Matthew 5:41 says "If someone forces you to go one mile, go with him two miles..."

Worship is a way of life- and as a church body we should be living it everyday...and at the 5.4.ONE that is what we strive for- to go the extra mile for our neighbors and in our relationship with God. 

The 5.4.ONE meets each Sunday at 6:30p in the Lower Level of the Youth Center. 

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I’d like to personally welcome you to the official 5.4.ONE webpage.  My name is Chris Payne, and I’m the Young Adults Minister and worship leader at First Christian Church.  

I’m very excited to be here for a couple of reasons.  First, the leadership of this church is highly committed to the next generation.  When we read about how, in Old Testament times, Israel had fallen away from God, we find that the reason this happened is because those who had experienced the great things that God had done had failed to share that with the next generation.  They failed to move beyond themselves and see that God wants to move in the hearts of everyone all over the world.  

When I agreed to come on staff here at First Christian Church, I could immediately tell where the hearts of the leadership are.  You know the old saying:  “It’s easy to tell what is important to a person by how they spend their time, and how they spend their money.”  Not only are we a church with a rich history within the restoration movement and the community of Columbus, but we’re a church with a clear vision for the future.  Our vision is to be a place where the family can worship together and we are going to love God and love people - not just say we love God and people, but demonstrate it by actively pursuing God’s will for His people by dedicating ourselves to his word and making people our priority.  When we talk about being an Acts 2 church, this is what we commit ourselves to.  Loving God and loving people.

Second, we have a great group of volunteers and staff who are pouring their hearts, time and resources into reaching people that need to know who Jesus is and what He’s all about.  Since the completion of the Youth Center basement, this facility has become where the young adult congregation has called home.  It features state of the art technology and sound coupled with a club/ coffee shop atmosphere.  Some have even said that when they are there and we are worshipping and hanging out together, it feels like home.

If you’re checking out our website for the first time and don’t know what the 5.4.ONE is all about, I’ll try my best to tell you.  The 5.4.ONE is kind of like Cheers.  “Sometimes you want to go where everybody knows your name, and they’re always glad you came.”  We want to foster an environment where we can shake off the image of what society (and even popular church society) says we should be and just be real with God and real with one another.  We desire to be honest with our worship and strive to make our worship a lifestyle, not a style of music that lasts for twelve minutes.  We don’t define our time with God as a service but as a community of believers and seekers who want to make the world a better place, and we’re starting with ourselves.

We believe that Jesus has made such an impact on our lives that we’re doing everything within our power to share Him with you.  We celebrate Him not by naming all of the things that Jesus isn’t and the things that we’re not allowed to do, but by celebrating who He is and the freedoms that He has given us.  This may sound contrary to your previous church experiences, and if so, that is unfortunate.  

I want to personally invite you our weekly community event.  I want to invite you to shake off the bonds that you or even the church has placed upon your life and come to the 5.4.ONE with an open heart and an open mind.  I want to invite you to experience freedom that you have never experienced before.  But most of all, I want to invite you to experience a God who loves with open arms; a God who is Holy and yet offers Grace to us even when we think no one could ever love us; and a God who wants to free you from the weight that you are carrying.

If you have any questions regarding your faith, your value, or even who we are, please feel free to email me at This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it .

Peace be with you,
Chris Payne