Are you ready for this?  Easter Weekend is now officially less than one month away – 27 days to be exact!  This year we are having 6 services over 3 days – Friday, April 15th, 7pm;  Saturday, April 16th, 4:30pm, 6pm;  Sunday, April 17th, 8:30am, 10am, 11:30am.  This Sunday, be prepared to take home the first of several Easter Invite Tools – tickets & books.  The book is meant to be a gift for the people you’re inviting called, “At the Cross,” which corresponds to the series we’re starting this Sunday.  It’s a great tool for sharing the Gospel with someone.  

And then on the following Sunday we’ll have our yard signs!  We have 200 EasterAtCoastal.com yard signs that we want to saturate Charleston with this year!  Pick up several and then strategically place them in neighborhoods, shopping centers, high traffic areas, and intersections.  Take a picture of your sign and share it on social media with the hashtag:  #easteratcoastal.  All of this is designed for you to use to invite your friends to Easter at Coastal this year!  

By the way, the tickets are invite tools that we’ve used for many years now with our service times.  Obviously, you and your friends don’t need a ticket to attend a service.  They’re simply great little invite cards for you to give away.  We would however, like to know which of our 6 services you and your friends are planning on attending.  So, go to Easter at Coastal and sign up today!  Encourage your friends to do the same.  That way we can spread everyone out and let you know when a service is reaching capacity.  Start spreading the word and register today!

While you’re on the Easter at Coastal page make sure you click on the “Download Shareable Easter Invite Images for Social Media” button.  A zip file containing a folder of different images will automatically download on your computer.  Or you can simply click on this link and download them now!  Start using these images on Facebook and Instagram to get the word out and invite people to Coastal for Easter. 

Make sure you reach out to your Ministry Leader NOW to let them know when you can serve over the Easter Weekend!  Services like these require “all hands on deck.”  Consider attending one of the services and then serving at multiple services.  If you aren’t serving anywhere right now, Easter is a great time to start!  Respond to this email or on your Connect Card on Sunday, and we’ll direct you to a Ministry.

Also, I want to challenge you to give a sacrificial gift, above and beyond over the Easter Weekend.  Big days like this incur extra expenses.  At Coastal, however, we look at it as an investment – a Kingdom investment, planting seeds to reach our community for Jesus.  You might also consider giving towards your Daring Faith commitment.  We’re actually hoping that the chapel renovations are complete for Easter!  

So many people are hurting and searching for hope right now.  Let’s do everything in our power to leverage this Easter for Jesus!  And as always Coastal, let’s work, share, and invite like it all depends on us.  Let’s pray like it all depends on God. And then let’s walk by faith, trust God for outcome, and celebrate the results!  If together we do that, then this will be the best Easter ever!  I love you Coastal, and I love being your Pastor!

LIFE & LOVE! 
Pastor Chris

Here are this week’s “Friday 5”:

  1. 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, March 18th, 9:30am-11:30am. Meet at 1850 Truxton Ave in North Charleston.
    Patriot Villas Veterans Tailgate –  We will be putting on a Tailgate for the Veterans at Patriot Villas on Thursday, March 24th, 6-8:15pm.  Meet at Coastal.
    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, March 25th, 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, April 1st, 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, April 2nd.  We meet in the Welcome Center/Cafe at 8:30am, project leaders make a “pitch” for their serving opportunity, and then we serve!
    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.
  2. If you missed the BIG ANNOUNCEMENT last week, we hired a new Youth Pastor – Jacob Bonetti!  Jacob and his wife Hannah currently live in Greenville, SC.  Jacob will be joining us soon, commuting from Greenville, while his wife finishes out the school year teaching (she teaches 3rd Grade in a public school in Greenville).  Please add them to your Prayer List, praying for a smooth transition as they move to Charleston, join our Coastal family, and help lead our Students!  I simply ask you to do what you do best Coastal – love them!  Show them that Coastal hospitality, support them, encourage them, and welcome them to their new home!  In fact, if you would like to send them a text, email, or card, here is their current contact information:  Jacob & Hannah Bonetti / 65 Villa Rd Apt #408 / Greenville, SC 29615 / (864)554-2371 / jacob@coastalcommunitychurch.org.  Jacob will start commuting to Charleston on Saturday, March 26th – Wednesday night March 30th (for Student Ministry).  That will probably be his rhythm until Hannah joins him at the end of the school year. 
  3. Homeschool educators and their kids of all ages are invited to a HOMESCHOOL HANGOUT on Wednesday, March 30th, 10am-12noon, to meet and network with other Homeschool families at Coastal.  We’ll have pizza for lunch and the Coastal Kidz playgrounds will be open for playtime.  RSVP on your Connect Card or respond to this email so we’ll know how much pizza to order!
  4. Interested in officially making the Coastal church family, your church family? Our next Membership Class is Saturday (TOMORROW) morning, March 19th, 9am-11:30am. You can respond to this email or sign up on our website.  You can join us either in-person or online through Zoom (we’ll send you the link).
  5. The easiest way to stay connected, see all the announcements, listen to our messages, and fill out a Connect Card, is through our App.  Yes, if you didn’t already know it, Coastal has a FREE App you can download for your phone or mobile device.  Download it today from your App Store!  If you’re searching for it, make sure you search for “Coastal Community Church of Charleston or Coastal CC Charleston” (There are other Coastal Community Churches around the country).

    P.S. Don’t miss our Night of Worship TONIGHT, March 18th, from 7-8:30pm!  Invite your friends and family to join us for an inspirational evening of worship, prayer, and encouragement.  Childcare will be provided for birth to kindergarten.  The theme for the evening will be, “At the Cross,” the same as the sermon series we’ll be starting this Sunday, preparing us for Easter.  It’s really going to be an awesome night!  Don’t miss it!  It’s in-person or ONLINE at all of the usual places – Facebook, YouTube, or at https://coastalcommchurch.churchonline.org.