Daniel, as I was writing a comment for Darrel's last post, I thought of the movie line "Keep your friends close but your enemies closer". It's something we've been hearing a lot lately while our president-elect has been appointing his cabinet. I wondered where the line originated and decided I bet you know! Then, I got nostalgic and remembered all you guys posting famous sayings and me never knowing the answers because I don't watch many movies but it was fun to read the comments. So, here's your chance. :)

Okay it’s time to reward you blog readers for your participation (although it sure would be nice if you would comment sometimes instead of just readying.) Here is an update on the building expansion just for people checking out the blog. We are calling this project “More Than Walls”
1. You might have noticed that that the building extension to the East is going up fast. The steel is up and progress is being made. This new addition will serve as our temporary children’s worship/ministry area during major construction. This gives that ministry a much needed space increase and allows us to use the current children’s worship/fellowship area as a main entrance and welcome center during construction.
2. Very soon (Maybe this coming week) earth moving will begin in preparation for major construction. This will involve making grade for the new building, preparing a temporary parking lot and many other things that need to be done to start building. If weather and other factors continue in our favor then things will move a long very quickly. I am very excited with the way the building plans are preceding and I really believe God is leading us to a great ministry facility which will help us reach people for many years to come.

I love Thanksgiving. It is such a non-commercialized holiday. For me it is family, football, parades, great food and relaxation. So I am thankful for Thanksgiving. We are blessed by God and have so much to be thankful for. What are you thankful for?

Coming Sunday, Dec. 7 ...

In the spirit of cooperation between churches, Antioch Christian Church's band will be leading worship for us at CCJ while CCJ's Narrow Path will be leading worship at ACC.

Should be fun. Be sure to welcome the band from ACC when they come and let them know how much you appreciate them coming.

"Our churches are getting way to much preaching from our culture instead of preaching to our culture"
Craig Groeschel

I am very excited to me going to hear Craig and Andy Stanley teach at the one day Catalyst conference in Granger IN tomorrow. These guys not only have great ministry but they are Christ and Bible focused preachers rather than culture driven.

Labels: Spiritual Stuff

Its back

The Good:
· Jesus paying for our sins
· The CCJ family….. I could not ask for a better place to minister
· The CCJ Staff …. I could not dream of a better team to work with
· A fun and growing time at an elder and staff retreat
· A life worth celebrating

The Bad:
· Saying goodbye to friends
· The Economy
· Sicknesses

The Ugly:
· Did I mention the economy?
· Politics …. Glad that is over (Of course I think the 2012 election has begun already)

Well, the album has been out a week and I get two consistent questions.

1.) What does the title mean?

Here's your answer.


2.) Is my CD messed up? I get weird static like a radio at the end. What's that about?

The final track is an effect. The main participants in the album have been influenced by acts like David Crowder Band and Pink Floyd (who often have weird stuff in their albums as little bits of ear candy). We decided at the end of the album we'd have "Silent Night" (as sung by CCJ'ers) mixed in with radio static/noise. You can view this as symbolic. In the midst of our celebration of Christmas, we are bombarded with noise (static) and often our 'silent night' gets drowned out by this, that and the other.

Plus, the track makes the CD 30 minutes long and I liked that idea. :-)

Labels: Narrow Path

CCJ and our community lost a great leader and wonderful man of God Saturday morning. Dr. Philip Dawkins passed away and it is certainly hard to imagine not having him. Phil dedicated his life to helping people and was beloved by so many. A friend of mine commented that Phil was the most amazing man he had ever met. He said, "He loved Jesus so much and was an incredible mentor, witness and friend."

Certainly we know Phil is in a wonderful place because he trusted Jesus as his Lord and personal Savior. We are not sad for him because we know he has reached the prize but we are sad for all of us who will miss him. All are welcome to join us for a celebration of life at the Christian Church of Jasper, Tuesday, November 11 at 2:00 p.m.

We had a fun time at church this week at the Wings meeting Thursday night. Robin Norris brought all of us ladies a gift. The "gift" was encouragement & exerise bands. She encouraged us to take care of ourselves, sharing the benefits of exercise .

Here are some health benefits of resistance exercise bands:
Strengthens the muscular and skeletal system
Improves bone density (decreases the chance of osteoporosis)
Increases metabolism
Improves posture
Limits atrophy of the muscles
Aids in hypertension control
Aids in cholesterol control
Aids in body fat control Increases circulation
Aids in prevention of adult-onset diabetes
Improves mood and self-esteem
Improves quality of life
Aids in the prevention of heart disease and certain cancers

In light of all the benefits, why do people still not want to take time to do it?

I really struggle in this area. I'd like to see us have an exercise class at CCJ. Wonder if that's something that's possible.

Labels: CCJ Church Events

If you're at CCJ this Sunday, be sure to pick up a copy (or 10 or 20) of Narrow Path's Christmas CD, "Far As The Curse Is Found." Give them to your friends, relative and enemies. The CD is a 'pay-what-you-want-even-if-it's-nothing' model. That is, you can take as many copies of the CD as you want for free or for whatever you want to pay.

As always, you can find more about Narrow Path, including gigs we have tomorrow (Friday) and Sunday at:
Narrow Path's official site
AND/OR ...
Become a fan of NP on Facebook & MySpace:
Facebook
MySpace

If you'd like to buy the album NOW ...

Labels: Narrow Path

I can't express what a blessed time we had at Camp Illiana this weekend. It would be difficult to name a favorite moment. Those of you who know me and my camera....can imagine how hard it was picking my photos for this post. Above are a few of my favorite (I say a "few" because I took 171). We enjoyed great food, scrap booking ideas, fellowship on the porch, games, campfire devotions (only thing missing were the marshmallows & Candy) and thought provoking lectures about the life of Eve.

God was so gracious to give us perfect weather and an indescribable location. The tree leaves were just too awesome! If you missed this one, start making plans to go next year.

Oh, did I mention valet parking and men carrying our suitcases in for us?

We all had a wonderful time. Thanks, WINGS.

Jesus said in Matt 11:28 "Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. NIV

Labels: CCJ Church Events