Sunday Night Post

Church was great today.  Nasty on the outside…great on the inside.

• In spite of the big travel weekend, still a good crowd today.
• New drummer – David G – did a great job today
• Band gave us our first Christmas song of the season with Angels We Have Heard on High…the Christmas classics sound great with a full band!
• November turned out to be our highest ever average attendance month in our church’s short history…looking forward to a great December!
• Here’s a picture from church today.  My daughter Tori and her friend Brittney – enjoying their younger brothers – Nic and Matthew

This Past Week…

• Good to take an extra day off and get all the Christmas lights and decorations up.  I love to see the house all lit up.
• Great Thanksgiving time with our families…the food was delicious!
• Watched a lot of football…I’m losing faith in the Redskins…what else can i say…
• Only gained 1 pound…I’d call that a success!

LCC E-news 11.25.08

Our new series, Through The Eyes, begins this Sunday. We’re going to see Christmas this year through the eyes of various individuals. I’m hoping this series will cause you to look at Christmas a little differently this year. Here’s a quick overview of the series line-up: Nov 30 – Through the Eyes of the World Dec 7 – Through the Eyes of Mary Dec 14 – Through the Eyes of Joseph Dec 21 – Through the Eyes of the Shepherds Dec 24 – Through the Eyes of God Hope to see you at 10:30 this Sunday. (Reminder – no 9:30 Core Classes this week) Here are 6 more items I want to hit you with… Saturday, Dec 6 – Women’s Ministry Giftables event. Click here for more info or to register Sunday, Dec 14 – Last Baptism Opportunity of 08. Click here for more info or to register Sunday, Dec 21 – Kids Choir will perform in the service. Send Sherri an email to sign your elementary or preschool student up to participate. Wednesday, Dec 24 – Our Christmas Eve service from 5:00-5:45. It’s for the whole family. (no preschool or nursery) Sunday, Jan 4 – Vision 2009 – I will be sharing some exciting news for the upcoming year for LCC. Sunday, Jan 25 – Our next New Member’s Class from 5-8 pm. Online registration is coming, but you can send me an email to reserve your place now. Have a happy thanksgiving! If you are in town, I hope to see you at church on Sunday. Steve

i am thankful

i am truly thankful for all of God’s goodness in my life.

• i am thankful for an awesome Sunday worship service with a great crowd and great spirit.  I was truly uplifted and drawn closer to Christ through the music and the time of sharing in Communion.  I thoroughly enjoyed sharing the message on 5 kernels of corn…from Psalm 103.
• i am thankful for the wonderful encouraging people of Life Community Church.  I love gathering on Sundays…the true highlight of every week.
• i am thankful for my life group.   We had a great meeting on Saturday night.   Great fellowship, food, Bible study and group discussion.  I think we all felt loved and cared for by one another.
• i am thankful for my office.  As I think of how the church has grown in the last 6 months…I cannot imagine still trying to do it all from my home.
• i am thankful for my advisory team and those stepping up to serve in new positions.
• i am thankful for the vision God is giving us for 2009.
• i am thankful for God causing my gas furnace to come back on Saturday night when it had stopped working.  i am thankful for the warmth of our home.
• i am thankful that I get to see my family this Thursday and show off my healthy baby boy.
• i am thankful for a Redskins victory…even though it was close…a win is a win.
• i am thankful for the privilege of working for Jesus full-time with some like-minded people who are passionate about the vision God has given us.
• i am thankful that 24 & Jack Bauer are back.
• i am thankful for a short work week…but also in prayer that my message comes together quickly!

My list could go on and on…but I got to get crackin on the message for Sunday…lots to do in a few days!

Youth Life Group

Our church’s youth group has life group every Thursday night.  They rotate homes…one month at a time.  We hosted for November and since next week is Thanksgiving, last night was our final invasion of the month.  Here are a few pictures of about 20 teenagers.  Boy did the basement get hot…and let’s just say Sherri was using a lot of Febreeze last night

playing pool and rock band

Donald leading a group game

my reorganization of the pile of shoes in our foyer

LCC Enews 11.20.08

I can already smell the turkey and all the trimmings…Thanksgiving is just 1 week away….I am ready! Before you head off to grandma’s house, we hope to see you at LCC this Sunday. This Sunday will be part 2 of a series entitled, i am thankful. We will be serving Communion as part of the service. We’ll see you at 10:30 for worship. Please note that Core Classes will be in session this Sunday, but they will take a break for Thanksgiving weekend on November 30th as many of our staff will be out of town. Here are a few LCC tidbits for you to remember: Through the Eyes Christmas series begins November 30th Final Baptism Opportunity of 2008 will be Sunday, December 14th Our Elementary & Preschool kids are forming a Kids Christmas Choir and singing a few tunes with the band on Sunday, December 21st We will have a Christ mas Eve Service on the 24th from 5:00-5:45 pm Sunday, January 4th – LCC – Vision 2009 – I will be sharing some exciting changes and new plans for 2009…you don’t want to miss it! The auditorium renovation may be done sometime in January…be praying that we are able to move back in soon. Thanks for being a part of what God is doing at Life Community Church. Invite your friends and neighbors to come with you to church this Sunday. See ya then, Steve

It’s Sunday night…

I’m enjoying the Redskins-Cowboys game on SNF.  So far it’s going my way…but it’s only 10-7…pretty tense at this point.  The Skins gotta win this one…

We had a good morning at LCC.  We started a 2-part series entitled, i am thankful.  We usually devote a week to Thanksgiving…but this year I’m doing 2 weeks.  I have this sense that we need to work a little bit harder on being thankful people.  We spend way too much time complaining and not enough time thanking.  It’s amazing how being more thankful can really change our perspective on life.

I was having one of those morning where I felt out of sync…bad headache all morning…didn’t feel at my best or on top of my game, but nevertheless God was good and I got through the message fine.  I did trip getting off my stool as I was leaving the stage…not sure how many people witnessed that…I did avoid complete disaster and did not fall on my face.

We had some first time guests again today.  I love how God continues to bring new people to us.

Josh, Matt and Valerie did a great job with the music…an all acoustic set as we were drummer-less today.   I think the old Hank Williams song – I saw the light – was the favorite of the day.  Josh is currently looking for a new drummer.  We have some substitutes lined up and possible interims, but he is looking for a fulltime regular drummer.  Click here to read more about the opening in the band.

My wife and I hosted our new members class Saturday night at our house.  We had a great group of people who are excited about being part of LCC.  I always enjoy teaching this class and getting to know the new families at our church.

Looking forward to a good week ahead…meeting with my advisory board on Tuesday night…got some new initiatives for 2009 to work on…should be a good meeting.

Ugh…Skins just missed a field goal…still 10-7…going to be a tense 4th quarter.

Starbucks Marketing like the Church

Great campaign!

We concluded our 6-week campaign for CHANGE yesterday.  God has done an incredible work in our lives and in our church.  Yesterday was a great ending to our series.

• The highlight was seeing 5 people follow the Lord in believer’s baptism.  Several others were asking afterwards about getting baptized on the next opportunity.
• It was great to honor our veterans and their families in the service.  Thanks Lee for leading us in prayer for them.  It was amazing to see such a large majority of our church that were military or are currently serving.  THANKS for the sacrifice!
• Great crowd yesterday.  We are running shorter each week on chairs and space in the cafeteria.  The school is hoping the auditorium is completely renovated by sometime in January…it cannot come soon enough!
• We consumed between 30-40 large pizzas after the service.  Great party and celebration of what God has done.
• i am thankful…new series begins this coming Sunday.

1 hour, 40 minutes

That’s how long it took me to vote this morning…I got in line at 6:45 at Swans Creek Elementary and left at 8:25.  My coffee didn’t last long enough.  Fortunately the girl scouts were selling muffins to us in line.  I voted my values…hope you did the same!

I did just get a free chick-fil-a sandwich for voting.  Hope to get my free cup of Starbucks later.

Going to be a great November!

November is off to a great start.  What a great day yesterday…

• Great crowd…best of the Fall so far.  Lots of momentum and guests.  I noticed our guys scurrying for more chairs to set up extra rows in the back…love to see that!
• So far we have 6 people registered for Baptism next Sunday
• Exciting worship service…band was awesome, video and sound was right on as usual.  Great service!
• Kids classes are operating smoothly and workers are doing a fantastic job.
• The spread of refreshments from Panera Bagels and Dunkin Donuts were a hit as usual and I heard lots of compliments for our Barista service.  The assortment of blends and flavors from Green Mountain, Caribou and other great coffees are a weekly highlight!

What’s coming…

• Next week we have a great conclusion planned for the close of CHANGE campaign
• Our service will include 6 or more baptisms, the final message on Changing our Priorities, and we will close the day with a PIZZA PARTY!  Come ready for a great time – invite your friends!
• Our new members class scheduled for Saturday, November 15th at my home is filling up quickly…should be a great group.
• I’ll be doing a 2-part series on November 16 & 23 entitled “i am thankful”

Other misc…

• Great to have some extended family visit yesterday as we celebrated Victoria’s 12th birthday.  It’s hard to believe how old my kids are getting.  Tori is a wonderful, beautiful young women.  I’m so proud of her!
• I’m going to the polls to vote first thing tomorrow morning.  VOTE for your Christian values!  Don’t let anyone pressure you into voting for a certain candidate.  Make your voice heard!