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Dear Friends,

This is a special day for me. I was ordained a priest 27 years ago today.  It was a dark and stormy night…really.  I remember it very, very well.  I thought it was the culmination of a call I had received in college.  It was that, to be sure.  But it was also a start of a new kind of life that God would lead me on.

Since that cold evening in Tucson, I have been on a journey. I have tried to walk with God, run with Jesus…and keep from getting ahead of Him. (Jesus never ran.) By the Grace of God I have had a lifelong companion (my wife, Fran) in the ministry and the blessing of children and grandchildren. And I have seen Christ Church grow and mature as I have grown and matured in the Lord and as a leader. I am forever thankful to God for His faithfulness to my family, to me, and the ministry He called me to and ordained me for 27 years ago.

Now a few things you need to know:

“Rebel” Concludes
The “Rebel Without a Clue” series will end this weekend. What a journey!  That little book has begun to unspool a lot of things for people…and bring together a lot more things in people’s hearts and minds. I know because they tell me and they write to me each week. So let’s go another week into the culmination of the story where Jonah fights his anger toward God about the salvation of the Ninevites and about a little worm that pushes him over the top.

I told you that Jonah has been a favorite of mine for many years. It was the first book that I every taught from years ago at the start of Christ Church. Last week Fran and I were up in our attic doing some rearranging and we found this piece of artwork. Fran, with her artistic talent and eye for all things beautiful, created this calligraphy as a gift to me on my 31^st birthday.

Matters of the Heart
Next weekend (Feb 14) I am going to tackle the very heartfelt questions that so many of you sent in. Thank you for sharing the deep (and sometimes painful) matters of the heart that you wonder and worry about. I will attempt to do them justice.

By the way, if you are married, I hope you are considering coming to hear Dr. John Trent at our Feb 12-13 Extreme(ly Great) Marriages Seminar. Please know this: All types of marriages can benefit from this event. It doesn’t matter whether your marriage is fine, or whether you are in a rocky spot. We all know that marriages go through ups and downs. This conference is to help develop lifelong skills that will serve your marriage through all seasons. And we are providing childcare…one less logistic for busy parents to worry about. If you need help deciding if this is for you, Fr. Jeff Rawn would welcome your call at 214-291-5058, or you can email him.

Intense Reading for Christians
I want to be sure that you know our bookstore has two magazines that every thinking Christian should read cover to cover. The staple publication is Christianity Today. In addition, the Touchstone people have put together a very edgy and forceful magazine/journal called Salvo. It is intense. It is smart.  It will make you think about faith and the daily issues we face in our culture. Please stop by The Bookstore and pick up a copy of each…and then become a subscriber. I am.

Financials
For those of you interested in the financial health of the church, you should know that our budget information is always available and updated on our website monthly at: christchurchplano.org/budget. In addition, our 2009 Annual Report has been published, and printed copies will be available around the campus this weekend.

Scout Sunday
Finally, this Sunday, February 7, is Scout Sunday. We are expecting approximately 60 boyscouts and their leaders to worship at the 11 a.m. service. You may see them sitting in the north transept, and you can join me in welcoming this fine group of young Christian men.

I’ll see you then.
David+