We are excited to announce the creation of a new blog for Christ Community Church titled simply, CCC blog. The CCC blog will keep you up to date on all church-wide activities, news and events and will combine this and several other CCC ministry blogs.

Please note, your current RSS feed subscription won’t be kept up-to-date. If you want to stay in the loop, subscribe to the CCC blog today at http://www.cccomaha.org/blogs/ccc.

I was in church growing up, active in choirs and youth group. While in college, I helped lead the Jr. High youth group and was a counselor at a church camp. I felt good about God but there was still this hole in my life. I drifted away from church as I tried filling it but the hole never seemed full. It wasn’t until Kim, my fiancé, brought me to church that I started to see how just big my hole had become. During the membership class at church I met Reid and we began a discussion that showed me that even though I had been around God I hadn’t accepted Christ as my savior. I filled that hole in February, asking Jesus into my heart. That hole is filled now and I have never been happier.

- Brian

Wow a lot has been happening in my world that I can’t wait to comment about. I’ve actually been in China for the past 15 days and have returned to a pile of backlogged work. New posts will be coming on that.

Also some reflections on the passing of a parent and what it means to be with a parent during their last days. I was so humbled at what I saw in my mom and have a few thoughts share about that.

Sprinkled in with all the transition more stories have been coming in from the May Intersections class. I’ll update the blog with those as well. Hope Summer is moving along OK with you and that you had a great Father’s day. My 9 year old son and my wife took me to see Thor! Hmm, come to think of it I have a few thoughts about that movie too!

More to come soon!

Tim Perry

Many people feel like Bruce Nolan – remember this stinger from Bruce Almighty?

“God is a mean kid sitting on an anthill with a magnifying glass, and I’m the ant. He could fix my life in five minutes if He wanted to, but he’d rather burn off my feelers and watch me squirm.”

Gathering begins a new series next Sunday, June 5th where we’ll explore some of the more difficult to explain aspects of God’s character and actions in the Old Testament. Here are the details:

Is God…

Critics often view God as cruel and capricious. Gathering presents a two week series investigating why Christians submit their lives to a God that non-Christians believe to be genocidal and irrational.

Genocidal? – June 5 Dr. John Holmes

Does God alone have the right to take life without the fear of justice? Why do Christians believe that a God who ordered genocide is a good God? Invite a friend for lunch and join the study as Dr. John Holmes, Dean of Academics at Grace University, discusses some of the most troubling scriptures found in the Old Testament.

Irrational? June 12 Dr. Ken Dick

If God exists, why do His acts often seem random and counter-intuitive? Do God’s actions in the Old Testament make ultimate sense, or are they clearly the creation of human intelligence? Gathering welcomes Dr. Ken Dick, Sr. Research Fellow at UNO, for a thoughtful discussion about God and logic.

Here’s my essay Tim.

After marrying and having kids we decided we should attend church, and tried CCC. I volunteered to help out in the kid’s area, with my daughter & met Les. He started talking to me about Jesus, and finally got me to a point where I wanted to know more, and helped me get connected with an older woman. We did many studies, but what she did at the time that I did not know she was doing was steering me toward a relationship with Jesus by having me “help her learn her EE”.

One day, while at work downtown, it hit me, why was I waiting to invite Jesus in? I walked across to the park, and asked Jesus to be my Savior, while crying my eyes out. I will never forget those two people!

Thanks,

Shelley

Here is my 100 word essay:

I grew up Catholic and Methodist. My Mother is Catholic and my Father is Methodist and I was very active in both churches but never really understood what being a Christian was really about. I had lots of unanswered questions about the differences between the two churches which lead to some bitterness. In college, I fell into the typical party scene but always knew that something was missing. God placed some amazing Christian friends into my life who were diligent about inviting me to church, having spiritual conversations, and answering my questions. Eventually, at 21, the light came on and I realized that a personal relationship with the Lord and a total belief in Jesus as my Savior were the missing pieces of my life. From that point, God has grown me in amazing ways and it has been an exciting journey.

Heidi

125 words – over achiever.

I grew up in the church. There isn’t a time that I can remember not knowing about God, Jesus, and all the Sunday school stories from the Bible. I believed because my family believed, and who were they to lead me astray? It was not until my freshman year of college that I met people who, for the first time in my life, challenged me to justify the reasons for my beliefs, take ownership of my faith and live it out in a real and tangible way. It has not always been easy, and there have been ups and downs along the way, but I have continued to see God work for the good in my life as I continue to seek his son Jesus.

Angie

I grew up in a twice-a-year Catholic family. I remember from a very young age that I knew of Christ and who he was, but I did not pursue my faith until my senior year of high school. Like most people I faced many challenges at that time with the toughest one being what purpose did my life serve? I began praying that God would show himself in my life. Later that year I was invited to a Young Life meeting. In a matter of months from when I began praying God used Young life, the Passion of the Christ movie, and many other people to reveal himself to me. It was also at a group meeting that I asked Him into my life.

Wade.

Growing up, we attended church as something that “we had to do.” We either spaced out or slept through most services, but we were there, so that counted. I viewed God as someone who was there, but was too big to know me personally. We slowly stopped attending church until high school, where I got into Young Life. In Young Life I had leaders that cared a lot about me and what I was going through. They showed me how to rely on God through prayer and reading his word, just as they did in their lives. By the time I graduated, I knew who God truly was and that he cared deeply for me.

Becky

Tim, this is my story.

“Jesus died so that our sins could be forgiven and we could have eternal life.” I’ve known this practically my entire life; I even thought I understood it.

However, a film reenacting the crucifixion spoke to me in a new way. In my brokenness, I came to a new understanding of the unbearable suffering that Jesus must have endured when He paid the debt of all mankind’s sins on the cross.

I rationalized many of my sins throughout the years. But feeling righteous indignation, I was wishing hurtful things to happen to a person who had hurt me. I even thought that God would be angry with and anxious to punish this person.

Instead I learned God loves each and every one of us, this other person included; and His greatest hope is that each of us will come to Him for forgiveness and accept Jesus as Lord and Savior.

Do we even begin to understand how much God loves us? Have you ever been wounded so deeply that you thought you couldn’t get past the hurt?

Marilyn

My parents’ faith, was a reality in my home growing up. They really loved and served God. One day, at a young age, feeling sorry about something I was doing wrong, I prayed with my mom and asked God to forgive me of my sins. It’s the best decision I have ever made. The Bible has proven to be full of wisdom and truth in maneuvering through life.

In the past seven years, I have experienced much loss – jobs, family and friendships but through it all I have known God’s comfort, love and faithfulness.

Kathy