Another CHUCK Promo!

The State of the Raptors

A quarter into the season and it has been nothing but disappointing. The Raptors have a record of 10-15, one game out of the 8th spot. They have been under achieving greatly. The thing that bothers me the most is not the talent. We are definitely talented. We have good players. It is the energy and effort on the court that has been so frustrating.

They show no energy at all! They put no effort! They are so complacent and non-chalant. There is no sense of urgency. Chris Bosh has been playing amazing! But the lack of energy and horrible defense have allowed teams to score at will. We have 9 new players and yet the same problems. Our defense- if it continues will be the worst defense in NBA history!

Hedo Turkoglu has not lived up to expectations. I'm not sure what it is but I believe the Raptors are cursed. It's the Vince Carter curse! Ugh! When will this end??? We can't lose Bosh! If we lose Bosh this will be catastrophic! This will hurt the Raptors so much! Please God please save us from this curse. I cannot endure another losing season. Raps fans have been through so much. We deserve a break!

Heres hoping that the second quarter will be better than the first. We still in it! No time to panic...yet??!

The Christians in Glee

On Tuesday, I was watching one my new favorite shows of the year- Glee!! It was the episode where Quinn's parents found out that she was pregnant. Now if you don't know anything about the show, Quinn is supposed to be the President of the Celibacy Club and her parents are "Christians". It's always funny to see how media portrays Christians and usually it's always in a bad light. But I can't really blame them because there are a lot of Christians who are in fact jerks and really mean. But then again, there are a lot of Christians who are kind and loving.

What interested me the most about this episode was the reaction of Quinn's parents at the revelation that she was pregnant. As I was watching, I was really hoping that Quinn's parents were going to react in a graceful and forgiving manner. But instead her parents got mad and kicked her out of the house. It was so sad. Quinn was obviously remorseful and she even admitted that she made a mistake. With tears she apologized and cried for help.

Unfortunately, there would be no help, no grace and no forgiveness. All we got was Parents that were so embarrassed and so ashamed, that the only solution they can think of was to kick her out. Wow! And there supposed to be Christians too. How sad.

Contrast this with Fin's mother, a single mother, most likely not a Christian and she also finds out in this episode that Fin is going to be a father. And her reaction was more Christlike than the so called Christians. She was so supportive and she held her child as he cried in her arms. Assuring him that everything will be ok. She even took Quinn and gave her a home- gave her a place to stay.

It is so ironic that the ones that claim to follow Jesus are the least like Him, yet the one that does not claim to follow Jesus, looks more like Him. Ugh! How pitiful! If we are to call ourselves Christians then we better paint an accurate picture of Christ. The fruits of the Holy Spirit are: kindness, gentleness, faithfulness, love, peace, patience, goodness, and self-control. How many Christians look like the "fruits" above?

I am not saying to ignore the sin or to excuse it, but if someone is sorry for it and remorseful shouldn't we forgive?? No matter how horrible the sin? Wouldn't Jesus do that to us when we seek forgiveness? Never in the Gospels do we ever see Jesus struggling to forgive someone. It's funny how we talk about grace- yet we are so horribly slow to show it.

I'm getting sick of our reputation in the World- it does not paint an accurate picture of Christ. It actually paints a distorted one. I'm going to see the "Blind Side" with Sandra Bullock on Friday. Here's hoping the Christians in this one paint a better, a more accurate picture of Jesus.

Chuck Behind the Scenes= AWESOME!

Yet Another CHUCK Promo

Another CHUCK Promo!!

CHUCK Promo!

Missio Dei Mentality

Hey friends!

So last night before I went to bed I was thinking about what it would look like to have a "Missio Dei Mentality"- in other words what does it mean to have a "Mission of God" mentality?

This what I came up with. A person with a "Missio Dei Mentality" looks like this:

1) First and foremost is always dependent on the Holy Spirit. Jesus left the Holy Spirit to us and sometimes I feel He is the forgotten God. Francis Chan's new book is actually about this. But we need to be confident in the Holy Spirit's power! To the point that we expect the Holy Spirit to work. It also means that we have complete trust in the Holy Spirit even when we cannot see tangibly what He is doing. I heard it once said: 100% man and 100% God. We do what we can and we let God do what He does best!

2) Relationships!! We are out there to form genuine relationships with people. So we don't see them evangelistic targets, but we actually want to be their friends and out of that we tell them about Jesus and we invite them to Church. So the ideal is to hang out with them during the week and get into their lives. Caring for them holistically meaning caring for their past, present and future needs. This becomes our mentality- that we think about others and find a way to bless them through relationships.

3) Bless the Community- seeks to help those in unfortunate circumstances. We seek to work outside of Church walls, blessing the community with good works and finances.

4) The Church is who we are and not so much the building- wherever you go Church is happening because you are there. The Church is not just a Sunday thing; it's a everyday thing! We don't have Sunday Friends, there is no such thing as that. Community and belonging happens throughout the week.

5) Missionaries to the Culture. We engage the culture not run away from it. We do not back down from a challenge or run away from questions. Instead we take advantage of opportunities to engage the culture with knowledge, wisdom and character. Sharing the truth and reasons why we believe in a clear and concise manner that is understandable. This is done with kindness and respect.

God always one step ahead

It amazes me to know that God is always one step ahead of me. Whenever I think that we need something, God is already working on it. He knows what I need before I even ask. God is at work even before I ask Him too. I find this comforting.

David

Christians on Gossip Girl?

Did anyone catch Gossip Girl on Monday? Like many Mondays, Gossip Girl is on at the Cay household and in this episode low and behold, the "Christians" make an appearance. But unfortunately, they made us look really lame and I mean so lame that you would laugh and shake your head in embarrassment and disgust . For me personally it was quite hilarious but it was also quite sad that many people view Christians in this manner.

The scene in Gossip Girl showed a group of Christians crashing a party..lol..and they were wearing Christian t-shirts and singing hymns in unity while mingling with people at the party. They were handing out literature and they were holding crosses as if to shun away Vampires.

It was amusing yet sad. As a Christian, I am nothing like these "Christians" on Gossip Girl. But I would say in shame that some are exactly like that. It sucks that TV or media in General would focus primarily on the minority of Christians that are loud, obnoxious, and plain weird. But I guess it would make a better show and a better story. But I wish they would also show that Christians are regular people who just love Jesus and do have certain values. But most often were portrayed as really weird or judgmental.

What if the only "Christians" people ever meet are those that are on TV? That would be tragic! Though this sucks, I also welcome the opportunity to break people's stereotypes of Christians. I welcome the challenge and so should you. So lets show people who Jesus really is by loving people and caring for them.

To the "Christians in Gossip Girl"- what would Jesus do? Definitely not that!

Another hilarious one!

This is hilarious!

Kelly Clarkson Cover of Miley's Song "The Climb"

Kelly Clarkson with her back up singers! So good!!

We are moving!!!

After weeks of searching and calling places we finally found a place for our Worship Service!!! God is just so good! It is simply amazing! Grace Generation Church will be moving to Calgary Chinese Baptist Church on October 18, 2009! Our service will start at 6pm and will end at 8pm.

So we have one more month before we move and we have decided to do a month-long fundraising/promotional campaign. We are in dire need of musical and technical equipment. So we are asking you for your support. God is doing a lot of exciting things and I am anxious to see what He does next!

If you wish to support us financially, please make out cheques payable to

"Grace Generation Church of Calgary" and send it to:

Grace Generation Church of Calgary
PO Box 29076
Hidden Valley RPO NW
Calgary, AB
T3A 6L2

Please provide us with your name and address so that we can give you tax deductible receipt. As of this moment our Church does not have a Charity Number, but we are working hard to get one and we should get one by the end of the year. Thank you for prayers and support!

David

Meeting Minutes

Grace Generation Church Meeting Minutes

August 30,2009

Proposed Budget (60 out, 40 in)

• $4200 monthly budget
• $2500 Salary
• $1000 rent
• $200 Church Stuff
• $300 CNBC Co-Operative Program (Disaster Relief and Missions)
• $200 Neighborlink

Budget approved by team

*meet with Auntie Marte about how to break up David’s salary

*need to make a list for what is needed – Convention & possibly The Bridge (ask them) are willing to help purchase (i.e musical instruments/supplies, photocopier

Fundraising Events

• Bottle Depot (quarterly)
• Coco-Brooks
• Bridge Brand
• Garage Sale (yearly)- remaining items will be sent to a Charity
• Fundraising Letter of Support

Board

Treasurer – Dianne

Secretary – Joy

Chairman – Gerard

Vice Chairman – Rhea

Trustees – Gladys, Dianne, Rhea

*note: must update and fix constitution to match our application for charity status.

Prayer

Next Meeting – September 27, 2009

The power of relationships

It was a pretty sad week with Pastor Jesse passing. I had the privilege of speaking at the viewing and it was nice to know that I had nothing but awesome memories of Pastor Jesse. He is someone that I really want to be like. As a pastor, you want to be something like Pastor Jesse in his humbleness and his care and love for others. There is nothing quite like friendships and relationships. They are the backbone of what we do and love. To love someone and to care for them is one of the most powerful things we can give to someone.

The best times are usually spending time with friends over dinner or over coffee. Relationships are priceless! We can buy all these material things, but they will never come close to having the same power that a relationship or a friendship has. Spending time with people we love is where it is at. Memories are made when we are with friends.

People want relationships- they want to be loved and cared for. It's great to share Jesus with people, but it's more powerful when we do that and they know we actually care and love them too. I believe they would be more receptive to having a relationship with Christ when we show (not much say) that Jesus loves you.

It is amazing to me that the God of the Universe wants to have a relationship with you. Jesus wants to be a part of your life. He is interested in your fears and what you care about. He wants to walk with you through the good times and the bad times- promising to never leave you nor forsake you. He has dreams for us too! Dreams that no eye has seen, no ear has heard, no mind has even conceived or imagined what God has planned for those that love Him.

Relationships must be one of the most important aspects of Grace Generation. It has to be a church that genuinely cares and loves people. A Church that is willing to invest in the messiness of people's lives and guiding them to the best relationship that they can have- Jesus Christ! So I appeal to everyone to look at the interest of others and not just our own. For relationships have power to change lives and make life worth living.

Great Hoffa Clip!!!

A place of Worship?

Hey friends!

From my last update, I told you how a special person decided to financially support a building for our church! Which means, that the individual would pay our rent bills until we can afford it on our own. When I heard this news, I was so excited and so thankful! God can really do amazing things and I love how He just surprises us with these out of nowhere type announcements. I love it!

So last week, me and Hazel went looking for around for potential places of Worship. Now, let me tell you something about Hazel. She is the bravest person I have ever met. She is not scared of anything! She is such a good talker- very professional. To be honest I feel safe when she is around. I guess we don't call her "Agent Anderson" for nothing. She's that good!

But anyways, we looked around and we got one great offer. The price was good! The place fit our needs! BUT it wouldn't allow us to place music! Bummer! This would have been the ideal fit, but I guess it wasn't the place God had for us. The other places that we looked at were really expensive and not in the realms of our budget.

This week, we have resumed the "find a church" project and we do have a few leads! So keep praying for us that we can find a place! God is good! I know He has a place, but we just have to keep looking and soon enough he will reveal it! Pray pray pray!!!

Updates #2

Hey everyone

I just want to start of and say that God is good! When God touches something He really does amazing things. After the service I received word that someone (the person wished to remain anonymous) is willing to pay rent for a building for our church!!

The "someone" told me to find a building whether it is a hotel ballroom or community center and he/she is willing to pay the rent for it until we can afford it!

This is awesome news! Please pray for me and Hazel as we look for a place of worship on Wednesday!

God is good man! Expect more of this stuff. Have faith no doubts!

Keep praying! Keep fundraising because we will really need stuff if we get a place of worship.

Today's service went pretty well today! We finally got the mics to work..lol..and we had 28 people come out. So thanks to all that came, I pray that you had an experience with God today.

Please continue to pray for us and I hope you guys have a great week. Also, Bible Study this Thursday is at Marc's house. Please contact us for details.

Dave

The New Toronto Raptors!!!

What an offseason! The Toronto Raptors have gotten better and we have added depth. This is probably the best team that we've had in years! We've added 7 new faces to the roster!

DeMar DeRozan

Jarett Jack

Antoine Wright

Hedo Turkoglu

Rasho Nesterovic

Marco Bellinelli

Reggie Evans

We've added athleticism, toughness, grit and defense

So our Starting lineup should look like this:

PG: Jose Calderon

SG: Demar DeRozan

SF: Hedo Turkoglu

PF: Chris Bosh

C: Andrea Bargnani

Backups:

PG: Jarrett Jack

SG: Marco Bellinelli

SF: Antoine Wright

PF: Reggie Evans

C: Rasho Nesterovic

Bench Warmers:

Patrick Obryant

Quincy Douby

Roko Ukic

Marcus Banks

That is a pretty great lineup. I predict 4th in the East!!

We need to get rid of Ukic and Marcus Banks. Get some veterans on this team!! I'm excited for the season! I cannot wait!! GO RAPTORS!!!

What a week!

Hey Friends

That was a pretty hectic week! We got a lot done! We had our first GGC event "BBQ in the Park" and we also had our very first service! Yay!

The week started with the monster job of cleaning my basement! The basement was a dusty mess! We had to sweep the whole basement; wipe the walls; mop the floor and then paint it. It took two days to complete! Thanks to everyone who helped out!

On Saturday, we had a BBQ in the Park. Check out the pictures on the website! A lot of people came out- 41 people to be exact. We BBQ'd burgers and Hot Dogs! The Burgers were a hit! Unfortunately, the beautiful Jumbo Hot Dogs were not =( Oh well I guess more for me! Yay!

On Saturday Night, Shaula and I moved couches and chairs (bought from Wal-Mart) to the basement for the service that would happen on Sunday. It was quite the workout! I broke a sweat and probably lost some weight, only to be gained back again after a nice mid-night

snack- a precious Hot Dog!

On Sunday, we had our very first GGC Worship Service in my basement. 26 people came out for our very first service! Thanks to all that came! I was pretty nervous for some reason, I wonder if it showed? But I really want to thank God for being my friend and blessing us with this great week. All the Glory should go to Him!

David

Best of Chuck Video Tribute!

Just Plain Awesome!

Expecting BIG things

Wow! How time flies..lol..our first official service is this Sunday (Aug. 2)! That was a quick 7 months! Now we are here and to be honest I don't really know what to expect. I have my ideas, I have my dreams but I'm not quite sure what will happen. In some cases I don't want to know, I want to be surprised- I want to be kept in suspense!

Whenever God did something in the Bible it was always something amazing- something impossible! It was never anything small, it was always something great! Something BIG! I have learned along the way to always expect something big and majestic from God. To not settle for anything less. To not doubt but have faith in the great things our God can do. My mentality has changed to the extent that God really does want to show his power. He really does what to do great things!

BUT our lack of faith, our doubts and the fact we like to put God in a box has made it harder for us to experience all that God has for us. We have chosen to settle for mediocrity- expecting less than what God wants to give!

What if we had faith like a mustard seed- faith that can move mountains? What if we expected only great and powerful things from God and not settle for less?

Ask God to show up! Ask Him to reveal His power! Ask till your blue in the face- ask to the point that you won't accept mediocre results! Believe that God is capable of doing the impossible! If the Bible is any indication to what God can do- then my friends we are in for a treat!

Are you excited? Are you nervous? Maybe it's both.

It has only begun- greater things are yet to come.

Grace Generation Meeting Minutues- July 2, 2009

GRACE GENERATION CHURCH MEETING MINUTES

July 2,2009

Announcements

• We are finally beginning! How do you feel?

Organization

• Core will be meeting at 4pm for the month of July
• Thursday night GGC bible study – officially starts in July
• Format: eat, devotion, discussion, hang (start right on time 7pm)
• For future reference – possibly 2 bible studies a week?
• Not just a bible study; can be time where we go out and volunteer in the community; fundraising
• Official service starting in August; time? TBA
• Thursday bible study resumes as usual
• Core to meet Sunday mornings before worship service for discipleship/training

Fundraising Letter

• Now completed.
• Waiting on letterhead and then it is ready to be distributed
• Suggestion for an email template, so its easier to give the letter to family/friends abroad.

Evangelism Program

• We have none; we are the program!
• Desire is to engage in intelligent conversations with non-believers
• Sharing through relationships
• Invite them into a community – e.g movies, shopping, concerts, clubbing haha!
• We ARE the CHURCH. Must not gravitate to one another. This is the church entrusted to us. We are the frontline. DO NOT BE AFRAID

Final Thought

• THIS IS OUR TIME!
• There’s a dream in your heart that God wants you to pursue

Challenge

• Seek, pray, and discover that dream and desire that God has placed in your heart and let David know.

The Glory of God is man fully ALIVE

Closing Prayer.

Welcome Demar DeRozan!!!

With the 9th pick the Toronto Raptors select Demar DeRozan!!! I am so excited! This was my pick. I'm just glad Toronto got it right this time! This guy is going to be very special- I just know it!

Now we need to resign Shawn Marion! Our lineup can possibly consist of:

Calderon

Derozan

Marion

Bosh

Bargnani

That is a solid lineup! We just need to get better defensively! I'm thinking through trades, free agency, and our mid-level exception- we need to bolster the bench and get deeper. So far our bench consists of:

PG: Ukic/Douby/Banks

SG: Delfino?

SF: ?

PF: Evans/Humphries

C: O'Bryant

I think we need to trade Humphries, Jawai and Banks and get rid of their contracts. Maybe even get rid of Ukic and get a veteran PG.

Use our free agent money and resign Marion and Delfino..and maybe even Parker. If not Parker, maybe sign someone like Grant Hill or Matt Barnes??

Use the mid-level on Chris Anderson and the LLE on Rasho.

Our lineup would be:

Calderon/Dooling?/Douby

Derozan/Parker?/Hill?

Marion/Delfino/ Barnes?

Bosh/Evans/

Bargnani/Anderson?/Rasho?/Obryant

I'm excited for next season! YAY Derozan!

Proposed Plan for July and August 2009

Hey guys

Here is a proposed plan- please critique and ask any questions that you may have. Thanks!

The Plan:

July:

Start an official GGC Bible Study on Thursdays
- invite friends
- eat together
- talk about Jesus
- targetted for new people, but will also go deep for the ones that are already walking with Jesus; won't be entirely basic.

Be intentional- Be the Church
- hang out with friends
- invite people into a community (going to movies; playing video games; watching sports etc.)

Sundays- Meet with Core only
- pray together
- sing together
- equipping- just like how we are doing CNC bs right now

August:

Start an official GGC Sunday Worship Service
- invite friends

Sunday Mornings before the service- meet with Core
- equipping time (just like how we are doing CNC bs right now)

Official GGC Bible Study on Thursdays will continue

Be intentional- Be the Church
- hang out with friends
- invite people into a community (going to movies; playing poker; watching sports etc.)

Community Events- let's get out there!

GGC'S Meeting Minutes for May, 31, 2009

Grace Generation Meeting Minutes

May 31,20009 

Announcements
Bank Account
First worship service: August
Planning/Organizing/Bible Study in July
 

Opening Prayer – Ptr. David Cay 

Fundraising letter
Must get it out by next week for sure
Dan make letterhead
Arvin edit
Core responsible for sending them out
 

Charity Status
Need to apply online
 

“Do you realize the magnitude of what is going to happen?” Starting in a month!3 

Finance
Approx at least $3200 pledged from core and other donors
 

Budget? 
Faith budget -- $4000
Rental
David’s Salary
$2500
 

Fundraising Letter (general idea with separate attachment with what we specifically need)
Sound board
Mics
Speakers
Utility Van
Projector
 

Closing Prayer

Mission Trip

Two weeks ago I went on a Mission Trip to Vancouver and it was one of the greatest times of my life. We worked with a lot of the homeless and did a lot of community work. We got to meet a lot of great people and a lot of Christians who have dedicated their life in helping the poor and fighting for justice.

It was a different type of experience. It was nothing like camp or YC- it was joy and fulfillment in knowing that you were helping someone who desperately needed help. We spent most of the time outside of the Church than inside of it. We were getting our hands dirty and working hard so that someone in need will benefit from it.

It was sad that this was the first time that I did something like this. Why haven't I done this before? Perhaps there was no opportunity to do something like this? Or perhaps I was too busy feeling comfortable? I feel both are true. Helping the poor in my opinion is bottom of the list for most Churches. It looks like most churches are too consumed with ministering inside the church than it is outside of the Church. Just look at some Church's Budget and you will see what they prioritize and what they value. 

From this experience, I cannot help but be frustrated at how many Churches ignore the poor. Jesus was all about healing people. Whenever someone was in need like the blind man or the man with leprosy, Jesus would immediately heal them. He didn't tell them that He would do it later. He never ever said no. He never said wait for heaven. And He never said that if you accept me first then I will help you. Jesus was not only concerned about people's spiritual and eternal destinies, He was also concerned about their present needs. He was also concerned about their life in the here and now.

Sometimes Churches focus way too much on the future. Yes, it is very important that we preach that Jesus is the Savior of the world. Yes, we should tell people about the Gospel. Yes, we should be concerned about people's eternal destinies. But it should not give us an excuse to ignore and and not care about what people are going through in their present lives. If we look at Jesus, He looked at the person holistically. This means that Jesus was interested in the whole person. He was concerned about forgiving their past, abundant life in the present, and heaven in the future. 

I got to meet and talk with a lot of homeless people. It was interesting to know that many of them do work, but they just don't make enough. It was also interesting to meet a man named Chris, who had a college diploma from SAIT. He had diploma in networking- yet He couldn't find a job. It was also heartbreaking to meet people who are addicted to drugs and alcohol. I met one person who spent $1000 of his welfare cheque on booze. 

It's true that some of them have made pretty bad choices but not all of them have. We as a society love to put stereotypes on people- thinking that everyone fits into them. The funny thing is, many people who have stereotypes have never talked to or spent time with the people that they are judging. But it is humbling to have your stereotypes broken and destroyed when you meet someone that doesn't meet fit that criteria. 

I truly believe in helping others for the sake of just helping them. There should not be a hidden agenda or a hidden criteria. So what if they are addicted to alcohol, does that mean we don't help them?  I wonder, what if it was your friend or relative that was addicted to alcohol- do you just sit there and criticize them? Or do we do something about it?

When Jesus said love your neighbor- it didn't just mean your friends and relatives. It meant everyone! Your neighbor is the poor person in Downtown Calgary or the person you do not like. We sometimes forget that the homeless in Calgary are people too. They are loved by God and made in God's image. But for some reason some of us have these feelings of superiority about ourselves. And we may never say it, perhaps we even think it- that we are better than these people. But honestly we are not. 

I would encourage you to read Matthew 25: 31-46 and answer this question:

What have you done for the least of these?

"For what you do for the least of these- you do it to me" Matthew 25: 40

CHUCK Renewed for Season 3!!!

It's official! Chuck is back! Chuck has been renewed for 13 episodes for Season 3, with a possibility of NBC picking up 9 additional episodes if the ratings hold up nicely. Chuck is back!! Yay!!!! This is the best news ever!! Watch CHUCK! It's a fun show to watch!

LOST Season 5 Finale

LOST has to be the greatest show ever! The Season 5 Finale was epic. It was amazing. I hope Season 6 is just as good and that they end the show in a satisfying manner. 

If you have not ever watched LOST, I encourage you to do so. It is truly a work of art and the storytelling is absolutely amazing. 

One hope I have for Season 6 is that I hope the Smoke Monster pays for killing my precious Mr. Eko. Your day will come Smoke Monster...

LOST comes back January 2010. 8 more months! I don't think I'll survive....please help me..please!

Church Theme Song? God of this City by Chris Tomlin

[Verse 1]
You're the God of this City 
You're the King of these people 
You're the Lord of this nation 
You are 

[Verse 2]
You're the Light in this darkness 
You're the Hope to the hopeless 
You're the Peace to the restless 
You are 

There is no one like our God 
There is no one like our God 

[Chorus]
For greater things have yet to come 
And greater things are still to be done in this City 
Greater thing have yet to come 
And greater things are still to be done in this City 

[Verse 1]

[Verse 2]

There is no one like our God 
There is no one like our God 

[Chorus]
For greater things have yet to come 
And greater things are still to be done in this City 
Greater things have yet to come 
And greater things are still to be done here 

There is no one like our god 
There is no one like our God 

[Chorus]
Greater things have yet to come 
And greater things are still to be done in this City 
Greater things have yet to come 
And greater things are still to be done here

If We are the Body by Casting Crowns

Great song! A possible Church theme song? Read and meditate on the words..

It's crowded in worship today 
As she slips in 
Trying to fade into the faces 
The girls' teasing laughter is carrying farther than they know 
Farther than they know 

CHORUS 
But if we are the Body 
Why aren't His arms reaching 
Why aren't His hands healing 
Why aren't His words teaching 
And if we are the Body 
Why aren't His feet going 
Why is His love not showing them there is a way 
There is a way 

A traveler is far away from home 
He sheds his coat 
And quietly sinks into the back row 
The weight of their judgmental glances tells him that his chances 
Are better out on the road 

CHORUS 
But if we are the Body 
Why aren't His arms reaching 
Why aren't His hands healing 
Why aren't His words teaching 
And if we are the Body 
Why aren't His feet going 
Why is His love not showing them there is a way 

Jesus paid much too high a price 
For us to pick and choose who should come 
And we are the Body of Christ 

Chorus (2x) 
If we are the body 
Why aren't His arms reaching 
Why aren't His hands healing 
Why aren't His words teaching 
And if we are the body 
Why aren't His feet going 
Why is His love not showing them there is a way 

Jesus is the way

Awesome clip from the Finale!

Jefster is awesome!!

What is "Missional"?

I know I used this term on Thursday and it was hard to explain it, but I found a great definition of it in Dan Kimball's book "They like Jesus but NOT the Church"..so here it goes:

What is Missional?

Being Missional means that the church sees itself as being missionaries, rather than having a missions department, and that we see ourselves as missionaries right where we live.

Being Missional means that we see ourselves as representatives of Jesus "sent" into our communities and that the church aligns everything it does with the missio dei (mission of God).

Being Misisonal means we see the church not as a place we go only on Sunday, but as something we are throughout the week.

Being Missional means that we understand we don't "bring Jesus" to people but that we realize Jesus is active in culture and we join him in what He is doing.

Being Missional means we are very much in the world and engaged in culture but are not conforming to the world.

Being Missional means we serve our communities, and that we build relationships with the people in them, rather than seeing them as evangelistic targets. 

Being Missional means being all dependent on Jesus and the Spirit through prayer, the Scriptures, and each other in community

CHUCK Tonight! Season Finale!!!

Hey guys

Watch CHUCK at 9pm on Ch. 16! Second best show next to LOST! Save CHUCK!!!

GGC Update

Hey guys

So we finally got a bank account! YAY! Our bank cards looks so professional. They look really cool! The next step is to proofread the Constitution- edit anything that needs to be changed. Then we can apply for Charity Status! 

We are going to send out the letters of support by mid May to beginning of June. We hope to raise a decent amount of money to help with my salary; a potential place of worship; and other equipment that we need (PA System etc.). We are also going start doing numerous fundraisers. 

Today at the meeting, we really emphasized the importance of preparing ourselves spiritually. We really want our ministry to come out of our being and not our doing. Our relationship with Christ is vital to ensure maximum effectiveness and power. 

Please continue to pray for the Church Plant and for each other. This is coming really soon! It's becoming more real as each day goes by. 

Funny CHUCK clip!

NEW Chuck Promo- could be the last eppy =(

Please watch Chuck on Ch. 16 at 9pm. It is the Season Finale, but it could be the Series Finale =( Please watch!

The Things to come...

It's coming..and it's coming fast! I cannot express how I excited I am for this journey that is about to begin. It's awesome that many of my closest friends are coming along for the ride. I've said this before, but I will say it again. I believe God is raising up a new wave of Christians to change the world for Christ. Knowing this, I cannot sit back anymore- I must join it! I am excited to see what God will do! I know it will be something BIG! 

I'm also curious to see how people react to adversity and disappointment. I want to remind everyone, that though JESUS promises LIFE and LIFE to the FULL- He also said that there will be a thief that will come to steal, seek and destroy. The Devil will do whatever it takes to stop and derail this movement. So I totally expect disappointment and adversity. BUT it is how we react to this; it will show how much we believe in a God who is bigger than the one of this world. 

I often pray that the Church would be an upstoppable force that loves and serves people. A Church, where the Holy Spirit is free to work and the transforming power of Jesus becomes alive in each one's life. BUT most of all, I want it to be a place where people worship and have an encounter with Jesus. 

BUT I wonder, how will we reach people? How will we disciple people? We don't want just converts, we want people to become fully alive in Christ. But how do we do that? How do we guide people to become what Jesus DREAMS them to be? 

So many questions, yet there are also so many dreams! What will happen in a year is yet to be seen? But all I know is that I have been called to this new adventure and whatever it brings, I'm sure it will be exciting!

New CHUCK promo!! They kiss!!!

Evangelism in the 21st Century

This was an interesting quote by Brian McLaren and I agree wholeheartedly!

" Out: Evangelism as sales pitch, as conquest, as warfare, as ultimatum, a threat, as proof, as argument, as entertainment, as show, as monlogue, as something you have to do....

In: Disciple-making as conversation, as friendship, as influence, as invitation, as companionship, as challenge, as opportunity, as conversation, as dance, as something you get to do..."

- Brian McLaren, More Ready Than You Realize

What do you think? Agree or disagree? Comment below!

New CHUCK Promo!!!!

GGC Update!

Hey guys

So we got a mailing address and we finished the Constitution! So the next step is to apply for Charity Status and get a bank account. We are hoping to get this all done by the end of April. The Church is going to start real soon (3 months or so left!!) so we will need to prepare our hearts and prepare ourselves spiritually. We will need to better educate ourselves in preparation of reaching this generation for Christ. I'm excited and I hope you guys are too! The adventure is about to begin!

David

New CHUCK promo!!

We have an address! Thank you Lanein!!!

Hey guys!!!

We have an address for the Church!!! So everyone thank Lanein!! It was very hard to find a rental box because everywhere we looked they had none available. But Lanein finally found one! The address of the Church is:

PO Box 29076

Hidden Valley RPO NW

Calgary, AB

T3A 6L2

GGC Update!

Hey guys!

So this past Sunday, we finished half of the constitution! It should be all done by this Sunday! Once it is done, we will apply for Charity Status. We are hoping it will be done and approved in 2 months. Also, this Friday, we have an appointment with the Bank to open a Small Business account! So by this Friday, there is a great chance that we will have our very own bank account!

In other news, I am having trouble finding a postal rental box for the Church. Every place that I went to had no boxes available. Pray that we find one soon! I don't want to be using my own personal home address for the Church.

Thanks guys! Keep praying for the Church! It's coming soon!!!

New promo for CHUCK!!!

Please God SAVE Chuck!

My favorite show is Chuck! It's the greatest show next to LOST. It has a great mix of action, comedy, drama and romance. It's one of those shows that doesn't need to rely on sex or utter raunchiness, not like other tv shows that are full of it. I really believe that it is a family show...well at least the closest to a family show than any other tv show on Prime Time. But the problem is that not many people watch it! 

We have such bad luck! In Season 1, the ratings were pretty good hovering around 7 million viewers only to get cut short because of the stupid Writers Strike! Argh! It was such a long break! And when it returned for the Second Season we had lost viewers! One thing that Chuck suffers from is inconsistency, not from the storylines but from the schedule! Stupid NBC!! Chuck was building momentum (especially after a slow start to begin Season 2) it had built up to 7.5 million viewers in December, but then had to go on a 6 week hiatus! Why? For a stupid dance show!!! Which did horribly! Stupid NBC! 

They returned back for a 3D Episode (which was a day after the Superbowl) and they got 8.5 million viewers, only for the following week to be pre-empted by Barack Obama's speech! Argh! To make matters worse, Fox put it's hit show House in the same time slot as  Chuck! So Chuck has to go against Dancing with the Stars (and when that isn't on its The Bachelor), House, Big Bang Theory, How I met your Mother and Gossip Girl! It's the most competitive timeslot on TV throughout the whole week! 

This week Chuck got a 5.69. Its in danger of getting canceled =( The injustice of it all frustrates me! It's not fair! Chuck is a good show, actually its an amazing show. I will be so depressed IF it gets cancelled! Please give Chuck a chance! Watch Chuck! 

p.s. I'm about to boycott NBC...except when they have football and the Superbowl ;(

p.p.s. Please sign the petition. We need a Season 3!

www.petitionspot.com/petitions/renewnbcchuck

GGC Update

So after talking with the Convention, we thought it would be wise to just go and obtain Charity Status instead of using the Charity Number of The Bridge. This will benefit us long term. If we used the Charity Number of the Bridge and a Bridge bank account it would just be a short term solution because eventually we will have to get our own number and our own bank account. So this will save us time.

New CHUCK promo!!!

She is totally telling Cole that she cares about CHUCK!!! They can't fool me!

GGC Update!

I got the confirmation letter for our business number and payroll deduction number! So that means we have everything we need to open a bank account! Next week I'm going to get the PO Box number and open a bank account! YAY! 

Saddest Chuck Clip ever

New CHUCK promo!

Consumer Church vs. Missional Church

Consumer Church

Church is seen as a dispenser of religious goods and services. People come to church to be fed, to have their needs met through quality programs, and to have the professionals teach their children.

"I got to Church"

VS.

Missional Church

Church is seen as a body of people sent on a mission who gather in community, for worship, encouragement, and teaching from the Word that supplements what they are feeding themselves throughout the week.

"I am the Church"

- taken from the book "The Emerging Church" by Dan Kimball 2003

It is my desire that we become a Missional Church.

Ratings for this Week of my favorite shows!

Chuck- 6.83 million viewers ;(
LOST- 11.27 million viewers
Gossip Girl (R)- 1.6 million viewers

Good Quote

"There is no adventure without an element of fear"

"Fear is essential for adventure"

- GGC February 19, 2009

New Chuck Promo!

GGC Update!

So we finally registered for a business number and we got a payroll deduction number as well. So barring any unforseen circumstances we should be able to open a bank account real soon. Most likely in 2 weeks! Yay! So things are finally moving on the financial front. Let's just pray things go smoothly!

Transformers Trailer #2!!

Meeting Minutes for February 8, 2009

GGC Meeting Minutes
February 8,2009

COMMUNITY
To create a come as you are culture, develop deep friendships, and gain a sense of belonging. We want to be welcoming, loving, transparent, open, honest, diverse and UNITED. Oh and we don’t gossip.

Come as you are
o Be real
o Personal Mindset – don’t judge
o Leave our egos at the door
o Promotion

Develop Friendships
o Genuine effort
o Don’t treat them as targets
o No hidden agenda
o Follow through
o Real friendship – not just “church friends”
o Be yourself, don’t force a friendship – but be conscious of who is around (who’s new, who’s alone)

Belonging
o Avoid groups/cliques
o General activities (game nights, movies, sports, bbq’s, book club) – no gospel presentation; get to know people
o Volunteer Opportunities (feed the poor, etic)
o Ministry Involvement (use holy discernment – case to case basis)

Transparency
o There’s a time and place
o Promote
o Relational
o Confidentiality

Diversity
o Talk to everyone – multicultural
o Welcome others with diverse beliefs

This starts with YOU!

Team Building
Special Events (Guess who’s coming for dinner! Retreats, Dinner, Family Camp, Amazing Race,)
Potlucks after church (cook food, bring cookies, sandwiches)

EVANGELISM
o Relationships are the key!
o There is NO formula- just be yourself and share!
o Worship Service- gospel presentation
o Education is important (book exchange, create a library, classes)
o Missionary Concept – we become the missionary; we learn their culture, learn how to communicate with their culture

Chuck Episode 13 Promo

This is awesome! I cannot wait!!

Transformers 2 Trailer!!!

G.I. Joe Trailer!! This is awesome!!!

Journey of Faith

This is something interesting that I learned at the Youth Conference and it's about the stages of Faith. I thought this was a realistic view of people in their stages of faith.

Journey of Faith

- Simplicity

- Complexity

- Perplexity

- Humility

Simplicity

Stage 1: Recognition of God

Stage 2: Dicipled Life

Stage 3: Productive Life

So this is when everything is going good- you accepted Christ; you are learning and growing

Complexity

Stage 4: Inward Journey

Things start to get complex. Things aren't going as smoothly. Times of trials and tribulations.

Perplexity

The Wall- you have to make a choice to give up or keep going- Crisis of Faith!

- sadly, many people choose to give up and turn their backs on Christ

Humility

Stage 5: Outward Journey

Stage 6: Life of Love

When people get to this stage they never turn their back on God. They have passed the moment of testing and the crisis of faith. They are now humbled at God's grace and they walk with great confidence in the Lord. 

I hope this helps you know where you are at in your faith journey. It will also help you know where other people are at in their faith journey as well.

Chuck Superbowl Commercials!!

These are awesome! Check it out!!!

An Encouraging Quote

"God must have had a lot of confidence in you to put you on the planet at this time"

- Reggie McNeal "The Present Future"

Mr. Eko in the new GI Joe movie!!!!

WOW!!!!! Eko Lives!

Miracles

Married life has been awesome! It's been great-everything that I hoped it would be. But it also has its challenges such as finances. I don't usually share something so personal, but I felt I needed to share this story. As of now, financially we are not doing so good. We have been struggling to tell you the truth. With events such as Christmas and January Birthdays galore- plus the mortgage and the bills- we took a hit financially. This week for the first time in my life, we went into the red! If you don't know what that means, it means you go into the negative- you don't have money. Your spending money that you don't have.

So obviously, we were panicing and we were very worried. As you can imagine,we started quarelling and bickering about money. To be honest, these fights takes a toll emotionally and spiritually. It really is tough. And mentally it takes a toll, when will the money come in? Our paycheques wouldn't be in for a whole week! Where would we get the money to pay for the other bills??!! 

The next day, I went home to my parents house and I had some mail. So I check it and in one of the envelopes was a cheque! A $92 cheque! What the heck!! And it was just enough for one of our bills!

The next week we got our pay cheques and we had to pay our bills- but for some reason our pay cheques weren't enough! We had only $63 left in our bank account and we needed $200 to pay our tithe and one of our bills. Where would we get the money? 

So we were again scared! What do we do? I can't believe this is happening! For two weeks in a row we would be in the red again! Now I had to go get gas that evening and I was thinking of using our credit card since we had no money. But before I went to get gas I checked the mail. And in the mail was a $69 cheque!! But it didn't stop there, Shaula found a $100 cheque that she got in October 2008 but had forgotten to deposit! It was more than enough to pay our bills!

God is good man! God is soo goood! I cannot even describe how good He is! He always comes through for us. He always provides! I cannot explain what just happened- the only way I can explain it is that God showed up. He has never let me down.

God loves you! He knows your needs! Trust in Him! I don't say this because I am a "Pastor" or that I'm trying to sell you something. But this story truly happened to me and Shaula. This happened in real life. Does God still do miracles? I think so! Actually, I know so because one just happened.

LOST is back on Wednesday!!!

LOST is back this Wednesday! I cannot wait!! LOST is the best show ever! I'm going to be very sad when it ends in 2010. So watch LOST on Ch. 5 starting at 9pm with the recap show, then the first episode at 10pm and then the 2nd Episode at 11pm!! Can't wait!!!

New Chuck Promo!!!! Wow!!!!

New Chuck Promo!!! Check it out here!!!

Transition feels so weird

I'm definitly in a moment of transition in my life and it feels very very weird.  I cannot describe the feeling- it's like things are changing so rapidly that I can't catch up. My dreams and desires are changing so fast- faster than I had imagined. It's really really weird! Though these feelings are arising, I am definitly very excited for the future, but I'm sad that I have to leave the Bridge. It's been an interesting few months, my passions and desires are definitly changing from Student Ministry to the local church. Now don't get me wrong, I still love working with students. They are awesome! It's just my heart and my dreams are just shifting more towards the Church as a whole. 

I am very excited about the new adventure God has set before me. I would have never thought this would ever happen in my life. I am very excited but I am also nervous. Many thoughts come to mind like, what if we fail? What will I do with finances? Is creating a Church harder than I think? But truth be told I really do trust Christ to take care of me and my wife. I truly believe this is where God wants us to be. Is it scary? It is but it is also exciting!

I'm just at a point in my life where I need to see God move! I want to step out in faith and see God do the impossible. I'm sick of just reading about in the Bible, I want to see it with my own eyes. And I want to tell my children that I saw God move in tremendous ways! I want to be a part of the story that God has been writing. I want to join the Holy Spirit as He changes the world.

My wife has been so good to me. She is allowing me to pursue my dreams. We are both worried about many things like finances, but one thing we know is that this is where God wants us to be! I'm just glad that Shaula will be at my side as we go on this ride into the unknown. I am also thankful for the great team that I have. I'm thankful that they have decided to come along on this ride with me. They are certainly my "dream team", I really feel they are the best team that I can possibly have. I'm ready for this adventure- I hope they are too! Things are about to get exciting. 

Kelly Clarkson's new single!

Listen to Kelly's new single right here:

http://www.amazon.com/Life-Would-Suck-Without-You/dp/B001P9M8HS/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&s=dmusic&qid=1231470399&sr=8-2

New Transformers Poster!!!

This looks so sweet!!!!!

Chuck in 3-D!!!

Chuck comes back on February 2, 2009 and the episode will be in 3D! NBC is supposed to be giving out 150 million 3D glasses but I'm not sure if that includes Canada. I hope so! The episode will also be guest starring Dominic Monaghan aka Charlie from LOST and Jerome Bettis of the Pitsburgh Steelers! I can't wait! Chuck comes back in 25 days!

(Click on the Picture to see it bigger)

Movie Review: Marley and Me

4 Stars out of 5

Marley and Me is a great movie for the whole family and for dog lovers. I really loved how realistic this movie felt. If you have a dog, you will know what I mean! But not only that, they truly portrayed married life in its true form- lots of love and hard work! They showed that married life takes a lot of sacrifice, work and lots of love. It actually kind of scared me from having kids..lol..they were so stressed out in the movie. Yikes! 

It was also really cool to see Owen Wilson and Jenifer Aniston in these roles. They acted extremely well as husband and wife. They were able to capture the essence of marriage and how to truly love each other despite the many obstacles that they faced. This movie was so realistic I couldn't believe my eyes. They didn't sugar coat anything, they told the truth.

There was one scene in the movie where Owen Wilson'swho played John was telling his friend Sebastian about all the troubles and stress he was experiencing at home. Sebastian's intitial solution was to just get a divorce but thankfully John said no and that they needed to work things out. And it kind of tells something about the state of society where divorce is so rampant and to get a divorce seems like the preferred choice whenever problems arise. But marriage is hard work! It takes a lot of sacrifice. It's so easy to give up, but we must be willing to at least work at it.

Of course, the best part of the movie was the dog, Marley! Dogs are just simply amazing. It's so hard to describe what having a dog does to you. They are such a blessing and they are so enjoyable even when they are bad! I never understood why people loved dogs so much until I got one. Now I understand, they are truly a man's best friend. 

If you have a dog, this movie will truly move your soul and your heart. If you don't have one, then this movie will probably make you want one. If your alergic to dogs, that sucks for you! Pray you get one in heaven. I truly believe that when my dog dies, she will be the first one waiting for me when I get to heaven. Dogs are truly a blessing.