Family Reunion?

What is the first thing you think of when you hear "family reunion?"

• Excitement to see family you have not seen in years? 
• Hope that there will be enough down time to actually talk and share a bit of your life's recent journey?
• Misgivings at being with individuals where there has been hurt or a broken relationships? 
• Dread at the idea of getting into your swimsuit?

Even with many mixed feelings at play, I hope there are anticipations of what God will do during such unique, set apart times. Let me share a personal example.

Forty-three "Thulsons" just came away from an amazing three days together.  While some individuals are struggling with health issues, lack of good jobs, and other issues as the result of living in a broken world, we loved being together.  I do not take for granted the foundation laid by my husband's parents, Roy and Lorraine, for the strength of faith and love in our extended family. 

As all of us shared Communion on Sunday morning, packed into our family room, I had a glimpse of the ultimate "family reunion" with our Abba, Lord Jesus and the Holy Spirit. Imagine sharing stories of our life's journeys here, and how often -- just when it seemed as if God had given up on us -- it became evident that he was present. Imagine being held close to the heart of Jesus -- one unified family giving praise and honor to the Lamb, to our heavenly Father and to the Holy Spirit. That's a family reunion worth waiting for!

Adventure 2013: Into the Unknown

Karl Helvig, Pastor to Youth and Young Adults

Hiking, climbing, backpacking, camping, cabins, sleeping bags, tents, ropes, community, teamwork, campfires, worship, testimonies. These are just a few of the words that simmer in my mind when I think of a week at camp.  

I love going to camp.  God has a way of moving powerfully during these times apart.

In the past 15 years I have worked with over 600 students during more than 80 weeks of camp experience: backpacking trips, canoe trips, weeks at camp, weekend retreats.  Bearing that decade and a half in mind, I can confidently say that God moved in particularly powerful ways during our week together on “Adventure 2013: Into the Unknown.”

The entire week was full of honesty, teamwork, prayer, scripture and Jesus.  It was beautiful. 

In a lot of ways, the entire week gained momentum as our experiences built upon one another.  The team building on Monday prepared us for a 14er hike on Wednesday and everything helped cultivate the powerful times of worship and sharing testimonies around the campfire each night.  The trip was coming to a close when we arrived back at church on Friday night, ready for a final group of students to share their testimonies.  After a final late night time with God, a group of students began to pray together.  What proceeded from there was a four hour time of prayer and seeking God. While I was present, the prayer time was student initiated and student led.  We encountered God in a powerful way that night and I believe it was because, as a group, we had been drawing close to him and to one another throughout the week.  These four hours also stood out in a couple unique ways.  During the prayer time, we experienced a period of praying specifically against some dark spiritual powers working in the life of one student in particular.  This time ended with many of us in the group feeling a clear sense of peace and freedom in our spirits.  Following that, the group continued seeking God and then experienced what we believe to be a time when God spoke to our group in specific ways.

It’s hard to put into words exactly what happened, but we know that our eyes were opened to the spiritual realities around us and we know that we leaned into Jesus through prayer in a powerful and unforgettable way.

Experiences like this can be tricky.  They are both encouraging and confusing, yet we have seen a lot of fruit. We enjoyed a 2-hour time with about 75 parents, students, and church leaders debriefing and processing some of these extraordinary experiences. Students are eager to pray for one another and dig into God's word.  We are fully rejoicing in the ways God has been and continues to be at work.  However, we also know that we live in a fallen world and the reality of God's presence is much greater and more pervasive than any single experience we ever have.  There is no single experience that can fully and perfectly capture the work of God in us and through us.  So, we pray that God continues to clarify and confirm what he began that Friday night.

Our sermon series at church for the past weeks has been on BREAKTHROUGHS.  Even if an experience like this leaves us with as many questions as it does answers, we still pray that God would be creating breakthroughs in the lives of the students of Studio72.  May this be just the beginning of a work of God’s Spirit, breaking into our lives and into the life of our church.

Grace and Peace,

Karl

Eyes Wide-Open

Pastor of Worship and Staff, David Dillon

We are very blessed to have many photographers at Centennial with an eye for capturing beauty.  One Saturday morning a couple of weeks ago, eight of them did a morning outing in downtown Denver seeking to capture “Urban Life” with their cameras.

As a place to gather our creative work and let others enjoy it, we created a Flickr group called “Centennial Covenant Photographers” that you can view here http://www.flickr.com/groups/2214230@N20/pool/ Go ahead and look – there’s some beautiful work from that morning from people you probably know!

Our plan is to continue with these outings on a monthly basis through the summer. We have tentatively planned our next outing for Sunday, July 7 shooting downtown at sunset. If you have a love for photography we would welcome you coming along or joining our Flickr group. Just let me know of your interest.

Let’s watch and see where God takes us as our eyes are wide-open to the world around us!

David Brown

Cassie Britain

David Dillon

Brian Hatak

Steve Johnson

How to Avoid God?

Senior Pastor, Steve Thulson

Writing 50 or so years ago, British author C.S. Lewis wrote an essay called "The Seeing Eye" -- a response to atheist Soviet Cosmonauts who said they had not seen God in space. He compared that to assuming you might meet William Shakespeare by reading Hamlet. 

Lewis also talked about "avoiding God."  It's "extremely easy," he's said. "Avoid silence, avoid solitude, avoid any train of thought that leads off the beaten track. Concentrate on money, sex, status, health and (above all) on your own grievances. Keep the radio on. Live in a crowd. Use plenty of sedation. If you must read books, select them very careful. But you’d be safer to stick to the papers."

It's even easier in our time, isn't it? We're bombarded with information, voices, media, and noise that flood their way into any potential silence and solitude. 

Yet God himself does not get crowded out. He's more than "there." And he's ready to welcome our open hearts to fill them with his grace and truth. 

This summer, why not stop avoiding God and step into his loving search for you? Go on some walks with him. Let what you see reflect his glory. Let what's on your mind be channeled into a conversation. Open a Bible and listen. Get with a friend and ask about any God-sightings. 

"My times are in your hands" (Psalm 31:15). What about this time for you?

Summer Witness

I am hiking the Twin Sisters Trail.  After a long series of switchbacks, nestled in a pine forest with NO view at all, I break out at the top.  What lies before me is spectacular Longs Peak only a short distance away.

I am sitting in a family room with a dying friend.  Everyone knows all too well that this may be the last conversation we will have this side of the resurrection.

I am sitting on the living room floor, surrounded by a chaotic tangle of toys and puzzle pieces.  Suddenly I am tackled by a chattering, somewhat wobbly one year old and we fall down together in a joyous heap.

I am driving with my nine year old grandson discussing various wars he has become aware of and quite interested in.  On his own, he suddenly refers to Gideon’s battle with the Midianites and how God fought for the Israelites and gave them a supernatural victory.

I have just witnessed an amazing sunset on the drive to visit a disabled friend who has not seen a sunset in years.  Her apartment has no western exposure and she only gets out to go to the doctor during the day.  I sit with her and prayerfully listen as she describes hours of relentless pain and feeling let down by the Medicare system.

I sit on the shore of Lake Galilee with my best friend and a life partner (same person) taking communion.

What do all the above have in common?   

Jesus, himself, is present.  Not only is he present, but engaged and drawing me to himself to know him as the author of creation, beauty and love; and the companion and comforter during dark nights on my life’s journey.

This summer, remember the “with-ness” of Jesus wherever you are!

Sawdust: An Aroma Holy and Pleasing

“When I make sawdust I feel His pleasure.” 

So would have gone the famous quote by Olympic Gold Medalist Eric Liddell, had he been a woodworker. He wasn’t though; his passion was running, and God met him and he met God through that simple act.

I am not much of a runner, but I do have a lot of passions, and I understand Liddell’s sentiment of communing with God as I engage those passions. Lately, woodworking has had my attention, and specifically, building my first guitar. This project began on April 30 last year. After a long winter hiatus, where my garage/workshop was too cold to be functional, I am nearing completion.

Not only do I hope that this instrument will be a tool for worshiping, but also there have been moments of worship even during its creation. Especially the distinct and pungent smell of walnut being cut by my band saw, or the sheen that I start to see in a highly polished ebony fretboard—these cause me to praise the God who gifted us with senses.

I can’t help but think too about God’s passion for extravagant beauty in worship. Sometime read Exodus 31:1-11. Here you see God giving his Holy Spirit to artists and artisans for the purpose of beautifying the Israelites’ place of worship. I believe this was a beauty not only for the Israelites to enjoy as they worshipped God, but also a beauty that God enjoyed. Art is a communal gift. By the way, this was one of the first recorded instances of God filling someone with his Spirit. Think about the significance of God giving that kind of attention to art and artists!
 So as I stand in a carpet of sawdust in my workshop, I stand in a great line of worshiping artists with a passion for beauty and a passion for God. What about you? What are you passionate about? Can you see those passions as an opportunity for worship?