The Bible is So Cool!
A blog by Rebecca DeLucia, Next Generation Pastor "The bible is so cool!" I wish I could have captured the look on the child's face as they said this on a Sunday morning. We had just finished our November series called “Unsung Heroes” which covered the book of Ruth. If you aren’t familiar with the Central Kids curriculum we use, called GROW, it has a big idea each week. For the November series the four big ideas were: God gives us companions, God gives
Irresponsible Responsibility?
This morning on the way in for our men’s bible study, I was listening to a song called “Irresponsible” by JUDAH. and J. Monty (the song is a bit outside of my normal listening patterns, but I kind of like it…no worries if you do not!). Anyway, the chorus kind of hit me this morning – especially as tomorrow is Thanksgiving (a day where we give thanks, and are reminded to live as grateful people):And I just wanna say that
We Must Learn To Pray. We Have To.
This past Sunday, along with this week of Step Groups (from Discipleship Essentials), is all about prayer. If you missed the sermon, you can check it out right here, but the main point was this (in the words of Tim Keller): We must learn to pray.We have to. At the end of the sermon, I suggested that if you struggle with ‘rudderless’ prayer - or just want some structure or help for your prayer, you could try following a guide or something along those
Survival of the Fittest
I usually find our Wednesday morning men’s bible study conversations fascinating. Today was no different. So much so that it inspired what I wanted to share with you today.With the men’s bible study, we’ve been slowly working our way through Paul’s most ambitious letter – Romans. Today, we spent a lot of time on two deep, challenging, and rich verses from Romans 12: 1 Therefore, I urge you, brothers and sisters, in view of God’s mercy, to offer your bodies as a living
The Next Four Years
Well, it’s Wednesday. The election is over, and someone won…or maybe they’re still counting votes – I don’t know…because I’m writing this on Tuesday morning before the polls opened or a single state was called! So I don’t know whether Harris or Trump (or the third party surprise write-in!) will be our President for the next four years. But regardless of who our next President will be, what will we be for the next four years? We will be the church of Jesus Christ. We will
Mourn With Those Who Mourn
I hope you’re able to enjoy this beautiful fall day a bit. Go out for a walk and appreciate God’s good creation. Also – tomorrow is Halloween – so thank you to all who are going to give out candy here at Central (as well as those who donated it). It’s a great chance to be a light in our town. (Also note: Sunday is Daylight Savings "fall back"!) The big news of course, which weighs heavily on all of our
Intentional or Not…
On Sunday, our fall “Step Up” discipleship series began, and this week, our Step Groups are kicking off. It’s an exciting week around here! (By the way, if you didn’t get your book – we have them at the building now!)As I was going through the material in “Discipleship Essentials,” the book that is guiding our Step Groups, I was continually struck by one word: intentional. He uses the word in the “Core Truth” for the week:Discipling is an intentional relationship in which
How Beautiful Are the Feet
Hopefully you are following along with our Central Reads bible reading plan, because today’s reading is a beauty. It’s Isaiah 52 – a VERY important passage for how the New Testament writers understood Jesus and all God was doing through him. It begins the oft-read “Suffering Servant” song (which continues into chapter 53…he was pierced for our transgressions…by his wounds we are healed…) that forms so much about how we understand Jesus’ life and death for us. Beautiful and powerful. But it’s verses
Now is the Time to Take a Step!
If you haven’t caught wind of it yet, let me remind you: this year at Central, it’s the year of discipleship. We kicked off the ‘church’ year in the beginning of September when we asked the question “what does the Lord require of you?” Remember that? The answer from Amos, but reiterated by Jesus, is to do justice, love mercy, and walk humbly with your God. The way we put it is to always be taking “steps” along the path of following
We Are So Ready!
Every week since August during Central Kids, two cute twins have asked me, “when does Central Learns start?” At the mum sale for the elementary school I had a parent ask me, “When does your after school program start back up? We are SO ready for it!” We are excited the answer to both questions is in two short weeks! Central Learns starts every Wednesday on October 16th! This year, we have received an ABCNJ Communities in Action Grant which will allow us