crossthoughts.com

Night of Worship

 Hey Everyone,

I just wanted to invite you tonight to our Wednesday night service as we dedicate the whole service to worshipping the Christ of Christmas.  Nate Meyst and the CCk Band are going to lead us in some of the great Christmas Classics.  It's going to be an amazing opportunities to prepare our hearts and focus them in the place that they need to be!  I look forward to seeing you all there for this unforgettable night of joining the chorus of angels singing to the King of Glory!  Service starts at 7:30PM!

Christmas @ CCk

 Christmas Trees
 Hey everyone!  Hope all is well with you as we have plunged headlong into the Christmas season.  Went out and bought our Christmas Tree today.  We will decorate it tomorrow.  Always a fun time.  This year we actually bought two trees.  One big tree and one little tree.  Some of you might ask why.  Well, since we have started having kids, it seems like the kids and I have hijacked the Christmas tree and made it look like a crazy Harley Davidson meets NASCAR in Disney World tree.  And my wife has expressed that she would like a more traditional tree.  So this year, we decided that the kids and I will go to town on the little one and then have a more traditional one for my wife.  So we are excited about it.  I will definitely post some pictures when they are finished.

This Weekend @ CCk
This weekend we will be kicking off a series of Christmas sermons for our weekend services.  Always a joy to teach on the greatest fact in all of history.  And that is that God the Son stepped out of eternity, crashed into time and space, took on human flesh for the purpose of giving us LIFE.  That is what Christmas is all about.  Immanuel, God with us.  It isn't about trees and lights.  It is about a Savior who is the Light and came to die upon a Calvary's Tree so that we can have a relationship with Him!  And that's what we will be celebrating for the next 3 weekends.  

Invite Someone
The Christmas season also provides are unique opportunity for us to share the gospel with people.  For whatever reason, it seems that people are more open to talk about spiritual things, or even go to church.  So I will be praying that in the busyness that the season can be, that we wouldn't miss any opportunity that God would put in our way to share His glorious gospel with a world that desperately needs it.

Christmas Eve Services
This year we will be having 3 Christmas Eve Candlelight services.  They will be Wednesday December 23rd at 7:30PM and December 24th at 6:00PM and 11:00PM.  They will be identical services.  Look forward to seeing you all there!  

Happy Thanksgiving

 Hey Everyone, 
 
I just want to take the time to wish each and every one of you a Happy Thanksgiving.

 Without question, Thanksgiving is one of my favorite holidays of the year. For one, it is much more laid back than Christmas time. The Christmas season can be one that is marked by craziness and chaos because of all the preparations that goes into it. Thanksgiving is different. Thanksgiving is a time where we can just kick back, relax, and really take the time to thank God for His Goodness, His Grace, and His Faithfulness.

 The main event of Thanksgiving isn't the turkey, or the sweet potatoes, or the hot pecan pie with ice cream. It isn't watching the Lions from Detroit or the Cowboys from Dallas battling it out on the gridiron. As good as those things can be, they aren't the purpose of Thanksgiving. The main event of Thanksgiving is taking the time to thank our Creator for being the Great and Glorious God that He is. My prayer is that this Thanksgiving we would be overwhelmed by His Love and Grace!

 May God continue to fill you with His Presence and guide you with His Mighty Strong Hand!  From all of us here at CCk, Happy Thanksgiving!

 Let the Lost Be Found,

 

pedro

Gentlemen, Start your Engines!

Hey Everyone!  It is that time of year again in which we converge on the Homestead Miami Speedway for our yearly Raceway Ministries Outreach.  For the last 7 years, we have had the privilege of setting up a ministry center at the RV Lot for the final race of the NASCAR season and have the opportunity to minister the gospel of thousands of fans.  It has been a blast to be a part of this for the last several years.  This year we will have Dennis Agajanian providing music on Friday and Saturday night.  Pastor Scott will be doing the invocation on Friday night for the Truck race, I will be giving the invocation on Saturday for the Nationwide Race, and Pastor Fidel Gomez from Calvary Fort Lauderdale will be giving the invocation for the Sprint Race on Sunday.  Please keep the whole weekend in prayer.  And pray for Carlos Hernandorena who has really stepped it up the last several years in getting this thing organized.  He has done an amazing job!  Hope to see many of you out there!

And don't forget to come out church this weekend!  It is going to be an awesome time with a Thanksgiving theme that you won't want to miss.  Blessings on you!  And may you live pedal to the medal for Jesus!  

Great Day at CCk

This past weekend was once again amazing at CCk.  I may be partial, but I am privileged to be part of the most amazing church on the planet.  The Lord is Good and He is on the Move!  I am having a blast teaching through the Life of David.  There are so many lessons that rock our soul from the life of this amazing rock slinging King.  I am looking forward to jumping into 2 Samuel in the coming weeks.  Also had a great time after church for the first ever CCk SonRun.  About 20 motorcycles met at church and we thundered down to Key Largo for a bountiful dinner at Rib Daddy's.  Amazing time of hanging out with some great people.  And the weather was Epic.  Now is the time that we thank Jesus for having us in South Florida.  While many bikers up north are reduced to doing burnout's in their garage with their motorcycles, we get to enjoy riding all winter long!  Thank you Jesus!  But anyways, we have a lot happening this coming week.    On Wednesday, we continue with our study through Deuteronomy.  And then, in addition to our weekend services, we have the NASCAR outreach at the Homestead Miami Speedway.  So please keep us in your prayers.  We are looking forward to all that God is going to do at this year's event.  That's all for now!  May the God of the Universe shine in you and through you to a world that so desperately needs to see it!

Operation Christmas Child

We are excited once again to see the CCk body pull together in reaching out to bless others through the Operation Christmas Child Outreach by Samaritan's Purse. 

 This is a simple outreach. Shoe boxes get filled with items like toys, school supplies, toothpaste, etc... and Samaritan's Purse puts it, along with the gospel message, in the hands of needy kids all over the globe. As a result, many families come to Christ.

 Last year, we had well over 1800 boxes at CCk. I encourage you to be a part of this awesome outreach that brings so much joy and hope to so many kids. For those of you who have your boxes prepared you can already bring them in to the church. All boxes are due by Sunday, November 15th. For more information call the office at 305.233.5433.

This Weekend

New Schedule
I just wanted to remind you that this weekend we reopen our main campus.  Services will be Saturday at 6:00PM.  Sunday at 9:30AM and 12:30 PM.  And then at 11:00AM at the West Campus.  The sanctuary looks great.  Kind of reminds me of how the West Campus is set up.  Looking forward to seeing it in operation this weekend.  And remember to change the clocks.  We fall back an hour on Sunday morning.

The Cove
This past week I had the privilege of being at the Billy Graham Training Center at the Cove.  That is such a special place for me.  I have been going there for the last 14 years almost yearly.  It was there that I first sensed the Lord calling me into ministry.  So it was real special for me to speak there for the first time alongside the one that was speaking there the first time I went.  That of course was Greg Laurie who has been a huge influence on my life.  Also joining us were my good friends Levi Lusko and Don McClure.  And in addition to the teaching, there was amazing music by Marty Goetz and one of my best friends, Dennis Agajanian.  If you have never been to the Cove, you must find a way to get there sometime.  It is beautiful.  I will be going back in November of 2010!  

Here is a picture with FG, Greg, and Levi

 

Wanna Get Away?

I just wanted to put this on your radar.  I am privileged to be joining my good friends, Greg Laurie and Levi Lusko as we teach a seminar next week at the Billy Graham Training Center at the Cove.  There is nothing more beautiful than the Fall in the mountains of Western North Carolina.  The dates are October 26-28, 2009.  I have been attending seminars at the Cove for the last 13 years and I can truly say that this is one of the most beautiful places on earth.  The theme of the seminar is Coming Soon: Jesus Christ and will anchor itself on Bible Prophecy.  There is still time and space to sign up.  For more information, click here.

This Wednesday

I pray all of you are doing well.  I just wanted to remind you about our Wednesday night service at Temple Beth Am.  We had the privilege of meeting there last Wednesday and it was awesome.  It is a beautiful facility that is perfect for worship and bible study.  We will be meeting there this Wednesday October 21st at 7:30PM.  We are in the middle of a 3 part series through the 10 Commandments.  You won't want to miss it.  Hope to see you there!  And don't forget to bring a friend!

CCk Update

I pray this email finds you all doing well.  The remodeling at the Central Campus is in full swing.  There has been tremendous progress this week.  So please keep this process in prayer.  Now, just because we are remodeling in the Central Campus, doesn't mean that we have slowed down one bit.  Last weekend, we had the Katinas for two epic services at the West Campus.  It was amazing!  They did a beautiful job leading us in song.  The place was packed and the atmosphere was electric.  Check out the pictures here.

And what can we say about the facility other than the fact that it is beautiful.  The CCk West Campus is a beautiful spot to worship the Lord.  I love that place and thank the Lord for the opportunity to meet there every weekend.

Now just a reminder, that due to the remodeling, we will be having only 2 services at the CCk West Campus located at John Ferguson High School.  Services will be held at 10:AM and Noon.  The address is 15900 SW 56 Street.  I am looking forward to seeing you all there and remember to bring a friend.

This Weekend at CCk

This weekend, we are hosting the Katinas at CCk.  If you have never seen the Katinas, you won't want to miss this!  And if you have seen them before, you know exactly what I am talking about.  These guys are amazing.  Due to the remodel in the Central campus, we will be having 2 services at the West Campus on Sunday October 11th.  The West Campus is located at John Ferguson High School at 15900 SW 56 Street.  Look forward to seeing you all there.  And don't forget to bring a friend with you!

Baptism Video

09-2009 Calvary Kendall Baptism from Calvary Chapel Kendall on Vimeo.

Hanging with the Team

This morning I had the opportunity to spend it with many of the CCk leaders and team members for a day of vision and training.  It was a great time to meet with the various ministry leaders and see what is happening in each.  It is a such a privilege to serve Jesus alongside these people.  I thank God for what He has done, but I am so excited about what He is yet to do.  I just thank Him that I can come along for the ride!  

Special Update

Hey Everyone!  I wanted to take the time to remind you of some important things coming up. Many of us will be at the couples' conference this weekend and I would like to ask you to pray that God will uplift, encourage and mend marriages this weekend.

Weekend Schedule Changes
Because of the couples' conference there are some schedule changes to our weekend services. Please note that there will be no service on Saturday night and no service Sunday at the CCk:West campus. We will have our regularly scheduled services on Sunday at 9:30am and 12:30pm at the Central Campus.

Upcoming Volunteer Meeting
It has been exciting to see what the Lord is doing at our weekend services. As you know, none of this would be possible without the tireless work of many volunteers. If you are one of these faithful servants, I would like to invite you to a special time of meeting and training on October 3 from 10:00 - 11:30am at our central campus, 16435 SW 117th Avenue. If you currently serve in the following ministries: ushers, greeters, parking, info table, bookstore, new believers, translation, worship, production and set-up,I am looking forward to spending this time together with you.

Having a Great Time

Jesus said, I have come to give you LIFE and that more abundant!  I am so thankful for that reality.  It is an amazing thing to watch this verse come to life in the lives of those around you.  This past weekend, we had the privilege of baptizing over 100 people at CCk, two of which were my oldest children.  It was such a moving time.  Hearing the stories of what God is doing in people's lives is something that I never get tired of.  I stand blown away at the way that God moves and changes people's lives.  It is a privilege for me to serve Jesus at such a passionate church.  Looking forward to what's to come.  Next weekend, we will have a video to post!

And speaking of what's to come, please be in prayer for those attending the Couple's Retreat this weekend.  This year is the biggest group that we have ever had for one of these events.  It's been sold out for a while.  These are great times for us to get away to focus on the most important relationship with we have, second only to our relationship with Jesus.  It is going to be an awesome time.  I will definitely post updates from the conference, so stay tuned!