Sometimes I call it GV

The vision of the Lumen Foundation is to plant several small, neighborhood-based churches in the city of Columbus over time.

I love the idea of neighborhood churches - congregations full of people who live near one another and can invest not only in their church, but in their community at the same time. A place where new attendees feel comfortable because the rooms are full of their neighbors. I like the idea of meeting actual needs without being saddled to a cumbersome program. I want people to come to church because I want them to hear about Jesus and to understand that the stories in the Bible are the key to unlocking the truth about life. I want them to experience the power and peace of the Holy Spirit. I want believers to have a place to be around other believers, to be encouraged and exhorted.

Cross City Church, the Lumen Foundation's first plant, is going to be established in German Village, just south of Columbus's city center.

Here is another reason why the decision to move was easy: German Village looks amazing.

A historical neighborhood with brick streets, old houses, and a big second-hand bookstore, German Village is the kind of place I would visit on vacation. As near as I can tell (using my trusty resource, Google Maps), GV is located just south of the city center, near the river (whose name I can't remember) and close enough to the freeway (whose number I also cannot remember). It's about 12 minutes from Ohio State University, so I expect to be dusting off my enthusiasm for college football. And that's...pretty much all I know.

So, I'm not exactly sure how I'm going to insinuate myself into what seems to be a fairly tight-knit neighborhood. I mean, even when I moved to Bath, I had an MA programme full of potential friends, and more than 5 people attended my church. But my plan is to try to get involved in community activities - like a writers' group, or a scrabble night, or some kind of volunteerism. I will most likely spend a lot of time standing around, trying not to look awkward.

Nothing new there.