That’s right and I’ve got pictures to prove it! Jeff Denton (a black belt in Karate no less) is on the cover of this week’s “West Of”, West Ashley’s neighborhood paper, getting the snot beat out of him by a girl! In one shot, it looks like he’s taking her down, but if you look closely I’m pretty sure she’s kicking him in the groin. In fact, I heard that Jeff was “sick” and missed work this week. We now all know that he was simply hiding because of the humiliation and the can of you know what that was opened up on him.

Okay, okay, I obviously could go on and on, but the truth is our own Jeff Denton is participating (a.k.a. human punching bag) in a self-defense class for women at AKS Karate (where Jeff is both a member and instructor) on Wappoo Road this Saturday, August 2nd from 11am to 1pm. The cost of the class is only $10 and all proceeds go to People Against Rape. AKS Karate is located at 1017 Wappoo Rd. To sign up or reserve a space, call 225-5425. For more information on AKS, go to www.charlestonkravmaga.com. The class is taught by AKS owner Matt Robinson and will give women the tools they need to defend themselves.

Jeff told me about a previous class and how inspired and moved he was by the women (of all ages, shapes, and sizes) in the class and their transformation and progress in such a short time. Janet and Lydia can’t sign up for this Saturday’s class, but they will be taking it in the future. Talk to Jeff and let him bend your ear about the class – while you punch him in the face!

You know what I was reminded of on Saturday night? I love feeding people. I do. Janet and I catered the meal for the “Welcome to Coastal” party for Wes, Bri, & Charlotte. Really had a fun time. Good crowd. Good laughs. And yes, good food. It’s a meal we could make in our sleep – BBQ, Rice, Hash (we actually bought this), Mac & Cheese, Cole Slaw, Dessert, Tea. But whatever is on the menu, I love feeding, serving, and caring for people. I love seeing the smiles, hearing the laughter, facilitating the community.

You know what? I love feeding people on Sunday mornings even more. I do. I love listening to God, wrestling with a passage, learning our people, struggling over the wording of a sentence, praying over a service, anticipating the moment. But most of all I love seeing the life change. Sometimes it’s a big radical change. But many times, it’s the little things, the small steps taken toward a closer relationship with God. But it all matters, it’s all important, and the gates of Hell get pushed back in the process. One of the guys in my Small Group recently told me he had been more consistent in reading his Bible, another couple opened up about the struggle of addiction in their family and is getting help, a woman asked for prayer for her sister, a child went home and searched his Bible for a nugget of truth, a woman renews her commitment to her marriage, a single adult is finding his satisfaction in Christ, teenagers serving in Ministry and inviting friends to Youth Group, and more exciting than anything else – someone gives their life to Jesus Christ. They cross over from death to life. I love what I get to do!

On Sunday our attendance was down from the week before, but really not that bad. From week to week different people are on vacation, traveling, and out of town. That’s the reality of summer. We did have a family return from VBS and bring their son back to Youth Group again. Wes led worship with a new group of musicians on Sunday and continued to knock it out of the park. He is in his sweet spot here at Coastal – worship and students. My message was the last in our “Wanted” series and it was geared to single adults. Had several single adults tell me they needed to hear what I said. Several married people said the same thing.

Sunday night we began to take down all of the props and decorations from the “Wanted” series. Mary, our Treasurer, paid bills – which she does every Sunday night. We’ve had a lot of extra expenses lately, mainly VBS, and of course, a new full time staff person. You’d be surprised at all the miracles of faith that take place on Sunday night – at least that’s when we get to see the results. We need “x” amount to pay bills. Things look tight. Mary wonders where it’s coming from. And then someone who wasn’t at church in the morning drops by with their offering. Someone gives online. And without fail, I hear Mary shout out a laugh of wonder and amazement. God provides. I’m serious, ask Mary, it happens all the time.

This Sunday we begin our annual “At the Movies” series. I’ll post more about it later, but don’t miss this Sunday! Movies are a part of the fabric of people’s lives. It’s a part of our culture’s daily conversation. So, for the month of August we will simply use the popular cinema as a hook to discuss deeper spiritual truth and engage the culture. Invite and bring a friend and then go out to lunch after church and simply continue the conversation that I’ll start on Sunday morning. We might even give away some cool stuff.

See you Friday night at our Spaghetti Dinner/Silent Auction fundraiser for our Student Ministry. Like I said, I love feeding people.

Don’t forget – this Saturday at 6PM we are having a “Welcome to Coastal Party” for Wes, Bri, & Charlotte at the church. Wes is our new Youth/Worship Pastor. Everyone is invited! You don’t have to bring a thing. We’re taking care of the food – Barbeque, rice, hash, coleslaw, mac & cheese, tea, coffee, & dessert – a Coastal standard of sorts. We’re going to have a lot of fun. We might even embarrass them and ourselves a little bit!

If you want to bless them with a gift – be creative. Gift cards or gift certificates are always great. Or maybe get something for the baby or something that says “Charleston.” But again, don’t miss a great night to laugh, have fun, and get to know our new Pastor.

I saw this little video on a friend’s blog and since we’re having Barbeque on Saturday I thought I’d pass it along. And in case you are wondering, this is not Wes and our new Worship Team. Enjoy!

I never thought I’d see the day! I know where I’ll be Saturday morning (click on the Apple)! I have used an Apple Computer since 1989 – a MacPlus. In fact, I have never owned or used anything else but an Apple Computer. I am a loyal Mac Addict and have countless converts to my credit. 19 years ago I was the odd man out who heard countless cries of incompatibility. Today – I’m cool. And Charleston just got cooler.

This handwritten note was placed in our offering on Sunday:

“Coastal Community Staff & Volunteers,
We can’t thank you enough for welcoming us to your church with smiles. (My son) had a great time all week and I felt comfortable leaving him with you. Thank you, Lydia for being so kind. (My son) was so excited to tell everyone about his experience and that he loves Jesus! You organized a wonderful VBS that we hope to return to in the future. Thanks again for everything and your kindness!

Love,
(Mom & son)”

What an offering of praise! Way to go God! Way to go Coastal!

I’m not sure that I can put my thoughts into words at this point. Talk to me this week and it will probably be like unleashing a fire hydrant! I’ll try not to do that here, but Sunday was awesome! For weeks now I’ve been pointing to little things that I was sensing and noticing as a Pastor. It’s been building and building. I could feel the winds of change stirring. God is up to something here.

In some ways, it all came together on Sunday. But truthfully, it’s just the beginning. Our attendance was up – way up. Yes, it was the Sunday after VBS. Yes, there were some people here from out of town. But there were a ton of 1st time guests. Many of them filled out Connect Cards. Many of them were from neighborhoods surrounding the church. Here are some of the comments & decisions on the Connect Cards:

“I’m going to try to be a better parent.” “I gave my life to Christ today.” “I am choosing to go God’s way.” “I’d like to learn more about Coastal.” “I enjoyed today.” “I heard about Coastal from a VBS yard sign.” “Great church, everyone was very inviting.” “I have renewed my commitment to Jesus.”

Like I said – awesome! My sermon Sunday was about parenting. God definitely used it to stir hearts. And did Wes and our Worship Team do a great job or what?! And just wait until they’ve been playing together for a while and really get in a groove. Somebody from our church said, “Chris, our worship just improved ten fold.” But it’s not just Wes’ ability to play (and he can flat out play). It’s more than that. It’s his heart and his gift for connecting people to the heart of God.

Wes leading worship and our Worship Team gives Janet the ability to focus on one thing – Children’s Ministry. Under her leadership, our Children’s Ministry has greatly improved and now it’s just going to keep getting better! Can’t you see how it’s all beginning to fit together?

And speaking of children, not only did we have a ton of them on Sunday morning, but 23 1st-5th graders came back on Sunday night for D.O.G.S.! And Wes had 21 students! We have not had that many children and students in a very long time!

So Coastal – are you ready? Are you ready for growth and the changes it brings? Will you put the purpose of God and this church above your position and personal preferences? Will you value change as an asset, instead of a liability – even when it personally affects you and your ministry? Is it more important that you know everyone or that everyone knows Jesus?

Every great move of God starts in small ways. And it always comes with prayer and worship. If not, it’s not of God and I want no part of it. So pray. Cry out to God. Fast. Pray for me and for Wes. Pray that God would use Coastal – you – in a powerful way to reach people and change lives. Live the life and love of Jesus for all to see. Build relationships. Invite. Bring people to a place where they are going to hear and see Jesus! Go out of your way to make guests feel welcome. Serve. Give. Get involved.

Like I said, this is just the beginning. But God was gracious enough to give us a sneak peak on Sunday. I hope you had your eyes open!

I’ve seen this article several places this week and several of my favorite bloggers have posted about it. The imagery is too powerful not to pass along. Oregon State Hospital, the mental institution where the 1975 movie One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest was filmed, is being torn down and replaced.

“Politicians had been talking for years about the need to replace the hospital, but didn’t get serious about it until a group of legislators made a grim discovery during a 2004 tour: the cremated remains of 3,600 mental patients in corroding copper canisters in a storage room. The lawmakers were stunned.”

“Nobody said anything to anybody,” said Oregon Senate President Peter Courtney, who dubbed the chamber “the room of lost souls.”

“The remains belonged to patients who died at the hospital from the late 1880s to the mid-1970s, when mental illness was considered so shameful that many patients were all but abandoned by their families in institutions.”

Assault, sexual abuse, overcrowding, disease wasn’t enought. It wasn’t until they saw the remains of dead people that they decided to get off their “blessed assurance” and do something. What about us? What about the church? What about you and me? What will it take to convict us and motivate us to be Jesus to the dying world around us? People are either alive in Christ or dead in sin.

God give us Your eyes to see people with Your heart. And give us a sense of urgency to do something about it now, before it’s too late.

Wow – what a great start to VBS! In just two nights we’ve seen around 60 different kids and had almost 40 volunteers! And more than half of the children involved are friends and guests. Several new parents have talked to Janet about coming to Coastal!

VBS would not be possible without all of our volunteers – and not just the ones who come to VBS each night. Many people who couldn’t be here this week in the evening donated snacks, gave money, folded and labeled flyers, put out signs, decorated, painted, prayed, and did countless other things to make this week a success. Obviously, there are too many volunteers to mention by name. Just know that it’s all important and it all fits together to change lives!

Don’t miss this Sunday! We’ll continue in our “Wanted: Healthy Families” series by talking about parenting. We’ll be showing a slide show of our week of VBS in both services and in the second service the kids from VBS will be singing a couple of their songs. Also, Wes, our new Youth/Worship Pastor will be leading worship! It’s going to be an awesome day!

A few pictures from the first two days:

VBS can be exhausting.

It’s a stick up!

Spirit and Truth!

I thought that might get your attention. It obviously got our church’s attention yesterday. My sermon was on “Stayin’ Hitched.” It was about having a healthy marriage. During my sermon I said that Christian married couples should have more and better sex than anyone. One sentence in a 40 minute message. But it evoked more comments and conversation than anything else I said. But the best response to the message came on a Connect Card, “I am making a decision to recommit myself, my heart, and my mind to my marriage.” Wow! That’s what it’s all about! Life change! Pray for this person and their marriage. Pray for the marriages of our church. May they be God-honoring, Christ-centered, and Spirit-led.

We had a great time setting up and decorating for VBS last night. Lots of people and students came and helped. I think we have a greater percentage of volunteers at Coastal than most churches ten times our size. And we will be catching up on that front soon! Oh, and here is a picture of the finished playground and some shots of our hallway that has been transformed into a Western town. I’ll post more throughout the week! The last picture is of Brooklyn cutting the field Sunday night where the kids will be playing during VBS. She has never cut grass before!

Our new playground is completed! I want to thank Delma for leading the project and all the other guys who had a hand in putting it together. About 10 different guys donated their time, energy, and talents over three weeks to get it done. Our old playground was looking pretty bad. Quite honestly, it looked like we didn’t care – about kids or about our campus.

A good friend of mine donated the old playground to us 4 years ago. I called him up and told him about it’s condition and our desire to get a new one. He gave us the money to buy it! But it still could not have happened unless Delma and crew were willing to get it done.

There are still several projects that need to be completed – fence, Nursery windows, lighting, electrical work, water heater, etc. An older building always has it’s issues. But it’s just nice to see a project started and completed by willing servants. Here are a couple of pictures I took with my phone. I’ll try to get some finished pictures with a camera later – complete with children playing!