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Free Journal for You 2.0 Series

This weekend we start a critical series in the life of COMMUNITY, it is You 2.0.  For a long time we have challenged people at COMMUNITY to become 3C Christ Followers. The 3C's are Celebrate, Connect and Contribute.  During this series we are asking people to move beyond just the doing of the 3C's to the being of the 3C's.  When you move from doing the 3C's to being the 3C's that is when you move from 1.0 to 2.0 - the next best version of You!

To kick off this series we are giving each person that attends a COMMUNITY campus a You 2.0 journal for FREE!  You see a pic of the journal on this post.  It is our hope that as you use this journal to hear from God everyday you will fall more in love with Jesus and become all that He wants you to be - You 2.0.  (Here you can download: You 2.0 Big Idea Journal Cover and You 2.0 Big Idea Journal )

It's one thing to be able to say, "yeah, I go to church every week" and it is entirely something else to be in love with Jesus.  That is the difference between Celebrate 1.0 and Celebrate 2.0.  A lot of us can say, "oh I'm a part of small group", but that is only Connect 1.0.  If you want to move to Connect 2.0 you have a group of people that you do life with and you will get each other through anything.  It's pretty easy to volunteer and be on a team, that's Contribute 1.0.  Contribute 2.0 is when you become a person who lives to serve and is generous in every area of your life.  When you make each of those moves from 1.0 to 2.0 you are becoming the next best version of you - You 2.0

Follow Jeff's Journey to Generosity

This weekend we finished the second of our three part series, Soul Cash.  I believe this has been some of the very best teaching we have ever done on finances.  One of the highlights this weekend was a very candid testimony from Jeff, a CCC-Shorewood attender about his struggle to be generous.  Here is part 1 and here is part 2 of Jeff's testimony.  He not only agreed to tell us the truth about his journey to generosity but he also is blogging about it on a regular basis at www.mypathto10.com.  Jeff has said that on a weekly basis he will post his giving and what percentage it is of his total income.  Should be interesting!  So, check out the Jeff's testimony and follow his blog and take your own journey to generosity.  And remember:  "Generosity is something that God wants for you, not from you!"

It's Really This Simple...

On Thursday morning I stay at home and teach my youngest, Caleb.  Yes, we home school (insert joke or militant statement here.) and it has been a great experience for us.  But that is not the topic of this post.  The topic is that the first thing that Caleb did this morning was to pull out his Kids' City 3C Journal (the pic to your right is a Kids' City 3C Journal), read some from the Bible, reflected on it and wrote down a few things along with prayer.  First thing! I love that.  And I am grateful to our Kids' City staff for not only creating this 3C Journal but also reinforcing the value that kids need to start their day with God.

Just yesterday I was working on a book outline with Jon and we ran into our good buddy Scott Hodge at a Starbucks where we hang out and we were talking about how it all comes down to something this simple:  hearing from God and courageously obeying Him everyday!  That is it!  It really is that simple.

• My life would be all that God meant for it to be if I would just hear from God and courageously obey Him everyday!
• Community would be exactly the kind of church God meant for it to be if we would all just hear from God and courageously obey Him everyday!
• The mission of Jesus: all people finding their way back to Him and every man, woman and child living with hope for today and eternity would happen, if we would all just hear from God and courageously obey Him everyday!

It really is that simple - hearing from God and courageously obeying Him everyday!  Way to go Caleb!

Getting DIRECTION for 2007

Yesterday I was e-mailing a friend of mine some advice for determining what's next for him in 2007.  As I got to the end of the e-mail I realized that this might be helpful for others too!  And I think this will be particularly helpful to people in Community Christian Church and people in NewThing Network churches since we are starting a new series called DIRECTIONS where the key questions is "what's next?".  So here are 5 simple suggestions and at the bottom a link and a download that will help you get direction for 2007.

1. Prior to attending the DIRECTIONS series (begins 01.07.07) acquire a 3C inventory & Growth Plan that we gave to everyone this past weekend.  If for some reason you were not at CCC this weekend, stop in the office and get one.  Find some quiet time and discover your growth opportunities in the areas of 3C's: celebrate, connect and contribute.  You should begin creating a growth plan in pencil because over the next month you will be altering your direction as you discover what’s next for you in each of these areas.  This 3C inventory & Growth Plan will be a working document for discovering what’s next for you.
2. Attend each week of the DIRECTIONS series and buy the CD of the teaching or watch it online. Listen to the CD in your car as time allows you.  The redundancy will increase learning and spiritual formation.
3. Have your small group do the BIG IDEA discussion guide that goes along with the DIRECTIONS series.  The BIG IDEA disucssion guides we are creating are some of the best curriculum being produced anywhere.  This will be critical to the process because as you are discerning what’s next you will want the input of those people in your small group community.  These people know parts of you better than you do.  Don’t overlook this part.
4. If you are not journaling – get a 3C Journal and make one of your new year’s resolutions to journal 5 days a week.   You can decide if you want to follow the reading plan in the back, go free form or simply write out your prayers.  But use the month of January to create an on-going conversation between you and God for deciding what’s next.  This has been critical for me in determining what’s next in my life and I believe it will be for you too.
5. At the end of the month based on the teaching, small group discussion, and journaling complete your own 3C Growth Plan.  Use this to guide you.  I would never consider this completed, but it is a guide for what's next in your spiritual journey.

2006 3C Inventory & Growth Plan (this will work; when I get the 2007 I will make it available)  Directions_Discussion_Guide.pdf