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February 17 Coffee Church Highlights

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February 20, 2013
Inspiration, Ministry
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Congrats to Terrance and Gina who were both baptized this weekend at the Hazel Dell Campus!  So amazing to hear their stories and see the change that Jesus is done in their lives!  My favorite part is that neither of them who say they have it all together and that is exactly what baptism is…a declaration of a dependence on God, not an arrival at perfection.  Any time you are ready to make that declaration, sign up to be baptized at www.coffeechurch.com.  We’ll fill the hot tub and make it happen!  Pictures coming soon!!

I got to introduce Lorraine, 94 years old, and Loretta, 91 years old, to each other on Sunday.  Both of them attend our church with their grandkids…isn’t that SO cool?  God changes lives and hearts and that impacts GENERATIONS!  As the first Christian in my family, it is not lost on me that my grandkids will be different because of my decision to follow Jesus.

The 3-5th Grade boys had a Nerf Gun War Party after church on Sunday.  Awesome young men!!!!

We are looking forward to next Sunday for our Annual Celebration Meeting.  It’s a great time to get to hear about all that God is doing at our church!  We are meeting at Hazel Dell at 4:00 pm and Battle Ground at 7:00 pm.  You are welcome to attend either campus (or both!) as the information will be the same, although campus specific staff will be sharing at their campus only (ie, Kim will share about Kid City at HD and Vanessa at BG).  Everyone will be sharing on behalf of the church as a whole!  We’ve had a couple of people ask why we don’t have one meeting.  Short answer:  we don’t fit in one building at one time.  That’s a good problem!  This solution of two meetings also alleviates some drive time for most people, which is a good deal!

If you have a preschool age student, we will be opening registration for the North Creek Learning Center on March 1.  This week day preschool is located at our Battle Ground location and has been an asset to the community for 17 years.  We look forward to continuing on with the legacy passed along to us!  More info to come soon!

titleAs a church the challenge has been set before us to memorize a chapter in the book of James…are you up for it?  I took on chapter 5…if you choose that chapter, start in the middle and work backwards.  The first few verses are a tongue twister and it’s discouraging!  It’s easier to get some success under your belt and then tackle the rest.  Here’s a good life lesson: do hard things.  it’s worth the work!  The easy way will probably not help you to grow and become all that God has for you!  P.S.  Our Kid’s pastors are encouraging all the K-5th graders to memorize James 1.  I’m pretty confident that the kids will be amazing at it!!!

I love how Jesus changes lives!

I hope that this week brings about a new resolve in your heart to be unstoppable for Him.  Be blessed!

 

 

Making Change

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February 9, 2013
Inspiration, Ministry
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titleRight now we are finishing up a financial series at church.  I think there is a myth out there that people get angry when the church mixes the topics Bible and Money.  That has not been our experience at all!  We have been flooded with questions, emails, and kind messages of gratitude as people are starving for financial principles that will give them the boundaries that we are all looking for.  I know that we will take all the help we can get!

One of the interesting facts about our marriage is that we have never had a fight over money.  And it isn’t because we have an enormous salary, a big house, nice cars, and no need to discuss a budget.  Quite the opposite.  I believe we’ve never fought about money because we base our decisions from the Bible.  If we want to argue, we’ve got to argue with God Himself…and that’s not a good plan.

Although I don’t think we have our financial picture completely worked out, I thought I’d share some of our foundational beliefs about money and maybe you’ll find some common ground to help your own financial stress.

1.  We give first.  The Bible gives us a foundation of 10% to give back to our church.  We tithe off of our gross because that’s what we are paid.  Then we decide how much we want to give to missionaries, facility fund, and camp scholarships within North Creek.  There’s no guilt in this conversation.  It’s not about breaking the bank, but about consistently supporting things we believe in.  Then we evaluate other opportunities outside of the church that we have a passion to support.  If one of us doesn’t feel good about something, we scratch it off the list, even if the other person would like to support it.  It’s about agreement.  There are plenty of organizations that we can both get behind.  It’s not his money and my money…it’s our money.

2.  We had a values conversation a long time ago where we decided what was important to us.  The main thing about this list is that it benefits our family as a whole.  That means we each say no to personal desires along the way.  The exception to that rule is that birthday and Christmas gifts are FUN money.  Mark saved his fun money for years to buy a TV he wanted.  He was like a kid in a candy store, and it didn’t hurt us financially at all.  We have decided that retirement, travelling on a vacation once a year, having an emergency fund, and having a date fund are priorities for our family.  That means other things just can’t make the list.

3.  We hate debt.  We have never paid interest on a credit card in our married lives.  That means we say no more than we say yes to things.  We have a budget and our desires must fall within the amount of money God has entrusted us.

So, there it is!  Nothing fancy, nothing complicated, but maybe something we are doing will help you.  I’d also love to hear your tricks and tips for living a financially healthy life.  What is working for your family?

Feb. 3 Coffee Church Highlights

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February 6, 2013
Inspiration, Ministry
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I’m a bit late this week!  We’ve got a lot of plates spinning right now, so it’s a litte crazy!  We had a great weekend though!

photoCheck out this picture of one of our miracle babies in our Coffee Church cup.  Hanaye was born to Will and Sarah in December at just 4 pounds.  God has truly filled their cup to overflowing!

Congrats to Wayne and Jenny who celebrated 20 years of pastoring in Battle Ground last weekend.  That’s an awesome investment into a community!

Also congrats to Matt and Andrea who’ve been at North Creek for two years.  You are welcome to follow in Wayne and Jenny’s footsteps and stay for at least another 18 years!

Small Groups opened and are filling up!  You can sign up today at www.coffeechurch.com.   Our groups start next week.  By the way, our youth pastor, Kris Gray, will be hanging out with adults in Mike and Alecia’s group on Friday nights.  It’s a great opportunity to get to know her, because if a teenager is around, she might be paying WAY more attention to them.  If you want to be in a group that is full, email me at stacy@coffeechurch.com and I’ll get you on a waiting list.  Sometimes people who sign up can’t attend and we like to fill in empty seats!

We are working hard on relaunching the North Creek Learning Center, which is currently our preschool in Battle Ground.  We have lots of exciting announcements coming up about that, but if you have a 3 or 4 year old (as of this fall), we have an amazing year planned for them!  Stay tuned as Registration Packets will be out in February.

The lights out at the Super Bowl made every pastor I know feel MUCH better about the technical difficulties that happen on Sunday mornings…

We are baptizing at Hazel Dell this Sunday and Feb. 17th as well.  We’ll also be doing it at Battle Ground on Feb. 24.  You can register to get dunked at www.coffeechurch.com.  If you have a relationship with Jesus Christ and a desire to follow Him, it’s time to do that!

Services on Sunday were awesome!  We are talking about MONEY!  I love this subject because I believe that if we think correctly about money, we save marriages, we prevent stress, and we change the world.  A great vision is only limited by the generosity of others.  Don’t believe me?  Try leading something that has the capacity to change the world and do it without finances.

Loved this Facebook post:  Giving blood tomorrow in honor of being present, want to know more about that check out coffeechurch.com.

I got to lead a small group of 4th and 5th graders in KidCity on Sunday.  The topic was how to handle temptation…great conversation for kids entering junior high right around the corner!  I am so glad to be a part of a church where adults will look into my child’s eyes and talk about the choices they are making from a Biblical standpoint.

Did I mention you should sign up for a small group?  Yeah, do that now! Be blessed!

 

Get Off the Counters

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February 1, 2013
Inspiration
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Recently we got two kittens for my two little girls.  They are both boys, both orange, and both full of energy!  They brought with them some cute personality traits that we have very much enjoyed.  Hooper plays fetch with pipe cleaners all day long.  Tiger is the responsible one and meows when Hooper needs something.  It’s been a fun addition to our home…

…for the most part.

They also brought with them some challenges.  They keep us up at night with those same cute antics, my curtains are permanently pinned up due to being climbed, and they committed the ultimate sin by spending as much time as possible on the counters.

If you want to really see Mark’s blood boil, that will do it.  I’ve watched over the last two months as he has painstakingly tried to train them that the counters are off limits.  He just kept saying, “Why won’t they stop?  They clearly know it’s not OK, but THEY JUST KEEP DOING IT!”  Sounds like raising kids, doesn’t it?

CatsThe other day I walked in after the kids got on the bus and there was Hooper, on the counter.  He was licking the jelly on a bagel that Kennedy hadn’t finished.  He looked at me with a shaking guilt, but didn’t quit licking the jelly.  It was like a lightbulb went on in my head!

They know it’s wrong, but the benefit of getting something good on a plate or in the sink, is worth the risk and consequence of getting caught.

They just simply don’t care about the consequence because they want what they want and that’s all that matters.

Sounds a lot like our obedience issues with God as well, doesn’t it?  We know the boundaries, but if the pleasure is worth the consequence, we’ll risk it, too.

Mark and I’s only choice at this juncture is to remove the benefit from our kittens so that they realize there’s no point in disobeying because they will leave empty handed.  We now make sure there is not a scrap of goodness left anywhere they shouldn’t be.  I’m sure that our discipline plan will go much smoother from this point forward.

If you feel like God is taking away “good” things in your life, maybe you should evaluate it from a different perspective.  Maybe God is trying to help you learn something completely different, but all you see is Him taking away things that bring you pleasure.  My guess is that God would love to fill your life with more pleasure than you can imagine….just in the appropriate context.

So, get off the counters in your life.  Not because God just finally took away your jelly, but because you love Him and trust Him.  And then wait and see just how much God wants to bless you!

Give It Back

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January 30, 2013
Family, Inspiration
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imagesCAPXEWRKRecently my oldest daughter had to do a blood draw.  The nurse helping her was so kind as she walked her through the process of getting a needle stuck in her arm.  As the blood started to flow through the tube, she said, “We just need to take 5 little tubes of blood.”  I watched as Delaney looked quizzically at the red liquid pumping through the vile.  She then looked square into the eyes of the woman and said, “Are you going to give it back?”

I audibly laughed at her thought process.  Even at 8 years old, she is smart enough to know that she needs the blood running through her body.  What she didn’t understand is that even as those viles filled with blood, her body was already making new cells.  She would never miss that blood because her Heavenly Father has designed her to be able to give some away, and always have enough.

That’s true for our lives as well.  We hold onto valuable things as if it is all we have and we will die without it.  We are afraid to give our money because we might run out.  We are afraid to commit our time because we might overcommit.  We are afraid to love because it might hurt.

We look into the eyes of God and say, “If I give you a part of me, are you going to give it back?”  The fear in our eyes betrays the fact that we really don’t believe that God can give us more with the snap of a finger.  We think that there is a limit to His blessings.

This week I encourage you to really ask yourself what you are hesitating to give God.  Weigh out the emotions, the trepidation, and the anxiety.  Remind yourself  that your Heavenly Father has designed you to be able to give some, and always have enough.  Rest in the fact that even as you pour yourselves out, He is already replenishing you.