While many of you are reading this email, I’ll likely be heading to MUSC Citadel Mall for my echocardiogram heart test. This test will reveal my heart’s current ejection fraction (EF) number — essentially measuring how effectively my heart is pumping blood throughout my body. Back in January, when I was unexpectedly hospitalized with heart failure, that number was 19. A normal EF is usually somewhere between 50–70. Needless to say, after 5 months of prayer and medication, Janet and I are excited to see what Friday’s test reveals.
More than anything, I’m grateful. Grateful for your prayers. Grateful for your encouragement. Grateful for your kindness toward our family. Grateful for a church that genuinely cares for one another. Many of you have walked this journey with us from the very beginning. You prayed when things were uncertain. You checked in. You sent texts, cards, meals, encouragement, and love. You carried burdens with us. And I can honestly say: I have felt the strength of the prayers of God’s people.
Physically, I truly do feel so much better than I did back in January, and I’m believing in faith that Friday’s results will reflect that improvement. But whatever the number turns out to be, I have already settled something in my heart: God is good. God is faithful. And I will rejoice in His plan.
Ironically, just as we approached this important week, we encountered another unexpected health scare. Late Monday night/early Tuesday morning, I had to be rushed by ambulance to the MUSC Emergency Room because of sudden, excruciating back pain that left me immobilized. After CT scans, an MRI, and a very long night and day at the hospital, doctors believe it is likely severe thoracic muscle spasms connected to pinched nerves. The good news in all of it? While examining everything else, they said my heart looked great. After finally getting home late Tuesday night, even simple things like walking, standing, sleeping, or getting from one room to another became extremely difficult and painful. Thankfully, I’m slowly improving, but I would sincerely appreciate your continued prayers over the next few days — especially that the pain continues to subside and that I’m able to comfortably make it to Friday’s echocardiogram appointment.
This entire season has reminded me of so many things: Life is fragile. People are hurting all around us. Medical workers and first responders are gifts from God. Prayer matters. The presence of others matters. And the Church is meant to be a family — not just a place we attend. It has also reminded me how incredibly blessed I am by my wife. Janet has cared for me with unbelievable strength, patience, and selflessness through all of this. I truly could not ask for a more loving caregiver or faithful partner, and I thank God for her every single day.
One of the unexpected gifts of suffering is that it deepens our empathy. When you walk through pain personally, you begin to see hurting people differently. You notice them more. You slow down more. You pray differently. You appreciate every act of kindness more deeply.
So thank you, Coastal, for being the kind of church that lives out the love of Jesus in practical ways. Thank you for walking with us. I’m looking forward to sharing the results with you on Sunday — and no matter what they are, we’ll continue trusting the Lord together. Trust me, this hits a little differentlythis week – I love you Coastal! I love being your Pastor! And I can’t thank you enough for this journey we get to go on together! And I can’t wait to see you on Sunday (hopefully, I’m preaching – “What Would Jesus Say to the Voter?”)!
With Much Love & Gratitude!
Pastor Chris
- UPCOMING OUTREACH PROJECTS:
Downtown Charleston “Hotdog Ministry”: We will be grilling and serving hotdogs to the homeless and hungry downtown! TODAY, Friday, May 29th, 4pm-6pm. Meet at Coastal.
JFM Fellowship Activity & Devotion: A fun project for kids! We’ll serve at Joseph Floyd Manor (JFM), a public housing facility in Downtown Charleston, playing BINGO with the residents. Monday, June 1st, 2pm-3:30pm. Meet at JFM.
Hope Center Tailgate: The Hope Center, managed by the city of Charleston, serves as a one-stop shop in downtown Charleston to assist those who are homeless or who are at-risk of being homeless. We’re sending a Tailgate Team to serve dinner to anyone who is hungry. We meet at The Outpost – 1050 St. Andrews Blvd., on Tuesday, June 2nd, 12pm-3pm.
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, June 3rd, 8:30am-11:30am. Meet at The Outpost – 1050 St. Andrews Blvd.
Sewing Project: Sewing experience not required! Come and acquire a new skill while helping others in the community. This team of volunteers will work on zippered pouches, lap quilts, and blankets. Meet at Coastal on Wednesday, June 3rd, 5pm-8pm.
Sleep In Heavenly Peace Bed Delivery Project: This team from Coastal will help to deliver beds, alongside brand-new linens, to well deserving but underserved children all over Charleston. There will be some light lifting and assembly required but will be heavy on both love and encouragement. We’ll bring comfort, love, and encouragement to the families we serve. Meet at Coastal on Wednesday, June 3rd, 6pm-8:30pm.
North Charleston 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, June 3rd, 8:30am-11:30am. Meet at The Outpost – 1050 St. Andrews Blvd.
Patriot Villas & Charleston Vets Grocery Packing Party: Many of our friends at Charleston Vets and Patriot Villas struggle with food insecurity. Through our partnership with the Lowcountry Food Bank, we’re hoping to alleviate some of that worry for them. Each month, we will gather to pack boxes for veterans at both housing facilities identified as needing assistance in this department. Once our boxes are packed, we will load a Coastal vehicle to hand deliver these boxes to each veteran. Thursday, June 4th, 9am-11am. Meet at The Outpost – 1050 St. Andrews Blvd.
Serving in the Market at The Outpost: Coastal feeds an enormous amount of people. Come to The Outpost and help keep the Market stocked and organized (and have a lot of fun while you’re at it)! Thursday, June 4th, 11:30am-1pm. Meet at The Outpost – 1050 St. Andrews Blvd.
Serving in the Boutique at The Outpost: Coastal clothes an enormous amount of people. This team receives, inspects, sorts, and prepares thousands of items of donated clothing every single month to ensure our outreach teams are ready to assist those in need in our community. Meet at The Outpost – 1050 St. Andrews Blvd., Thursday, June 4th, 11:30am-1pm
Serve at Lowcountry Food Bank: Come spend a couple of hours with us as we serve in the LCFB warehouse! Thursday, June 4th, 1-3pm. Meet at: Lowcountry Food Bank, 2864 Azalea Dr, North Charleston, SC 29405.
NHC Fellowship & Hospitality Project: Those in skilled-nursing centers are arguably some of the most neglected people in our society. The hope of this project is to send a reminder to the residents of the facility, in which we are serving, that they are not alone. This kid-friendly project will consist of loving on the staff and residents through words of encouragement, quality time and snacks and more! Friday, June 5th, 10am-12noon. Meet at: NHC Skilled Nursing Facility, 2230 Ashley Crossing Dr, Charleston, SC 29414.
Coffee & Doughnuts with the Vets at Patriot Villas: Join the team as we travel over to Patriot Villas, a veterans housing facility in North Charleston, to provide encouragement in the form of a fresh hot cup of Coastal coffee, a Krispy Kreme donut and community. We’ll spend the morning serving the veterans, fellowshipping, building relationships and thanking them for their service! Friday, June 5th, 8:30am-11:30am. Meet at Coastal.
Clothing Team: Come help sort & organize all the clothes we distribute! Friday, June 5th; Monday, June 8th, 9:30am-11:30am. Meet at The Outpost – 1050 St. Andrews Blvd.
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, June 6th. We meet in the Auditorium at 8:30am, Project Leaders make a “pitch” for their serving opportunity, and then we go out and 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. - Mark your calendars now – Coastal’s VBS is July 13th-17th, 6-8:15pm for children 4 years old – 5th Grade. This year’s theme is, “Rainforest Falls – Exploring the Nature of God!” Registration for Volunteers and children is open! Go to our website and register today!
- What’s your Next Step at Coastal? Here are two possible next steps:
– Membership Class: Interested in officially making the Coastal church family, your church family? Our next Membership Class is THIS Sunday, May 31st, from 5pm-8pm, in the Chapel. You can respond to this email or sign up on our website. Dinner & childcare provided!
– Newcomer’s Reception: If you’re fairly new to Coastal, a great next step is our Newcomers Reception. This is a great way to learn more about Coastal, meet staff and key volunteers, as well as meet some other new people. Pizza and childcare provided. Our next Newcomers Reception is Sunday, June 14th, in our Chapel immediately following the 11:30am service (at approximately 12:45pm). You can sign up on our website today. - One of the ways our church marks the beginning of Summer every year is through something called Summer of IMPACT! If you are fairly new to Coastal, Summer of IMPACT is a month-long effort (the entire month of June) where we as a church saturate our community with the love of Jesus through simple acts of service. It’s basically what we normally do all throughout the year, but MULTIPLIED during the month of June! In fact, there are over 70 projects this year and there is something for everyone. You simply sign-up and then show-up. It’s that easy. Every project has a leader and every project is well-organized. All the projects are loaded on our website and you can start signing up TODAY!
Don’t Miss This!! One of the ways we kick off Summer of IMPACT is through a Coastal Night of Worship – Wednesday night, June 3rd, 6:30-8pm! Invite your friends and family to join us for a night of prayer, worship, and encouragement. RSVP now for childcare (birth-kindergarten) on your Connect Card. - On Sunday, June 7th, we kick off one of our favorite sermon series traditions here at Coastal – “AT THE MOVIES”! In fact, this is our 17th year doing the series! If you’re new to Coastal, don’t worry. We’re not preaching from the movies themselves. We simply use them as a hook to talk about spiritual truth straight from God’s Word. As always, there will be popcorn, movie trailers, and cool giveaways! Make sure you pick up the microwave popcorn invite tool next weekend to invite your friends to the series. ALL 1st Time Guests (and the person who invited them – YOU) will receive a FREE Movie Ticket to Citadel Mall Theater throughout the entire series! We’ll also be taking the kids (and anyone who wants to come) to a FREE movie (Toy Story 5) on Tuesday, June 23rd at 10am at Citadel Mall Theater (doors open at 9:30am)! So mark Sunday, June 7th, on your calendar, and start praying about who you will be inviting and bringing to church during the series!
P.S. We are planning our Annual BEACH BAPTISM out at Folly Beach County Park on Sunday, June 7th, at 5pm. You can sign up for it on our website. The only requirement for Baptism is that you have personally given your life to Jesus. Baptism is a public profession of your faith, and it’s a great celebration! It beautifully illustrates Christ’s death, burial, and resurrection. If you’re unable to participate in our Beach Baptism, remember 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, sign up on your Connect Card, or sign up on our website.
P.S.S. Father’s Day is Sunday, June 21st! As always, it’s going to be a great celebration at Coastal with a gift for all the men, grilled WINGS outside under a tent, fun giveaways at the end of each of our services, FREE Kona Ice for everyone, a Family Photo Booth, and Baby & Child Dedication during all 3 services!
