Good Friday morning everyone! At least it's warm and dry inside. I don't know about you, but I was thinking this first day of June would be bright, sunny, hot, and well... summery! Goes to show how much we know, right? The summer weather may not have arrived on schedule, but our Church Requel summer sermon series will arrive right on time!
We're calling this series Summer Singles for 3 reasons. First each talk this summer will be a single sermon that is not directly connected to any of the others. This means you can miss a week and not fall behind. Second, each talk will focus on a single idea that can help and encourage your Christian walk. This means that when someone asks you on Monday morning what you learned Sunday night, you'll have a better chance of remembering! Finally, the third reason we're calling this series "Summer Singles" is that it's baseball season. The home run may be the grand play, but it's the single hits that really advance the runners. My goal for this summer is to make sure everyone who comes to Church Requel this summer "gets on base" with their Christian faith!
Our first Summer Single comes from Genesis 1:28. This week we learn why and how we should care for Planet Earth. Want a preview? Check out the sermon notes on YouVersion.
Sunday night's CR worship will be especially kid friendly! Brandi Walker will be leading our worship singing together and she has picked out one song that every kid will love (even us 50+ year old kids!). A couple weeks ago Sicily and Anna set the tone for CR worship and moved up front so they could be more a part of the worship experience. This week Brandi will be inviting all the kids to come up front at the beginning. Pastor Mark also has created a special kid-friendly talk that will inspire our children to go plant a flower this next week. In typical Church Requel fashion, we won't be just talking about it. We plan to give each kid a potted flower to take home with them!!!
This Past Week. Don't miss these Church Requel website opportunities from this past week. Pastor Mark wrote two blog posts you might want to read. First he wrote about the recent Yale graduate, Mariana Keegan, who wrote an incredible essay about "The Opposite of Loneliness." Tragically Ms. Keegan died in a car accident. Pastor Mark wrote about Jillian's narrow escape and Mariana's legacy. 
Also this past week, The History Channel's Hatfields & McCoys broke every record for basic cable. Pastor Mark considers why this miniseries was so popular and the surprising connection to Jesus' Sermon On The Mount. Read about 5 reasons why you could be a Hatfield or a McCoy. (Lisa Hatfield can skip this... she already knows she's a Hatfield!) You can also listen to Pastor Mark's podcast from last week, where he talks about the inspirational story of Zach, why the Facebook IPO fizzled and the Bible app. Finally, if you missed it, you can read (and listen to) last weekend's sermon, "Holding On To The Eternal Ticket."
What's coming up! This coming Wednesday - June 6th - will be the last Women's Bible Study from the book of James. The Pierce home is packed every other Wednesday night at 6:30, so don't miss out on this great study and a chance to visit with all the other ladies. This Wednesday the women will be talking about their summer plans for a few socials, so come and vote for your favorite summer events!
Also this coming Saturday, June 9th, will be the Church Requel Membership Class. The class will start at 8:30am with a continental breakfast and will end at 2:30pm. We also will provide a Subway lunch. Here will be your chance to learn everything there is to know about Church Requel - how it got started, where it is going, what it means to be a member. Right now we have 4 people registered, but there is still time for you to join the class. You don't have to become a member if you come to the class. the whole point is for you to learn about membership and then make your own decision.
Finally our congratulations extend to Jack and Sheri, who are planning on getting married Saturday morning in a small private ceremony. We all love them so much. They both have become an important part of Church Requel with their passion to feed the hungry in Richland County. We wish them every happiness! Jack and Sheri want to invite everyone at Church Requel to their Wedding Reception on June 30th beginning at 1:30pm. They plan on having this party at their home on Flowers Road. Get the address and directions from Jack and Sheri when they come back from their honeymoon!
That will wrap up this weekly CR blog post. There sure are lots of cool things happening for such a little church. I love Jillian's description: small but mighty! After all this is Christ's church and with Him... nothing is ever really small!
Love you all! Hope to see most of you Sunday night. (Jack and Sheri get a pass this week! Ha!) - Pastor Mark
