Serve the House | Serve the City | Serve the Globe – Celebration Church in Austin, TX

This weekly Vision/Information/Prayer (V.I.P.) thought is designed to inspire, inform & focus Celebration Serves teams around why we do what we do.

Sunday, August 29 (Fifth Sunday) & Wednesday, September 1 (A Team)

Vision:

“They will be called the Holy People, the Redeemed of the Lord; and you will be called Sought After, the City No Longer Deserted.” Isaiah 62:12

We serve because we’ve been called.  Called “holy,” blessed beyond comprehension.  Called “redeemed,” beyond the ability to repay.  Called “sought after,” by people and God.  Called a “city no longer deserted,” as we gather to serve and share.  Walk in your calling and invite others to join you in the journey.

Information:

Baptism, August 29^th: Have you been baptized since receiving Jesus as Lord?  It’s important to take this step of faith as a believer.  Learn more at a 4pm class and then stay for the 5pm baptism service.

Momentum, August 30^th: Men, you won’t want to miss our next event with Guest Speaker Pastor Keith Craft.  An evening jam-packed with car show, macho nachos & a timely word.  Invite your friends!  Starts at 6pm & your $6 ticket includes admission for a guest to Celebration.

Prayer:

Heavenly Father, thank you for seeking us out and giving us new names.  We want to glorify You as we serve You and represent You.  Give us strength and wisdom to walk out Your call today.  In Jesus’ name.  Amen.

353 bags of school supplies were collected from Celebration Members as well as 47 boxes for Xai-Xai, Mozambique! The Bags were given to several schools throughout the Austin area! Here are some highlights from the week:

Pastor Shawn Bouldin delivered bags to Nadine Johnson Elementary School in Hutto! Staff member Jamie said that the school would be able to give bags of supplies to a family wherein 2 kids lost their mom this summer in a car accident. With the bags of celebration, the school is able to bless the family now. This school contact was developed this year thru a program that Celebration started this past year called, “Lunch with KIDS Pastor.” Many kids from Celebration attend this school!

Northwest Elementary School in Pflugerville had a list of 10 families that need supplies, and the timing of the Bags of Celebration was perfect. Now they are able to bless these families! This school has a large number of students that are very  underprivileged. Many kids have no school supplies. Pastor Shawn was able to meet with the Principal and the Staff–they were thrilled at what Celebration gave!

We were also able to give to Berkman Elementary in Round Rock. Pastor Shawn spoke to one of the schools’ Social Workers. She has two families coming in to school today that are in need. We gave them 10 bags. This is second year in a row Celebration has given bags. The timing was awesome because they are out of district funded supplies. These bags were reinforcements!

Burton Elementary School in Liberty Hill was amazed at the generosity, actually had a family from Celebration, the Curiks deliver with their Middle school and Elementary school students.

Alex Shenkin was able to deliver some Bags of Celebration to West View Middle School in Pflugerville. The Counselor was touched by the donation and the  Principal was very overwhelmed again, as yesterday she just couldn’t believe that Celebration was there again after cooking for 100 teachers on Tuesday!

To see a complete list of all the schools and organizations that we were able to reach out to, please see below! Boxes will be shipped out to Xai-Xai in the next week or two!

Organizations & Events that were given bags:
Georgetown School District Homeless Education
Fiesta Market Event (Various AISD schools–this event is on Aug 27/28 so we don’t have exact schools yet, just know that they are all AISD.)
Cypress Creek Riverbend Georgetown
Launchpad (Various AISD schools)

Students in the Following Schools Received Bags of Celebration:
Williams Elementary
Annie Purl Elementary
Nadine Johnson Elementary School
Cooper Elementary School
Carver Elementary School
Northwest Elementary School
Berkman Elementary School
Burton Elementary School
Baghdad Elementary School
Tippit Middle School
West View Middle School
Rouse High School
Georgetown 9th Grade School

School Districts Represented:
Liberty Hill
Round Rock
Hutto
Leander
Georgetown
Pflugerville
Austin

Celebration, thank you so much for your generosity!

This weekly Vision/Information/Prayer (V.I.P.) thought is designed to inspire, inform & focus Celebration Serves teams around why we do what we do.

Sunday, August 22 & Wednesday, August 25 (B Teams)

Vision:

“For we are God’s workmanship, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do.” Ephesians 2:10

The Greek word translated “workmanship” is poema, the same word from which we get our English word poem.  It means a masterfully crafted object, like a piece of poetry, a painting, or a sculpture.  In other words, each of us is God’s work of art!   As we serve with Him in His House, let’s remember we are His poema on display.  From the words we say to the look in our eyes, from the way we treat guests to the way we worship, we are His masterpiece for all to see.

Information:

Baptism, August 29^th: Have you been baptized since receiving Jesus as Lord?  It’s important to take this step of faith as a believer.  Learn more on Sunday the 29^th at a 4pm class and then stay for the 5pm baptism service.

Momentum, August 30^th: Men, you won’t want to miss our next event with Guest Speaker Pastor Keith Craft.  An evening jam-packed with car show, macho nachos & a timely word.  Invite your friends!  Starts at 6pm & your $6 ticket includes admission for a guest to Celebration.

Prayer:

Lord, please write greater faith on our hearts today…faith and love and joy! We thank you for the opportunity to serve Your people.  We love you and want to represent You beautifully in all we do.  In Jesus’ name.  Amen.

This weekly Vision/Information/Prayer (V.I.P.) thought is designed to inspire, inform and focus Celebration Serve Teams around why we do what we do.

Vision / Information / Prayer

Sunday, August 15 & Wednesday, August 18 (A Teams)

Vision:

“So the servants went out into the streets and gathered all the people they could find, the bad as well as the good, and the wedding hall was filled with guests.” Matthew 22:10

In this parable, the kingdom of heaven is like a wedding banquet.  For us, the wedding banquet happens every Sunday: there’s a feast & the Father of the bride (church) wants everyone gathered for it.  Everyone gathered: the good & the bad — not just invited, but gathered.  To “gather” is to pick up or amass as if by harvesting, to scoop or take up from a resting place.  For you, “gather” may mean attending an extra service, or driving out of the way pick someone up, or even buying him or her a meal after service.  Remember, we are not called to just do church on Sunday with our church friends.  Not only did the servants prepare the wedding feast, but they were also sent out into the streets to gather the guests.   We are called to gather.

Information:

Back to School Sunday: Invite friends & family next Sunday for our back-to-school prayer over students & school staff, plus a special performance by Celebration KIDS.

Bags & Boxes of Celebration: Still time to donate a backpack or box full of school supplies for a deserving child.  Get more info online or at the Celebration SERVES booth.

Baptism, August 29^th: Have you been baptized since receiving Jesus as Lord?  It’s important to take this step of faith as a believer.  Learn more on Sunday the 29^th at a 4pm class and then stay for the 5pm baptism service.

Prayer:

Thank you for the feast, Lord.  We trust that you will give us the courage and the means to gather.  We pray that the bad and the good be brought to this House and that we treat them all as invited & honored guests.  Amen.

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Day 2: Friday 8/13/2010

So happy to see Pastor Joe and Lori this morning! They arrived safely last night while we were sleeping. Very cold morning in J’burg but the breakfast was hot and good. Plus three rounds of coffee and we were off to the airport.

Wayne, the owner of the bed/breakfast we ate at, drove us to the airport. Great conversations! He will be hosting the entire Mission of Mercy team who is arriving at his place tonight. He does a ton for the kingdom of God by letting many missionaries stay at his place at discounted rates. Great guy!

Once we arrived at the airport we got in line to check in. After a lengthy conversation with Nathan, the clerk, we found out that Mel didn’t have his passport and the currency exchange has it! We fly out in an hour and still have to go through security. Our troop of 6 was now down to 5 and Mel would likely have to get on the next flight. Security was a process but we made it through with our carryon bags. Then were transported to a terminal where they then transport us by vehicle to the plane. That whole process was about 45 min and while we were sitting on the plane (lo and behold) Mel walks in. By the grace of God he made it all the way to the exchange, drove back, got thru security, got transported to the plane and was able to fly out w/ us! Crazy!

Landing in Maputo we get our visas and start going thru screening. We round the corner and there are our 11 Bags that have eluded us since we’ve been in Africa! We load the bags and head to the last hurdle: customs. When we got there they began opening bags. Since none of us speak Portuguese we were even more relieved that Pastor Mel made it on the flight. Mel worked and worked at fighting off bribe requests and exhausting the energy of the officials they were finally so frustrated that they wanted to get rid of us J. So they told us to go through and take our stuff w/ us! Praise God! We checked the bags and nothing had been touched. We have tons of supplies and equipment to launch Celebration Church in Xai Xai and now we are free and clear.

Outside the airport we see a familiar face, Diane Stauber! She and her kids and a great guy named Fuel helped us get all 11 bags and all 10 bodies in a van. From there we hit the hotel to drop off some stuff and then headed to the restaurant for lunch.

Driving down the streets of Maputo gave us a real glimpse into the real Mozambique looks like. Dirt roads, half torn down houses and hawkers desperate to make a dime. This sight soon turned into taller buildings, cars and trendy clothing. It is amazing to see the difference from one block to the other and how money in Mozambique is the great divider between social classes. Maputo is a city and one of the bigger ones in Mozambique so there are plenty of buildings and cars but still much poverty. Walking into the restaurant we were aggressively greeted by men trying to sell us trinkets and fabrics. So aggressive that we had to physically force them back. It was frustrating but when you realize that this is the only way they can make some money to live off of then you understand the desperation. There is great need and this is the bustling city of Mozambique…we haven’t even been to Xai Xai yet.

Fuel has been so gracious and has been driving us all over. He has 2 kids. 1 of each and three years apart just like my kids. In conversation w/ Fuel we found out that in Maputo an architect is the most respected profession but accountants make the most money not doctors or lawyers. We also learned that being pulled over by the police and being forced to pay them off is normal. Fuel laughed at us for even asking the question, that’s how normal it is. We are on our way to meet Pastor Isaac and see his Maputo church campus.

The road to Pastor Isaac’s church takes us to the more rural parts of Maputo. Cinder block homes w/ tin roofs if you are blessed but many home with reed roofs. It gets so cold at night and the cold stone walls and floors are their only comfort.

We arrived at the church site and a throng of kids awaited us. They are soooo beautiful! So small and very curious about us. Still, it didn’t take long for them to start warming up to us. Giving hugs, dancing, laughing, communicating and playing chase. It wasn’t long before Pastor Joe taught them a brand new song…”I like to move it move it, I like to move it move it!” So much fun! It was both joyful and sobering at the same time. Joyful in that these kids brought instant joy to all of us (and us to them) but sobering in the realization that they don’t have enough food, clothes, shelter. Most of them own one play outfit and one dress outfit. They’re clothes are torn and stained. There were four year olds no bigger than my two year old son due to being deprived of the nutrients they need to grow. Thank God for these care points that do whatever they can to help these kids have daily meals! Our church (Celebration Church) provides meals for hundreds of kids daily but we can do more and feed more and we will. There are more kids than adults due to their parents being dead or enslaved by working the mines or round the clock jobs. One young boy who sat on my lap smelled of feces and it breaks my heart. I sometimes can’t even convince my own kids to take a bath and these kids don’t even have the luxury. Still, they are so full of love and life and were thrilled to make us laugh as were we to make them laugh. Sun was going down and we had to leave. I know that none of us wanted to.

The conversation following gave us some enlightenment on the spiritual condition of Mozambique. 30% muslim, 69% ancestral worship/paganism, 1% Christian. If that doesn’t say it all then I don’t know what else to say. Mozambique needs Jesus in a huge way! We can and will do something about it. For Celebration Church it starts in Xai Xai. We head there tomorrow. – Pastor Daniel

Prayer Note: Pray for Pastor Isaac and Carol in Mozambique. They are pouring their lives into these kids at the expense of their money, time and safety. Just a couple of months ago their house was broken into and they lost everything. They have two babies. Pray for provision and protection. Also pray for Fuel. He has a servant’s heart and loves the Lord. He has served us so faithfully. Great guy!

Check out Pastor Daniel Gonzales’ Blog www.shoutatdaniel.com

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Day 1: Thursday 8/12/2010

Long trip to Africa. I was in Australia this past June and although going from Atlanta to South Africa was only approximately 1.5 hours longer than Australia, it felt like an eternity. God’s way of humbling me long before I even enter Africa. He has a way of doing that.

We landed in South Africa on Thursday 5p or so. Corey Bell and Gabe Soto are my travel mates and I’m very grateful they are here with me. Our bags didn’t show up on the conveyer so a big “?” was evident to which the official told us they were delivered straight to Maputo. I sure hope they are there when we arrive. I’m glad I packed a change of clothes on my carry on. No luck for Corey tho. He was forced to check his carry on back in the states.

Met up w/ Pastor Mel at the airport under a huge Soccer Ball in the airport lobby. The people here are very proud of their team. Soccer stuff everywhere! Our driver Noah got us situated and soon we left for the hotel. On the way we picked up a lady for Botswana named Helen. Sweet lady and has a huge crush on Bill Clinton. I told her we were from Texas to which she replied “I hear bad things about Texas. Black people die there.” We laughed and I replied “Well you are misinformed and my experience is that black people are CEOs of companies in Texas (looking at Corey).” We all had a good laugh and she said if Texans are like us then she wants to come check it out. She isn’t a Christian but hopefully our short conversation about Church, Life and the Xai Xai kids can be a seed. Pray for her if you get a chance.

From there we got to the hotel. Realized our heater doesn’t work in the room. Wouldn’t be a big deal if it wasn’t 46 degrees outside and the door to the room was a glass door! No biggie. Just glad to be off the plane.

We had a fantastic dinner w/ Pastor Mel. Chicken was superb! Mel got us up to speed on the situation in Xai Xai and the other care points we will hit in Mozambique. I asked about the kids. Mel began to talk about them and the atrocities that the kids have experienced to which he began to weep at the dinner table. His compassion for the kids is more than evident and I can’t wait to meet them myself.

We fly out at the crack of dawn to get to Maputo. From there we will meet up w/ the team from Healing Place Church’s African campus and begin hitting care points. The work for us begins Friday. The people so far in south Africa are very sweet and welcoming. Pray that our bags are in Maputo as we have valuable supplies for the kids in those bags. Internet will be spotty the next few days so I hope to update as often as possible but I may not be able to as much as I’d like.

Love yall! – Pastor Daniel

Hey Everybody! The NY2LA Tour is coming through and Celebration Church is hosting PressPlay with Matthew Barnett and Coffey Anderson on Friday, September 3rd at 7pm! It’s going to be an incredible event you won’t want to miss! What’s next? Well, we need a lot of volunteers to pitch in to make this night a huge success- it’s such a privilege to be able to host these amazing leaders at our home church! Here’s what we need from you:

You can sign up to be part of the…

1. Load In and Loud Out Crew
-This team does stage set up and tear down. You MUST be 18 or older and able-bodied. Wear close-toed shoes and dress for hard work.

-8am Load In: We will need 20 volunteers to help unload the semi and set up all of the production equipment. This should last until lunch time, or possibly beyond.
-9pm Load Out: We will need 20 volunteers to help tear down and load the semi with all the production equipment. Volunteers MUST be available at the front of the stage as soon as the service has concluded and stay until the semi is fully loaded.

2. Merchandise Crew

-For this team we will need 18 volunteers to serve from 5:30pm-10:30pm with various merchandise tasks such as, setting up the merchandise, interacting with customers, and tearing down the merchandise.

*Please send any questions or sign-ups to eforeman@celebrationchurchtx.com*

For the past 10 years, Annunciation Maternity Home a 501 © (3) non-profit organization, in Georgetown, Texas, has offered new beginnings in the lives of 285 young women and teens in a crisis pregnancy.  They serve and care for teenagers age 13 and up by providing housing, education, and medical care.  AMH is privately funded, and depends on the support of other charitable organizations, businesses, individual donors and volunteers.  In the past 3 months alone they have received over 320 calls and referrals, and that is where they need your help to meet the growing needs of young women and teens.

Currently the Annunciation Maternity Home utilizes the generous material donations from the community by having a bi-monthly garage sale for additional income.  Their sales are held the first and third weekend of every month, and proceeds from each sale provide basic needs for their residents and their children.  Celebration Church has signed on to serve on August 27th and 28th! Sales are usually on Friday and Saturday from 8am until noon. Generally 6-8 adults are needed for each sale which can be split into shifts.  Volunteers are needed to help with sorting, bagging, pricing, and loading purchased items.

This is a great way to give back to the community in a relaxed environment!  This Outreach will increase the wonderful community support which is vital to the Annunciation Maternity Home’s mission.  Your involvement with Annunciation Maternity Home will help them meet the needs of the young teens and their babies.

If you are interested in serving at this outreach, please contact Meagan Brantley at mbrantley@celebrationchurchtx.com.

This weekly Vision/Information/Prayer (V.I.P.) thought is designed to inspire, inform and focus Celebration Serve Teams around why we do what we do.

Sunday, August 1 & Wednesday, August 4 (A Teams)

Vision

“He has chosen us in him before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy and without blame.” Ephesians 1:4

Before the creation of the world, God was already busy choosing us, foreordaining, planning mercy and redemption for mankind.  He has already planned whom we will meet and He already knows the situations we will encounter.  As we serve, let’s remember it was His love that brought us to this place…and how fortunate we are that we are here, with these people, at this time!

Information

Christine Caine of Hillsong Church: International Speakers & Founder of A21

• Sunday Services – Georgetown 9am, 10:30am, 12pm.
• Young Adult Service – A no-holds-barred evening with Chris at 6pm.
• Celebration Women – Mon, August 2^nd 7pm.  Pre-register NOW for $12 or $15 at the door.

Prayer

Father, we acknowledge the truth of your Word.  Lord, we are thankful you chose us.  Help us minister to those You bring to us in a way that is “holy and without blame.”  Amen.

This weekly Vision/Information/Prayer (V.I.P.) thought is designed to inspire, inform and focus Celebration Serve Teams around why we do what we do.

Sunday, July 25 & Wednesday, July 28 (B Teams)

Vision:

“For this is what the Lord has commanded us:  ‘I have made you a light for the Gentiles, that you may bring salvation to the ends of the earth’” Acts 13:47

A light is bright, intense, goes everywhere and depends on a source to shine.   As a servant who has been entrusted the work of the Lord, bring your best, your brightest light.  Be spiritually intense, without being physically intense.  Go everywhere and be willing to do what no one else wants to do.  But, pray before you go, understanding that the “light” won’t come on without the “power”.

Information:

Christine Caine of Hillsong Church: International Speakers & Founder of A21

• Kingdom Builders Breakfast – Sat, July 31^st 8:30am, open to all, free.
• Sunday Services – Georgetown 9am, 10:30am, 12pm & 6pm.
• Celebration Women – Mon, August 2^nd 7pm.  Pre-register NOW for $12

Prayer:

Pray that God’s light reaches everywhere & touches every single person that walks through the doors.  Jesus, shine Your light in and through us today.  Amen.