Here's the updated re:connect schedule for the next 8-week cycle.

1.    Wednesday, 12/17 – friend connect
2.    Wednesday, Jan 7 – small group
3.    Wednesday, Jan 14 – re:connect worship gathering (Evan’s)
4.    Wednesday, Jan 21 – small group
5.    Wednesday, Jan 28 – serving a single mom
6.    Wednesday, Feb 4 – small group
7.    Wednesday, Feb 11 – re:connect party
8.    Wednesday, Feb 18 – small group
9.    Wednesday, Feb 25 – friend connect

Keep in mind, 'Wednesday' is just a weekly placeholder.  Your small group and your service to a single mom may meet on another night.

Questions? Contact your small group leader or Melanie at mdossantos@visitchristcommunity.com

Perhaps you've heard the saying, "Many hands make work light." It was that saying that helped inspire the name and direction of a new ministry geared toward assisting single moms with various needs around their homes. Many Hands team members are made up of people from various ministries of Christ Community Church including the Retired Men's group, re:connect small groups as well as members of 30/40 and Classic Singles.

We are so thankful to God for raising up a group of people who are not only willing but excited to serve the single moms in our church and community. They have given generously of their time and talents to provide support in areas from meals to maintenance and so much in between, not the least of which has been the building of relationships and genuine care. In just the short time since the first team went out two weeks ago, much has been accomplished. Here is just a sampling: meals have been provided, lights have been fixed, wood has been chopped, leaves raked, gutters cleaned, hedges trimmed, insulation installed, walls painted, windows repaired, a dog walked and much much more.

So Thank You to all of our Many Hands ministry team members. What you've done has meant so much to so many already. To read what some of the single moms have to say about your help, please read the article below entitled "Single Moms Respond". You are truly making a difference.

"The King will reply, 'I tell you the truth, whatever you did for one of the least of these, you did for me.'" Matthew 25:40

For years we have sent out a bi-weekly email newsletter to keep you updated on everything that CrossRoads/re:connect is doing.  Now, it's very easy to sign-up for it.  Simply click on The Wire on the left side of this page.  Fill in your email and you'll be taken to a page that let's you choose to receive The Wire.  Don't worry, you can easily unsubscribe from this newsletter at anytime.

Also, on the same page, you can now view past editions of The Wire.

"The Light Always Shines Here"

As my plane climbed up through the cloud cover on the way to Seattle the sun began to shine brightly through the window. It's odd to think that on the ground we say things like "suns out today" or "what a dreary day" because of what conditions exist between us and the light. I started to dive into this line of thinking more deeply and prayed that God would show me what he wanted me to learn from this.

On a beautiful summer day the birds are singing and the sun casts its light and warmth all over us. The warmth we feel actually radiates into us to the point where even a blind person knows when they're in the sunlight. Sometimes weather comes in that starts to obscure the light; even hiding it completely from view. On those darkest days when the sun is totally blotted out that the weather is the fiercest that causes the most damage and despair.
If we equate that to Jesus in our hearts as the "Sun" and we stand here with everything in this world that gets between us and our source of light. Think about all the troubles that happen on the daily basis that hide you from him a little bit every day. Sometimes when things take a big turn for the worse in your life, the warmth may be blotted out completely…sure you know he's there somewhere but you certainly can't feel his presence.

Brothers and sisters in these times when life is at its darkest, we must look beyond the things of this world and beyond the troubles that lay in front of us. We must elevate our hearts and our minds through the clouds of trouble to the place where the SON always shines.

God Bless,

Justin

What exactly is a 'young adult'?
Teens? College students? 20somethings? Married 20somethings? Early 30's? 

As a singles pastor working with those who are 18 - 68, demographics are often debated.

However, at Christ Community Church, we have tried to create a niche for your life stage. Christ Community offers five different young adult and single adult ministries.

If you are a young adult, click on the tabs at the left to learn more about opportunities just for you.

If you are a single adult over 35, click here.

"The words I couldn't say"

Baptism is always an interesting and somewhat controversial topic; some sects of Christianity believe it to be a necessary action for salvation, while others believe it to be an outward and public declaration of faith.

Being baptized Catholic as an infant, I've wrestled with the decision to get baptized as an adult or not. Coming from Catholicism where any outward expression of faith is typically frowned upon (when's the last time you saw someone in a Catholic Church dancing to the music, clapping along, or raising their hands?)  It's been a challenge to overcoming this anxiety that is so deep rooted in my upbringing.

Looking into the Bible there are a number of interesting things.

• Jesus was baptized.
• Every single person that converted to Christianity was baptized (Except for one).
• These people were baptized of their own free will.
• These people could have been killed based on their baptism.
• They took place in front of friends, family, and strangers.

Also taking into account even when converting to Judaism or Islam there is a ceremonial washing, I decided to stand before God and declare myself one of his children. The following is what led me to today.

Ten years ago, my grandfather was at home in a coma and all his sons were keeping watch. My dad came home to grab a shower and change clothes to go back, when he got in the shower my uncle called and my pap pap was called home to God. When my dad got out of the shower I told him that pap pap was gone, and he left to go back to his house. I was drained and lost so I went for a run...I ran around our entire town without stopping (10+ miles) and came to the bottom of a giant hill (Saunders station road - about a mile and a half long, and 600+ feet vertical). I had been thinking about God and my pap pap, trying to get things straight in my head on whether God existed and if Jesus was who people say he was. I started up that mountain and told God that if he was real; if he was so big; that I needed him.  I was lost, drained, and had nothing left. I slowly climbed the hill and eventually made it to the top where I fell exhausted in someone's field.  Crying and saying "Jesus if you are real, if you are all that it says you are, please show yourself to me...I need you now more than ever" At that moment I can only describe it as I was being held, held by the one and only God; A God that is so big that he even cared about someone as small as me.

I'd like to say from that day on everything was perfect, but the truth is far from that. I've screwed things up so badly since then I'm surprised that Jesus hasn't thrown up his hands in frustration and turned his back on me. I've always known he hasn't because his presence has been so evident in my life both in the blessings that he gives me, and even more so in the things he has taken away.

So today I got in the water over 10 years after he came to me, and I came to him.

I know I won't be perfect; I know life won't be easy....But with God, all things are possible.

John 3:30 "He must become greater, I must become less"

God bless,

Justin

"Our Last Goodbyes"

Back home outside of Pittsburgh mid-July for me was always filled with baseball and wings on Monday nights with friends. Since then July has become bittersweet because of one person, Steven Daniel Nye. Stevo (as I called him) has redish brown hair, a red goatee and a smile that he never went without; Every memory I have of Steve is of him smiling, laughing, or us wandering lost around happy valley in the middle of the night slightly inebriated. He's the kind of person that you could call at 4 am for a ride and he'd just in his little Volkswagen Golf and come pick you up. He's  a great person and a wonderful friend. Sadly for us God called him home in July 2002. He sent me an instant message while I was out that said he was really sick, asked me to pray for him then he went to bed. Jesus came for him that night.  I never got to say goodbye to one of my best friends.

At his funeral the pastor talked about Methuselah and I thought I would convey his message.

If you look at the timeline of your life, imagine it like a rope. The rope has a beginning which signifies your birth,  travels a distance for the days of your life, and ends at your death. The bible references a descendant of Adam (yes THAT Adam) called Methuselah. Methuselah lived a grand total of 969 years yet his entire life is just a footnote in Genesis. There are no great deeds recorded of him like David's triumph over Goliath or the peace and wisdom of Solomon. He has no credits to his name like that of his grandson Noah, in fact outside of his longevity and his bloodline from Adam to Jesus, he's a very unremarkable figure in history. When you think about the rope of your life imagine the people you impact as the individual strands that make up the weave. The more people you impact, the more smiles you give, the more light you shine, the thicker your rope would be. Methuselah's rope was exceptioanlly long but extremely thin, but as short as Steven's rope may have been had a wonderfully thick weave. The ripples that come from the lives he touched in a short time will continue to echo throughout forever, and the world is truly a better place because he was here.

Remember brothers and sisters, it's not the length of your rope, but the thickness of the weave.

I still can't talk about the kid without crying. I miss you Stevo.

Justin

Ruminations from the Road.
Issue #2
"With You"

I've been giving Todd Madonna's talk at re:connect a lot of thought lately and one of the points that really stood out to me is that "Emmanuel" is translated into "God [is] With Us." In my experience with sports there are many ways to call for the ball/puck/whatever, but in rugby the term commonly called out is "With You." At first this may seem odd, but in rugby these words mean more than simply calling for the ball because you can't block or be in front of the ball carrier on your team.  Other players have to trail the runner and do much more than just be available to pass to. "With You" in rugby means I'm here with you and I will follow you wherever you go, if you need to pass me the ball I will take it, but most importantly if you are tackled I am here to help you.

Comparing this to "Emmanuel"; I imagine God trailing us as we roll through life, every now and again reminding us these things:

• I'm here with you.
• I will follow you wherever you go.
• If you feel you can't go on, turn your burdens over to me and I will happily take them.
• If you should fall, I will protect you.
• If you need help getting back up, you only have to ask.

With You,

Justin

Who’s it for?

• Mentorees: Any young adult man from college-age to mid 30’s
• Mentors: Any spiritually mature man desiring to build into the life of a younger man

What is it?

• An intentional discipleship program where an older man mentors a younger man.
• We match men that are about one generation apart.
  
• We prayerfully match men considering common interests.
  

Steps to get started:

• Contact Ash Swayne, mentoring liason, at or 484.716.9951.
• Meet with Ash for a brief “get to know you” time before pairing with suitable mentor
• Meet with potential mentor to discuss your goals
• Start meeting regularly - Mentor liason is available to support and answer questions along the way
  

Guidelines for the mentoring relationship:

• Meet once every 2 weeks, for about one hour, for a period of 6 months
• Decide on a topic, book or need
  • It could be as simple as meeting for breakfast to share about life circumstances or an in-depth bible study.
    
• We have an organized system but allow for freedom to move in the direction you sense God is leading.
• Scripture and prayer are an essential part of mentoring and we encourage selecting relevant verses to memorize.

Mentoree quote: “Whether I've had a good or a bad week, I always look forward to meeting with my mentor.  It is a very encouraging time and I know it will change my life.”

Mentor quote: “It’s an enjoyable and rewarding way to deepen your relationship with God and one other, through encouragement, learning, and friendship.”

As iron sharpens iron, so one man sharpens another. - Proverbs 27:17 NIV