CCBC Colorado Student Blog

Now Accepting Applications for Spring 2011

2010-11-12T19:42:00.000-07:00

Our vision is to see Christ formed in each student and that they would love Jesus more each day. In light of that, the type of students and student interns we are looking for should be:

Those who are serious about seeking a deeper relationship with God.
Those who have a desire to know God in a richer, more intimate way.
Those who desire to allow the Holy Spirit to conform them into the image of Jesus Christ.
Those who desire to know the perfect will of God for their Life.
Those who are open to be and do whatever God may call them to be or do.
Those who desire to prepare their life to be used by God in whatever capacity that God might choose.
Those who desire to deny themselves, take up their cross and follow Jesus.

If this describes you and you feel that God is leading you to attend CCBC Colorado, then we invite you to apply. May God bless you richly with his abundant love.

Apply today with our on-line application or click www.ccbccolorado.com for a down-loadable application.

If you have any questions, give us a call at 970-929-5221

Denver Purity Conference

2010-11-12T18:05:00.000-07:00

After 6 hours in a small car with five other people you realize two things: One, you have now become incredibly closer (pun intended!) with your brothers and sisters in the Lord, and Two: you have arrived at PURE Rebellion 2010, hosted by Calvary Chapel Aurora.

Pure Rebellion cries loudly for teens to come, take up their cross, and follow the Lord, rebelling against their culture to give God glory.

The conference began by exposing through statistics, medical information, and surveys, the reality of the results of premarital sex. Touching on the destructive physical results (sexually transmitted diseases, etc.), the sobering reality of teens' sexual involvement at an increasingly younger age, and how all of that comes home to affecting our relationship with the Lord.

Teens, who may have normally been hesitant about coming into a church/being at a purity conference, were welcomed in through the tones of the speakers and interaction between them and the Pure Rebellion team. Cell phones were used throughout the conference to give teens a chance to text in their answer to questions and polls. Rather than being a way to 'embrace culture', the use of the cell phones seemed to really encourage the teens to seriously consider the questions that were being asked and feel like they were lovingly being talked to rather than lectured at.

After covering the biblical definitions of purity and abstinence they explained how the choice of purity vs. sexual immorality affects every aspect of oneself: morally, physically, spiritually, and emotionally... The results of choosing to follow the Lord were vividly portrayed through a drama/dance that brought home how glorifying the Lord calls and strengthens others to do so as well.

Throughout the evening we began to see teens’ heartbreaking misconceptions about God and sex. When the speaker explained how God had gloriously designed the physical relationship between husband and wife as a holy, sacred, beautiful thing, I overheard a teen turn to a friend and say “I thought Satan made sex?” And when the poll question: “how does sin affect your relationship with God?” came up, one of the teens sent in a response basically saying, “God doesn't want anything to do with a sex driven monster like me.” The true answer to this teen's heartbreaking perception of being unforgiveable was portrayed in the 'Everything' drama. In spite of the main character being entirely covered with darkness and sin, Christ came to save her; powerfully displaying his love by fighting off all that separated her from Him and giving Himself to take the sin in her place.

This truth of the gospel and all that Christ did for us on the cross was clearly told at the end of the evening. Three crosses were brought to the front of the auditorium and after explaining fully from Scripture what it meant to have Christ as Lord and Savior, what He has done for us, and His complete forgiveness, all who wanted to come forward and pray at the foot of the cross were invited to come. There was no condemnation, no guilt tripping into a confession of faith, no emotional hype... just a clear, simple, call to decide to accept Christ as Lord and Savior. Those of us watching and praying were awed, overjoyed, and tremendously blessed as we saw, not just a few people go forward, but a steady stream of people, filling the aisles far back into the auditorium. It may have been a purity conference, but central to all of it was one thing alone, “Jesus Christ and Him crucified.”

After we had helped tear down and enjoyed fellowship with other believers, we returned at an extremely late hour to the church we were to spend the night in along with members from Calvary Chapel Rawlins, Wyoming. We quickly became like family and the next morning was a blessed time of fellowship as we enjoyed breakfast together; talked, prayed, and shared the things that had personally hit home through the conference the night before. We returned home thoroughly blessed by seeing the Lord at work in the lives of the teens, fellow believers from Wyoming, and each other.

Calvary Chapel North Fork

2010-11-12T18:00:00.000-07:00

Walking into Calvary Chapel North Fork you experience a rare, and possibly new sensation: the feeling of walking into a place you've never been before, only to find out that it's home. Scripturally, church is not a building, it's God's set aside people. His people coming together to encourage, pray, fellowship, and learn from His Word. And this definitely describes Calvary Chapel North Fork. Walking in, there's an instant sense of family. Slow down a second and spend some time talking with whoever's nearest... you'll find that they are there because they desire to follow God and learn more about Him. Love for Him is manifested in a genuine concern and interest in what is going on with your life and how they can best pray for you.

After being set up by members of the body, the service (held in a Hotchkiss community building) begins with worship, followed by verse by verse teaching from the Word. The Word is heard and given with a sincere interest and desire for discernment; that all may present themselves approved to God, workmen that need not be ashamed, rightly dividing the Word of Truth.

The heart of this church is clearly displayed after the service: Even after all the chairs have been torn down, and the hospitality table has almost been deplete of whatever 'good things to eat' that it originally contained; you'll still find members standing around, just enjoying one another's company. Their desire and understanding of the power of prayer is seen, not only in body wide prayer requests being announced during service, but in their loving concern for one another.

Communion

2010-11-12T17:55:00.000-07:00

Near the beginning of the semester the Lord brought up the idea of communion in several different classes. From this we saw that communion wasn't just a time of serious reflection in which we needed to be afraid of taking communion with a wrong heart. That is one aspect of communion yes, but that is only a part of a much larger, more glorious whole. First of all the Lord's supper is a time of remembrance and thanksgiving. Remembering what He did for us, and therefore our hearts overflowing with gratitude for His great love. Secondly, from the remembrance comes a refocus of our lives and hearts on Him. When it is so easy as humans to lose sight of the eternal in the crazy, very real and vividly present everyday, God in His grace, knew, that we would need a time that would draw our hearts back to being centered in Him. So just as the Lord gave us the Sabbath in order to rest and realign our hearts with His, so communion is also given.

Lastly, what the Lord really impressed on hearts is the concept of communion as a time of sweet fellowship pervading all throughout by the Lord. With this in mind a communion dinner was planned in true biblical style. (Okay, so maybe not all the bread was unleavened... but still...) After removing shoes at the door, prayer was given, and the communion commenced! Pita, grapes, grape leaf rolls, hummus, meat stew, cucumbers, and bowls for hand washing quickly became scattered in glorious disarray. And plates, well, who needs them? And as for silverware, absolute taboo! Needless to say, no etiquette required this evening! Sitting on the floor around a low table (a.k.a. blanket covered doors) it truly felt like we'd stepped into a scene from Acts. A joyfully chaotic meal, laughter and 'pass the pita?' were the predominating sounds... Since footwashing in biblical times served a very practical purpose, (your feet became very dirty after tramping miles in sandals) we wanted to give the opportunity to serve one another as Christ did for the disciples. So each person was given the name of someone who then told them a practical need they had. (The most laughter proceeding from young Andrew's declaration that what he personally needed was a chocolate bar.) A footwashing area was set up for anyone who wanted to serve their brother in that way and the footwashing continued far past the meal's conclusion... Such a sweet time of fellowship was truly a blessing from the Lord and definitely worth repeating. To Him who is able to draw brethren to dwell together in joy and unity be the praise!

REfresh Conference 2010

2010-11-12T17:47:00.002-07:00

ROADTRIP!!! What could be better than a 6 hour roadtrip to Denver? That was the beginning of 'the incredible adventure' also known as the 2010 REfresh conference at Calvary Chapel Aurora. After having had the blessing of hanging out with each other in the same vehicle for that glorious length of time (in completely harmonious fellowship of course) we arrived at Calvary Chapel Aurora, Denver. Due to the extreme blessing and servant hearted willingness of our dear Kellian's parents (also known as Mr. and Mrs. Woodbury) our meals were enjoyed in comfort of a home (rather than the traditional, but definitely 'last resort' choice, GagDonalds...) It was such a blessing to be welcomed in as family by Mr and Mrs. Woodbury; there was an ease of fellowship and a sense of serving being a delight in the Lord/ giving being so much more of a blessing then receiving, that it was just a Joy to be present and enjoy fellowship with people who are all following the same Lord.
Opening with true worship our first day involved a session with Pastor Ed Taylor, testimonies of the Lord working through different people/ministries, a time of fellowship with Pastors and church members from several different states, another session with Pastor Jimmy Humphries, a quick run to the Woodbury's for an all too short time of food and fellowship, in order to return to the last session of the day from Pastor Eric Cartier.
Both nights we were blessed by the joyful hospitality of Pastor Dave Love and family. What a blessing to see them graciously use all the Lord has given them to be able to serve others. (The extent of their willingness is made apparent as I clarify that they allowed 11 of us to crash all over their house for two nights in a row... their family going about their normal school/house routines while trying to work around 11 semi-strangers...) It was an absolute joy to be with them and their whole family, getting to hang out and know them a little bit more, and see their daily, real relationship with God.
The remaining two days of the Refresh conference were a sweet time of fellowship, blessed by seeing the Lord in one another, and being molded by Him through all the times spent hearing His Word taught by men who are walking truly desiring to follow Him, praying together amongst our CCBC family, and just being able to rest awhile, sitting back and listening to the Lord.
As different men of the Lord, Pastors with true shepherds hearts, stood up to speak forth what the Lord had been laying on their hearts and teaching them personally, it was such a blessing to see them be transparent and vulnerable about their own faith, failures, and followings after the Lord.
“Personal blessing, by a REfresh attendee...”
We ladies were given the chance to see some of the hearts of those ladies supporting these men of the Lord; more commonly known as 'Pastor's wives'. During a special Lord led session for and by the women, the Word was opened to 1 Samuel 14; Jonathon and his armor bearer. The Lord brought to life a beautiful picture of Jonathon's heart to just go and follow the Lord. Removing all of the limitations we normally put on the Lord Jonathon realized that the Lord could do what the lord wanted to do, whether it meant there were two men to defeat the enemy, or a whole army. Telling his heart to his armor bearer his armor bearer replied, “Do all that is in your heart. Do all that you wish. I am with you heart and soul.” This role of an armor bearer, aware of the weaknesses of their leader, knowing him well enough to know the exact armor he will need, is the role God designed us, as women, to fill. In varying degrees, depending on our role as daughter, wife, mother, or part of a ministry team, the Lord has molded us to help come alongside and support those who He has set in place as leaders. We were also blessed as several women who have faithfully walked after the Lord for some time spent time answering questions about ministry, situations, and anything else the Lord had been laying on hearts.

LoveSong Outreach...

2010-11-12T17:30:00.000-07:00

An outreach that began weeks before the actual event, the LoveSong concert was a product of the desire the Lord had molded in Pastor Jeff's heart for evangelism and church planting. Matthew 28:19 "Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations..."

On weekends/evenings we drove into the local mountain towns of Aspen, Carbondale and Glenwood Springs where the church is being planted and walked the streets, posting and passing out fliers, and talking with people. The Lord arranged divine appointments to talk to people about Him, and invite them to the concert and church.

The way the Lord used these times to mold us was an absolute blessing. Going out intentionally to talk to people about the Lord molds your focus to eternity, and gives you a desire to have that be a part of your normal everyday life. You learn the joy of living aware of, and sensitive to, the opportunities the Lord gives you to witness while doing normal everyday things.

The night of the concert was a huge blessing. Hearing this group of men, who had been faithfully serving the Lord and writing songs about their Savior since the 70’s was a true blessing.

The Lord brought who He knew needed to hear LoveSong's message, and eternal seeds were planted as a result. Pastor Jeff Christianson shared the gospel for the lost and a message of returning to the Lord for the prodigal - fruit remains! Luke 15:24 "...for this my son was dead and is alive again; he was lost and is found. And they began to be merry..."

Church Baptism..

2010-11-12T17:25:00.000-07:00

Matthew 28:19 - "Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit..."

Not far into the semester the question of baptism came up in class; “had everyone there been baptized?” Finding out that one of the students had yet to be baptized and having planned on baptizing one of the church members at Calvary Chapel Roaring Fork, a baptismal service was soon under way. Pulling up along the roadside of HWY 133 at a nearby hot springs joining the Crystal River, the baptism began.

Surrounded by curious onlookers, we listened to Pastor Jeff explain that we were gathered there to witness the baptism of Chad and Melissa, as they publicly declared that they had accepted Christ as their Savior and wanted to live their lives for Him.

Worshiping and praying on the beach, we watched as Melissa and then Chad were submersed in the river. Praise the Lord for all He has done to draw us to Himself and save us!

Calvary Chapel Glenwood Springs / Carbondale, Colorado

2010-11-12T17:20:00.001-07:00

Calvary Chapel in the Roaring Fork Valley
(Aspen, Carbondale, Glenwood Springs)

In Church Planting 101, students helped in the birthing and growth of a new church plant. Our desire is that we are . . .

"The Best Loved, Best Fed Sheep

in the Valley"

Jesus said, "Simon, son of Jonah, do you love Me?" He said to Him, "Yes, Lord; You know that I love You." He said to him,

"Tend My sheep . . . Feed My sheep."

(See John 21:16-17)

Wood Chopping Day!

2010-11-12T17:20:00.000-07:00

Taking care of CCBC Colorado (as well as the kid's camp during the summer) requires a servants' heart. Not having a paid staff for maintenance and housekeeping chores means that there is always something that needs done. That's where fire wood comes in...

With the help of members from other Calvary's, two log-splitters, and several chainsaws, the incredibly large amount of wood required for the wood burning stoves (the campus's main heat source) was almost completely cut and split, from full logs to firewood, in one weekend. The Lord has been incredibly faithful to provide for all that needs to be done in this and other areas.

What an amazing thing to see so many willing servants of the Lord, come just to work and bless! The parsonage construction has also been incredibly blessed...the parsonage is where Pastor Jeff and his family of five call home. However, it has been under construction for the entire semester, (meaning that most of their house is currently packed into an army tent that looks like something out of Arabian nights) and their family has had the joy of living together in a small one-room efficiency apartment for the last few months. Many people have come by to help - electricians, carpenters, plumbers, dry-wallers, stone masons and more! One family faithfully gives their weekends to come, stay, and work on all the projects that need finished.

Support from fellow Calvary Chapels comes in the form of people, supplies, and prayer. It is impossible to be here on this campus and look around the campus, see everything that is going on, how obstacles and hindrances are cleared and smoothed out of the way, and not realize that our God is living, true, faithful, real, and absolutely still working miracles today. Prayer works. Great is His faithfulness!

A Day In the Life of a CCBC Colorado Student...

2010-11-12T17:15:00.000-07:00

So you may be wondering, what is life really like in CCBC COLORADO? What does a student's day consist of? While semester schedules vary and change (one key phrase in the Christian life is, "Blessed are the flexible, for they shall not be broken!") here is a basic look at our life: Quiet Times, which begin at 7a.m. to spend your time with the Lord in front of a warm fire. The breakfast bell rings at 8:30 where we have a home-cooked breakfast (cereal, pancakes and oatmeal happen often here). Because we operate like a big family, we all pitch in to clean up after the meals by washing the dishes, sweeping the floor and emptying the trash before class.

The classroom experience has been described as a mixture between academic, devotional and practical. It begins with lectures and books and homework that eventually is stirred into the heart by faith and then lived out in practical ways. We are blessed to be taught by a variety of Calvary Chapel Senior Pastors - some of the best, Godly, biblically based teachers we could possibly have. Classes and life here is just full on 'God speaking'. Verses, thoughts, and the convicting power of the Holy Spirit will weave through your classes, personal devotions, and daily life in such a way that it's almost impossible to distinguish the individual threads one from another. You'll find yourself so thoroughly molded that you don't even realize half of what the Lord is doing in you until later. Your thoughts, heart, and perspective will be so molded by the Word of God as just a result of being constantly in it that it just naturally (yet supernaturally) happens without you even necessarily being aware; without striving and effort on your own part. And our God being the God of real practical love that He is, works in you to keep it from becoming just knowledge that puffs up and becomes useless by causing you to just live out what He has taught you in the midst of all the daily living with room-mates, juggling chores, and school work...

Although classes and teachers rotate each semester, the following is a small glimpse of our current semester: Monday morning our hearts and minds are enlarged by a verse-by-verse teaching through Revelation (and the gazillion ways people try to interpret that book) Galatians is gloriously taught by our dearly beloved 'Pastor in Training' Tim Mackey on Tuesday afternoons. (After which he makes sure you're practicing what you preach by coming around for dorm/bathroom check.) Wednesday's are mindblowingly phenomenal biblical theology classes via video of Bob Hoekstra. Prayer meetings Wednesday and Sunday nights are sweet times of fellowship, worship, and communion with the Lord and each other. Thursdays fill your quota of needed of exhortation and straightforward solid biblical teaching in Pastoral Epistles. And your hearts are drawn to truly worship the Lord through the teaching of, and worship before, Acts class. Friday is set aside for a full day of M199 doing whatever needs done, and Saturday is considered a day of rest since Sunday is a full busy day due to church responsibilities in the Church Planting class. Every student helps with the church plant in some way, all working together to set up and tear down. When not in class, you could be in town doing laundry, shopping, or just going for a drive - there are so many places to explore in the Colorado Rocky Mountains. Near campus you could be climbing the mountain to eagle's beak, exploring trails, following the river, or hanging out and doing homework, in the rec room, chapel, or your cabin.

Camping Trip...

2010-11-12T17:10:00.000-07:00

After we students got our things settled in our dorm room/cabin, we grabbed our backpack and headed out for the semester orientation camping trip. Who needs a classroom for orientation when you can go camping? Oh, and forget about ice breakers or a gradual process of getting to know your fellow students. You get to live in tents for a week =D

Let the orientation begin, sitting around in camp chairs or at picnic tables around the fire, we listened as we got orientated on the etiquette of the Colorado campus. Every night after dinner, by the light of the campfire, we all grew a lot closer as we shared our personal testimonies of the Lord’s work in our lives, had times of worship, sipped hot chocolate and tea, and made s'mores.

After a few days there some of us had a desire to take a bath. All of us girls made our way down to wash off in the mountain river, also known as Anthracite Creek. This event involved swimsuits, cool river water, cautious endeavors not to slip, attempts to balance our shampoo bottles on the tops of rocks, all while enjoying glorious mountain views.

Throughout the week we had an amazing time of fellowship. We took a group hike where we were able to simply admire the beauty of God’s creation.

Along the way we even ran into some wild raspberries that we got to eat right off the bush.

We stopped at the end of the hike to rest and be refreshed by the Word. We sat on giant boulders, from which, after climbing to a spot of our choosing we got to hear a literal 'sermon on the mount' as “Pastor in Training" Timothy opened up the Word of God and preached from the boulder top.

After an orientation week like this, the campus is now you're new home, with your 'wild' new family.

Student Arrival...

2010-11-12T17:05:00.000-07:00

As you head towards the CCBC campus, two things begin to happen: First, you find that you can't take your eyes off the view flitting by your car window; you're driving through mountain ravines, surrounded by the stark beauty of contrasting black and white aspens, and following alongside rivers flowing over rocks and boulders, you begin to be awestruck by the display of the sheer beauty the Lord has designed.

Secondly, as civilization disappears from view, and you realize it's been three hours since you saw anything looking even remotely like a McDonalds, and one hour since you had anything resembling good cell phone reception, you realize you really are going to live, quite literally, in absolutely, the middle, of the Rocky Mountains.
The Campus vision begins to sink in when you realize, "I really am going to be set-apart at this place", yet a shout can be heard “Praise the Lord! I get to live in mountain wilderness!” By the way, city folk don't tend to venture this far into the wild.
Whatever your thoughts may currently be, our hope is that this newsletter will give you a small glimpse into our life here at CCBC and convey, at least in part, some of the reality of the amazing things God has done, taught, and molded in us, out here in the middle of the mountains. The vision here is to get away from the distractions of life for a season to seek God undivided and wholeheartedly. The amazing thing is - we get built up to reach out to a lost and dying world!

Students! CCBC Fall 2010

2010-11-12T17:01:00.000-07:00

Fall 2010 students!! More PICTURES...