Champions Community Church

What an exciting few weeks around CCC! There is so much going on that it's hard to pick a highlight... We've baptized around a dozen people in the last month, the kids and the teens have had life-changing experiences around the altar at Summer Camp, Friday Night Block parties have kept growing as we've gone into Summer - but, if I had to pick one highlight from the past few weeks, it would have to be something that just happened last week - we established a brand new coffee shop and cafe, called Common Ground Cafe.

I know what you're thinking - A coffee shop? More important than baptisms? More important than Friday night evangelism? More important than life changing moments around the altar?
Now, before you get too far into thinking I've lost it completely - let me explain.

Almost 5 years ago we moved into our current location, and when we moved in we had a specific purpose and plan for every square foot of building space - there wasn't a room that didn't have a very important, specific purpose... but something happened. When we moved in, we had to get adjusted to having much larger facilities, meaning more rooms to manage, more carpet to clean, more grass to cut, more programs to plan, etc... and at first, it was quite overwhelming! While we were getting adjusted to the new building, some of our specific plans for designated rooms got fuzzy, and some completely disappeared! One of those rooms in particular was a pretty large area of space just off of the main entrance - where, we had a couch and few pictures hanging, but no one ever really "used" that space. For 5 years that room has lied almost dormant as we went about the business of the kingdom of God...

Well, this past week a few CCC staffers got an idea to transform that room, to finally give that space a specific purpose - and the specific purpose, a coffee shop. We didn't have a whole lot of "coffee shop/cafe" furniture, but we decided to use what we had - and I'll be honest, the first inception on the first day was quite sad! But something amazing happened, that next night, a Wednesday night, a few folks saw what we were trying to do and they got excited about it - they brought their ideas, and their expertise to the table and we began to devise an even bigger plan - we didn't want just a little coffee shop, but a full cafe experience, complete with patio and all. We put our heads together, came up with an action plan and then went to work... we  spent Thursday and Friday bargain shopping for patio furniture, restaurant supplies, paint and more - and by the end of Friday night we had a totally transformed space - that empty room, with bland, vanilla walls, and a single couch was turned into a hiply designed and painted space with cafe tables and an adjoining patio (on the alleyway in between the two buildings. This space was formerly used for a whole bunch of NOTHING!) And Sunday morning, when we unveiled it to the church it was a BIG HIT! The people were lined up to get coffee and breakfast food, but more importantly than that, Common Ground Cafe brought people together; they were laughing, joking, talking about the goodness of God and more!

What am I trying to say... well, I had to say all that to make the point I really want to get to... In the beginning there was a purpose for every room in our new facilities, but somewhere along the way, in the hustle and bustle of ministry work, some of those specific plans were put on the back-burner... and a single room, which once had a purpose, was sitting dormant, wasted - until someone did something with it.

Jeremiah 29:11 says, "For I know the plans I have for you," declares the LORD, "plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future."

From the beginning, before we were ever born, God had a specific plan for our lives - for every aspect of our lives... but more often than not, in the hustle and bustle of life, we lose sight of the specific plan He has for us. Ideas, abilities, talents that God designed for us to use in a specific way for Him wind up on the back burner as dormant and wasted space in our lives. 

I want to challenge you to "do something with the wasted space." You might just find a Cafe' where an old dark room used to be, and a beautiful patio where an old dirty alleyway once was! Don't let God's plan for your life fall out of sight, but bring it to the forefront of your mind. He has a designated plan for you - and it's a good plan, a plan that will prosper you as you use it to prosper His kingdom. This week, as you pray, talk to God about His specific plan for your life, and when you locate the dormant, wasted space in your life - DO SOMETHING WITH IT!

Here's a few pics of "Common Ground Cafe" that I snapped with my phone (it's still under construction, but you can see what I mean!)



and the alleyway turned patio...