It’s easy to look at all the events of our world lately and feel heartbroken and absolutely overwhelmed – Haiti, Afghanistan, the rising COVID numbers. It’s a daily reminder of just how desperate we should be for Jesus and His Kingdom here on this earth. In Matthew 6:10 we are instructed to pray, “May your Kingdom come soon. May your will be done on earth, as it is in heaven.” It also leaves us with a desire to do something to help. But what can we do?
Let me offer 3 suggestions: Pray, Serve, Give. Pray: I heard a Pastor share this prayer, “Father, you are the God of peace, the ‘…rebuilder of walls and a restorer of homes…’ (Isaiah 58:12). We pray for the people of Afghanistan and Haiti. We ask you for their safety, provision, and hope. Lord, have mercy. In Jesus’ name, amen.” Join me in praying this simple prayer.
Serve: You’re probably not going to be able to go to Haiti or Afghanistan any time soon and physically help those in need there or assist our Military. But you could do something here. Go back to that passage in Isaiah. Isaiah 58:9-10 says, “Stop pointing your finger and spreading vicious rumors (do we need to hear that message today or what?! That will preach!)! Feed the hungry, and help those in trouble (doesn’t get any simpler than that does it?).” You want to support our Troops? Honor their service and their legacy by serving and feeding them at our next Veteran’s Tailgate at the Patriot’s Villas (see below) or the next time we’re serving alongside Soldier’s Angels (Tuesday, September 14th). Join us at the next Saturday Serve (September 4th), here at the church, when we get to be the hands and feet of Jesus right here in our own community, bringing a little bit of “the up there, down here.” Go to our website and sign up for these or other opportunities!
Give: Here are 3 good organizations, all doing great relief work here and around the world.
- SAMARITAN’S PURSE: https://www.samaritanspurse.org
- COMPASSION INTERNATIONAL DISASTER FUND: https://www.compassion.com
- WORLD RELIEF FUND: https://worldrelief.org
- And, of course, it is your consistent, generous giving to Coastal that enables our church to “share and experience the LIFE and LOVE of Jesus with Charleston and world.”
So, what’s the result of our faithful prayer, service, and giving? Isaiah 58:10-11, “Then your light will shine out from the darkness, and the darkness around you will be as bright as noon. The Lord will guide you continually, giving you water when you are dry and restoring your strength.” Our light will outshine the darkness and God will give us direction and restoration! The very last verse in the Bible says this, “Amen! Come, Lord Jesus! May the grace of the Lord Jesus be with God’s holy people.” Until the Lord Jesus calls us home or comes again, I pray He finds us faithful – loving, serving, sharing, giving – beating down the gates of Hell, rescuing people, doing anything short of sin to see all people come to know Him! Come, Lord Jesus!
LIFE & LOVE!
Pastor Chris
- Have you signed up for a LIFE Team yet? Our LIFE Teams are the volunteers who carry out the mission of Coastal. Several of our LIFE Teams are having Interest & Information Meetings as we head into the Fall and the opening of our new facility. The Security Team is having a meeting on Wednesday, August 25th at 6:30pm, at the church. For more information on the Security Team, reach out to Bryan Miller at bryan.bcmill@gmail.com, or call/text him at 843-296-2991. The First Impressions Teamis having a meeting on Monday, August 30 at 7pm, at the church. For more information on our First Impressions Team, reach out to Chris Ranew at chrisranew@gmail.com, or call/text him at 706-941-2044. (For information about serving in Coastal Kidz, see below.) To see a complete list of our LIFE Teams go to our website and sign up today!
- UPCOMING OUTREACH PROJECTS:
Patriot Villas Veterans Tailgate – We will be putting on a Tailgate for the Patriot Villas, Thursday, August 26th, 6pm-8pm. Meet at church Welcome Center.
Tricounty Family Ministries – We will be assisting with their Emergency Grocery Distribution, Wednesday, September 1st, 9am-1pm. Meet at: 2105 Cosgrove Ave. North Charleston.
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. - The new school year would be a great time to checkout “Ramsey+”. Simply because you are a part of Coastal, you have access to ALL of Dave Ramsey’s best selling resources and tools FREE! This includes 5 classes (Financial Peace, Legacy Journey, Smart Money Smart Kids, the Jump Start Course and a new Budgeting course), the Everydollar+ budgeting tool, and a host of other resources designed to help families track their progress through the baby steps. If you were to sign up for this on your own it would cost $130. NOT NOW! All of that and more will be FREE for our entire church! You’ll have access to everything at your own pace, on your own schedule. Simply go to this link and sign up today!
- Interested in serving in our Coastal Kidz Children’s Ministry (Birth-5th Grade)? Go to our website, check out all the different volunteer positions, and sign up today! It’s that easy! There will be a Training on Monday, August 23, 6:30pm-8pm OR Sunday, September 12th, 5pm-6:30pm. All volunteers need to attend just one. We will meet in the worship auditorium, but we will not have childcare because we don’t have a place for it yet. This will be a great time for us to pray, plan, and prepare for all that God has in store for Coastal KIdz as we move into our new facility hopefully in September. Plus you can get a sneek peek at our new facility! This is also a great time for returning or new volunteers to get connected in Children’s Ministry at Coastal. If you have any questions or to RSVP for a Training time, please reach out to Janet Rollins at janet@coastalcommunitychurch.org or 843-442-8299.
- Waves Student Ministry (6th-12th Grade) is back and kicking off its Fall semester on Wednesday, September 8th! Doors will open at 6pm and all students 6th-12th grade are invited to come out and join in a night of fellowship and growth. Food, games, worship, a Biblical message and small groups are all part of a Wednesday night at Waves Student Ministry, so invite and bring a friend! For any questions, reach out to Pastor Ryan Spell at ryan@coastalcommunitychurch.org.
P.S. Fall LIFE Group Leader Training! Attention all LIFE Group Leaders, Assistants, and Hosts: RSVP on your Connect Card for a Training Session on either Tuesday, August 24th, 6:30pm-8pm OR Saturday, August 28th, 10am-11:30am. Both sessions will be offered online or in-person. Fall LIFE Groups kick off the week of September 19th. If you have any questions you can also reach out to Pastor Scott Huff at scotth@coastalcommunitychurch.org.
