View from the Hill (September 10-17, 2006)

In this issue you will find:

● Sermon notes from Pastor Mike

● 24/7 Update

● This Week!

● Check it out Now


Jesus said ...

I am the Way, and the Truth, and the Life, and no one comes to the Father but through Me.

John 14:1-6


We’ve had a lot of stuff going on yesterday – worship, Tanzania and child sponsorship, 24/7 prayer, and commissioning our Children’s teachers for Sunday school. Why are we doing all this stuff? The answer is Jesus.

When Jesus tells His followers that He is going to prepare a place for them and that they know the way, one of them replies, “We don’t even know where you are going, so how can we know the way!” I can’t think of a better question and answer for us in our church, in our nation, in our lives, and in the world right now. We don’t know where we are going so how can we know the way. We set goals, we have hopes and agendas, we plan for our retirement, but where are we going, really? And if we don’t know where we are going, how can we know the way? Do we just wander around and hope we hit the right road somewhere along the way? Most people live like that. But the prospects for missing the goal are huge.

But Jesus’ answer to all our questions is not a list of doctrinal statements, map directions, or ‘how to’s’ – His answer is Himself. We already know the Way because we know Jesus. We can know what is true, not by weighing one set of opinions against another, but because Truth is a Person – Jesus. We can ask Him to reveal Himself to us – if we are sincere in our asking, He will answer. And eternal life begins today (not when we get to heaven) because heaven isn’t so much about a destination as about the Person – Jesus. It’s all about Jesus.

• We teach our children because we want them to come into relationship with and know the Way and the Truth that is the Person of Jesus.
• A lot of agencies in the world are doing good work in Africa, but we do this because knowing Jesus isn’t just about heaven. Jesus is real HOPE in a real Person who brings transformation to social and economic structures, as well as individual lives – and in doing this, we are helping life in Jesus to start now for 75 children and their wider community.
• And we commit ourselves to pray and seek the Father’s heart for 40 days because it is through the Son, Jesus we can come into intimate relationship with the Father and come to know His heart for us.

In the 24/7 prayer room someone wrote on the wall:
LORD, we feel lost, but YOU are the WAY.
LORD, we are confused, but YOU are the TRUTH.
LORD, we feel so dead, but YOU are the LIFE.

Grace and peace, Mike


24/7 Update!

24/7 Prayer Room for 40 Days
We kicked off our 40 days of prayer last night with a worship and communion service at 6 PM, singing as we left the sanctuary and moved downstairs into the prayer room. As we prayed in that space it was clear that Jesus had gone before us to prepare a place for us so that we could meet with Him and He could bring us more fully into communion with the Father. Several of our steering committee leadership spent the night in the room and have stories to tell of God already at work there.

The folks who put this room together have done an amazing job allowing for a huge variety of ways to engage with God in prayer. This room is the perfect place for anyone who feels they don’t know how to pray, that they are stuck in a rut, that prayer is dry, that they aren’t good at prayer, or that they feel unworthy to go into God’s presence. Be real with God. Talk about the things on your heart, not the religious things you think you ought to say.

More than one person can pray each hour. Add your name to an hour time by clicking on the hour, then run the cursor over the "event name". Type in your name alongside the other.



This Week!
Child Sponsorship: THANK YOU to everyone who sponsored children on Sunday. The outreach team had set the goal of 75 kids by October – and our congregation has already pledged to sponsor 60! Thank you for being vehicles of God’s faithfulness to these children in Kisongo. If you haven’t already made the commitment to sponsor, you will continue to have opportunities on Sundays through September – just look for the green table in the church entrance, or ask a member of the outreach team to help connect you!

Did you know??? All the children we are sponsoring come from the same general village area in Kisongo?? James, Heather and Jeff Stone will see many, if not most, of these children when they go to Tanzania this October.

Did you know??? 87% of all money given through child sponsorship goes directly into the village and the children’s lives providing spiritual nurture, clean water, nutritious food, health care (including AIDS prevention and counseling), care for sick or dying parents, education, and micro-enterprise loans for families?

Did you know??? We can sponsor more kids than our goal of 75? There are plenty of children in the Kisongo area that would benefit from our partnership with them. Anyone want to go for 100????

Wednesday Bible Study 7:00-8:30 PM. We will be studying Ephesians 5:1-20. Bring your bible, a pen and notebook. At Tiffany and Jonathan Werner's.

Check It Out Now

Congratulations on the birth of Ainsley Elizabeth born to Kathy and Kevin Keith last Friday!!

Wednesday night potlucks and teaching will not be happening this Fall at the church. If you are interested in getting a fellowship / bible study / home group started in your neighborhood, contact Mike Neelley.

Children's and Family Ministries is seeking one more teacher for the 3rd-5th Grade classroom to help every other week @ 10:45a.m. Come join our stellar line-up of teachers for this Fall/Winter. Contact: Julie Garrett

Time to sign up for Helping Hands: For those of you who aren't aware, Helping Hands is our "co-op" style of Sunday School. We ask each parent to commit to work in a classroom 1 time per month. Helping Hands is in place for two reasons: in most classrooms we have only one lead teacher and we want to encourage more parental involvement in our classrooms. Thank you for
joining us as we seek to grow our children in Christ.

Curriculum Prep Night @ CHP - Sept 14th @ 6:30p.m. Come meet people while you paste, cut and copy the lesson plans for the Fall Sunday School Classes. Contact: Julie Garrett

Women's Brunch: Set aside the morning of Saturday, October 7th, 9:30am - 12. It's our first New Church Women's Brunch! We will be gathering for a delicious meal, great conversation, and some fun surprises. Join us!

Women's Retreat: Mark your calendars now to get away with other women from Cap Hill Pres, Fri - Sunday, November 10-12. Heather will be leading this weekend at Soundview Camp (on the Key Peninsula). The theme, And We Have Seen His Glory, is taken from John 1. Join with women from our church, and other women from the Seattle area, as we talk together about the places we have seen and long to see the Glory of God. Ask Heather to get registration information.