Next
Luke 2:12
/ December 2019
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December 2019
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Note from
Pastor Mark & Lora
Next
Albert Einstein said, “The most beautiful thing we can experience is the mysterious. It is the source of all true art and science. He to whom this emotion is a stranger, who can no longer pause to wonder and stand rapt in awe, is as good as dead; his eyes are closed.” One of the most mysterious events in history is the birth of Jesus—God with us! This Christmas, let’s sit with the mystery of Christmas—the omnipotent, omniscient, omnipresent God of all creation born as a helpless little baby in Bethlehem. Because we’ve heard the Christmas story so many times, we forget the amazing miracle it was and is. God has given us a gift beyond imagining. That gift—joy unspeakable, peace that passes understanding, love beyond what we could ask or imagine—must be unwrapped. How? Like little children on Christmas morning!
Contents 2 Welcome 4
NCC: Advent Playlist
5
Worship & the Power of Advent
6
Christmas at NCC
7
Prayer and the Magnitude of Hope
8
What’s Going On
9
Yes & Amen Update
10
NCC Families
11
Coming Up at NCC
Mark Batterson, Lead Pastor Lora Batterson
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NCC: Advent Spotify Playlist NCC Worship curated these favorite tunes. Worship along with them throughout Advent.
The Virgin Mary Had One Son Baby Son Silent Night / Smile In The Mystery Winter Snow Come Thou Long Expected Jesus Breath of Heaven Face of God
Josh Garrels John Mark McMillian John Mark McMillan, Sarah McMillan Chris Tomlin, Audrey Assad Shane & Shane Shane & Shane, Bethany Barnard Shane & Shane, Phil Wickham
Angels We Have Heard on High
NCC Worship
O Come All Ye Faithful
NCC Worship
Hark the Herald Angels Sing
NCC Worship
O Holy Night
NCC Worship
Little Drummer Boy Remix (Bonus Track)
NCC Worship
Seasons
Hillsong Worship
Silent Night (With Saviour King)
Hillsong Worship
Noel
Hillsong Worship
The Light Came Down
Josh Garrels
Joy to the World (Live)
Jeremy Riddle
Hark! the Herald Angels Sing (Live)
Jeremy Riddle
O Come All Ye Faithful (Live)
Jeremy Riddle
Little Drumkmer Boy - Live
for KING & COUNTRY
Baby Boy - Live
for KING & COUNTRY
Glorious - Live
for KING & COUNTRY
Listen to more from NCC Worship on Spotify, Apple Music, and Google Play
4 / December 2019
by J o s h Co a d, N CC Wo rs hi p Le ad e r
T
hree years ago, I
primarily by the rhythms of stress,
2. If you do have a prayer rhythm,
sat on my parents’
but by the presence of Jesus?
add an Advent devotional or
couch after Christmas
morning and thought, “I guess that was it?” December had been a blur, the stretch between Thanksgiving and Christmas marked more by Black Friday, stress, and buying presents than the mystery of incarnate God as
What if we embraced the power of small, consistent moments to help us live into the spiritual significance of this season? I don’t know exactly
playlist to keep on repeat. You
rhythm, start a simple one for Advent in the mornings and evenings, including:
presence with us. While we work,
• a minute of silence before God
shop, and travel, God is still with us
• a few minutes of praying
Living prayerfully and worshipfully is a challenge. How can we begin to mark the Advent season, not
1:1-18 for this season. 3. Find a good Christmas album/
is Emmanuel — God With Us.
today, but we often remain unaware.
1:46-55 (Mary’s Song) and John
suggestions: 1. If you don’t have a prayer
so much about God’s constant
passages of Scripture—I love Luke
what you need, but I can offer a few
a vulnerable baby, revealing that He
The Christmas story communicates
meditate repeatedly on related
whatever’s on your mind • The Lord’s Prayer (Matthew 6:9-13)
can head over to NCC Worship on Spotify, where we’ve updated our playlist to include songs we’ll be singing together as a church as we anticipate Christmas. When we re-center ourselves on the birth of Jesus, we remember that God is with us. As we journey through Advent together, I pray these small steps will increase our awareness of the reality of His presence.●
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CHRISTMAS 2019 DEC
21 22
DEC
24
NCC SERVICES
Worship services at all NCC campuses. NCC Kids for nursery and preschool only. Older kids can join their families in services.
CHRISTMAS EVE SERVICES at The Capital Turnaround 770 M Street SE 4pm and 5:30 pm
Family-friendly services. Children welcome!
DEC
29
SPECIAL COMBINED SERVICES No Saturday night service DC: NCC-Capitol Hill Campus at 9am only NCC Kids programming offered for all ages VA: NCC-Potomac Yard Campus at 10am NCC Kids programming offered for all ages
NCC.RE/CHRISTMAS
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December 2019
by Heidi Scanlon, Pastor of Prayer
A
friend once said, “The person with the most hope has the most influence.” We couldn’t agree more. When we look around at Washington, DC and indeed our world, we are not overcome by the depth of injustices, though there are many, rather we are more overwhelmed by the magnitude of hope presented to us through the powerful name of Jesus. We long for every impossibility to bow at the name of Jesus and to be celebrated. That’s why NCC Prayer is essentially a 24/7 movement. At NCC Prayer, our mission is “Brokering HOPE, one prayer at a time.” How about you? Do you want to be a broker of hope? Will you consider joining one of our prayer teams? Training is available in every area. Below is a list of possibilities.
The 300 The 300 is NCC’s 2020-2021 plan for becoming a house of prayer. We dream of the day when 10% of the church is at prayer every day of the year. There is victory in prayer. Be part of the daily advance intercession team for the mission, vision and ministry of NCC. Contact HannahWoodley.NCC@gmail.com Virtual Intercessors Our virtual intercessors pray for the hundreds of requests we get every year from people who read Pastor Mark’s books and who find us through social media. It’s an honor and a privilege to lift up the needs of people from all over the world. If you have been touched by Pastor Mark’s books this is a great team to join. Contact Heidi@theaterchurch.com
Sozo Inner Healing Team Laast year, we were able to complete over 146 inner healing prayer appointments through our Sozo team. That represents over 300 hours of in– person prayer appointments. If you long to bind up the broken hearted, to help people replace lies with God’s truth and to see people live life fully alive and free, email our team leads. Contact sozo@theaterchurch.com Care and Prayer Ministry Appointments If you have free time any day of the week and could volunteer as a prayer minister for a slightly longer prayer session than one would have after church at the altar, we will train and equip you to serve. Contact Heidi@ theaterchurch.com
Deeper Worship Night Team Deeper equips the church to bring their own offering of worship to Jesus and to pray for NCC, the local church, and DC together. The foundation of Deeper is Proverbs 11:11, “Through the blessings of the upright, a city is exalted.” Contact annacavoto@ gmail.com Weekend Campus Prayer Teams Each NCC campus has their own prayer team. They meet to pray before every service to pray over every single person who will sit in every seat. After service the team provides one-on-one prayer ministry. We are seeing incredible miracles. Go to ncc. re/team and they can help you learn more, shadow the prayer ministry, and jump in. ●
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WHAT’S GOING ON
Adopt a Family or Donate Toys to DC Dream Center Drop off toys at any NCC Kids table Sunday, December 15
Partner with DC Dream Center to make Christmas special for kids. Drop off new toys (in packaging) for children aged 3-12 on Sunday, December 15, to any NCC Kids table. You can also adopt a child or an entire family for Christmas. Just contact Ms. Tina at christina.henderson@dcdreamcenter.com.
Christmas Eve at National Community Church Tuesday, December 24 Two services: 4:00 pm and 5:30pm Live Nativity • Candlelight • Carols • Photo Booth
Listen & Learn: Prison Reform
Thursday, December 12, 6:45-8:00pm Register here: ncc.re/listenandlearn Hear from Pastor Joshua Symonette and his vision for Blu-Print in Baltimore working to interrupt the school-to-prison pipeline. We’ll also hear from Pastor John Kelly from Chicago, a partner of Prison Fellowship. After giving his life to Christ in prison, Pastor John’s life was transformed. He now pastors at Chicago West Bible Church and is a Justice Advocate with Prison Fellowship.
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December 2019
We’re so excited about our first Christmas Eve services at the Capital Turnaround! This is going to be an extra-special Christmas Eve in NCC’s newest space, with surprises for everyone. It’s the perfect time to invite friends to join you to celebrate Christmas. A team of NCCers has been working hard to create a wonder-filled, awe-inspiring space where we can celebrate the birth of Jesus. You are not gonna want to miss this! We’ll also be having some other special, combined services during the Christmas season at NCC. Be sure to check the website and page 11 of this issue of NEXT for specific details.
update
Construction continues in Phase 2, our 20,000-square-foot Kids Ministry space, which will double as a Child Development Center during the week. NCC is partnering with Phase Family Centers, who will operate the CDC. Our kids space will be finished in a similar fashion to these photos.
THANK YOU FOR YOUR GENOROSITY! • Track and fulfill your pledge: yes • Make a year-end gift: ncc.re/giving • Track your giving: ncc.re/central (go to the “Give” tab and click on “Pledge.”) nationalcommunity.com
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NCC FAMILIES NCC Kids (birth-5th grade)
Join NCC Kids in celebrating the meaning of this Christmas Season. Each NCC Kids family will be gifted an Advent Devotional to prompt study of the Nativity Story this month. Read the Christmas Story together this season!
NCC Youth (6th-12th grade)
Winter Escape 2019 February 14-17, 2020 Discount available through Friday, January 10 For all students in middle and high school. A great opportunity to step way from the pressure, deepen faith, think honestly, dream beyond themselves, and experience Jesus in a fresh way. ncc.re/escape
Subscribe to the monthly Parent Insider:
kids@theaterchurch.com
Learn, be inspired, get encouraged:
parentshareblog.com
kidsofncc therealnccyouth
WATCH FOR J TERM OFFERINGS THIS JANUARY J Term is a collection of short courses on focused topics during the month of January. If you’ve never tried out a group before, this is the perfect chance to grow in your faith and make some connections along the way. Stay tuned at ncc.re/now for details.
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December 2019
COMING UP AT NCC
Learn more at ncc.re/now
Monday, December 2
Deeper Night of Worship
Saturday, December 7
NCC Kids Christmas Show at the Capital Turnaround, 11am
Saturday, December 7
Second Saturday Serve
December 21
Saturday Night Service at NCC-Barracks Row
December 22 Weekend Services at all NCC Campuses NCC Kids for nursery and preschool only.
Kids in kindergarten and above will join their families in services.
Tuesday, December 24
All-Church Christmas Eve Services at NCC-Capitol Hill campus The Capital Turnaround, 4pm and 5:30pm *All children will join their parents in these services
Tuesday, December 25
Merry Christmas!
Sunday, December 29
Combined services at NCC. (No Saturday night services) Please join us in DC or VA: DC: NCC-Capitol Hill: 9am service ONLY NCC Kids programming offered for all ages VA: NCC-Potomac Yard, 10am NCC Kids programming offered for all ages
Wednesday, January 1, 2020
Happy New Year!
3 Ways To Give “Each of you should give what you have decided in your heart to give, not reluctantly or under compulsion, for God loves a cheerful giver.” 2 Corinthians 9:7
theaterchurch.com/giving TXT “$(amount) NCC” to 45777 Cash or Check
(Find offering envelopes at the Connections Table)
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WEEKLY GATHERINGS AT NCC CAMPUSES God created us to support, encourage, and rely on one another. Find community each week at NCC. Worship • Be transformed, inspired, and filled as you come into the presence of God Learn • Grow in faith as we hear teaching from the Bible we can apply to our lives Connect • Develop meaningful relationships and grow in community Go • Get equipped to love and serve each other, our neighborhoods, and around the world
BARRACKS ROW Saturday Nights, 5pm Pastor Marion Mason — theaterchurch.com/barracksrow Washington, DC
E-news: ncc.re/enewsBarracksSat •
Facebook Group: Barracks Row Saturday Night NCCers
CAPITOL HILL
Sundays, 9am & 11am Pastor Joel Schmidgall — theaterchurch.com/capitolhill E-news: ncc.re/enewsCapHill •
Facebook Group: Capitol Hill NCCers
LINCOLN THEATRE Sundays, 10:30am Pastor Dave Schmidgall — theaterchurch.com/lincoln E-news: ncc.re/enewsLincoln •
Facebook Group: Lincoln Theatre NCCers
BALLSTON
Sundays, 9:30am & 11am Pastor Jenni Clayville — theaterchurch.com/ballston E-news: ncc.re/enewsBallston •
Facebook Group: Ballston NCCers
GAINESVILLE Sundays, 10am
Virginia
Pastor Robb Schmidgall — theaterchurch.com/gainesville E-news: ncc.re/enewsgvemail •
Join our Facebook Group: Gainesville NCCers
KINGSTOWNE Sundays, 9am & 10:30am Pastor Joshua Symonette — theaterchurch.com/kingstowne E-news: ncc.re/enewsKT •
Facebook Group: Kingstowne NCCers
POTOMAC YARD Sundays, 10am Pastor Jon Vaughan — theaterchurch.com/potomacyard E-news: ncc.re/enewsPY •
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