Bright Spot, Family and Children Ministry, Fundraiser, Journey, News

175 Sub-Success!

Thank you to everyone who purchased a sub sandwich for the annual Super Bowl Sub fundraiser.  The Journey youth and leaders assembled 175 subs sandwiches.

“Last Sunday, 20 students and leaders from Youth Ministry made over 175 subs, which were sold out within minutes! Thank you for your constant support of the student ministry!” ~ Jeremy Van Genderen

Journey Student ministry is a place for ALL students 6th-12th grade to come walk together on their faith journey.  We meet on Sunday nights from 5:30pm-8pm.  Each night starts with a cafe time where you can purchase items like pizza, candy, chips, hotdogs, soda and Keurig coffee drinks.  Starting at 6:15pm, we rotate between large group teaching, small group discussion and games.  No matter where you are on your faith journey you are invited and welcomed to join us each and every week.

Bright Spot, Family Promise, Just Love, News

Family Promise Bright Spot

BRIGHT SPOT

Family Promise assists homeless families to get to a sustainable state with employment, housing, and other needed services. Our church hosted two families this past week with the help of caring volunteers.

Diane Potter did a special project with one of the daughters. They made a special blanket and scarf for her!

Family Promise of Linn County’s mission is to help homeless and low-income families achieve sustainable independence through compassionate care, hospitality and professional support.  Cedar Hills partners with them as a host site to house families overnight and providing meals.

Family Adventure, Family and Children Ministry, Marriage and Family, News

Family Adventure February Events

Wed, Feb. 13 – Family Adventure Night

We hope your family can join us for a night of food, fun and discipleship, together as a family!

Dinner is offered from 5:30-6pm, program beginning at 6pm.

Nursery will be provided for the littlest ones.

View the event on Facebook.

Thur., Feb. 14 – Parent’s Night Out

5:30pm-8pm your kiddos can enjoy a fun night of STEAM activities, while you take some time to reconnect and recoup, your choice.

Oh, did I also mention…it’s free!

View the event on Facebook and reserve your spot!

More about STEAM On.

 

Cedar Chips, Cross Training/Sunday School, Family and Children Ministry, Marriage and Family, News

Adult Classes

Adult Discipleship: Cross Training Classes

Sundays at 9:45 AM – Cross Training Classes for preschoolers through adults with nursery staffed. Current classes for adults include:

  • Growing in Christ Together—Dig deeper into the gospel, focusing on the DNA of discipleship. Teachers: Pastor Kent, Gary Mills and Don Dykstra.
  • Grace Through the Eyes of Jesus—Study the example of Jesus in Luke’s Gospel, opportunity to share your experiences of God’s grace in our own lives. Teachers: Pastor Alan Crandall, Joanne Lodge, and Gary & Sue
    Sager.
  • Parenting Together—The goal for our group is to build relationships by learning from and with each other in how we can raise our kids and grow as parents in a Godly way. Teachers: Karl and Lindsey Ungs and guest
    mentors.
  • Financial Peace University (pre-registration required; special earlier start time at 9:30 AM). Class facilitators: Dana & Kyle Chapman and Larry & Shelly Pottebaum.
Cedar Chips, News, Open Table

Open Table – Mar. 17

Our next Open Table meeting is Sunday, March 17, after the 2nd service in the Gathering Space. Once a month, we hang around after church. Our team provides a lunch, space to connect, make new friends, and enjoy Christ alive in us. Whether you are new to Cedar Hills or have been around a while, young or old, everyone is  welcome at Open Table!

Cedar Chips, Just Love, News, Worship

The Law of Love

The Law of Love

“If you hate yourself,
you will hate your neighbor.”

“If you hate your neighbor,
it’s because you hate yourself.”

“If you hate yourself,
it’s because you don’t know
God’s love for you.”

“To the degree that you know
God’s great love for you,
you will love yourself.”

“To the degree that you love yourself,
you will be able to love your neighbor.”

It all flows from one thing to the next.
You cannot love your neighbor
without knowing
His great love for you.
One flows into the next,
into the next,
into the next.

That is the law of love.
So we could say, “Just Love”.
But we should probably say, “Be loved.”

One flows into the next,
into the next,
into the next.

Leah
Director of Worship & Media

Cedar Chips, Family and Children Ministry, Noah's Ark

Noah’s Ark – Feb. 2019

In January we began testing our 4-year-old classes. Testing is presented in a game format and is done on a one-on-one basis with the teacher. Most children really enjoy the time with their teacher. Once testing is over, the teachers will send out a final progress report. Then each family will decide if Alternative Kindergarten or Kindergarten is best for their child.Our 3-year-old classes focused on spatial concepts,
shapes, daytime/nighttime, and pockets. The younger classes have come a long way since September!

Noah’s Ark will have another blood drive for the Mississippi Valley at church March 11. Please donate if you can.

Registration for our 2019-2020 school year is underway. If you know someone interested, please have
them contact us by email,  396-3125, or visit www.noahsarkcr.org. Any Cedar Hills active
member whose child attends Noah’s Ark Preschool will receive 10% off tuition. We feel as a member
you already support Cedar Hills financially. Noah’s Ark, as a ministry of this church, wants to support
your child’s Christian education.

If your child is attending AK or Kindergarten in the fall, you should receive a letter from your child’s school soon. If you have not been contacted, call the school your child will be attending.

We are amazed with the amount of growth in the children already and feel privileged to be a part of
their lives.

In Christ,
Leslie Clausen
Director of Noah’s Ark Preschool

Cedar Chips, News

Six Everyday Rhythms of Disciples

Six Everyday Rhythms of Disciples

These six activities make up much of the everyday stuff of life. The gospel transforms each!

  1. We Are Story-Formed: Our stories intersect with God’s Story. Story-formed people grow in understanding of our neighbor’s stories and we share God’s Story.
  2. We Listen: We set aside regular times to listen to God by dwelling in the word and prayer. We take time to slow down, listen to others, and ask questions!
  3. We Celebrate: We gather together to celebrate God’s goodness and God’s extravagant blessings. We invite others into this celebration regularly and engage the celebrations of those around us.
  4. We Bless Others: We intentionally bless others through words, gifts, or actions because God desires for all people to be blessed through Jesus.
  5. We Eat Together: We regularly eat meals with others to invite them into the community. We see our dining table as the best tool for reaching out. We invite friends, neighbors, and the poor over for dinner.
  6. We ReCreate: We take time to rest, play, create, and restore beauty in ways that reflect God to others. Part of our recreation includes Sabbath rest and worship.
Cedar Chips, Consistory, News

Consistory News – February 2019

News and Notes

In the past the Consistory has worked to refine and clarify our disciple-making roadmap. We are called to  make disciples who make disciples in the everyday stuff of life. In 2019, we hope to see increased fruit in this vision as we live it out together answering three questions:

1. Who is God?

Discipleship begins with God because every attitude, thought, and action of our lives is an outpouring of what we believe about God. Our everyday struggles with fear, control, approval, and satisfaction can all be traced back to who we believe God to be.

2. What has God done?

God saves. The Gospel is the good news about Jesus saving and restoring all things. The Gospel is the fuel for all mission and the glue for all community. God, in and through the work of Jesus and by the power of His  Spirit, accepts us, empowers us, and changes us.

3. How does the Gospel impact me?

Disciples follow Jesus and take on his identity. In Jesus we are family, servants, and missionaries. We live out our identity in the everyday stuff of life, learning to follow Jesus 168 hours a week. Disciples who make disciples follow Jesus together. Through life-on-life, we connect with others one-on-one. Through life-in-community we experience the encouragement of a whole group of people to grow. Through life-on-mission we reach out with the love of Jesus in Word and deed to friends and neighbors.

Cedar Chips, Missions Team, News

Love in Any Language

Love in Any Language

Thank-you to everyone who prayed for me while I was in Guatemala. Or, should I say, “Gracias!”

Before I left on this mission trip, the language barrier concerned me the most. I want to understand and be understood, which is typically accomplished with words. The inability to communicate in a foreign tongue worried me.

My concerns were unfounded for two reasons. First, we had a great translator Josue’ (Joshua), who traveled with us everywhere we went and translated everything we wanted to know. And, he laughed a lot. We were blessed by his love for the Lord, love for the people, and love for language. He worked above and beyond the call of duty to help us understand. “Gracias Josue’!”

Second, some understanding transcends culture and language. The biggest blessing I received in Guatemala was to love and be loved – even without words. The mothers and fathers we met, the children we met, the brothers and sisters in Christ we met all conveyed love to us through their warm welcome, their generous hospitality, and their beautiful smiles. Each day I appreciated more their love for us. “Muchas gracias!!!”

As I reflect on my trip I hope that I shared love back even when I could not express it with words. And, I hope that I learned more about sharing love across barriers because we face barriers even in our own community that sometime feel like we are speaking different languages. When that is the case, I hope we can discover how to love with a love that transcends words.

The Lord be with you,
Pastor Kent

P.S. “God demonstrated His love for us in this: while we were still sinners, Christ died for us.” (Romans 5:8)

Love. Belong. Serve.