I've Got a Secret Weapon

Do you have people in your life that seem to be far away from God? I do. Some are family members. Others are friends. But I really care about each of them. It's a helpless feeling to watch them go through life without the peace and hope that I've experienced through having Jesus in my life. Some of these people have had a negative exposure to Christianity that turned them off. Others simply feel that they are doing fine without any "religious stuff" in their lives

I really long for these special people to come to a saving faith in Jesus, but sometimes it seems like a lost cause. I think, "They won't listen to me - what am I going to say that they haven't heard or don't have an argument for? Do I really want to get into some sort of debate? Maybe I should just let them be...."

Well I've got some good news for you -- and me! There are some simple practices that we can make a part of our life that may just break through the hard shell of our loved ones. We're going to be unpacking these missional practices in the coming Sundays, but they begin with the most powerful secret weapon we have: prayer!

Prayer is an amazing resource that God makes available to us. We can speak with the creator of the universe -- and He listens and responds to us! While God is completely able to accomplish whatever he wants to do without the need of our assistance, He has chosen to partner with you and I. That seems crazy, and yet it is also amazing! I'm invited to join Jesus in his mission to reach out and bless those around me! And through my prayers, God chooses to transform individual lives!

This Sunday, June 11, we'll begin unpacking the five missional practices of B.L.E.S.S. as we begin with prayer. I want to encourage you to ask God to reveal 3-5 individuals in your life who are far from him and that you will commit to pray for in this coming year. I believe that we're all going to see amazing things happen as we use our secret weapon of prayer!

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The Shack Movie

CCC and Mazama Community Church are partnering with Cascade Bible Church to have two showings of the powerful film "The Shack". The film will be shown at CBC at 7:00 PM this coming Friday, June 9th, and Saturday, June 10th. These are free showings, but donations will be collected to help with renovations for the Master's Christian School gym.

I strongly encourage you to see this movie and spend some time discussing it. While it is a work of fiction and I would caution anyone to base their understanding of God solely on this book/movie, it may open your heart to the love and healing that God offers to each of us as we struggle with the challenges of this life.  You may want to bring a friend and plan to talk about it over dessert following.

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