OUR MISSION
01
Love God
Jesus replied: “‘Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind.’ This is the first and greatest commandment.”
– Matthew 22:37-38
02
Love Others
“And the second is like it: ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’ All the Law and the Prophets hang on these two commandments.”
– Matthew 22:39-40
Looking Back
Monthly Prayer Meeting
%
Attendance Increase
We believe that prayer is vital for the individual believer and for the corporate church. This past year, we have seen attendance at our Monthly Prayer meeting steadily increase as more people prioritize this essential spiritual discipline. Our first prayer meeting of 2019 had 37 in attendance. Our first meeting of 2020 had 70 in attendance.
Foster Care
Campers Served
Last year we held our 4th Royal Family Kids Camp and hosted our largest group of campers yet! In addition to this, we have continued to partner with Restore Network and have made our building available to them for special events (like their Annual Christmas Party) and on a monthly basis for Foster Care Family training and support events.
Stats
2019 Financial Report
We had a strong year financially. We ended the year well ahead of budget and we were able to make significant progress on reducing our mortgage debt while maintaining strong investment into ministry and missions work.
Total Givers
%
Increased Giving from 2018
First Time Givers
Prinicple Paid on Mortgage
Income
Tithes and Offerings: $672,958
Building Fund: $32,574
Missions: $56,653
Royal Family Kids: $24,534
Total Income: $786,719
Expenses
Employee: $264,854
Ministry: $74,351
Missions: $56,124
Royal Family Kids: $23,439
Administration: $208,385
Operating: $128,686
Total Expense: $755,840
Celebrate
In our Sunday services, we gather together to worship God and celebrate all that he is doing in us and through us.
Average Sunday Attendance
%
Attendance Increase from Previous Year
Salvations
Water Baptisms
Unique Viewers Online
Connect
We build meaningful and authentic relationships that make us better people.
Adults in a Small Group
Total Adult Guests
%
Guests who are now church family
Grow
We discover who God is and what he does so that we can know who we are and what we should do.
Number of verses taught during Cornerstone U
Number of credit cards cut up by 5 families in Financial Peace University class
Children and Teens in our new Bible Quiz program
Serve
We give all that we have and all that we are because Jesus gave everything for us!
Dream Team Volunteers
Number of homes served by Men's Ministry
RFK Camp Volunteers
Teens Serving
Kids Serving
Looking Ahead
From our staff…
2019 was a year of growth for Cornerstone. As you can see from the report above, there are many “wins” that we can celebrate. However, the things that excite me the most are the individual stories of transformation and life-change that have taken place in our congregation. Any external “success” we’ve had over the previous year has only come through the private spiritual health of our congregation.
That’s why my prayer is that 2020 would be a year of renewal for our church. I’m not content to live off of a previous blessing, trend or program. What we need in the upcoming year is the presence of Jesus to be active IN us and THROUGH us. That only happens as we spend time in his presence. There are at least two ways we can prioritize this corporately in 2020. First, we have the opportunity weekly to respond to the Lord at the altar during our time of response at the end of our services. Second, our Monthly Prayer Meeting provides us with the space to experience God’s presence in a powerful, life-changing way. I would encourage you to actively participate in these opportunities for renewal. As you make those moments a priority, that will result in private health that will lead to public fruitfulness.
If I had to give a single word to Uncommon for 2020, it would be ‘Awakening.’ As I prayed about this year at the end of 2019, God impressed on me that this year would be a year where students would come into a better realization of who they are in Christ and what a life modeled after his looks like! My wife, Taylor confirmed this by having the same word on her mind!
We have already began to pursue this by planning Uncommon’s first Winter Retreat. This will be a time to get away and grow individually and as a youth group family. Going forward, we will be intentional with the time with students at Wednesday night services, Sunday School, Sunday night Groups and Games, District events and our own events. I want to see the students take their relationship with God to a new level, no matter where they are in their walk, believing. Our prayer is this growth will be shown in our students’ giving to missions, their desire to invite friends, and in their personal devotional time.
2019 was a year of change and growth. I started a few Interest Groups centering around specific issues to help people grow and mature. One Men’s group focused on living a life of purity and another Men’s group focused on what it meant to be a Godly man for himself and for his family. I also co-led an 8 week class on Dave Ramsey’s Financial Peace course and helped people start the process of getting rid of and paying off their debt. Out of 9 people in the class we cut up 21 credit cards and we all vowed to “live like no one else now so later we can live and give like no one else.”
We had several events to connect people relationally. From the Trivia Night to the PiesCream Social, to the making of and selling ice cream at the Homecoming fair, Game Nights, The Church Picnic, The Bonfire, Men’s Breakfast Work Days, Softball and Golf Leagues and a ton of different opportunities for people to serve together.
In 2019 we had 166 guests and 36% are now connected into the family of Cornerstone Church.
Small Groups continue to grow and we launched 2 more Small Groups that were filled to the max within a week. We currently have 157 adults plugged into a Small Group with an ever-growing waiting list.
My vision for 2020 is to ramp up our Men’s Ministry with personalized studies and group devotions to help them grow in God’s word and in relationships with each other.
My desire for Small Groups is that more people will host and lead a group so that no one is waiting to get into a Small Group Family. I would like to see 65% of the church connected into a Small Group.
Equip Trainings will happen in 2020 for the Hospitality Teams and will be focused on creating an atmosphere that provides a welcome and safe environment for people to take their next steps in Christ.
2020 will be a year of Overflow (Colossians 2:6-7).
C-Stone Kids is grateful for God’s faithfulness in 2019. We saw growth both numerically and spiritually, and we will pray and work so that trend continues in 2020. Our Sunday morning and Wednesday celebrations continue to safely have engaging times of worship, learning, and fun. Our children are growing in their knowledge of Scripture through Awana and Bible Quiz, and they are very motivated to sacrificially give to missions through Boys and Girls Missionary Challenge. The K-5th graders understand the importance of selflessness, so we have a full and vibrant Serve Squad that works in ministry on a weekly basis in our meeting times.
Our goal for 2020 is the deepening of Biblical literacy, renewing a passion for evangelism, and developing an individual time of daily devotion. Looking forward, we would appreciate your prayers as we launch C-Stone Heroes, a special needs ministry focused on K-5th graders in our community. Because of the faithfulness of parents and volunteers, C-Stone Kids is making an impact on the youngest members of God’s Kingdom. The purpose of a C-Stone Kid is to love God and love others, and we are excited to get to live that out!
Our Office
196 S Moreland Road
Bethalto, IL 62010
Contact Us
(618) 377-7625
office@bethaltochurch.com
Office Hours
Mon-Thur: 9am – 5pm
Fri-Sat: Closed