Happy Thursday, CHURCH!

I pray that you are staying dry during these torrential downpours. I know at our house, we had a pool that inched up to the top and threatened to spill over. Luckily, the storm broke before that happened. The really good news … Our new roof at the church is … NO LEAKS. What a welcome relief! Cannot say enough how grateful I am for those folks who made our new roof a reality. I would like to thank our church leadership for the wonderful Annual Congregational Meeting last Sunday. The spirit in the room was joyous and the business of the church was handled with an expertise not seen in many churches. Thank you, Leaders.

We are approaching the third week of our 2024 kick-off sermon series …

“A Million Dreams.” This coming Sunday we will look at the dreams and life of Abraham. Did you know that “Abe” began his journey with God with a dream. The cool thing is he nurtured this dream and although it did not happen for close to 100 years, Abraham remained faithful. I hope you will come and be with us for worship. I know you will especially be blessed by

Jassmine’s rendition of, “A Dream is a Wish Your Heart Makes.” God is up to something and we want everyone to be a part; to dream with us to match God’s dreams FOR us.

Lent is right around the corner. February 14th, Valentine’s Day, is also Ash Wednesday. As we have done in past years, we will meet at 11:30 in the Fellowship Hall for a light lunch, a brief word and imposition of ashes. If you have never been a part of this ancient ritual, I encourage you to give it a shot this year. It preps us in a mysterious way for the Lenten journey. During Lent, beginning, February 22nd, we will begin a book study. The book is, “The Secret Message of Jesus,” by Brian McLaren. We will have both a 10:00 a.m. session and a 6:00 p.m. gathering. I encourage you to secure the book. You can find it here:

https://www.amazon.com/s?k=the+secret+message+of+jesus+brian+mclaren&crid=2YPV74QG1TXS3&sprefix=The+SEcret+message+of+%2Caps%2C177&ref=nb_sb_ss_ts-doa-p_1_22

As tempting as it will be, I want to encourage you to wait and read it along with your group during Lent. The 6-week journey towards Easter is a marathon and not a sprint. I hope you will consider joining one of the studies.

Until Sunday, spend some time thinking about the dreams in your own life. What propels you forward? What is the one thing you will do all night long, not ever looking at the clock? What is the goal and vision set forth in your dreams? Last year our theme was, PASSION, this year, A MILLION DREAMS. Interesting, huh? It wasn’t’ necessarily planned this way, but I sure am glad it worked out this way. I love being your pastor.

Holding you close and lifting you high!

Pastor Greg

Artist Spotlight – The Brilliance

It’s time for our monthly artist spotlight! This week I want to handle a band I love called the Brilliance. They are made up of two friends David Gungor and John Arndt. (David is the son of Mega Church pastor Ed Gungor and the brother of fellow musician Michael Gungor of the band Gungor). They’ve been collaborating as The Brilliance since 2010 and have made so much good music that I love. Some of their music can easily be labeled “worship music” but much of it is just plain good music on a variety of themes. They’ve also done a number of liturgical settings and seasonal music such as the advent song ”Open Up” that we did during advent, or “Prayers of the People” that I hope to introduce during our prayers of the people sometime this year. This upcoming series on dreams we will do a song they wrote for world relief to bring awareness to DACA dreamers called “Oh Dreamer.” Those are just a few of the great songs they have. I encourage you to listen to them this month 😊

https://www.youtube.com/@TheBrillianceMusic

Strike a Pose and Say Cheese!

The Church will be updating our member photo board! Starting January 28th, Julie Hume will be in charge of capturing a terrific photo of you and your family after Church on Sundays. We have so many great smiles in our congregation, let us make them shine!

Thank you so much for the wonderful party on Sunday the 14th. I appreciate the kind words, the gifts, and all the food. I know so much work went into it. Words just cannot describe how much it meant to me and my family.

I look forward to seeing you all in a few months.

Blessings,

Debbie Hallmark

Guatemala Info Meeting

February 4, 2024

How can we continue to support the needs of people in Guatemala? Over the years CCP has sent teams to work with Fundamaya and many members have supported students and seniors through monthly donations. Please come with your ideas, and suggestions on how we can continue to support Fundamaya in 2024.

Contact Colleen Clementson if you have questions. 858-663-6584 or powclem@yahoo.com.

Happy New Year from Outreach!

The weather has certainly been wintery! So, it’s our pleasure to announce that for our Basket of Hope drive in the months of January and February, Outreach will be benefiting Ladle Fellowship.

We are asking particularly for Men’s items, especially shoes, as well as socks, jackets/coats/sweatshirts, pants/sweatpants, and sleeping bags. Cold weather items are appreciated, as well.

Your generosity last year, as always in the years before, helped to warm the hearts and bodies of so many people who needed that tangible love the most, so in 2024 let’s hit the ground running (Hebrews 12:1-3) and help many more!

Greetings from the Outreach Ministry

The outreach ministry would like to take the time to thank all of our congregation and online congregation for all your generous giving over the holiday season. You have brought joy to so many. Here are just a few of the happy smiles you created!!!

Two photos are of our senior citizens,

One of the photos is part of the adopted family from Solara across the street. Notice that the younger children are not in the photo. We were able to plan delivery for when they were not at home so we could sneak in the bicycle and other gifts.

We received a messages from each recipient with so much joy and gratitude for all we did to make their holidays special.

Also, we would like to thank you so much for your Gifts to the Manger benefiting Interfaith Community services in Escondido. They were overwhelmed with the generosity of our congregation.

Thank you so much again to everyone for being such an amazing part of this ministry at the Community Church Of Poway. You are a blessing to our community and others around the world. We are looking forward to a wonderful new year ahead, and all of the wonderful outreach we can share.

Stay tuned for the message to come from our military family!

With Gratitude from,

The Outreach Ministry

Adult Scripture Review:

Sunday’s following worship in the fireside room!

Email Susan Gurriell

at sgurriell@gmail.com

Books & More

On February 13, Books and More will start the discussion on The Girl with the Louding Voice, a New York Times best seller by Abi Dare. This is simultaneously a heartbreaking and triumphant tale about the power of fighting for your dreams. A celebration for girls who dare to dream.

Books and More meets every Tuesday at 10:30am in the Fireside Room.

All are welcome to join us.

Please note we will not meet on Tuesday, February 6.

Centering Prayer:

Tuesdays at 6:30pm

Contact Colleen Clementson at powclem@yahoo.com or on

her cell at 858-663-6584, for the ZOOM invite

Thank you for checking out our BUZZ! Here is what you were waiting for! If you have a favorite joke or any tips to make the BUZZ even better, please send emails to julie@ccpucc.org :)

Joke of the Week:

What do books wear on a wet and rainy day?

Rain quotes…

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