Work

Why is it that we spend about one-third of our life at work - or half our waking hours - and yet we rarely hear a message about work at church? For every hour we spend in worship space, we spend 40 (or more) in the workplace. Are faith and work mutually exclusive? Is work a necessary evil? What does the Bible say about our work? Join us tomorrow as we finish our summer-long message-series Future-Proof, a verse-by-verse study of 1 & 2 Thessalonians.

Thankful from Houston

As the closing song was being sung Sunday, I was leaving the parking lot headed for Houston. Thursday my uncle, Bob Cortez, fell from a ladder and fractured his skull. He'd spent the weekend in ICU at Memorial Hermann Hospital in Houston. I lived with Bob and my aunt Barbara for a short time as a young adult and have always been close to them. It hurt me to think about what they were going through and to hear that Bob couldn't recognize members of the family.

Not sure what to expect when I arrived at Memorial Hermann, I donned the rubber gloves and pancho-like platisic they ask you to wear over your shirt. My cousin, Bob's daughter, Melissa, led me to his bed in ICU where she announced to her dad, "Look who's here!" It took a moment for Bob's eyes to focus but I could see immediately that he knew who I was. He told me what little he could remember about his accident and I led the three of us in prayer before I slid out so other family members could visit.

A couple hours later, I was able to see him again before visiting hours ended for the evening. It was such a relief to see how much progress he'd made in the first 72 hours which are so critical with a head injury. Lots of people have been praying for him inclucing our prayer chain. His kids, my cousins, and his grandkids flying in from California was huge. In fact, he told them they were the best medicine.

I'm presently enjoying a cappuccino at Starbucks in Houston before returning to Austin and am reminded of something we talked about yesterday as we studied 2 Thessalonians together. You can handle almost anything when the people who know you best love you most. God's love and the love of family and close friends is just the salve we need for our wounds, physical or otherwise.

T minus 30 days!

Our transition to multi-site ministry is only 30 days away! We make the transition the weekend of September 17-18. As of that weekend, we'll offer four worship gatherings at three locations over two days all one church! Here's the schedule.

Saturday
5:00 p.m. Cedar Park (Cox Elementary School)
6:30 p.m. Round Rock (Ridgeview Middle School)

Sunday
9:30 a.m. Austin (Parkfield)
11:30 a.m. Austin (Parkfield)

We've got ministry teams of 40-50 people for both Cedar Park and Round Rock. Radio ads start week after next on MIX 94.7 and BOB FM 103.5. That will be followed by direct mail to the 5K households nearest both new sites.

Now is the time to ramp up the investment you've been making in the lives of people you care about who live in Cedar Park/Leander or Pflugerville/Round Rock so you can pull the trigger on the invite for Saturday, September 17. Wouldn't it be awesome if nearly everyone who attended that weekend brought someone with them?

The Antichrist

So Hollywood is remaking the 1976 film The Omen in which an American ambassador learns to his horror that his son is actually the literal Antichrist. Director John Moore says, "The role [of Damien] is open to all young mothers who want their sons as the sons of Satan." One such mother said, "My son would be great for this role." Wow. I mean who sees a casting call for "the world's creepiest boy" and immediately thinks that's my kid!

People have always been fascinated by what the Bible says about the end of the world and about this individual known as the Antichrist. Sunday we're going to talk about that and learn why God wants us to be looking up for Jesus Christ as opposed to looking out for the Antichrist. Before we get started, I'm also planning to take a few minutes to talk about our commitment as a church to fiscal responsibility. I think you'll be able to appreciate the difficult decisions we're making to ensure our future.

Connections made!

Connections Day was a huge success! About 130 people completed the online spiritual gift inventory and nearly 100 of those attended Saturday. At the end of the event, more than half completed cards indicating three ministries in which they were willing to serve. This was easily the largest single recruiting effort in the 14-year history of our church!

Our mission is To Change Austin by Changing Lives. That's what we do. Our vision is to impact one percent or more of the Austin area population at weekend services by 2015. That's not what we do. Changing lives is what we do. Impacting one percent or more is what we see. There's a difference. What do we do? We help people change. What do we see? Helping thousands.

It's funny how some people - even Christians - are put off by that. If we were a relief agency and said that we wanted to feed and cloth thousands, we would be applauded. If we were a foundation that wanted to educate thousands and see them employed, we would be applauded. But when we as a church say that we want to help thousands come to know Christ, grow in Christ, and show Christ to others, there is deep cynicism. That's too bad because nothing matters more than people's relationship with Christ.

We know that to accomplish our mission and fulfill our vision we must relocate as we've always planned to do. Our building fund is growing slowly but surely. We recently made an offer on 15 acres in Avery Ranch that was rejected. But we remain prayerful that God will position us to get that property. Our lease at Parkfield expires in about a year-and-a-half and we have no intention of renewing. That means that our transition next month to multi-site ministry is especially strategic because it is not just possible but probable that, at some point, even our Sunday services will be moving off-site while we wait on God's timing for our new church home.

In less than 40 days we launch Saturday evening satellite services in Cedar Park and Round Rock where two-thirds of our people live. In Cedar Park, we'll be meeting Saturdays at 5 p.m. at Cox Elementary School. In Round Rock, we'll be meeting Saturdays at 6:30 p.m. at Ridgeview Middle School. Then, on Sundays, we'll still have two services at Parkfield in Austin at 9:30 and 11:30. Four services, three locations, two days, one church!

Connections Day is almost here!

One of our values at Calvary Austin is meaningful service. The Bible says that, when a person becomes a follower of Christ, God gifts them in one or more ways to serve Him and others. We call these spiritual gifts. One of the greatest things one person can do for another is to help him or her discover, develop, and deploy their giftedness. That's what Connections Day is all about. We want to help you discover your gift-set and assist you in finding a place of service where you can develop and deploy your God-given gifts.

This particular event takes on added significance because it's part of the ramp-up to new, off-site worship gatherings starting Saturday, September 17. It's going to take scores of new volunteers to staff four worship gatherings at three locations over two days! That's why Connections Day is planned as the single largest recruiting effort in the 14-year history of our church. You don't want to miss it. Call the church office for info.

Interactive worship

It's that time again! The first Wednesday of the month that is. First Wednesday is an interactive worship gathering that combines song, prayer, and sacrament as part of a dynamic encounter with God. Join us tonight at 7 p.m. for a little late-summer spiritual refreshment!

Sox win!

Sunday Andrea and I got to catch a Red Sox game at Fenway Park. How cool is that? I'm not a Sox fan per se but Sunday we were right there with the diehards. Manny Ramirez knocked in the winning run in the bottom of the eighth and Curt Schilling pitched the top of the ninth for the save. You couldn't script a better first-time Fenway experience.

Check back daily as this is going to be a big week at Calvary and I don't want you to miss a thing!