What to expect on your first visit

We are located at 698 N. 5th Street, Middletown, Indiana (not Middletown, Ohio or Middletown, Illinois) at the Middletown Church of the Nazarene. We meet on Sunday evenings at 6:00 pm. We start right on time, but come on in even if you are late. We gather every Sunday evening, 52 weeks a year. We never cancel, even when the weather is bad. If we can get into our parking lot, we will be here, so there is no need to call ahead. Just come!

Come to the south side of the church off of 5th Street and enter at the main doors where a sign for “Renew” will be posted. Once in the door, someone will direct you to the main sanctuary where our program will begin. We call this first event our “Renewal through Worship and Word” and is our large group service. Feel free to sit anywhere you like, but we encourage you to join us toward the center section. A “Renew” leader will also usually find you when you arrive and point out the restrooms.

During the 6:00 – 6:45 pm session, there will be worship music, some announcements and a message or lesson from our pastor. You do not have to participate in any way and you may share as little or much as you wish when someone greets you. We hope will find this service to be encouraging, informative, and inspiring.

At 6:45 pm, everyone is invited to participate in gender-specific support or discussion groups. All first-time attenders will be invited to a101 orientation session, so you don’t have to worry about choosing which group to join. The 101 group provides a time for attendees to have their questions answered and learn how “Renew!” can be effective for them. There will also be a gender-specific time set aside at the end of the meeting for additional discussion.

You may also want to pick up some free materials on the information table right by the door where you entered from the parking lot. Of special interest is a list of community resources that you might find helpful as continued support on your healing journey, resources such as professional counselling services, shelters, food pantries, and internet resources.

After 101 Orientation, a program you areinvited to join those who have participated in support group session at "Solid Rock Cafe". Several dozen people will join for snacks at 7:30 pm. People sit at tables and get to know each other a little bit. Sometime around 8:00 pm we are usually about done, so feel free to say goodbye and leave.

We do provide baby-sitting for children who are bathroom-trained up to the age of 11 at no cost.

Things We ARE:

A safe place to share
A refuge
A place of belonging
A place to care for others and be cared for
A place where respect is given to each member
A place where confidentiality is highly regarded
A place to learn
A place to grow and become strong again
A place where you can take off your mask
A place for healthy challenges and healthy risks
A possible turning point in your life

Things We Are NOT:

A place for selfish control
A place for therapy
A place for secrets
A place to look for dating relationships
A place to rescue or be rescued by others
A place for perfection
A place to judge others
A quick fix

Is Renew! for me?

"Renew!" offers a person the opportunity to participate in a group fellowship where love and hope combine with God’s purpose to mend our lives.

Ask yourself:

• Are there things I do that hurt others?
• Is there something I wish I could live without?
• Is it time to break through my denial and admit I am not in control of my life?
• Do I have a painful habit or hang-up from which I need to be freed?
• Is a past abuse in my life preventing me from being able to move forward?

If you answered “yes” to any of these statements,
we urge you to attend a "Rewnew!" meeting to see if it is for you.

There is hope at "Renew!" where you will find:

• Others struggling with similar issues
• Unconditional understanding & acceptance
• Help from God to focus on Him and how He wants you to change
• Healing
• Freedom from bondage
• Healthier thinking
• A new “toolbox” …to help you to respond instead of react

"Renew! is a safe place because:

• You are in control of how much you participate
• No one “fixes” or judges
• No one “shoulds” on you
• You find answers from God—-and depend on Him
• Your life becomes re-centered on Christ
• You are encouraged by the openness & vulnerability of fellow strugglers
• You are allowed to “take off your mask” and be real and honest

More about who are the broken, broken-hearted, and outcast.

“Renew” is for anyone who doesn’t feel like they belong at “church” because they know they are broken, broken-hearted, or an outcast.

Sadly, many people think that church is for people who are perfect, all-together, and without any problems. Or at least they think people who go to church think they are these things. Yet most of us know this isn’t true. Yet many of think our issues are worse than others, and no one would want us around if they really knew us.

Well, “Renew” is a place where people stop pretending and are real. They are real because they know they are:

Broken

Broken with all types of personal issues, such as addictions, emotional issues, and personal hang-ups. We believe that God’s love does not only include people who are broken, but it especially directed to them. In some way or another, we are all broken, and in need of God’s grace to renew and restore us to wholeness.

Broken-hearted

Nothing hurts like grief, separation, and loss. And being broken-hearted makes us feel so alone and isolated. “Renew!” is a place where those who mourn experience the comfort Jesus promised when he said “Blessed are those who mourn, for they will be comforted.” (Matthew 5:4)

Outcast

Many of us feel rejected and abandoned in life, alone and isolated, sometimes by the very persons we should have found safe and accepting. Sometimes the abuse, trauma, or pain has created scars that make us feel unwanted or damaged. “Renew!” can be a place where we can discover that love, grace, and forgiveness become a source of healing and deliverance we have longed for.