The days seem to be a blur as we are renovating a church during the Christmas season…now that was a great idea!  Thank you to SO many of you who have stopped by to help over the last couple of weeks.

We are there (811 NE 88th Circle, 98665) again this week from 9:00 am to 3:00 pm.  Also, we will have some work on Friday night from 5:30-9:00 pm.  Men – we’ve got a thousand jobs at this juncture that take manly skills.  If you have a couple of hours, we can hammer out most of the little jobs with enough people.  It is our hope to be done with the majority of the inside by Sunday.  Then we will take the Christmas week off of work and finish up any details before our big move on January 5.

Hey Battle Ground!  We have some exciting news coming your way as well…we didn’t forget you!  This is that annoying moment when you think I’m about to tell you, but I’m not. 🙂  It’s Christmas, so pretend this is a gift under the tree and wait it out!

Sunday was full of fun as we kicked off our Christmas series!  It’s about Joy and no matter what 2013 looked like, there is JOY available for you.  In our darkest moments and our deepest despair, we can find peace in the Savior that was born on Christmas day.

A big shout out to Terrance and Kari who covered me as I was gone on Sunday.  My youngest had her first gymnastics meet.  I was a mess!  So proud of my little girl who works so hard to achieve her goals.  She did great and we look forward to her future!

The new year is a great time to jump in to volunteering!  If you aren’t already volunteering in one of our environments one Sunday a month, you can sign up to volunteer at www.coffeechurch.com.  We are particularly looking for Tiny Town assistants this month as our highlighted feature!  Our 2-5 year olds are one of my favorite groups.  There is nothing better than establishing how fun church can be in our young hearts!  Jump in today!

We handed out a new Bible to someone on Sunday.  So many people in our community have never owned a Bible and we are so happy to hand them out for free.  Thank you to all of you who give to make that ministry happen week in and week out.

It’s not too late to bring toys and coats this season to help needy families.  By the way, if your family is needy, will you please email me at stacy@coffeechurch.com?  We want to make sure that kids inside and outside of our church have a merry Christmas.  We also have some food available if you need it.  I know it’s hard to ask for help, but nothing makes us more happy than to take care of those of you who call North Creek your home.

Simply Christmas is TONIGHT at Hazel Dell from 7:00-8:00 and again at Battle Ground on Wednesday.  It’s going to be fun for kids and adult with some amazing music.  Join us!  And it’s also a great opportunity to drop off those toys and coats!

See you soon!

This week we were handed keys to Hazel Dell’s first building.  On one hand, it’s just a building….it’s just a tool.  I am keenly aware that walls and an address do little to make a church.  That being said, this moment signifies something so much bigger than a building purchase.  It signifies another step in creating a church that will be around 100 years from now.

When we started North Creek, we had no guarantee that it would even last a month, but our hope was that we were a part of creating something that would see many decades of leading people into a growing relationship with Jesus.  Some of that is done divinely with a move of God.  Some is done relationally by creating a community that people want to be a part of and that their children want to be a part of as adults.

But another part of creating a church that survives through the decades appears far more practical.  As we use our resources wisely both in investing in people and tools, we can do our part to see that North Creek Church exists for years to come.  This building is a precious piece of that puzzle…it’s nothing fancy and it’s nothing ostentatious, but it is a slice of the future.  We watched this principle poetically play out with the gift of our Battle Ground campus.  Hundreds of people over dozens of years had sowed into a church, including a building, that has allowed us to continue valuable ministry to that community through a merge.  Now that same gift lives on again in the Hazel Dell facility as well.  We also know that the equity we are building will play out in multiple other campuses in the future.  Campuses that will be full of people whose lives are being changed by God.

And while the practical stuff is all important, it is never the most important.  As I strolled from room to room in the building this week, I dreamed of the full kids classes, teenagers pouring out through every crack, and people meeting Jesus on Sundays and in small groups.  I saw a lot of you there in my mind…the smiling faces I look so forward to seeing and the percolating coffee steaming away on the bar.  It’s a new place with a new address, but not much else will change about the church I love.

Here’s to another new season in the story of North Creek!  I can’t wait to see where God leads us next…

If you’d like to help with painting, yardwork, and construction, we will be there on Saturday from 10:00-5:00 pm.  We are also there most every day of the week until Christmas.  Stop on by to work, drink a cup of coffee, or pray!