Ready?

I LOVE this time of year, for about a million reasons. Those who know me well know how crazy I am about snow and winter in New England. I love it, all 6 months of it! But I'm not talking about winter...I'm talking about Advent.

Growing up, Advent was always a special time in our family, when we would light the candles and read part of the Christmas story--my dad would always talk about how "the Light of the World is coming!" and we would pray that "our hearts would be ready". It confused me a little because I thought, "didn't He already come? Isn't that why we celebrate His birth?"

As I have grown older, both in age and in faith, I've realized that we not only celebrate His birth, but we also anxiously await the day when He will come again (Advent comes from the Latin word for "arrival"). It has become one of the most special times of the year for me, because it is a time when the rest of the world is, well, going crazy, and I have the opportunity to step back from that and reflect on what this event means in my life as a Christ-follower. Have you ever really thought about it? GOD became a BABY. Like the song says, He humbly came to the earth HE created, all for love's sake. The Word became flesh and MADE HIS DWELLING AMONG US.

I just finished an amazing study on the Old Testament tabernacle--God's original dwelling place with man. I learned so much about the orginial plans of the tabernacle, how each element was symbolic and intentional (if you've never read about Aaron's "priestly garments", read Exodus 28--that must have been an interesting look...), all so that there would be a proper dwelling place for God. But NOW, through Christ, WE are the dwelling place of God. All because the Word became flesh.

This is a big deal. And now I understand my dad's prayer that our hearts would be ready for His coming--it has become my prayer, because I WANT to be ready. The presence of God means the FULLNESS of God, and I want that in me. I want Him changing me, growing me, compelling me, inspiring me, even convicting me. And if we ever want Him to work through us to change this world for His Glory, we have to be ready as living, breathing, walking-around tabernacles of God.

So, are you ready?

Passion is Coming!

"Yes Lord, walking in the way of your truth we wait eagerly for you. For your name and your renown are the desire of our souls." --Isaiah 26:8

I hope you've heard by now about the Passion Regional Event that's happening right here in Boston next weekend, October 12-13. This is a great opportunity for students and young adults from across the Northeast to come together for two days to worship, pray and hear from God's Word. Many of the worship songs you sing and know have come from the Passion worship leaders like Chris Tomlin and Charlie Hall who will be joining us. Louie Giglio and John Piper will be bringing us messages from God's Word. We'll gather these two days at the Agannis Arena on Boston University's campus, on Comm Ave right off the Green Line B Train.

You can find out everything you want to know on Passion's website, and you can register there as well:

www.268generation.com

The price is $79, and I PROMISE you, it will be worth every penny. Passion is being used by God all over the world to bring a generation of people together to encounter God in a powerful way for His Glory. My life has been changed by God's work through Passion, and I know of many others who would say the same. Please join us, and please bring your friends!

After Friday, the price will go up to $99, so take advantage of the lower price and register NOW!!

If you have no idea what or who Passion is, go to their website and take a look around. They are an incredible group of people and have such a desire for God to be known in Boston. Come join us for this exciting time next weekend!

If you are over 25 and still want to come, please volunteer! It takes a lot of people to make something like this happen, so we can use your help! Register as a volunteer on the Passion website as well.

If you have any questions, feel free to email me at info@ccpcboston.org.
See you at the Agannis next Friday!

Something New

For those who are finding this blog through the new online home of the Collegiate Church Planting Community, welcome! My name is Stacey, and I have the great privilege of coordinating the CCPC here in Boston. I have the best job on earth, and look forward to sharing with you about it through this, my first attempt at entering the world of the blog. We'll see how it goes...

This is the season of NEW. In Boston, we are welcoming hundreds of thousands of college students who have been moving into Boston for the new semester--many for the first time. New faces, new classes, new digs, new lifestyle, new freedom. For some, the days ahead will be full of self-realization, self-discovery and a keen awareness that life has completely changed...for the better. For others, it will mean a tough road of learning from mistakes and trying to make wise choices in the aftermath of foolish ones. I think back on my college experience and know that I fell into both of those categories at one time or another!

For us in the Collegiate Church Planting Community we love this time of year because of all the possibilities and opportunities that come along with a new semester. We know that God has placed us and our churches in Boston at this time in history to fulfill His special purpose for this generation. It is not by chance. God knows exactly what He's doing. So we embrace the new semester and do everything we can to spread the fame of Jesus to students and young adults in Boston.

"Do not call to mind the former things, or ponder things of the past. Behold, I [God] will do something new, now it will spring forth; will you not be aware of it? I will even make a roadway in the wilderness, rivers in the desert." -Isaiah 43:18-19

God is up to something NEW. Every day. I don't know about you, but that makes it easier to get out of bed in the morning. Not only is His mercy new every morning (Lamentations 3:22-23), but He is always at work in new ways, making rivers in deserts! No small feat for us, but a very small one for our God. All glory to Him!

Father, do something new in Boston--where there is wilderness, make a roadway; where there is desert, let it flow with rivers of Living Water!