It is Already A Winning Season!

Although we have just begun the 2010/11 basketball season, we can already tell that it is going to be a success at The Hollywood Christian Academy. Our Lady Eagles team which has been to the state finals the past three years is once again, expected to make the trip central Florida. Just last night (11/26) our Lady Eagles beat Miami Norland High School, which was last year's 4A state champion. We believe that this could be the year that we win a state championship. Go Lady Eagles!

More importantly, though, God is at work in the lives of our young basketball stars. Recently, two of our players trusted Christ as their personal Savior and another followed the Lord in believer's baptism. I am certain that you would agree, those decisions are more important than ten state titles!

I dare not fail to mention our boys team as well. They are young, but very talented. Their regular season schedule has them playing many schools that are much larger than THCA. I guarantee you that you will be impressed with the hustle and the talent that they demonstrate!

Let me encourage you to pray for Coach Adamson and Coach Osceala. God is using them to not only develop talented ball players, but also young people that are going to make an impact on this world for the cause of Christ. It is going to be a great season!

Girls schedule - http://tinyurl.com/2epaskx
Boys schedule - http://tinyurl.com/2586dgh

Great Community Outreach!

On Saturday Hollywood Community Church held its first community mega-yard sale. This unique event was hosted by the HCC Ladies' Ministry. The response and the turnout were absolutely fantastic. The main purpose of this activity was to meet and minister to the families that live around our campus, and it was a rousing success. In total, some 50 different venders "opened shop" on our parking lot and in our gymnasium. In addition, hundreds of our neighbors attended, shopped and just had a great time.

Special thanks to our Ladies' ministry, maintenance staff and parking lot volunteers. Your dedicated service made the event a tremendous success!

The Hole in the Gospel

Recently, I was recommended the book by Richard Stearns titled, The Hole in the Gospel. In this, his first published work, the President of World Vision, asks if we as twenty-first century Christians, have embraced the whole gospel or a gospel with a hole in it?

In the first chapter, Mr. Stearns lays the biblical foundation for his premise that the Gospel includes more than the simple plan of salvation. In making such a statement, by no means, is he minimizing the signifance or the power of salvation by faith. Rather, he states that "in our evangelistic efforts to make the good news accesible and simple to understand, we seem to have boiled it down to a 'fire insurance' that one can buy." Sadly, we have ignored the hundreds of other exhortations found in God's Word to protect the persecuted, feed the hungry,and love the less fortunate. If we cut those commands out of the Bible we literally have a book with a whole in it.

Having been raised and trained in an independent Baptist envornment, I must confess that for years I have looked at social ministry as unnecessary. After all, as long we as we are introducing them to Jesus Christ and and leading them toward eternal life, then we have done our part, right? I am afraid that I was gravely mistaken. We have not only been commanded to share Jesus with a lost world, but to literally be Jesus as well.

Did Jesus ignore the hurting, the hungry and the homeless? We all know that he did not. If Christ loved and cared for them, why should we do any less? I am reminded of John's words in I John 3:17, "If someone has enough money to live well and sees a brother or sister in need, but shows no compassion - how can God's love be in that person."

To my friends and critics that will read this post and believe that I have become liberal and that I am watering down the Gospel, let me assure you that my passion for evangelism has not waned. As a matter of fact, I am convinced that such a position puts me and my fellow servants in a much better position to share our faith. After all, one is much more prone to listen to the gospel message with a full stomach.

"Let my heart be broken by the things that break the heart of God." Bob Pierce, Founder of World Vision.

Operation Christmas Child

As a congregation it is our privilege to participate with thousands of other churches and Christians around the world as we share the joy of the Lord and the Gospel of Jesus Christ during this Christmas season. Last year more than 8 million children received Operation Christmas Child gift boxes. The boxes contained everything from clothes to toys to personal items and candy. Most importantly, though, many of these boys and girls received a copy of the booklet, "The Greatest Gift of All," which, of course, gives a detailed presentation of the Gospel.


Last year, Hollywood Community Church gave some 1,000 boxes and we would like to do that or more this year. We are encouraging each family to take three boxes because statistics show that one out of every three kids that receive a box, trust Christ as their personal Savior. That is a great investment!

In Matthew 25:40 Jesus said, "I tell you the truth, when you did it to one of the least of these my brothers and sisters, you were doing it to me."

You can still pick up your pre-wrapped box in the back of the auditorium. Sunday, November 14th will be our "Operation Christmas Child Sunday." We will fill the front of the church with gift boxes and have a special time of prayer over them. This Christmas, let's impact the lives of hundreds of boys and girls by showing them the love of Jesus Christ. I am excited to see what God is going to do!

We feed their stomachs and fill their souls!

One of the most fruitful ministries of Hollywood Community Church is our Open Heart Food Pantry. Led by Vito Culicchia a team of more than twenty volunteers work week after week to purchase, pack and deliver groceries to more than 200 families. This past Saturday more than 260 families were loved, prayed with and fed.

It is important for us to realize that loving and feeding the poor is a very important, and often neglected part of the Gospel. I would remind you that it was Jesus that said in Luke 14:18, 19, "The Spirit of the Lord is upon Me, because He has anointed me to preach good news to the poor. He has sent me to proclaim freedom for the prisoners and recovery of sight for the blind. To release the oppresed and to proclaim the year of the Lord's favor."

Without a doubt, those two verses are a messianic prophecy that envision Jesus as both a prophet and servant. Many would hold that it is Jesus' mission statement as He declares what He would accomplish in the lives of those that believe on Him. Richard Stearns in his book The Hole in the Gospel emphatically states that the Gospel involves more than just evangelism. "The whole gospel is truly good news for the poor." In other words we cannot simply change a man's spiritual condition and ignore his physical needs.

I John 4:17 - But whoever has this world's goods, and sees his brother in need, and shuts up his heart from him, how does the love of God abide in Him?

I am so proud of our Open Heat team. May God continue to use them to fill the stomach's of the poor, but also to fill their soul with the life-changing message of the Gospel!

How do you view yourself?

I Samuel 18:23 - Do you think that it is a small matter to be the king's son-in-law? I'm only a poor man and little know.

Recently, we have examined the life of David and seen several characteristics that define true greatness. I Samuel 18 gives us an additional characteristic of biblical greatness. It is interesting to see that although everyone around him was convinced of his greatness, David seemed oblivious to all of the attention and fanfare that he was receiving. As a matter of fact, the only person in Israel that seemed unaware of David's greatness was David. He wasn't nearly as impressed with himself as others were.

That brings us to an important principle: The person who possesses true greatness will be the last one to know it!

Admittedly that is difficult for many of us. We are much more prone to track our progress on the "greatness meter." Unfortunately though, we are generally the only ones that believe that we have acheived prominence.

Solomon said it this way in Proverbs 27:2, "Let another praise you and not your own mouth; someone else, and not your own lips." Paul seconds Solomon's conclusion by stating in II Corinthians 10:8, "For it is not one who commends himself that is approved, but the one who the Lord commends."

So today, let me challenge you to not ask the Lord to make you great, but rather to make you humble. After all, He "resists the pround, but gives grace to the humble."

God is doing the miraculous!

Several weeks ago we began a campaign at Hollywood Community Church that we titled, "Rebuilding the Walls!" We recognized four walls that God needed to rebuild in order for us to be the church that God wants us to be.

* The wall of trust
* The wall of emotions
* The wall of leadership
* The wall of provision

In order to rebuild the final wall we felt led by God to take a special offering on Sunday, October 10th. We set a goal of $100,000 which for us was a huge step of faith. For the past three weeks our people have fasted and prayed asking God to do the impossible. Well, today He did just that. Our offering this morning was $93,484 and there is still more coming in. Isn't that amazing. We truly serve an awesome God!

I also want to commend our church family. Many of our people gave sacrificially. Some of them made huge sacrifices. Please pray that God increases their faith and that He supplies all of their needs according to His riches in glory! (Phil 4:19)

God is doing great things at HCC. I am sure that there are many more great reports to come. Stay tuned...