Church Requel Blog - Writings of Mark Pierce

March of Prayer - 3 Weeks In!

Good Friday morning Church Requel!

I'm NOT EVEN looking out my window right now. I'm NOT EVEN going to comment on the snow falling. Come on already! It's Spring already! Right?

What I do know for sure and what I want to write about for sure is the warmth springing up inside my soul after 21 days straight of worshiping and praying every evening. I don't know what I thought the outcome would be exactly. I knew we were praying for the community. What I don't think I expected (but totally should have expected) was the revival in my own experience of God's Holy Spirit! Wow!

I'm also so very happy for so many of you, who I know is experiencing this same phenomenon. For all of you Church Requelers who have made it out to at least one (and some of you many) nights of this March of Prayer - thank you and blessings!

I don't know of another church who has been better represented as much as we have been. I've said it before but I'll repeat again - I am so lucky to be your pastor!!!

I have some excellent news. The March of Prayer will continue all the way through Easter! So yes... there will be March 32nd, and March 33rd... all the way to March 52nd! Isn't that grand? 52 different evenings. 52 different local churches. One Lord! I plan to have a new schedule for you at church this Sunday morning.

Remember - no guilt or pressure here. Come when you can. Leave when you must. Just don't miss out. I believe God is doing something really special here. For His own good reasons, He's starting this in Mansfield, Ohio. No one's ever seen or heard of this happening before. You'll want to be a part of it. You'll want to tell you grandchildren's children about it someday!

March of Prayer at Church Requel - Next Thursday! We are now down to less than one week until we host the event ourselves at Church Requel. I am confident that more than 100 will come. Our church pews will be overflowing.

Brandi and I have done as much as we can do. The evening will have some great surprises, but in many respects it will be a worship service just like what you've come to expect at Church Requel.

PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE - don't just come. Come EARLY! If at all possible plan to arrive at 5pm or as soon as you can after work. We need help setting up two snack areas - the normal one in the back and another one in the front of the sanctuary. We need help with coffee. We need help with cleaning and setting up. We need help with greeting. We need help with parking. We need help cleaning up afterwards. Do you see a theme here? We need help!!! All hands on deck kind of help. Just show up, roll up your sleeves and look for a way to help out!

Be an ambassador that night. You don't have to be on the greeting team to greet. If you see a face you don't know, introduce yourself. Tell them you're glad they came. Let's make sure that everyone who comes says, "Wow - those people at Church Requel were SOOO FRIENDLY!"

One more important detail. The weather report says 60 degrees next Thursday. Add to that 100-150 people in our sanctuary and you have a hot mess! I've asked Chris Thoman to get a team together this week to replace the storm windows with screens so we can have some Spring air circulating around us. If you can help Chris, let him know!

One last request. Tell your family and friends about this important event. Let them see your home church in a positive light! They will be glad you told them. You'll be glad you told them. You don't want to leave that night saying to yourself, 'That was so good. I wish I would have invited...'

What's Happening This Sunday At Church Requel. With everything I've just told you about next Thursday, you might think that Sunday is taking a back seat in our thoughts and planning. NOT SO!

The Jam Band will be playing and singing and leading you in worship. I've added a banjo ukulele just for the occasion! We will be singing "Build Your Kingdom Here" by Rend Collective. That song just begs for a banjo! I'm planning to play it for the first time in public Sunday morning!

We also will be singing together: "You Never Let Go" by Matt Redman; "Revelation Song" by Kari Jobe and Jennie Lee Riddle; and "Greater Things" by Mack Brock.

Our sermon Sunday morning will be from the next section of Acts and I've named it: "Ministry Strategy." You might think that this isn't something you need to know about since you're not a minister. WRONG! Everyone in our church is a minister, right? Want a head start? Click here: http://bible.com/events/587217

Lots of participation of ministers Sunday morning too! Chris and Tamara will run our tech. Don, Dan, Dave and Brian will play their instruments and sing. Ken and Karen will be bringing the communion bread. Mary Kay will set up. Juanita will bring our snacks. Roger and Juanita will be our greeters. Cindy, Karen and Mary Kay will teach our students. Chris will make sure everyone is accounted for.

These are really good times for our church! We are seeing good results everywhere we look. Keep praying. And thank you - so many of you - who have told me you're praying for me! I really do need God's strength now more than ever. Hope to see most you real soon! Love you much, Pastor Mark

March of Prayer Marches Onward

Good Friday morning Church Requel,

Last evening we completed two weeks worth of the March of Prayer. What a two weeks it has been! Friday night I discovered a new church I didn't even know was there - Ambassadors of Christ Church.

Then Saturday night I discovered another church I didn't even know was there - The Way. Both are really close to us in downtown. Both are doing really good work. Both renewed my love for our close-to-downtown location.

Both Pastor Jody Odom and Pastor Matthew Parsons reminded me of my initial zeal for ministry. They are both so sold out to reach people for Christ and to grow His church. I left inspired by God's calling.

Sunday night and Tuesday nights were both really special to me because both were churches of which I have been an active member in my past: Mansfield Alliance Church and Crossroads. Stepping into these churches reminded me of where I've come from and the way our Lord has been working on my soul and my pastoral calling for decades.

I enjoyed the largeness of both churches, the beautiful music but also the quiet spaces both churches provided room for genuine prayer. I appreciated the special public guests invited by Crossroads to lead prayer for our community.

I left both churches confirmed in God's calling.

I enjoyed the tradition of the Lutheran worship on Monday night when we went to Holy Trinity Church. Pastor Pentti Maki led a service filled with prayers, Scripture readings, reflection AND sharing!

What a wonderful evening of sharing!

Each person stood up or went to the lectern to share what the Holy Spirit had been saying to them about the Scripture reading. They just kept on coming - person after person!

I enjoyed the surprise expressed by the reserved pastor when he finally said, "Oh my - this is just like a Billy Graham Crusade!" I left Holy Trinity feeling a part of God's beautiful, extended family.

Wednesday night we attended the First Evangelical Presbyterian Church. What a grand and beautiful and long and white sanctuary they have! I thought to myself, 'What bride wouldn't love to walk down this aisle?'

As formal as the church building appeared, the two pastors leading the service were just as comfortable and friendly and inviting as could be. They both wore jeans and played guitars, sang, and took turns leading our prayer times.

Thank you Pastor Denny Finnegan and Associate Pastor (and firefighter!) Brad Williams. You reminded me that our worship time can be intimate with our Father God. You reminded me of the miracle that God is doing both within and between our churches. 

This was also the evening when I saw the most number of my fellow pastors. Before we left someone grabbed us all to take a picture. I left 1st EPC feeling like I was really a part of God's team!

Last night was just utterly delightful at Southside Christian Church, where Paul Lintern is also the pastor. Yes, in case you didn't know it, Paul's creativity and enthusiasm cannot be contained by only one church. Each Sunday he heads north to Oakland Lutheran and then heads to the other side of town at Southside Christian Church.

Is it ok to have fun at church on a Thursday night? Well if last night was any indication, the answer is a resounding "yes!"  Check out this fun video as Paul and the assembled congregation say the Al-le-lu-ia poem to get the night started right. I dare you to watch this only once!

Paul is so creative! He showed me last night that one doesn't have to have a huge worship budget or large praise band singing the latest songs. We sang enthusiastically out of the hymnbook, which Paul reminded us each song was a contemporary favorite... centuries ago. We went to different "prayer stations" around the church to pray for para-church ministries helping those who need help here in Richland County. We prayed for our country by singing prayerfully the national anthem, including a new third verse written by Paul! I left Southside last night feeling pure joy!

I have also been so delighted by the many of you from Church Requel who began attending these nightly meetings. We have actually been filling two or three pews! I'm so thrilled and encouraged by you all. Keep coming! And if you haven't made it yet, it's not at all too late. Start tonight. We will meet tonight at 6pm at Sar Shalom, 2510 W. Fourth Street.

This location used to be the UAW Hall, now converted over to a Messianic church. I'm really looking forward to it! I had the privilege of helping my son, Jonathan, wire up this church for sound.

I promise you this evening will be soooo special! But only come if you want to leave feeling inspired, confirmed, surprised, a part of God's extended family, a part of God's team, and filled with pure joy. 

One more cool thing that's been going on... Paul wrote the lyrics to a song, "Mansfield Into Godsfield." It can be sung with seven different hymns and that's totally cool. We've been singing it a different way almost every night. I came home Wednesday night thinking we needed a new way to sing this new song. So I wrote up a few chords, staying up past midnight because I was so excited about it. I'd like to teach it to you after the sermon this Sunday morning. But you can get a head start by watching the song lyric video here:

Sunday Morning At Church Requel. I've written so much about the March of Prayer but I haven't lost any enthusiasm for our very special worship time planned together this Sunday morning. Our praise team will be made up of Brandi, Brian, Amy and Bessica. We will sing "King Of My Heart" by Bethel, "Ever Be" also by Bethel, and "Open Up the Heavens" by Meredith Andrews. Brian will sing a special song for us: "Sea Of Faces" by Kutless.

We will continue the Sequel and Requel sermon series - this will be our 30th! - from Acts 12:19-13:3. The title of the sermon is "Voice of God, Voice of Man."

Do you know the difference between the voice of God and the voice of man? Can you recognize God's voice to you? Jesus taught that those who belong to God hear what He says. Did you know that it's possible to tune God's voice in so you can hear God better? Sunday we'll talk about the dangers of confusing man's voice for God's voice and four ways to remain focused on God's voice.

Want a head start on Sunday morning's message? Open your Bible app and click on "More" and then "Events." Click on Church Requel and it will pop right up for you. Or you could check out the sermon notes here: http://bible.com/events/582514. I am praying that God's Spirit will be with us all again as we study His Word together.

Love you all much! Hope to see you at one of the March of Prayer events this weekend or at church Sunday morning at 11am! Pastor Mark

Reflections From Week One Of March Of Prayer

Good Friday morning Church Requel!

What a week! I hardly know where to begin writing. Last night Mary Kay and I and several other lovely souls from Church Requel attended the 7th evening of the March Of Prayer. 

Honestly I never originally intended to attend them all, but now I can’t imagine missing.It feels to me like God is showing up in Mansfield at a different specific location each evening. Who am I to decide that I will do something else? Who am I to make being there with Him an optional activity in a busy week?

I have to admit to you that every evening has been uncomfortable for me - at least at first. New place. New people. Different styles of worship, music and praying. Every evening I feel like I’m fighting to break through a barrier to attend. Yet every evening afterward I am so glad I was there!

It’s like I have a ringside seat to see all the different ways we humans worship our Lord. They don’t all worship like me? No! They don’t all pray like me? No! They all don’t like the same style music as me? No! In fact I have yet to see a ukulele played! Who could imagine? Ha!

Every night I remind myself that our Lord is a great God Who enjoys a great diversity of worship and the most important aspect of worship isn’t the outside style but the inside clean heart. Then I examine my own critical heart focused on the differences of people and purposefully refocus my attention on the Same God - the Alpha and Omega.  Then I realize I am part of One body and we all possess One Spirit, that we are all called to One hope!

Then something melts inside me. The barriers between me and others that I alone am responsible for erecting and maintaining are torn down. Does that mean it’s now comfortable? Oh no. But when did coming into the Presence of the Holy Creator Lord of all, the King Of kings, require MY comfort?

As a result I’ve participated in worship in ways that are very different for me... and thus not always within my comfort zone - but it has so enriched my experience of our Lord Jesus. I’ve sat inside a cathedral for a solid hour of quiet prayer and meditation, possibly the longest 60 minutes of my life. I have written down my confession upon a sticky note then affixed it to a wooden cross. For the first time in my life I received the imposition of ashes upon my forehead on Ash Wednesday by my good friend, Pastor Paul Lintern. For the first time in my life I marched around a sanctuary with other worshippers six times quietly and then shouted out praise on the seventh round.

I feel both stretched and blessed. I knew that God would do something special in our city, if 31 different churches and 21 different denominations opened up their doors for worship and prayer. I hadn’t anticipated the work God would perform upon my own heart. I’m undergoing a spiritual cardiac bypass surgery by the Master Surgeon Himself, bypassing my preferences and my biases in favor of a clear artery of prayer straight to the throne of Heaven.

If you are wondering if you and your family should make this March Of Prayer a priority, then wonder no more. I want you to experience these evenings with all my heart. Don’t sit back and allow this special movement of God to pass you by.

Tonight’s meeting is at Ambassadors of Christ, 152 Cline Avenue. Saturday’s meeting is at The Way Church, 172 Sturges Avenue. Both begin at 6pm and end at 8pm. Come when you can. Stay as long as you can. But do come!

Sunday Morning At Church Requel. Brandi, Trish and Missie will lead our worship singing with "No Longer Slaves" by Bethel Music, "Mighty Cross" by Elevation Worship, "Tremble" by Shane & Shane, and "Trading My Sorrows" by Darrell Evans. Roger will lead our prayer time. Nancy will share our announcements.

My sermon this Sunday is titled, "The Surprise Of Answered Prayer." The sermon is about our prayers when our difficulties seem most hopeless - when our faith is tested... when our lips pray "please" but our minds wonder "why"? We'll examine Acts 12 and discover that the early church continues to pray for the imprisoned Peter. Even when Peter is standing right at their door knocking. We will learn four faith-increasing lessons about God's surprising answers to prayer. Want a head start? Open your Bible app or click on this link: http://bible.com/events/578053.

We Host March Of Prayer March 28th. In the back lobby this Sunday, you'll find five signup sheets for our host night for the March of Prayer - March 28th. Please sign up for multiple teams.

This is an "all hands on deck" kind of event. We need people to bring snacks, to help prepare the church and others to clean up afterward.  We need greeters and people to help park cars and direct people to the right doors.

Please please please make this evening a priority. Come and help. Invite neighbors and friends. This is a great opportunity for us to participate in our community's goal to turn Mansfield into Godsfield!

Spring Forward This Sunday!!! One last special word of advice to you all - don't forget to set your clocks ahead one hour before you go to bed Saturday evening. You don't want to miss Sunday morning at Church Requel!

Blessings upon all of you. Know I love you. Know Jesus loves you even more! Pastor Mark

March Of Prayer Begins TONIGHT!

Good Friday morning Church Requel,

Today the calendar page flipped over to March! You know what that means! No, I’m not talking about St. Patrick’s Day. No, I’m not talking about college basketball. And no, I’m not even talking about the glorious fact that later this month Spring replaces Winter after the long, cold freeze. I’m talking about the March of Prayer, which begins TONIGHT!

For anyone who has been disconnected the past few weeks, the March of Prayer is a daily (nightly? eveningly?) worship and prayer service beginning at 6pm and ending at 8pm at a different Mansfield church location each evening. As I write this newsletter to you, there are 34 churches involved (yes - this has now marched past March) and 21 different denominations (and NON-denominations in our case) involved! Many different styles of worship. One Lord!

TONIGHT’S March Of Prayer kicks off at Living Hope Community Church  (also known now as Real Life Community Church), 670 Kentucky Avenue, 44906. Let’s all go and bless them with our participation. Wouldn’t it be so great if all our churches were so full to overflowing that we wouldn’t know what to do with all the people and the cars they bring with them?!

TOMORROW’s March of Prayer continues at the Point Of Grace - 2 Marion Avenue! You all know where that is! Just to be clear, this one will be in the Chome, behind our sanctuary. They are setting up seats everywhere, including the balcony, expecting an overflow crowd. The worship and prayer will be led by Jordan Baker and his team, the same Jordan who is spearheading this entire 34-day March of Prayer events.

We at Church Requel will host on March 28th. Brandi and I invested two hours of our staff time this week dreaming and planning for the evening we will host. I hope you will attend as many of these events as possible (along with Brandi and me), but we surely do hope you circle the 28th on your calendar and plan to be with us that evening. March 28th will be an “all hands on deck” evening for those of us who call Church Requel home.

So what will each of these evenings be like? I don’t know. That will be part of the enjoyment. Each church is different in their style and approach to worship and prayer. Yesterday I joined many other pastors at our monthly brown bag lunch. We were told to just be ourselves. Worship the way we normally do. The two hour event is not supposed to be a performance. It’s supposed to be an opportunity for us to come into the Presence of the Lord. 

If you can’t come right at 6 - no problem. If you can’t stay until 8pm - that’s ok too.  Come when you can as often as you can and stay as long as you can.  But do come! This is special. I believe God’s Spirit is moving through Mansfield. You don’t want to miss this. 

Encourage one another as well as the host churches. If you engage in social media, like Facebook, go online today and talk about it. Search for the host churches on each day (just type in your search bar - March Of Prayer Day 1, and the event pops right up) and let them know you’re coming. Let your friends know too. Maybe even carpool together. Together we can turn Mansfield into Godsfield!

Sunday Worship at Church Requel. Sunday morning will be the first Sunday of the month and so our children will be participating in our worship experience. Grayden and Cohen will be our morning technicians running the computer graphics and sound board. Cohen will also come up at the end of the service to share our announcements. Leia and Paityn (pictured above left) will join their mom, Brandi, and their Grandma Cindy on our praise team.

We'll be singing "Fierce" by Jesus Culture, "Great Are You Lord" by All Sons & Daughters, and "Unstoppable God" by Elevation Worship. You're also in for a special treat as Leia and Paityn have been preparing a very special duet for us. Leia will sing some rap (very challenging in my opinion) while Paityn sings so sweetly in a song called "I'll Find You" by Lecrae. Even if rap is not your style, you'll love watching this - I know these girls have practiced a lot to get the timing down just perfect.

For our sermon, we will continue our 2019 Mini Resolution series. So far we've made two mini resolutions. Sunday morning we'll make our third: "Living Humbly Not Proud." Want a head start? You can find the sermon notes here. 

As we wrap up this week's newsletter, I just want to tell you how awesomely pleased I am with all of you. (Tricky - shouldn't really write "proud" of you two days before I give a sermon about living humbly not proud! - Ha!)

Consider all that's happening right now. Brian steps up for the first time to lead a Bible study on Wednesday nights and ten of you join right in. (Brian is doing an awesome job and I'm awesomely pleased with him too!)

Then Brandi takes the lead in hosting our March of Prayer evening on March 28th and every one of you that she has asked to help have responded with affirmation and enthusiasm.

I've said it before but it's worth saying again: I'm so fortunate to be your pastor! Love you much, Pastor Mark

Jam Band Is Back Sunday!

Good Friday morning Church Requel!

Looks like it's going to be another awesome Sunday morning. First thing this morning I checked my weather app and discovered the high temp on Sunday will be 48 degrees! Then I remembered the Jam Band will be playing and I thought, 'For February, this really will be a hot Sunday!.'

May I just say that I LOVE being part of this Jam Band group. I look forward to it all month long. I remember my dad telling me once how much he loved being a part of the Jam Band of which he was once a member. I let it go in one ear and out the other. Now here I am - once again - just like my dad.

Here's what I love about them. They each come to the practice session on Saturday with something they've been working on for the past month for the songs we're going to sing. I never really know what that will be until Saturday. Then we get together for practice and someone will say, "What do you think if I do this?" Then I'm blown away by what I hear.

Yet there's no pressure and there's no egos involved. Someone might say, "I've been really busy this month and just need to play along with you guys." That's just hunky dory. Also there's never any hurt feelings if something doesn't work out. Yes, more than once Dan has suggested in his loving, calm, encouraging manner that maybe, just possibly maybe, my ukulele strum... is too fast... doesn't work for this song... is hard to play with. We all just laugh and then I try something different. Ha!

But in one way or another that has been true for all of us. This whole thing has been a huge stretch. Brandi had never played keyboard and sang at the same time (she's great at both - just one at a time.) On the other hand, Dave loves to sing while playing his guitar. But there has been the occasion when we will ask him to sing without playing. Not his fav, but he does it. Don had not played bass since he was in high school. And Brian? He never even played drums before Jam Band! Can you imagine? There just aren't any egos involved. We all want our worship music to sound as good as it can - all for the glory of God.

This Sunday we will be playing a couple new songs for us. (Not new for you - you've sung both of these many times. We've just never played them.)

One of these songs is "Revelation Song" sung both by Hillsong and Kari Jobe. At the end of our last practice, I asked the team if there were any songs they would like to be added to our list and Dan right away said, "Revelation Song!" What an awesome song! So much worship! Holy, Holy, Holy! Wow!

Then Don chimed in. "We have 'Oceans' on our list, but we've never play it. I think it's such an awesome worship song and would love to do it." We looked back and found he was absolutely right. We had worked up the arrangement and had practiced it in the early sessions, but never brought it out for Sunday morning. 

That song so fits in with our theme Sunday morning about God always being there for us when our plans don't work out. I've named the sermon Sunday, "The Perfection of Plan B," from the back half of Acts 11. The lyrics of this song are really amazing for those Plan B moments in life.

"Spirit lead me where my trust is without borders.
Let me walk upon the waters wherever You would call me.
Take me deeper than my feet could ever wander
And my faith will be made stronger in the presence of my Savior."

The Perfection Of Plan B.  I want to tell you all a little bit about the background to this week's sermon. This is supposed to be a newsletter, after all, so why not be a little "newsy" with it? (... for those of you who've actually read this far!) We are continuing on with our Acts study. I've been reading the back half of Acts 11 for a few weeks now and wondered what direction I might go with it.

Then Monday morning, one little part of verse 19 caught my attention: "Now those who had been scattered by the persecution that broke out when Stephen was killed..." I asked myself why this was included? Luke had already told that story back in Acts 6. For us reading it today it's like, 'I just read this a few pages back.' But for those living it out, it had be years - many hard, difficult, challenging Plan B years.

What do I mean by Plan B?

Life often looks so very different than we hoped or expected. We were so sure the path we were on for job, family, relationships for life... was just the way it was supposed to be: our Plan A. Then suddenly everything changes. We feel disappointed and disillusioned, and we quietly start to wonder about the reality of God’s goodness and what we thought was His plan for us. 

Surely that was true of those who were forced to relocate from Jerusalem to Antioch, right? Their families had lived in Jerusalem for generations... going back a thousand years! Now their world was turned upside down. They fled for their lives, leaving behind houses and businesses and family and friends. Surely they asked, "Why God?"

That moment and little sliver of verse 19 sparked the entire sermon this week. (You can get a head start by checking out the sermon in the Bible app or by clicking here.)

Here is where this little story gets really good. Each week, when I finish my sermon outline, I email it to Brandi. We have done this for years so that when Sunday morning comes we can both be on the same page.

When I went into my email program to send off the email to Brandi, I found another email waiting for me from Amazon. This email told me that a book was coming my way: "It's Not Supposed To Be This Way" by Lisa TerKeurst. I had not ordered it. Mary Kay had spoke with a friend the day before, who told her about this book and she ordered it. Mary Kay didn't know about my sermon. I didn't know about the book. Yet God arranged both separately, independently, coincidentally, and I believe... purposefully.

Just to make sure I got the confirmation message from Heaven on Wednesday night, Mary Kay and I went to Brian's Bible Study on the Holiness of God (this study is excellent by the way - you really don't want to miss it). During the study Cindy chimes in with, "I was just reading this book about finding unexpected strength when disappointments come our way."

I couldn't believe it. I ventured the question: "Hey Cindy what's the name of the book?" She thought for a moment and then replied, "It's Not Supposed To Be This Way" by Lisa TerKeurst. I think God is telling me something - and through me... also to you. Life doesn't always work out the way we want it to, yet God has a way of working it out if we'll only see Him at work, if we'll only look for the opportunity, if we can only celebrate the victories we do find.

Oh... one more thing... for those of you who like to check out the sermon notes in your Bible app, you know that I always try to include a Bible study for follow up, right? It's pretty cool. I type in some key words about what the sermon will be about and the Bible app recommends a good study to go along with it. Guess what popped up this morning when I put my sermon notes into the Bible app? "It’s Not Supposed To Be This Way: A 5-Day Challenge By Lysa TerKeurst." I kid you not!

A Big Thank You To Juanita! I can't write this newsletter without a big, super, HUGE thank you to Juanita. She showed up last Sunday with all of her baking gear and took all our children downstairs during the sermon. She and they baked Valentine's cookies together. I have heard since that for some of these children, it has been their favorite church experience yet! I don't know about you, but I LOVE the fact that our kiddos are associating church with life lived well! 

I have some other really great photos of last Sunday's cookie extravaganza. I'll try to get them posted on Facebook for you later today. They really are just super cute!

One last word - March of Prayer begins in one week! I can't begin to tell you how excited I am about this more-than-a-month-long church-to-church event. 

Starting March 1st, our church will join 33 other Mansfield congregations to form the March of Prayer.  That's right! 33! Two more have joined in since last week, so we'll be going into April. I'd love to see as many of you as possible to go to as many of these worship and prayer events as possible. Each one will be different and unique.

We'll be reminded about the diversity and richness of the larger church and Kingdom of God! That's got to be really healthy for us, right? Plus it will allow us to fellowship and worship with one another and with other Christ-followers as well. Make sure to pick up a schedule this Sunday.

For those of you on Facebook, each evening has a separate event in Facebook. Look for them and click that you're coming to the ones you can make. That will be encouraging both to those individual churches and could also encourage some of your other Facebook friends to attend as well.

Church Requel has agreed to host this event on Thursday, March 28th, so please plan to come and be a part of that too. Together, let's turn Mansfield into Godsfield!

Well I was certainly long winded today! I hope you liked it and read it and maybe even will share some of the good news. So many wonderful things are happening. Let's celebrate each opportunity we can! Love you much, Pastor Mark

New Bible Study Next Wednesday

Good Friday morning Church Requel!

I had quite a surprise yesterday. My Alexa rang her quirky little sound in my kitchen. I asked her about my notification. She answered, "The Holiness Of God will arrive later today." Nice to know. Ha! She meant, of course that our Bible study books were arriving and she gave me the title of the book. Still - how would you like your smart device to announce God's Holiness arriving soon!?

This study will be led / coordinated / moderated by Brian Betts. The book - picture above right - can be purchased online for $10 for an e-book version or $15 for a paperback version. We have purchased a few extra for those who don't have the ability to buy online or for those who cannot afford it. Brian will have all books to give out on Sunday.

This book was written by one of my favorite authors, R. C. Sproul, back in 1985. There are 11 chapters ranging in length from 15 to 30 pages long. Here are the topics (chapter titles) this Bible study group will be discussing: (1) The Holy Grail; (2) Holy Holy Holy; (3) The Fearful Mystery; (4) The Trauma of Holiness; (5) The Insanity of Luther; (6) Holy Justice; (7) War and Peace with a Holy God; (8) Be Holy Because I am Holy; (9) God in the Hands of Angry Sinners; (10) Looking Beyond Shadows; (11) Holy Space and Holy Time.

There are a few discussion questions at the end of each chapter. However, I doubt the questions will be necessary for those reading the chapters each week. Sproul is definitely a deep thinker - and not without challenges. That's not to say that it's difficult to read him or that you'll need to know a lot about theology to understand. He has a gift for writing in a way that communicates well. The challenge is in his deeper teaching about the holiness of God. You will come face-to-face with the awful splendor of God's majestic holiness in a new and fresh way. Sproul is one of a kind in the way he combines depth and clarity and Biblical realism to every topic he addresses.

Bottom line - this study will be a real opportunity to take your Christian faith deeper. The first study group will meet this coming Wednesday evening, February 20th, in the Chome (behind the sanctuary) at 6:30pm and is expected to last two hours. The study will continue weekly and is open to both men and women alike. Thank you, Brian, for your faithful leadership.

March of Prayer - Turning Mansfield Into Godsfield.   I am most happy to announce a new initiative for next month: 31 evenings of prayer, 6-8 pm at a different church each night of March 1-31! Imagine the positive effect on our area if 31 different congregations each hosted a two-hour, music-based prayer service on a different night in March!

Starting March 1st, our church will join 30 other Mansfield congregations to form the March of Prayer. Each church would use their own style when hosting. We are hoping for 31 different but authentic events to lift up the Lord in prayer. Some may be loud, others quiet. Each church could include music, Scripture and psalm readings, intercession. The music could include praise songs, worship songs or simply instrumental background music. 

We want to encourage folks from all congregations and the community to come together to pray for the community, the Kingdom, God’s Creation, to whatever God’s calls us.  For those of you who use Facebook, you can follow along with all the developments - just search "March of Prayer."

Church Requel has agreed to host this event on Thursday, March 28th, so please plan to come and be a part! But also know that you are invited to join every other church for this 31-day event too. In your program on Sunday (and also on the communion tables) you'll find a schedule of churches for each day in March. This schedule is also in the picture above right - click on it to see a larger version with all the churches and addresses.

Paul Lintern and Jordan Baker are leading the charge for the March of Prayer. There will be a prayer time / organization time / fellowship time at our church (Point of Grace) in the Chome this coming Sunday evening, March 17th, from 6pm - 8pm. If you'd like to pray for and help with this incredible prayer event in March, please come. We need all the prayer warriors we can get! Let's turn Mansfield into Godsfield!

Worship This Sunday. So many new, big things are going on that we just now come to what we usually write about at the top of the newsletter. (That's a good thing, right?) Joining Brandi on the Praise Team will be Brian, Amy and Bessica. Together we'll be singing "God of Wonders" by Paul Baloche, "God of All My Days" by Casting Crowns, "Glorious Day" by Passion, and "Good To Be Alive" by Jason Gray. Our sermon Sunday will be the final part 3 of "Following God's Plans" and will be mostly from the first part of Acts 11. Brandi also has a very timely special song planned for us: "Be One" by Natalie Grant.

Valentines Cookies Sunday For Students!!!  This Sunday Juanita will be making Valentine’s Day cookies with our students!! Our students really enjoyed this at Christmas, so she’s going to bring in all her supplies again and make Valentine’s Day Cookies with them!

Students, make sure your parents get you here on Sunday morning so you don’t miss out!! And, of course, we thank Juanita so much for blessing our church with all the goodies she makes and for including our students in her love of baking!!

Final Notes. Each week I promise myself that this week the newsletter won't be too long. And then by the end I find that I've written another thousand words! I can't help myself. With you all there is just so much to write about!

I hope you all know how thankful I am for each of you. I watch with delight as each one of you discover God's plan for your life and - with the help of God's Spirit within you - boldly go forth for the benefit of us all. You (collectively) are my God story week in and week out! I so appreciate the encouragement of your lives upon mine! Love you much, Pastor Mark

Neighborhood Meal Saturday Night

Good morning Church Requel!

Tomorrow evening - Saturday - we will once again be serving our neighbors a delicious, hot, free meal! All of you are invited to participate! Things are just a little different in 2019 than they have been in the past. Let me tell you about it.

We all show up at 4pm to help out our fearless meal leader, Sheri Nichols. There are lots of ways to volunteer: setting up the tables, passing out the food, pouring the drinks, arranging the desserts and now - providing the entertainment.

In years past we've had two stages - those coming for the meal would first wait upstairs in the sanctuary until 5pm, when they would be released to form a line down the stairs. No more waiting upstairs. There was a good reason we did it that way before. We would often have more people coming for the meal than we had seats downstairs. But over the past year we have seen the number of people coming for the free meal decline. So this year we invite our guests to come straight to the fellowship basement if they come before 5pm.

Also new this year - each serving team is also providing entertainment, both to the volunteers and to our friends coming for the food. We have placed several requests in the announcements to our congregation, but so far no one else has volunteered. It's probably just a matter of needing to see how it's done the first time, because we have so many talented people in our church! So yours truly will get out his ukulele and sing a playlist of Valentine love songs starting at 4pm. Hopefully going forward, other people will volunteer their talents for future meals.

Neither Paul nor I have any idea how Church Requel found itself off the schedule for the last 6 months of 2018. I'm thrilled that we're back on it now and also with a predictable pattern. We always serve the 2nd Saturday  of every even month. That's 6 serves altogether: February, April, June, August, October and December.

The Neighborhood Meal is always a grand time of fellowship for all of us who serve together. It is a great way for old and young alike to serve shoulder to shoulder. If you are so inclined, we could still use your delicious desserts too! I'm sure we'll be wrapping up by 6pm. So come on out tomorrow night for a great mission combined with great friendship!

The Boiler Is Fixed! The Heat Is Back On! It has been a wonderful week to work at the church. The heat has felt glorious!

Last Sunday we showed up to a cold church with a broken water pipe flooding the front stairs landing. Many thanks to Dan Logan, who worked behind the scenes last Sunday morning to find the broken pipe and get the water shut off. Many thanks to Paul Lintern, who arranged the repairs on Monday.

When I showed up on Tuesday, my office was cozy warm! So was the sanctuary and the nursery! There are registers heating up that haven't been warm all season. I'm not sure what exactly happened, but I can sure rejoice with all of you that we're back to a cozy church!

Ladies Trio Leads Our Worship! I'm delighted that Brandi, Trish and Missie are singing together this Sunday morning. They always harmonize so well and have such a great attitude. Here are the songs we'll be singing:

(1) "The Whole Earth" by Gateway Worship; (2) "Man Of Sorrows" by Hillsong; "My God" by Jeremy Camp; "You're Worthy Of My Praise" by Big Daddy Weave & Barlow Girl.

Sermon: Following God's Plans. We continue our study of Acts 10 & 11, the story of the Centurion Cornelius and Peter. In this second session we will learn more about God's plans for us. This fascinating passage tells us so much about what it really means to be a Christ-FOLLOWER. 

Valentine’s Cookies For Our Students!!! On Sunday, February 17th Juanita will be making Valentine’s Day Cookies with our students!! Our students really enjoyed this at Christmas, so she’s going to bring in all her supplies again and make Valentine’s Day Cookies with them!

Students, make sure your parents get you here on Sunday, February 17th so you don’t miss out!! And, of course, we thank Juanita so much for blessing our church with all the goodies she makes and for including our students in her love of baking!!

Holiness Of God Bible Study. We have another group study starting up soon. The details of place and time have changed so pay attention if you are interested.

New day - Wednesdays. New starting date - Feb. 20th. New place - here at church!

This will be a 12 week study going through “The Holiness of God” by R.C. Sproul. The cost of the book is $9.73. Thank you Brian for following God’s leading! Two bible studies back to back in our small little church...how about that!? God at work for sure!

More good news to come next week! Don't want to overwhelm you. Isn't God good?

Much love, Pastor Mark