Planting Peace Tree

The following letter was written by Pastor Kris to Peace Tree's mother church, Collierville UMC, and it appeared in their church newsletter on Thursday, September 18, 2015. Read the entire issue of The Interpreter HERE.

This upcoming Sunday, September 20, the Launch Team for Peace Tree UMC will be commissioned by our mother church, Collierville UMC. This group is composed of CUMC members who have taken seriously the mission to know God and to make him known. They've committed themselves to reach out in love to our neighbors as we seek to reach the un-churched and the de-churched, those who've left the church for one reason or another, and those who've never stepped foot inside a sanctuary.

The journey to this point has been eye-opening, grace-filled, and humbling. There were many things that I needed to learn as your church planter and lead pastor of Peace Tree. Over a dozen books on church planting, two church planters' conferences, three informational meetings with interested church members and non-members, numerous face-to-face conversations, and many hours of prayer led us to our official start date of July 1st.

In the months since July 1, we've put our beliefs into action and lived out our mission to Love God by Loving Others. We passed out hundreds of bottles of water and ice pops to children and families who were out at Suggs Park on one of the hottest days of the year. We hosted a back to school cookout at the Lawhon's farm where we fed sixty three people and shared the vision of Peace Tree UMC. And most recently, we showed our appreciation to our local police officers, firefighters, and EMS crews on 9/11 as we delivered cookies and thank you notes to our local police and fire stations in Collierville. 

At the same time, we've begun worshiping in homes during our House Group gatherings and Launch Team meetings. Over 30 people from Midtown to Collierville, East Memphis to Germantown have now experienced Bible study, Communion, prayer, and fellowship in these small group settings. And with the start of the NFL season, we have 14 young men that meet on Monday Night to grab meals together at Collierville restaurants while they watch football, talk about life, and open up about their faith in God. We believe that Church can happen anywhere, and we work to meet people where they are.

These first three months have been extremely fruitful for Peace Tree. We've seen how God has blessed us and we strive to remain faithful to the calling God has placed on our hearts. Still, we covet your prayers and ask for your support. I personally have felt affirmed each time a CUMC member asks us how we're doing or offers to help cook a meal for an upcoming gathering. Other ways you can support us is by visiting our website (www.peacetreeumc.org) and reading over our mission, vision, and values so that when someone asks about Collierville UMC's church plant, you'll be able to share the Peace Tree story.

We look forward to celebrating our commissioning with you on September 20th. Our Launch Team will be introduced in all four worship services with the commissioning moment taking place during the 10:45 service in the Poplar Sanctuary. We're also delighted to have Lynn Taylor, Director of New Church Development, represent Bishop McAlilly's office and join us for the commissioning.

Thank you for your trust in me and in my team. Continue to pray for us as we go out and make disciples of Jesus Christ for the transformation of the world.

+Peace and Love from Pastor Kris


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