Central's Pastoral E-Letter: November 30, 2012

Dear Central Family,   December is upon us and I am so excited to share with you the wonderful opportunities that we have before us as a Church family to fulfill our mission of introducing people to Jesus during this special season.    Strap into your sleigh and here we go:   Starting this Sunday we will begin a 4-part series in our weekend services that will focus on things that will steal our Christmas joy.  This series is going to be based from the theme of the wonderful Christmas story of the Grinch who stole Christmas.  You cannot read this story without seeing the answer to the problem of the Grinch is that he needs a new heart.  What a great way to introduce the only One who can change our hearts!    This Sunday we will be looking at how greed can steal our Christmas joy.  I will be teaching in our Saturday night service and both Modern Services on Sunday at 9:30 and 11:00.  Jared Alcántara will be teaching in the 9:30 Classic Service.  The Fellowship Mall has been transformed into a welcoming Christmas village for all of our guests.  So I hope that you will not only be here this weekend, but that you will take time to invite someone to come with you the next four weeks.  We will have invitations for you to give out to your friends starting this Sunday. The staff has worked very hard on this series and it is totally designed for all of us to invite our friends and family to experience together.    This series will culminate the weekend of December 22-23 with 4 presentations of our adaptation of the Grinch Who Stole Christmas.  We will present this well-known tale in a fun event for the whole family that Saturday at 4 pm and 6 pm and that Sunday at 9:30 and 11:00 am.  During this event, the message of the true meaning of Christmas will be presented and it is the perfect opportunity to start praying now as to whom you can invite to come with you.  We will be offering our Classic Worship that Sunday at 9:30 as well so you have a variety of options to reach your friends with the joy of Christmas.   What about Christmas Eve?  We will have two Christmas Eve Services.  Both services will feature the traditional Christmas carols we love, special Christmas music that will impact your heart, a children's Christmas story, and much more.  This year our early service will be at 4 pm and we will join with our friends at First Baptist in Trenton and Celebrate on Centre Street the coming of Christ.  Our later service will be at 6 pm in Ewing so you see you have two opportunities to connect with your friends and family to celebrate in two different locations.  We are very excited about how God will use these services to shine forth the love of Christ.   I want to remind you that you still have an opportunity to sign up to purchase a gift for a child of a prison inmate through Project Angel Tree or to purchase a gift for a child through our upcoming Christmas store. Tables are available in the Fellowship Mall this weekend.  Let’s wrap both of these up this week (pun intended) so we can make a big impact on children in our community.   Finally, I wanted to let you know that on Sunday, December 16 we will be receiving a special offering to help with construction costs for the orphanage that our teams have been helping to build in Haiti.  One of our Elders, Les Enterline, will once again be leading a team to Haiti during the Christmas break, and the Elders have designated December 16 as a day for this special offering.  Please consider how God has blessed you and give an extra gift to bless these children.   So I hope you can feel the excitement we are all feeling as we prepare to give out the message of Christ this Christmas.  I also hope that you will take time to get involved by inviting others to come with you!   Rejoicing in His Love,   Pastor Gay   P.S. To help you worship and celebrate during this special season, I have included a link to a free pdf of a wonderful devotional for the days up to Christmas.  I think you will be encouraged! Enjoy! http://assets.denisonforum.org/pdf/devotionals/advent-devotional-2012.pdf

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Donations Requested: Christmas Lights

Dear Church Family,   Do you have old working color Christmas lights you would be willing to donate?  Large bulb lights would be best.    We are planning a Christmas outreach for the community and we need these lights to decorate the set.   If you have some lights you are willing to donate, please drop off at the church office by this Wednesday night.   Thanks!   The Staff at Central: A Christ-Centered Church

 

 

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Central's Pastoral E-Letter: November 23, 2012

Dear Central Family,   Happy Thanksgiving!   I hope that you are enjoying your time with family and friends and just reflecting on how GOOD GOD is!     I also hope that if you are in town, that you will plan on coming to one of our four weekend worship services.  We will continue our theme of thanksgiving as we are challenged to remember how consistent God’s love is for all of us even though circumstances always change. Jared Alcántara will be teaching at the 6 pm Saturday Night Service as well as both Modern Services at 9:30 and 11:00 am on Sunday.  I will be teaching in the Classic Service at 9:30.    So pack up the family, come comfortably dressed and enjoy worship this weekend!   Thankful for you!   Pastor Gay   P.S. I REMAIN a loyal COWBOYS fan! : )

 

 

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Central's Pastoral E-Letter: November 16, 2012

Dear Central family,   I just returned from an amazing, inspiring, challenging day with 20 of our leaders at Catalyst One Day in Lancaster, PA at  LCBC church!  We were all impacted through the teaching of Andy Stanley and Craig Groeschel who are both dynamic pastors in so many ways.  I am so thankful that these leaders chose to invest their resources in a day of training, and am excited as to how God will use this at Central. So if you see some leaders floating on air this weekend, you will know why!   I hope you will be with us at one of our weekend services.  I will be teaching in our Saturday Night Service at 6 pm and both Modern Services at 9:30 and 11:00.  Jared Alcántara will be teaching in the Classic Service at 9:30.  All the worship services will focus on Thanksgiving in a creative way, so we hope to see you there.    We will also kick off our Radical Generosity Weeks between Thanksgiving and Christmas.  This week you will have opportunity to sign up to assist in serving or purchasing a gift for a needy child through our Christmas Store.  Next week Project Angel Tree will be up so you can choose to purchase a gift for a child of an inmate.  Then on Sunday, December 16, we will take a special offering for the construction project in Haiti that our team will be doing between Christmas and New Year’s.  Choose one, and let’s all get involved!  If every one of us chooses to bless one in the ways we wish we could bless everyone, we will be a huge blessing to so many children this special season...I can't wait to see how God is going to work through this body in radical generosity,   See you this weekend!  Can't wait to see God bless your faithfulness!   Pastor Gay   P.S. If you signed up for Central’s Thanksgiving Dinner, don't forget that it’s this Sunday at 6 pm...going to be a night to  remember!   P.P.S.  Mark down December 22-23. We will have a Christmas outreach to our community called The Grinch Who Stole Christmas.  More details next week...but 4 shows for the whole family designed for you to invite all your friends.... we are so excited!

 

 

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Central's Pastoral E-Letter: November 9, 2012

Dear Central Family,   I pray that you are all well and are recovering from the effects of Hurricane Sandy.  I know that so many of our family were hit hard by this storm and are still recovering. I am thankful for the many ways that this body of believers has mobilized to help one another and our neighbors during this difficult time.  Kim and I were out of town on vacation during this storm and came back to learn of many stories of this body in action.  Thank you for your generosity and sacrificial service to help others during this time. We continue to pray for God’s grace to flow to all who have been affected.   This Sunday we will be wrapping up our series in Galatians and I am looking forward to being with you in the Modern Services on Sunday at 9:30 and 11:00.  Dr. Dave Buschman, chaplain at Princeton University will be speaking on Saturday night at 6pm and Jared Alcántara will be teaching in the 9:30 Classic Service.   If you’re interested in becoming a member of Central or if you’d just like to know more about our church, Discover Central starts this Sunday, November 11 at 9:30 am in the Board Room.  This four-week class will help you learn what we as a church believe and is one of the steps towards membership.  For more information, please contact Pastor Anthony Gilmer at agilmer@cbcnj.org.    If you have not already done so, please sign up to attend our All Church Thanksgiving Dinner on Sunday, November 18 at 6 pm.  This dinner is for the whole family and will include a home cooked meal, great fellowship , and a wonderful time of worship and testimony as we all reflect on God’s goodness this past year.  One of our priorities this year has been to have periodic all church fellowship events, and this is going to be a fun one you will not want to miss.  Please sign up today so we can have enough turkey for you and your family!  You can sign up by going to this link. http://www.pingg.com/rsvp/7r65n48e4b7qdtypc (Click Yes, No, or Maybe at the top of the page and enter your name and e-mail address.  You will then have the chance to add to the number of people in your party).    Thank you again for your generous heart and the way you continue to bless others!  See you this weekend!   Pastor Gay

 

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Central's Pastoral E-Letter: November 2, 2012

Dear Central Family,   What a week this has been. The effects of Hurricane Sandy revealed just how fragile and temporary this life is.  It has also provided an opportunity for our light to shine in dark situations.  I am still hearing stories of how the Central family is providing support and assistance to their neighbors.  Many people are still without power and I am finding that people are rolling up their sleeves and helping out wherever possible.  Thank you, for not only being hearers of God’s word, but doers. Let this storm not only be a call to serve but a reminder of what is to come.  "For I consider that the sufferings of this present time are not worthy to be compared to the glory that is to be revealed to us." -Romans 8:18   We are planning on having our regular weekend services. Pastor Gay and Kim have been enjoying some well-deserved time away and they are looking forward to being back with us.  We will be continuing our series in the book of Galatians this weekend, and I will be teaching on Saturday night and in both Sunday Modern services. Our Pastor of Student Ministries, Bryan Bunagan, will be teaching in the Classic Service.   Add to it we will be celebrating Communion, so the worship time will be that which will encourage your walk with Christ. If we need to make alternate plans for the services, please check the website or Facebook page.  We will also try to send out an e-mail as well.  Please note that today (Friday), November 2, the church offices are still closed due to the aftermath of Hurricane Sandy. If you get the chance, please sign up for our Thanksgiving Dinner and Worship Service for the whole family!  It will be held on Sunday, November 18 at 6 pm.  You can RSVP by clicking on the link below.  http://www.pingg.com/rsvp/7r65n48e4b7qdtypc (Click Yes, No, or Maybe at the top of the page and enter your name and e-mail address.  You will then have the chance to add to the number of people in your party).    Finally, please don’t forget that Daylight Savings Time ends this weekend, so make sure you set your clocks back! We are praying for you and your families during this challenging time.  If you need pastoral care, please call 215-736-1068 or 302-463-9062. In His Grip, Pastor Anthony Gilmer    ---   Like us on Facebook!  https://www.facebook.com/worshipatcentral. For Central’s upcoming events, go to http://www.worshipatcentral.org/events.aspx. To unsubscribe from this list, please reply to this message with the word “unsubscribe” in the subject line.