As you can see from the picture above, Pastor Scott Huff is excited! But it’s not his Kentucky Wildcats that he’s excited about – it’s the 2023 LIFE Group Catalog that he’s holding! That’s right, this Sunday you’ll receive a copy. In fact, you should also be receiving one in the mail (feel free to use one as an invitation and give it away). Like Scott, I’m so excited about LIFE Groups this semester. Once again, we have the most Groups we’ve ever had in one semester – 38! There is something for EVERYONE – activity Groups, study Groups, support Groups, and more! Every semester this is a huge undertaking, putting all of this together. A huge thanks to all of our LIFE Group Leaders, stepping up and stepping out in faith to lead. A huge thanks to Pastor Scott for overseeing all of it and leading this Ministry well. And a huge thanks to Rachel Speer! She is so much more than an Office Manager. She actually designed and put together the physical catalog itself. And as you’ll see, she did a fantastic job!
I truly believe it’s going to be a great semester of LIFE Groups, but what makes it great is YOU – signing up and joining one (or two or three – haha). I love what we do here on Sunday mornings! I do! I love the music. I love watching people come to faith. I love all of our LIFE Teams and our Sunday morning Volunteers. But. . . there is one glaring weakness with a crowd. It’s hard to grow in a crowd. You don’t live out/walk out your faith in a crowd. You need community. You and I were created for community, for relationships. And at Coastal, the best place to do that is through our LIFE Groups! You’ll have several weeks to check out the catalog and get signed up. LIFE Group Sunday (like a job/college fair, but for LIFE Groups) will be Sunday, February 12th – always a BIG Day at Coastal! And unless otherwise indicated, most Groups begin the week of February 19th and last 8-12 weeks. And if you want to get an early jump, go to our website, check out our catalog and start signing up today!
If you’re looking for a great Group to join, let me tell you about mine (they’re all great)! I’m involved in two LIFE Groups this semester. I lead a Wednesday morning Men’s Group that meets at the church on Wednesday mornings, 7-8am. It’s probably the longest running Group we’ve had. I’ve been leading some version of it for about 25+ years. It’s for men from all walks of life – young/old, married/single, kids/no kids. I provide the coffee and some sort of breakfast (usually sausage & egg biscuits). We break into smaller groups, dig into that week’s sermon a little deeper, and then the guys share how they’re doing spiritually and how we can pray for each other. It’s one of the best hours of my week. If you’re a man, looking for fellowship with other men, and want to grow in your walk with the Lord, I’d love for you to join my Group.
And then the other Group that I’m leading this semester is actually a Group that Janet and I lead together. We meet on Wednesday nights, 6:30pm-8pm in the Coastal Chapel. We decided to meet on Wednesday nights at the Chapel so that any parents who are bringing Students to Student Ministry could easily stay for Group without having to go back and forth. BUT, it’s definitely not just for Student Ministry parents. It’s for anyone who wants to hang out with me and Janet and dive a little deeper into that week’s message (it’s listed as a Dive Deeper Sermon Follow-Up Group in the catalog). We’ll also laugh together, eat together, serve together, and pray together! If Wednesday night works for you, Janet and I would love for you to join our Group!
I also want to thank everyone who has been praying for my voice. If you were in church this past Sunday or heard my sermon, you know that by the end of second service I had pretty much lost my voice. I went to the Doctor on Monday and evidently I have an ear infection that went to my nose/throat. I feel fine – just sound terrible. But after some antibiotics for the infection, a LOT of fluids, and trying to rest my voice (the hardest part for me – haha), I’m sounding much better. But please keep me and my voice in your prayers as I wrap up this section of Romans on Sunday. I love you Coastal! I love being your Pastor! And I love what we get to do together! The Best Is Yet To Come!
LIFE & LOVE!
Pastor Chris
- UPCOMING OUTREACH PROJECTS:
Lowcountry Orphan Relief : Lowcountry Orphan Relief provides support services and aid to meet the needs of Lowcountry children identified as at-risk or suffering from abandonment, abuse and/or neglect. Coastal will be serving there today, Friday, January 27th, 9:30am-11:30am. Meet at 1850 Truxton Ave in North Charleston.
Downtown Charleston “Hotdog Ministry” – We will be grilling and serving hotdogs to homeless and hungry downtown! Today, Friday, January 27th, 4-6:30pm. Meet at Coastal.
Coffee & Doughnuts with the Vets at Patriot Villas – Friday, February 3rd, 8:30am-11am. Meet at Coastal.
Clothing Team: Our Coastal Clothing Team will be organizing and sorting clothes, Friday, February 3rd, 9am-11am. Meet at 2952 Old Pond Road on Johns Island.
Saturday Serve – The foundation of all of our serving opportunities at Coastal really starts with Saturday Serve – the first Saturday of every month. The next Saturday Serve is Saturday, February 4th. We meet in the Welcome Center/Cafe at 8:30am, project leaders make a “pitch” for their serving opportunity, and then we serve!
Lowcountry Orphan Relief : Lowcountry Orphan Relief provides support services and aid to meet the needs of Lowcountry children identified as at-risk or suffering from abandonment, abuse and/or neglect. Coastal will be serving there, Friday, February 10th, 9:30am-11:30am. Meet at 1850 Truxton Ave in North Charleston.
Clothing Team: Our Coastal Clothing Team will be organizing and sorting clothes, Friday, February 10th, 9am-11am. Meet at 2952 Old Pond Road on Johns Island.
Double Tailgate Day: Charleston Vets & Joseph Floyd Manor: Saturday, February 11th, 10am-1pm. Meet at the church and then pick which Tailgate you’d like to serve.
Ronald McDonald House Meals That Heal: Saturday, February 11th, 4-6pm. Meet at 81 Gadsden Street, downtown Charleston.
As always, if you are interested in serving in any of these projects, you can sign up on your Connect Card this Sunday or sign up now on our website. If you have any questions, please reach out to Pastor Chris Jones at 843-870-4613. - Save the Date! Coastal’s Daddy Daughter Dance will be on Friday night, February 10th, 6-8pm! The cost is a suggested donation of $10 per person (all proceeds are being generously donated to the Leukemia & Lymphoma Society). Go to this link and register today! It’s going to be a night to remember with great music, dancing, food, pictures, and fun!
- Grieving or know someone who is? Our GriefShare support group begins its 13 week cycle on Monday night, February 6th, 6-7:30pm. Contact Sue Muoio for more information.
- Some Exciting News! Don’t forget that simply because you are a part of the Coastal family, ALL of Dave Ramsey’s best selling resources and tools are available to you for FREE! You have access to everything for an entire year at your own pace, on your own schedule. Here’s the link – sign up today!
But that’s not all! Because of your generosity, we’ve also provided a Sponsorship for West Ashley High School & St. Johns High School. That means that all Student and Teacher material for their Foundations in Personal Finance course, for an unlimited number of students, for a full year, is being provided by Coastal! It teaches the 5 foundations of personal finance. We want to be known as a generous church, and we also want to do everything we can to equip our church AND community to experience true financial peace in these difficult times!
Oh, and guess what? We also have a Financial Peace LIFE Group this semester for that extra in-person Group accountability! They will be meeting on Monday nights, 6:30pm at the church. Sign up today! - Attention Young Adults! Join us in the Coastal Chapel on Sunday, February 26th, immediately following the 11:15am service for lunch. RSVP on your Connnect Card!
P.S. You should be receiving your 2022 Year End Giving Statement from our church this week in the mail. Our church changed its Database Management Software, so if you gave all year long you will receive two statements. Simply add them together and that is your complete giving statement. If you have any questions about your statement or don’t receive yours, please reach out to our Financial Administrator at 843-571-1777 ext. 106 or finance@coastalcommunitychurch.org. Your consistent, faithful, generous giving enables our church to make its IMPACT.
