God was happy without man before man was made; He would have continued happy had He simply destroyed man after man had sinned; but as it is He has set His love upon particular sinners, and this means that, by His own free voluntary choice, He will not know perfect and unmixed happiness again till He has brought every one of them home. He has in effect resolved that henceforth for all eternity His happiness shall be conditional upon ours. Thus God saves, not only for His glory, but also for His gladness. –J.I. Packer

This Sunday evening May 20, plan to gather at the Lindsay home from 6-8 for a pool party and good bye bash in honor of Nate and Erin Taylor.

Get together for

Hot dogs & hamburgers, and all the fixins

volleyball

swimming

And most of all, good times with the Taylors and a chance to thank them  before their move for their love and dedication over the past five years.

Bring your towels and lawn chairs to  1922 NW 133rd Terr., Gainesville, FL 32606

Lanya Olmsted has been a part of Christ Community since 1997, when her
parents, Sylvia and Tom, arrived as new Gainesville residents.  They were
new Christians with two young children.

In many ways, Lanya seems to me to be one of “our” first kids to grow up
and go off to college.  We were privileged to watch her mature, take trips
to Africa and Mexico to serve people, and begin to discover what important
ways God wants to use her to advance His kingdom.  When Lanya left—I had
no idea what college would be like for her.  How it might change her, etc.
(Especially since she was going off to the Mississippi State of the
north—Harvard!)  Visions of all kinds of fearful things were abundant.
But God’s grace is always stronger.

Over the past few months it has been my privilege and joy to listen as
Lanya recounts the powerful work of God in her heart and mind.  There is
much joy and transformation of Lanya’s thinking, feeling and desiring that
is so obviously God-wrought.

I am thrilled that she will be telling her story in both services on
Sunday May 20.

Tomorrrow I’ll introduce our new director of youth ministries, Drew Donovan,  to the congregation.  His  first official day is on Monday.

Over the coming weeks, I strongly encourage you to make time to get to know Drew by inviting him to lunch or dinner…simple fare or your finest stuff, no matter, whether you’re a family with youth or grandkids or toddlers.  You will be glad you did.

Click below to reserve some time:

http://dd_ccc.youcanbookme.com/

If you missed the original announcement, click here to learn more about our new Director of Youth Ministries.

What was the last book you read?
The Hunger Games and Catching Fire by Suzanne Collins