Dear Church,

I trust you are excited about our vision and focus for fall 2010:  Living in Jesus and Loving in Jesus!

We had a great Vision Day kick off last Sunday and I encourage you to listen to the CD if you were away! We will have extra copies available. It was encouraging to see so many visitors and an almost full house!

Today I have four brief news items as we seek to get organized for a productive season of ministry:

- Outreach news
- First Steps fall study
- Scripture memory
- Youth and Children

Outreach News: We have hired a fantastic outreach director for MCC - Paul Rasmussen - an experienced ministry professional with deep experience in reaching, serving and helping lead communities into vibrant relationship with Jesus. We will introduce him and his family to you on Sunday as he leads us into a wonderful outreach to our Village after service.

We will worship for an hour Sunday morning, then have a pot luck lunch together (bring a side dish and leave it in the kitchen - John Cowell will be cooking up some treats for main course!) After that, we will spread out across Mariemont to offer our friends free ice cream cones at Graeters! We will end up in the Village square where MCC musicians will lead us in celebratory songs. We will be done by 2 PM.

We also will begin to open the Chapel to the community in mid September - every non-holiday weekday from 11-1. A place of peace. A piece of history. Come enjoy the beauty and quiet of this historic community landmark. Bring lunch if you like. Rest. Pray. Reflect. This is your time of sanctuary, your place of peace.

We’re still in need of people interested in hosting chapel visitors for one or two, 2-hour slots per month on Mondays, Tuesdays, Thursdays, and Fridays. Hosts will be responsible to be present to welcome those who come and answer questions, light and extinguish candles, be available to pray with anyone who asks, and pray over any requests left at the Chapel as you are led. If you’re interested in learning more, contact Susan Carson.

First Steps: This fall, we are going to review and deepen our faith foundations by pairing up with one person of the same sex to study and grow together. This will be a strong and practical supplement to our fall series in Romans! First Steps is an integrated toolkit to help us review the most important things to know how to live for a full life with God. It will also equip us to help others down the road (we will be asked to make a commitment to review these materials with one other person per year for the rest of our lives!).

The First Steps toolkit costs $17, but we have funds available to help those whose budget requires them to pay less. Pray about who to pair up with, and plan to pick up your kits on September 12 or 19. There are 10 chapters and ten meetings to have during the 14 weeks of study in Romans between September 12 and December 12. Each week, Pastor Denis will link the study in Romans to the First Steps journey.

Scripture Memory: One of the great spiritual disciplines that is proven to help us choose wisely in times of challenge and temptation. During the Fall, we will be giving folks interested in reciting Scripture from memory (from Romans or from the First Steps toolkit) a chance to encourage us all on Sunday mornings. If you are interested in learning more, please contact Jason Mackey at - he will lead a brief meeting on this for those interested after service on Sept 12.

Youth and Children: Both these ministry teams are looking for parents to enroll their children and students for the fall season, and then to help us grow this strategic next generation. If you have Children from newborn to grade 6 - please register with the forms available at the children's greeting desk on the Lower Level, or by contacting Marianne Beausejour. We still need volunteers, including teaching aides (once a month), greeters, worship, nursery, snacks, and administration.

The Youth ministry is currently asking parents who could not attend the Back to School Blast to register their students and get involved as "booster" parents. There are many ways to help and love on our youth. Please contact Heather June to get your students connected to a year of adventure.

Be blessed this week as you experience the love of God!

Living in Jesus, Loving in Jesus - Denis

Greetings Church!

Over the past several months we have been looking at our church's strengths and opportunities for growth, unmet needs, and gaps in our ministry and our staffing. We have made some great progress in developing renewed direction, new staffing job descriptions, and we're gaining more input from many of you as we go.

We are in the process of interviewing some excellent staff candidates and praying about the next steps for our Body. Would you join in that prayer? Please pass on any discernment or input! We plan to have communication throughout the summer, so take the opportunity to discuss ideas with your leaders.

I am excited about the future for MCC and the sense of freedom and joy that is emerging as we work through the emotions and losses associated with staff changes and prayerfully discern what Jesus wants for us next.

Probably the most common question I get these days is this - What's our vision for MCC?

Today I want to share what I believe is the heart of that vision. It is expressed clearly by the Apostle Paul as he prayed for the church in Ephesus (Ephesians 3:14-19):

For this reason I kneel before the Father, from whom his whole family in heaven and on earth derives its name. I pray that out of his glorious riches he may strengthen you with power through his Spirit in your inner being, so that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith. And I pray that you, being rooted and established in love, may have power, together with all the saints, to grasp how wide and long and high and deep is the love of Christ, and to know this love that surpasses knowledge - that you may be filled to the measure of all the fullness of God.

Many theologians have written deep stuff on the purpose for man and vision for the church. One catechism says that our chief goal is to glorify God and enjoy Him forever. Others say it is holiness. Others say it is service to others. Others say it is to become whole and fully healed. Others say it is to gain knowledge of God through correct theology and thinking.

All of these "vision statements" are worthy and find support in Scripture. They are all excellent but I believe secondary to the main goal espoused by Paul in Ephesians 3 and by Jesus before that.

He is saying that the goal is simply to fall in love with our God - Father, Son, and Holy Spirit - and to experience the fullness of personal union with Him in a love relationship that is so complete, that it changes everything! This is the adventure of walking with God.

Look at the ideas in the passage above:

- The Father is our identity (he created us)

- The Spirit strengthens us inwardly with God's supernatural power

- The Spirit allows Christ to dwell in our hearts through faith

- The presence of Christ and his work as our Savior roots us and grounds us in His amazing love

- So that we can begin to grasp the extent of Jesus' love personally

- and so then be filled to the fullness of the measure of God

Forget about measuring up to one another - let's be filled to the measure of all the fullness of God! This is what I mean when I hope we will be a church that more and more is "Living in Jesus, Loving in Jesus".

The goal of our faith, of our community together - the ultimate vision for MCC - is to be a place that helps everyone around us see, feel, know, think, expect, search for and experience a living-loving relationship with God - in our different stages of life and backgrounds, in our unique gifts and our varying personalities - so that we who seek become, one day, full of Him. And when we do grow into this fullness, we will do more of the other vision stuff mentioned above - because we will be - living a life filled with His life.

Does this make sense? Are you attracted to this? Could you give your life to this?

Where do we see this idea elsewhere in Scripture? Relational union with God is an expectation of Scripture, expressed by Jesus in John 15 and 17, and confirmed by Paul in 1 Corinthians 6:17 - But he who unites himself with the Lord is one with him in spirit. There are many more passages with the same idea.

There are many steps to take as we grow and learn how to flesh this out in our community. It will eventually show up more fully in our brochures, web site, mission statements, our church services, our small groups, our community service, our spiritual discussions with neighbors, and our efforts to provide strong biblical spiritual formation and coaching - but mainly.... it will come in our private time alone experiencing God!

This is why the heart of our church will always be the cultivation of a personal living-loving relationship with God. We will always seek authentic worship, prayer, reflection, solitude, and spiritual coaching that enables each person to go as far and deep as the Lord leads them, in an environment where they are supported and accepted at every stage of their journey.

We do not want to do church so hard that we miss God! (I did that for too long!) We do not seek human traditions, religious conformity, comparisons of maturity, doctrinal superiority, or any other impediment (like pride, fear, or control)

We want God - Father, Son and Spirit. On His terms, not ours. The real thing. Every promise in His Word.

Would you pray as we seek the next transformation of MCC - that we would get all of God as Paul prayed?

Love you so much, Denis