On Sunday, we will wrap up our sermon mini-series, “Vision Points.”  This week the message will be “The Gathered and Scattered Church.”  We’ll look at what it means to live beyond the four walls of the church assembly and live missionally in the community. Also, we’ll be welcoming home our Guatemala Mission Team who worked hard all this week to build two new homes for widows, in Jesus name.  I’m sure they’ve got lots of storied to tell! 

This Sunday afternoon, we’ll be celebrating the upcoming arrival of the newest CitC baby.  We’ll be having a Baby Shower for Paul and Gianni Neil at 5:00 p.m. at the home of Tim and Kim Pieplow.  Both men and women are invited to the shower and please contact kim.pieplow@gmail.com if you need more details or directions to their place.

This just in, we are planning a “Parent’s Night Out” for our moms and dads to be able to go on a date night and celebrate Valentine’s.  The PNO will be on Friday, Feb. 10^th from 6:00 to 10:00 p.m.   The kiddos will be cared for by our children’s ministry volunteers at the home of Andrew and Fabia Hill while the parents go out on the town!  Please rsvp by emailing Lindsy.Sallee@nov.com by Monday, the 6^th.   Email Fabia@live.com if you need directions to their place.  The event is free of charge!  We are super thankful to our volunteers for making this happen and we know that the parents will be blessed by this ministry.

Other upcoming opportunities:

• Feb. 5^th- Baby Dedication Ceremony
• Feb. 12^th- Communion Service

Have a great weekend!  See you on Sunday. 

Coming up this Sunday at The Church in the Center, we will continue in our mini-series “Vision Points.”  This week, we’ll be talking about “The Missional Path:  from 1^st time visitor to reproducing leader.”  Have you ever felt stuck in a routine, just attending church, but not really being mobilized according to your passions and gifts or growing as a leader?  We’re gonna talk about that on Sunday!  Hope to see you there.

Also, this week, we will be hosting a “Newcomer’s Lunch” right after the worship service.   If you’re new to the CitC community and just trying to get to know us better, we’d love to hang out with you. Lunch we’ll be on us, and one of our elders will be there to spend time with you, visiting, getting to know you, and answering questions you may have about the church.   The lunch will take place on the 2^nd floor of our building in Driscoll’s restaurant starting about 12:20 or so.   Please let me know if you’re coming so we can get a head count.

Please remember to be in prayer for our Guatemala Mission Team. They leave out this Sat. morning and will be gone a week serving the Quiche people.  Pray for their health, safety, and Gospel witness.

Finally, please note we are planning  a  Co-ed Baby Shower for Gianni and Paul Neil on next Sunday, January 29th at 5pm.  The shower will be at Tim and Kim Pieplow’s Home.  Please contact Kim Pieplow at (kim.pieplow@gmail.com ) for more details.  Come help us be a blessing to the Neil family as they await the arrival of their second child, and we await the newest member of our church community.   The CitC baby boom just keeps going!

Have a great weekend!

Therefore, we are asking our members to help us start off the New Year financially strong by giving initially and regularly to help meet our budget needs for this year, as illustrated in the list below.  The budget items you see are examples of how dollars are mobilized as you give to the CitC. As you see, everyone can have a significant impact, whether the gift is large or small, in contributing to the mission and ministries of the church.

Sunday Services:

1. Parking passes for Sunday attendees

a)      10 passes for $50

b)     25 passes for $125

c)      50 passes for $250

2. Music equipment for Sunday services

a)      New portable storage equipment-  $200

b)     New musical instrument-  $250

3. Media equipment for Sunday services

a)      Projector maintenance-  $250

b)     Cables- $100

c)      Screen/ stand maintenance- $300

4. Auditorium rental expense needs

a)      For a week- $1,240

b)     For a month- $4,960

Childcare/Kid’s Ministry:

1.Supplies for kids ministry

a)      Supplies for one week- $10

b)     Supplies for a month- $40

2. Baby sitters to enable parents of little ones to attend Community Group

a)      1 baby sitter for 1 week-  $25

b)     1 baby sitter for a month- $100

c)      1 baby sitter for a semester- $400

Luncheons:

1. “New Comer’s” luncheons

a)      Lunch at one meeting-  $70

b)     Lunch for a month  (2 mtgs) – $140

2. Lunch at our “Membership Classes”

a)      One meeting- $125

b)     All for a year- $600

3. Meals for our Lunch Break Fellowship outreach

a)      Lunch for one week- $125

b)     Lunch for one month- $500

Administration:

1.Effective church admin software

a)      For a week- $20

b)     For a month-  $80

c)      For the year- $960

2. Office supplies and printing

a)      For a week-  $40

b)     For a month-  $160

c)      For the year-  $1,920

3. Communications utilities

a)      For a week- $50

b)     For a month- $200

4. New equipment and/or software for an intern or staff member

a)      $100 and up

Outreach:

1. Benevolence gifts for assisting the needy

a.)    Needs vary by case

2. Outreach events in the community

a)      Block parties-  $50, 100, 250, 500

b)     Family Fall Festival-  $100, 250, 500, 1,000

Miscellaneous:

1. Study materials for special small groups

a)      From $12-20 per person

2. Website hosting

a)      For a month $36

b)     For the year $432

3. Church liability insurance.

a)      For a week- $27

b)     For a month-  $108

c)      For the year-  $1,296

Missions:

Help us give more to missions.

Did you know?  More than 10% of every dollar given through general tithes and offerings goes straight to missions.  As you give more, we give more.

Please pray about how God would have you to respond to these needs. Specifically, we are praying for God to lay on our hearts a two-fold response to our need for financial growth.  First, for our members to give a special/extra offering as soon as possible towards our budget needs so that our finances are fortified early on in the year.  There is no special process or designation for this, just give.  And secondly, that members have a system for ongoing and regular tithes/offerings to participate in financing our mission week in and week out, month after month, throughout the rest of the year.  Please place offerings in the offering box on a Sunday or give online anytime to participate. Make all checks payable to Church in the Center. If you would like to mail in your gifts, please send to:  PO Box 300781, Houston, TX 77230

I leave you with this powerful promise:  ”Now he who supplies seed to the sower and bread for food will also supply and increase your store of seed and will enlarge the harvest of your righteousness.  You will be enriched in every way so that you can be generous on every occasion, and through us your generosity will result in thanksgiving to God.”  (2 Cor. 9:10,11)

This week was the start of our Spring Community Groups. If you have not signed up for a group please do so soon. There will be a sign up at church this Sunday or email Cameron@thecitc.org and let her know which group you would like to join.

If you need more information about the groups: www.thecitc.com/groups

This Saturday, Jan. 14^th, there will be an open-house reception to celebrate the marriage of Avinash and Phoebe Wesley. Congratulations to these newlyweds!

For details: http://www.facebook.com/events/336093679735083/

This Sunday we will be discussing the second point in the mini-series “Vision Points” – What kind of church member are you? At our membership classes we talk about how we define the word member. It is not like being a member of a club but being a member of a family. We will talk about the difference in being a producer vs. a consumer in our church involvement.  This message will help us set a good tone for being ‘all-in’ this year for what God has in store at the CitC.

Help Needed: We are in need of more volunteers for our Sunday services. There is a lot of work that goes into the church being set up and ready when everyone arrives.

We need volunteers for our set up/break down team, Kid’s ministry, and greeters. If you would be interested in volunteering in any of these areas please contact the following people.

Set up/break down: Jacob Gage – jgage2012@yahoo.com

Kid’s Ministry: Lindsy Sallee – lindsy.sallee@nov.com

Greeters: Kristi Glasscock – kristilenae@yahoo.com

Please let us know soon where you are willing to serve.

Have a great weekend!

Tuesday Nights

• Ladies Only
  • Leader: Joyce Margarce
  • Location: Fannin St. Station
  • Kid Friendly

I hope you’re enjoying the Holidays as much as I am this year.  I was extremely blessed at all of our Advent services and gatherings.  We experienced very strong attendance and amazing fellowship throughout December.  And I am pleased to report that our Year-End Offering for Missions brought in over $10,000 to be used to glorify God both at home and around the world.  Wow! Praise the Lord.  As the New Year greets us this Sunday, we are now in eager anticipation of what God has in store for us in 2012.  Join us on this Sunday morning as we kick the New Year off right.  Through January, I will be preaching a mini-series on “Vision Points.”  We are just going to clarify some important things to focus on together this year.  The first point that we’ll discuss this week is – Covenant.  What does it look like for a community of believers to live in covenant with one another?  We will take a close look at our church covenant and extend the opportunity to renew our commitments to God and each other.

Coming up NEXT weekend, is our first-ever Church Wide Retreat.   Please see the attached document with all the details and also be prepared to sign up and pay the registration fee THIS Sunday.  If you are unable to attend church this week, but do plan to join us for the retreat, please call Cameron at 281-213-0110 with your registration info.  We hope everyone can make it for at least part of this great weekend away.  IMPORTANT NOTE-  our regular worship service at 10:30 a.m. on Sunday, Jan. 8^th will take place at the retreat center, NOT at the Marriott here in Houston.

Please note that new Community Groups for 2012 will begin in a couple weeks.  Keep your eyes on our blog, FB page, online calendar, and at church on Sundays for all the details coming soon. We want everyone

to join a Community Group asap and have a place to share life together.  In our groups we fellowship, we pray, we read, we learn, we laugh, we grow, and we serve together.  To hear the latest reports on how God is using our groups to impact the city, please read the blog post titled “CitC Community Groups On-Mission Together” below.

Have a fun and safe NYE weekend!

“Our group served dinner at the Ronald McDonald house inside Texas Children’s hospital.

We were able to pray with three of the families. Also, we got to tell them about the church.”

“Our group this semester went to Hermann Park area on a couple of occasions to pass out fruits/water and pancakes and hot chocolate, as well as spend time with the people, pray with them, and talk about their needs – We also returned the same evening on one occasion to give a blanket and sweat pants to a few people who specifically requested them. It is always encouraging to us to be able to spend time with them and see their openness and honesty. As a small part of the Church in the Center, it is great to be able to serve all areas of the Medical Center, especially those who need it most!   We spent this semester bringing the warmth of Christ’s love by talking to our friends about the scripture, prayer, and opening up our homes and sharing a meal.  We are going out again tonight to see old friends and meet new friends.  We are praying that we glorify God in the way we interact with each other and those we meet! In addition, we hope to come off as approachable and inviting. This is not an “us” and “them” activity: it is a “we” activity of giving an inclusive feel for the giver and receiver to be revered and regarded as good friends. After all, Christ came to serve and sometimes he washed feet. In this case, we are serving by giving pancakes as well as our smiles, warm conversations, and prayers.”

“Our group did not officially have a mission project, but below is a story about some service we took part in:  On a trip to the grocery store, we met a woman and her elderly mother as they struggled at the edge of the Kroger parking lot with a basket with locked up wheels.  They were staying in a nearby hotel, and with no car, were trying to get food back to their room.  As we helped them get their groceries to the hotel, we learned that the daughter was a patient at M.D. Anderson and their stay had been extended.  Money for a rental car had run out and they were clearly in a difficult situation with no friends to turn to for help.  With the mission of “My Houston Family” in mind, we invited them to church and asked if we could help with anything.  In tears, the daughter told us that she had not been inside a church in years.  She had been through a lot and could not bring herself to go.  We encouraged and prayed with them over the next couple of weeks and they mentioned on multiple occasions that God was so good to orchestrate our meeting in the grocery store parking lot.  Their one request was for a ride to the airport on Thanksgiving day.  We weren’t able to find a ride for them but did offer them a gift of money for the cost of transportation to the airport.  When we met them at M.D. Anderson to give them the cash, they were so thankful for the gift.  Though they weren’t able to make it to church, they were extremely grateful for the CitC mission and My Houston Family ministry.  It was a huge blessing for us to be able to reach out to this family during such a difficult time.”

“Our group provided gifts for children to give to their mothers at the Houston Women’s Shelter. We had more time than normally allowed since our study was shorter than others; it allowed us to really dive in to the project. The Houston Area Women’s Shelter provides and shelters over 1200 families throughout the year and one of the largest programs they have is the Christmas store that allows families that have been in or are currently staying in the shelter, to have Christmas presents for the kids and moms. Many people are able to give to the children, but fewer support the gifts to the mothers, so that was where we saw the greatest opportunity. We started by hand-making cards for all the gifts. The children are able to go in to the store and “shop” for presents for their mothers. The cards would allow a special touch to each gift for the kids to write a note to mom. We put together things from our group’s own giving and opened up the door for church members to give through our Coffee with a Cause fundraiser, where we raised a little over $300. With each gift allowed to be $10, we were able to put together 50 gifts from money raised and donations from inside the group!!! The shelter was very blessed to have this donation, but not as much as our women were from being able to show God’s love to the women we helped receive a gift, and the children who were able to give to their mom’s. Please join us in praying for the work at Houston Area Women’s Shelter. If you would like more information, you can see it here:  http://www.hawc.org/site/c.9hJJL0MDK8KWE/b.6724167/k.BED3/Home.htm”

“Our Community Group hosted a Christmas party at Favrot Tower, which is an apartment building in the heart of the med center where some of our group members happen to live.  There had never been a party like this in the facility, so we were glad to be a part of the special event.  We all brought various dishes to eat and beverages to drink; enough for the more than 50 people who participated.  We handed out song sheets and led the crowd in singing several traditional Christmas carols.  Then, when the room was packed with residents from all over the world, we were able to share the Christmas scriptures from the Bible and explain the true meaning of the holiday.  The gospel was communicated, friendships were formed, and fun was had by all.  Praise the Lord!”

As you can see, Community Groups at the CitC are a great way to get ‘hands-on’ in the community and touch those in need around you.  New Community Groups for 2012 will be starting up in two weeks.  Keep your eyes on our blog, FB page, online calendar, and at church on Sundays for all the details coming soon.

Join a Community Group THIS SEMESTER and serve alongside others who live to share the love of Jesus.

This is what the story of Jesus is like in the Bible. The Old Testament promises that the greatest gift ever, the Savior, would come. Last week we talked about some of the things God said about the promised Savior through the prophets. While He revealed some things about what the Savior would be like, God didn’t tell everything. He faithfully kept His promise by sending His own Son, Jesus, into the world. He has come, and we now know about Him – about His life, His death and His resurrection – and how He came into the world to save sinners. When we hold this gift, we hold eternal life.

As a family, spend time with God. Read John 1:1-5 and talk about the following questions.

1.  Whom is this passage talking about? What do we learn about Jesus from it?

2. Remember how the Savior was described in Isaiah 9:2.  How does this passage show Jesus as the fulfillment of that prophecy?

3. How and why is Jesus the greatest gift ever?

Close your time by praying as a family, thanking God for sending Jesus, the greatest gift we will receive today as we celebrate Christmas.

Family Activity Ideas-

• Make ornaments together to hang on the tree that remind us of what God showed us He was like in Jesus.  (ie: love, joy, light, peace, etc…)
• Assemble a nativity scene together and let everyone (kids especially) tell as much as they can remember of the 1^st Christmas story.
• Make place mats together for the Christmas meal today.  Let everyone write words or draw pictures on their own place mat to tell what Christmas means to them.  (kids may draw a picture of the manger, adults may write verses, etc…)

*Borrowed and adapted from www.thevillagechurch.net-  “Advent Guide”

This Sunday we will be celebrating Christ through our Christmas Communion Service.

Link to Facebook page: http://www.facebook.com/events/250045088388277/

The church Christmas party will be on Wednesday, Dec. 21^st. It will be held at the Hermann Park Golf Clubhouse, and it is a potluck. So, don’t forget to bring your favorite holiday dish. Please bring enough for your family plus a couple of people. Please visit the Facebook page and tell us what holiday dish you will be bringing.

http://www.facebook.com/events/194863633930547/

The Christmas Communion service and Christmas party will be strategic times to invite friends and neighbors from outside the church and share the story of Jesus’ birth with them.

There will be NO church service on Dec. 25^th.

The Church Retreat is coming up January 6-8^th.  The deadline to sign up and pay is January 1^st. There are 3 pricing and dorm options. Please visit the Facebook page to see options and sign up on the wall. http://www.facebook.com/events/195906177162270/

If you have any questions contact: Cameron@thecitc.org

Well, December is flying by us!  Only two more Sundays left to gather as a church family in 2011.  Here’s what’s coming up between now and the 1^st of the New Year.

THIS Sunday-  Stan Kwan is leading us in our time of worship with Christmas music.  Love this time of year!  I will be bringing an Advent message called, “Treasuring Christ at His Birth.”  And Mike Brister, from Stepstones Ministry Intl. will be with us to give a greeting and sharing a little bit about our upcoming mission trip to Guatemala.

Also, after the service, we will be having our December Newcomer’s Lunch.  If you are new around the CitC and want to get to know one of our elders and just let us get to know you better, please join us for lunch immediately after the service in Driscoll’s restaurant downstairs on the 2^nd floor.  Adam Sallee will be hosting you there.

NEXT Sunday-  This will be our Christmas Communion Service.  Click here for more details- http://www.facebook.com/events/250045088388277/

Please invite as many people as you can to come and join us!

On Wed, Dec. 21^st from 7-9 p.m., we will be having our Annual Christmas Party and Candlelight Carols.  Click here to rsvp-  http://www.facebook.com/events/194863633930547/

Again, please bring new people with you.

And please note there will be NO Community Groups the weeks of Dec. 19^th- Jan 2^nd.   And there will be NO public worship service on Christmas Day.

We look forward to celebrating the greatest news ever told these next couple of weeks together.  Hope to see you there…

-Isaiah 9:6