Building Community

There are so many ways to serve. All we need to do is open our eyes and hearts and God will provide.

We recently were given an opportunity to help an elderly couple in West Columbia. Roosevelt Glauston suffered through some strokes in the past few years which has weakened him and made it difficult for him to navigate steps. He has an electric wheelchair he can use once he is out of the house but it has been kept in the shed because there is no way for them to get it up the 4 steps that lead into their home.

We were introduced to the Glauston's and given an opportunity to help them and we ran with it. Pictured here are members of Radius who came to help Willimena (Pictured) and Roosevelt. We built the wheelchair ramp, repaired some siding and fixed their carport (Well done Nick!). (Professional photography and nail gunner was Steve Jewell - Wayne's brother. Thanks Steve!)

It was a blessing to touch their lives by just offering a hand. Keep your eyes and hearts open and help with the next Building Community Project.

Getting Connected

In January of 2009 Radius will be starting a handful of new small groups. There are currently men's, woman's and inter generational groups already meeting but in the new year we will expand these groups in a way that will allow everyone to get involved.

As we work to build community in a world whic operates across miles of landscape on a daily basis these small groups can close that gap. As we long for relationships that go deep below the surface we are called to take risks among men and women we trust and who truly have our backs. As we strive to grow spiritually and overcome the parts of the world that try to master us your small group can help with the accountability you need to keep moving forward.

God did not design us to walk alone. Get connected in 2009.

Some Assembly Required*

Life is full of asterisks!  You know, like the 'some assembly required' kind.  The kind that, if you're a dad with young kids like me, will keep you up all night on Christmas Eve, screw driver in one hand, 12 page blueprint in the other!  My family just finished doing a pre-Christmas, gift giving to my 2-year-old son and Becca, my wife, had not read the fine print.  It was supposed to be a breezy, 5 minute ceremony to get us in the Christmas spirit and turned into a 3o minute ordeal. And while I was happy to fulfill my fatherly duties, I couldn't help but be the slightest bit annoyed at the surprise of assembling a $30 plastic, two-story toy car garage.  At least they print the directions in big, kindergarten size letters!

There's always something we've not accounted for that springs up in life that makes things just a little bit harder, take a little bit longer.  It's those asterisk moments that we're not prepared for that catch us by surprise.  And every day seems to come with those moments built in to test us, to keep on our toes.  Most are miniscule, reminding us that we still have to live in an imperfect world.  Others are life-altering, like the story I heard today of a young couple on the brink of divorce or my friend who is reeling with the loss of a loved one.  But regardless of the significance of the circumstance, life does not always turn out like we thought it would.

Tonight as I stood over my architectural handiwork, I thought about how I so often allow the unexpected hick-ups to rob me of joy.  I had a choice, to embrace the moment and enjoy my son's excitement, or let that extra annoyance steal those moments away.  

Many of us will be celebrating Christmas these next few days.  And many of us will have an asterisk moment (or 20).  What will you do when the unexpected happens?  How will you respond?  Feel free to share how you responded by posting a comment!  We'd love to hear what you think! In the end, I hope to be reminded that it's the journey that matters, not the outcome.  Merry Christmas! ~ Jeremiah Jones 

Christmas Caroling at Lexington Extended Care

A group of about 30 folks from Radius spent an hour Saturday night trolling the halls of Lexington Extended Care and singing carols to residents. Now caroling is not my main gifting, as I don't have a good ear for music. In fact, when I lived in Russia my Russian friends told me that a 'cow stepped on my ear', which is their euphemism for people like me who can't carry a tune. But nevertheless, it was a great time to sing to these dear old people, to watch some of them smile, to see them sing along. It was also special for the people who were there visiting family, as they brought their loved ones out of their rooms and into the main rooms to enjoy some time together with them. I am all too well acquainted with extended care facilities/nursing homes. My mother spent the last 3 years of her life in a nursing home with advanced dementia and Alzheimers. I would go and visit her there whenever possible and after I spoke a few words to her in the first few minutes, there was not much to say or do, as she was bedridden at this time. So it was always a very painful and even awkward experience for me even though it was my mother, so it was especially meaningful to me to see these middle-aged sons and daughters bringing their parents into these rec rooms and enjoying some live caroling with them. In this context there was no need for conversation, they could just sit and hold hands and enjoy the moment. Also, our children did a great job. Their simple presence brings great joy and hope to these senior adults so we really appreciate them participating in this ministry with us. We will repeat it, stay tuned for more . . .
Todd Carnes

The Goodness of Sacrifice

I received a text message this morning from a friend and it said, in texting shorthand - Thot 4 2day. Ur salvation is dependent on someone else's sacrifice. ur sanctification is dependent on ur sacrifice." Very simple, but right on time. I texted him back and added, "and our joy is also dependent upon our sacrifice." As a matter of fact, it seems that everything good in life comes out of someone's sacrifice. So why do I find myself running away from sacrifice instead of running towards it, that is the question for the day?

Hebrews 12:2 Let us fix our eyes on Jesus, the author and perfecter of our faith, who for the joy set before him endured the cross, scorning its shame, and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God. Jesus walked right into the sacrifice and suffering of the cross, and he did it 'for the joy set before him'. He did it for joy because he knew that sacrifice mysteriously brings joy!

Building marriages is the work of the church . .

Tonight I was privileged to hang out with one of our small groups during their end of semester celebration. This is a small group of young married couples that has spent the last several months meeting together for one purpose - to strengthen their marriages. They are all young couples who haven't had children yet and it is awesome that they are building a firm foundation that will be a place of safety, stability and strength for their future children. Tonight we talked about how God would have us take this group and their tight relationships and leverage that to reach out to other couples who just need some friends and encouragement. After almost 10 years of pastoral ministry, I can tell you that there are a lot of people really suffering in their marriages and they suffer because there is no one to talk to about the issues. If we can build anything at Radius, I pray to God that we can build a place where people can walk in and feel totally safe sharing the deep, painful issues of life, without any fear of judgment or condemnation. The only alternative is to just keep struggling through life with little or no hope of overcoming the issues that haunt you. Do you have friends or neighbors that need this kind of encouragement in their marriage? We will kick off again in late January with another group of young couples and work to build them into strong families that can invest themselves in God's eternal purposes on the earth.
Todd Carnes

Welcome to THE LOOP

Welcome to THE LOOP, a new blog where the members of Radius Church will form an online community to celebrate all that God is doing among us. Please pass this on to your friends and neighbors so we can develop a cyber community focused on transforming our community and our world!