Lincoln Church of the Nazarene to celebrate centennial Oct. 5

[September 25, 2008]  Tucked away on a quiet knoll on Lincoln's growing west side is a little brick building where a family of believers meet each Sunday. It has been there for almost 30 years, but if you ask the average person where to find the Church of the Nazarene, they'd be hard-pressed to give you directions. The old address -- Route 10 West -- isn't much help, though occasionally the use of a landmark, like being next to Xamis Ford or across from Culver's jogs the memory.

When you find them, they might be together inside worshiping Christ or outside working or playing in the yard. But when they part and drive away, these folks know they've still got important work to do -- to be the hands and feet of Jesus to show his love to people.

This is what the Church of the Nazarene has been doing for the last 85 years in Lincoln. "A fellow minister once quipped, 'When I first came to town, I drove by your church with a friend who said, "Those people know where Jesus came from, but they don't know why he came."' At first that remark irritated me," says Pastor Greg Wooten. "Now I let it guide my focus. I'd rather equip a small congregation to serve quietly than have us spend all our time trying to make headlines. That's the difference Jesus has made in my life. And, if I read the Bible correctly, that's the difference Jesus would have us make in the world."

This little church family is part of a much bigger family that will be celebrating a major milestone on Oct. 5 -- the 100th anniversary of the birth of the denomination known as the Church of the Nazarene. In 1908 in the little town of Pilot Point, Texas, two holiness church groups merged. Both groups believed that God calls his people to be holy -- to be like Christ -- and that he also makes this possible by the real presence of the Holy Spirit within the hearts of fully devoted believers. These Northern and Southern Christians put away years of unhealed divisions dating back to the Civil War and sealed their union with a time of worship and celebration that ended in a "Hallelujah March" around the tent where they were meeting as they sang a song of unity to the tune of "Dixie":

With forces all united,
We'll win! We'll win!
We'll preach a gospel o'er the land
That fully saves from sin!

Praise God! Praise God!
Praise God for full salvation!

Now, 100 years later, the Church of the Nazarene serves Christ and his kingdom in 151 world areas in more than 20,000 local congregations made up of over 1.5 million people.

Lincoln Church of the Nazarene will join in this centennial celebration with a day full of special events on Oct. 5. At 9:45 a.m. there will be a special lesson highlighting the history of world missions in the denomination. During the worship hour at 11 a.m. the church will unite with every Nazarene congregation across all 24 times zones by sharing communion, reading the same Scripture and hearing the same message preached. Included in the service will be highlights of denominational history as well as local church history, as several special families will be honored whose faithfulness and commitment have made the church's existence possible today.

Following the worship hour will be an old-fashioned potluck dinner. Then, finishing the day's activities on a high note, a concert featuring Barry Wilson from Bourbonnais will begin at 2:30 pm. Wilson is a Nazarene pastor-turned-recording artist with a great sound and a great sense of humor.

Lincoln Church of the Nazarene invites all their brothers and sisters in Christ to join them for any or all of the day's festivities.

For more information on the centennial celebration of the Church of the Nazarene, call Pastor Greg Wooten at the church office at 732-8362 or e-mail him at [e-mail].

[Text from file received by Greg Wooten, pastor, Lincoln Church of the Nazarene]