The General Church Extension Department is excited to announce the 2021 Church Extension Offering. Churches across the denomination will begin receiving this offering to launch new churches, support the training of church planters, assist church plants with start up costs, and enable new churches to launch effectively.

We live in such an influent and blessed society it is difficult to imagine what our lives would be like if certain things no longer existed. Even with all the division and unsettledness our country has been experiencing, our way of life, though fragile and challenged, remains far better than how many other people in the world live from day to day. At our worst, we are still blessed.

Can you imagine what life would be like without electricity? As I write this article, I’m enjoy a nice warm cup of coffee. Can you imagine what life would be like without coffee? Okay, perhaps I’ve allowed my thoughts to personally ramble. But as I more seriously and profoundly consider what life would be like without the normal things we’ve come to expect, I cannot imagine what the world would be like without the church! I doubt you could either.

For this reason, our denomination must remain committed to establishing new churches. The church continues to be the hope of the world until Jesus comes. While denominational budgets remained steady through the 2020 COVID pandemic and into the first quarter of 2021, special offerings have been most notably affected and have experienced a decline. This is primarily because many churches are just now returning to more regular and normal service schedules. For this we give God praise and trust that we all will be able to assemble for a triumphant Easter celebration and be completely back to all the things we love and enjoy by the end of this council year.

The 2021 annual Church Extension offering will be on Pentecost Sunday, May 23. Prayerfully be considering what God would have you give for this special offering. The work of Elim Church in New Jersey continues to take shape and grow. We must remain faithful with our support to Elim and the other congregations that God has for us in the near future. Just like me, I know that you believe in the church and The Churches of Christ in Christian Union’s efforts in establishing new churches. None of us could imagine our world without the church! Let’s do our part in establishing the kingdom of God until Jesus comes!

Click below to download the 2021 Church Extension Spring Offering poster.