MANSFIELD, Ohio — When members at Crossroads Community Church heard a sermon series on Nehemiah given by their pastor, Dave Vance, they were compelled to respond.
The church raised $10,000 earmarked for community organizations and entities after the month-long series. Staff members and Vance divided the money to a number of entities in the community.
On Wednesday, Dec. 2, Crossroads staff members traveled to UMADAOP, Richland Pregnancy Services, The New Store and the Mansfield Police Department and Sheriff department. They surprised each agency with checks; then prayed with them.
Richland Pregnancy Services received $2,500. Director of Development Jim Morgan was ecstatic with Crossroad’s donation.
“This is tremendous for us. I mean we receive private donations a lot, but to get it from a church … which is Christ centered just we are, it just says we’re not alone on the mission field,” said Morgan.
Richland Pregnancy Services offers information and medical attention for individuals experiencing an unplanned pregnancy. They do not offer abortions — they educate the individual about all options, said Morgan.
The act of kindness was more than a financial transaction, said Vance. To understand the deeper meaning, Vance explained what the church learned through the sermon on the old testament.
“(Nehemiah is) an account of God’s people rebuilding the walls of Jerusalem, and in the process, they rebuilt themselves. So we said, you know, ‘what would happen if we made a difference in helping rebuild broken lives,’” Vance said.
In Nehemiah, Vance explained, the people of Jerusalem rebuilt the wall that surrounded the city, one that had been in ruins for 70 years. It wasn’t until they stopped to look at it that they decided to try and fix it.
“The wall, then, symbolized the city’s spiritual and physical health. And this is key, the spiritual reality plays itself out in the physical reality,” said Vance.
As part of the sermon series, the congregation of 2,000 built their own wall and then Vance asked them one question: could God be calling us as a church in being part of the answer?
Although he did not get a definitive answer, he is convinced his church wants to be part of the positive change in the community. Aside from the $10,000 raised along with the Nehemiah series, the church gave elsewhere.
It also participated in the Adopt-a-Child program. Vance said the church collectively spent $60,000 in the program to benefit underprivileged children in the county a Christmas with gifts. The church works with The New Store for the Adopt-a-Child program.
Vance said the church will have the opportunity to distribute gifts to 500 families in the coming weeks.
“We’ve been doing that for a few years now and every year our church really gives,” he said.
So within one month, the church has given $70,000, an amount of money that will go directly into services and families who live in the area.
“The money was really just a means to an end. The end goal was that those organizations would be encouraged and to know that we as a church, and a significant church of the area, to say ‘we’re with you. We’re here. We want to help,’” said Vance. “To be honest, the money isn’t going to solve all the problems, we didn’t give enough to do that; we know that.
“It’s to support these guys.”
Vance is a new addition to Crossroads Community Church. He was hired as Head Pastor in January 2015. A former pastor at his hometown church in Maryland, he didn’t know what to expect upon his arrival in Mansfield.
“The church has proven that it’s a generous church over and over again and one who loves the community and wants to see change happen,” he said. “They surpassed my expectations.”
