Hi Creeksiders,

Happy Canada Day 2006!

Here are some things you really need to know about:

MILE 20

Our current series, MILE 20, is in week two. We continue to talk about the reality that there comes a point in any long distance race, relationship, career, spiritual journey where we hit "the wall." It is then that we wrestle with the question, "Do I quit here, or keep going?" We got lots of positive vibes from last week.

The message title for July 1 is A Long Hard Road.

Perhaps you or someone you love is in season of pain. And it's not just that life hurts, but that the agony continues for a long, long time. As human beings in an imperfect world, we're bound to go through this season. And what then? Today we'll explore those realities and learn from the lives of four very different but very memorable Bible characters.

Pay It Forward

Our next Pay It Forward project happens on July 1. If you missed the last one, Pay it Forward is a ministry we have at Creekside where we do something for other people without expecting anything in return. It’s fun and a great chance to make friends. In fact, we have planned a service event that can help us meet hundreds of people in a positive way.

The plan? Meet at the volunteer tent for the Canada Celebration next to the Langley Airport on Sabbath around 2:30 p.m. That’s where Creekside’s home base is located. You’ll want to bring an apron to attach your nametag and to carry your supplies. We’ll spread out over the grounds and offer free Canada Flag Tattoos (not permanent ones!). While we give this gift to whoever wants it, we’ll be able to get to know them and give them a “Happy Canada Day” card from Creekside. This is LOW RISK and a good way to serve. You can come any time between 2:30 and 5:30 p.m.

Creekside Moving

Langley Campus is meeting for the first time July 1 at the Langley Christian Middle School gym, which is just a few blocks away on 22702 48th Avenue. From the intersection of Fraser Highway and 216 Street, go East on Fraser Highway until 48 Avenue. Veer left off Fraser onto 48 Avenue. The new location is on the right. Come early so you can get oriented, help set up, and meet some wonderful people.

Langley Christian Middle School
(Address: 22702 48th Avenue, Langley, BC, V2Z 2T6)

Some good news for North Shore set up and take down crew is that our equipment can be left setup through the summer. This means we do a regular set up this weekend and then we can leave everything setup for July and August. Doesn’t that sound great?

Camp Hope

There is a huge gathering at Camp Hope called Camp Meeting from July 21 to 29. Hundreds, even thousands, of people from Creekside and our sister churches throughout BC get together for a time of spiritual renewal and connecting with others. Creekside is planning a church wide potluck on Sabbath, July 22, at the Young Adult Tent. This will be a great opportunity to meet old friends and get to know new ones. Bring food and a friend.

Please note: There will be no worship gatherings at Creekside on July 22 and 29. If this is a new deal for you or you need more information please speak to your campus pastor.

Julie's Getting Married

Many of you know Julie Atha. She is getting married on July 23, at 2:00 p.m. at the Camp Meeting location. She invites each of us to attend her wedding. (One more good reason to attend Camp Meeting!) Congratulations, Julie!

Blessings and joy,

Jim and Colin

Hi Creeksiders,

Here are some things you really need to know about:

New Series

We start a new series this week called MILE 20. For the next 4 weeks we are going to talk about the reality that there comes a point in any long distance race, relationship, career, spiritual journey where we hit "the wall." It is then that we wrestle with the question, "Do I quit here, or keep going?"

The title for June 24 is Crossroads.

Have you ever felt like bailing? Have you felt like distancing yourself from certain people, certain experiences, that perhaps God put into your life? Today we'll explore those feelings, where they come from, and how some others have dealt with similar emotions.

Pay It Forward

Our next Pay It Forward project happens on July 1. If you missed the last one, Pay it Forward is a ministry we have at Creekside where we do something for other people without expecting anything in return. It’s fun and a great chance to make friends. I know you will want to hear and see what the next project involves so, be sure to be at one of Creekside’s campuses tomorrow.

Langley campus is moving

This is the last week that Langley campus meets at the elementary school.

On July 1 we’ll be meeting in the Langley Christian Middle School gym, which is just a few blocks away on 22702 48th Avenue.

From the intersection of Fraser Highway and 216 Street, go East on Fraser Highway until 48 Avenue. Turn North off Fraser onto 48 Avenue. The new location is on your right.

Come early so you can get oriented, help set up, and meet some wonderful people.

Langley Christian Middle School
(Address: 22702 48th Avenue, Langley, BC, V2Z 2T6)

Some good news for North Shore set up and take down crew is that our equipment can be left setup through the summer. This means we do a regular set up and take down on June 24 and then from July 1 we can leave everything setup for July and August.

Camp Hope - July 21 - July 29

There is a huge gathering at Camp Hope called Camp Meeting from July 21 to 29. Hundreds, even thousands, of people from Creekside and our sister churches throughout BC get together for a time of spiritual renewal and connecting with others.

(Map from last year here)

There will be no worship gatherings at Creekside on July 22 and 29.

If this is a new deal for you or you need more information please speak to your campus pastor.

Blessings and joy,

Jim and Colin

Message Series: Mile 20

Message: Crossroads (Msg 1 of 4)

Message Summary: Have you ever felt like bailing? Have you felt like distancing yourself from certain people, certain experiences, that perhaps God put into your life? Today we'll explore those feelings, where they come from, and how others throughout history have dealt with similar emotions.

Creekside Langley Speaker: Jim Gaull

Click the play button to stream and listen now

OR
Click to Download MP3 here

Creekside North Shore Speaker: Colin Griffiths

Message Series: Mile 20

There comes a point in any long distance race, relationship, career, spiritual journey where we hit "the wall." It is then that we wrestle with the question, "Do I quit here, or keep going?"

Series begins June 24 on both campuses

Message Series: The Fabulous Life Of David

Message: After God's Own Heart (Msg 3 of 3)

Message Summary: David took a lot of women as sexual conquests and killed a bunch of people. At the same time, God says that David was a man after God's own heart. Why? How? And what might all this mean for us today?

Creekside Langley Speaker: Ron Maitland

Click the play button to stream and listen now

OR

Click to Download MP3 here

Creekside North Shore Speaker: Colin Griffiths

Click the play button to stream and listen now

OR

Click to Download MP3 here

Adrian Arriola's mom passed away this Saturday June 10th at the age of 83. There is a viewing and a funeral for those who wish to pay their respects.

Viewing - June 13, Tuesday, from 6 to 9 pm
Forest Lawn Funeral Home
3789 Royal Oak Avenue, Burnaby
(Google Maps)

Funeral - June 14, Wednesday, Noon
Saint Peter's Church
398 Royal Avenue, New Westminster
(Google Maps)

Yes. You read right.

Because you want to.

Because you care.

Because you are proud of Creekside's website.

Why vote?

The North American Division SDA organization (nadadventist.org) has an eChurch Award presented to churches that give careful thought and design energies to their church websites.

Each month a website is chosen as the outstanding “Website of the Month" and receives special recognition. And in December, a finalist is selected from the twelve that have been awarded throughout the year to receive the "eChurch Award of the Year."

Naturally, we'd like Creekside to be recognized for "Website of the Month", and also the 'eChurch Award of the Year".

Why? Because Creekside believes in excellence, and one that reaches out to draw people closer to Jesus, both online and offline.

Let us share with you how Creekside Community Church's blog not only meets the eChurch Evaluation Criteria, but exceeds it.

Meeting the eChurch Evaluation Criteria

The award selection committee looks at the following criteria when considering who to award.

1. Does the home page load in a timely fashion?

Our blog loads very quickly, definitely within 10 seconds. The blogging platform we leverage is powered by Wordpress, an open-source platform, and the focus is on 'content', and not slow-loading graphics.

2. Is the home page understandable?

We surveyed both campuses for what our members and visitors wanted immediate access to from the home page, and we listened.

From the home page, you can access and find out:
1. What Creekside is all about
2. Address, Maps & Directions to Creekside's 2 campuses
3. What time our service begins
4. Upcoming message summaries
5. Archives message summaries, podcasts and downloadable MP3s
6. Pastors' phone numbers and email addresses, and even what they look like
7. Current and past photos of our members in ministry from both campuses
8. What's new, and breaking news you want to know
9. One-click to different topics and categories
10. Easy subscription to our blog so you can be notified of new posts to our site.

We believe our website (blog) is very well presented, with easy to access features, with no broken links, missing sections, or spelling errors (as of the last time we checked

3. Do site pages feature logical navigation options?

Millions of blogs on the internet follow our navigation conventions (or should we say we follow theirs…well, same difference), and so there are many visitors who will be used to our well-designed navigation.

Absolutely no scrolling needed, as the most requested links are in the top navigation, or show as icons in the body of the home page. Plus the links in the right column navigation showcase many of the important topics or categories you may be interested in.

All our pages are just 1 to 2 clicks away from the home page - either through our top navigation, icons, right column navigation, or through our archives.

4. Does the website feature the local church?

You bet!

We feature:

1. Our many different ministries (both local and international outreach)

2. Fun events - both in text and in our photo gallery

3. Creekside's vision, mission, values and beliefs (including hyperlinks to bible verses) on our About Us page that provides details about our 'vibe' and what a typical Saturday (Sabbath) looks and feels like.

In addition, we've made every attempt to position our blog well in the search engines so new visitors and current members can find us on the internet.

A search for these phrases will reveal that creeksideonline.org is in the top 10 of Google, MSN and Yahoo.
- 'creekside community church'
- 'community church langley'
- 'community church langley bc'
- 'church langley bc'
- 'community church north vancouver'
- 'community church north vancouver bc'
- 'north vancouver bc church'
- 'jim gaull' or 'pastor jim gaull'
- 'colin griffiths' or 'pastor colin griffiths'
- 'creekside vancouver sun run 2006'

5. Is the content up-to-date?

Our content is very up-to-date. Every week 'up-to-date'. It's because we have our pastors' and campus updates, along with future events announced, and messages and message podcasts kept current on our blog.

6. Is contact information available?

Yes. All contact info for our pastors are easily available, eg. their phone and email addresses.

Plus we have addresses, map links and directions to both our campuses.

7. Are meeting and worship times clearly posted?

Yes. They are located 'above the fold', below the heading "Weekend Services". You can't miss it - well maybe some could

8. Do the colors and overall design compliment each other?

This is an interesting criteria - and one that changes for us weekly

We're attempting to create masthead graphics and color schemes that match or complement our current message series. So this means that our color schemes and mastheads change weekly, and whenever possible, we design and infuse colors that are pleasant and complement each other well. (You can view a selection of our mastheads that have been used in the past)

9. Does the site include an evangelism component?

Yes, you bet!

We feature both local outreach and international evangelism categories on our blog. Our photo gallery also showcases our members in action.

In addition, we have our own iTunes podcast (Godcast) feed for Creekside Community Church. You'll need iTunes software on your computer to subscribe

Other evangelistic features we're planning on adding include Small Groups, Single & Marriage resources, Bible studies, and much more.

As always, when we blog, we focus on reaching and engaging our visitors with our personal and individual voice that (hopefully) comes across friendly, and inviting.

10. Is the content easy to read (grammar, spelling, etc.)?

We endeavour to produce text content that has no errors in grammar or spelling. Of course, we're human, so if you detect misspellings, let us know, ok? Thanks

11. The site helps eliminate confusion about who Adventists are?

We've featured extensive information about our vision, mission, values and beliefs here. Included are hyperlinks to bible verses so a visitor can conveniently and effectively research our stand on different topics.

We Can Do It With Your Help

So there you have it. We sure hope the above answers to the eChurch criteria has satisfied your curiosity about whether Creekside deserves your important vote.

With your help, we'd be thrilled to gain recognition as a church that believes in excellence, and one that reaches out to draw people closer to Jesus, both online and offline.

Click to Vote For Creekside Community Church now.

Message Series: The Fabulous Life Of David

Message: A Real Friend (Msg 2 of 3)

Message Summary: More than just someone with whom to take on any adventure, fight any battle. More than just someone to share in great conversation at Starbucks. We see all this, yet so much more in the story of David and Jonathan. If we look closely, we may find ourselves in this ancient story.

Creekside Langley Speaker: Jim Gaull

(The cd master didn't work. We have a technician attempting to salvage it as we speak.)

Creekside North Shore Speaker: Colin Griffiths

Click the play button to stream and listen now

OR

Click to Download MP3 here

Here's an email update from Adrianna Hepper, Bill's daughter, about his health…

Hi all,

Its been since February that I've updated you on my dad's health and I am so incredibly happy to say that it was one year ago today that Dr. Anderson sent my dad way with the words…

"..you most likely will not make it to Christmas, and most definitly not to this time next year"

…ringing in his ears. My dad is still cancer-free, they are in Turkey now and its looking like they will be heading home for a while in October.

If you are friends with Bill it might be nice to drop him a line telling him congrats on his one year mark - its a pretty big deal for a guy who battled terminal cancer for two years and won. : )

Thanks for all your support and continued prayers for his health, everyone!

Have a wonderful summer,

Adrianna Hepper

Yea Bill! And Yea God!

Hi everyone,

People are still talking about last weekend. Yeah God for making Hassan’s membership celebration an awesome experience. Then we had a great time at Nikesha’s dedication. It was fun to connect with people from both campuses. We need to be doing more of that!

Pay It Forward

This week our Pay it Forward Team met to vision and plan for ways we can connect with our communities. I know God has some cool things in mind for us. In fact, keep July 1, Canada Day, afternoon available. If all the details work out, we may be doing a both campus PIF project together!

Downloading audio files from the website.

Some people have been asking how to download messages so here’s the deal:

Right click on the Click to Download MP3 here link, select “save link as” and save the audio file to your hard drive.

Series: The Fabulous Life Of David

We continue the series this week.

Series Summary…

There was once a guy named David who lived a fabulous life, going from the "lowest" to the "highest" with everything in between.

What is compelling is the imperfect way David handled his ups and downs.

Where might your life story cross David's?

This week’s message is “A Real Friend” – Here’s the summary:

Adventist Health Study 2

Several Creeksiders have already signed up to be part of Adventist Health Study-2 and filled out the questionnaires. This is really a cool way to turn an hour of your time into a wide influence. The researchers tell us they have received 90,000 responses so far and they need another 15,000 to get significant results. Participants need to be 30 or older. (By the way, what you eat or your current health is not an issue.)

There are 4 ways to join or get a replacement questionnaire if you lost yours:

1. Pick up a form at ether Creekside campus.

or

2. Call toll free 1-877-700-7077

or

3. go online www.adventisthealthstudy.org

or

4. email ahs2extra@llu.edu (include your name, address, phone # and church)

Either way, you’ll get a personalized form in the mail.

Looking forward to seeing you this weekend!

God bless you every one,

Jim and Colin