Overview of the Pilot City Region
Charleston is the Capital City of West Virginia and is situated in the
midst of the Great Kanawha River Valley. European civilization came to the
Valley because of an abundance of salt deposits. Indeed, Kanawha means “white
stone” in a Native-American language. Salt enhances taste, is a preservative and
causes thirst. These represent some of our redemptive gifts. As the Capital
City, Charleston’s influence extends to the entire state.
West Virginia became a state on June 20, 1863 by Executive Order of Abraham
Lincoln. When Virginia left the Union at the beginning of the Civil War
the Western counties returned to the Union to aid in the goals of freedom and
unity. Our state uniquely was born in a process of restoration and
reconciliation. This dynamic still continues today. In addition, Celtic
Christians verifiably visited and inhabited our state as early as 550AD. They
carved Christian blessings into the stones of cliffs which still are visible.
God had, a very long time ago, sovereign intent for this area.
Primary Points of Contact for LC2C
Pastors Ron &
Nancy Thaxton, Rev. Bruce Purnell and Denny Westover serve “The Church In The
City” movement which along with the local CIR - Righteousness and Justice Task
Group. These ministries undergird the local LC2C process.
The Body of Christ in Charleston
The majority of the local congregations in Charleston that would relate
to the LC2C initiative are those that we would identify as evangelical
Protestant from the majority community which is Caucasian-American. Yet,
there is only one Ministerial Alliance serving the Body of Christ in Charleston
and that is the Charleston Black Ministerial Alliance, Inc. which has both
officers and many members that are from the majority community.
History of the Citywide Movement
The Church In The City
functions under Jesus Christ Unlimited Ministries, Inc., which was formed in
1976 for the purposes of unifying the church and getting the Gospel message
outside the church walls. Here are our actual words from those days:
(We are) an inter-denominational organization of concerned Christians
proclaiming Jesus Christ as Lord. We believe the Bible is the all inspired
Word of God. Our purpose is not to detract from the local church, but to
unite all Christians in glorifying God and to draw others to Him by the power of
the Holy Spirit.
We are now Thirty Years old! And the values in this paragraph
still guide us–we have not veered from the path on which we were launched.
We have met so many people and have been involved in so much: Spirit in ‘76,
Gift of Love Committee, JCU Concerts, The Church in the City, Pastors’ Prayer
Fellowship, Vineyard In The Hills Christian Fellowship, PrayWV Prayer Summits,
Marches for Jesus, Seek God for the City, Transformations II Premier, Promise
Keepers WV, Book of Hope, Governor’s Prayer Breakfasts, Smile Uganda! - all of
these initiatives and more have these values as their bedrock.
The richness of the relationships that we have developed over these years
still warm our hearts.
As a result of this track record our city as been invited to participate in
Mission America’s “Loving Our Cities to Christ” (LC2C) initiative. Our own local
City Impact Roundtable deliberated prayerfully over this invitation and could
not get a clear direction as long as we were asking, “What can this do for
us?” It was not until we said to ourselves, “What can we contribute to
this process?” that the go ahead became apparent!
Challenges that LC2C Can Address
Our greatest challenge
is one that applies to all city-reaching movements and is echoed by the Lausanne
Covenant - “The Whole Church Taking the Whole Gospel to the Whole World
(Community). With this comes the imperative of developing a foundation of
justice and righteousness for all that we do and say in our city.
The LC2C coaches can also assist in the formulation of a strategy that will
be identifiable and verifiable.
How MA Coalition Partners Can Serve Charleston
We are
hopeful that the initiative through the Steering Committee and the whole Mission
America Coalition can aid in galvanizing denominational leaders to come
alongside this movement.
We are also excited about the resourceful relationship available to us
through our Coalition Partners.
How to be Praying for Charleston
Is it time for a
statewide “Call to Arms!” for the men of our state? Not just gathering
together in a Promise Keepers style gathering, but also, enlisting and
organizing into a functioning statewide cadre of committed men, engaged in
embodying righteousness and justice in their communities. A body of men
without class nor division, who dare to believe that the Church that “the gates
of Hell will not prevail against” can emerge in our city and state.
There is a crisis of relevancy facing the church in our city, indeed in all
of our cities throughout this nation. Pray that we will not allow
ourselves to be lulled to sleep by the peril of passivity, but that she would
arouse herself and become the whole functioning Body of Christ in our city - a
City within the city!
Pray that an altar of worship would arise around which the House of the Lord
can be built resulting in the restoration of the integrity of the city.
Learn More
Visit www.churchinthecity.com and www.praywva.org
