News: Next Registration Open

Next Registration opened online yesterday! The fee is $150 for individuals and $225 for couples and the price goes up beginning in April. Details  about what LS is doing at Next (hotel, travel, etc.) TBA. Check out their website for details and to register. 

~Blog Crew (Allison Bucca)

News: December need to knows!

Five quick things about December:


1. I am going to be posting only on the blog except for very small things beginning January 1. I will send you an email to inform you when to check the blog.


2. I am going to be posting (weekly at least) a new column called Christ and Culture. My goal is to make you all (meaning those interested) aware of what is happening outside “our world” here. I have consistent conversations with pastors on this stuff constantly and I thought it would be cool to bring you guys into those conversations. I posted one today about a gay marriage feel free to check it.


3. Christmas party will be on Friday December 18th. Those who need baby sitters please get them in advance, hence the reminder. I think we will have a great time with the entertainment (hehehehehehehehehehe)! This year I think we are going to make our own dishes. I think it will be better this way. Be thinking what you could make and on the 10th I will have a sign up sheet.


4. I would like to do a New Year’s Eve thingy this year but I don’t want to pt pressure on anyone who has other plans or just plain doesn’t want to come. However I would like to know who will be there bcuz I want to do food and some stuff that I have been thinking about that could be really fun. Feel no pressure to come though. However I would love it if many would be able to make it or some portion of it. I will let you know closer to that date how things are going to kick off and when to let me know if you will make it.


5. Chago’s 2nd B-day party! I can’t believe my big head boy is about to be two. Our invite will be extended to LS but we WILL need to know who can make it. It will be on Saturday 12/19 from about 4-6 pm.

~Blog Crew (Curt Allen)

News: Interviews with Curt

For those of you who missed it, recently Curt did an interview on hip-hop with fellow Christian rap artist Shai Linne for Mark Dever's ministry IX Marks. Last week C.J. Mahaney highlighted these interviews on his blog so if you have not checked them out yet you can listen to the audio as well as check out the videos below that Curt posted of the interviews. 
~Blog Crew (Allison Bucca)


9 Marks interviews Shai Linne and Voice pt 1 from Curtis Allen on Vimeo.


9 marks interview pt 2 from Curtis Allen on Vimeo.


9 Marks Interview pt 3 from Curtis Allen on Vimeo.

News: This Week in LS and Next Month

Singles I have the "2 Ways 2 Live" books ready for Thursday (11/12). They do cost $10 each. This may seem like a lot until you check your budget for fast food spent in the last couple of days =). I would like to have this paid by Sunday 11/29. Between now and then if you could bring your $10 that would be great. I will be giving out books Thursday though so we may begin.

There will be no other formal LS mtg that will take place this month due to the holidays and my being in San Francisco next week.

Next month will be a bit different for the multiple holidays, etc. I would like to meet with the singles Thursday 12/3 and would like to meet with the couples Friday 12/4. We will have an all LS mtg on the 12/10 so I can discuss with everyone the new fellowship groups structure, the new schedule/structure for the upcoming year, etc.

12/11 Will be the next game night

12/18 Will be the LS Christmas Party

12/31 New Years Eve party?

Please make note of these changes and get to me if you have any questions.

~Blog Crew (Curt Allen)

GAME NIGHT BABY!!!!!!!!!

Some things to note for tonight. Whoever desires to or is able to make it tonight doors open @ 8:07 pm. Be prepared to bring $3-$5 in case I am unable to cover pizza.  If I am I will let you know through email later.

Things to know, youtube or google for game night 

Drago’s accent from Rocky 3
The word truculent
A girl who just learned to drive went down a one way street the wrong way but didn’t break the law why?
Charlie chaplin
3,5,8,13,21, what is next?
The evolution of dance
Hyphy
Boston Accent
Talk like Yoda
I got the Power ‘90’s song
Middle names that start with Z
Wonderful other uses for Mayonnaise

When you come some of you will receive a piece of paper. Do not show anyone the contents on that paper as some instructions will be on them for you to follow. hahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahaahahahahahahahaha!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

We gon' have some fun 2night!

News: A Thank You

Kathy Rodgers would like to express her thanks for all that LS did for the founding members of SRC at the church picnic last month. Read her words below and be encouraged!

 

Thank you to every one of you for your outstanding work on the picnic - we were all blessed beyond measure! Thanks for the cards, the food, the games, the babysitting, the planning, the acting and all the myriad of details that something like that takes. Thank you for your care and encouragement - you are an incredible group of servants and you are much appreciated. May the Lord multiply blessings back to you!

Speaking of the picnic, here is a showcase of the amazing skills of our videographer, Mike Perry, who can find the humor in anything..really...even stuff that other people find boring...oh just watch it.

Behind the Scenes at the SRC Picnic Setup from Curtis Allen on Vimeo.

~Blog Crew (Allison Bucca)

News: This Week in LS

Thursday night (11/5) I will be meeting with the couples 7:30pm at the church. Please bring your notes and thoughts from the message Sunday. The groups who will be watching the kids are Megan/Lauren/Ben. Please let me know if this is a problem before being assigned to a home.

FYI the babysitting in the homes only has two more times. This Thursday and then December 3rd. There will be no meeting for the couples on the 19th of this month as I will be in San Francisco.

What I was hoping to do was give opportunities to both the singles to serve and the couples to get to know some of the singles. I also wanted to provide a short season where both parents could make it to our meetings together which I am grateful for the most part have been able to. However, I don’t think I should continue to maintain the responsibility of providing childcare in the homes. At the church I feel more comfortable but by assigning people to homes I am placing the church as primarily responsible for the protection of the children. With the new CM policy some people who wouldn’t be eligible yet for CM couldn’t watch kids on Thursdays either because  the church is responsible. I hope this makes sense. Those of us with kids will have to go back to that good ol’ fashioned getting a babysitter in January.

What I would recommend is asking the singles if they wouldn’t mind babysitting on that Thursday if possible. But I will not be assigning that duty outside of the church building. If more children come to the church I may shoulder it. We can discuss this Thursday night, couples. I hope I have proven I want to serve you all in this.

Thank you for your understanding and singles thank you for the way you embraced this and sacrificed. Well Done!

Lastly GAME NIGHT MY HOUSE FRIDAY (11/6)! Let’s get it in!
~Blog Crew (Curt Allen)

News

American Friends is postponed to this Sunday, hopefully everyone saw the email about it already. But if you haven't this is a friendly reminder.that if you show up tomorrow for a picnic no one will be there and you will have to be an American friend to yourself. Remember, Plan B for the picnic is packing a lunch, meeting at the church at 12:30pm on Sunday (10/25) and then driving to the farm which closes at 6pm.

~Blog Crew (Allison Bucca)

News

Tomorrow (Sat. 10/24) is the next American Friends Event. Remember to meet at SRC to carpool at 1:30pm and bring your $10. We are leaving the church at 2pm and will return around 10pm. Check out the interview with Susan Cole talking about her vision for American Friends.



American Friends interview with Susan Cole from Curtis Allen on Vimeo.

~Blog Crew (Allison Bucca)

News

So, we were trying to think of a title for announcements, and came up with the brilliant idea of calling it "News." Catchy huh? So when you see a post titled "News" it will have reminders and important information and announcements that you need to know. We are trying to transition to fewer emails and more posts on the blog, so try your best to pay attention. 'Cause this is gonna be where it's at!

Singles Meet Tomorrow (Thursday 10/22)

-be there
-be there on time
-be there with your notes from Sunday's teaching 
-be there ready to listen to Curt crack jokes
-be there ready to listen to Curt talk about "2 Ways 2 Live"
-before you get there, take a moment in your car on the drive there or at home before you leave to pray for:
1. the worship, that God's Spirit would fill our hearts
2. the leadership, that Curt and Ben would lead with discernment
3. your heart, that you would be prepared to be met by God, and to use your gifts to serve your brothers and sisters through fellowship. 

~Blog Crew (Allison Bucca)

Mtg of the Switch (Singles)

After Curt spoke last night and worship began to wind down, the question came to my mind, "Why would we apply this?"

God graciously brought Ephesians 5:1-2 to my attention:

Therefore be imitators of God, as beloved children. And walk in love, as Christ loved us and gave himself up for us, a fragrant offering and sacrifice to God.

Last night convicted me of areas in my life where I am selfish and I complain. Reflecting on this passage I have realized that by repenting from these areas, I can further my pursuit as an imitator of Christ's love. His love is free from complaints, gossip, bitterness, dissension and selfishness. I'm so glad we have the perfect example of walking in love found in Jesus Christ.

I'm so excited to see how our community will learn to imitate sacrificial love. I pray that together we will seek to create the gospel-centered community that Curt mentioned last night. And through this pursuit, we will please our Father in Heaven by reflecting the love that he has entrusted to us through his Son Jesus Christ.

~Blog Crew (Shane Kohout)

American Friends Luncheon

Susan Cole comes shuffling by, balancing a platter of appetizers offered to guests, “I’m very excited about the number of people coming. It used to be a lot of families, but this time we have a lot of young people involved.” This past Saturday Susan (administrator of American Friends for SRC) spent all day as host to the American Friends luncheon housed by the Zastrow family.


Approximately seventy people, including hosts (most of which were Lightswitchers) and international students, participated in the luncheon. This is a great increase from the approximate twenty-five people who participated last year. Check out the pictures from the event on Flickr!


Are you an American Friend? It’s not too late to become involved. Don’t miss the "Corn Maze/Campfire" event on Saturday, October 24 from 2-10pm. For more information email lightswitchblog@gmail.com.

~Blog Crew (Lauren Bucca)

Notes & Quotes (Sunday Mtg)

Yesterday, John Loftness opened the “What is a Christian?” series with a message out of John 3:1-8 on the doctrine of regeneration.
John asked the question:

“Is a Christian simply someone who lives a good moral life?”

John introduced us to Nicodemus from John 3:1-8 as a “spiritual big shot” who was widely respected. In coming to Jesus, Nicodemus is confronted by a truth that undermines his entire life’s work, “all your religion, all your attainments, all your obedience are worthless. All your prestige, all your time making religious rulings for the nation, all your efforts in keeping the law they are useless when it comes to having God’s life in you.”

“Religion is the antithesis of Christianity."

John then moved away from the passage and had us look through the lens of regeneration:

“There is nothing you can do to be born again. You can only respond, you can’t initiate with God.” “He comes to you in Jesus. He comes to you speaking words.”

“Have you had the imperishable living and abiding Word of God implanted in you?” Then the Holy Spirit has done a work in you.

John then asked the question “Why is this doctrine so important?”

1. It will protect you from legalism.
“There is nothing you can do to make God favorable to you.”

2. It will help you put down pride.
“You realize that you’re not the source of any good.”

3. It causes you to relate humbly to people who are not born again.
“There should be no sense of superiority towards the people around you. There should be a sense of wonder, why do I have knowledge of God and his ways?"

4. It affects your parenting.
It will bring you to your knees praying for God to work in your children’s lives.

In closing, John brought an encouragement to those who are unsure of their salvation:

“If you desire to come to Jesus, the Spirit of God is working in your life.”

Boys' Lock In

While the boys were away, the girls did play. Recently Curt had all of the guys over to his house for a lock-in which is pretty much boy code for a slumber party. Not wanting to be left out of the fun, some of the girls gathered together to prank the guys while they were doing whatever it is guys do when they get together. Check out Flickr to see some pictures from the girls' adventures.

Notes and Quotes (Sunday Mtg)

This past Sunday (9/06/09), John Loftness gave the final message of the "One Message Series." The purpose of this series was to show that the entirety of the Bible has an overarching message. John summarized this message by saying, “God saves sinners through Jesus Christ.” He used Colossians 1:13-20 to show four parts of God’s pattern for our salvation.

1. Creation
2. The Fall
3. Redemption
4. Restoration

Shalom: “Personal wholeness and well-being in every sphere.” Murray Harris

“You were created for Shalom. That’s God’s intention for you; peace, joy, and satisfaction in God.”

“Shalom was shattered in the garden of God.” “Man said I will be God.”

“Can man ever come back to peace with God and harmony with the world, with nature, with the things God has made, with other people?”

Yes! Through Jesus!

“He shows up to transfer fallen wrath-deserving human beings to a kingdom ruled by his Son.”

“We are not just redeemed; this new life becomes a process of restoration.”

John elaborated on restoration by showing 4 implications that it has in our lives:

1. Personal (we are being sanctified into his likeness)
2. Relational (Our relationships are being restored)
3. Communal (the church shows God’s restoration)
4. Cultural (Jesus is restoring all things to himself)

“This is our calling as a church. We are called to participate in this great work of reconciliation of all things to Jesus.”

Question to consider in reflecting on the teaching:

Am I fully engaged in this restoration process?

To listen to the teaching visit Solid Rock Church’s website.

If you have thoughts, questions, or comments about the teaching, email lightswitchblog@gmail.com.

Mtg of the Switch (Marrieds)

Last night at the marrieds meeting, Curt taught from Genesis 1:26-27 on the doctrine of man. Since we are made in the image of God (imago dei) we are to reflect God's character and become more like him so we can glorify him with our lives. The key point is that God spoke to man. He didn't speak to any other part of his creation but he initiated fellowship with man, which enables us to now have fellowship with our Lord and Savior.

Announcements:

- Next meeting: Friday 9/18 at the Allens. Babysitting (in your home) and dinner provided.
- All Lightswitch Mtg.: Thursday 10/8 to set up for the church picnic.
- Reading: "Prodigal God," one book per couple available. $10 to Curt (cash or check made out to SRC).
- In-Home Childcare for Mtg.'s: email Curt and Evy your specifics (routines, babysitter preferences e.g. male, female, specific people, etc., and info about family e.g. pets.) Also let us know if you're open to having your babysitters over early for dinner so you can get to know them a little better.

Sunday Meeting Notes & Quotes

Below is the first offering of “Notes and Quotes” from a Sunday message, which will continue to be a staple item on the blog. The purpose is to help us take home the teachings we hear on Sunday mornings and then apply them to our lives. Soon we will post videos of interviews from those who gave their thoughts on this past Sunday's teaching. Stay tuned.

This past Sunday (8/30/09), John Loftness gave a message primarily focused on Ezra 3-4 and Hebrews 10. He addressed the believer’s often-warped view of his or her personal history, and emphasized that, in reality, the single most important day in all of history is the day that Christ died. He pointed out that “the church is propelled forward by the Holy Spirit” working in the local church, and he gave five key reminders that will help build a lasting church:

1. We must keep our confidence in what Jesus has already done.
2. We must draw near in worship as a community.
3. We must continue to confess to one another that God will keep His promises.
4. We must meet together to remind each other of these truths.
5. We must never forget He is coming back!

“How you look at your history affects how you respond to things.”

“He’s not slow [in returning], He’s just got bigger plans than we can imagine!”

“We can’t retreat to the ‘good old’ days.’ It doesn’t work. …there is no place for nostalgia in the kingdom of heaven.”

“My Savior came and died for me. That’s what’s gonna control me.”

Questions to consider in reflecting on the teaching:

Does my past, whether positive or not, dominate me or is my “history book” dominated by the day Christ died for me?

To listen to the teaching visit Solid Rock Church’s website.

If you have thoughts, questions, or comments about the teaching, email lightswitchblog@gmail.com.

New Pictures!

We are proud of you guys for keeping that sharp eye out for so long, sorry for the delays on the scavenger hunt pics. Technology didn't like us this week, we were having a fight, but we've healed and now on our Flickr account are pics from all the events we have covered so far, from pics of the LS Retreat to pics of the LS Scavenger Hunt. We only received pics from Team Russian, Team Tony, and Team Eric, so for those teams not represented here, the fault is not ours, we did try.

Below is a little preview; be sure to check out all the pics on Flickr and a few new videos from Team Tony on Vimeo:

Click here to see more pics.

Scavenger Hunt Recap

At the recent scavenger hunt, Lightswitch broke up into four teams of seven and one team of eight to run across Washington, D.C. like idiots all for the sake of fun, fellowship, and Curt’s personal pleasure. Through the smog of humidity teams ran, walked, and dragged themselves to win the race. Alex’s “Team We Should Have Won” knew who was on their team before Curt finished giving instructions and was out the door before the other teams even formed.

Though “Team We Should Have Won” ran hard, and sweated profusely, their racing out the door with their Russian Metro man was all Tony’s “Team We Did Win” needed as inspiration to make the actual win. Everyone was on the same page as they left the church, they wanted to win, and more than that, they wanted “Team We Should Have Won” to lose.

Highlights for some included the time of encouragement (to those who actually got to it) and doing the song and dance on the Metro. While for others it was finding various ways to use Curt’s face for humorous purposes such as rapping to it, using it to find a lost brother or son, or turning it into a “Wanted” ad.

Afterwards they all returned from the race, some by bus, some by train, and some running still believing that they could win, even when facing the reality of utter and complete failure. Team “We Should Have Won” arrived sweating, panting, and singing just a little while after “Team We Did Win” had arrived back after a day of rushed walking interspersed with bathroom breaks and sushi duckings. Eric’s “Team We Weren’t Sure if We Wanted to Win” soon trailed in followed by Jacob’s “Team We Have Jacob, He’s in a Kilt” and lastly followed by Jeremy’s “Team We Like Rasberry Lemonade.”

Overall it was a fun day of bonding, sweating, screaming about swelling feet, and enjoying the fact that by God’s grace, it is good to be together no matter the weather and no matter who wins or loses.

Stay tuned for more videos and pics to come from the scavenger hunt, so far only one team has turned in their videos, and two teams have turned in their pics. If you want to show off your team pride, give videos to Aaron and email pictures to lightswitchblog@gmail.com.

Singles Mtg of the Switch

At the last singles meeting (8/13/09), Curt gave a message concerning evangelism to kick off our new series, "Two Ways to Live." He highlighted Romans 10:1-15, focusing on the fact that it is our job to proclaim the gospel, but it is not our job to save souls, that is up to God (1 Corinthians 3:7). Curt has enlisted Lightswitch to serve alongside Susan Cole, who works with "American Friends," to put our goal of evangelism into practice. "American Friends" is an organization that connects international students with Americans to form relationships and help the student's transition into American life. More details concerning our involvement will be released soon.

Single Girls Only: Now that Kennesha is back : ), and the Meath girls are leaving
: (, we are again reshuffling the accountability groups. Before the end of this month, email Curt which girls you would like to have in your group, whether it is adding new people or keeping the ones you have.

Prayer: Keep in prayer Anthony Cole, Jen Miller, Kirsten Etherton, and Holly and Clara Meath, as they prepare to leave the state, the country, or just their neighborhood for college and work.