Statement of Faith:

History:

The plans and vision that God gave to me about a different kind of church began during my teen years. As I would invite friends to church or sit next to people who were new to church, I often wondered if the ideas and concepts being presented to them were being communicated in a way and with language they could grasp and understand. Simple actions such as watching them not be sure which book was a Bible or Hymnal and then not knowing where to find the place the pastor was telling everyone to look at became clear indicators of the kind of church, God was calling us to start. I also experienced individuals who "played church". They went through the motions but their personal lives were a mess. No one discussed it, prayed for it and eventually they disappeared. I longed for a church in which people were challenged to follow after Christ but were transparent in the struggle to live this way. During my years of graduate training, Christine and I attended a church in which they were willing to attempt to do ministry differently, creatively to present the timeless message in a new, innovative way. It stimulated us to dream of a church that creatively and sensitively invited people to discover the incredible wonder of a personal relationship with Christ and living a life for him every day.

God directed us to complete our intern training at High Point Baptist Church and we discovered they were interested in recruiting individuals to start new churches. They assisted us financially and with people resources in the preplanning, survey and initial meetings. Our first meeting was a small group in our home in September 1991 with five people. The group grew to a dozen adults and we launched our initial worship service on Sunday, March 27, 1992 at the Holiday Inn in Denver. It was a moving experience to see the room filled with people who wanted to see what this new church was all about. We continued to meet at the Holiday Inn for five months when God provided a facility for us to meet in that was located in Fivepointville. We continued in this location for five years until God provided our present meeting location at Gehman’s Mennonite School.

During this time, we have seen God allow our vision of seeing Cocalico become a place to give people the time and space to investigate Christianity. We have seen God reach out and draw people to Himself, as they become followers of Jesus Christ. Cocalico has become a place in which we are discovering how to experience true Biblical community. It has become a place in which there is freedom to wrestle with following Christ, struggles to obey Christ and live for him every day. We are learning to love to worship and enjoy being in God’s presence together in our weekly worship services every Sunday at 10:30 am. Our children’s ministry has grown to meet the ongoing needs of our children at CCC through extended times of worship, teaching and small group experiences. Our teen group continues to be a place for teens to hang out and discover the "cool truth" about God, Jesus Christ and life knowing and following Him. Small groups are a place to become connected and feel like you belong. It is a place to love and be loved, serve and be served, laugh and cry together.

The challenge of starting a new church is hard to describe but I hope this gives you a glimpse of how we began and what God continue to be involved in doing through CCC.

Because Of His Grace,

Jon Miklas