Well, it’s time – time to make the ask and invite your friends to church this Easter! Our Easter services are officially ONE WEEK AWAY! Hopefully by now you’re well aware that we’re having 6 identical services over three days: Friday, April 2nd, 7pm (this is the only service that will have NO COASTAL KIDZ); Saturday, April 3rd, 4:30pm, 6pm; Sunday, April 4th, 8:30am, 10am, 11:30am. And speaking of making the ask, what’s the worst thing that can happen? They say no. And by the way, just because someone says no, keep praying, keep loving, keep serving, look for the open door and ask again later. But think for a moment about the best thing that could happen. You could be used by God to literally affect someone’s eternity. It’s possible that they hear the Good News of the Gospel and give their life to Jesus! We have the opportunity to literally change the trajectory of entire generations by a simple ask. Don’t believe me? You’re a part of Coastal today because a friend invited me to church when I was 13 years old. One week later from that ask I gave my life to Jesus and felt God’s call for ministry. Make the ask!
For those of you on Social Media, please go to our Easter at Coastal webpage and click on the “Download Shareable Easter Invite Images for Social Media” button. A zip file containing a folder of 10 different images will automatically download on your computer. Or you can simply click on this link and download them now! These are great images to use on Facebook and Instagram to get the word out and invite people to Coastal for Easter!
And while you’re on our Easter At Coastal page, make sure you go ahead and register for the service you and your family and friends are planning to attend! That way we can spread everyone out and let people know when a service is reaching capacity. Make sure you connect with your Ministry Leader and sign up now to serve at one or more of our services. If you are not currently serving in a Ministry, Easter is a great time to get started! Respond to this email and we’ll put you in touch with a Ministry Leader.
For many of you, I believe that Easter weekend is a great time to come back to in-person worship! I am so thankful for the online ministry of our church during the pandemic. We’ve gone “all in” and made a huge investment in this ministry. It is here to stay, and it will continue to be a powerful tool to leverage for the community and for the Kingdom. However, it is NOT a replacement for gathering together in person for worship and fellowship. If you are out and about in the community, your kids are in school (in person) and in sports, you’re going to restaurants, Costco, Wal-Mart, and grocery stores. . . it’s time to come back to in person worship. Our staff and volunteers continue to wear masks and so do many others. We’ve made many other adjustments in our facility and our service – prepackaged communion, touchless entry/exit, hand sanitizing & mask stations. We no longer pass the offering buckets or offer self serve at our Cafe. We’ve also removed almost half of our chairs to spread people out. On top of all of that, I’ve heard that many people at Coastal have been vaccinated – including by the way ALL 4 OF YOUR PASTORS (we get our 2nd shot early this coming week).
I say none of that to guilt or pressure anyone. There are some in our community at Coastal who are elderly, sick, immunocompromised, and who have still been diligently avoiding crowds or all in person interactions at all costs. You are loved, you are in my prayers daily, and you are a valuable part of our community. And having talked to many of you, I know you are sincerely looking forward to the day when you will rejoin us in person soon. Until that day, stay online, stay engaged, and please feel free to reach out to me personally to check in. I love hearing from you! However, my point is that many do not fall into those categories and for the most part, with taking a few precautions, you’re fully engaged in the community. If that’s you, consider this a loving, Pastoral nudge to join us again for in person worship. Trust me, I look forward to the day when we no longer have to navigate any of this. But until that day, let’s continue to show grace and kindness to everyone (it seems like I’ve read that somewhere). I love you Coastal and I love being your Pastor!
LIFE & LOVE!
Pastor Chris
Here are this week’s “Friday 5”:
- UPCOMING OUTREACH PROJECTS:
Tricounty Family Ministries – We will be assisting with their Emergency Grocery Distribution, Wednesday, March 31st, 9am-1pm.
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 3rd. We meet in the Welcome Center/Cafe at 8:30am, project leaders make a “pitch” for their serving opportunity, and then we serve! Make plans NOW to be there!
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. - Interested in officially making Coastal your church family by becoming a Member? Our next Membership Class is Saturday morning, April 17th, 9:30am-12noon. You can respond to this email, sign up on our website, or sign up on your Connect Card on Sunday. You can join us either in-person or online through Zoom.
- Did you know that Coastal’s Prayer Team is now ready and available to pray with people in-person during our Worship Services? During both services our Prayer Team volunteers will be wearing Red Lanyards. All you have to do is tap anyone on the Prayer Team on the shoulder for prayer and they will step off to the side and pray with you. Prayer Team members will also be sitting in the front row to the left of stage during the response time (the end of each sermon/communion time) ready to pray with anyone during the last songs of the service. If you are interested in joining our Prayer Team, please reach out to Galen Moyer at galen.moyer@comcast.net.
- We are excited to announce that Coastal is starting a Celebrate Recovery Support Group/Ministry! Celebrate Recovery is a Christ-centered, 12 step recovery program for anyone struggling with hurt, pain or addiction of any kind. If you have a track record of personal recovery and you are interested in possibly serving in this Christ-centered ministry, please let us know on your connect card or you can reach out to Pastor Scott Huff at scotth@coastalcommunitychurch.org.
- How awesome was it that we Baptized an entire family of 4 this past Sunday during our 11:15am service?! Is that possibly your next step? The only requirement for Baptism is that you have personally given your life to Jesus. Baptism is a public profession of your faith. At Coastal we call it “going public” and it’s a great celebration! It beautifully illustrates Christ’s death, burial, and resurrection. And at Coastal we’re ready for you to get Baptized any service, any Sunday. If you are interested in getting Baptized simply respond to this email or sign up on our website. We are also planning our Annual Beach Baptism out at Folly Beach on Sunday, June 13th, at 5pm. You can also sign up for that on our website.
P.S. I want to challenge you to give toward our “Daring Faith” offering for Easter Weekend. Because a large number of people stepped out in faith and gave to “Daring Faith,” our church was able to begin our construction project. You can visit our Daring Faith page on our website to learn more about the project. It’s slated to be complete in late August! Easter Weekend would be a great time for you and your family to give above and beyond as a step of faith toward this project. You can give through our website, our App, or TEXT any amount to 843-277-8337. It’s simple, safe, secure, and convenient!
