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Good Monday morning, CCC! D.J. here - with Pastor Blake en route to a week of vacation, I've got a couple brief Monday morning thoughts for you as we exit Easter weekend and head into spring break. In keeping with that transition, the two words that are passing through my mind this morning are work and rest. What a great weekend celebrating the finished work of Jesus Christ! From reflecting on the depths of his suffering for us on the cross through scripture and song Friday night to the glorious truth Blake unpacked for us from the story of the disciples on the Emmaus road on Sunday morning, I hope you were reminded that indeed everything does change when you "See Jesus" for who he really is. There is a lot of work that goes into living the Christian life, as we seek to be led by the Holy Spirit to turn from old, sinful patterns of living and grow in loving others as Jesus has loved us. But it's vital to be continually reminded that the most crucial part of the Christian life, as Brad Sturgill reminded us yesterday, is simply accepting God's grace held out to us by the life, death, and resurrection of Jesus. I hope you were helped this weekend as we were focused on that truth - I know I was! Sunday came and went, and now Monday's here. And while Monday is usually a day associated with work, the arrival of Shelby County spring break this week means many of us are enjoying a great deal more rest than we usually would. From the many teachers and educators that make up the CCC family to the many families of SCPS students, a lot of us are taking time this week to rest and recoup, whether by heading out of town or by enjoying a break from our routines right here at home. And while spring break sounds a whole lot less spiritual than Easter weekend, we don't have to reach back very far into our recent study of the Ten Commandments to remember that rest is a vital part of the Christian life. In fact, God commanded it. "Remember the Sabbath day, to keep it holy: You are to labor six days and do all your work, but the seventh day is a Sabbath to the Lord your God. You must not do any work ​— ​you, your son or daughter, your male or female servant, your livestock, or the resident alien who is within your city gates. For the Lord made the heavens and the earth, the sea, and everything in them in six days; then he rested on the seventh day. Therefore the Lord blessed the Sabbath day and declared it holy." - Exodus 20:8-11 God rested from his creation, not because he needed it, but because we need it. He built rest into the creative week to remind us that we are finite, frail, and dependent on him. We can't sustain ourselves. And when we try to sustain ourselves indefinitely, the result isn't good. We burn out. We take out the frustration brought on by our fatigue on those around us. We forget our maker and our savior, and our constant dependence on him. So if you, like me, get to take some time off this week, rest well - enjoy time with family and friends, and intentionally remind yourself that you're dependent on the Lord for everything you are and everything you have. And if today is just another Monday for you, make sure to make time for sabbath rest in the midst of your regular routine, and ask the Lord to sustain you through the ups and downs that each week brings us. And for all of us - make sure and remember that our rest serves as a reminder of the ultimate rest that Jesus' work made available to us - a rest from our strivings to be good enough, and a rest in his amazing, everlasting grace. "Therefore, a Sabbath rest remains for God’s people. For the person who has entered his rest has rested from his own works, just as God did from his. Let us, then, make every effort to enter that rest, so that no one will fall into the same pattern of disobedience." - Hebrews 4:9-11 Happy Easter, Christ Community! He is risen! Let's find our rest in his finished work.

This Friday, March 29th, at 6:00 PM, come gather with us to commemorate Good Friday with an evening of worship together. We'll reflect on the death of Jesus through remembering the promises of God's word, reflecting on how Jesus' sufferings extend hope to us in the midst of our own sufferings, taking communion together, and joining our voices in song. Don't miss this opportunity to begin Easter weekend by coming together, singing, and remembering the fullness of Christ's sacrifice as we look forward to the celebration of his resurrection on Sunday!

Bring your friends and family to Southside Elementary Saturday, March 30 at 11 am! Can't wait to hunt for eggs, hear some good news, and have fun together!

Now some Greeks were among those who went up to worship at the festival. So they came to Philip, who was from Bethsaida in Galilee, and requested of him, “Sir, we want to see Jesus.” Philip went and told Andrew; then Andrew and Philip went and told Jesus. Jesus replied to them, “The hour has come for the Son of Man to be glorified. Truly I tell you, unless a grain of wheat falls to the ground and dies, it remains by itself. But if it dies, it produces much fruit. (John 12:20-24, CSB) These Greeks make a request that many of us cry out at our heart level: We want to see Jesus. We want to know this man who is God. Who can save us and instill hope in us that lasts beyond the things of this life. But Jesus' response is curious. He talks about what's coming: the cross. His death that will produce much fruit in God's kingdom. His death that will make a way for many others to be in God's kingdom. Our opportunity to truly see Jesus is by looking at the cross. This Monday, I'm thinking about that as we begin holy week. I want our church to see Jesus. I want our neighbors to see Jesus. I want the nations to see Jesus. Friday, we'll look to the cross during a night of worship that begins at 6 pm. Saturday, we'll invite neighbors to come hunt eggs that are filled with the hope of resurrection (And candy of course ;) ) at 11 am. Sunday, we'll celebrate what changes in our life when we see Jesus at 10 am. Jesus, we want to see you. Amen.

This past weekend; over 180 of you said “YES” to going and being the church! There were teams of people serving in Eastern KY; in Shelbyville at Touched Twice and all over our community on Love Shelbyville Day. Thank YOU for being obedient to what (and where) God is calling you to! Check out some pictures of different groups below:

There's all kinds of reasons we may not see Jesus at work in our lives; Relational conflict, busyness, tiredness, life's circumstances, or just good ol' discouragement can blind us to Jesus' presence in our lives. This Easter at Christ Community, we want to see Jesus' work in our lives. We want to join in what Jesus is already doing and be changed by his presence! So make plans to be a part and invite someone else who needs to see Jesus, too! Good Friday Night of Worship March 29 - 6 pm Easter Egg Hunt March 30 - 11 am Easter Gathering March 31 - 10 am

The building will be closed April 1-5 during spring break. Leaders can be contacted via phone if needed!

There's no deeper encouragement than people living out the mission. Whether it was Isabella Midkiff loving on the teachers at there school, Casey Page being recognized as the national teacher of the year, a couple inviting a new friend over for dinner, a leader stepping up to lead a mission trip, a bunch of ladies passionately connecting one another to groups, or a conversation about who to "egg," there is no deeper encouragement than people living out the mission to join Jesus in going OUT to make disciples. Keep going church! I know that even as I see all those encouragements, there are many more stories I don't see. THANK YOU! Sign-up for Love Shelbyville then send your friend the link. Speaking of going out to be the church, get signed up for Love Shelbyville this weekend ASAP! Here, go now: https://www.loveshelbyville.com/post/love-shelbyville-day-groups-2. And after you sign-up, text the link to a friend, and invite them to do the same! "I asked God what I should do next." And then Clayton Reese just kept doing what God told him to do. That kind of simple faith is really inspiring! If you missed out on their stories this week, make sure to catch it on The Backpack later in the week. Touched Twice needs some more "shepherds" to be ready for this Saturday. We're loving on people in a ton of directions this weekend - Praise the Lord! And we don't want you to miss out! Touched Twice has been serving members of our community for years with basic medical and material needs. They need some more shepherds for this Saturday's clinic to be with people as they navigate all the resources. Get signed up here: https://www.shelbytouchedtwice.com/volunteer-sign-up/ Easter, here we come! Krysta Howell did a great job coaching our kids on inviting their friends to our Egg Hunt as well as preparing an awesome way to share the gospel with them while they do it! If you missed out, pick one up at church this week. It's all part of the Easter weekend we're looking forward to: March 29 - Good Friday Worship Night: 6 pm March 30 - Egg Hunt at Southside Elementary: 11 am March 31 - Easter Worship Gathering: 10 am Can't wait to "See Jesus" more clearly after this weekend!

Ladies! You're invited to a night of bunco! March 17 at 6:30 pm, come hang out and make some new friends as you play bunco together. Questions? Contact Gigi Wheeler at wheelergg@hotmail.com.

Careless Words. My careless words have hurt a lot of people. I was under a lot of conviction yesterday. And that's ok. Recently, our youngest has gotten in the habit of hiding her eyes from us when she's feeling guilty or ashamed. We're trying to teach her what I'm still learning myself: When conviction causes us to hide we're letting sin win. Instead, the conviction that the truth of the law brings is intended to drive us to grace. Going with our family to the Lord's Table. That grace was something I got to experience as I got to walk with Katelyn through the communion line for the first time in a while. I take it most Sundays, but I don't get to the table with our church family. It was a special moment of God's grace to me through you. Thank you CCC! Why we would want God's face to shine on us. Yesterday I closed with the high priestly blessing from Numbers 6: “May the Lord bless you and protect you; may the Lord make his face shine on you and be gracious to you; may the Lord look with favor on you and give you peace.” ’ This morning in my discipleship group reading I read this from Psalm 67: May God be gracious to us and bless us; may he make his face shine upon us so that your way may be known on earth, your salvation among all nations. (Ps 67:1–2.) I realized that where I read that blessing with selfish motives - wanting grace and blessing - that blessing serves a purpose in God's mission too! The Psalmist asks for God's face to shine on him so that God's ways and his salvation would be known among the nations! Lord, shine bright on us today - not for us, but so that we might reflect you. A BIG week of opportunities to serve! At the end of this week's gathering we're going to pray over people headed to GAP, people serving at Touched Twice, and then we'll all be prepping for Love Shelbyville day on March 24! Touched Twice is still in need of shepherds if you want to shine bright there: https://www.shelbytouchedtwice.com/volunteer-sign-up/ You can also start checking out the groups for Love Shelbyville (including some new ones that Katie will be giving us info about soon!): https://www.signupgenius.com/go/508084CACA62BAB9-love2#/

TIME CHANGES THIS WEEKEND! Though you'll lose sleep, don't steal that hour back by missing church!