Dear Friends,
Good morning and happy Monday. I hope you all had a great past week and enjoyed your weekend. We had a great worship service. Chris Kane and our choir once again led us into God's presence with grace and love. Thank you to our wonderful choir for sharing their gifts with us. If you would like to join this part of our church family - COME ON! Let me know and I will put you in contact with Chris Kane.
I am so excited about this coming weekend (Oct. 1-2) with our church-wide Vision Retreat. Please be praying for all the participants to be open and to be listening to all that God wants to share. I am thanking God in advance for all those who will be attending and our speakers...Ben Sorenson, Zoie Saunders, James Jones, and Dr. Bob Barnes. Please pray!!
An insert was placed in the bulletin again this past Sunday for the Church-Wide Vision Retreat. We wanted to ask the question again from last week. This question was..."What more could our church do to support you in your spiritual walk?" Please respond to this email. As you can see this year we have great things coming and God is speaking! Let's all pray to listen for that Voice.
Jamming with Jesus Family Worship Service - Everyone had a fantastic time. A huge thank you to Julie Ackerman for organizing the wonderful blacklight worship experience. Families certainly did glow to the music, dancing, games and more!
Sermon Recap
The sermon title was "To Be the Church" and the scripture was John 17:20-26 and 1 Corinthians 12:12-15,18-21,25-26. The human body is made up of many parts and each part is important - the church is compared to the body. The church is made up of many different kinds of people and all important, unique, and needed. The church is called to be the hands and feet of Christ. We are called to love like Him. So let's be the church!
Pastor's Weekly Email
Dear Friends,
What a great weekend I, personally, had at the Jolly Roger in Marathon Key! What made it so special was on Sunday when we had over 30 of us (all from CBTS) watching Church By The Sea's worship service live at 10am. We all crowded around our trailer in chairs and about 15 kids sitting on the ground to watch the service. The kids stayed, until after children's time and then they went off to play in the water as we continued to worship. Thank you Brian for leading a moving service for those in person and on YouTube!
I am so excited for all that God is doing in and around CBTS. As you will see in this email, we have some wonderful opportunities for growth. We have 3 bible studies each week for all adults. On Tuesday's, we have 2 - SIS (Sisters in Scriptures) at 9:15am in the Green Room. They are doing a short series on the 12 women of the Bible and then our Zoom Bible study at 11am. Here is the link - 819 9607 5732! On Wednesday night we have our mid-week Bible study at 6:30pm in the Green Room.
An insert was placed in the bulletin for the Church-Wide Vision Retreat which is October 1-2. There will be 1 more question this coming Sunday's bulletin. This past week's question was..."What more could our church do to support you in your spiritual walk?" You may respond to this email with your response if you wish. As you can see this year we have great things coming and God is speaking! Let's all pray to listen for that voice.
We have a need...A kids Sunday School Teacher Needed - Calling those who love God and love children! Our 2nd/3rd grade class is in need of a teacher to lead on the 2nd and 4th Sunday of the month. This is a paid position and excellent curriculum is completely provided. Please contact Marie at childrensministry@thechurchbythesea.org if you would like some more information.
Upcoming Events:
Jamming with Jesus Family Worship - This Saturday we invite all kids and families to this exciting blacklight worship experience. Families will glow to the music, dancing, games and more! RSVP here if your family can join!
October 1st-2nd - Church Visioning Retreat - We are hosting a church-wide visioning retreat and I would like to invite you to participate. The retreat will be held in Eden Hall on Friday, October 1 from 6:00 to 8:00 pm and Saturday, October 2 from 8:00 am to 4:00pm. Meals are included! Together we will hear from informative and inspiring speakers, seek God’s direction, share and discuss ideas and caste a vision for CBTS for the next 3 to 5 years. The speakers are Ben Sorenson, James Jones, Zoie Saunders, and Dr. Bob Barnes. Please follow the link to sign up to participate.” https://vision-retreat-church-by-the-sea.pushpayevents.com/
Sermon Recap
The sermon title was "The Most Important Thing" and the scripture was Mark 2:1-12. Trusting in Jesus is the most important thing! Allowing Him to guide your life and to follow His leading is it! Have you?
Pastor's Weekly Email
Dear Friends,
It was an amazing morning in worship at CBTS. Thank you to all who came to worship live, or online. In worship, we had some of our current Session members lead worship and it was great. You will be seeing more of our current elders and those who have served before in worship.
After worship, we had Anchor's Aweigh in Eden Hall and it looked amazing. We had all of our ministries on display for everyone to walk around, sign up and ask questions if they wish. Thank you to all those who stood behind tables (representing the different ministries) and to all those who brought food. It really was a great day.
An insert placed in the bulletin for the Church-Wide Vision Retreat which is October 1-2. There will be 2 more questions these next 2 Sunday's, but this week's question was..."What do you love about The Church By The Sea that should be a part of our future vision?" You may respond to this email with your response if you wish.
Upcoming Event:
October 1st-2nd - Church Visioning Retreat - We are hosting a church-wide visioning retreat and I would like to invite you to participate. The retreat will be held in Eden Hall on Friday, October 1 from 6:00 to 8:00 pm and Saturday, October 2 from 8:00 am to 4:00pm. Meals are included! Together we will hear from informative and inspiring speakers, seek God’s direction, share and discuss ideas and caste a vision for CBTS for the next 3 to 5 years. The speakers are Ben Sorenson, James Jones, Zoie Saunders, and Dr. Bob Barnes. Please follow the link to sign up to participate.” https://vision-retreat-church-by-the-sea.pushpayevents.com/
As you can see we are having some wonderful upcoming events and ministries. Have a great week.
Sermon Recap
The sermon title was "Letting Go" and the scripture was John 14:1-3,18-19,20:11-17. Letting go is hard. The Disciples didn't want to let Jesus go, but they had to, to experience all that God wanted for them. Maybe you are struggling with letting go of something. We all struggle with that, but keep your heart and mind on Christ and the peace that passes all understanding will flood your heart.
Pastor's Weekly Email
Dear Friends,
It was another great morning of worship. Our choir was spot-on fantastic. If you have any a desire to sing with them please contact me or Chris Kane at church.
Last Saturday we had a Men's Club breakfast! We had 18 men show for breakfast and a time to hear about our past and begin thinking of our future. Thank you Bruce Barclay for leading the Men's Club and leading our breakfast. Another really big thank you goes to Chef Peter! The best chef in town. Thank you for sharing your gift with us. Your food is always amazing. Also a big thank you to Marcia Lee and Dave Finneran for assisting Chef Peter. I look forward to seeing what Men's Club will do and how we will grow.
Here are some upcoming important ministries to be a part of:
September 12th - Anchor's Aweigh Potluck - This a time to talk with people from all the ministries we offer. Lunch is provided and we are asking you to please bring a side dish or dessert. We will provide a main dish from Publix (unless someone has a better idea). Sign up here: https://anchors-aweigh-church-by-the-sea.pushpayevents.com/
October 1st-2nd - Church Visioning Retreat - We are hosting a church-wide visioning retreat and I would like to invite you to participate. The retreat will be held in Eden Hall on Friday, October 1 from 6:00 to 8:00 pm and Saturday, October 2 from 8:00 am to 4:00pm. Meals are included! Together we will hear from informative and inspiring speakers, seek God’s direction, share and discuss ideas and caste a vision for CBTS for the next 3 to 5 years. The speakers are Ben Sorenson, James Jones, Zoie Saunders, and Dr. Bob Barnes. Please follow the link to sign up to participate.” https://vision-retreat-church-by-the-sea.pushpayevents.com/
As you can see we are having some wonderful upcoming events and ministries. Have a great week.
Sermon Recap
The sermon title was "Those 3 Words" and the scripture was Isaiah 43:1-5 and Matthew 8:23-25. Who do you turn too when a storm comes into your life? The Disciples turned to Jesus and said, "Lord, Save, Dying". They were so afraid all they could do is yell 3 words and Jesus calmed the storm. Calm might not mean it is gone but His presence can soothe your anxious heart and mind.
Pastor's Weekly Email
Dear Friends,
What an amazing day of worship. Our choir brought us to a place of worship, the sanctuary was full of happy, energetic children, people of all ages, and just an overall spirit of..."we're back"! It was a great day having 30, or more children for our time on the steps together before they left for Sunday school. As we move forward into the Fall, I want to encourage you to make it a point to be in worship. If you get this email and have a church home elsewhere...then get involved there. Worship is way more than an hour in a church - it is time set aside to listen for God to speak. That is my hope in every worship service...that God speaks! Are we listening?
After worship the Children's Ministry put on a wonderful "Ice Cream Social" for all children and their families. A huge thank you to Jackie Barnett, Michelle Most, and team for making it a wonderful experience for the kids and their families. Another thank you goes to our Director of Youth Ministries, Teresa Cook, and our teenagers for dishing up all the delicious ice cream!
Church By The Sea also ramps up with ministry opportunities as well coming real soon.
September 4th - Men's Ministry breakfast at 8am-9am in Eden Hall. Chef Peter will be making a full breakfast for us to enjoy and then Bruce Barclay and I will lead a time for us to get better organized for all the different kinds of things that we can do and be apart of as well as creating opportunities for us to grow closer to Christ through being together. Please contact the church office at 954-523-6472 if you can attend.
September 12th - Anchor's Aweigh Potluck - This is an after church lunch and mingle with all our ministry leaders to get more information about ministry. We will be asking you all to bring a side dish, or dessert - the church will provide the main dish.
October 1st-2nd - Church Visioning - Eden Hall - more details coming soon.
As you can see we are having some wonderful upcoming events and ministries. Please keep praying for our staff, Session, and Corporate Board as we listen to God speak! Have a great week. THANKS!!!
Sermon Recap
The sermon title was "Building on the Rock" and the scripture was Matthew 7:24-27 and Luke 6:46-49. What is your life built on...money, career, social status? Or is built on the solid rock of Jesus Christ. Who will never leave you. He promises to be there when the storms of life come our way.
Pastor's Weekly Email
Dear Friends,
Thank you all so much for your thoughts, prayers, and good wishes!! COVID has ripped through our family this past week and a half. It started with Gracie and moved through the whole family. Unfortunately, I was last to test positive and get sick. The kids are fine and ready to go. Marie is still pretty tired, but doing much better and I, as of today (Monday), am still congested and very tired. I was vaccinated in April, but this still knocked me back a little. Once again, thank you for your love and concern. My 10 days since symptoms ends on Saturday, so I hope to be preaching this Sunday.
A huge thank you to Randy for leading worship again on such short notice. I am so grateful to God for Randy Starr. He and Jamie are a huge blessing to CBTS!
Last Sunday, Marie and Gracie led a Children's ministry "Sunday school comes home" Zoom study. It begins at 11am. Here is the Zoom ID - 820 2520 7731. This is an interactive time for children of all ages, so please make it a point to get your kids and/or grandkids on Zoom. They will have a great time!
Thank you again and God bless!!
Sermon Recap
Joy comes from having God's unconditional love in our lives and inside each of us. When we have joy it means that no matter what is occurring in the world around us we have peace. Happiness can be destroyed because it is dependent on external circumstances but joy is indestructible because it comes from God and is inside us.
Pastor's Weekly Email
Dear Friends,
It has been a crazy week since our last email. We have had to place ourselves in quarantine due some exposure to COVID and some of the family has shown symptoms and are sick. We will be fine but prayers are very much appreciative. This experience has given us a better understanding of what a lot of you all have gone through with COVID or being in quarantine and our prayers go to all as we continue to do our best at being the people that God has called us to be.
A huge thank you to Brian Checchio for filling in last minute (Thursday) and led worship. He did a wonderful job and as always, shared from God's heart to ours. Another thank you goes to Julie and Andrew Ackermann and Marcos Van Dorn for leading the Parking Lot Party last Saturday. The video's and posts showed that everyone had a good time even though they weren't able to do all that was planned!
As we approach the school year please see below for some important dates to remember.
Challenge for the Week:
Spend some time this week thinking about specific ways God has touched your life and the lives of those you love. Give thanks and talk about Him!
Upcoming Events and Ministries:
August 2nd - Theology on Tap - Quarterdeck off 17th St. Come by for a complimentary beverage, some great appetizers, and some wonderful conversation.
August 8th - Worship at 10am
August 21st - Men's Ministry Breakfast. 8am in Eden Hall - Bruce Barclay our Men's Club president will be leading this event! More information will be in this Sunday's bulletin.
August 22nd - Children's Ministry Ice Cream Social.
August 28th - Aspire Woman's Conference. Kathy Soderman will be leading this amazing event!
September 12th - Anchor's Aweigh - After worship in Eden Hall - look for more details coming soon.
In His Grip,
Chris
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Sermon Recap
It's our privilege to share the Good News of the Gospel with others. Yet sometimes we hesitate to talk about our faith because we just don't know how to begin the conversation, or we're afraid we'll be asked a question we can't answer. 1 John 1:1-3 can help! The apostle John testifies about what he's known from the beginning; what he's heard; and what he's seen with his own eyes. We can do the same! Let your passion for the Lord bring your experiences with Him into your conversations. If you don't know what to say, just talk about what God has done for you!
Pastor's Weekly Email
Dear Friends,
I hope you have had a great beginning of your week. I have been out of town on vacation to the Adirondacks, Acadia, Maine, some time in Boston and then drive back to Fort Lauderdale. It was a fantastic trip with some serious driving, but I loved it. Again, I am grateful for Randy who is an amazing servant of Christ. Thank you Randy for leading worship a few weeks and delivering a challenging sermon. Another thank you to Brian Checchio. Brian led worship for us the past 2 weeks and did an anointed job! Thank you both! Another thank you goes to Cheri Evans-Schmidt for leading our "Hymn Sing" every Sunday morning. Thank you Cheri for all you do! Your friendship means the world!
As we draw closer to the school year and a somewhat regular schedule I hope we all will pray for wisdom and guidance personally, as well as, for our church family! This Fall will be a time of growth and I hope, spiritual refreshment! We have some exciting things upcoming, so please mark these down on your calendars!
Upcoming Events and Ministries:
July 31st - Parking Lot Party. 5:30pm - 7:30pm. Cost is $5 per plate - no charge to just come and enjoy. Please contact the office, or sign up through our App (The Church By The Sea) to sign up. This will be a great time for all ages. It is just for us to get together and catch up. There will be a bike water fountain (so bring your bike or you can just walk through), bring your own beverages, lawn chairs, and fun attitude!
August 2nd - Theology on Tap - Quarterdeck off 17th St. Come by for a complimentary beverage, some great appetizers, and some wonderful conversation.
August 21st - Men's Ministry Breakfast. 8am in Eden Hall - More details to follow.
August 22nd - Children's Ministry Ice Cream Social - More details to follow.
September 12th - Anchor's Aweigh - After worship in Eden Hall - look for more details coming soon.
Please put these dates on your phones, or whatever you use to save the date. Thanks and God bless.
In His Grip,
Chris
Sermon Recap
Brian Checchio led worship this past Sunday. The title was "Surviving the Storms of Life" and the text was Matthew 7:24-28. The storms of life are inevitable. When they come, those who have built their lives on the shifting sand of worldly wisdom will risk a complete collapse. But those who have built their lives on the truth of Jesus' Word will be able to survive the storms.
Pastor's Weekly Email
Dear Friends,
What a wonderful morning of worship we had yesterday! Attendance was down a little, but we had a great time being together! I am so grateful for our country. I am grateful to be your pastor. I am grateful to working alongside a great staff and many volunteers. I am also grateful for you all - those who call The Church By The Sea home. Together, God can and will do wonderful amazing things. I hope as we are in the thick of summer that you all are able to catch your breath, if needed. I hope that you will experience God's presence and hear His voice as you make time to spend with Him. Make time to listen and be still. Suggestion...read the Gospel of Mark and then the other 3 Gospels this summer! Give it a try!
I am sitting in Washington-Dulles airport as I type this. I am meeting up with Marie, the kids, and the travel trailer at State College airport and then heading to the Adirondacks, New Hampshire, Maine, and Vermont and who knows where else! Randy, Brian, Chris Kane and Cheri Evans-Schmidt will be leading worship while I am away. Worship is in excellent hands and I look forward to watching online when we have internet. Have a blessed July and I will see you all soon.
In His Grip,
Chris
Sermon Recap
The sermon title was "Freedom" and the scripture was Psalm 33:8-12 and Galatians 5:1,13-14. Freedom comes at a price - it comes with courage, compassion and understanding, and conviction. America IS an honorable nation. We have faults, we have serious issues to deal with, we are not perfect but if we the people decide to pray and become what God wants us to be individually and collectively, we can do ALL things!
Pastor's Weekly Email
Dear Friends,
I want to begin this email with the fact that our hearts are heavy from this past week regarding the collapse of the condominium in Surfside! As we pray let us remember all those who perished, survived, the families, the rescue workers, and all of us as we try to help. As times passes we will see how we can help if anything more than prayer!
Worship yesterday was amazing. We baptized Danny and Justin James' son, Paxton and on a side note, we (The Church By The Sea) also baptized Paxton's older brother, Preston and little sister, Piper over the recent years! Family that CBTS is. We also recognized Taylor Barnett in worship. She wasn't able to be there on Youth Sunday, so congrats Taylor have an amazing time at FSU!
After worship, we had our 8th annual golf tournament at the Fort Lauderdale Country Club! We had 32 golfers and it looked like everyone had a great time. Our first place team was Mike Stokes, Garry Sambell, Buddy Roundtree, and Jimmy Snyder with a score of 10under! The longest drive went to Drew Godfrey and closest to the pin went to our own, Randy Starr!! Congrats and thank you to all of those who played and thank you to FLCC. They did an excellent job!! Another thank you goes to David Bayer for securing FLCC.
I hope each one of you has an amazing week with God showing up in the most unexpected of places! This coming Sunday is July 4th - make some time this week to be thankful and grateful for our country.
In His Grip,
Chris
Sermon Recap
The sermon title was "Tough Love" and the scripture was John 8:1-11 and Ephesians 4:15-16. Tough love is costly. Tough love is hard. Tough love is needed, but so is grace. Jesus showed both to the woman in our scripture passage in John. He showed grace by saying, "neither do I condemn you" but He showed tough love by saying, "go and sin no more". Jesus was calling her to not stay as she is, but to be all that God wants her to be.