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On Sunday you’ll encounter a stack of bricks when you come into CCC. We’re asking everyone to pick one up before you walk in. I trust you will. We’ll also be studying our way through Genesis 3:1. One verse, that’s it. It’s a snakey verse. What in the world do you think bricks have to do with a snake? You may know the snake is Satan. What, pray tell, are the bricks? Hmmm… You should bring a friend, and eat…
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There I was, over 34 years ago. Somewhere off of Roosevelt Avenue in downtown Chicago, a nervous, skinny 18 year old was enlisting in the U.S. Air Force. I stood amongst 30-some-odd, probably equally nervous, 18 year olds. Alright maybe some guys weren’t nervous, but I can almost guarantee that all of us were feeling pretty doggone awkward. Because all of us were in one room, in a line, without clothing. In the raw. Disrobed. Naked. Awkward. Uncle Sam would…
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in•un•da•tion: ˌinənˈdāSHən/ noun: inundation; plural noun: inundations 1. an overwhelming abundance of people or things. 2. VBX. FIA. We were taken over by hundreds of kids last week at our VBX. It was wonderful. It was messy. Glorious diversity inundated our campus through kids and volunteers with a hunger to be loved. AND… they were! Now THAT is church. This Sunday, awesome inundation unfolds again. Did you know we’re expecting, hoping, and praying for 1000+ folks to come to CCC…
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Two Things You Need To Know From Pastor Alan 1. F.I.A. needs your help this weekend. We need great hearts present to love on hurting ones coming. We need folks to register. There are many areas needing registered volunteers so that we can properly prepare. Sure… you can show up Sunday morning to register and serve, but it would prove incredibly helpful if you register before 10 p.m. tonight (when online registration will close). Some of our biggest needs are:…
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Each summer, the awesome CCC elders send my family and me off for a summer study break. We take off for a nice beach outpost, and undoubtedly have a lot of fun. But… I DO take my summer study break very seriously as a privilege to leverage and not abuse. I hit the beach around 6:30 a.m. each morning and read, think, pray, and write til about 3 in the afternoon. Then… the Scotts play. Heck, wouldn’t you? We’re at…
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Rich Mullins penned these words: “I’m just out of reach of the lights and the music; they silence out on the beach. I know that’s where we’ll meet. And I’m not head over heels, and I’m not on cloud nine. And I don’t think love is blind. `Cause I know that You see me, yet You still chose to be mine.” I’ve met God out on the beach a lot over these past two weeks. No tingly, super-sized dose of…
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About 50-75 yards off shore, there is a sand bar begging for exploration. You can see the outline of the sand bar by the lighter color of shallow water. Occasionally you can also see brave, little-bitty (because they’re way out there) souls who make it to the sand bar… on the other side. “On the other side of what?” you may be asking. To reach the sand bar, you must cross through and over a deep, cold passage of water…
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The past two weeks our guest speaker, Dan Crain, has reminded us through great personal stories and research, this idea of and the need to be a “good neighbor.” This is always good to be reminded of, especially for someone like me who thinks I already do it… only to find out I’m not as good as I thought I was at being a good neighbor. Being a friendly neighbor to my neighbors is easy, mainly because I like them.…
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For years, church conference leaders would scream, “Vision Leaks.” I still think that’s true. But after reading “Creature Of The Word,” I’m inclined to believe the gospel leaks. Charles Spurgeon once said, “The most important daily habit we can possess is to remind ourselves of the gospel.” In leadership circles, vision is king. This is true even in church world… probably to the neglect of the gospel. Many would believe a vision of a particular church will inform how the…
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It was one of those glorious mornings. I hated to tell Sherry about it. I knew she would be envious. Set before me was a school of tiny, silver fish. They were rippling the tops of waves. Lines of dolphin seemed to be flirting with or taunting the shoreline. I like to think they were just catching a glimpse of the weird guy in the chair. Another school of fish pushed it’s 4-5 obvious leaders up and out of the…
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