Since Easter, we have seen a dramatic increase in our Sunday attendance, and I’m thrilled that so many new people are discovering the simple message of Jesus that we share together at LCC. In light of that we are hosting two events this weekend to help people take their next steps with Jesus and with LCC.

Newcomer’s Dessert Sunday @ 4pm

Our first event is our Newcomer’s Dessert this Sunday. About once per quarter, my wife and I host this casual get-together to introduce ourselves and the church to the newcomers and the curious. This time, we will be hosting it at the LCC facility and providing some amazing homemade desserts for you.

Yep, that’s right. This Sunday, you can have dessert at 4pm and then eat your dinner later! Everyone who has not been to a newcomer’s dessert before is welcome to join us for this one.

Baptism Class Monday @ 6pm

Since Easter, we have had many people mark their cards that they are interested in learning what it takes to be a follower of Jesus and/or be baptized. This is the perfect class for that. We’ll meet in the “Green Room” at the LCC facility at 6pm to do a little Bible Study on the topic of baptism and following Jesus. You should definitely be there!

Last Sunday was Easter, and I have to share with you how awesome God is through some statistics of the day.

Leading Up to Easter

Leading up to Easter, we engaged in a major marketing effort to get the word out about our church because we are convinced that the message of Easter changes lives. To that end, we spent nearly $3500 on mailing over 19,000 postcards and over 600 Egg Hunt flyers. We hosted the Free Coffee event and the Easter Egg Hunt event to try to build some more community connection, and we got new signage for outside the building and inside the building.

Was it worth it? I have to say a resounding “Yes!”

Easter Sunday Statistics

• 203 attending the main services
• 42 children in Kidopolis
• 8 adult volunteers working in Kidopolis
• 253 total attendance!

Those numbers shattered all previous records. In fact, our previous high was 160 which means Easter 2012 beat our previous record by nearly 100!

Okay, so those are the attendance numbers, but frankly, that’s not the reason we did all that we did preparing for Easter. Getting people into the building has never been a goal for our church. Instead, our goal is and always will be to see how many people’s lives we can positively impact with the message of Jesus, and on that note, I wanted to share with you some of the comments we received on our CONNECT cards this past week

From some regulars:

Details of Judas that I hadn’t heard before-makes the Easter story become more vivid for me. Thanks!

I was impressed how Jesus didn’t point out to Peter that he had denied him.

Letting the word soak into my heart, wanting to hear more… Wanting to be motivated enough to do it on my own.

From some first-time guests:

Was a nice message today. Haven’t been to church in 27 years and got flyer in the mail. Thank you for that. I will pursue God daily.

I’m looking for a church where I can explore my ignorance of the bible.

Rediscover christianity and my faith.

I really enjoyed todays service

I have been searching for a church and I think I have finally found one. I have been looking for guidance and I am hoping to find it. Thank you!!!

This was my first time to Lafayette Community Church. I felt very welcomed when I arrived and was given a quick tour. I have been praying for a fellowship and wanted to find out more information about the church. The service was an interesting approach to Christianity! Thank you!

I arrived at the end of service. I will definitely be back for one more Sunday.

One more thing…

So I hope you can understand how completely thrilled I am to hear that God is using our church to draw people to Himself, but those comments are only part of the story. The rest of the story shows up in the decisions people made as a result of our service. Check this out:

Three people marked their cards that they were making a decision to become a follower of Jesus, and two of those people also want to be baptized!

Do you realize what that means? If the cards represent the sincerity of their hearts, then three more people will have eternal life in heaven because of what happened on Easter Sunday 2012 at Lafayette Community Church! What an incredible privilege it is to be part of that! I just can’t express how blessed I am to be part of this community of faith we call LCC and to experience God’s blessings like this with all of you.

Let’s keep pressing on! There are many more people in this city who need to meet Jesus just like that, and I’m eager to see us reach them too.

Register here:

Click here

Details:

Everyone is invited to a massive Community Easter Egg hunt with over 1000 eggs! Space is limited to the first 200 kids (under 12), so come early or RSVP below.

• Saturday, April 7 at The Foxfire Apartments on Veteran’s Memorial Parkway, just east of Regal Valley Dr.
• Hunt starts at 10 am / Onsite registration starts at 9:30 am / Door prize announcements at 10:45 am
• Bring a basket or bag for each child in the hunt!
• For more information on our Easter Egg Hunt, contact Pastor Jeff at 7865-404-0807.
• For more information about our Easter Sunday Service, click here — Easter Service

We are looking for help to pull off a massive Easter Egg hunt in the Commons neighborhood on April 7. Here’s what we need:

• 2 Volunteers to run the information table on the day of the event.
• 10 volunteers to help us hide eggs all over the park
• 2 volunteers to serve as “bouncers” for the event just in case we need some security for some reason.
• 1 or 2 volunteers to be photographers and/or videographers of the event

This Sunday, March 18, LCC will have two Sunday services to practice for Easter Sunday. Our first service will start at 9am with Kidopolis closed and our second will be at 10:30 with Kidopolis open. Which service will you attend?

can one church service change your life?

It’s an American tradition to go to church on Easter Sunday, but it’s also a tradition to ONLY attend church services on Easter. We understand why.

But first, let me ask if it’s true for you. Is it? How many church services have you attended? How many of those services have made a difference in your life?

If you are like most people, you’ve been to far more church services than you have been to life-changing church services.

We understand why, and we want to help you understand why, and we only want ONE SUNDAY to try to show you.

can one sunday change your life?

You see, there is one simple truth about Jesus that you’ve never heard. I’d love to tell you what it is right now, but that will have to wait for Easter. It works better on Easter.

As a matter of fact, it’s all about Easter and about one man who figured it out by pure accident and another man who sadly didn’t last long enough to learn it.

let’s make a deal

So here’s our offer. This Easter, Lafayette Community Church is going to give you the ultimate message of Easter along with our permission to never attend church again if that message doesn’t click with you. Are you up for the challenge?

If you are, come to either one of our Easter Sunday services. Our first service starts at 9:00am and our second service starts at 10:30am. Note: Childcare will only be provided at the second service, but you are welcome to have your kids sit with you in the early service if that time works better for you.

During the month of March, we will be providing free coffee for the residents of the Commons neighborhood (and anyone else who stops by for some) every Monday! It’s not going to be the awesome stuff we have at LCC each Sunday, but it will be as good as we can make it in mass produced quantities!

If you want to help, we would love for you to sign up. Contact Tara (local.peace@lafayettecc.org) if you want to volunteer by donating a coffee maker for a week, serving cups of coffee for a morning, or even making (and tasting) the coffee.

In the month of March we have a camping/Narnia room theme in KIDOPOLIS: City as we study conviction and would love to borrow your artificial Christmas tree for the month. If you would label your tree/tree box and bring it to the City after church next Sunday we would greatly appreciate it!

This past Sunday, I attempted to cover WAY MORE material than I actually had time for. 30 minutes into the message, I was just getting warmed up. So we rushed through the rest of the material, and I promised that I would post here or on my blog some more in depth thoughts on the issues.

Well, I’ve started that process, and if you want to join in the conversation, click here to get started.

http://jeff.mikels.cc/posts/boys-and-girls-part-1

I read this over the women to close out my message on Feb. 12, 2012.

Sister, you are so beautiful.

The light of the heavens shines in your gentle eyes.

God made you from the rib of another so that you would always know the depth of need for love, connection, and wholeness.

And you are whole. You are gifted to know yourself and others as they really are as whole people and to draw out of them their very best.

You are sensitive and compassionate, and you know the very heart of God who longs for reconciliation with those he loves.

And so, I call on you, sister, to live from a higher standard of beauty, to rise with a gentle spirit above the hollow and empty measuring stick of the magazine racks, to create beauty and harmony in the world around you, and to bring your whole person to everything you do.

And in all your interactions with men, display the beauty and harmony of a spirit so submissive to Christ that it respectfully draws godly leadership from your brothers.

I read this over the men to close out my message on Feb. 12, 2012.

Brother, you are strong.

You were made by God himself, fashioned from the earth and wired to be both responsible and capable.

You are the recipient of the highest respect from God himself who didn’t demand your allegiance before demonstrating his own worth.

You are a soldier enlisted to the highest calling in the highest army to do the greatest good for the greatest cause of the greatest Kingdom.

And so, I call on you brother to live with integrity, to lead with consideration, and to sacrifice yourself to lift others up.

And in all your interactions with women, may you display such strength in your connection to Christ that they, your precious sisters will know how treasured they are.

On Sunday, Nolan Miller, Jennie Miller and Leesa Morrison were baptized! Praise God for what He is doing in their lives!

Back in 2009, I wrote a blog post about how to prepare for our Commitment Sunday. If you want to read it, you can click on the link and go there now. However, that was two years ago, and things have changed for us since then. The most significant changes are that we have adopted the ELEMENTS metaphors as the way we communicate our core values, we have established Elders and By-Laws, and we have created guidelines for Covenant Members in the church.

Here’s the bottom line: I know God is using LCC to make a difference in people’s lives, and I want you to go on record saying that you want to be a key player, a covenant member for this next year. As a result, I’m writing this post to encourage you to consider our membership covenant.

You see, this Sunday is our Commitment Sunday, and I want to remind you of what that means for you, me, and for the family we call Lafayette Community Church.

On Sunday, we will be celebrating a number of different commitments.

• Some will be making commitments to Jesus by praying prayers of repentance.
• Some will be making commitments to Jesus by going through the waters of baptism.
• Some will be making an “associate” commitment to LCC by signing the Associate Covenant (see below for that)
• Some will be making a Covenant Member commitment by signing the Membership Covenant.
• Some will be making a financial commitment by giving God the first portion of their income.
• And some will be renewing their commitment to Christ by joining together in the celebration of communion.

I believe that at least one of those commitments is your commitment for this weekend. I believe that Jesus himself is preparing you to make one of those commitments. Which one or which ones are for you this week?

A Prayer of Repentance

Heavenly Father, I confess to you that I have lived by my own rules and followed my own standards rather than yours. I realize that the only right thing to do is to return to you the way you ask me to, by placing my trust in Jesus for the forgiveness of my sins, and by giving you full control of my life. Please have mercy on me and cleanse me and lead me in the way you have for me.

Baptism

If you want to be baptized on Sunday, call me before the weekend is up! 765-404-0807.

LCC Associate Covenant

With a clear conviction that God’s will for me involves fellowship with the people of Lafayette Community Church, I commit to use this year to explore God’s simple commands to put him first, join his family, grow like Jesus, and serve others.

LCC Membership Covenant

GOD IS MY AIR:

In every aspect of my life, God comes first. His Word is my only authority. His Son is my only Salvation. His glory is my greatest desire. I give him the first of my every opportunity. Matt 22:37-38 (Gen 2:7 :: Acts 17:28-31)

Specifically, I have given my life over to Jesus as my Savior and Lord, I have followed him in the waters of baptism. I will submit my life to the mandates of the Bible, stand up for God’s honor, and invest the first portion of my time, talent and treasures in the work of his Kingdom.

GOD’S FAMILY FUELS MY FIRE:

The Spirit dwells in me but his power is revealed in community. I intentionally prioritize Christian relationships because I have something to give and something to receive. Matt 22:39-40 (Acts 2:1-4 :: Gal 6:10 :: 1 Th 5:19 :: Eph 4)

Specifically, I affirm the presence of the Holy Spirit in my life and heed the guidance he gives through the counsel of others in this church. I will view this community as my spiritual family and offer my time, talent, and treasure here before serving or giving elsewhere. I will prioritize the weekly gatherings for worship and join a Life Group. I will pray for and support my leaders, love my fellow believers, and vigorously defend the unity of this church.

I AM GOD’S EARTH:

God is creating me. I started as dust, but I’m becoming like Jesus. I rejoice in trials and hardships because Christ suffered for me, and I am a living sacrifice transformed by the truths of God. Rom 8:29 (Rom 12:1-2 :: Gen 1:27, 2:7 :: 2 Cor 4:7-10)

Specifically, I will pursue opportunities for spiritual growth. I will root out sin in my life through regular self-examination and confession of sin both to God and to accountability partners, and in all areas of uncertainty, I will submit first to the clear teaching of the Bible, then to the leaders God has placed over me, and finally, after prayer, to my own conscience.

THE WORLD NEEDS MY WATER:

I have the Living Water in me. Infinite refreshment is mine in Christ, and I unlock it in me when I give it to others. I eagerly risk embarrassment to offer others the Living Water of Jesus. Matt 28:19-20 (Prov 11:25 :: John 4:1-41 :: Matt 10:42)

Specifically, I employ everything I am and everything I have for the benefit of others beginning in this church and extending to the world around me. To help others find full life in Christ, I will work to serve them, befriend them, share my faith with them, invite them to join me in this church, and help them know the gospel so they too can experience the life I have been given. I will rely on God to refresh me as I strive to refresh others.

THEREFORE:

In full agreement with the mission and governing documents of this church, I will live by this covenant in unity with this church for this year.

Conclusion

I sincerely hope that you will be there Sunday to make commitments and to celebrate the commitments of others. It’s going to be one incredible morning!

In 2012, Lafayette Community Church is going to get really good at spiritual coaching. I’ve worked up a program for spiritual coaching that should be easy enough for anyone to work through and even guide someone else through.

If you are interested, you can download the entire coaching book here, or you can download each lesson individually.

Download

To access the downloads, click here:

http://lafayettecc.org/coaching-resources/

2012 is just beginning, but perhaps you are interested in making your summer plans include a mission trip. Mark and Carla Hanson, friends of LCC and missionaries to Spain, are hosting a missions trip to Alcoy Spain this summer. She sent me all the details, so I thought I’d post them here so you can know about it too.

You can Contact Carla Hanson directly at her email address: cjhmeh@gmail.com

Alcoy English Camp

WHAT IT IS AND WHAT IT ISN’T

In collaboration with Alcoy City Hall, and World Partners will host a 9 day camp on July 2nd – 13th, 2012 designed to bless the children and families of Alcoy with a unique and singular English immersion experience. Actually love, not English is the language spoken most audibly during camp. English Camp will run Monday through Friday the first week and Monday through Thursday the second week from 9:30 – 1:30 for students ages 5 – 11. We will deliberately limit our number to around 60 kids in each camp to provide personal attention and offer quality and individual contact with the families of the campers. Activities will include music, sports, crafts, and lesson time with a focus on small group learning and interaction. We teach through interactive curriculum, repetition, and creative activities. There is a cost to the families to help defray camp costs.

In an additional effort to bless parents who don’t have to run off right away after dropping off their children, we want to provide a special English conversational and craft class which we hope will turn into a natural avenue of friendship and trust that involves people from the local church.

We also will run an Intensive English camp for those who are 12 years old – Adult every evening of every week in July, Monday through Thursdays. This will be in the evenings from 6 – 8 p.m. We are especially looking for experienced teachers or those certified to teach English as a second or foreign language. Last year, this was our most popular program and as a result, we have had 86 adults & children continue in our year long program with each person receiving a Bible as part of their learning experience.

Given Spanish history and some past religious abuse, we work and live in an environment that can among other things be highly suspicious of organized religion, which influences and shapes how we minister. This camp provides a way in which Spaniards do not look at us as missionaries or you as short-term workers rather as individuals taking time, at your own expense, to love their kids and help them learn English. More will be said about this during the training and future correspondence leading up to camp.

English Camp is not a Vacation Bible School Program; instead it is used to model and demonstrate our faith in action. Other areas already using this program have stories each year of parents who talk of how teachers befriend and love their children. As a way of building upon that love and positive influence, special follow up events will be scheduled through out the year. From this continued and regular contact, we hope relationships will blossom and result in children visiting and becoming regular attendees at the local church, not to mention the countless spiritual conversations throughout the year.

WHY IT WORKS:

The strength of English Camp as well as our ability to run such a ministry is dependent upon cooperative and willing workers. The key dynamic of English camp is the relationship between the monitors or camp counselors and the 4-6 Spanish children that form each group. The groups will be formed by age and gender and will serve as the camper’s main reference for camp. A typical day begins with a welcome, a 15-minute workbook time at the beginning and end of each day, engaging them in song time, snack time, craft time, sports time, and talking to them at all times in English. Other programs like this have seen bridges of trust built in the communities that have been strong enough to support the weight of Truth.

WHAT IT COSTS:

Given the fact that we place the workers with Spanish host families for free, we are able to keep costs down. By far the largest single cost will be airfare to and from Spain. A rough guess of total cost would be between $2500 – $2800 (We will have a more exact figure as we look at flights more closely). Other costs will include a house-warming gift to the host family (we suggest something that tells them a little about where you come from such as a coffee table book on something your state is famous for – an example would be a book on the Indy 500 if you are from Indiana), the entrance fees to museums, site seeing events, etc. that your host family may plan, personal spending money (ice cream, souvenirs & gifts, etc.). Please know that the euro is stronger than the dollar at the moment ($1.31 to buy 1 euro). There is no need to bring euros since ATMs are plentiful and trustworthy. It is very difficult to exchange dollars so the ATM is the best way to get money. We have been doing it for 5 years with no problem. In fact, DO NOT BRING AMERICAN DOLLARS!

WHERE WORKERS STAY:

We know that bad housing can correlate into a bad trip. We value our workers and want to do whatever is necessary to care for them before and during their stay in Spain. Therefore, the homes we place people in are set up through personal contacts, city hall officials, and families of students attending camp. We will carefully screen these homes and they will be scouted out in advance. A good home environment is vital to a successful stay and we will take every step possible to ensure that this happens. In fact, the workers’ housing is just as vital and important to the ministry as the actual camp itself. The impact of 15-20 Christian workers living in the homes of Spanish families for two weeks is impossible to calculate. Most of the families would not be considered religious or church going but the stories from places that are using this program tell that between the workers and hosts alike there develops trust, friendship, and deep conversations of faith.

Most host families have two expectations: first, they are interested in hosting an international person for the experience and cultural exchange; second, they will want to practice their conversational English and have help for their kids. Workers are encouraged to spend their spare time with their host families. Breakfast and dinner will be eaten with the host families while lunch will be eaten together with camp workers.

ALCOY FACTS:

Alcoy , city (1990 pop. 65,082), Alicante prov., SE Spain, on the Serpis River. An important industrial center with manufactures of textiles, paper (especially cigarette paper), metals, and furniture, it also has trade in grain, wine, and oil from the surrounding region. The metallic structure of the Viaduct of Canalejas, one of the emblems of Alcoy, was quite innovative at the time it was built: the beginning of the 20th century.

The Riquer and Molinar rivers meet in the capital of the region to form the Serpis river. This fact, along with the numerous bridges and industries located by the rivers, and the homogeneous historic quarter, has determined the tourist character of Alcoy. The expansion of the medieval centre forced the creation of bridges, so the new suburbs could grow; this is the reason why nowadays the city is known as “city of bridges”.

The square of Plaza de España is the nerve centre of the city. In the medieval quarter we can visit the old City Hall, the Archaeological Museum and the Museum of the Festivities of Moors and Christians. Going on the opposite direction, up San Nicolás street, we will discover the Modernist part of town.

The festivities of Moors and Christians, which honour the patron saint San Jorge, are celebrated in Alcoy during the 22nd, 23rd, and 24th of April; this “fiesta” is rooted in tradition, and commemorates the historical events of 1276. Music, pomp, and a burst of imagination take us back to the 13th century, to remember the Battle of Alcoy.

The Christmas season is upon us, and once again we celebrate everything that Jesus means to us and everything that he has done for us.

• We celebrate that God would send his Son.
• We celebrate that the Son would willingly come.
• We celebrate that everything we need, he came to give.

That’s the theme for our Advent season this year. Jesus came to give us everything we need. From teaching us about our worry over food and clothes to saving us from our sin and everything in between. He is our Prophet, our Priest, our King, our Brother, and our Savior.

He has come to us to be for us and with us everything we need.

How generous is our God!

Join us each Sunday through January 1 (except for Christmas Day) to hear a series of lessons on God’s greatest gift to you.

He Came, Advent 2011

To everyone at LCC:

Let me tell you what an incredible privilege it is for me to be your pastor. Each day, I’m reminded what a wonderful opportunity it is for me to know you, serve you, and encourage you. Each week, I’m reminded what an incredible responsibility it is for me to bring God’s Word to you in a relevant and informative way. Nevertheless, each year, you remind me that LCC is a congregation of generous people who understand the value of community.

Last Sunday, at the end of our announcement time, Dave Hynes stood up to share before the whole congregation that a collection had been taken up during the month of October for me and for Pastor Reggie in honor of Pastor Appreciation Month. I was completely surprised and had no idea that anything like that was going on behind the scenes. He handed me a gift bag that had some fancy chocolates in it and a card with $50 worth of coffee gift certificates inside.

You guys know me well.

See, I’m not a big fan of normal chocolate or normal coffee. I like the crazy strange weird (and usually expensive) stuff. I like the chocolate with chili powder in it to make it spicy, the 90% Cacao dark chocolate that makes your mouth feel dry, the salted chocolate that has real crystals of sea salt in it. I like the strange chocolate, and I’ll go on record now saying that the stuff you all gave me on Sunday was (and half of it still is) absolutely incredible. There’s some seriously strange, fancy chocolate in there, and it’s all amazing.

Also, the gift cards for the coffee are for the most amazing coffee shops in town. I’ve already bought a bag of beans that I intend to french press for my Life Group tonight.

Nevertheless, gift cards, chocolate, money, whatever, all those things are great and all, and I love you all the more for them, but what really excites me, what really gets my motor running, and what really reminds me of your appreciation for me is whenever I see you growing in your relationship to Christ.

This last year, I have received the great gift of seeing people step up to do more than simply greet Sunday morning visitors but to engage them during our Interaction time, to invite them to join Life Groups, to share meals with them, and to welcome them into the life of our church. I have seen people step up to give of themselves financially, making the commitment to return to God through LCC the first 10% of their household income. I have seen people step up to become worship leaders, and KIDOPOLIS teachers, and Life Group hosts. I have seen people devote themselves to prayer, to cleaning the building, to starting a youth program, and to even building a drum cage!

I feel appreciated with chocolate, and I thank you again for your gifts, but I need to thank you even more for simply walking with Jesus. He loves you more than I ever could, not because of you, or me, but because of him.

Let’s finish 2011 strong. Let’s build each other up. Let’s reach out to the lost who don’t know Jesus. Let’s put our money where our mouth is, and let’s all together get ourselves ready for the new miracles God will do in our midst next year.

Thank you again.

Grace and Peace,

Jeff

I just got this email from Seth Curtis saying that their support level is now at 95%. All they have left to raise is $350 in monthly support! Here’s the email:

Hey Jeff,

Just wanted to touch base with you so you can update your people on how things are going with our departure plans.

Our current support level is at 95% — We are still in need of roughly $350 in monthly support that needs to come in between now and when we leave. Because of the closeness, we have prayerfully set our departure date for Monday, November 21st, 2011.

Our people in Congo have been notified of our arrival plans and are very excited, as are we!

…

If there might be others at LCC who would commit to sacrificially partner with the ministry in Congo personally, I have attached a Statement of Support Intent form from FGM.

Along with this, if there would be those who would like to pray for us & track our travels back to Congo and getting set back up, I will be posting regular updates on Facebook & Twitter. More frequent and pertinent updates will be released to those who are members of our FB group, “ujm LIVE!”

• Talking Drum Mailing list sign-up — http://conta.cc/talkingdrum
• Twitter — http://twitter.com/Curtises4africa
• Facebook — http://www.facebook.com/Curtises4africa
• Facebook Group — http://on.fb.me/ujmLIVE

To join their financial support team, download this form: Statement of Support Intent.

Read Pastor Reggie’s Letter to the Congregation here.

I am always sad to see great people leave our fellowship, but every now and then, I face a situation that has me simultaneously selfishly saddened and altruistically thrilled. In my selfishness, I regret to inform you all that Pastor Reggie will be taking on a new ministry position at another church and leaving us as soon. However, I have been in on the planning and strategy of this transition for over a month now, and I must say that I am thrilled for Reggie and his family.

Many of you know Reggie’s skills and qualifications put him in a category of experience that far exceeds what we were able to pay him. I still mark it a miracle that God has provided for his family well enough over these past two years that he has been able to stay with LCC, working for slightly more than peanuts.

Nevertheless, his great gifts have now been recognized by a church with the financial resources to compensate him fully, and I rejoice that Calvary Baptist in West Lafayette has hired Reggie, effective on October 24.

We will miss him greatly, but you should know that the church is in a much stronger place now than we were when he first joined us, and I personally am already working on finding people to fill his shoes. I believe God is going to bless us as we joyfully send Reggie out to this new ministry opportunity.

Next week (October 23) will be Reggie’s final Sunday at LCC, and we want to send him out with a blessing, so let me encourage you to share a word of thanks and encouragement with Reggie by replying to this post or posting something to our church Facebook page.

Download Reggie’s
Letter to LCC

From Reggie Alderman:

To the congregation of Lafayette Community Church,

It’s been my privilege to work with Pastor Jeff and the LCC church family. It’s been a little over two years that I first came to LCC when we met at the Long Center. What was a volunteer opportunity to be a part of what God was doing became a part-time staff position that has been a refreshing and exciting experience.

Recently, a full-time opportunity has opened for me to serve at Calvary Baptist Church in West Lafayette, IN as the Pastor of Operations & Counseling. My official start date is October 24, 2011. My last Sunday at LCC will be Sunday, October 23. Though all of this seems quick to some, it’s been something that has been developing over several months. I would have never thought that being the Pastor of Operations & Counseling at LCC would be the foundational experience that God would use to prepare me for the opportunity at Calvary, but in God’s plan He has brought everything to fruition in its season.

Though I’ll be serving in another church family, West Lafayette is not considered a continental relocation, so in many ways the friendships that have been forged here will continue. After all, we’re under the same assignment that Christ gave to us all.

Warmest Regards and God’s best in all things,

Reggie Alderman
October 14, 2011

Our new mugs have arrived and we are selling them this time in a special way. They cost us about $5 each, but we are charging you the special discounted rate of only $10!

Actually, we give mugs away for free to every visitor, so we are asking you to help out by buying a mug of your own and sponsoring a mug that will make a first-time guest’s day that much more special!

So, if you get one, you are also giving one… and vice versa!

Hearing Jesus say, “Well Done.”

Every week, I am encouraged to think of how God is blessing us. We have some incredible musicians who lead us in worship each week, we have some wonderful volunteers working with the Kidopolis program, and our welcome team is simply incredible. We even got new LCC travel mugs to give away! To top it all off for me, I feel incredibly blessed to have the opportunity each week to share with all of you what God has laid on my heart from the Bible.

In fact, that’s the reason I’m taking this extra time to write a news post. See, we concluded our momentum series with the consideration of where all this momentum is taking us. Back in week 5, I shared that the main lessons of weeks 1-4 were really leading us toward the destination of spiritual maturity, but we’ve covered a lot more since then. What is the destination we are reaching with all this good momentum? Well, that destination is the moment we meet Jesus.

Some people live for the present moment as if this moment is all they have. They maximize their pleasure and “live for the moment.” Some people live in the present for some future goal. They imagine all they want to accomplish before they die or the kind of world they want to make and they work hard in their daily life for that envisioned moment. However, there is a moment far more important to live for. It’s the moment that comes after death, or for those lucky enough to be alive in that day, the moment when Jesus returns—the moment when I meet Jesus.

Be absolutely certain that when you meet Jesus, he will see your fruitfulness and your faithfulness and say, “Well done.”

After all, that’s my motivation and the whole reason I moved to Lafayette, the whole reason LCC got started. That’s the whole reason you are enjoying what happens at LCC. It’s all because there are people who are passionate to be fruitful with their lives and hear Jesus tell them “Well done,” someday!

Seth and Darla

It’s in light of that message, that I brought Seth and Darla Curtis before the church on Sunday:

Seth and Darla are church planters in Lubumbashi, Congo, and they are in the process of raising prayer and financial support.

Here’s the deal for you. One of the ways you can be fruitful in your Christian life is to join with them. You can bear fruit in Africa by joining with Seth and Darla. As of this week, they are 85% funded and need to be 90% funded before they can buy their plane tickets to go home. That 5% amounts to only $350.

Do you think our church can come up with $350 per month to help them get back to Congo? It’s not in our church budget, so I’m asking you as individuals. Could we get 10 people to step up with a $35 per month commitment to the Curtis family? What do you think?

If you want in, comment on this post to let the world know you’re in, and then contact Seth and Darla directly to sign up. Their website is: http://ujm.me and their email address is seth@ujm.me.

Let’s do our first church planting project by sending some church planters to Africa!

LCC is trying to do what Jesus did: Give People Life. Part of our strategy is a program developed by Rick Warren at Saddleback Community Church called P.E.A.C.E. The letters stand for Promote Reconciliation (especially by helping people get reconnected to their Heavenly Father), Equip Servant Leaders, Assist the Poor, Care for the Sick, and Educate the Next Generation. We use P.E.A.C.E. as a strategic framework for everything we do outside the walls of our church.

To do that right here in Lafayette, we regularly engage in what we call PEACE projects.

September’s project is the Matrix Pregnancy Center’s Walk & Run For Life, Saturday, September 24. It will start from St. Elizabeth East Hospital at 9 am and ends whenever you finish your 2 mile walk or run (about 11 or 11:30). Their goal is to raise $25,000 but our goal is to win the “church competition” by raising more money as a church than any other individual church!

Visit www.matrixprc.org to sign up!

If you have never been to my house, Jen and I want to invite you to come over Sunday night for our next Newcomer’s Dessert. I care about getting to know the people who call LCC their home and those who are still exploring LCC or even just starting their journey of faith. I’d love to meet you and get to know you a little better. It’s Sunday night at 6pm at my house (call 765-404-0807 for directions). We will be sharing a little about the history of the church, getting to know each other, and also sharing some really tasty desserts!

We always say that anyone who hasn’t been to our house yet or who hasn’t been to a Newcomers Dessert is welcome to come, so if you can make it, we’d love to have you join us.

I hope you can make it.

sent as a churchwide email on July 12, 2011

Greetings!

I’m sending this email to let you know of the great blessings and new challenges the church is facing. Our first year in the new facility is nearly done. We moved in to our new space at 3667 Braddock last September, and since that time our Sunday attendance has grown significantly. We now average about 125 people per week including over 30 children! Praise God!

God has blessed us with a great deal of influence in this part of the city, and we are seeing people with young children find a spiritual home with us. Additionally, we have seen a number of babies born this year. I’m excited to see all these new little ones born into families that desire to put God first in their home. It’s wonderful!

God has also blessed us with some hard working people who have found a way to open up a new room for childcare. We call it The Backyard and it is the place for infants to hang out and play while their parents and siblings are being taught God’s Word. If you haven’t seen The Backyard yet, you need to peek in sometime.

Now the challenge. We have the room ready, we have the infants ready, but we don’t have enough volunteers to adequately staff the Backyard and our other three rooms. We need a minimum of 2 adults per room, and we are committed to keeping our volunteers well taken-care-of and not overworked, so we have made the commitment to limit each volunteer to serving just once per month. Doing the math, we need 2 adults x 4 rooms x 4 weeks = 32 KIDOPOLIS volunteers!!

However, we only have 25 volunteers.

Now, I’m just like you. I hate the emails and letters that come from agencies and churches that say, “We have this need, can you help?” They always sound so… well, needy.

So I’m sending you this letter (and if you’ve made it this far, I congratulate you) to tell you just three things: Why we do KIDOPOLIS, what our short-term solution will be, and what our long-term solution will be. Then, I’m just going to ask you to consider one question.

WHY WE DO KIDOPOLIS

Whether you have served in KIDOPOLIS before or not, you need to know why we do it. Actually there are two reasons. First of all, we want adults to have an experience each Sunday where they can hear God speak to them clearly through the music and through the message and even the times of interaction. The problem is that when it comes to our souls, we are all ADD! We are so prone to spiritual distraction that having children in the service hinders much of what we are trying to accomplish with the adults. (Not to mention that I can usually hold the attention of a middle schooler, but I’m gonna be boring for most everyone younger than that!)

However, that’s of secondary importance compared to the fact that we deeply believe children need the message of Jesus as much if not more than do their parents. Jesus tells his followers that his Father pays special attention to children, and we want to do the same, so we have set up a system of education for the kids of LCC that is age-appropriate and exciting, that is fun for both volunteers and children, and that lays a foundation for the spiritual lessons we hope the parents teach the kids throughout the week.

The bottom line is that KIDOPOLIS helps us give the life of Jesus to more people, more effectively every week.

OUR SHORT-TERM PLANS

Because our curriculum is designed to be a relatively high energy experience, we need to make sure our volunteers are adequately rested, and because our volunteers are our most valuable asset, we want to make sure they are adequately trained and given chances for worship and instruction. As a result, we are committed to having our volunteers work only once per month.

However, since we don’t have enough volunteers to staff every room under that kind of system, we have made the tough decision to let some rooms go unstaffed some weeks. That means we will leave the rooms open for parents to take disruptive children to, but we will not have LCC volunteers watching kids in those rooms. Currently, that means the Backyard (non-walkers) will be unstaffed the second half of each month, and the Park (1′s and 2′s) will be unstaffed the fourth (and fifth) weeks of each month. We are planning to keep the Village (3′s and 4′s) and the City (K-5) open all month long.

But doesn’t that go against our purpses for KIDOPOLIS? Yes. However, LCC is a church that puts people over programs every time. We won’t run a program, no matter how good or noble, if it abuses or burns out people in the process.

OUR LONG-TERM PLANS

Of course, our hope is that we will have many people take the experimental plunge into working with kids. Many people are afraid of working with kids because they don’t know what to do with them, but the simple truth is that our systems and our leadership are so good that people who have never worked with kids before can find themselves having fun and changing lives in the process. So, of course, our long term plans include a fully-staffed KIDOPOLIS with 36-40 total volunteers on rotation. Now, we also know that sometime in the next year or so, we will need to consider moving to two services on Sundays. When that happens, it will be easier to make sure everyone who serves has an opportunity to also participate in the worship experience, but it will also require the tough decision of whether to staff KIDOPOLIS for two services or just one.

Therefore, until we go to two services, the long term plan simply includes getting more people to volunteer.

MY QUESTION FOR YOU

I’m not going to try to cajole or plead with you to try serving in our KIDOPOLIS program. The kids of LCC are too precious to us to have unwilling or reluctant volunteers working with them, so I’m going to shift the question:

What can you do strategically each week to help LCC give more life to more people?

There are of course many ways people are serving and volunteering, but I want to put that question on your plate for you to chew on for a bit. When you come on Sunday morning, what is your strategy for giving more life to more people? Are you setting up the refreshments, are you preparing to play in the band, are you greeting people at the door, are you arriving with a friend, are you looking for someone new to meet and encourage, are you serving in KIDOPOLIS? Every Sunday, you have an opportunity to worship, you have an opportunity to hear the teaching of the Word, but each Sunday you also have a huge opportunity to give life to someone who needs it. How are you going to take advantage of that opportunity?

Here’s one final thought from Bethany Hardy, our KIDOPOLIS Director:

Thank you so much for helping us support our teachers. We would ask that you pray to see if YOU can be part of the solution to fully staffing all of our kid’s classes. We have needs in every age group at this point for both teachers and helpers. If you are willing, but have never considered serving in this area before, we will be happy to have you sit in some classes and get some training to allow you to serve God in this capacity.

It’s such a joy for me to be your pastor and to see our church growing into a source of life for people who really need it. Thank you.

Grace and Peace,

Pastor Jeff

There are a number of ways you can “plug in” to what’s happening at LCC. Here is a quick overview of those opportunities:

• Welcome Team (greeters, hospitality, KIDOPOLIS registration table)
• KIDOPOLIS (teachers, helpers, musicians, crafty folks)
• Worship Band (musicians, vocalists, computer programmers)
• Creative Team (producers, dreamers, event planners, artists, designers)
• AV Team (sound board, computer graphics, video production)
• Graphic Arts (paintings, drawings, graphic design)
• Life Groups (host homes, facilitators, participants)
• Mentors (follow-up, personal coaching)

If you are ready to serve in any of these areas, simply send an email to volunteer@lafayettecc.org.

LCC is trying to do what Jesus did: Give People Life. Part of our strategy is a program developed by Rick Warren at Saddleback Community Church called P.E.A.C.E. The letters stand for Promote Reconciliation, Equip Servant Leaders, Assist the Poor, Care for the Sick, and Educate the Next Generation. We use P.E.A.C.E. as a strategic framework for everything we do outside the walls of our church.

LCC will be hosting its first ever “Oil My Ride” event on Saturday, June 11th (time TBA). We will be offering free oil changes and car vacuuming services to anybody in the community right here in the LCC parking lot.

We need:

• Volunteers to do the oil changes OR vacuuming
• Ramps or jacks to boost cars up for the oil changes .
• Other oil changing equipment (whatever that might be!)
• Other volunteers to mingle with customers and/or entertain the kiddos.

Since there are too many different kinds of oil and oil filters, we will ask customers to bring their own and we will do the rest (even show them how to change their own oil to save more money in the future). We will need lots of help to pull this event off! If you are able to help with any of these opportunities or have materials we could borrow for the event, please write it down on your Sunday Connect Card and/or contact Tara Olivo.

update:

We are still in need of the following items:

• Empty milk jugs/plastic bottles for used oil (these can be dropped off at LCC)
• Play dough & play dough tools/utensils
• BAKED GOODS
• Water and/or lemonade
• Extension cords
• Games (i.e. cornhole, bozo buckets, other carnival type games)
• Crayons

We also need volunteers to do the following:

• Face painter
• Game attendant
• Balloon attendant
• Refreshment attendant
• Traffic director
• Car inspector (must be car savvy)
• Crowd “minglers”
• Oil changing assistants (funnel used oil into jugs)

Faith Baptist Church here in Lafayette has donated $2200 to us, so we can buy some more chairs! Praise God for brothers and sisters of vision and generosity who believe in what’s going on here at LCC!

This Sunday (May 15), we will be learning about how to quit the things that destroy intimacy in relationships, and as part of our discussion, we will enter (not too deeply) into some topics of human sexuality.

If you regularly bring your children into the adult service, we want to encourage you this week to check them into our amazing KIDOPOLIS program.

If you want a sneak preview of our topic, we invite you to spend a few minutes on Proverbs 5.

P.E.A.C.E. is a global effort to attack the five biggest problems in the world the way Jesus himself did. Its goals are to Promote Reconciliation, Equip Servant Leaders, Assist the Poor, Care for the Sick, and Educate the Next Generation.”

P.E.A.C.E. is the strategy of Lafayette Community Church to make a positive difference in Lafayette and around the world.

THIS WEEKEND, we are coordinating people to help with the USPS food drive. If you want to help, here are the details we got from Lesley Morgan who is coordinating the effort:

Some carriers could really use some help. As only employees can be in a postal vehicle, volunteers for this would need to have their own vehicle to get out to the route. If it is a route they deliver from their truck, they can follow and pick up the food. If it is a walking route, the volunteer would meet the carrier and walk with them and pick up the food.

As far as shifts go, it might almost be easier for a volunteer to tell me how long and when they could work and I could match them with a carrier. Carriers leave for the street between 9-10 AM and would be done between 3-4 PM. So a volunteer could work the whole route or just part of it, depending on their availability. I would just match them up based on that. If it is easier to post something with specific shifts, I would say 9:30 to noon and 12:30 to 3. I hope this is not too confusing. Please don’t hesitate to call me with questions.

Thanks, Lesley Morgan 765-447-8933

All the food collected by postal workers will be brought to the Post Office on US 26, and will be sorted and received by Food Finders. There is a big need for volunteers there too to do the sorting. The contact person for that is Danielle Goldberg with Food Finders; her email is dgoldberg@food-finders.org. If you want to help, you MUST contact Danielle and sign up for a specific time so they know to expect you!

We know you love LCC! We know you are excited about helping people find full life in Christ. But how will people find out about us? How will people know that among all the great churches in Lafayette, there is one that provides exceptional moments of worship, rocking-awesome music, entertaining and inspiring explanation of the Bible’s truths, great coffee, superb children’s programming, and supportive friendships all in an intimate location on Lafayette’s southside?

How are they gonna know?

You’re gonna tell them! (this is easy)

Visit our Google Places Page, sign in, and leave a review/ranking. Here’s the link http://maps.google.com/maps/place?cid=17598009640645674877.

If we get people who love LCC to do this, then our search ranking goes up and more people will discover full life in Christ through connecting with us!

Five minutes of your day! What do you say?

This Easter, Lafayette Community Church will launch a new series on helping people move beyond the pretend into the authentic fulfilling life God offers.

It’s not about going to church, speaking nice things, doing good. It’s about something deeper. It’s about something real. It’s about a renewed heart that expresses itself in practical ways.

If the files on this page are inaccessible, you can access them through the Internet Archive

HELP NEEDED :: Rose is going to be moving out of the YWCA Women’s Shelter this Thursday, but she needs some help with the move. We need a pickup truck and a couple people to help, and it will go very quickly. If you can help, call or email me.

HELP NEEDED: Rose is living at the Domestic Violence Shelter, but needs to leave by the 28th of March. She has a two-year-old son with her. She has found a place to stay, but she needs $200 more before she can move in.

She is also looking for a ride to church on Sunday from the shelter downtown. Her number is 765-225-1171. Call her and comment here if you can help.

In the past God spoke to our forefathers through the prophets at many times and in various ways, but in these last days he has spoken to us by his Son, whom he appointed heir of all things, and through whom he made the universe. The Son is the radiance of God’s glory and the exact representation of his being, sustaining all things by his powerful word. After he had provided purification for sins, he sat down at the right hand of the Majesty in heaven.

— Hebrews 1:1-3

Starting March 20, 2011

If we really want to know what God’s voice sounds like, we need to know the voice of Jesus. If we want to know what God wants to tell us, we need to know the voice of Jesus. This is one of those times when we need to strip away all the competing voices and listen in on Jesus himself, just Jesus, in his own words.

In just two weeks, we will be doing exactly that.

I got this from a friend of a friend, but it sounds like a great service opportunity.

Food Finders has been fortunate to receive a truckload full of totes and totes (HUGE boxes, I mean HUGE) of bulk cereal straight from General Mills! However…. it now needs to be repackaged into smaller sized portions for our BackPack and Mobile Food Pantry Programs.

We are in need of groups to come in and repackage the cereal during the next few months. Who do you know that is a member of a church, service club, Rotary, Lion’s Club, organization, student club, business, or something like that, who might be looking for a fun, group project that will benefit thousands of families?!

We’re looking for groups that can come in Monday-Friday between 8am-5pm. Additional after work and some weekend opportunities may also be available. Please contact our Volunteer Coordinator, Danielle Goldberg, at dgoldberg@food-finders.org for additional information or to schedule a time.

We need some help for the Hynes family. Many of you know that Dave’s mom passed away over the weekend and he let me know that he and Kristin could use some help with the following things:

• they need help keeping their house clean, doing dishes, picking stuff up, etc.
• they could use a couple meals.
• they may need someone to dogsit for them.

If you can help with something, post here and contact them.

• 765-418-5120 (Dave cell)
• 765-490-5655 (Kristin cell)

Granted, some people don’t really care why a church picks a logo or makes changes to its visual identity, and that’s okay. If you are in that boat, just look at the top left of our homepage and move along, but for those of you who really want to know what’s behind what we do, here’s the explanation.

LCC LOGO

For quite some time, we have been using a logo graphic that depicted a swoosh-like hill with a cross on the top. It was supposed to convey the journey we are all on to become more like Jesus. At the same time, with a long church name like Lafayette Community Church, we abbreviated it to simply LCC in the logotype. All that was good, and it looked really cool in some places, but overall, it didn’t really communicate what we are all about as a church. As a result, we have commissioned the creation of a new logo for the church identity and a new logo for the KIDOPOLIS children’s ministry.

First of all, we really wanted a logo that communicated our mission statement, “Helping people find full life in Christ.” We wanted to represent that the full life we were designed to live is found through a relationship to Jesus. We also wanted to depict the essential core of our church, that the full life is available to anyone by living out four core principles. Of course, we call them our elements, but they basically boil down to the four most important commands in the Bible: Love God, Love people, Follow Jesus, Do something good.

In other words, four things come together to make full life in Christ. Our new logo image reflects exactly that. Here it is:

It’s simple, a little more professional looking, and carries more meaning. For our iTunes podcast, people will see the following logo:

KIDOPOLIS

Since we are updating our church logo, we also put in some time and money to create a vibrant logo for our kids programming. Keeping the “community” theme from the church name, we have called our children’s programming “Kidopolis: Where Kids Find Life In Community.” Here is the new logo for that:

Of course, what I’m most excited about isn’t that we have new logos, but that we are constantly pushing the envelope of finding ways to be relevant and meaningful to our community. With our new location, a new public look, and new leaders rising up, LCC is poised to experience our greatest year ever!

I’m glad we get to do this together!

The books for our “Hearing God” series have been ordered! If you want a copy of the main book or the participant’s guide, here are the prices:

• The Power of a Whisper (book) :: $13
• The Power of a Whisper (participant’s guide) :: $5

You can pay for your book at the Welcome desk after our Sunday service.

If you are part of a Life Group or intend to join one, you will need one participant’s guide per person in addition to at least one copy of the book per family. If you can’t afford them both, at least get the participant’s guide and join a Life Group. You’ll get the most out of this journey that way.

Back in 2009, I wrote a blog post about how to prepare for our Commitment Sunday. If you want to read it, you can click on the link and go there now. However, that was two years ago, and things have changed for us since then. The most significant changes are that we have adopted the ELEMENTS metaphors as the way we communicate our core values, we have established Elders and By-Laws, and we have created guidelines for Covenant Members in the church.

Here’s the bottom line: I know God is using LCC to make a difference in people’s lives, and Iwant you to go on record saying that you want to be a key player, a covenant member for this next year. As a result, I’m writing this post to encourage you to consider our newly released membership covenant. You’ll notice that it’s much longer than previous years because we are raising our standard for what membership is all about. No longer do we have a “community” covenant. We’re kicking it up a notch and going all the way to membership.

What’s the difference? Level of expectation. Of course, we will still have the “associate” covenant that people can sign to indicate their desire to fully explore God’s will for them in the midst of our community, but we believe so strongly in the full life that God has for you, that we want to give you a little kick in the rear if you need it to raise your commitments to him and to this church.

Next Sunday is our Commitment Sunday, and I want you to sign the book with sincerity and integrity, so read this covenant and make your decision regarding which book you will sign.

So, without further ado, here is the full membership covenant:

LCC Membership Covenant

GOD IS MY AIR:

In every aspect of my life, God comes first. His Word is my only authority. His Son is my only Salvation. His glory is my greatest desire. I give him the first of my every opportunity. Matt 22:37-38 (Gen 2:7 :: Acts 17:28-31)

Specifically, I have given my life over to Jesus as my Savior and Lord, I have followed him in the waters of baptism. I will submit my life to the mandates of the Bible, stand up for God’s honor, and invest the first portion of my time, talent and treasures in the work of his Kingdom.

GOD’S FAMILY FUELS MY FIRE:

The Spirit dwells in me but his power is revealed in community. I intentionally prioritize Christian relationships because I have something to give and something to receive. Matt 22:39-40 (Acts 2:1-4 :: Gal 6:10 :: 1 Th 5:19 :: Eph 4)

Specifically, I affirm the presence of the Holy Spirit in my life and heed the guidance he gives through the counsel of others in this church. I will view this community as my spiritual family and offer my time, talent, and treasure here before serving or giving elsewhere. I will prioritize the weekly gatherings for worship and join a Life Group. I will pray for and support my leaders, love my fellow believers, and vigorously defend the unity of this church.

I AM GOD’S EARTH:

God is creating me. I started as dust, but I’m becoming like Jesus. I rejoice in trials and hardships because Christ suffered for me, and I am a living sacrifice transformed by the truths of God. Rom 8:29 (Rom 12:1-2 :: Gen 1:27, 2:7 :: 2 Cor 4:7-10)

Specifically, I will pursue opportunities for spiritual growth. I will root out sin in my life through regular self-examination and confession of sin both to God and to accountability partners, and in all areas of uncertainty, I will submit first to the clear teaching of the Bible, then to the leaders God has placed over me, and finally, after prayer, to my own conscience.

THE WORLD NEEDS MY WATER:

I have the Living Water in me. Infinite refreshment is mine in Christ, and I unlock it in me when I give it to others. I eagerly risk embarrassment to offer others the Living Water of Jesus. Matt 28:19-20 (Prov 11:25 :: John 4:1-41 :: Matt 10:42)

Specifically, I employ everything I am and everything I have for the benefit of others beginning in this church and extending to the world around me. To help others find full life in Christ, I will work to serve them, befriend them, share my faith with them, invite them to join me in this church, and help them know the gospel so they too can experience the life I have been given. I will rely on God to refresh me as I strive to refresh others.

THEREFORE:

In full agreement with the mission and governing documents of this church, I will live by this covenant in unity with this church for this year.

Associate Covenant

With a clear conviction that God’s will for me involves fellowship with the people of Lafayette Community Church, I commit to use this year to explore God’s simple commands to put him first, join his family, grow like Jesus, and serve others.

Last night, we had a jam session at the church, and guess what our band was able to do?

All to You – Lincoln Brewster – LCC Cover:

We’ve even started a new page on the site here to showcase our best recordings here it is.

Saturday at 1pm, we will be decorating our facility with some serious joy!

This is our first Christmas in our own space, and we want to make it extra special for you and for all who visit us this Christmas season. You won’t believe what we have in store for you as far as decoration and aesthetics. However, we need your help.

Donate Your Time

This Saturday, at 1pm, we will be decking out our halls with some serious holly (or something). Come and help!

Donate Some Decorations

Here’s a list of what we can use. If you can bring anything, please mark your card today or text/email me to let us know it’s coming.

• Canning Jars of all sizes with metal ring around the neck included
• White Christmas lights – LOTS (if you have colored lights, we’ll use them too)
• Tea light candles, votives and pillars (white)
• Large twiggy branches
• Christmas tree stands
• Extension cords
• Fabric (for hanging on walls and for wrapping around bases of trees)
• Fishing line
• Ribbon
• Spray paint
• Planting pots we can paint
• Origami paper

Here’s the video clip teaser for our new series!

Last Sunday, I did a live Question and Answer session for the second half of my message. Here are the questions I was asked along with my answers.

This Sunday, October 24, Pastor Jeff will be hosting another live Q & A session as a major part of the morning’s service. We have done this before, and people love it. Everyone will be able to text their questions to Pastor Jeff live on Sunday, but for those of you who would like a more detailed answer, you should send your questions to him by using the contact form available here on the site.

Do you have any friends with important questions about belief? Bring them along this Sunday and encourage them to ask whatever questions they have.

Kerrie Barnes prepared this list of things that still need to be done at the church tomorrow before our Grand Opening Sunday. If you can help, show up at 8 am!

It might help to have some rags at church. I know the few that are there are probably pretty nasty.

So here it is:

• Clean bathrooms – toilets, sinks, mirrors, counters
• Vacuum floors
• Mop bathrooms
• Stock paper towels in bathrooms
• Setup chairs in sanctuary
• Finish picking up stuff in sanctuary and foyer (we’ve been putting tools and “work stuff” in the storage * room)
• Wipe down walls (especially in sanctuary)
• Wipe down window sills
• Bring “purple zone” tables from storage unit and clean
• Wipe down anything else that looks really dirty (doors, door frames, etc)

Stef is planning to be there to finish up the following:

• “welcome” painting
• painting on desks in foyer
• install 2 t.p. holders
• get curtain rods up in sanctuary (she’ll definitely need help with this)

Finally, we need some artistry turning some foam poster board into “street signs” for our new Kids Ministry areas. We need three signs:

• The Park
• The Village
• The City

It would be wonderful if one of these signs could hang over the hallway like a sign on the interstate with an arrow pointing left to the City and an “exit” to the right into the Village.

If you are in town, please come by the new location tomorrow morning anytime from 8am till 5pm to help us get some final work done. If you aren’t in town, please pray for us that God would give us efficiency and safety.

3667 Braddock Drive, Lafayette, 47909, behind the Igloo on 350 South (Veteran’s Memorial Parkway).

This is what we need to do this weekend:

Painting

• 1 coat of black paint on half of the stage wall
• Primer over the list on back wall of sanctuary.
• 2nd coat in Purple Zone.

Prime and paint middle of the 2 dutch doors (black) 2nd coat in bathrooms 2 thin coats on bookshelf (black) Chair rail (black) Touch ups Outline and fill in words on walls

Flooring

Take garbage to dump. Move chairs and stuff out of sanctuary. Remove carpet in sanctuary! Install Carpet Grout tile in foyer

Construction

Door frames Install double doors and office to sanctuary door Build welcome desk

Sewing

Sew and hang curtain in men’s bathroom stall. sew and hang curtain in women’s bathroom stall sew and hang “curtain” around edge of women’s sink area (under side) sew and hang stage curtains for green zone Stage skirt Back wall curtain

Other:

Hang mirrors in bathroom Hang pictures in foyer

Clean

Vacuum carpet Clean bathroom Tidy up kitchen Dust away cobwebs

Greetings everyone,

This is just a last minute reminder of our church workday tomorrow. We will be meeting at the new church building on 3667 Braddock Dr behind the Igloo on 350 South (Veteran’s Memorial Parkway) to accomplish TWO GOALS:

Flood a few neighborhoods near the new church location with some kindness and goodwill. Get some work done in the building.

Please come if you can. We’ll be meeting at the church building at 9am with smiles and trash bags!

Our Work Day was a great success and the hard work put in by the painting crews made it such a joy. Here’s a snippet from the day.

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I just have to say that we have some great volunteers in our church. Part of me feels guilty that I have not had the time to be over at the new location much doing construction and stuff, but most of me feels completely joyful that we have the people we do who are putting in that work!

Construction, finances, welcome team, setup team, worship team, everything we do is possible because of people who love to serve you! Give them some love when you see them!

We want you to join us for our July Relocation Vision Dinner! At 6pm on July 31 at 3667 Braddock Drive, we will be hosting you and your family to a great (free) dinner, providing childcare for $5 per kid, treating you to some great entertainment, and presenting our vision for what God could do through LCC in our new location.

We want you to be there! Please take the time to register here:

Jeff here, and I have the keys to our new office space!

For those of you who haven’t heard, LCC has leased our first 24/7 facility for office space, kidZONE, and worship gatherings! God has been really good to us by providing 3667 Braddock Drive Suites C & D to us for an incredibly reasonable price. I am so excited about the possibilities there.

See the details on the new location here.

As a result of this new turn in our lives together, I need to ask for your help:

• First of all, we need some volunteers to help us fix up the place. Stay tuned to our announcements to make sure you find out when and where we will be meeting for our work days.
• Secondly, we will need you to be praying. For some, the new location will be an inconvenience and they will need to consider whether the inconvenience is worth it. Pray that God gives them wisdom. Other people have never checked us out before, and the new location will be a motivating opportunity for them to visit. Pray that God brings them to us when the time is right for them and us.
• Thirdly, we’ll need some financial support to get this place looking the way we need it to — nice, inviting signage, clean flooring, painted walls, well-appointed bathrooms, etc. You can give to our Construction Fund right here online. Just click this link.

We believe this coming Fall is going to be a landmark moment in the life of our church and in the well-being of our city. Our church, our lives, and this city belong to God. I can’t wait to see what He does with us all!

I recently finished reading our June book, The Pursuit of God by A.W. Tozer, and must say that I was inspired once again.

The only problem with the book is that Tozer writes in a style that is simultaneously mind-altering and difficult to remember. The depth of his thinking on these topics always inspires me but I find myself walking away without a clear sense of “what should I do now”?

Therefore, I’m posting here some thoughts both for the purposes of application to our lives and also for the purpose of prompting your huddle discussions.

If you don’t have the book with you, but you have Internet access, you can view the text online.

Chapter 1: Following Hard After God

For the director of music. A maskil of the Sons of Korah. As the deer pants for streams of water, so my soul pants for you, O God. — Psalm 42:1

Tozer’s primary assertion is that the responsibility remains for each human to deeply desire and passionately pursue relationship with God. The threat is that we might settle for the knowledge about God and yet not truly know God.

Here are a few specific quotations:

The modern scientist has lost God amid the wonders of His world; we Christians are in real danger of losing God amid the wonders of His Word. We have almost forgotten that God is a Person and, as such, can be cultivated as any person can. It is inherent in personality to be able to know other personalities, but full knowledge of one personality by another cannot be achieved in one encounter. It is only after long and loving mental intercourse that the full possibilities of both can be explored.

To have found God and still to pursue Him is the soul’s paradox of love, scorned indeed by the too-easily-satisfied religionist, but justified in happy experience by the children of the burning heart.

I want deliberately to encourage this mighty longing after God. The lack of it has brought us to our present low estate. The stiff and wooden quality about our religious lives is a result of our lack of holy desire. Complacency is a deadly foe of all spiritual growth. Acute desire must be present or there will be no manifestation of Christ to His people. He waits to be wanted. Too bad that with many of us He waits so long, so very long, in vain.

Right now we are in an age of religious complexity. The simplicity which is in Christ is rarely found among us. In its stead are programs, methods, organizations and a world of nervous activities which occupy time and attention but can never satisfy the longing of the heart.

The man who has God for his treasure has all things in One.

Summary

• We must return to a passionate pursuit of God Himself as a Knowable Person.
• We must resist the temptations of religious complexity and pursue God in simplicity.
• We must avoid the “God-and” desires, and return to the awareness that God Alone is all we need.

Questions

• What does it mean to “pursue God”?
• Why is it necessary?
• How would you describe your own “desire” for God?
• How does religious complexity affect your pursuit of God?
• The “God-and” desires are a common temptation. Which things, activities, behaviors and thoughts are likely to distract people from pure passion for God Himself?
• Can you be truly satisfied with God alone?
• This chapter taught me that I should …

Chapter 2: The Blessedness of Possessing Nothing

Here are some quotations:

[The things of Creation] were made for man’s uses, but they were meant always to be external to the man and subservient to him. In the deep heart of the man was a shrine where none but God was worthy to come.

Our woes began when God was forced out of His central shrine and “things” were allowed to enter. Within the human heart “things” have taken over.

God could have begun out on the margin of Abraham’s life and worked inward to the center; He chose rather to cut quickly to the heart and have it over in one sharp act of separation. In dealing thus He practiced an economy of means and time. It hurt cruelly, but it was effective.

We are often hindered from giving up our treasures to the Lord out of fear for their safety; this is especially true when those treasures are loved relatives and friends. But we need have no such fears. Our Lord came not to destroy but to save. Everything is safe which we commit to Him, and nothing is really safe which is not so committed.

If we would indeed know God in growing intimacy we must go this way of renunciation. And if we are set upon the pursuit of God He will sooner or later bring us to this test.

Summary

• The created world was made by God for our use and pleasure, but always external, subservient.
• When “things” creep into our heart, they compete with God for our allegiance and worship.
• For God to sit on the throne of our lives, we must lay claim to nothing in all creation—we do not own our time, talent, bodies, relationships or things.

Questions

• How do “things” affect you? Rank these items in order of their attractiveness to you: relationships, time, talent, possessions, activities, and accomplishment.
• What does it mean to have but not possess?
• This chapter taught me that I should …

Chapter 3: Removing the Veil

Here are some quotations:

God formed us for His pleasure, and so formed us that we as well as He can in divine communion enjoy the sweet and mysterious mingling of kindred personalities. He meant us to see Him and live with Him and draw our life from His smile.

The omnipresence of the Lord is one thing, and is a solemn fact necessary to His perfection; the manifest Presence is another thing altogether, and from that Presence we have fled, like Adam, to hide among the trees of the garden…

Ransomed men need no longer pause in fear to enter the Holy of Holies. God wills that we should push on into His Presence and live our whole life there. This is to be known to us in conscious experience. It is more than a doctrine to be held, it is a life to be enjoyed every moment of every day.

The instant cure of most of our religious ills would be to enter the Presence in spiritual experience…

And yet, thus to penetrate, to push in sensitive living experience into the holy Presence, is a privilege open to every child of God.

There is something more serious than coldness of heart, something that may be back of that coldness and be the cause of its existence. What is it? What but the presence of a veil in our hearts? a veil not taken away as the first veil was, but which remains there still shutting out the light and hiding the face of God from us. It is the veil of our fleshly fallen nature living on, unjudged within us, uncrucified and unrepudiated. It is the close-woven veil of the self-life which we have never truly acknowledged…

Self is the opaque veil that hides the Face of God from us

Let us beware of tinkering with our inner life in hope ourselves to rend the veil. God must do everything for us. Our part is to yield and trust. We must confess, forsake, repudiate the self-life, and then reckon it crucified.

Summary

In his most scathing critique of the human condition, Tozer asserts that there is a veil positioned between us and God. Though we have every right as his children to enter fully into his presence, and though God himself has removed every barrier, there is yet a veil in our hearts—a veil of our uncrucified “Self” that plays out in all kinds of self-focused sins. To enter into the presence of God requires a full relinquishing of that “Self.”

Questions

• What does the self-life look like among Christians today?
• What stands between you and fully entering into the presence of God in daily relationship?
• This chapter taught me that I should …

Chapter 4: Apprehending God

… but for millions of Christians, nevertheless, God is no more real than He is to the non-Christian. They go through life trying to love an ideal and be loyal to a mere principle.

But the very ransomed children of God themselves: why do they know so little of that habitual conscious communion with God which the Scriptures seem to offer? The answer is our chronic unbelief. Faith enables our spiritual sense to function.

Our trouble is that we have established bad thought habits. We habitually think of the visible world as real and doubt the reality of any other. We do not deny the existence of the spiritual world but we doubt that it is real in the accepted meaning of the word.

And without faith it is impossible to please God, because anyone who comes to him must believe that he exists and that he rewards those who earnestly seek him. — Hebrews 11:6

The soul has eyes with which to see and ears with which to hear. Feeble they may be from long disuse, but by the life-giving touch of Christ alive now and capable of sharpest sight and most sensitive hearing.

As we begin to focus upon God the things of the spirit will take shape before our inner eyes. Obedience to the word of Christ will bring an inward revelation of the Godhead (John 14:21-23). It will give acute perception enabling us to see God even as is promised to the pure in heart. A new God consciousness will seize upon us and we shall begin to taste and hear and inwardly feel the God who is our life and our all.

Summary

• Though the Bible clearly teaches that humans can know God on a deeply personal level, few of us do.
• The Biblical language of speech and taste and touch doesn’t relate to us because the spiritual world is heard, tasted, and touched with spiritual senses, and our spiritual senses are dulled.
• Lack of faith dulls our spiritual senses, and the solution is to (1) become convinced of the reality of the spiritual world and our ability to sense it (2) refocus ourselves on the spiritual world in precedence over the material world, and (3) practice obedience to the word of Christ.

Questions

• What was one of your most profound spiritual experiences? In what ways did you experience the reality of the spiritual world?
• How aware are you of the spiritual world on a day-to-day basis?
• What role do faith and obedience play in your knowledge of the spiritual world?
• Based on this chapter, I learned that …

Chapter 5: The Universal Presence

Where can I go from your Spirit? Where can I flee from your presence? — Psalm 139:7

Quotations:

What now does the divine immanence mean in direct Christian experience? It means simply that God is here. Wherever we are, God is here. There is no place, there can be no place, where He is not.

Men do not know that God is here. What a difference it would make if they knew.

Speaking of the great saints of the Bible and of post-Biblical times, Tozer says:

I venture to suggest that the one vital quality which they had in common was spiritual receptivity. Something in them was open to heaven, something which urged them Godward. Without attempting anything like a profound analysis I shall say simply that they had spiritual awareness and that they went on to cultivate it until it became the biggest thing in their lives. They differed from the average person in that when they felt the inward longing they did something about it. They acquired the lifelong habit of spiritual response.

A generation of Christians reared among push buttons and automatic machines is impatient of slower and less direct methods of reaching their goals. We have been trying to apply machine-age methods to our relations with God. We read our chapter, have our short devotions and rush away, hoping to make up for our deep inward bankruptcy by attending another gospel meeting or listening to another thrilling story told by a religious adventurer lately returned from afar.

Let any man turn to God in earnest, let him begin to exercise himself unto godliness, let him seek to develop his powers of spiritual receptivity by trust and obedience and humility, and the results will exceed anything he may have hoped in his leaner and weaker days.

Any man who by repentance and a sincere return to God will break himself out of the mold in which he has been held, and will go to the Bible itself for his spiritual standards, will be delighted with what he finds there.

Summary

• God is ever-present, and there is no human being who can be said to be “far from God.”
• Our apparent distance from God is a distance of relationship born from lack of experience.
• The great saints have worked diligently at cultivating a sensitivity to the things of God.
• The promise is available to everyone that exercising godliness, trust, obedience and humility with a firm reliance on the Bible itself will produce deeper sensitivity to the presence of God.

Questions

• How would you measure your own spiritual sensitivity?
• What kinds of exercises develop spiritual sensitivity?
• Based on this chapter, I have learned that …

Chapter 6: The Speaking Voice

[JESUS] “I have much more to say to you, more than you can now bear. But when he, the Spirit of truth, comes, he will guide you into all truth. He will not speak on his own; he will speak only what he hears, and he will tell you what is yet to come. He will bring glory to me by taking from what is mine and making it known to you. All that belongs to the Father is mine. That is why I said the Spirit will take from what is mine and make it known to you.” — John 16:12-15

Quotations:

The whole Bible supports the idea. God is speaking. Not God spoke, but God is speaking. He is by His nature continuously articulate. He fills the world with His speaking Voice.

That God is here and that He is speaking—these truths are back of all other Bible truths; without them there could be no revelation at all. God did not write a book and send it by messenger to be read at a distance by unaided minds. He spoke a Book and lives in His spoken words, constantly speaking His words and causing the power of them to persist across the years. God breathed on clay and it became a man; He breathes on men and they become clay.

Could it be that this Voice distilling like a living mist upon the hearts of men has been the undiscovered cause of the troubled conscience and the longing for immortality confessed by millions since the dawn of recorded history? We need not fear to face up to this. The speaking Voice is a fact. How men have reacted to it is for any observer to note.

It is my own belief (and here I shall not feel bad if no one follows me) that every good and beautiful thing which man has produced in the world has been the result of his faulty and sin-blocked response to the creative Voice sounding over the earth.

It is important that we get still to wait on God. And it is best that we get alone, preferably with our Bible outspread before us. Then if we will we may draw near to God and begin to hear Him speak to us in our hearts. I think for the average person the progression will be something like this: First a sound as of a Presence walking in the garden. Then a voice, more intelligible, but still far from clear. Then the happy moment when the Spirit begins to illuminate the Scriptures, and that which had been only a sound, or at best a voice, now becomes an intelligible word, warm and intimate and clear as the word of a dear friend. Then will come life and light, and best of all, ability to see and rest in and embrace Jesus Christ as Saviour and Lord and All.

The Bible will never be a living Book to us until we are convinced that God is articulate in His universe.

I think a new world will arise out of the religious mists when we approach our Bible with the idea that it is not only a book which was once spoken, but a book which is now speaking.

If you would follow on to know the Lord, come at once to the open Bible expecting it to speak to you. Do not come with the notion that it is a thing which you may push around at your convenience. It is more than a thing, it is a voice, a word, the very Word of the living God.

Summary

• The very nature of God is to be in communication, to Speak.
• The second person of the Trinity is called “the Word” in John 1, and all creation began when “God said.”
• The voice of God has been calling out to each person in history, and we have all responded to him differently.
• Ultimately and authoritatively, God has spoken and is speaking in and through the Bible.
• To truly hear his voice, we must confront ourselves with the text of the Bible and the conviction in our hearts that the Word of Heaven is about to speak to us.

Questions

• How do you feel about the Bible?
• What is your approach to hearing God through the Bible?
• Based on this chapter, I have learned that …

Chapter 7: The Gaze of the Soul

Quotations:

In the Scriptures there is practically no effort made to define faith. Outside of a brief fourteen-word definition in Hebrews 11:1, I know of no Biblical definition, and even there faith is defined functionally, not philosophically; that is, it is a statement of what faith is in operation, not what it is in essence. It assumes the presence of faith and shows what it results in, rather than what it is. We will be wise to go just that far and attempt to go no further. We are told from whence it comes and by what means: “Faith is a gift of God,” and “Faith cometh by hearing, and hearing by the word of God.” This much is clear, and, to paraphrase Thomas à Kempis, “I had rather exercise faith than know the definition thereof.”

Tozer quotes two passages:

They traveled from Mount Hor along the route to the Red Sea, to go around Edom. But the people grew impatient on the way; they spoke against God and against Moses, and said, “Why have you brought us up out of Egypt to die in the desert? There is no bread! There is no water! And we detest this miserable food!” Then the LORD sent venomous snakes among them; they bit the people and many Israelites died. The people came to Moses and said, “We sinned when we spoke against the LORD and against you. Pray that the LORD will take the snakes away from us.” So Moses prayed for the people. The LORD said to Moses, “Make a snake and put it up on a pole; anyone who is bitten can look at it and live.” So Moses made a bronze snake and put it up on a pole. Then when anyone was bitten by a snake and looked at the bronze snake, he lived. —Num 21:4-9

Just as Moses lifted up the snake in the desert, so the Son of Man must be lifted up, that everyone who believes in him may have eternal life. — John 3:14-15

“Looking” on the Old Testament serpent is identical with “believing” on the New Testament Christ. That is, the looking and the believing are the same thing… faith is the gaze of a soul upon a saving God.

Faith is the least self-regarding of the virtues. It is by its very nature scarcely conscious of its own existence. Like the eye which sees everything in front of it and never sees itself, faith is occupied with the Object upon which it rests and pays no attention to itself at all. While we are looking at God we do not see ourselves—blessed riddance. The man who has struggled to purify himself and has had nothing but repeated failures will experience real relief when he stops tinkering with his soul and looks away to the perfect One. While he looks at Christ the very things he has so long been trying to do will be getting done within him. It will be God working in him to will and to do.

Many have found the secret of which I speak and, without giving much thought to what is going on within them, constantly practice this habit of inwardly gazing upon God. They know that something inside their hearts sees God. Even when they are compelled to withdraw their conscious attention in order to engage in earthly affairs there is within them a secret communion always going on. Let their attention but be released for a moment from necessary business and it flies at once to God again.

So one hundred worshippers met together, each one looking away to Christ, are in heart nearer to each other than they could possibly be were they to become “unity” conscious and turn their eyes away from God to strive for closer fellowship.

All the foregoing presupposes true repentance and a full committal of the life to God.

Let us fix our eyes on Jesus, the author and perfecter of our faith, who for the joy set before him endured the cross, scorning its shame, and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God. — Hebrews 12:2

Summary

• The Bible teaches us to have faith, but never fully defines what it is. Rather, the definition is always by example of what faith does.
• The true nature of faith revealed by Jesus himself can be thought of as the gaze of a soul upon the Saving God.
• This focused gaze of the soul on God is the simplest act, the most refreshing act, and the most productive act we can do in our spiritual lives.

Questions

• What does it mean to “fix [y]our eyes on Jesus”?
• How does Tozer’s understanding of faith inform your own?
• Based on this chapter, I learned that…

Chapter 8: Restoring the Creator-creature Relation

Quotations:

Much of our difficulty as seeking Christians stems from our unwillingness to take God as He is and adjust our lives accordingly.

The moment we make up our minds that we are going on with this determination to exalt God over all we step out of the world’s parade.

Let the seeking man reach a place where life and lips join to say continually “Be thou exalted,” and a thousand minor problems will be solved at once. His Christian life ceases to be the complicated thing it had been before and becomes the very essence of simplicity.

The man of God set his heart to exalt God above all; God accepted his intention as fact and acted accordingly. Not perfection, but holy intention made the difference.

In our desire after God let us keep always in mind that God also hath desire, and His desire is toward the sons of men, and more particularly toward those sons of men who will make the once-for-all decision to exalt Him over all.

For this God-above-all position is one not easy to take. The mind may approve it while not having the consent of the will to put it into effect.

Summary

• All of the problems of the earth stem from the broken relationship between the Creator and his creation. We have put ourselves in the place of exaltation and have suffered the results.
• The solution to these ills is to determine once and for all to exalt God, that he would be exalted in our lives.
• Our sincere intention to exalt God is enough for God to aid us in our journey, but this intention must be from the heart and not merely an intellectual assent.

Questions

• What does it mean to put God first in your life?
• What does it mean to exalt God in everything through your life?
• Is there some aspect of your life where you doubt God’s supremacy?
• Based on this chapter, I have learned that…

Chapter 9: Meekness and Rest

Quotations:

Let us examine our burden. It is altogether an interior one. It attacks the heart and the mind and reaches the body only from within. First, there is the burden of pride. The labor of self-love is a heavy one indeed. Think for yourself whether much of your sorrow has not arisen from someone speaking slightingly of you. As long as you set yourself up as a little god to which you must be loyal there will be those who will delight to offer affront to your idol. How then can you hope to have inward peace?

Jesus calls us to His rest, and meekness is His method. The meek man cares not at all who is greater than he, for he has long ago decided that the esteem of the world is not worth the effort…

…he will have attained a place of soul rest. As he walks on in meekness he will be happy to let God defend him. The old struggle to defend himself is over. He has found the peace which meekness brings.

There is hardly a man or woman who dares to be just what he or she is without doctoring up the impression. The fear of being found out gnaws like rodents within their hearts.

The rest He offers is the rest of meekness, the blessed relief which comes when we accept ourselves for what we are and cease to pretend.

Summary

• Tozer identifies the problems of Pride, Pretense, and Artificiality, as burdens carried by people.
• The solution to those burdens is the meekness of Christ—humbly releasing to God all need to be thought of in a particular way other than what we truly are.
• Our humility before God releases us from our burdens.

Questions

• How are pretense, pride, and artificiality a burden for people today?
• How is meekness the solution to that burden?
• What does meekness mean for your life?
• Because of this chapter, I learned that …

Chapter 10: The Sacrament of Living

Some Quotations:

One of the greatest hindrances to internal peace which the Christian encounters is the common habit of dividing our lives into two areas, the sacred and the secular.

I believe this state of affairs to be wholly unnecessary. We have gotten ourselves on the horns of a dilemma, true enough, but the dilemma is not real. It is a creature of misunderstanding.

Let us think of a Christian believer in whose life the twin wonders of repentance and the new birth have been wrought. He is now living according to the will of God as he understands it from the written Word. Of such a one it may be said that every act of his life is or can be as truly sacred as prayer or baptism or the Lord’s Supper.

We can meet this successfully only by the exercise of an aggressive faith. We must offer all our acts to God and believe that He accepts them. Then hold firmly to that position and keep insisting that every act of every hour of the day and night be included in the transaction. Keep reminding God in our times of private prayer that we mean every act for His glory; then supplement those times by a thousand thought-prayers as we go about the job of living.

Certainly it is more important to lead a soul to Christ than to plant a garden, but the planting of the garden can be as holy an act as the winning of a soul.

It is not what a man does that determines whether his work is sacred or secular, it is why he does it. The motive is everything. Let a man sanctify the Lord God in his heart and he can thereafter do no common act. All he does is good and acceptable to God through Jesus Christ. For such a man, living itself will be sacramental and the whole world a sanctuary.

Summary

So whether you eat or drink or whatever you do, do it all for the glory of God. — 1 Corinthians 10:31

• Because Christians live at once between two worlds (the earthly and the spiritual), we have fallen for the lie that there are also two kinds of living (sacred and secular).
• Because Jesus himself lived in an earthly human body, and because he was fully God, there is no human activity that can be considered inherently unspiritual.
• Our responsibility is to see every single act as a spiritual one, give it to God with a sincere heart and pure motives, and believe that he has received it in worship.
• We can find the presence of God in the midst of anything we do that is not sin.

Questions

• How has the sacred-secular heresy crept into your life?
• Is it easy or difficult for you to see every act as spiritual and every act as an act of worship?
• Based on this chapter, I learned that…

During the month of June, the kidZONE is collecting new children’s shoes (or money) to send to Remember the Children. RTC is trying to collect 10,000 pairs of shoes in 10 months to send to poor children in Romania who many times wear flip flops year-round, even in the snow. Please consider purchasing winter-worthy shoes to send to these children. Anyone in the church is welcome to participate!

Please contact Kerrie Barnes if you have questions.

It’s official! We have signed a lease agreement with Alan White to lease 6000 square feet at 3667 Braddock Drive in Lafayette!

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the story

God has really brought all the pieces together for this move:

• For two months, our Location Research Team has been studying demographics, growth statistics, and real estate possibilities throughout Greater Lafayette.
• The team called every church we could find in Greater Lafayette and gathered attendance data as well as “ministry style” data.
• The unanimous decision was that the southside (47909 mostly) is the area with the greatest need and greatest potential for our church.
• After looking at 5 potential locations and praying about the financial needs of each, God has provided a perfect space for us. 6000 square feet, minimal build-out, $4500 per month!

In order to make this happen, we need your support in a few key ways:

• Please pray that God would go before us and give us a favorable response in the community so that we can effectively reach people for Jesus and so the church would grow.
• Please give. The permanent location will give us great new opportunities, but it will also cost us more money initially. We’ll need to make a few significant budget cuts to make this happen in the short term, but we believe that with your faithfulness and with the growth of the church, we’ll be able to recover those budget cuts in no time.
• Please help. Not only do we need people to help with simple painting and decorating, but we’ll need help installing flooring, assembling the sound equipment, doing minor construction, and more. On top of that, we intend to do a number of service projects on the southside to show the love of Christ to people who live down there.

Praise God with us for this great new opportunity!

For the past few weeks, we have been making announcements at church that we are getting really close to having a permanent space of our own. This week, we get to make a big announcement regarding our progress, but I wanted to send this out to all of you who subscribe to this blog or who follow us on facebook or twitter.

Amazing Financial Numbers

About a month ago, the elders and I were going over the budget for 2010. Some of our categories have been underfunded, some of our categories have been overfunded, and so we have been going over the budget to potentially revise the budget for the rest of the year. In the process, I also created an “experimental” or “vision” budget.

This “vision” budget was my attempt at putting some numbers down to see what would need to happen in order for our church to finally get a place of our own in terms of a 24/7 lease. We had been talking to a realtor and a number of landlords, and had figured out that we might be able to get 4,000 square feet of space for about $3,500 per month. However, we would need to do a build-out campaign which would require a construction loan. As a result, I prayerfully put down some numbers like this:

• If God blessed us, and we got a good loan, we might be able to get into that space for a total of $4,500 per month, so I put down $4,500 in the “rent” category.
• If I took a reduction in my own pay, and if we shifted some financial numbers around, bringing them more in line with current spending, then our total budget would work out to be $10,583.33 per month.

Problem:

The one problem with those numbers is that our current budget is based on an income of $9,000 per month. It seemed like an impossibility to me. I showed the revised budget to the elders, we prayed about it, and I set it aside for about a month.

Miracle:

This is where two amazing miracles come in:

• Just two weeks ago, we got a phone call from our realtor who got a lead on a space that was 6,000 square feet for $4,500 per month, and was already built out almost perfectly for our needs!
• After viewing the property with the location team and hearing how excited they were about it, I came back to see how our finances are doing. The May numbers had come in, so I worked the averages, and discovered that our monthly average for 2010 so far is … $10,545.50!
• For the non mathematical in the room, that means our monthly average is $37.83 under what we need for this new budget!

Faith:

So, here is the dilemma faced by the leadership of this church this past week: Do we keep looking for another opportunity, or do we step out in faith believing that God can provide $40 extra dollars each month so we can have a 24/7 space to call our own?

What do you think we decided to do?

In the summer, we shift our Life Groups into “Growth Huddles.” A Growth Huddle is a really small team of three or four men or three or four women who covenant together to read three books and discuss them. These teams make a commitment to support one another during the summer vacation season, keep in touch with each other, and hold each other accountable to meet their growth goals.

Register online now

Session One

For Session One, our Growth Huddles will be reading these three books:

1. The Pursuit of God by A.W. Tozer — Amazon Link | Free Download
2. Different books for men and women.
   • MEN: Chasing Daylight by Erwin McManus — Amazon Link
   • WOMEN: Captivating by John and Staci Eldredge — Amazon Link
3. Just Walk Across the Room by Bill Hybels — Amazon Link

The church was sent two free tickets to Big Splash Adventure Indoor Water Park in French Lick, IN. If you’d like them, I’m giving them away to the first caller!

I know some of you have been interested in sending some form of aid to Haiti. Well, I have a friend who just came back from a trip there and she said a major need is for tents! If you want to help, you can literally purchase a tent and ship it down there to the following address and it will provide a great degree of help.

Foundation G.R.A.C.E
Att Mr Gregory Chevry
Le Mirage Hotel
79 rue Louverture Mirebalais, Haiti

If you send a tent down there, post a comment here to let us know.

First Baptist Church in downtown Lafayette is hiring a custodian to work 10 hours per week. Click the link to see the full job description.

This is just a reminder that the “Love and Respect” Marriage conference is this weekend at Rossville Bible Fellowship!

If you want to go, you need to register in advance. Contact:

Judd A. Dickey
Rossville Bible Fellowship – Pastor
16 Cason Street
P.O. Box 581
Rossville, Indiana 46065
765.379.2309 (Office)

This isn’t really church related, but I received a notice that the US Census is now hiring people for part-time and full-time employment. If you need a job, perhaps this will help:

2010 U.S. Census Jobs Announcement

RECRUITING FOR JOBS WITH THE U.S. CENSUS HAS BEGUN!!! JOB APPLICANTS ARE NEEDED IN LAFAYETTE!

• Great temporary full & part-time temporary job opportunities with flexible hours
• Work in your own area
• Competitive pay with mileage reimbursement

The 2010 Census is offering testing/recruiting sessions in your area for Census Takers and other jobs! Watch for flyers and posters in your neighborhood businesses and meeting places or call toll-free 866-861-2010 for information on testing/recruiting sites, dates, and times. You may also download a practice test to help you prepare by visiting .

Received in a text message:

We are having a prayer service for Ben this Wednesday at 7:30pm at the Wesley Foundation (435 West State Street), right across from the Union on Purdue’s campus.

For more information, call Amber Smith 765-376-4336

Emailed to me from Amber Smith

Ben Smith was in a skiing accident on 2/13/10. He has suffered many skull fractures with swelling and bleeding. They took him off sedation and his breathing tube on 2/16/10. This is a great sign!!!

He still has a long road of recovery ahead of him. If you wish to make a donation for the Smith family you may do so at the Regions bank south on 350 in Lafayette (765-476-8022); ask for Colett.

If you would like to send him a card you may send it to our hotel we should be there for the next two weeks or you may send it to our home.

Residence Inn
c/o Bill Smith room 1713
11401 Reed Hartman Hwy
Blue Ash, Oh 45242

Ben Smith
832 Linden Blvd
Linden, IN 47955

Ben is currently at the University Hospital in Cincinnati Ohio in the NSICU.

…The prayer of a righteous man is powerful and effective. (James 5:16)

With lots of prayer we know he can recover quickly.

Thank you,

Bill, Jeanne, Amber and BEN!!!

Greetings all!

I can’t tell you how excited I am for tonight’s big Vision Dinner. We have more than 60 adults planning to attend, and my wife (Jennifer) is preparing some pretty amazing food with the help of some other ladies in the church and myself (I browned the sausage ).

Anyway, I’m really just sending this out to let you know that if you haven’t signed up yet, don’t worry. Just come! We should have enough food, but please give me a call by 4:30 to let us know you’re coming so we can have the right number of tables and chairs set up.

Now, here’s a reminder of the details:

• Time: 6:00pm – 8:00pm
• Location: Clear River Church (at 3rd and Brown)
• Cost: $5 per child, nothing for adults
• Note: Kids need to eat before coming.

Here’s a map:

View Larger Map

I wasn’t aware that Pastor Jeff was a fashion guru. That zip-up and zip-down hoodie took me by surprise. What will we learn next week?

I am excited to go to the Vision Dinner and make this an all-out year to this church, to Christ and to God!

Image from the Red Cross

I have been overwhelmed with the number of people who are offering humanitarian aid to the victims of the tragic earthquake in Haiti, and I thought that perhaps you might want to help out too. The problem is that you might not know how to help or where to send your money. Here are a couple recommendations and some more information.

First, let me share with you a letter sent to me from the leadership of Converge, the movement to which our church belongs.

Dear Pastor:

We have been moved by the news reports after a 7.0 magnitude earthquake.–the strongest in Haiti since 1770–struck at 4:53 p.m. yesterday 10 miles west of Port-au-Prince.

We have been attempting to contact pastor Withny Pierre, Converge WorldWide director of Haiti missions and senior pastor of El Shaddai Haitian Baptist Church, Brooklyn, N.Y. He traveled to Haiti on Monday with Dr. Dave Hall of FaithCare in Connecticut. We have confirmed that short-term missionary Brittany Storkel in Cap Hatien is fine. There were only minor tremors there. We are concerned about the status of the 1by1 child sponsorship office in Port au Prince. News of Melchisidek Baptist School and Ruth orphanage in Maissade reports that things were undamaged.

Converge World Relief is collecting funds to assist. Likely distribution channels include our Haiti missions director, Converge Northeast Haitian ministries, Baptist World Alliance (working through the Baptist Convention of Haiti and Haiti Baptist Mission) and other channels once needs are assessed. More information will be reported as it becomes available.

To donate funds to assist this effort, please make your check payable to Converge World Relief and note it is for “Haiti Earthquake Relief,” account no. 10537. Click here to donate online and choose “Haiti Earthquake Relief – #10537″ from the drop down listing.

Another agency recommended to me is Convoy of Hope, and one final one is Compassion International who manages a child sponsorship program in Haiti with over 65,000 children!

If it’s on your heart to offer some help, please consider these organizations.

This is the official post announcing the schedule for Jeff and Jen’s New Year’s Day Movie Marathon. If you plan to come, please bring about $5 per person for pizza dinner, and you are welcome to bring an appetizer, dessert, cookies, salad, chips, or drink for the party if you have any favorite movie foods.

Here’s the schedule from http://office.lafayettecc.org/moviepoll:

• 11:00am
  appetizers served
  The Princess Bride
• 12:40pm – 2:00pm
  GAMES: Killer Bunnies, Munchkin, Apples to Apples
• 2pm – 4pm
  Charade, a comedy suspense with Cary Grant and Audrey Hepburn, and about 10 plot twists at the end!
• 4pm – 5pm
  PIZZA DINNER AND LAST SHOT AT THE GAMES
• 5pm – 7:30pm
  Count of Monte Cristo
• 7:30pm – 10pm
  Master and Commander (on blu-ray)

If you don’t like a particular movie selection or the schedule, we can be bribed!

This is just a reminder of an announcement made last Sunday that THIS YEAR there will be no Christmas Eve Service for LCC. There are many reasons for this, but the main thing we want you to know is that we aren’t “canceling” the service. Instead, we are liberating you to celebrate the Christmas story with your family in the relaxing environment of your own home.

Let us encourage you to peacefully spend your Christmas Eve reflecting on the profound truth that God has entered this world—our world—as one of us. Then, let us encourage you to come to our Sunday services this weekend and the next to rejoice together with God’s people.

If you are looking for something to reflect upon, let me point you to John 1. It is my favorite Christmas story anyway.

Also, if you want to celebrate Christmas Eve with us, you can gather the family around your computer for a few minutes and enjoy the video from last year’s service.

LCC Christmas Eve 2008

Check out this video of Amanda Lingley knocking it out of the park this last week!

For the past few weeks, we have been talking about generosity on Sundays and we have been making progress through Randy Alcorn’s little book The Treasure Principle. It has been an amazing journey and many people have told us that they haven’t realized some core principles of finances until this study.

Specifically, we have been spending a good amount of time talking about the biblical principle of the tithe (giving the first 10% of your income to your God through your local church) and whether it is valid for us today and what it means.

Well, a number of people have told us that this series has led them to make a tithing commitment and Sunday was the day we challenged people to begin that commitment.

Well, the results of our offering are in and we’re thrilled to say we had a record-breaking offering. More than $3400 came in! Praise God!

Now, we need your prayers.

1. Pray for wisdom in how the church uses our finances. We still face great challenges, and we want to make sure we make wise choices. Our biggest challenges are related to staffing, office remodeling, and meeting the needs of the poor in our fellowship and in our city.
2. Pray for God’s provision especially for those who have taken the risk to begin tithing. He promises his blessings for those who serve him faithfully with their finances, so we already know he plans to answer this prayer.
3. Pray for the effectiveness of our ministry at reaching people far from God and helping them find life in Christ.

Again, we want to thank you all for your generosity and your faithfulness!

In early October, Brandon and I went to the Catalyst Conference in Atlanta, and while we were there, we got to witness this remarkable moment when Jimmy Wambua got to meet the man who was his sponsor for many years, the man who saved his life from a distance. Watch the moment for yourself:

Catalyst 2009 Compassion Moment from Catalyst on Vimeo.

To learn how you can rescue a child from poverty, visit Compassion International

LCC is hosting the first ever Lafayette Rocks 2009 Concert and Band Competition on November 7, 2009!

However, this is more than just a concert. In fact, it’s a band competition! We’re leveraging the power of the Internet to hold a Lafayette-wide band competition. Watch the video, and then submit your own!

• Read the Rules: http://lafayetterocks.com
• Reply to the YouTube Video: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=biXyVq6toa0

I was recently informed of this concert happening locally to raise money for “Vision of Hope” and I thought you might be interested in it too.

If you have been looking for a way to be more involved in the global work of spreading the news of Jesus, there is an opportunity in our own back yard. The International Center is a place where international students at Purdue can gather to practice English, learn about American culture and relate to each other. It’s actually a great chance for us to build cross-cultural relationships and may perhaps lead to someone learning about Jesus for the first time.

Check out the site, and if you want to visit the Center sometime, let me know how it goes!

God bless!

For those of you who don’t know, Darlene Baker, the wife of our former drummer and friend to the church, posted the following about her sister on her Facebook Page this week:

My twin sister, Marlene Martinez, and her family (husband Tony and 2 teenage sons, Donovan and Uriah) had a house fire Tuesday morning September 8 at 1:00 am and they lost EVERYTHING! Any help of donations, money or gift cards would be greatly appreciated–even for restaurants, pizza places, etc. Here is a list of items as an example of things they could use now and in the near future, included is a list of clothing sizes.

• Tony — shoes (10 – 10.5) shirt (L/XL) pants (34/34 – 36/34, MED)

• Marlene — shoes (7) shirt (M/L) pants (5/6, MED)

• Donovan & Uriah — shoes (10) shirt (Mens S/M) pants (30/30, S/M)

• Kitchen Items – dishes, glasses, silverware, pots, pans, skillets, bowls, utensils, dish clothes and dish towels, dish soap, non-perishable food, etc

• Bathroom items – deodorant, toilet paper, bath towels, hand towels, wash clothes, soap, etc.
• Laundry items – detergent, softener

This isn’t a need but any home decor that anyone would like to donate so when they do get some kind of place as their own to make it feel more at home until they do get their own place would be nice.

Thanks to everyone for your prayers and caring hearts.

It would be great if our church could rally support for this family. If you could contribute anything at all bring it to church on Sunday or contact Darlene directly. I don’t want to give out her personal information here, but you can find it all out by visiting her Facebook Profile and also reading her note about the fire

Chris and Kerrie Barnes will be opening their home for the launch of a brand new Life Group. Pastor Jeff will lead this group as a follow-up discussion to Sunday’s messages, but Life Groups are about much more than the study.

Actually, not many people know the secret truth about our church, but here it is: The life of our church is not in the Sunday service but in the supportive relationships we intentionally build with each other. That means the life of the church is in the groups!

Frankly, if you haven’t yet joined a Life Group, you owe it to yourself to jump on in. Why not go this Thursday!?

Visit our Life Groups page for details.

This Saturday, we are having a BBQ for all Young Adults and others who have not found a Life Group yet. Actually, we don’t care if you consider yourself a “Young Adult” or not, and if you’ve already found a Life Group, we’ll still let you come, but we especially want to connect with people who aren’t yet plugged in.

If you can, make plans now to come! Here are the details:

• Bring your own meat and drinks
• Bring a side to share
• Pastor Jeff, Chris Barnes and Kerrie Barnes will handle charcoal and paper goods.
• We’ll also have volleyball, frisbee, and other lawn games, so there’ll be lots to do.
• Time: Sat 29th, 5pm
• Location: 1301 Happy Hollow Rd.

View Larger Map

Greetings all.

I got a phone call from a man today who is interested in getting into church, but is having some transportation problems. He lives close to the Long Center, so it would be a very easy pickup for someone to get him and his girlfriend. If you would be willing to help, please contact me and let me know.

God bless.

The county court system has recently put together a website allowing people to search the ministry offerings of many local churches all at once. If you want to check it out, go here:

http://www.tippecanoe.in.gov/churches/search.aspx

Library Link is a free, library-sponsored service that matches up a homebound customer with a volunteer who selects and delivers materials to the customer’s home. This service is available to any resident of Tippecanoe County who is homebound for at least two months due to extended illness, physical disabilities, or other extraordinary circumstances. Library Link customers enjoy the convenience of home delivery, extended check out periods and a once-a-month visit from a friendly volunteer. All Library Link participants are screened by TCPL staff.

For more information on how to sign-up for this service or become a volunteer, contact the Outreach Librarian at (765) 429-0193 or klodolce@tcpl.lib.in.us

I know, I know… things related to our new office space are moving slowly. We thought we might be able to be in and using the space by now, but it hasn’t happened. Do not fear, though. We are going to get the ball rolling downhill soon! And to prove it, we have ordered some banner/posters to go in the front two windows right by the front door.

You get to see them first!

Alex Balingit

Alex Balingit will be joining us this Sunday to lead worship. You can hear some of his music on his myspace page, and if you want a sneak peek into this week, here is a new song he will be teaching us.

Greetings everyone! Dan Storer is a man in our church who has recently come upon some hardships and he is looking for a room to rent and some space to do woodworking. Here’s the information in his own words:

I attend LCC and am in need of a room for rent asap. I do woodworking for a company and need a place to do my work. (1/2 of a garage is all the space I need.) If you have an extra room and space in a garage or work shed available please contact me, Dan Storer at 765 413-1644. If someone has just a room for rent only and someone else has some garage space only, that could work as well. Thank you for your consideration. If you know someone outside the church with availability please forward this information. Dan Storer

Let’s see if we can somehow pull together to help Dan out.

God bless you all.

We’ll be moving in on May 1 with a month to do buildout before our grand opening in June. Let us know if you can help.

First Assembly is hosting Dave Ramsey’s Town Hall For Hope next Thursday. I put it on the church calendar, but I’ve got a Life Group that night.

Let me know if you go!

We post our services each week onto YouTube, but this video was recorded by a first-time visitor and posted to youtube, and it’s one of the best! (PS. She came as a guest with the violinist, and said she’d be back next week!)

Thank you Monica!

This is just a handy reminder to everyone that Daylight Savings time begins Sunday morning.

Turn your clocks FORWARD one hour before you go to bed on Saturday night so you’ll be on time for Church!

I know it means you’ll be losing an hour of sleep this week, but we’ll make it up to you with some good coffee and an invigorating morning service.

See you then!

Is your marriage fireproof? Do you want to get your relationship onto a firm foundation? Or maybe you just want a good dinner with a cool movie for only $25 per couple! Either way, we have about 6 tickets left for Friday’s Dinner and Movie.

Contact Us if you are interested in picking one up.

Yesterday was one incredible Sunday! For those of you who want to get the bullets first, here are the statistics on Lafayette Community Church’s 2009 Commitment Sunday:

• 13 people were baptized.
• 3 children were dedicated.
• 152 people were in attendance.
• $2500 (roughly) was donated.
• 59 people signed the Community Commitment
• 8 people signed the Associate’s Commitment

Now for the details.

The Purpose

Commitment Sunday is our annual moment to go on the record with God and with each other that we are committed for another year. Our God is all about commitment because he is deeply committed to us. From the earliest pages of the Bible, we read of God’s commitments to his people and his design for how people should be committed to each other.

Then, throughout the Bible, we read consistently of how God has bound himself to humans through the making of covenant promises, and yesterday, we took a look at two key covenant promises.

The first covenant promise was God’s promise to link himself with the children of Israel, and the second covenant was God’s promise to link himself as Father to all who would receive his Son.

In our church, we take the opportunity once a week to reaffirm our commitment to God through gathering for worship. We take the opportunity once a month to reaffirm our commitment to the redeeming work of Jesus for us as we share in communion. We take the opportunity once a year to reaffirm our commitment to this church and its core values by signing on the dotted line.

Yesterday was that day.

the lcc community commitment

Having put God first in my life through a commitment to Christ as his Son and the Bible as His Word, desiring to grow daily more like Jesus, motivated to use my gifts in ministry to others, and eager to follow God into the future he has for this church, I hereby commit myself to join the community of Lafayette Community Church for this year.

the lcc associate commitment

With a clear conviction that God’s will for me involves fellowship with the people of Lafayette Community Church, I commit to use this year to explore God’s simple commands to put him first, join in community, grow like Jesus, and use my gifts in ministry.

A day to remember

Because we take one day a year to highlight our commitment to God and his church, we get the joy of emphasizing on that one day every aspect of commitment we can. We had parents dedicate themselves (and their children) to God. We had people affirming their allegiance to Jesus through baptism. We shared communion together, and we actually signed commitments. I just know it was a memorable day for everyone.

Here’s the key question I asked people in my brief words yesterday…

The moment in history where God moved to save us was the crucifixion and resurrection of Jesus. The moment today when we remember the work of Jesus for us is communion, but the moment in an individual life is the moment of repentance (turning to God from sin and self) and baptism. When was your moment?

That’s really the big question. When was your moment? If you don’t know or you don’t have one, get one. I can help you if you want.

With our annual commitment Sunday coming up in just two weeks, I thought I would take the time to write an article on the significance of this annual event in the life of our church and address some key questions to help you identify if you are ready for the commitment.

One of the unique things we do as a church is to have an annually renewed “membership.” Rather than keeping a long list of all the people who were once a part of our church and consider themselves to be members even if they haven’t shown up in years, we ask people to make a commitment to the church every year. We call it our “Community Commitment” because it is actually an expression of what we believe it means to be part of the Community we affectionately call LCC.

However, we know that some people won’t be able to make the full “Community Commitment” either because they are still learning about the church or because they haven’t yet made a commitment to Jesus. For them, we provide an opportunity to make an “Associate Commitment”

Here are the two commitments:

The LCC Community Commitment

Having put God first in my life through a commitment to Christ as his Son and the Bible as His Word, desiring to grow daily more like Jesus, motivated to use my gifts in ministry to others, and eager to follow God into the future he has for this church, I hereby commit myself to join the community of Lafayette Community Church for this year.

The LCC Associate Commitment

With a clear conviction that God’s will for me involves fellowship with the people of Lafayette Community Church, I commit to use this year to explore God’s simple commands to put him first, join in community, grow like Jesus, and use my gifts in ministry.

The Core Issues

Each of these commitments touches on our core values. See, we are convinced that the teaching of the Bible can be condensed into four simple commands from Jesus which translate to four core values that we live out by making four key commitments.

Our first core value is GOD himself.

Of course, loving God like this is about more than having positive feelings toward God. Loving GOD with everything you are means recognizing him as superior to everything else, and it especially means loving God for who he really is not just our idea about him. That’s why it’s so important for us to have a commitment to God that is based on how he reveals himself.

The core commitment to God goes like this:

I will give God first place in my life by accepting his Son as my Lord and his Word as my highest Authority.

Our second core value is COMMUNITY.

Community is a word that reminds us of where we live, and that’s a good thing because community is the value of “doing life” with other people. The Bible teaches that community is one of the core reasons Jesus came to the earth in the first place. Jesus came because God so loved “the world” (John 3:16) and because God has designed people to be in relationship with others as much as he designed us to be in relationship with himself. See Genesis 2 and Ephesians 1 for more on that topic. But if all that weren’t enough, Jesus himself said that the second greatest command was to love your neighbor as yourself.

In other words, after loving God, the most important thing we can do with our lives is to love other people.

The problem with that, however, is that people are hard to love!

Thinking on this topic a few weeks ago, I realized one reason it’s hard to love people… they are unpredictable! In fact, I think that’s one of the big reasons that it’s hard for us to build new relationships. We have been burned by the unpredictable people in our past, and we have no idea how to predict anything about the people in our present. That’s why living out core value number two requires making a commitment that takes relationship uncertainty into account.

I will invest my heart, my time and my resources into uncertain relationships with God’s people.

Of course, the church itself is an uncertain relationship. Making a commitment to a church is a hard decision for many people to make, but uncertainty is what gives relationships their power to change us too!

Our third core value is GROWTH

When we talk of personal and spiritual growth we mean one thing above all else—becoming more like Jesus.

Jesus says “follow me” 20 times in the New Testament, and he meant it. He was the model human being. He was everything we should be, and he promised not only that we could be like him, but that we would be like him. Sure, it’s not easy becoming like Jesus, but at least we have our whole lives to work on it!

It’s easy to think that growth comes naturally for living things, and in one sense, that’s right. However, what’s required to keep the living thing alive is different from what it takes to help it grow. Many malnurished children worldwide suffer from stunted growth and health problems because they haven’t gotten the right kind of food, while many obese children here in America suffer from their own health problems because they haven’t gotten enough exercise.

Healthy growth takes both nourishment and exercise, and when it comes to the spiritual life, nourishment is the truth of God’s Word, and exercise is living it out. That’s why the core commitment associated with this core value is this:

I will walk the path of truth and discipline to become increasingly more like Jesus.

Our fourth core value is MINISTRY

When we use the word ministry to describe our fourth core value, we could just as well be using the words giving, service, or something else because as far as we are concerned, ministry is anytime you take what you have been given and use it to bless others. If God blesses you with money, then giving money to the poor is a ministry. If God blesses you with a car, then giving someone a ride is ministry. If God blesses you with a good family, then coaching someone else on their family is ministry. If God blesses you with the promise of eternal life through his Son, then telling someone about Jesus is ministry. If God blesses you with a cool church, then inviting someone to join you is ministry.

Anytime you use your blessings to bless others, that’s ministry.

Matthew quotes Jesus’ final words to his followers before he ascended into heaven:

What Jesus had done for them, they were to pass on to others.

There are two problems with this, however. The first problem is that very few of us even know what our blessings are. We are so inundated in our culture with celebrity and commercialism that we are far more aware of what we don’t have than what we do. We can hear a world-class Bible scholar on the radio and therefore be intimidated against sharing our faith with our friends. We see the wealth of others and fail to realize our own affluence.

The second problem is related to the first. Since we don’t know how we have been blessed, it’s nearly impossible to know how we should bless others.

These two problems are significant, to be sure, but the answer to them both is far easier than you could guess. All we need to do is flip the equation… Instead of taking what I’ve been blessed with and blessing others, I just start blessing others, and I’ll soon realize the blessings I have!

Here’s the core commitment:

I will put my heart into blessing others so I can recognize how I’ve been blessed, and then bless others better.

Practical Suggestions

If you’ve made it this far, you are probably the kind of person who sincerely wants to know God, have strong relationships, grow spiritually and make an impact in your world. But perhaps you need some practical encouragement and advice on what it might mean to live these commitments out. Well, I read your mind, and here are a couple of suggestions for how you can make these four core values and four commitments become a part of you.

• Read your Bible and pray — God and Growth.
• Get baptized — God and Community.
• Come to church gatherings whenever you can and making it a priority so you can come regularly — all four.
• Practice off-the-top, percentage-based giving (using the tithe as a guideline) — all four.
• Join and participate in a Life Group — Community mostly.
• Volunteer repeatedly for service inside and outside the church — Ministry.
• Befriend and pray for people inside and outside the church — Ministry.

What you missed last year!

If you weren’t at our Super Bowl Party last year, you not only missed the most incredible catch during the most incredible drive of the most incredible NFL season ever, but you also missed Chip Neuenschwander’s award winning chili (both recipes)!

Well, I know you’re kicking yourself for missing it, but that’s okay, you have the chance to make it up to yourself by joining us this Sunday!

Come to Jeff and Jen’s place Sunday afternoon at 4:30pm and bring either an appetizer platter to share or a crock of your favorite chili concoction.

It’ll be a late night, so be sure to take Monday as a vacation day!

Here is the official announcement of our New Year’s Day Movie Marathon Thursday January 1.

Everything starts at 11:00am with some hanging out, snack food, lunch fixins and the first movie scheduled to start at 11:30. Our theme this year is Superheroes, so here’s the playlist based on popularity from communication cards…

• The Incredibles (1:55) PG
• Larry Boy and the Bad Apple (30 min) G
• Spiderman 1 (2:01) PG-13
• The Incredible Hulk (1:54) PG-13
• Batman Begins (2:20) PG-13

I’m working on getting a special addition, but it isn’t certain yet. Also, if you have a superhero movie that you’d like to suggest, bring it with you and we might switch one of these for yours!

Hope to see you here!

Here is a map…

View Larger Map

I am so thrilled to be a part of this church, I just have to report on a few “hero stories” that have surfaced in the last month.

Christmas for Everyone 2008

Last Sunday, I challenged our congregation to put their compassion in action in a tangible way.

Here in Lafayette, our local church and ministry association called TEAMM sponsors a program this time of year called Christmas for Everyone. It’s an incredible program. Parents register their children by filling out a form describing their clothing size and the kinds of toys they would like. Then, volunteers from local churches get those forms, spend $30 on that child, and bring the gifts in a bag to their church for “Distribution Day” where the parents come, get the gifts, and have an opportunity to “shop” tables of extra donated gifts for their kids. Then, volunteers from the church wrap the gifts while talking to the parents. It’s a great idea for an outreach.

The problem is that we missed the opportunity to be a part of the program this year, but in a way that worked out because there were 10 children that somehow got overlooked in the program.

Well, last Sunday, I challenged the people there to pick up one of those registration forms, and get some shopping done by Wednesday of this week, and do you know what happened? Within 5 minutes of the end of the service, ALL 10 FORMS WERE TAKEN, and all the gifts were purchased and delivered to the families by Wednesday!

Way to go everyone! It’s wonderful to be part of such a generous church.

Two Super Secret Santas

Now here’s something else that I’m thrilled with. In the last month, I have heard two stories of someone in need being approached by someone else in the church who just wanted to make Christmas a little better for them. In one case, it was an envelope with a gift inside, but in another case it was a whole big let-us-buy-some-presents-for-your-kids kind of thing.

People of Lafayette Community Church… You Rock! Keep up the incredible work of demonstrating the love of Christ to the people around you. 2009 will be an absolutely wonderful year for us together.

I’m sorry for posting this so late in the week, but I got word from the Long Center this week that we won’t be able to park in the lot behind the building tomorrow. It turns out that because of the Christmas festivities this weekend downtown, there just won’t be any room back there for us.

Don’t let that stop you from coming though! Tomorrow is the day we deal with the first lesson from the story of the Grinch. You’ll learn the secret to enlarging your heart starts with just one word… (I’m not giving it away right now!)

Anyway, there is free parking in the lot off Columbia and 2nd, and there should be street parking on some of the streets, but your best bet is to come early and park a few blocks away. We want to keep as many spots as possible close to the Long Center for visitors who may be coming tomorrow.

See you there!