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    The Center of Hope:: A Place to Believe, Belong & Become
    The Center of Hope:: A Place to Believe, Belong & Become
    The Center of Hope:: A Place to Believe, Belong & Become
    Ebook49 pages40 minutes

    The Center of Hope:: A Place to Believe, Belong & Become

    By Tobin Perry

    3.5/5

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    About this ebook

    A Story of Hope

    God never, ever gives up. He is at His best when we need Him the most. Ask Joseph. Ask Jonah. Ask Nehemiah. Ask Zacchaeus. Ask Jesus.

    And ask the hundreds touched by the three-year-old ministry of the Center of Hope. Born in a once-thriving church building whose best days had been four decades earlier, the Center of Hope launched in the spring of 2010 in one of the most desperate areas of Evansville, Ind. With a commitment to minister to the whole personmind, body and soulthe church has defied experts who didnt believe you could build a church in a citys poorest area.

    In the past four years the church has truly become

    a place to believe.
    a place to belong.
    a place to become.
    a place of hope.

    The Center of Hope story will encourage you, challenge youand help you see the Churchs potential in a whole new way.

    LanguageEnglish
    PublisherAuthorHouse
    Release dateJul 7, 2014
    ISBN9781496921239
    The Center of Hope:: A Place to Believe, Belong & Become
    Author

    Tobin Perry

    Born and raised in Evansville, Ind., Tobin Perry now lives with his wife and three children in Woodstock, Ga. He has previously served as a local church pastor in Southern Indiana. He has also worked as a writer and editor for the North American Mission Board, the International Mission Board and Saddleback Church. He earned a journalism degree from the University of Missouri and a Master of Divinity from Golden Gate Baptist Theological Seminary.

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    3.5/5

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    • 4/5
      The town of Cedar Springs is dying as the lumber mill closes down. Julia suggests turning it into a tourist town, and with the help of her daughters, starts advertising. A pleasant light read with a strong Christian message of hope, as well as a sense of finding God's will, yet without being too 'preachy'. Interesting social history too.
    • 4/5
      When the lumber mill closes down in Calder Springs, it essentially spells sudden doom for the town. But Julia is determined to find a way to keep the town going and to hold on to her home for her family in Julia's Last Hope by author Janette Oke.This is at least the third time I've read this novel over the years, from one of my all-time favorite series, Women of the West. Sure, some of the aspects still aren't my cup of tea (too many dashes making much of the dialogue jerky, tears so frequent that they lose their effect, and other issues.) Even so, while some of the stylistic and delivery choices here aren't what I go for in ChristFic now, there are reasons why I keep returning to this series.In the case of Julia's story, even knowing the ending already, I had to see the process again. The eerie feeling in the streets and among the remaining townsfolk as a "ghost town" cloud starts creeping over the place. The questions and uncertainties. The way Julia's industrious idea brings about outcomes she wouldn't have foreseen and lessons she wouldn't have learned otherwise.Plus, wholesome novels that are easy to digest are still great to mix in between heavier reads. I'll again be making my way back around to this series of standalone novels in the near future.
    • 3/5
      This story takes place in a small lumber town of Calder Springs, in the Canadian Rocky Mountains. John and Julia Harrigan live a contented life, with their twin girls and enjoy the beautiful home they were able to build in this small community. Then the mill suddenly closes and all their hopes and dreams come crashing down on them. The town is slowly dying as folks move away in search of jobs. Julia tries to turn this town into a tourist area, but it is an uphill battle. With the family having to separate to survive, they must come to realize that "home" is truly where the family is together, and not necessarily the "house" they live in.

    Book preview

    The Center of Hope: - Tobin Perry

    © 2014 Tobin Perry. All rights reserved.

    No part of this book may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted by any means without the written permission of the author.

    Published by AuthorHouse   7/3/2014

    ISBN: 978-1-4969-2124-6 (sc)

    ISBN: 978-1-4969-2123-9 (e)

    Library of Congress Control Number: 2014911283

    Any people depicted in stock imagery provided by Thinkstock are models,

    and such images are being used for illustrative purposes only.

    Certain stock imagery © Thinkstock.

    Because of the dynamic nature of the Internet, any web addresses or links contained in this book may have changed since publication and may no longer be valid. The views expressed in this work are solely those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of the publisher, and the publisher hereby disclaims any responsibility for them.

    CONTENTS

    Foreword

    Preface

    Chapter 1     The Center Of Hope Story

    Chapter 2     A Place To Believe

    Chapter 3     A Place To Believe: Mike’s Story

    Chapter 4     A Place To Belong

    Chapter 5     A Place To Belong: Bill And Debbie’s Story

    Chapter 6     A Place To Become

    Chapter 7     A Place To Become: Everett And Michelle’s Story

    Chapter 8     The Story Continues

    FOREWORD

    I love to read stories like this one about the Center of Hope. It’s a tremendous example of what needs to happen in communities throughout our nation. It’s no secret we’re losing ground in reaching our neighbors with the Gospel. My own denomination, the Southern Baptist Convention, is in the midst of a two-decade decline in baptisms. Other evangelical denominations face similar declines.

    I know of nothing like the Gospel that can break through to hard hearts. It’s the only real answer to the problems that plague our country today. To impact our communities and our country for Jesus, we’ll need thousands of new biblically faithful and evangelically driven churches like the Center of Hope to effectively proclaim the Gospel that Jesus saves.

    The resources to start these new churches are already in our midst. Many buildings around North America house evangelical churches that face similar challenges to Calvary Baptist. Though these churches were once impacting their communities for Jesus, their neighborhoods have changed and they haven’t. Many can’t pay their bills. If those churches don’t act quickly, the buildings and land for which previous generations of believers have sacrificed and given will be lost to the work of the Kingdom.

    Many of these buildings can once again house vibrant new churches if we have a similar vision as the Center of Hope’s leadership. We need the vision to see the resources God has made available through these buildings as a precious opportunity to impact our communities with the Gospel.

    I saw this firsthand a few years ago when the leadership of New Hope Church in Mableton, Ga., came to my church looking for help. The church had the capacity to hold 250 people and 3.5 acres of land but no longer had the ability to reach its community. Though it wasn’t an easy decision for that 17-member church, we decided together upon a complete makeover for the church. We brought in a new pastor and installed blended worship in the church. We began to tell the community about a brand new church plant that would be more culturally

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