Last Tuesday at the State of the Church Town Hall, about 230 attendees celebrated some of the incredible ways that the Lord has been at work at Chapel Hill in the last year. I say “some of” because it is a pleasant challenge to try and name all the ways we see God at work […]
Right where God wants us
Since Jesus isn’t here in person, but we are, the church isn’t our building. The church is the people with his Spirit…and the Spirit blows where it wants! (John 3:8) That makes my job coordinating our Beyond These Walls gifts very exciting. This time of year, we celebrate people like Curtis who stepped into a […]
Looking back, looking ahead, and free pie!
Every once in a while, we have a town hall meeting here at Chapel Hill. This is a chance for us to gather as a church family and talk together about important things. Tuesday, August 8, at 6:00 pm, we’ll have our next gathering of this sort: a State of the Church Dessert. It will begin […]
Reflecting on a “Stellar” Vacation Bible School
Chapel Hill Church has a great tradition each summer to gather children and elementary kids for five days in what we now call Summer Blast VBS (formerly known as Day Camp). This past week, from 9:00 am to noon, we had about 130 volunteers serving together to shine the light of Jesus’ love to 160 […]
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Celebrating a fresh start
You know how some memories are seared into your brain? The first time I went to Celebrate Recovery is one of those moments for me. I remember walking into the Memorial Chapel on a Wednesday night, hearing people declaring freedom from addiction and past hurts, and I felt a little like Moses in Exodus 3 […]
Finishing Strong
Last week we finished our fiscal year and I wanted to report back to you the results. As you know, mid-year we found ourselves facing a deficit. We were running significantly behind budgeted income and projected a deficit of about $500,000 for the fiscal year. Of course, as every responsible family does, we reined in […]
How to pursue a healthier version of you
First thing in the morning and every day after work, my dogs go wild when they see me. They wiggle their tails, bounce with excitement, and push their way into a hug. Every inch of their little bodies is filled with the kind of joy I can only describe it as pure delight. It’s an […]
Daily Prayer
Revival starts with prayer. There has never been a prayerless revival. But it’s not enough to just pray “God, send revival, amen” and go about our day without changing. In 2 Chronicles 7:14, God says “if my people, who are called by my name, humble themselves and pray and seek my face and turn from […]
Substance over style
A couple times a week, I will pull up to my favorite coffee stand in the harbor and order myself an iced decaf latte. Iced, because I run warm. Decaf, because I’m naturally caffeinated. And a latte because I’m not a “real” coffee drinker…I just like my milk with ice and a couple shots of […]
Spiritually nurturing the next generation
A special message from Pastor Mark Toone Hello my Sweetheart Church: I will never forget the moment when I suddenly qualified for Father’s Day: the birth of Rachel Megan Toone. Well, my “little girl” also happens to be an EPC ordained pastor…and a pretty terrific communicator, if I do say so myself! She is home […]