Our vision of Jesus and the gospel is absolutely central to everything we believe, everything we are, and everything we hope to become. We know this to be true, but there are so many other worldviews, ideas and idols vying for our attention. Relativism, materialism, hedonism, syncretism. You name the “ism” and you can hear their siren songs woo our heart away from Jesus and the gospel. So we live in the midst of tension: how to stay true to Jesus while engaging our world with His life-transforming message of hope. The ancient letter of Jude helps guide us through this tension and challenge as we learn to contend for the faith and mission of Jesus in a messy, broken world. Here’s the line-up for the series:

November 6 – “Contending for Jesus”

November 13 – “Contending for Lordship”

November 20 – “Contending for Growth”

November 27 – “Contending for Impact”

Join us through the month of November at Northshore as we learn to contend. And invite a friend to join you at 9 am, 11 am, or 5 pm.

This story of generosity and “touch” was recently sent to me. The author wishes to remain anonymous. It’s a beautiful story of pain, redemption, healing, and a willingness to be used by Jesus.

I had come to the realization a while ago that God wanted me to get involved with abuse victims. That’s what I have to offer hurting people. Acceptance, compassion, and understanding. A heart that is broken to the pain abuse victims have to deal with. But I needed to experience healing in my own life. So my husband and I have continued to work with our Christian counselor because we’ve needed to get a “firm foundation” in our marriage so I can be stable as I serve and reach out to others.

Then a few weeks ago I had the opportunity to talk with a woman whose small son was abused. A few days after talking and crying with her, I fell apart. I didn’t think that I could work with abuse victims, especially not after seeing my reaction to this situation.  It caused too much pain for me. Too many feelings of inadequacy. Too much fear and hurt and brokenness. I didn’t think I could do this anymore. I was too afraid.

During Northshore’s Generosity series, God kept pointing me towards reaching out to abuse victims. Every week. With every topic. But I fought Him. Couldn’t He see I was not equipped? Couldn’t He see I was not good enough? Couldn’t He see that I was too afraid? Couldn’t He see that I have had enough of pain and suffering in my life? I have no strength left to deal with this anymore. I wanted Him to leave me alone.

One evening in my small group, we talked about Generosity value “Treasure.” I almost didn’t go to small group.  I wasn’t feeling very good and began to come up with excuses. I have discovered in the past that when that happens there is probably something that I need to see and hear, and often I realize that Satan is trying to discourage me. So I went anyway. During Pastor Jonathan’s message on “Treasure,” he said something that took on a whole new meaning at our small group: “Sacrifice has been defined as a willingness to give up something I love for something I love even more.” That statement permeated my heart. When I woke up Wednesday morning, I was listening to some music. There was a song about the path that God has put us on. He wants to use our life to reach out to others. To heal others. To love others into His kingdom. It finally all came together for me. My abuse is a gift for others. Like Jesus’ sacrifice on the cross, I get the blessing of giving up me for others. For His kingdom. And I am at peace and am no longer fighting with God.

How can Jesus use your story and your pain for His work and healing in others’ lives?

A couple of days after our Good Friday services, I received this note from a Northshore mom:

Great services this weekend! Thanks so much for all your preparation and heart. It was so special to have our kids with us in service on Good Friday

My 4th grade daughter’s eyes were glued to you as you described what Jesus had to endure at the cross. And while my protective mommy-side didn’t want her to hear these things, its important that we look at what really happened. We talked about it afterwards, and we emphasized the gratefulness that we need to show Jesus for what He did for us.

Also, our 2nd grade son was able to take Communion for the first time at the Good Friday service. I was teary as I watched him pray during communion (we apparently left out the part about praying silently). So sweet.

Watching my kids’ hearts being transformed is breathtaking. My greatest joy in life!  These services are prime training and teaching opportunities for us as parents. Its new to them (my kids), and its a joy to walk them through these basic yet life changing pieces of faith.

It is our responsibility as gospel-centered parents to train our children in the way of Jesus… His life for ours… and our life because of His!

Sunday, April 24, we will celebrate THE greatest event in history: the resurrection of Jesus Christ.

“…if there is no resurrection of the dead, not even Christ has been raised; and if Christ has not been raised, then our preaching is vain, your faith also is vain.” ~ 1 Corinthians 15:13-14

If Jesus really is risen, then He really is the Lord. And if He really is the Lord, then everything changes. Grace, mercy, hope, love, peace… everything changes.

You have people in your world who need to know that Jesus is the Risen Lord. And you have the opportunity to invite them to experience reality of THE greatest event in history.

Invite a friend, family member, co-worker or neighbor to this year’s Easter celebration at Northshore. We will have four services on Easter Sunday: 8:00, 9:30, 11:00 am & 5:45 pm

To send your friend an evite, go HERE.

Here’s how a group of 9th grade guys from Northshore’s Senior High Ministry gave up their time to find out what other people think of generosity.

Click here to view the embedded video.

Maybe there’s something hard-wired into the human heart about generosity and gratitude.

What do you think generosity is?

As I sat in the Worship Center (a.k.a. RainCity Lounge) during the full dress rehearsal Wednesday night before the first show, I enjoyed watching the various acts and thought to myself, “This is amazing. All the hard work and prayer for the past nine months has certainly paid off!” And sure enough, over eight performances of Christmas at RainCity Lounge, guest after guest told me how incredible the show was. There were a lot of amazing aspects to the show and experience. Northshore’s musical and artistic talents were showcased. Our heart to serve our people and our guests was evident. And our deep desire to offer people the gift of Jesus’ gospel was central.

Northshore, thank you for making Christmas at RainCity Lounge a success. We had over 2550 people attend the show. We also deployed around 800 volunteers from cast, crew, servers, designers, decorators, pray-ers, ticket sales…, and on and on the list of volunteers goes. To date, we’ve had around 80 inquiries about the Discovery class which starts January 9, 2011. This last is the key ingredient because our ultimate goal of Christmas at RainCity Lounge was not to entertain ourselves with a great Christmas show. Our goal was to invite the people of our world into a life-transforming relationship with Jesus, and the show helped and will continue to help move many people further along in their exploration of Jesus and the Christian faith.

I want to thank all of you who served, prayed, and invited guests. Thanks for using your gifts and talents to magnify Jesus and be a part of His mission. And a special thanks to Pastor Mark Kohls who oversaw the whole project, to Rose Tom who served and led as the House Director, to Cindy Swenson who was responsible for all of the creative expression on the stage and behind the scenes with the tech crew, and to Bruce Bickel who played the role of RainCity’s emcee and who will lead the Discovery class. I wish I could list everyone who contributed by name, but there are too many!

Lastly, outreach doesn’t stop here. We are called to be on mission for Jesus, taking Him and His gospel into our neighborhoods, schools, workplaces, and families every day and season of the year. Follow up with your guests. Invite them to our Christmas Eve services (2:45, 4:45 & 6:45 pm). Invite them to accompany you to the Discovery class in January. And above all, continue to pray that the Holy Spirit to draw them to Jesus.

Merry CHRISTmas and many thanks Northshore!

Today the Northsound Church Planting Network (part of Converge Northwest & Converge Worldwide) gathered with Dr. Jerry Sheveland, Converge Worldwide President, to talk about the state of church planting nationally and internationally in and through our movement of churches. Dr. Sheveland shared with us a passage from 2 Samuel 10:9-12.

Now when Joab saw that the battle was set against him in front and in the rear, he selected from all the choice men of Israel, and arrayed them against the Arameans. But the remainder of the people he placed in the hand of Abishai his brother, and he arrayed them against the sons of Ammon. He said, “If the Arameans are too strong for me, then you shall help me, but if the sons of Ammon are too strong for you, then I will come to help you.” (2 Samuel 10:9-11)

The armies of Israel were being attacked from the front and the rear. So commander Joab selected “choice men” to fight the battle at the front and “choice men” to battle at the rear. And his “conquer and divide” battle speech in v. is epic…

Be strong, and let us show ourselves courageous for the sake of our people and for the cities of our God; and may the Lord do what is good in His sight. (2 Samuel 10:12)

This is the call of Jesus’ mission through multiplying churches and church planting movements. The battle of light vs. dark is being fought on all sides, so we take “choice men” and send them toward the battle.  Then we take other “choice men” and send them to battle on other fronts.  We are fighting for the “cities of our God.” We have been strategically placed in our local communities to love and serve them with the kingdom heart of God… and to proclaim the gospel truth of Jesus.  We are to fight for the cities of our God with the great gospel of Jesus.

Northshore is committed to the mission of multiplying followers, leaders, churches, and church-planting movements. Will you join the battle?

Summer Sunday at the Farm was one of the highlights of my three years at Northshore. Looking out from the stage and seeing us gathered in one place, worshiping the One Great God was a powerful, momentous experience. During my brief message Sunday, I talked about what ONE body of Christ looks like… a church that consistently and passionately pursues: (1) Unity, (2) Diversity, (3) Maturity, and (4) Mission. I see us moving in that direction. We will never “fully” arrive, but we will always press forward.  We press forward as ONE as we continue to grow in our shared understanding and experience of who Jesus is and what He has done for us, knowing that it brings a deep unity… a common Savior and a common Kingdom. But even in that unity, there is a diversity of gifts that contribute to form us into a mature church… a church living out a shared ministry one to another and a shared mission to the world around us, local and global. This is the New Testament vision of ONE body of Christ. This is our calling… our life together that shines the spotlight on Jesus’ great grace and glory. Northshore, thank you so much for being a part of the most amazing mission in the world. It is a humbling, extraordinary privilege to serve you as your pastor!

Three to Thrive: Faith, Hope & Love

July 11-25

Like a good parent God wants the best for us. He wants us to thrive. When we consider the teachings of the New Testament we see that the thriving life that Jesus has come to give us is characterized by two things: love for God and love for others (Mt 22:37-39; Mk 12:30-31; Lk 10:27-28). The Spirit of God is working to remake us into men and women who live that out daily. As we do that more and more, as we take off the things that get in the way of loving God and loving others, we will truly live (Lk 10:28). We will step into the fullness of life that Jesus has come to give us and that Satan seeks to steal (John 10:10). Simple enough, but it turns out that love is very difficult in practice. In fact, Biblical love is downright impossible without two other essentials that the Spirit of God is building in us: faith and hope.

These three—faith, hope, and love—are primary themes throughout the Bible, and they make up a framework used by the apostle Paul to examine the condition of his churches and strengthen them where needed. The interplay of faith, hope, and love in his writings is seen most clearly in 1-2 Thessalonians (ex. 1 Thess 1:2-3), Colossians (ex. 1:3-8), and in this classic:

“And now these three remain: faith, hope and love. But the greatest of these is love.”
1 Corinthians 13:13

Through the series Three to Thrive: Faith, Hope, and Love, you will learn what defines and undermines each of them, and you will take away the Paul’s framework to help you more fully love God and love others wherever you are.

The Meaning of Life: Exploring Ecclesiastes

August 1 – September 6

What happens when we seek ultimate meaning outside of relationship with the Creator God? What happens when we’re desperate for the answers to life but can seem to find none? What happens when our souls get wearied from the constant pursuit of pleasure and possessions? These are enormous questions of life and meaning that Ecclesiastes grapples with in the timeless complexity and messiness of reality. Ultimately, the ancient philosopher recalibrates our hearts, minds, and lives to pursue ultimate meaning in the Ultimate God because God alone holds the key to the meaning of life.

August 1st–through September 6th during our weekend services, we’ll explore Ecclesiastes and the ultimate meaning of life. We’ll discuss five key themes in the book which can truly shape how we live a life of meaning and purpose today.

God is doing some cool things in and through the people of Northshore as we love our local community.  Many of these are quietly going on “behind the scenes” as people simply love their world with Jesus’ great love.  I asked Pastor Dean Osuch, Northshore’s Pastor of Outreach & Local Mission to be a guest blogger and share some stories of Northshore’s impact in our local community.  So here are three God stories of Northshore’s local mission that Pastor Dean shared:

Story #1: God is moving in the Northshore School District

Last August, Northshore along with five other churches ministered to several local schools during CommunitySERVE Day 2009.  The one thousand volunteers that day not only made a huge impact on the local schools that they served, but they also made a huge impact on the principals of the Northshore School District.  In November, Kate Jones and I met with the Assistant Superintendent to Elementary Schools and the Partnership Coordinator at Northshore School District.  In that meeting we looked at CommunitySERVE Day 2010 and the idea of working more in the classroom.  The District was excited about the ideas that we had and we were blessed to find out that the Assistant Superintendent to Elementary Schools had participated as a Principal in Bellevue’s Jubilee Day, which was the structure we are modeling.

Two weeks ago we met with nine principals to give them an overview of CommunitySERVE Day 2010.  At that meeting God gave us much favor in the eyes of the principals.  The principals were fully supportive of our efforts and are truly excited about our church’s willingness to minister to them this summer.  It was so encouraging to see Matthew 5:16 come to life, “Let your light shine before men in such a way that they may see your good works, and glorify your Father who is in heaven.”   Please continue to pray for us as we continue to build meaningful relationships with our community and as we continue to make plans for CommunitySERVE Day 2010.  Mark your calendar for August 21^st and come out to serve your community and let your light shine before men.

Story #2: Ministering to our Neighbors

It may be hard to believe that our next door neighbor may be in the middle of a serious crisis.  But the truth is many in our neighborhoods are struggling.  I believe in days like this there is no better time for the church to be the church for our community.  We have partnered with the City of Bothell and the City of Kirkland to find ways to love our neighbors.

Several weeks ago the City of Kirkland approached us with an elderly woman in need.  She needed to clean up her yard that is in total disrepair or be forced to leave her home.  The Outreach Pastors of Northshore, Eastside Foursquare, and Overlake Christian Church approached this woman with an offer to help.  Not sure whether she would accept our offer of help we prayed that God will allow us to help her.  The Compliance Officer and Police Officer assigned to the case shared with us that our offer to help and pray was nice, but that it would take a miracle for this lady to accept our offer to help.  Well, we serve a God of miracles.  A few days later this elderly homeowner met with us and allowed us to minister to her.  She was amazed that a church would do something like this for her, even though she doesn’t attend church…yet.  It will take months to complete this home project, but the city has allowed her to stay in her home because of the church.  And even though this lady isn’t a church attender, it is nice to know that the church will come to her.   1 Corinthians 6:19-20 “Or do you not know that your body is the temple of the Holy Spirit who is in you, whom you have from God, and that you are not your own?  For you have been bought with a price; therefore glorify God in your body.”

Story #3: Small Groups do Big Things

Several months ago Dorene Minton’s small group wanted to bless those in need in the Northshore body.  They held a clothing drive/exchange for the families of Northshore.  People had been so generous in their donations that after the event Dorene was left with bags and bags and bags of children’s clothing.  Dorene decided that they wanted to be more intentional about reaching out to their community with Christ’s love.   So they decided to donate the left over donations to the Northshore Family Center.  They blessed many families in our community who had no other way to get clothes for their children. This act of kindness energized this small group so much that they decided to help with the Family Center’s tutor program.  It is amazing to see what happens in the life of a small group when they decide to become missional.  Not only do they become a blessing to others, but they get blessed in return.

The story continues.  There is a monthly meeting of community organizations that get together to try to find ways to partner with each other to better serve our community.  The big talk at the last monthly meeting was what this small group From Northshore Baptist Church did at the Family Center.  The community leaders in our area are starting to realize that Northshore is serious about making a difference in our community.  My prayer is that more small groups, like Dorene’s small group, will look at our community as their mission field.

For more information on ways that you, your family, or your small group can serve our local community, please contact Pastor Dean at deano@nsb.org or www.nsb.org/serve/local

Remember to mark your calendars for August 21, 2010 for our Community Serve Day!