There are LOTS of exciting things going on this weekend at Coastal! Please see all the different things below. I hope to see you tonight for our “Night of Worship,” tomorrow for “Double Tailgate Day” & Thanksgiving at JFM, and of course Sunday morning Worship!
But there is something else exciting getting ready to happen at Coastal that I want to share with you – our 10th Annual Christmas Offering! Over the years, this offering has made a huge IMPACT on our ministry!
For example, in the past our Christmas Offering has enabled us to:
– fully fund our “Summer of IMPACT”
– complete a well for a community in Haiti
– re-roof our entire building
– renovate a home for a family on Wadmalaw Island
– fully fund our Summer VBS
– pay for our Easter Outreach
– Oakland Elementary School Annual T-Shirt
– Student Ministry Camp & Retreat
– 2 Box Trucks for Community Outreach
– renovate our Chapel
God has used our church and the Christmas Offering to do all of that and so much more! Well, beginning NEXT Sunday, November 20th, through Sunday, January 15th (9 weeks), we are encouraging our entire Coastal family to give above and beyond their regular tithes and offering to this year’s Christmas Offering.
To give, all you have to do is designate your gift “Christmas” on your check, offering envelope, online, or TEXTing (843-571-1777). You can give your gift during those 9 weeks (Nov. 20th – Jan. 15th) at any of our regular Sunday morning services, or anytime through TEXTing, or our website. You might also consider giving it all at once during one of our 3 Christmas Eve Services this year (Friday, December 23rd, 7pm & Saturday, December 24th, 4:30pm & 6pm). Our entire Christmas Eve offering will go toward our Annual Christmas Offering.
Why a Special Offering? It’s a way for us to grow in our faith and to prepare us for what God wants to do through our church in a bigger way in 2023. It’s a way for us to sacrifice together as a church family and give generously. Christmas is all about giving. Many people, during this time of year, are in fact looking for opportunities to give. And there is no better place to give than to your local church.
What is our goal and where is the money going? Our overall goal is $125,000! Is that a big goal? Yes! Can we reach it? Absolutely! As always, I am very excited about where this year’s money will be going and the potential Kingdom impact. The money primarily will be used for a 15 Passenger Van, Sound Equipment, New Life Children’s Home in Peru, & Golf Carts.
Let me specifically explain each:
15 Passenger Van. What’s the most consistently asked question from the residents of Joseph Floyd Manor, Charleston Vets, and Patriot Villas? Especially after they get to know us and see us on a regular basis? Answer: Do you provide any kind of transportation to your church? Do you have a van that picks up people and brings them to Coastal? How awesome would it be to have a regular pick up at some of these places that we serve and be able to bring them to Coastal?! We could also use it to take volunteers to different sites. And then of course it would come in handy for Student Ministry and multiple other opportunities.
Golf Carts. If you’ve ever ridden in one of our Golf Carts, you know they’re in pretty rough shape – not a very good “first impression.” These Golf Carts get used all the time, each and every Sunday transporting people to and from our Parking Lots (at Orange Grove & now Oakland) to our Auditorium.
Peru Mission – Christmas for New Life Children’s Home. We are planning a missions trip this Summer, July 22nd-29th, to the New Life Children’s Home in Peru (see below). A portion of this year’s Christmas Offering will go to providing Christmas Gifts & a Christmas Meal for all the children in the orphanage (30-40 children) and their workers.
Sound Equipment. One of the most vital elements of our Sunday Morning service is our worship. Our current PA system (speakers) was purchased along with the construction of our “worship-gym-atorium,” and for a while now has been slowly worsening. We have continued to replace parts and service equipment, when possible, but it is time for us to make the jump and purchase a new system. This new system will be specifically designed for our auditorium in order to give everyone, no matter where you are sitting, the best experience possible. We’ve come to realize quickly at Coastal that the equipment we have is incredibly important for our Sunday morning experience. But it’s not just that. It is important for how we are able to serve our neighbors and our community.
How much should you give? Prayerfully consider giving a gift that will stretch your faith and include your whole family. For some people, coming up with “extra” money is difficult. We’ve learned that as we give, God provides. Maybe you decide to give up eating out or buying coffee for 9 weeks and give that money to the Christmas Offering. Maybe you sell something or have a yard sale. For some people $1000 above your regular giving is a huge sacrifice. For others, it’s not. Someone might decide to cover the whole cost for the Van or the Sound Equipment. One person actually approached me last Sunday and told me that they would like to give a $10,000 matching gift to this year’s Christmas Offering to get it started! How exciting is that?!
Just like our “Daring Faith” Giving Campaign and all the other Christmas Offerings we’ve done in the past, we can’t all give the same amount, but TOGETHER, we can ALL make a sacrifice. That’s when God does a miracle, when together we ALL step out in faith.
Remember, this offering should be over and above what you regularly give. If you’re not regularly giving (weekly, monthly), use this time of year to start. If you’re not tithing (10% of your gross income), step out in faith and start tithing. Reaching this goal will be a celebration of what God can do through us as together we stretch our faith. I love you Coastal, I love being your Pastor, and I love what we get to do together! And I can’t wait to see you over the weekend!
LIFE & LOVE!
Pastor Chris
PS – If you have any questions, please do not hesitate to contact me. The easiest and fastest way to give to the Christmas Offering is through TEXTing the word “GIVE” to 843-571-1777 and follow the simple instructions. Just make sure you designate your gift “Christmas.”
- 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, Friday, November 11th, 9:30am-11:30am. Meet at 1850 Truxton Ave in North Charleston.
Double Tailgate Day: Charleston Vets & THANKSGIVING at Joseph Floyd Manor (see below): Saturday, November 12th, 10am-1pm. Meet at the church and then pick which Tailgate you’d like to serve.
VA Hospitality Project: This team serves at the VA Hospital in Charleston by providing a hospitality cart, greeting incoming patients and employees, visiting patients, and helping Volunteer Services with small sorting projects. Wednesday, November 15th, 8:30am-12pm. Meet at Coastal.
Patriot Villas Veterans Tailgate & Game Night – We will be putting on a Tailgate for the Veterans at Patriot Villas on Thursday, November 17th, 6-8pm. Meet at Coastal.
Coffee & Doughnuts with the Vets at Patriot Villas – Friday, November 18th, 8:30am-11am. Meet at Coastal.
THANKSGIVING at Joseph Floyd Manor: In addition to serving the veterans at Charleston Vets on November 12th, we’ll be also hosting Thanksgiving at Joseph Floyd Manor (JFM). All of the food and items for the home cooked Thanksgiving Meal have been signed up for (thank you guys so much)! But we always need plenty of hands onsite to pull it off. Meet at the church Saturday, at 10am.
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. - Okay everyone – this is it! All filled shoeboxes are due back to Coastal for Operation Christmas Child – THIS Sunday, November 13th! This is a GREAT opportunity for you to teach your children about generosity, the true meaning of Christmas, and the love of Jesus. Help us reach our goal of packing over 1000 shoeboxes this year and share the love of Jesus with children all around the world!
- Join us TONIGHT for Coastal’s Night of Worship – 7-8:30pm! Invite your friends and family to join us for a night of prayer, worship, and encouragement.
- Coastal has an awesome Student Ministry (6th-12th Grade)! They meet on Wednesday nights – 6pm Doors Open for Food & Games, 6:30-8pm for Message & Small Groups. This coming Wednesday night, November 16th they are having a Thanksgiving Party! Come enjoy a traditional Thanksgiving Meal, fire pits, and FUN! Also, Registration is now OPEN for the Winter Retreat! They’ll be going to the Strength to Stand Student Conference in Pigeon Forge TN, January 13-16. Cost is $150. Deadline for signups and payment is December 31st. If you have any questions about the Winter Retreat or Student Ministry, please reach out to our Youth Pastor Jacob Bonetti.
- PERU MISSIONS TRIP INFORMATION MEETING! Join us in the Chapel immediately after the 11:15am service THIS Sunday, November 13th for an information meeting about the July 22nd-29th Missions Trip to Peru! Pizza & Childcare provided.
P.S. DON’T FORGET – we offer our Coastal Members and regular attendees free access to RightNow Media, an online church video library. It’s just one of the many ways to express our generosity to our church family. Essentially, RightNow Media is a Netflix for Bible studies with videos for kids, students, singles, parents and married couples by teachers like Dave Ramsey, John Piper, Max Lucado, Tim Tebow, and more. All the content can be accessed from any computer or smart television and through the RightNow Media app on a phone, tablet, Roku, Apple TV, etc. If you haven’t already done so, click here to set up your account!
