Category Archives: Cedar Chips

The month newsletter of Cedar Hills Community Church.

Transform

According to the dictionary, transform means to make a thorough or dramatic change in the form, appearance, or character of something, some place or someone.

If I ask you to think about our world, can you think of anything, place, or person who needs a thorough dramatic change?

What about a dramatic change in your neighborhood?
Dramatic change in your home?

If I can name some things ripe for dramatic change: weeds and gnats. I could stand for a lot fewer of both. And  also, a lot less violence, poverty, abuse, suffering, prejudice, injustice, sickness, and hatred. And don’t get me started on the need to transform access to good education, clean water, affordable housing, adequate nutrition, decent jobs, and quality healthcare.

When you imagine a world thoroughly and dramatically changed, what kind of world do you imagine?

Ever imagine a world covered by the glory of the Lord as the waters cover the sea? (Habakkuk 2:14) A world where everyone enjoys life abundantly? (John 10:10) A world overflowing with forgiveness and reconciliation?
(2 Corinthians 5:18-19) A world with a multitude that no one could count, from every nation, tribe, people, and language united as one? (Revelation 7:9) A world with more joy? (Philippians 4:4) I would love a world with fewer gnats and more joy. That would be great!

Put your thinking caps on. In about one month we are going to launch a year-long conversation about the kinds of transformation that God desires for our neighborhoods. If God decided to thoroughly and dramatically change something or someone in the Cedar Valley Corridor in which we live – what kind of change would God bring?

You think and pray about this and I will ask for your answer next month.

The Lord be with You,
Pastor Kent

What Happened to Stephen

What Happened to Stephen?

The preacher Charles Spurgeon said that the goal of salvation is not just getting our souls to heaven (someday) but getting heaven into our souls (right now). In a similar vein, C.S. Lewis wrote that belonging to Christ means more than pie in the sky by and by. It means we are becoming “little Christs,“ transformed day-by-day to be like Jesus.

This is what happened to a Christ-follower named Stephen. His story is told in Acts 6-7. At the end of the story, Stephen was banished from this life by spiteful foes and welcomed into heaven by a loving Jesus. But even more fantastic is what happened before Stephen died. He got heaven into his soul. He became a little Christ!
Stephen‘s life was remarkably like Jesus—

 He was full of faith and the Holy Spirit.
 He channeled God’s healing power to the
sick.
 He glowed with joy and enthusiasm.
 He opposed bigotry with God’s unlimited
mercy.
 When persecuted, he forgave his enemies.
 When facing death, he entrusted himself to
God.
 He gave his life as a ransom for others.

What a miracle of grace! Not just life after death, but a new life before death. Someday we will all be with Christ in heaven. In the meantime, Jesus has another gift for us. Are you becoming a little Christ?

~ Alan Crandall
Pastor of Care

Feedback: If you like this article, would you let me know? Text or call me at 319-382-9675, email, or put a note in my church mailbox.

Growing Missional Communities

When we feed our hearts with the gospel, we will be strengthened to fulfill our calling to make disciples. I love this promise because it is the explanation of how we will fulfill our mission of disciples making disciples in the everyday stuff of life.

Sooner or later everyone hits a wall. We wake up one morning exhausted and uninterested in fulfilling our calling. When life gets busy and our schedules overflow, it we have a tendency to question the purpose and impact of our lives. When that happens we need to feed on the gospel.

At its core, belief that life is too busy to follow Jesus is a gospel unbelief issue. If we are so busy that we don’t make time to hear from God through His Word and His people, then we must take a step back to evaluate our busyness. It is through meeting together that we gain perspective on our circumstances and remind each other of the gospel. “Let us consider how to stir up one another to love and good works, not neglecting to meet together, as is the habit of some, but encouraging one another, and all the more as you see the Day drawing near” (Hebrews 10:24-25). Living life together can be messy. Laying all of our messes on the table can be humbling.

Sharing our messy stories allows us to apply the gospel in everyday ways. The gospel reminds us that our identity isn’t found in our strengths but in our weakness. The gospel becomes real in the mess of life!

The calling to love each other with no limits sounds grand and noble, but when the rubber meets the road it can be tough. If pursuing people and wanting to see change in them stems from glorifying yourself by being their Savior, it’ll never work. The gospel isn’t meant to be a tool to make you look good, it is a truth that points to Jesus. A truth we all need.

Through Jesus we have been changed and so we get to be the hands and feet that carry the gospel to those around us in the everyday messes of life. There is no limit to what God can do through one disciple delighting in and submitting to Jesus. As we seek to believe the gospel in our own lives, we are then equipped to bring the sweetness of it to others. The gospel strengthens us to be disciples who make disciples in the everyday stuff of life!

Loving the gospel,
Pastor Kent

Disciples Making Disciples

We are called to be disciples making disciples in the everyday stuff of life. This is not an event or program tacked onto our already busy lives. It is our everyday life as a disciple. Disciples make disciples by listening to the Holy Spirit, listening to our friends and neighbors, and intentionally sharing Jesus in word and deed everywhere we
go. We can do this in everyday ways without overloading our schedules. Here are a few suggestions:

photo from http://nextstepministries.com/are-you-making-disciples/

1. Eat with non-Christians.
We all eat three meals a day. Why not make a habit of sharing one of those meals with a friend. Whether he/she is a Christian or a non-Christian, God can use this to make or grow a disciple. Order pizza, host a cook-out, meet at a restaurant and focus on having a good conversation.

2. Walk; don’t drive.
If you live in a walkable area, make a practice of getting out and walking around your neighborhood, apartment complex, or campus. Instead of driving to the mailbox or convenience store, walk. Be deliberate in your walk, greet people, and take interest in your neighbors. For added impact, take your dog and pay attention to what happens next!

3. Be a regular.
Instead of hopping all over the city for gas, groceries, haircuts, eating out, and coffee, go to the same places at the same times. Get to know the staff. Smile. Ask questions. Build relationships. Be a regular, listen well, and pray for open doors.

4. Hobby with Others
Pick a hobby that you can share. Get out and do something you enjoy with others. Try a sports league or a local cycling team. Share your hobby by teaching lessons. Teach sewing, piano, guitar, knitting, or tennis lessons. Be prayerful. Be intentional. Be winsome. Have fun and be yourself!

5. Talk to your co-workers.
Take your breaks with intentionality. Go out with your team or task force after work. Show interest in your co-workers; pray for them by name. Form parent groups in your neighborhood. Schedule play dates with the neighbors’ kids. Be intentional.

6. Volunteer with non-profits.
Find a non-profit in your neighborhood and take Saturday a month to serve your city. Volunteer regularly. Bring your neighbors, your friends, or your small groups. Spend time making the world better everyone!

7. Participate in local events.
Instead of time with electronics, get out with other people. Go to fundraisers, festivals, clean-ups, summer shows, parades, seminars, and concerts. Strike up conversation. Study the culture, and reflect on it. Pray for and love the city.

8. Serve your neighbors.
Help a neighbor by weeding, mowing, building a cabinet, fixing a car. Stop by the neighborhood association or apartment office and ask if there is anything you can do to help improve things. Ask your local Police or Fire Stations for ways to help. Get creative and serve.

Summer is a great time to get out and grow as a disciple making disciples in the everyday stuff of life. See you out and about!

~ Pastor Kent

Staffing Team Report

STAFFING TEAM REPORT

A team is at work to evaluate staffing at Cedar Hills with the goal of aligning both paid staff and volunteers so that we are poised for growth as we continue our mission of disciples making disciples in the everyday stuff of life. Our plan is to collect data from staff and ministry leaders about current and future needs, gifts, talents and passions and to develop staffing recommendations for input into the Cedar Hills budget process this fall (for calendar year 2019). In addition to this short-term focus, we will also, as a best practice, be looking at succession planning for paid staff and ministry leaders with the goal of discipling and equipping future leaders for key positions. We are guided by Acts 1, where Jesus himself, in the power of the Holy Spirit, and passed on the mission; and the disciples in turn discipled others and passed on the mission, growing the church to today. We ask for your prayers as we discern God’s voice in our process and that we would be open to God’s will and not ours for Cedar Hills, honoring our past and being open to our future.

The members of the staffing team are: Pastor Kent, Pastor Alan, Deb DeHaan, Kate Ulmer and Dana Chapman.

As the Waters

As The Waters

Habakkuk 2:14 says, “For as the waters fill the sea, the earth will be filled with an awareness of the glory of the LORD.“ As image bearers of Christ, we are like little ‘glory’ carriers—where we walk, where we live
and where we work, we are ambassadors of Christ to the world. Wherever we are every day, there is God, ready to move and make a difference.

Did you know your light shined so brightly? Did you know we get to participate in the promise of Habakkuk 2:14, that the earth will be filled with an awareness of God’s glory?

Lord, that You would saturate our souls with an awareness of Your continual presence that we
may saturate the world!

Listen to “As the Waters” online.

As the Waters
By Leah Carolan
As Your glory reigned over creation
So my heart longs to be reigned by You
As Your Spirit danced with the waters
So my Spirit longs to dance with You
Awaken my heart to this intimacy
Let this wild love run so freely
As the waters cover the sea
Let my heart be filled
With the knowledge of the Glory of God
As the waters cover the sea
Let my heart be filled
With the knowledge of Your Glory
Let Your glory fall like rain (awaken my heart)
Let Your glory fall like rain
That’s pouring down into my heart

~ Leah Carolan
Director of Worship & Media

Noah’s Ark May 2018 Update

What a wonderful year we had at preschool! Thank you to all the great families who trust us with their
precious little ones. We really love these children and have grown very attached to them. Saying “goodbye” will be hard, but they are ready to fly beyond the Noah’s Ark nest. We are very honored to be able to serve the community for 49 years.

All the ‘end of the year’ programs are scheduled for the last day of regular classes. A reception will follow each program. All friends and families are invited to attend. Our last day of school will be Friday, May 25.

April classes focused on good touches, magnets, and construction. All classes had an Ice Cream Social, which is always a big hit. We had a field trip to the downtown library. The older classes also visited our Methwick friends one last time. Our favorite Police Pal Glen Keiler came and talked to us about safety.

May is always a very busy month so please look at the calendar closely for special events. Registration
for 2018-2019 is still underway. If you know anyone interested, please have them call or email us. We will have a couple weeks off and summer school will begin Tuesday, June 12. There are still spots available if that is something your current Noah’s Ark student would like to do.

Leslie Clauson
Director of Noah’s Ark Preschool

Let the Thunder Roll

Let the Thunder Roll

In the Arizona mountains where I grew up, summer days were punctuated with thunderstorms. I was  fascinated by the time that elapsed between the lightning and the thunder. I would count the seconds between flash and crash. You can’t have one without the other!

The resurrection of Jesus is the lightning, and the amazing occurrences we read about in the book of Acts are the thunder. “Acts of the Apostles” is a misnomer. It might better be named the “The Acts of the Risen Jesus” because it is actually the story of the things Jesus did through those who discovered that he is alive.

During his earthly ministry, Jesus did things like healing the sick, casting out demons, and speaking forgiveness to people who didn’t think God loved them. Not everyone appreciated what Jesus did or the kind of God he revealed. His work disturbed many people, and that’s why they killed him. But the ministry of Jesus could not be stopped.

Through the resurrection Jesus was let loose on the world in a way that continues to this day. He is still alive, still working. He says, “I am with you always, to the end of the world.”

During his earthly life, the disciples followed him and carried out his instructions. Now that Jesus is risen that arrangement has not changed. Jesus is still the true missionary. We are merely his assistants and witnesses. Jesus is the only one who can change people’s lives.

We’re like nurses helping the surgeon—we hand Jesus needed surgical instruments, but he performs the operation. Our role is to bear witness to Jesus’ ongoing presence in the world. Through our lives we
say to those who need God: “Jesus is alive, and he wants to come to you with God’s saving power, just as he did for us.” And he does come, again and again!

The resurrection of Jesus is the lightning. What he’s doing in the world today (through you and
me) is the thunder. He’s calling us to be his witnesses to the ends of the earth. Let the thunder roll!

~ Alan Crandall
Pastor of Care