Downtown Cornerstone Blog
Jan 20
2022

Mercy Ministry Update | January

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) and join us at this Sunday's Mercy Meetup (details 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.

"And let us not grow weary of doing good, for in due season we will reap, if we do not give up. So then, as we have opportunity, let us do good to everyone, and especially to those who are of the household of faith."
– Galatians 6:9-10

It's 2022! If we're honest, as the Covid-19 pandemic approaches the two-year mark, many of us may be weary—generally, and also in our service to others. Even while the Galatians faced many challenges—false teachers, ethnic conflict, internal strife, battles with sin—Paul calls them to persist in doing good to everyone as they had opportunity. 

It's helpful to recognize that while the particulars of our situation may be different than the churches in Galatia, many of the patterns are the same. Every season will have many and varying challenges that threaten to keep us from right living before God and right living with others. Our call as Christians, who have received the grace of God by faith in Christ and who have the Spirit of God at work in us, is to not grow weary of doing good.

How are we to persevere in doing good? We do so, not in our strength, but by abiding in Christ and drawing our daily power from him. He has loved and cared for us in the most significant ways by dying in our place to secure our forgiveness and restoration with God. And he continues to love and care for us in the details of our lives by being present with us, interceding for us, and working all things to our ultimate good. So we can look to Christ and be strengthened by his Spirit to live as he did—in radical service to others, by being present with them, interceding for them, and caring for their material and spiritual needs.

Mercy Ministry Meetup: This Sunday, January 23rd

Join us this Sunday, after each gathering, downstairs in the MPR, for our next Mercy Meetup. In this meetup, there will be a brief update from me and our current Mercy Ministries, including more information about how to serve in this season. While many of the ways we have traditionally served have changed in light of Covid-19, there are still opportunities to help now, both individually and with others.

This is an excellent place for those looking to get started, ask questions, meet others, and take the next step in serving with our Mercy Ministries. Registration is not required—just plan to join us this Sunday after either gathering downstairs in the MPR.

Stay Connected

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

For the Kingdom,

Pastor Justin