Be a Good Example For All

Don't let anyone look down on you because you are young, but set an example for the believers in speech, in life, in love, in faith and in purity.  1 Timothy 4:11-12

The scripture verse above is from a letter the Apostle Paul writes to his young protégé Timothy, a young pastor. It would have been easy for older Christians to look down on him because of his youth. He had to earn the respect of his elders by setting an example in Spiritual maturity. Regardless of your age, God can use you to make a difference for His Kingdom.  A wonderful example of this is C³’s upcoming CrossCurrent Youth Conference.

This is the eleventh year that our Pastors to Students, first Brant Rice, then Derek Mayfield and now Nick Eiden have organized a conference that all of us at Celebration Community Church can be proud of. This year’s conference expects over 200 middle school and high schoolers. The theme of this year’s conference is “Imagine”. We anticipate that this year’s participants will learn that they are all made in the image of God and that through Him all things are possible. Our youth ministry team, like the Apostle Paul says, “sets a good example for us all, “ in speech, in life, in love, in faith and in purity “. Pray that this year’s youth conference makes an eternal difference in the lives of all who participate.

Your pastor and partner in ministry,

Kyle

Identity Theft

Identity theft is a problem most of us didn’t think about 10 years ago. Today it is common to hear the stories of victims who are trying to salvage their name and credit rating after learning that someone has stolen and misused a password, social security number, or charge card. None of us can escape t.v. commercials and telemarketers who inundate us with fear producing fraud protection offers. Being alert and knowing the danger of identity fraud helps us think twice before giving personal information that could permit others access to our bank account.

I got to thinking about this from a Spiritual perspective. When we identify ourselves as children of God and even more when we let it be known that we are followers of Jesus, we assume the identity of Christ.  His credit rating gets mingled with our own. Our faithfulness and fruitfulness reflect to others His character. God Himself takes a risk with His identity whenever He allows us to use His name. But He must believe we are worth it. Protect God’s identity, live life today with integrity, humility and love.

Your pastor and partner in ministry,

Kyle

Traveling Mercies

I am with you and will watch over you wherever you go ..." Genesis 28:15

A ritual I practice in the driveway at the beginning of a long trip is a prayer in which I ask God to provide "traveling mercies." Ultimately it is a request that God would protect us along the way and return us safely home. We live in an age of automobile safety requirements. Seat belts and air bags are required in every vehicle. Windows are made of shatterproof glass. Rear doors have child-safety locks. We have rear and side view mirrors to aid us in our lane changes and tires that meet strict safety standards.  But in reality only God can keep us truly safe.

While traveling to and from the St. Louis area to pick up and drop off three of our grandkids we had on two separate occasions a tire explode and a side swipe incident on Interstate 70 going 75 miles per hour.  Thank God there was only minor damage to our van and I have to say that I believe through God’s protection, our traveling mercy prayers were answered. That doesn’t mean tragic things don’t happen in autos, I have lost good friends in vehicular accidents. Why some prayers are answered and others are not is a subject for another time.

As Christians, traveling mercies mark our movements as we journey along God's highway of life.  God wants us to come home safe. The destination isn't a matter of geography. Home is being safe and secure with God--wherever we are.

Your pastor and partner in ministry,

Kyle

Son of God

If one day a movie were produced about your life, what moment/story would it capture? If it were limited to around two hours, what events/relationships would it focus on? Would it be a comedy? A tragedy? A drama? Perhaps some of all three rolled together? How would it end? And would people still be interested in your biopic  2000 years from now? My guess would be—and this is certainly true of me—that our largely forgettable life stories would be largely forgotten less than 2000 days after their release dates.

Not so with the life of Jesus. He has been portrayed in hundreds of films since movies were invented. The producers of the immensely popular “The Bible” mini-series on the History Channel,  released a full length feature film this February about the life of Jesus called “Son of God”.

There are many memorable moments that are beautifully portrayed in this  retelling of the Gospel story. One of my favorite scenes is when Jesus played by Diogo Morgado enters the tomb that holds the body of Lazarus. We know the story from John 11 when Jesus raises him from the dead. In one of the film's more interesting moments, Jesus, standing over Lazarus, reaches down to kiss the forehead of His dead friend, and as He does, Lazarus' eyes open. The scene, underscored by a Hans Zimmer soundtrack is simply thrilling.

Celebration Community Church’s radio station 98.5 THE TRUTH is hosting a FREE screening of the film “Son Of God” tonight (Friday)  at 7:05 on the Big Screens in our Worship Center. There will also be free popcorn and pop.

Tell your friends about this first of our monthly Friday Family Flix.

Your pastor and partner in ministry,

Kyle

98.5 THE TRUTH Presents:

Friday Family Flix FREE!

TONIGHT,  Friday June 20^th 7:05 @ C3

THIS SATURDAY 7:30am

Good food, good guys, learning more about our GREAT GOD! (if you have a weed wacker bring it so after breakfast we can tidy up the perimeter of our building)

WELLNESS FAIR THIS SATURDAY 9am-12noon (Come & Go)    

Tell all Middle & High School students you know. ALSO contact alicia@celebratejesus.org to find out what she still needs donated.

GROWTH PLAN

As part of their study, Brown Church Growth Development would like everyone in  our congregation to fill out a short survey that will only take a couple minutes.  You can find the survey here: https://www.surveymonkey.com/s/celebrationcongregation  Please do so ASAP!

This Sunday at 8:30, 10, 11:30am & 6pm at C3 hear Encounter’s Dr. Jeff Burnett teach on how to “Love Like Jesus”.