It's finally here! Hard to believe isn't it? This Sunday, May 27th, will be our last Sunday at Alki Middle School. It has been a long journey for some of us. For me, it will be a bitter sweet day. There has been a lot of great memories made at the school. There has been a lot of impact for God's Kingdom done in that public school cafeteria. Yet, I look forward to what God is doing and going to do through our new campus on 9th Avenue!
I just wanted to send you this email to invite you to our LAST Sunday @ Alki. We will meet and the normal time of 10:30. Afterwards, join us for a parade as we drive together to the new campus for a prayer of dedication (and of course cake!)
Then join us next weekend (June 3rd) as we have our very first service at our new campus. Exciting stuff. God is good, all the time.
Look forward to being with you over this historic week,
Brett
Saturday, May 26, 2007
Tuesday, May 8, 2007
Ownership vs Membership Part 2: Why Become an Owner?
A member of an organization uses the facilities, gains from its services, takes a shower, and heads about their business. An owner makes the organization happen. Jesus wants His followers to make the church happen—go out and love people, nurture each other, and serve with your whole life. Ownership is a higher calling than membership. If you are a follower of Christ, then you are a co-owner of His church and that is what makes Whipple Creek Church happen.
Becoming an owner of Whipple Creek Church is a declaration that you are moving from being a consumer to being an investor—that you are joining not simply the community of Christ, but the cause of Christ as well. The motivation behind becoming an owner is not what can be received, but what can be given. And yet, on a deeper level, ownership is an invitation to genuine intimacy. When people become owners, they are declaring submission of their lives to the spiritual authority of this community and welcoming genuine accountability in their spiritual journeys. What once was the standard for leadership is now our standard for ownership.
Ownership Seminar
To become an owner, you must attend an Ownership Seminar. During this session we go over the history, doctrine and beliefs of Whipple Creek Church, as well as describing the tenets of ownership in greater detail. After attending the Ownership Seminars, a covenant is signed to complete the Ownership Process, in which Owners agree to three points of building the local church. Questions? Email us: churchoffice@whipplecreek.com
Don't forget to RSVP for Wednesday, May 8th-Ownership Seminar @ 7;00 pm sharp. Childcare will be provided.
Look forward to seeing you there!
Brett
PS Here are a couple pictures of "owners."
Becoming an owner of Whipple Creek Church is a declaration that you are moving from being a consumer to being an investor—that you are joining not simply the community of Christ, but the cause of Christ as well. The motivation behind becoming an owner is not what can be received, but what can be given. And yet, on a deeper level, ownership is an invitation to genuine intimacy. When people become owners, they are declaring submission of their lives to the spiritual authority of this community and welcoming genuine accountability in their spiritual journeys. What once was the standard for leadership is now our standard for ownership.
Ownership Seminar
To become an owner, you must attend an Ownership Seminar. During this session we go over the history, doctrine and beliefs of Whipple Creek Church, as well as describing the tenets of ownership in greater detail. After attending the Ownership Seminars, a covenant is signed to complete the Ownership Process, in which Owners agree to three points of building the local church. Questions? Email us: churchoffice@whipplecreek.com
Don't forget to RSVP for Wednesday, May 8th-Ownership Seminar @ 7;00 pm sharp. Childcare will be provided.
Look forward to seeing you there!
Brett
PS Here are a couple pictures of "owners."
Wednesday, May 2, 2007
Are You an Owner?
What’s the Difference in Ownership and Membership?
The word member has interesting connotations in our culture. We are members at gyms, golf courses, websites, alumni associations, and other organizations. These memberships are painless to obtain and even easier to discard. The word member implies a sense of belonging, which can be healthy. However, being a member of a group can often portray exclusiveness to outsiders. Membership gives people access to an organization with limitations—authorized personnel only! The idea of church membership is not a biblical mandate but rather a development in church tradition.
1 Corinthians 12:27 states that “You are the body of Christ, and each one of you is a part of it.” The body of Christ has two meanings in the New Testament. Jesus explained the most important understanding of “His body” to us at the Last Supper: “This is my body given for you; do this in remembrance of me” (Luke 22:19). The sacrifice of Jesus’ body paid the price for our sins and restored our relationship with God. If we accept this sacrifice we are ushered into “His body.”
The second understanding of “His body” is the universal group of people that follow Him: “You are the body of Christ.” Everyone who follows Jesus forms a community that is called the church. The main role of the church is to make known Jesus’ love for the world.
So what relationship does “you are the body of Christ” imply? Whipple Creek Church believes that membership is not the most appropriate description for us in Christ’s body. Being a part of a church is better comprehended with the word ownership. Throughout the New Testament, followers of Christ are called heirs or co-heirs to God’s kingdom (Titus 3:7, Romans 8:17, I Peter 3:7). The Greek definition of heir is "to possess or to own". Therefore, each follower of Christ co-owns the church with and through Jesus Christ.
I will talk more later about why it is important for you to become an owner, but in the meantime, if you have not been to a previous Experience Whipple Class (formerly Q&A), plan now to attend May 9th @ 7pm. Child care will be provided. RSVP by emailing the church office: office@whipplecreek.com.
Hope to see you there,
Brett
The word member has interesting connotations in our culture. We are members at gyms, golf courses, websites, alumni associations, and other organizations. These memberships are painless to obtain and even easier to discard. The word member implies a sense of belonging, which can be healthy. However, being a member of a group can often portray exclusiveness to outsiders. Membership gives people access to an organization with limitations—authorized personnel only! The idea of church membership is not a biblical mandate but rather a development in church tradition.
1 Corinthians 12:27 states that “You are the body of Christ, and each one of you is a part of it.” The body of Christ has two meanings in the New Testament. Jesus explained the most important understanding of “His body” to us at the Last Supper: “This is my body given for you; do this in remembrance of me” (Luke 22:19). The sacrifice of Jesus’ body paid the price for our sins and restored our relationship with God. If we accept this sacrifice we are ushered into “His body.”
The second understanding of “His body” is the universal group of people that follow Him: “You are the body of Christ.” Everyone who follows Jesus forms a community that is called the church. The main role of the church is to make known Jesus’ love for the world.
So what relationship does “you are the body of Christ” imply? Whipple Creek Church believes that membership is not the most appropriate description for us in Christ’s body. Being a part of a church is better comprehended with the word ownership. Throughout the New Testament, followers of Christ are called heirs or co-heirs to God’s kingdom (Titus 3:7, Romans 8:17, I Peter 3:7). The Greek definition of heir is "to possess or to own". Therefore, each follower of Christ co-owns the church with and through Jesus Christ.
I will talk more later about why it is important for you to become an owner, but in the meantime, if you have not been to a previous Experience Whipple Class (formerly Q&A), plan now to attend May 9th @ 7pm. Child care will be provided. RSVP by emailing the church office: office@whipplecreek.com.
Hope to see you there,
Brett
Monday, April 30, 2007
Monday, April 9, 2007
Easter Wow! What's Next?
I keep asking myself, "How can it get any better than this?" And God continues to amaze me. Easter was wonderful, we had 3 first time decisions where people asked Jesus to come into their life and their heart. We had several people get back on track after wandering off "the road" and asked for prayer to get back on track. And yet several others who don't want to just be a "Christian," they want to be a Christ-follower. They want to make the name "Christian" good once again. We also had several people say they wanted to get baptized. It just keeps getting better
So what's next? God is at work at Whipple. Two things are important right now. The first is this next series we are doing, "Snapshots of A Savior." This series is going to look at the person of Jesus and why He's so important. Not only is it a great opportunity for you, but probably someone else you know--who are you going to invite? I promise, this will be a life changing series of messages that could change lives forever.
The second thing is this: we will be moving into the building in less than 3 months--be praying for your role in helping with the move. It could be anything from helping get the building and the grounds ready to pitiching in to help us finish well while we are still at Alki by helping the setup and takedown crew. Another way to help is by showing up for church and connecting with others whether they are a guest or long time members of Whipple. And lastly, you could give finanically. I talked a few weeks ago during the State of the Church message (you can download that message to the right) how we need everyone who attends Whipple to give $49/week. How are you doing? I want to challenge you, if you are not giving that yet--start where you can. It may not be $49 a week, but start somewhere. And if you have been faithfully giving, I challenge you to increase your giving by 10%. That doesn't mean if you give 10% to give 20%, it means if you give 10% to increase your giving to 11%, if you give 5% of your income, increase it to 5.5%.
God has many great things in store for us and as we are faithful and step out on faith, our faith will intersect with His faithfulness and it is there we will see the Hand of God do something amazing! I can't wait to see what's next!
I look forward to this new series. Please be praying for myself and the staff as we prepare for this incredible journey.
In His Grip
Brett
P.S. Be looking for our new website very soon!
So what's next? God is at work at Whipple. Two things are important right now. The first is this next series we are doing, "Snapshots of A Savior." This series is going to look at the person of Jesus and why He's so important. Not only is it a great opportunity for you, but probably someone else you know--who are you going to invite? I promise, this will be a life changing series of messages that could change lives forever.
The second thing is this: we will be moving into the building in less than 3 months--be praying for your role in helping with the move. It could be anything from helping get the building and the grounds ready to pitiching in to help us finish well while we are still at Alki by helping the setup and takedown crew. Another way to help is by showing up for church and connecting with others whether they are a guest or long time members of Whipple. And lastly, you could give finanically. I talked a few weeks ago during the State of the Church message (you can download that message to the right) how we need everyone who attends Whipple to give $49/week. How are you doing? I want to challenge you, if you are not giving that yet--start where you can. It may not be $49 a week, but start somewhere. And if you have been faithfully giving, I challenge you to increase your giving by 10%. That doesn't mean if you give 10% to give 20%, it means if you give 10% to increase your giving to 11%, if you give 5% of your income, increase it to 5.5%.
God has many great things in store for us and as we are faithful and step out on faith, our faith will intersect with His faithfulness and it is there we will see the Hand of God do something amazing! I can't wait to see what's next!
I look forward to this new series. Please be praying for myself and the staff as we prepare for this incredible journey.
In His Grip
Brett
P.S. Be looking for our new website very soon!
Wednesday, April 4, 2007
My Arm Hurts!
Last night I was complaining to my wife about my right arm hurting, like I pinched a nerve or had been working out (which I hadn't). I just couldn't figure out why it hurt so bad in just my one arm. She said, "well it probably hurts from the baptisms!"
She was right! What a great reminder for me this week of what happened on Sunday. If you weren't there, what an incredible experience. We had at least 4 first time decisions for Christ, 3 babies whose parents dedicated them to teach them about Christ, and if that wasn't enough, 27 baptism!
We only had 11 planned, but it was incredible to see sons come with their fathers, mothers with their daughters to be baptized. I never thought I would get to be a part of church like this one--thank you. What a great way to go into the Easter week. I believe there are more people who need to experience what we all did this last week, they need to be there this Sunday.
Easter is the perfect opportunity to invite someone who needs to hear about the hope that Jesus Christ provided for us through his life, death and resurrection. We are going to have a high-energy service that will communicate the message of Christ through incredible music, excellent childcare and a dynamic message. As you think about Easter, we encourage you to pray for the hundreds of people in our community whose names we fastened to the chair @ our Whipple Campus last Fall. We hope that you will partner with us by inviting the people in your life who need an opportunity to hear about Jesus Christ.
Easter Services:
Sunday, April 8 - 10:30am
I am looking forward to seeing you this Sunday as we celebrate the resurrection together. And if we can't be together this Sunday--we will be together in spirit thanking God for His promised fulfilled.
Arm Hurting but loving it,
Brett
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