Ten years ago we launched a ministry with a mission to rebuild, restore and renew hearts and homes in the Harrisburg community, across the nation, and around the world.
When we started in September of 2004, in a renovated warehouse on Seventh Street in uptown Harrisburg, our hearts were filled with excitement. We spent six months in prayer and strategic preparation before we opened our doors to a full house on Good Friday on March 25, 2005. It was a celebration of praise and worship. Then on Resurrection Sunday, March 27, 2005, we held our first Sunday service.
Six months later, in September of 2005, our overseers, Bishop Raphael and Pastor Brenda Green, came to Harrisburg to officially install us as the Senior Pastor and First Lady over the church. Little did we know, that just like Jesus was acknowledged by His Father during His water Baptism and led into a season of trial and testing, we were about to walk the same path.
However, today we can proclaim, ‘To God be the Glory for the things He has done!’ God gave us grace after our failures, wisdom to navigate treacherous passages, favor to overcome opposition, comfort for our seasons of mourning, consolation for our process of grief, light in our darkness, joy in the midst of disappointments, and a new closeness with the Holy Spirit that we could never have imagined if we had not crossed through the wilderness.
In spite of attacks from the evil spiritual forces that seek to control the hearts and homes of this region, the Lord our God still caused our paths to cross with each of you. All that was intended for evil, God has used it for our good.
From chance meetings on our jobs, to unexplainable connections on the internet, God has brought people in and out of our lives and brought this congregation together, one person at a time. We have met in hotel conference rooms, a local church’s classroom, the pastor’s living room, and now we meet in our own space in the United Church Center. It never really matters WHERE we meet. It’s all about the wonderful experience that we share WHEN we meet.
We have laughed together, cried together, danced together, worked together, had our moments of disagreements or misunderstandings, and managed to keep moving forward. We are not a large gathering, but somehow, that really doesn’t matter. We’re doing more than building a big ministry. We’re building people who will do big things for God.
Back in 2012 we took a poll and asked our volunteer team at that time, “What is the one thing that Urban Life is really good at doing? What is the one hallmark of this ministry? The response was unanimous. It’s RELATIONAL. People matter. People feel welcomed. They feel that they belong.
So after ten years, the foundation has been set. The standard of God’s unconditional love has been cemented in our church family. WE have become an assembly where the atmosphere is safe for those who are searching, thirsting and longing for more than what religion has to offer.
In the Bible, the number TEN signifies testimony, law, responsibility and the completeness of order. We believe that as we come to the end of ten years of service, God is calling us to reflect upon and reveal the testimony of the Lord in our lives. We are called to keep His commandments in this new season. We called to a new level of responsibility. We’re being called into the completeness of order. We have been a ministry of order and balance from our first day and this anniversary is a landmark of the completeness of that order.
As we prepare for this weekend of celebration and impartation, the Lord gave us Luke 16:10 as our theme scripture. It reads: He who is faithful in what is least is faithful also in much; and he who is unjust in what is least is unjust also in much.
They may sound like a very harsh and strong word for an anniversary theme, but we see it as a promise from God when we are faithful to serve Him, with the right motivation in our hearts.
As we move into another year of obeying our assignment in Harrisburg, we are preparing our hearts and homes for more responsibility.
We’ll begin the weekend with a special dinner this Saturday evening at 6:30PM. We’ll meet in the dining hall of the United Church Center. That night will include wonderful fellowship, testimonies, music and a special greeting from our Bishop via video.
On Sunday, God has directed us to invite Abby Abildness to share the word with us. Abby is the executive director of Healing Tree international and the visionary of the Unite to Restore America movement. You don’t want to miss this very special woman of God as she pours out a wealth of wisdom with us to help us in the journey that is ahead of us.
We’ll be getting started promptly at 11:00am in our Ministry Suite (144B), so we can have her standing before us by 11:30AM. She has a flight to catch and we want to give her plenty of time.
We’re very excited about this year’s anniversary gatherings and we look forward to celebrating together!
We’ll begin the weekend with a special dinner this Saturday evening at 6:30PM. We’ll meet in the dining hall of the United Church Center. That night will include wonderful fellowship, testimonies, music and a special greeting from our Bishop via video.
On Sunday, God has directed us to invite Abby Abildness to share the word with us. Abby is the executive director of Healing Tree international and the visionary of the Unite to Restore America movement. You don’t want to miss this very special woman of God as she pours out a wealth of wisdom with us to help us in the journey that is ahead of us.
We’ll be getting started promptly at 11:00am in our Ministry Suite (144B), so we can have her standing before us by 11:30AM. She has a flight to catch and we want to give her plenty of time.
We’re very excited about this year’s anniversary gatherings and we look forward to celebrating together!
