We believe in God, the Father Almighty, Creator of heaven and earth. We believe in Jesus Christ, His only son, our Lord. He was conceived by the power of the Holy Spirit and born of the virgin Mary. He suffered under Pontius Pilot, was crucified, died, and was buried. He descended to the dead. On the third day He rose again. He ascended into heaven and is seated at the right hand of the Father. He will come again to judge the living and the dead. We believe in the Holy Spirit, the holy Christian church, the communion of the saints, the forgiveness of sins, the resurrection of the body, and the life everlasting. Amen

 

 

 

 

 

Over the past few years or so the Lord has been doing incredible things in the Greater Haverhill area. There is a greater unity in the Evangelical Churches of this area than at any other time in recent memory. God has used numerous events and people to facilitate this work. Some of these individuals have been praying for just such a manifestation for many years

 

There has been a frustration as to how to best represent this mighty movement of God, due to the fact that many different denominations are involved. Wanting to join the Lord where He is working, we have adopted the name "Common Ground" to help clarify that this ministry is of no particular denomination or specific church.

 

We believe that God has, for a time, raised up this ministry for a specific goal. He has blessed our every effort. Many people have accepted the Lord and many others have been greatly encouraged. While Common Ground is primarily a lay-driven ministry, we do submit to the guidance of numerous clergy from the greater Haverhill, Georgetown and southern New Hampshire area.

 

 

 

In the fall of 1996 a group of men from a church in Haverhill Massachusetts were attending a Promise Keepers conference in New York City. During that conference it was announced that Promise Keepers was calling the Christian men of America to Washington DC for a solemn assembly in the Fall of 1997. The Lord spoke very clearly to one of the men there and impressed upon his heart that it was His desire to see the Christian men of the Haverhill area attend this event together and not as individual churches. There was a vision given of many men from various churches traveling and attending this historic event together.

After a year of planning and bridge building approximately 100 men from six different churches drove to Washington DC and attended Stand In The Gap together. These men came as brothers in Christ representing a geography and not a specific congregation. During the Stand In The Gap assembly the Lord began to reveal what he had next for these men, and the congregations they came from, by prompting a couple of men to open their annual mens retreat to the other churches in the region. In the Spring of 1998 the first annual Greater Haverhill Mens Retreat was held with well over 100 men from eight different churches in attendance.

Following that event it was clear that the Lord had more in mind than just the annual mens retreat. Shortly after that first retreat the movement was given the name Common Ground. In the years that followed there were quarterly praise & worship services, parade participation, city festival participation, service projects, and a praise & worship band was born with members from many different churches participating. The “Common Ground Praise & Worship Band” has played at many venues over the years and has been invited to play for events sponsored by WEZE radio and Vision New England.

By the year 2000 it was clear that the Lord wanted to do something even larger with Common Ground and the original visionary and founder felt  it was time to step down and let the Lord raise up those who would bring things to the next level. This transition was a difficult time and it appeared for a season that Common Ground might not survive the leadership vacuum that was created. This, however, was not part of Gods plan. Today Common Ground is under new leadership with a new vision. This vision includes partnering with other ministries to reach our community with God’s love, continuing to worship and serve together across denominational lines, and concentrated prayer for spiritual renewal and revival in our region and around the world.