The Christmas Sweater Christmas Party and Mustache Bash

Dear friends,

You're all invited to come to this once-in-a-lifetime Christmas Party!!!

When? December 19, 2007 @7pm

Where? Andrew & Brini's house - 712 Choctaw Dr. San Jose, CA 95123

What? Christmas Sweater and Mustache Extravaganza

Bring? A dessert or a snack, a Christmas sweater, and sport a mustache (if you can)

PRIZES for best Christmas Sweater and best Mustache

The Book of James

We've spent the last few weeks studying the book of James. It's been awesome to see how God has been speaking to our group through each chapter.

In chapter 1, we were all challenged to rejoice in our trials and temptations because of the perseverance that they produce. We also discussed how we need to not just hear the word, but to do what it says!

In chapter 2, we read about faith being dead without works. After our discussion, we had a good prayer time asking God to help us to live out what we believe.

In chapter 3, we had a fun time evaluating our tongues! We took the survey and answered some tough questions about how we respond (with our mouths) in various situations.

This week, we'll be reading James chapter 4 and discussing the sin of pride. This is a big one! I hope you can all make it this Wednesday, Oct. 10th - 7pm.

Santa Cruz Boardwalk Night!

This upcoming Wednesday, August 29th, we're going to the Boardwalk! If you bring a Pepsi can, you can get unlimited rides for $9.99.

We plan to leave from Andrew & Brini's house (map) at 6:30pm. If you can't get to our house by that time, feel free to meet us over in Santa Cruz.

This will be a great night to bring along a friend. See you then!

The Bible is Our Guide

For the past several months, we've been discussing the different guides God has given us for our spiritual journeys.

They are: community, the Bible, and the Holy Spirit.

We spent a lot of time discussing community - how it guides us, why it is important, how we express it, how to avoid breaking it, etc.

Now we are looking at the Bible as our guide. The first week, we talked about the Bible as a story. Often, in our western mindsets, we read the Bible as a manual or as a set of propositional truths. Many people read verses without ever understanding them within the context of the Biblical story. The Bible is ONE BIG STORY! It is God's story. It is our story. Remember, when you approach the Bible, don't read it like a manual; read it like a story - and let it inform and guide you as a story.

Last time, we looked at some of the history of the Bible - how it was put together and who wrote it. We pretended that the Bible was our friend, and we wrote down frustrations that we had with it. We also briefly discussed Biblical interpretation.

Tonight, we will look more in depth at how to interpret the Bible. We will actually walk through a few verses and learn how to do an exegesis of a passage of scripture. My goal is not to make the Bible harder to read, but to help us to see how important it is to read the Bible in a deeper way. It can be frustrating to read the Bible when we don't understand what it is saying! I believe Satan is in the business of keeping us away from our Bibles as much as he possibly can.

So let's not give up! Let's press into God and keep exploring this wonderful book. God gave it to us to guide us and to teach us and to show us who He is.

Discussion on "Community": Part 3

Why can't we all just get along?!

This Wednesday, July 18th, we'll be continuing our discussion on "Community."
Part 3 will focus on the things that cause division in community. We want to identify the actions and attitudes that divide us - then learn how to do the opposite!

Here are the scriptures we'll look at tomorrow night:

• 1 Corinthians 12 (whole chapter)
• Ephesians 4:20-32
• 2 Corinthians 12:20
• Proverbs 16:28

If you get the chance, please read through these passages of scripture and take note of the various things we do to cause division.

Change of Location this week!

We'll be meeting this Wednesday, July 11, at 7pm at Briana's parents house in Almaden.
Here is a link to a map: Connolly's house

The address is:
6140 Franciscan Ct. San Jose, CA 95120

We'll be continuing out discussion on "community."
Bring a swimsuit if you want to swim after out meeting!

Remember to also bring your Bibles and to read Acts 2 ahead of time.

Notes from June 27th

God has given us three guides that help us on our journey:

1) The Holy Spirit
2) The Bible
3) Community

COMMUNITY
Definition: The word community comes from the Latin communis, meaning "common, public, shared by all or many."
The Latin term "communitatus" from which the English word "community" comes, is comprised of three elements:
"Com-" - a Latin prefix meaning with or together
"-Munis-" - meaning the changes or exchanges that link
"-tatus" - a Latin suffix suggesting diminutive, small, intimate or local

The church community: The church is one in essence, because it is founded on one gospel, united to one Lord and indwelt by one Spirit. Its unity is under constant threat because of the tendency to division that is inherent in fallen humanity, and needs to be continually maintained and actively expressed in fellowship. In other words, living in community is not easy, and we have a tendency as humans to divide ourselves or isolate ourselves. But God wants us to be unified. So what is the purpose of us being unified?

There are TWO main reasons God puts us in community:

For guidance and maturing!
Ephesians 4:1-161As a prisoner for the Lord, then, I urge you to live a life worthy of the calling you have received. 2Be completely humble and gentle; be patient, bearing with one another in love. 3Make every effort to keep the unity of the Spirit through the bond of peace. 4There is one body and one Spirit—just as you were called to one hope when you were called— 5one Lord, one faith, one baptism; 6one God and Father of all, who is over all and through all and in all.7But to each one of us grace has been given as Christ apportioned it. 8This is why it says: "When he ascended on high, he led captives in his train and gave gifts to men." 9(What does "he ascended" mean except that he also descended to the lower, earthly regions? 10He who descended is the very one who ascended higher than all the heavens, in order to fill the whole universe.) 11It was he who gave some to be apostles, some to be prophets, some to be evangelists, and some to be pastors and teachers, 12to prepare God's people for works of service, so that the body of Christ may be built up 13until we all reach unity in the faith and in the knowledge of the Son of God and become mature, attaining to the whole measure of the fullness of Christ.
14Then we will no longer be infants, tossed back and forth by the waves, and blown here and there by every wind of teaching and by the cunning and craftiness of men in their deceitful scheming. 15Instead, speaking the truth in love, we will in all things grow up into him who is the Head, that is, Christ. 16From him the whole body, joined and held together by every supporting ligament, grows and builds itself up in love, as each part does its work.

For leading others to Christ! To show God's glory!
John 17:20-26
20"My prayer is not for them alone. I pray also for those who will believe in me through their message, 21that all of them may be one, Father, just as you are in me and I am in you. May they also be in us so that the world may believe that you have sent me. 22I have given them the glory that you gave me, that they may be one as we are one: 23I in them and you in me. May they be brought to complete unity to let the world know that you sent me and have loved them even as you have loved me. 24"Father, I want those you have given me to be with me where I am, and to see my glory, the glory you have given me because you loved me before the creation of the world. 25"Righteous Father, though the world does not know you, I know you, and they know that you have sent me. 26I have made you known to them, and will continue to make you known in order that the love you have for me may be in them and that I myself may be in them."

Next week:
Ways we express our unity
Causes of division in community

bonfire night

marshmallows were roasted, the fire burned ferociously, the girls played some form of baseball I've never seen; we had some good talks, had a nice visit from some old friends, argued (nicely) about the 6 days of creation, heard a scary story about beach bathrooms, and had a nice sleepy van on the way home...

what was your favorite part?

walk, study, live, go (a mission statement)

Following Jesus is a journey.

And the journey is all about change. None of us wants to stay exactly how we are now and never change! A static life is misery. When you look back at your life, aren’t you glad you’ve been constantly changing? Throughout life, we naturally experience physical change and psychological change. In the same way, God wants us to experience a continual spiritual change. 2 Corinthians chapter 3 says we "are being transformed into his likeness." Jesus is calling us to walk with Him and to allow ourselves to be continually transformed.

Jesus hasn’t called us to this life of transformation without giving us help. He has given us some very important tools to help us along the journey: the Spirit, the Bible, and Community.

These three tools are essential for every follower of Jesus. They are the guides that help us as we continue the journey. The Spirit is our inner guide, always speaking and leading - we just need to learn to listen! The Bible is God’s words to us. It is an awesome gift that we should not take for granted. The third tool is community. A person can walk in the Spirit and study God’s word all by himself, but he won’t fully experience transformation unless it is in the context of community. God made us to live in community. People who isolate themselves end up going crazy. Imagine trying to understand life or God or the Bible completely on your own! Some people try to do that... and we call them psychotic. Community provides the counsel and guidance and protection that we all need as we journey on this path of change.

In this new college and career group, we want to create an environment where you can grow in your understanding of these tools. We want to always start by acknowledging the presence of the Holy Spirit in our lives and asking Him to guide us. We want to help you learn to study and love God’s word. We want to develope a community that is truly diverse and truly united.
But it can’t stop there! We don’t want to become ingrown and inward focused! We also want to cultivate a community that reaches out and thinks missionally. We want to create opportunities for community service, short-term missions, and helping other ministries.

Please take some time this week to reflect on this mission statement and read the scriptures:

We desire to :
walk in the Spirit - learning to listen and obey (Galatians 5:24-25)
study God's word - allowing it to inform/transform our worldviews (2 Timothy 3:16)
live in community - celebrating our unity in the midst of diversity (Ephesians 4:1-16)
go to the nations - bringing His message of transformation wherever we go (Matthew 28:18-20)

Why is Community Important?

As I've been preparing to lead this new group, one question keeps coming to the front of my mind: "Why is community important?" I know it is important. I know it is part of God's plan. I've experienced the joys and benefits of living in community. But why did God design us as human beings to thrive in community? What is it about community that God is after? As this new "community" begins to form over the summer, I want us all to be asking these questions.

We shouldn't just meet together once a week because it's a good, churchy thing to do. What's the point of that? Then we'd just be having another meeting to go to - another obligatory service to attend. No, we should meet together because as we meet, a community will be developed. Relationships will be forged and renewed. But this brings us back to the question: "Why community?"

I have some ideas about why God wants us living in community, and I plan to share some of those thoughts when we get together next Wednesday. In the meantime, what do you think?

First Gathering Coming Soon!

Our first gathering is on Wednesday, June 13th at 7pm.
We're going to eat BBQ and spend some time talking about the group and getting to know one another better. Please feel free to bring friends!
We're looking forward to it,
Andrew and Brini

something new...

In a few weeks, Briana and I will be inviting college and career-aged folks (approx. 18-29 yrs.) to join with us and start something new. The beauty of starting something new is that it can be whatever we want it to be! You know, it's pretty hard to re-shape an old thing. Over time, old things become more and more defined and structured (usually without anyone noticing); but new things are free from those restraints.

We don't want to define this new thing as a weekly meeting or an event or a Bible study. Above all, we want this thing to be relational.

- We want to create a place where you can come and feel a true sense of community - a place to belong.
- We want to create an atmosphere of honesty and openness, where it's safe to express yourself and ask questions.
- We want to create a forum for discussing the issues that you are currently facing and then exploring the scriptures to see what God has to say.

We truly desire to journey with you and to be here for you, and we're so excited to get this thing going!

Our first gathering will be on Wednesday, June 13th.
Please email me if you'd like to be added to our email group - andrew@kingsway.us

- Andrew Isaacs