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 […]
Read More… from Reflecting on a “Stellar” Vacation Bible School
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 […]
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 […]
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 […]
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 […]
I met someone last week who gave me a clue for how to be more joyful and compassionate. Pascal Bimenyimana visited Chapel Hill from Haiti where he leads our global partner there, World Relief. He is a survivor of the Rwandan genocide in the 1990s, and he has served among the most devastated places in […]
Last weekend we ended our services with a call to come forward for prayer. I was surprised by the number of people who came forward asking our pastoral team to pray for them. It was humbling and encouraging to kneel beside many in this congregation and pray for very real needs. I was surprised that […]
So humble yourselves under the mighty power of God, and at the right time he will lift you up in honor. Give all your worries and cares to God, for he cares about you. Stay alert! Watch out for your great enemy, the devil. He prowls around like a roaring lion, looking for someone to devour. Stand […]
One of the hard things about pastoring a church for more than 35 years is that you say a LOT of goodbyes, including those to really treasured members of your staff team. Alas, I have another one of those hard goodbyes that I want to share with you. Shannon Rickert, our Senior Director of Care Ministries, Shannon […]
I’m grateful for the tradition I grew up with in the UK of honoring all women on Mother’s Day. Old, young, kids at home, kids grown, never had kids at all. Every year as little kids we would run round the church giving daffodils to every woman in the pews. God’s family comes in all […]