We’re praying that God uses this time to build & grow our church community, so pray with us for this and for good weather!  And if you haven’t yet, take a minute and invite those you are reaching out to.  Let’s bring others into our experience of a loving community that has been transformed by the gospel! Jump on this opportunity to invite out friends, family, neighbors, co-workers.  Everyone is welcome…kids, marrieds, singles, etc. 

See you on Friday!
-Hydro

& here are more details:

What’s provided:
Food: burgers, hot dogs, buns
Drinks: lemonade, water
Condiments: ketchup, mustard, American cheese
Paper Products: cups, plates, utensils, napkins
Grills & grillers: Singles Ministry Pastors
Tables: one for each care group, and some indoor seating with tables
Games: volleyball, (Sorry no soccer goals, they were destroyed in the storm)
Cleanup: clorox wipes [for your cg table]

What your cg people may want to bring:
Food: side dishes, snacks – enough to share with friends. Feel free to use the grills.
Seating: blankets, lawn chairs
Games: cards, frisbees, footballs
Cleanup: energy to cleanup your table; wipe down your table, break it down, and stack it on a provided cart

Guys, do yourself, the church & the world a favor by coming out to this teaching!

Carolyn is bringing this needed perspective as a nationally known speaker & author on biblical womanhood.  Over the last few years she has added entrepreneur to her resume with the start up of her documentary film company.  We know questions can abound for women who are either working in the home or in a career and we believe this talk will bring a greater biblical clarity to those questions. 

God bless,

Hydro

The Bible study is every month on the 1st Friday at Isaac’s place. 

If you’d like to attend, contact Isaac Hydoski at (ihydoski@covlife.org).

Ripley’s Ventures is the group name, and it’s primarily for anyone passionate about God and the outdoors. Group ventures include caving, hiking, camping and more. Non-Christians and all skill levels are welcome. Check out the group and its upcoming activities on Facebook and Meetup.

• serve the local community and show the love of Christ
• host a Christian day camp at neighborhood sites (Emory Grove, Laytonia, Washington Grove)
• build an on-going ministry in the community

This years’ summer outreach week is July 7-14, and Todd needs the help of several dependable, creative, leadership-oriented individuals to make this event happen. Hope you’ll consider serving on this outreach team and passing the word on to others!

A few of the positions are more urgent than others, so if you’re ready to serve, check out the immediate needs listed directly below. If you’d like to serve later in the summer, check out the outreach week listing.

For more info, or to sign up, e-mail tkeeler@clsemail.org.

Thank you for continuing the mission to share the gospel and make disciples of Christ!

Immediate volunteers

• Site Leaders: Work with the Mission Leader and Assistant Site Leader to plan for the week of outreach. Lead a group of youth in providing a Christian day camp for one of the neighborhood sites.
• Assistant Site Leaders: Assist the Site Leader, lead the youth by example, and reinforce what is communicated by the Mission Leader and the Site Leader.

Outreach Week volunteers

• Administration
• Coordinators: Creative Team, Volunteers, Transportation
• Operators: Kitchen, Tech
• Team Leaders: Drama, Music, Media, Recreation
• Translators
• and more!

Year-round volunteers

• Homework Clubs
• Tutoring Ministry

OneU has recently added a new staff member whose sole job is to be preaching Christ and continuing the mission to reach the lost and make disciples of all nations. His name is Daryl Boffman, and his goal is to begin serving on campus beginning this fall. He’s a good friend of mine, and has been a member of the church for about a year now. If you’re not currently supporting a OneU evangelist and/or would like to learn more about the ministry and how you can support it, download and read his newsletter (PDF, 590kb). He’d be happy to meet with you and talk about OneU and the work at UMD. 

Soli Deo Gloria,
Hydro

The mission of the church and the ministry is to make disciples of Christ. How will you participate in the mission?

Click HERE to listen online or download the audio from the March 13 BIG Meeting.

Click HERE to download the Ministry’s Mission handout (PDF, 582kb)

Details & registration info can be found HERE.

Early Bird Registration (December—March 31st)
+Individual: $150; Married Couple: $225

Regular Registration (April—May)
+Individual: $175; Married Couple: $250

If you’d like to attend NEXT, but are in need some financial assistance, please contact Marybeth Fairchild at (mfairchild@covlife.org).

Hope to see you there!

The seminar will address who this kind of relational Bible reading ministry is for, describe how it works and provide training to put it to use. The focus is on using your new Bible-centered relationships as the springboard for evangelism, discipleship, and leadership development.

For more details click HERE.

This seminar is FREE, but we do need ask that you register HERE.

The Singles Ministry of is excited to have pastor and author Paul Tripp teach on the realities of conflict, and address how we can benefit from relationships.

All of us begin the relationships in our lives expectant and hopeful, and we all face disappointments we never expected. Hurt and conflict somehow become the ingredients of all of our relationships. At this conference you’ll learn why hope turns into disappointment, peace into conflict, and discover how your relationships can be what they were designed to be.

Singles who attend the marriage conference; What Did you Expect will greatly benefit from this singles seminar. Marriages involve unavoidable conflict—often this isn’t fully realized until one is married. This Singles Seminar essentially takes the microcosm of conflict from the marriage conference and gears it towards an audience of singles to help them prepare for marriage, and practice conflict resolution.

We hope you will join us! REGISTER HERE.

Saturday February 4 | Main Auditorium
6:30PM – Doors Open
7:00PM – Conference Opens
7:20PM – Session 1
8:10PM – Break
8:30PM – Session 2
9:15PM – Q&A
9:30PM – Close

Enjoy your extra Care Group night!

-The Singles Pastors

We have a unique blessing planned for everyone at our December 13th Singles Big Meeting.  Our own Tony Reinke will be guest speaking and imparting to us a God-focused message from his new book, Lit!

We’ll learn that words matter to God.  Our God is a God of self-disclosure & revelation.  Happily, throughout history He has guarded and preserved His revelation to His people in the form of written words.  The words of Scripture proclaim to us in brilliant, vivid detail, the uniqueness of our God.  The words of Scripture capture the beauty & power of God’s redemption in Christ.  Words matter to God and therefore they should matter to God’s people.

Although we live in a culture today dominated by images (which has certainly brought many blessings to us), our image dominated society can also lead to a loss of appreciation for the written word.  Some of us have little time to read.  Some have little desire to read.  Some of us find reading difficult and not leisurely. 

In his book Lit! Tony asks a couple of questions that are worthy of our attention:
“What will we lose if we ignore books?”  “What will we gain if we fill our lives for the next twenty years with disciplined reading?”

Braden, Kevin & I believe everyone will be inspired, and equipped biblically and practically by this message.  Tony is going to help us see the benefit of reading and the connection that reading has in our walk with God.  Whether you’re a reader or have never picked up a book in your life this message is for you.  You’ll be inspired to read and you’ll be equipped with practical ways to start reading & read more effectively.  So make sure you don’t miss this opportunity. 

We’re having dinner together at 6:30pm in the South Lobby, and the meeting starts at 7:30pm in the Events Center. 

Please, as always, think about who you can invite to the Big Meeting and then actually invite them!  I believe this message will be really accessible, and possibly more inviting for some people, especially to those that are far from Christ. 

Love you all…
hydro

Dates: Sunday, Nov 13th | Nov 27th | Dec 11th | Jan 8th | Jan 22nd

Time: 1:30pm - 3:00pm

Location:  Luther Room (upstairs in the church offices - conference room located on your left when passing the front desk)

Who is this for?:  College Age and above participants looking to better understand their God–given vocational gifts and develop them in jobs and careers in service of others.

What can be expected at a workshop?:  Practical cross-generational instruction , hands-on discovery exercises , “next step” goal setting, small group sharing of prayer needs to encourage folks exploring job transition.

Topic - What job is best for you?:  Identify your God–given gifts and find out what vocations you are best suited for.

Email Art Shenk (aeshenk@gmail.com) if you are interested in attending!

Volunteers needed to serve in various areas:
Shady Grove Pregnancy ministry table 6-7PM & 9-10PM
Usher 6:00pm-7:15PM
Unloading crew 9AM-3PM
Take-down crew 9-11PM

Contact Kjersten Blair to sign up & for more details (kblair@covlife.org)

Through Christ’s definitive work in his life, death, and resurrection from the dead, he is restoring the image of God in us. As we more closely imitate the one who has saved us, we will love our neighbor, which has significant implications for how we work.

Click HERE to download the audio from the Nov. 1st BIG Meeting.

We apologize for the “buzz” sound in the background, but we hope it serves those who want to listen to it.

1. New believers group.  My friends, Andrew & Gia Sandor, have just started a new small group whose sole purpose is to provide an encouraging, helpful environment for new believers.  Their group is currently made up of new believers from the most recent Introducing God course and a handful of others who are new to the faith.  It’s really neat to see how these new brothers & sisters are growing in Christ as they experience Christian community for the first time.  Please pray for them!

2. CG Plant!  Recently I met with one of my small groups that is no longer small, and needs to be multiplied. We explored a few options of what to do & together have decided to move forward with a care group “plant” idea.  Instead of the traditional ‘splitting the group in two’, the existing group is going to “send out” a small team of 5-8 people to launch a new small group where I can place the many new people being added to our church.  I love this idea as it reinforces our call to be sacrificing by making disciples; “going” & “teaching” others as followers of Christ. 

3. Evangelism Strategy Meeting with local pastors.  This morning I’ll be meeting with a group of local pastors with Ravi Zacharias & leaders from the C.S. Lewis Institute to pray and discuss ways our local churches can be partnering together in reaching the lost in the DC Metro area.  Pray that God blesses our time and substantive gospel ministry & partnership results. 

Thank you my friends for your partnership & prayers!  Very grateful for each of you.

Hydro

One of the conferences was called Engage. It was focused on “young workers,” which, in their lingo, means young professionals in the workplace. I was asked in an interview if I thought this focus was a good idea. I said yes, because of 1 Corinthians 10:31, “Whether you eat or drink, or whatever you do, do all to the glory of God.”

So they asked: How can young workers glorify God at work?

Here’s the gist of my answer.

Dependence. Go to work utterly dependent on God (Proverbs 3:5-6; John 15:5). Without him you can’t breathe, move, think, feel, or talk. Not to mention be spiritually influential. Get up in the morning and let God know your desperation for him. Pray for help.

Integrity. Be absolutely and meticulously honest and trustworthy on the job. Be on time. Give a full day’s work. “Thou shalt not steal.” More people rob their employers by being slackers than by filching the petty cash.

Skill. Get good at what you do. God has given you not only the grace of integrity but the gift of skills. Treasure that gift and be a good steward of those skills. This growth in skill is built on dependence and integrity.

Corporate shaping. As you have influence and opportunity, shape the ethos of the workplace so that the structures and policies and expectations and aims move toward accordance with Christ. For example, someone is shaping the ethos of Chick-fil-A restaurants with this video.

Impact. Aim to help your company have an impact that is life-enhancing without being soul-destroying. Some industries have an impact that is destructive (e.g., porn, gambling, abortion, marketing scams, etc). But many can be helped to turn toward impact that is life-giving without being soul-ruining. As you have opportunity, work toward that.

Communication. Work places are webs of relationships. Relationships are possible through communication. Weave your Christian worldview into the normal communications of life. Don’t hide your light under a basket. Put it on the stand. Winsomely. Naturally. Joyfully. Let those who love their salvation say continually, Great is the Lord! (Psalm 40:16)

Love. Serve others. Be the one who volunteers first to go get the pizza. To drive the van. To organize the picnic. Take an interest in others at work. Be known as the one who cares not just about the light-hearted weekend tales, but the burdens of heavy and painful Monday mornings. Love your workmates, and point them to the great Burden Bearer.

Money. Work is where you make (and spend) money. It is all God’s, not yours. You are a trustee. Turn your earning into the overflow of generosity in how you steward God’s money. Don’t work to earn to have. Work to earn to have to give and to invest in Christ-exalting ventures. Make your money speak of Christ as your supreme Treasure.

Thanks. Always give thanks to God for life and health and work and Jesus. Be a thankful person at work. Don’t be among the complainers. Let your thankfulness to God overflow in a humble spirit of gratitude to others. Be known as the hope-filled, humble, thankful one at work.

There are more things to say about glorifying God in the workplace. But this is a start. Add to the list as God gives you light. The point is: Whatever you do, whether you eat or drink or work, do all to make God look as great as he really is.”

Copyright © 2011 Desiring God, All rights reserved.

Mailing address is:
Desiring God
2601 E Franklin Ave
Minneapolis, Minnesota 55406

As image bearers of God we are called to work, to extend His governing rule over creation, and bring blessing to the world.

Click HERE to download the audio from the Oct. 11th BIG Meeting.

Christianity: A Failed Hope?
Thursday, October 20th @ 7:30pm
Location: Constitution Hall, 1776 D Street Northwest, Washington, DC 20006

Event is FREE, but you must register online - click HERE for more details.

An au pair is an international lady (ages 18-30) who comes to the U.S. to work as a nanny for a year or two. Back in 2004, our dear sister, Charissa Galbraith, started the Au Pair Place ministry as she had a burden to reach out and befriend these ladies who are away from all their friends and families living in a foreign nation.

The main purpose of our ministry is to represent Christ’s love by building faithful friendships with au pairs. We do so by organizing monthly coffeehouses on the first Friday of the month during which we spend time with au pairs playing games, talking, and just hanging out. We also provide additional opportunities to get to know each other and have fun. In the past, such events included dinners, excursions to downtown DC, movie nights, and day trips to the beach. In the fall, we usually organize a Thanksgiving Party, which provides a context to welcome newly arrived au pairs as well as to build even stronger friendships with the girls that we have already met. It is through building purposeful friendships that we expect Christ’s love to be demonstrated and conversations about the gospel to come up.

In the past, this has been a thriving ministry with au pairs giving their lives to the Lord and many ladies from Covenant Life participating faithfully. Right now, the ministry team has dwindled down to the point that if no more ladies from Covenant Life join, we may have to end it. Please consider joining this ministry!

Our next event is the monthly coffeehouse on Friday, November 4th at 7:30pm

To find out more, please contact Besilica Castaneda at (aupairplace@gmail.com).

Today I was praying for the various responsibilities I’ve got going on in the coming weeks and the Lord brought this verse to mind:
“Pray for us, for we are sure that we have a clear conscience, desiring to act honorably in all things.” Hebrews 13:18

The particular part that stood out to me was the author of Hebrews’ simple request for the people of God to pray for the leadership of the church - a simple “pray for us”.  In light of this, I thought I’d send out my own personal “pray for us” to each of you, my brothers & sisters. 

As the Lord leads would you pray for:

•    Today’s meeting with the SGM Board.  The pastoral team of Covenant Life have been in continuous conversation with our dear brothers who have been tasked to lead Sovereign Grace in this turbulent time.  Please pray for us & our brothers!

•    Redeemed Manhood Class on Saturday: I’m leading a class intended to equip the single men of our church to think biblically of our image bearing as men.  God has given me a particular burden to be discipling the men in our church & i’ve been praying for opportunities like this for many months.  Please pray that I would be effective in teaching & that God would equip & build up the men of our church!

•    Big Meeting: this coming Tuesday night I’ll be teaching on “Vocation: Why Work?” .  I’m excited about teaching on this important topic that we’re all called to but perhaps haven’t developed a biblical framework for.  Please pray for time to dig into the Word and for God to lead me in the message prep process.  My week has been jammed with many meetings & various urgent issues that have kept me from the kind of study I was hoping for this week.

Thank you for praying my friends!

Hydro

Marriage is a relationship between a man & woman that’s intended to reflect a divine relationship between Christ & his bride; the church. Find out how this profound reality should influence the way we as Christians view and live out relationships that could lead to marriage.

Click HERE to download the audio from the Sept. 13th BIG Meeting.

Hundreds of volunteers are needed to serve in Discovery Land and there are multiple ways to serve!

Contact Josh Cooley (jcooley@covlife.org) for more details.

When:
Friday September 2, 7:30-9:00 Proverbs 31
Friday October 7, 7:30-9:00 Ephesians 5:22-33

Please rsvp to me at ihydoski@covlife.org if you’re coming.  I can only handle about 25 guys at my place so we’re gonna do a first come, first serve kind of deal.  If there seems to be a big interest in this we might move it to the church so more can come. 

Hope you see you guys there.

Soli Deo Gloria,
Hydro