about your deep need for Jesus.
Start a praise journal recording the times Jesus has met you in your own tomb and shared his resurrection life with you.
Practice spiritual disciplines of simplicity, decrease, or fasting for the purpose of increasing your awareness of your deep need for Jesus (rather than out of self-scorn or self-effort).
Practice a daily or weekly examen to reflect on God’s presence and the ways he responds to your need for him.
When you fail and when you succeed, take a moment to praise God that it is not by your own efforts that you are saved. Tell him you need him in failure and in success.
Are you considering volunteering, but you have questions?
Check out our Q&A.
Q: The conference is 3+ days. Will I be expected to serve the entire time? Every session? What’s my time commitment? A: Each shift or session is 2.5 hours or less. We ask that you choose and serve for one shift. Of course, you can choose more than one shift.
Q: Do I have to create my own lessons / curriculum? A: No. We will provide a lesson and activity with all supplies for your session.
Q: How many other adults will I be with? A: Depending on the age group, you will be with at least two other volunteers during your shift.
Q: Can I request which age group I help with? If I’d rather serve with teens, can I request that? A: Absolutely. On the sign up, you will see that the shifts are organized by grade/age and times. You can pick any open slot.
Have additional questions or want to volunteer? Please send an email to home.office@gci.org
Then Jesus told them this parable: “Suppose one of you has a hundred sheep and loses one of them. Doesn’t he leave the ninety-nine in the open country and go after the lost sheep until he finds it? And when he finds it, he joyfully puts it on his shoulders and goes home. Then he calls his friends and neighbors together and says, ‘Rejoice with me; I have found my lost sheep.’” Luke 15:3-6
This parable speaks to God’s movement toward each of us being profoundly personal. God seeks and pursues the one. Yes, we are each being sought after individually by God. But if we stop there, could we be missing some of the beautiful imagery and meaning?
In the metaphorical language of Luke 15, to be rescued from wandering, to be saved from individual lostness is only the shepherd’s first saving act. The story is incomplete without the shepherd restoring the lamb to the other ninety-nine. “He finds it … and goes home.” This is important! We have all been gathered back—not just into union with God but into a flock.
Our engagement with one another as active members of the body of Christ matters greatly. It is within this context of the church that we participate in God’s renewal and that we experience being conformed to Jesus’ image.
Be encouraged that your story does not end at Jesus saving you from your personal sin and private darkness. You were saved for life in the Body.
Prayer: Father, Son, and Spirit, open our eyes to the wonder and hope that we belong to one another. Plant it in our imaginations, to be expressed in our creativity, and to be lived in our bodies. Thank you for the privilege of participating with your eternal, loving purposes through your body, the church.
By Elizabeth Mullins Publications Coordinator, Update Editor
