I have a confession to make. Until 12 hours before our Trunk or Treat, I had no idea what I was going to dress up as. I announced Sunday that I was going to decorate my car as a ghost, and had thoughts of being a ghostbuster, but this morning I got a new idea and am now ready to go. I am so pumped about the event tonight. We will be on rain or shine, and you will have to wait and see my new idea. For some Halloween reading check out this previous post.
This year we will be receiving a Christmas Offering that I am very excited about. Our offering will be going to the students of the Hope Center in Nairobi Kenya. If we are able to reach our goal we will be able to provide shoes and sweaters for every student. World Hope has a wonderful ministry of providing for the entire child in one of the world's poorest areas. We will have more information to follow, but below is a statement from our I GIVE HOPE PROJECT website. www.IGiveHope.org
Through the "I Give Hope" project you have the opportunity to provide a pair of shoes and a sweater to the students of Hope Academy. In Nairobi's Kawangware slum, crime, malnutrition, air and water borne diseases, drug abuse, and poor sanitation are endemic. Located at Hope Center, Hope Academy provides education and food for 412 children, often the only schooling or decent meals the children may ever receive. With every donation of $10 you receive a "I Give Hope" wristband and the knowledge that you have given hope to some of the world's neediest children.
Today we delivered 3,000+ invitations to Trunk or Treat event. It is our hope that the children of Four Corners will have a safe and fun place to do their trick or treating. Let me ask you to pray for us as we prepare for this great event.
1. Pray for good weather. Tropical Storm Noel is threatening.
2. Pray for good turn out. We want to adequately serve everyone who attends. Pray for consistent turn out throughout the evening.
3. Pray for future opportunities. This event is just one in an overall determination for our church to serve the families of our community. Pray that the relationships that are established on Wednesday will continue for years to come.
We are asking all of our volunteers to be in place by 5:45 p.m. and be ready to distribute their candy by 6:00 p.m. For our guests all parking will be in the parking lot to the immediate left, and there will be attendants to help you.
The Orlando Sentinel has an article out today announcing that Disney will change the name of the MGM park beginning January 2008. You can read the article here.
I must admit that MGM could use a better moniker, logo, and persona, but the decision to call it "Disney's Hollywood Studios" is a bit insulting to me. I realize that Disney Land is in LA and Hollywood is the Mecca for everything movie, but as a resident and supporter of the Orlando park, I want it to be called "Disney's Orlando Studio" or "Disney Studios."
The people of Central Florida have invested billions into Disney and making it a partnership bringing movies to be shot here, and giving huge tax incentives to the movie industry.
I feel like a guy who got married only to find out that his new wife wants to change her name to that of her old boyfriend. I am sorry Disney, and Michael O'Grattan, you got this one wrong.
Been very busy with some cool stuff that I will post on later, but thought this might encourage you to exercise a bit when you have no other options.
40 Students were on the bus when the driver had a seizure.
Story Here
I really thought this was a great video for the first cool Friday of the fall. It has to be in the low 70's here. Brrr...
Our church is crazy about keeping kids safe. I think we are the only church in the area who requires secure check in with photo ID for our kid's zone so it was disturbing last night as church got out that one of our members approached my wife about a strange man sitting in a car watching the kids. We take security seriously, and he told her that he would not leave until the guy left and everything was okay. The only problem was that the guy did not leave. He just sat there with his car running the lights on and staring back towards the building. Needless to say this was a job for the senior pastor. The only problem with that is that he was the stranger who was sitting in the car watching the kids. Like a spider caught in my own web, I was the stranger danger. I was waiting to follow a family home for a meeting with them after church, but to everyone else, I was just stranger danger. I thank God for a church who cares enough about our kids to put their safety on the top of the list of priorities. That is one reason I am so looking forward to this year's trunk or treat. It is just one more opportunity for us to provide a safe place for kids to have fun and learn about God. This year we are sending 3,000 invitations at all three elementary and middle schools. I hope you have lots of candy!
The Posner development is fast approaching full throttle and it is encouraging to dream of the possibility of driving 5 minutes to Target instead of the 35 we do now. Also a second building, perhaps the Best Buy is almost closed in and just this weekend a sign for a new Staples went up. Sue King and I are ecstatic about that, because office supplies are hard to come by around here, and it will be nice not to have to drive to Lakeland or Clermont to buy paper! The Orlando Sentinel also has a good article about the future development of Four Corners for those of you who need to stay up to date with development. You can find it here.
I got a chance to hang out with my tribe yesterday in St. Pete. Joe Murray, our church planter in Harmony picked me up and we rode together. I am so excited about what God is doing through Joe. It was just 3 years or so ago that we met, and we have become fast friends. We were able to have a part in him starting the First Baptist Church of Harmony and things are really cranking for them. Last Sunday they had 216 in attendance and have several who are ready to be baptized. As Joe is now up and self supporting we will be turning our resources toward starting a church in Tallahassee. This will be an urban ministry in partnership with the Conference on Evangelizing Black America. Sterling Young will be the pastor of the church and he is as sharp as they come. I am looking forward to seeing what God is going to do through Capital City Baptist Church. I also had the opportunity to talk a bit with Dave Janney who is the pastor at Orlando Baptist and heads up our mission focus for World Hope. I look forward to getting to network more with Orlando Baptist and work together through World Hope to see Cornerstone more involved in missions.
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