Monday and Tuesday of this week, we were able to help host nearly 90 leaders from 25 cities across the Northwest gathered here in Vancouver, WA at the 8th annual Roundtable. There is not nearly enough room here to report all of what took place there. Let me mention just two stories.
From the first worship song as we began these 25 hours together, it was very clear that we were very “present.” People were there ready to worship, grow, learn, receive, and give to one another. The purpose of the CIR is to provide ongoing support and encouragement to those who know they are called to be part of a healthy, praying, serving, united church which will impact its community. These people came hungry, stayed focused, and gleaned much. On several occasions as Prayer Summits were mentioned as a key part of their city’s progress, I reflected on Dr. Joe’s original vision and rejoiced again to see it being more and more fulfilled.
At the end of the time, as we asked for input, one brother said, “Our team has been coming to this CIR for 7 years. What encourages me is to see that many of the things we talked about 4-5 years ago are actually being lived out in several of the cities.”
