Beginning tomorrow evening, we’ll take an in-depth look at a passage from the Bible to uncover who God is and discover the life to which he’s called us.  This fall, we’ll unpack the book of Philippians in a verse-by-verse exposition that will take us deeper into the context of Paul’s letter while searching our hearts for its application in everyday life. 

Join us each Wednesday at 7:00pm in our Capital Café.  Children’s and youth ministry are provided each week!

This weekend we begin our annual God & the Movies series.  The first movie we’ll examine is “Dan in Real Life” starring Steve Carell.  Bring a friend this Saturday at 6:00pm or Sunday at 9:15am or 11:00am.
 

NOTE: Because of copyright restrictions, we are unable to reproduce these messages on CD or post them on the Internet.  Sorry for the inconvenience!

When Jesus dwelled among us, one of his favorite ways to communicate his message was through story.  In the Synoptic Gospels (Matthew, Mark & Luke), one third of his recorded words were his parables—short stories designed to capture the attention of his audience and evoke a response.

Stories are a powerful tool for any communicator, because everybody loves a good story.  Definitions are helpful; Explanations are important.  But a story can take a truth and make it more memorable.  A story can give it flesh and bones and make it practical.  A story is like a breath of fresh air.

I see this on your faces every week.  After a while of listening to my voice lulling you into a restful slumber, I’ll interject, “So the other day…” and you come right back to attention.  Stories can be powerful vehicles for truth.

In our culture, movies are one of the most powerful examples of story. Good movies can make two hours feel like twenty minutes, because they tell stories about people with whom we identify, admire or empathize.  The best movies leave us thinking about our own lives.  And that’s where God comes in.

God speaks in many ways.  He speaks through the Bible, through people, through circumstances.  Sometimes he surprises us with his methods.  Once he made a donkey talk to get his point across (Nope, not a reference to Shrek.  Check out Numbers 22.).  So why couldn’t he speak through Hollywood?  Certainly, God doesn’t speak through every film.  But often, filmmakers create characters, crises and comedies that compel us to look inward and upward. 

Starting September 13 & 14, we will fire up the popcorn machine and begin our annual series God & the Movies. In this series, we will look at some of Hollywood’s films to see how God tells his story through their stories.  Bring a friend and come ready to hear from God.

One practical tip: the popcorn tastes better with sweet tea…

NOTE: Because of copyright restrictions, we are unable to reproduce these messages on CD or post them on the Internet.  Sorry for the inconvenience!

Life hurls problems at us everyday.  James the brother of Jesus tells us to consider our trials pure bliss (James 1:2-4).  Easier said than done.  However, the best kinds of problems are the ones that arise for all the right reasons.  These are problems for which I have no trouble rolling out the welcome mat.

Most of you are well aware that our Sunday 10:30am service has exceeded capacity—and we’re still in August!  As we enter the fall, families return from vacations and students return to campus.  Our growth problem could quickly turn into a growth catastrophe!

So beginning September 6 & 7, we will launch three weekend services:

            Saturday Café 6pm
            Sunday 9:15am
            Sunday 11:00am 

Our Saturday Café Service takes place in the Capital Café.  You can enjoy the live blues and jazz music as you sip your peppermint latte or sweet iced tea.  Childcare is provided for kids newborn to 3.  Both the 9:15am and the 11:00am Sunday services will have the same worship set and kid’s ministry of our current 10:30am service.  My message remains the same for each service.

We’re excited about these really good problems.  Thanks for celebrating with us.  Just don’t be late (or too early) for church in September…

We need your help!  Launching a new service requires a lot of assistance from volunteers.  If you’re interested in volunteering for kid’s ministry, PowerPoint, greeting, set-up or the Capital Café, please email us at volunteer@capitalchurch.com.   We’d be happy to answer any questions you have about serving opportunities.

I’m absolutely thrilled to welcome Maggie Mangeac to the staff of Capital.  Maggie serves as my Executive Assistant and our Capital Kids Ministry Coordinator.

With over 8 years of experience in executive assisting presidents of different companies, she has taken on the full-time task of helping Capital be more accessible to all of your needs.  If you would like questions answered or appointments made, Maggie is the one to assist you with your requests.

A native Romanian, Maggie enjoys spending time with and being serenaded by her husband Matthew, who she met in a car accident (his fault, not hers). She is also grateful that God gave her a love for babies, kids, children and all sorts of little tots. This comes in handy as she is one of seven children and Matthew is one of thirteen children. (They are both known as the  “favorite aunt and uncle”, and have 29 nieces and nephews – and counting!)

With the title of “favorite aunt”, she decided to use her love for kids to the fullest extent.  She is now going on 10 years of children’s ministry teaching and will be putting her organizational ideas to use in the role of Kids Ministry Coordinator.

Maggie is an answer to prayer for the Leadership Team and the church—but especially for me. You’ll see what I mean…

So last weekend, I decided to be helpful.  About twenty minutes before the 10:30am service on Sunday, I stepped back into the café to chat with the baristas.  While discussing life with Katie and Amber, I observed a cup of water left behind by someone from the Saturday Café service.  In my attempt to discard it, the contents of the cup made it neither to the sink nor the trash can.  As if ordained by a higher power, the particles of H2O affixed themselves to my flat front Gap khakis in such a way as to question my continence. 

A couple lessons learned:

1.     Learn to laugh at yourself (Everyone else is laughing at you, so you might as well join in).

2.     There’s a reason the baristas wear aprons.

As our church continues to grow as we approach the fall, we’ll need more help in the Capital Café at all of our services.  If you’re interested in volunteering, please email us at volunteer@capitalchurch.com.

Later this summer, we will begin a study of the letters to the seven churches of Asia found in Revelation 2 & 3.  These letters from Christ to his bride—the church—reveal who he wants us to be as we await his return.  Join us each week starting July 12 & 13.

At our services this weekend, we’ll celebrate what God is doing at our mission in Mkhombokati, Swaziland.  Please join us Saturday at 6pm or Sunday morning at 10:30am to hear about how you can get involved in one of the most exciting things happening in our church community. 

I encourage each of you to join us this Friday for The Experience.  It’s a great opportunity to connect with God through an extended time of worship and prayer.  The service will last about an hour, then we’ll head out to a local restaurant.  I really hope to see you there!

Thanks for reading my first blog posting.  I’m no wordsmith, so please don’t expect to read Shakespearean soliloquies each week.  However, I hope to use this blog as a tool to resource our Capital Church family.  I’ll use it to talk about the weekend messages, upcoming events, and the things that I feel God stirring in my heart.  Many of you know my love for books, so I will often take advantage of the blog to recommend resources for further study.

I look forward to the journey, and I’m glad I can take it with you.