My new addiction, “Fantasy Baseball” has given me a lot to think about recently. Some people call it gambling (I play in a free league) and stupid. But I love it. Why? I love baseball, stats, the National pastime, the National League (I hate the DH), and afternoon games in the sun. I love the intrigue of hitting streaks, batting orders, batting averages and the drama of the ninth inning. So when I was invited two years ago to play fantasy baseball, it was a no-brainer.

Then came “draft day.” I did not know what to do…but I gave it a shot. I picked guys I knew were good or at least I thought they were good. I also picked guys that I like. As the season went on, I found myself dropping players and picking up new ones that were showing potential. These players were not ranked high or even had great careers up to that point. Then they got their chance and excelled. That is so awesome! What a feeling it must be for them on the field. They may have always dreamed of becoming a Major League Player, then it happened. One day they were “called up” and they walked into that ballpark with their official team jersey hanging on a locker with their name on it and they must have been so pumped! The BIG LEAGUES! Then they began to produce. And by produce, I mean they got some hits, threw some strikes, whatever their position required they produced.

All this was able to happen because of potential. Potential is something you think you have but you have not been able to prove it. I drafted players on their potential. Some great player I drafted may have proven potential, but he might get injured or slump and I will have to replace him. Sometimes you take a risk on a rookie that turns out to be a future hall of famer!

Potential is amazing! It is also scary! Great thing for all those who follow Christ is that He sees our potential. And to Him it is not even potential. He knows the plans he has for us…plans he created us for (Jer. 29:11) and we can just jump into that! The problem is…our view of our own potential. Or our perceived view of what others think of our potential.

Are you facing something that you are not sure you have the potential to deal with? Are you ready for God’s best for you?

The reality is that God uses everybody to accomplish is plan. My job is to ask Him how He can use me more!

If there is one thing that is important about this day it is you and your story! Stories define us, they define our lives and our families. Stories also define our Colorado Ridge community. Some stories are difficult, some stories are powerful! Today is the day that your life intersected with the God who came “down here” and changed everything. Today, you had the opportunity to be a part of the “changing of everything!” And we have to hear about it! Do your best, you will not be graded on spelling, grammar… only on participation! Jump in! Tell us what God did in your life today, GO Denver 2008!

First, THANK YOU to EVERYONE who has helped with the drives the past few weeks.  We have had an incredible response to each and every drive! 

This week we have a great chance to supply food for food boxes for the Burmese Refugees in the Denver area.  Since they don’t eat our typical canned foods, we had a list put together of what types of foods and household items they can use. 

Feel free to purchase as much of any of these items as you wish. 

rice (prefer Jasmine)

potatoes

onions

cabbage

garlic

dried red chilies

salt/pepper

soy sauce

cooking oil

canned chicken, fish, sardines

canned fruit

canned tomatoes

canned green beans

diapers

dish soap

409

soap, shampoo

tp, paper towels

also, grocery gift certificates / gift cards are a huge help so they can buy the fresh veggies and meats.

Just a quick reminder that this Sunday we are collecting packs of brand new white tube socks for Sox Place, a ministry for street teens in Denver.  These socks will be delivered by our Downtown Team on March 1st. 

Please help us get the reminder out to those in the church!  Let’s make this drive as successful as our other two drives have been!

Hey Everyone,

Just a chance for me to take a deep breath, smack dab in the middle of our “Go Campaign” and reflect a little! What a wild ride so far! We have seen an incredible response from the great people of Colorado Ridge over the last three weeks! You have all responded with your actions in ways that are really meeting the needs of our community. AND THAT IS EXCITING!

And as the Go Denver Project approaches, I wanted to get your feedback on how this campaign has impacted you and your family. What are some of the ways that your life is being moved, your perspective is being changed or your heart is growing? Tell us your “GO STORY”… We need to here it, and you need to tell it!

Ryan

That’s a phrase I never thought I’d say working for a church, but it’s true.  As Ryan mentioned on stage yesterday, we need used men’s pants for the drive we are doing this Sunday.

 These pants will be used as part of our homeless outreach so that these men have decent pants to go on interviews. 

So check out your closet, any jeans or pants you have that you no longer wear and are still in wearable condition, please bring them with you to church on Sunday. 

Call your family, friends, and neighbors and tell them we want their pants also. 

 Let’s make this drive a huge success!

Each Sunday during the month of February we will be holding a different drive to collect goods to directly impact our community.  We would LOVE for these drives to be a HUGE success.  In order to do that, we need EVERYONE to help us get the word out to all those you know at church. 

In addition to bringing your own items to donate, please consider going to your local Walmart / Target / King Soopers / Safeway, etc. and ask for donations. 

Sunday, February 3rd: DIAPERS for Champa House

Sunday, February 10th: USED MEN’s PANTS for the homeless in Denver

Sunday, February 17th: SOCKS for homeless teens in Denver

Sunday, February 24th: CANNED FOOD for a local food bank

Thanks so much!  We look forward to seeing how God uses our church to bless our community!

With Christmas quickly approaching, I wanted to get the word out about the office hours during the Christmas / New Year holidays.

The Church office will be closed during the weekd of December 24th through the first part of the week of December 31st. The office will reopen on Wednesday, January 2nd, 2008.

While the office is closed, please feel free to email or leave messages for the staff.  We will do our best to get back with you if the matter needs attention during the week the office is closed.  Otherwise, we will get back in touch with you when we return to the office on Wednesday, January 2nd.

And don’t forget - we will be having our regular Sunday morning services at 9:00am and 10:30am on Sunday the 23rd and Sunday the 30th.

We’ll see you all there!

There are two important events coming up this next week and we need your help getting the word out to the church.  Please pass along the information in this blog to those you serve alongside as well as those within your small group.

First, don’t forget that Daylight Savings ends this weekend.  So be sure to set your clocks back one hour before you head off to bed on Saturday night.

Secondly, we will be celebrating our first Worship Community in our new ministry space, The Hub, next Wednesday at 7pm.  This will be an extended time of worship through music and communion.  This will also be a time for the elders and pastors to update the church on the senior pastor search, our new space, finances, and anything else they feel needs to be communicated.  So please adjust your schedules as you don’t want to miss this night of community or the information that will be communicated.   Plus, with our new space we can now offer childcare for this event!

We’ll see you this weekend…

As we move toward the fall, there is so much going on at Colorado Ridge.

Be sure to stay in touch by checking the Events section of the main website, www.coloradoridge.com, every week.  We will do our best to keep you informed of dates and events you will want to know about through the website.

As always, if you have any questions, please contact Sarah at the church office:

sarahhelms@coloradoridge.com

303.439.2620 x102