Monthly Archives: December 2013

Sunday was…cold. Yikes! Can you believe the weather we are having? I have to admit I don’t like a thing about it! Being cold is some form of torture for me that I would like to end.

On a warmer note, we had missionaries Chris and Heather Schneider come and speak at both campuses at once. They did a great job! Would you consider writing a monthly Be Present check to help our missionaries do their ministries all over the world? We love them so much and are grateful for their sacrifice.

Speaking of the world, did I mention how impressed I am that you all helped to reach our $2500 Charity Water goal last month? LOVE that our church does what they can for others.

Overall, the budget got blown out of the water last month. Thank you so much for giving! We have been right on the edge for most of the year, dangerously so at times, but November helped kicked us back in gear. We are very grateful and have a shot at ending the year in the black with margin for the future. Hot ticket items are ADA bathrooms at Hazel Dell, a youth ministry at Battle Ground, and more campuses all over Clark County…:) A girl can dream! When you give, we GO! Let’s change the world.

I was slowed down this weekend in my quest to change the world as my daughter was sick on Saturday, but she seemed to rally on Sunday. There is some nasty stuff going around to lots of families and I’d like to avoid it as much as possible! We are praying for those of you who have been hit with the flu.

The new building for Hazel Dell has closed and the countdown to moving is on. We never stop doing our best at ministry either, so it’s all hands on deck while we nail out some projects and get ready. You can help us this week at the following times:

W-F from 9:00 am – 3:00 pm
Wednesday from 5:30 to 8:30 pm
Saturday – Times coming soon…you should go like our Facebook page HERE for up to the minute updates.

(We hit 500 likes on Facebook. I’m pretty excited about that! You know you want to be number 501…)

Also, if our regular times don’t work for you, but you are willing to come at an off time, we will gladly work with your schedule. Particularly if you have mad skills at renovation. We are close to being done with painting, but the list is long on what needs to be installed and done. You can email me at stacy@coffeechurch.com and I’ll hook you up!

We had our staff and board Christmas party on Sunday. Such an amazing group of people that I dearly cherish. We are BLESSED with a team that serves their guts out and does all of the hard stuff with very little in return. It was fun to be with them!

It’s fun to be with you, too. Thank you for being such a great church to lead and learn from. I hope you enjoy this holiday season!

Join us for Simply Christmas on December 17 at Hazel Dell and December 18 at Battle Ground – 7:00 pm.

Childcare provide up to Kindergarten.

They Aren’t Just Keys

By stacynewell

December 6, 2013

Ministry

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This week we were handed keys to Hazel Dell’s first building. On one hand, it’s just a building….it’s just a tool. I am keenly aware that walls and an address do little to make a church. That being said, this moment signifies something so much bigger than a building purchase. It signifies another step in creating a church that will be around 100 years from now.

When we started North Creek, we had no guarantee that it would even last a month, but our hope was that we were a part of creating something that would see many decades of leading people into a growing relationship with Jesus. Some of that is done divinely with a move of God. Some is done relationally by creating a community that people want to be a part of and that their children want to be a part of as adults.

But another part of creating a church that survives through the decades appears far more practical. As we use our resources wisely both in investing in people and tools, we can do our part to see that North Creek Church exists for years to come. This building is a precious piece of that puzzle…it’s nothing fancy and it’s nothing ostentatious, but it is a slice of the future. We watched this principle poetically play out with the gift of our Battle Ground campus. Hundreds of people over dozens of years had sowed into a church, including a building, that has allowed us to continue valuable ministry to that community through a merge. Now that same gift lives on again in the Hazel Dell facility as well. We also know that the equity we are building will play out in multiple other campuses in the future. Campuses that will be full of people whose lives are being changed by God.

And while the practical stuff is all important, it is never the most important. As I strolled from room to room in the building this week, I dreamed of the full kids classes, teenagers pouring out through every crack, and people meeting Jesus on Sundays and in small groups. I saw a lot of you there in my mind…the smiling faces I look so forward to seeing and the percolating coffee steaming away on the bar. It’s a new place with a new address, but not much else will change about the church I love.

Here’s to another new season in the story of North Creek! I can’t wait to see where God leads us next…

If you’d like to help with painting, yardwork, and construction, we will be there on Saturday from 10:00-5:00 pm. We are also there most every day of the week until Christmas. Stop on by to work, drink a cup of coffee, or pray!