Embracing new beginnings. These three words encompass so much – strategic goals, exciting next steps to reach more people for Jesus, God’s faithfulness and an answer to a 12-year prayer.

You may recall that Eleven was the title of my message on May 4, 2025. I shared an important update on the eleventh initiative of our strategic ministry vision. This vision has been my roadmap as I’ve led our church for the past 12 years. Hebrews 13:20-21 was the message’s key Scripture.

I shared the exciting news that we were becoming a multi-site church and launching a new campus in Silver Spring Township. Fast forward just a few months, and we are now getting ready to celebrate our Grand Opening in a newly renovated building on September 28.

I am so appreciative of our entire team for working incredibly hard behind the scenes to make this happen. Yet we know that where we are now is all thanks to the Lord. We are laying the foundation for what I believe will continue to be an amazing story.

On the topic of amazing stories, I am so thankful for this year’s all-church theme – Join the Story. We have seen the Lord’s hand at work in people’s lives.

I invite you to read more about CLA Silver Spring, highlights from 2024 and year-to-date, and several additional stories. I am so excited about what the Lord is doing in the life of our church. I truly believe this is just the beginning!

Pastor Shane Wilson, Lead Pastor

We know God has amazing things planned as we continue to help people discover an incredible life with Jesus in our Silver Spring community!

Since our Soft Launch on June 8 at Silver Spring Elementary School:

• 100+ individuals have attended weekly
• Nearly 20 kids have participated weekly in CLA Kids
• 25+ volunteers have served weekly
• Nearly 90 individuals have participated in one or more of our six CLA Silver Spring Work Days helping to get our new property ready (6780 Carlisle Pike, Mechanicsburg)

In addition, numerous people have dedicated their lives to Jesus, and several individuals have been water baptized. On September 7, we held our first service at our new property, and on September 28, we will hold our Grand Opening. Praise the Lord!
 
Please continue to join us in prayer:  

• For God to give us unprecedented favor in the Silver Spring community
• To reach people for Jesus who do not yet have a personal relationship with Him
• To build His Kingdom on earth

New to CLA

Dedicated or rededicated their life to Jesus

Participated in groups
*Includes Discover discipleship process, various adult groups and CLA School of the Bible

Groups

Participated in recovery ministries

SEU at CLA continued to offer an affordable education and hands-on experience to those who feel called to ministry.

Individuals heard the Gospel through our online campus and television ministry broadcast

Number of app downloads
*Total number since app was launched

App impressions

Number of web visits

Viewed our Christmas Special
*Live on abc27, abc27.com and YouTube

Families heard the Gospel during a fun family-friendly Christmas program at Toy Share. They also received new toys for their children, new athletic equipment, cookies, handmade knitted items and a bag of food with several meals.

Attended Christmas Wonderland
*1,885 NEXT books were distributed

Served during Christmas Wonderland

Served during Toy Share

Kids and adults made decisions for Jesus during the Christmas Carnival program at Toy Share!

Teachers and school staff received a token of appreciation for back to school (texted the word SCHOOL)

Pastor Shane regularly shares that getting involved in a group is one of the best ways to connect at CLA. After initially being introduced to Jesus through an outreach effort, we have seen various people become active in the life of our church through a group, by serving and/or by attending church services. The Lord is always working!

More than 200 couples attended our Valentine’s Gala this past February, drawing closer to each other and to the Lord. We are thrilled to share that we will be launching a group for blended families this fall, as well as one for caregivers who support a loved one with age-related needs, a disability, hospice care or a long-term illness.

We are also actively planning for a meaningful Fall Formal this October for adults with disabilities. The Lord has blessed us with resources to be able to connect with individuals in our church family and community in lasting ways!

In CLA Kids, we continue to see the number of our volunteers grow, including students and families that regularly serve together. They have found the “right seat on the bus,” and we love welcoming new families who are finding community. Lives continue to be changed, and our kids are seeing the real difference that Jesus makes.

In 2025, we welcomed more than 200 new children to CLA Kids, 25 kids have been dedicated and 68 families participated in Parents Night Out. At Mega Summer Camp this year, we saw kids step forward in prayer and entire families give their lives to Jesus.

In recognition of their hard work and hours of dedication through our Royal Rangers and Girls Ministries discipleship programs, six boys earned Gold Medal Achievement, and 10 girls received Honor Level recognition. Way to go!

We are seeing the greatest days for CLA Students! More students are coming to know Jesus, and 55 participated in a global or domestic missions trip…in addition to students serving more right here in our community, such as at Wildheart Ministries in Harrisburg and River of Life in Sunbury.

More than 180 students attended Youth Camp, many of whom shared it was a life-changing experience. Our students have also experienced physical healings, are praying for each other more than ever, and are taking their faith into their schools and workplaces!

There is also a growing connection between our Youth and College Age students, which makes transitioning from Youth to College Age that much more impactful. Finally, we launched a first-ever College Age Spring Conference at CLA.

A total of 215 individuals participated in a local, domestic or global missions trip/opportunity…102 of them for the first time! By the end of this year, we will have taken 13 global and domestic trips, led three global and domestic student trips, and participated in eight local one-day opportunities.

We gave $50,100 toward a critical Kenya land purchase and construction project, and we met one of our Mission 10 goals. Our 10-year goal was to raise $10 million for missions projects and missionary support…this year we surpassed that goal and raised $10,082,637!

Thanks to our church family’s generosity in supporting our students who went on a missions trip this year, approximately $35,000 was raised at our three missions dinners. This money supported our 55 youth and college age students who chose to GO!

“God miraculously saved my life when I was 55 years old. In 2013, I contacted Streptococcus pneumoniae, an illness that results in death 95% of the time. Although this disease took both of my hands and feet, there have been so many blessings from God.

Becoming handicapped forced me to slow down, and I now live within walking distance of my children and grandchildren. My unique appearance prompts lots of questions about what happened to me. This gives me the opportunity to share how God saved my life when the odds were definitely not in my favor.

I thank God for all of His blessings prior to me becoming handicapped, but much more so for the ones since. I pray my story continues to inspire people who have seen what the Lord has done for me.”

“When I was 17 years old, I fell in love with someone who quickly turned abusive. I allowed him to convince me that I wasn’t worthy of anyone else’s love, least of all Jesus’. Fear led to marriage, which led to pregnancy and even worse abuse.

I still believed I wasn’t worthy, but a voice deep inside whispered to me that my son was. He was two days old when I thought my life might end. He was three days old when that whisper turned into a wave that I too was worthy. Through Jesus’ strength, I walked away from that abusive relationship.

Two years later, God placed a man after His own heart in my life who sat with me in my healing. Soon afterward, the Lord placed me in a career with the court system that has afforded me the opportunity to help others experiencing domestic violence. I’ve been able to reassure them that they will get through whatever they’re facing.

Today I am happily married with two children and my purpose is clear – to pour out more of God’s love and let those I meet know that they have worth in Him.”

“I gave my heart to Jesus when I was seven. When I was 10, at a Child Evangelism Fellowship camp, a missionary spoke to the campers. That day, I said yes to the Lord’s call on my life to become a missionary.

As I got older, my family and I faced major hardships that threatened to tear us apart. I cleaned out an old closet in my childhood home and turned it into a war room. That war room was where I learned to listen for the Lord’s voice and discovered my identity in Christ.

About five years ago, I faced one spiritual battle after another. Most significantly, I was harassed and verbally abused at an internship, which resulted in a major struggle with my mental health. Yet the Lord saw me through.

In September 2023, the Lord used Ken Trinh’s “for the one” video to call me to my first global missions trip to King’s Castle in El Salvador. I was able to spend a significant amount of time in the prayer tower, and the Lord really worked on my heart.

That week, I shared a prophecy and interpreted a dream for a missionary. The Lord used me to restore a blind woman’s sight, and I was part of several miracles. I later found out that Pastor Shane had told Ken that the Lord would use his video to call someone into missions. Ultimately, that “one” was me.

I have no idea where God will call me next. I just know that my only response to Him will be YES and AMEN!”

“I was bullied in high school and struggled with underage drinking as a way to cope. Fast forward a number of years and, in 2019, this became a significant problem. I ended up in the hospital for nine days. I had managed to keep my struggle private; my family didn’t know.

Throughout this time, the Lord had been speaking to me, but I didn’t listen. What finally changed was when I admitted I needed help. I shared what I was going through with my family, and the Lord brought me through it.

While it certainly wasn’t easy, I made the choice to change and to choose gratitude. That shifted my perspective, and I began writing in a gratitude journal. I also learned to love myself as the Lord loves me."