We’re dedicating July to the study of Acts at Embrace Church.
Our new series is called Organic (part one). Part two is coming in September.
This series is asking and answering the question, “How did Christianity go from Jerusalem to Chattanooga?”
Practical, theological, historical, and intense stuff!
Hello everyone, thanks for visiting the Embrace Church website.
If you are thinking about visiting us tomorrow, we’d love to have you, but we’re doing something different tomorrow – instead of meeting at The Mill, we’ll be at the Booker T Washington State Park group lodge at 12:30 p.m. for a very short, casual service followed by lunch. The lodge is air-conditioned but the park has plenty of outdoor fun to offer for those of you who like the heat.
Join us at the park tomorrow, and we’ll be back at The Mill on June 20th at 11:00 a.m. and resume our current series, Pay Day, with a look at the parable of the workers in the vineyard.
God bless!
On Sunday May 30th, we will not meet for church due to the Memorial Day holiday weekend.
It may seem strange to some for a church to take vacation days, but Embrace is no ordinary church.
But of course we don’t take the occasional Sunday off just to be different. We do this to honor our leaders and volunteers. Being a young, portable church, it takes the hard work of a lot of people during the week and on Sundays to make Embrace Church a smooth operation. Combine that with the teachings of Scripture regarding sabbath and rest, it makes sense on holiday weekends when many will already be gone to go ahead and give everyone involved a day to rest, relax, spend time with family and friends, and get focused for the next season.
Our series in June will be PayDay – a look at our money and what we do with it.
God bless and we’ll be back together on Sunday June 6th at 11:00 a.m. at The Mill.
This month we have been in a series called Get A Job – a look at the ideas in the Old Testament story of Job.
I have really enjoyed thinking through this story and sharing some thoughts. Here’s a brief recap of what we’ve discussed so far:
In week one, we read all of chapters 1 and 2 so that the story of Job and his losses would once again be fresh in our minds. Then came two ideas that lay a foundation for the entire story. First, when you read Job’s story, you will automatically begin to anticipate that moment where it all makes sense, a moment where God explains to Job exactly why he went through what he did and what it all means. Although Job does experience a rebuilding of his life, this moment of absolute clarity never comes. Second, when we read the book of Job, we don’t know exactly what we’re reading. It is not written as a historical narrative but an epic poem; on the other hand, the story is too detailed to be a completely fictitious parable like Jesus would tell in his teaching ministry (i.e. the prodigal son). The most likely conclusion is that Job was a real man, and what we read about are real events, but in the poetic dialogue there is literary freedom which in no way takes away from the inspiration and wisdom of the Spirit in Scripture.
In week two, we looked at how much Job knew in his heart that he did not yet know in his head. Job lived just before the time of Abraham. Information and revelation about God was limited. Job didn’t have the benefits of the written law, the preaching of the prophets, the Gospels, or the letters of the early church fathers (and maybe mothers, as there are scholars who believe Priscilla wrote Hebrews). Despite these limits, Job understood that he was disconnected from God, that he wanted to stand in the presence of God and speak to God face-to-face, yet for this to happen there would need to be a mediator between God and man, someone who could “lay his hand on us both.”
Last Sunday in week 3 we looked at how Job’s theology changed as his circumstances changed. In the beginning of the book you can see that Job embraced the most common theology of the day – retribution theology. This was the mindset that there is no life after death, that death is the end of existence, and that anything God is going to do to us, He will do in this life. When good things happen, it means God is blessing us for being good people; when bad things happen, God is surely punishing us for being bad people. Job’s friends believed this. Job’s wife certainly believed this – why else would she tell him to “‘curse God and die”?
Job believed this also – he even says that if he died, he would be done with God, like a slave who escaped a brutal master. Yet over time, this retribution theology collapsed and became redemption theology. Though this life may not ever make sense, one of these days God is going to make it right. Job said it best – I know that my Redeemer lives and in the end he will stand on the earth, and after my skin is destroyed, in my flesh I will see God.
Tomorrow we will finish the series by looking at how Job’s story ends. Some may say that Job’s story ends like a fairy tale – everything works out for everybody. But truthfully, it is just a reminder that sometimes in this life, things will get better. That’s what we’ll talk about tomorrow – getting better.
Even if you don’t have a child, this holiday is a good reminder to send love, honor, and appreciation to the women in our lives and specifically the wonderful ladies of Embrace Church.
Our church culture has always attracted strong, independent women. This doesn’t entirely surprise me when you look at the core group that launched Embrace. Also, I have consistently preached the equality of women in creation, the church, and the home for years. Perhaps this goes without saying, but these ideas have made me the target of a lot of criticism, but at the same time, I’ve seen the emotional and spiritual impact it can have on a woman when she finally hears someone say what she’s known all along – “you are equal.”
Yesterday I sent one of my characteristically sarcastic “tweets” (that’s a Twitter update for the uninitiated) about how Mother’s Day is the one week that many churches use to justify their views and beliefs about women during the other 51 weeks. Of course that’s mostly just a harmless attempt on my part at humor and cultural observation. There is nothing wrong with churches passing out flowers or hosting mother-daughter teas, but I think what women probably want more than that in 2010 is a church whose culture, preaching, and leadership structure empowers them and affords them opportunities (and if you can do that and still throw down an awesome mother-daughter tea, by all means…)
So on this Mother’s Day, I’m glad to use our church’s official blog to say a big “thank you and God bless” to my wife Beka and all the strong women of Embrace Church, especially those of you who provide much-needed leadership and counsel in the week-to-week operations of our church’s life.
–Dana Jenkins, Lead Pastor
We have a unique opportunity as a church to meet together for a mid-week service.
We’ll be holding a special Thursday night edition of Embrace this week (May 6th), 7:30 p.m. at The Mill.
We’re doing this because we will not be meeting on Mother’s Day (Sunday May 9th) because of a previously scheduled wedding & reception.
I hope you can join us for this special service. We’ll continue our current series on the story of Job. And as always, good music, hot coffee, and great people.
Lots of “new” going on at Embrace Church right now…
This past Sunday, March 21st, we made an exciting announcement – on Sunday April 4th (Easter Sunday), Embrace Church will begin holding services in a new location – The Mill Event Hall of Chattanooga, located at the corner of Main Street and Gulf Street in Chattanooga’s Southside.
All of us are excited about this transition. Since this blog is read by both members and friends of Embrace Church, let me quickly offer you 8 reasons why we decided to make this move:
1) We’ve been meeting at our current location, Loose Cannon Arts and Events, for two years. The relationship between us and them has simply run its course, and it’s time to move on. We have learned a lot from our time there, and we are leaving with many good memories and experiences. It’s just time to go.
2) The folks at The Mill said yes! That is always a key factor in any agreement – both parties have to like the idea. We approached the management of The Mill a few weeks ago and began a discussion about moving Embrace Church to their venue. After several emails, phone calls, and meetings, we all felt like this was the right move.
3) It’s a great venue! If you’ve been to The Mill for a wedding reception, party, or fundraiser, then you know what a classy place it is. If you’ve never had the opportunity, visit their website and check out the pictures. As the name implies, it is an old industrial mill that was purchased and renovated into a first-class event hall.
4) The terms of the lease are very fair. The prices are reasonable and while meeting there, we’ll be able to continue to build funds for when we can have our own building. That day is coming, but it’s not today. Also, our agreement with The Mill isn’t for a certain length of time (one year, for example). This means we have the freedom to pursue a permanent facility whenever it comes along.
5) They are giving us some space in a locked storage closet on-site that is alarm-protected. This is really important for any portable church that sets up and tears down each week
6) There is plenty of parking. This is always a concern of mine whenever there is an event downtown – is there parking, and is it free? With The Mill, it’s yes and yes. In fact, they have their own parking lot that easily accommodates large events. This will provide plenty of spaces and allow room for growth.
7) The management of The Mill is professional, accommodating, and has been a pleasure to work with. Let me publicly thank Travis and Tonya Lytle – they’ve been fantastic to us.
8) It is not far at all from our current location. This is important for the sake of continuity. In fact, The Mill is only 1 mile away from Loose Cannon, and this move still keeps us as a part of the “Southside Revival.”
I told the folks at Embrace Church that there are so many reasons we shouldn’t have made it this far. We started with no people and no money, yet we are still here. There must be a reason for this, and I can’t wait to see what happens next.
Be sure to visit The Mill’s website and check it out. Also, if you’d like to help us cover the expenses of the “move to The Mill”, click here to visit our online giving page. It’s fast, free, safe, and all gifts are tax-deductible. Thanks!
–Dana
This morning at Embrace Church we started a new series about “Embracing Change” and it was a little different from what we usually do. We had no logo, no video, no decorations…nothing but ideas.
The reason for this is because this was an unplanned message series. We were supposed to begin an exploration of a doctrine called “imago dei” today, which means the image of God. In this series, we will explore all the implications and manifestations of being created in the image of God.
However, we have decided to lay that series aside for the time being. We feel God’s direction to change what we are talking about and ironically enough, embracing change is exactly what we feel like we need to focus on. Sometimes out of nowhere an opportunity will present itself, circumstances change, a decision must be made, and we must decide what to do next.
With that in mind, I want to strongly suggest that you be at Embrace this coming Sunday, March 21st.
I am not one for hype. I don’t promise the sun, moon, and stars every week. I don’t try to claim that each service will be bigger, badder, louder, and better tasting than the last. Hype doesn’t fit well with our vision – an alternative to complicated church.
My point is that I am not exaggerating or hyping when I say that this coming Sunday – 03/21/10 – will be a very important day for our young church. We’ve got some exciting news to share with you that you won’t want to miss!
See you Sunday!
–Dana
Good evening Embrace Church folks – as I said during this morning’s message, back in the fall, we presented a message called 8 Questions To Ask Before You Say I Do. I believe that it holds value for those who are single, dating, or engaged as you examine your heart and life and prepare for marriage. Also, for the married couples, I think it is worth taking a few minutes to read through these; perhaps it can help bring some things to the surface and help you move past some things. Enjoy and God bless. Dana
In week 4 of Conversations 2, we blended together two topics that received several votes – marriage and submissive wives. I shared a message called “8 Questions To Ask Before You Say I Do.” I promised to post a blog summarizing this message…it took me awhile, but here it is…
These questions are for two groups of people: those of you who are married and those of you who are not. For the single and unmarried, these questions will help you go into marriage carefully and thoughtfully which increases the chance you’ll stay in it permanently. For the married, these questions will help you to identify the source of tension in your marriage; there could be things you are dealing with now because there were things you didn’t deal with then.
8 Questions To Ask Before You Say “I Do”…
1) Are there any unhealthy, unusual, or unbalanced external influences at work in your decision to marry or not to marry?
Whose decision is this at the end of the day? How much influence do the opinions of your parents, relatives, friends, co-workers, church, and pastors have invested in this? Ultimately there are three things that matter – your voice, the voice of your partner, and the blessing of God. A three-fold cord is not easily broken.
2) Are there any unhealthy, unusual, or unbalanced internal influences at work in your decision to marry or not to marry?
Is there something going on inside of you that could be creating a fog in your mind so that you are not in a place to make the right decision? Examples of these internal influences are…
3) What is the witness of your community about this decision?
This does not contradict the first question. While you should not make decisions based on the witness of your community, you should at least listen to what those in your life are saying because God could be speaking. If 15 people tell you that the sky is falling, what does it hurt to at least look out the window?
4) How did you meet?
How something gets started paints a picture of how it might end. If your relationship was born in unhealthy circumstances such as adultery, that is a red flag. Were the circumstances worthy of you?
5) Is there a history of or evidence that there may be in the future abuse, adultery, or control?
If so, do yourself a favor and get out now. Galatians 5:1 tells us to stand firm in our freedom. This doesn’t stop on your wedding day. You should feel more freedom in marriage than in any other relationship you’ll ever be in.
6) Is he/she responsible and do they have a vision for their life?
I am not suggesting you marry someone with a “life plan” but you should at least marry someone who knows what they are doing tomorrow! The first question I always ask the women in my life when they start dating a guy is not, “Is he a nice Christian boy?” It’s, “Does he have a job?”
7) Is this someone I can grow in the grace of God with?
When you look at your partner, do you see a life that God is working in? Is there a journey of faith, a longing for Scripture, a desire to pray and worship, and an understanding of the importance of giving, serving, and church community?
8) Is this someone I can submit to?
A few quick thoughts about submission…
Remember – go into marriage carefully and thoughtfully, and there is a good chance you’ll be in it permanently.
