Good morning Church Requel!
Wedding bells are ringing at the Pierce household as we are now just one day away from giving our daughter away in marriage. Jessica and Dave are planning to exchange their vows tomorrow afternoon. Those of you who have attended
Church Requel for awhile will recognize Jessica in this photo on the left. However, as I walk her down the aisle, the photo on the right gives you an idea of who I will be remembering. As every father who has ever walked his daughter to the altar can attest: 'How did she grow up so fast?' I am so thrilled for both Dave and Jess. After a recent pre-marriage counseling session with my good friend, Pastor Tony Pingitore, Dave told me this: "If it's possible, I'm even more excited about our marriage now!"
Todd Pierce at Church Requel - We will have an outstanding worship experience at Church Requel this Sunday morning. Since I knew I might be slightly distracted this week, long ago I asked my
brother, Todd, to step into the CR pulpit Sunday morning. The photo on the left is one of my favorites of Todd on a mission trip to Central America. Todd is now retired from the ministry, but he was a pastor for 28 years. Todd was also a church planter. In fact, I received my inspiration to start Church Requel by watching Todd in action. We often attended church planting conferences together. I remember thinking, 'Some day I'd love to be able to do this!' Be careful what you wish for! Seriously - I believe that 15 years ago God began working in my life and preparing my heart to become a pastor of a new church. We can all be thankful of Todd's influence in my life.
Godficiency Sunday Morning - Wednesday I got my first peek at Todd's sermon for Sunday. It's a good one folks! He even made up a new word just for us: "Godficiency." You'll have to come Sunday to hear all about it. We will consider Jesus' prayers of thanksgiving and 3 false illusions that he exposes in our lives. Knowing Todd like I do, there will probably be at least one embarrassing 'brother' story peppered in as well.
Even More On Sunday! Sunday's 11am service will be awesome on so many levels. Cindy and Sharma will sing with me on the praise team. Pastor Steve has prepared a special "magic key" children's sermon. And my youngest daughter, Jillian, and her husband, Tim - both in town for the wedding weekend - have agreed to sing a special song called, "Nothing Is Wasted." (Do you want to get ready for an incredible worship experience? Watch this music video of "Nothing Is Wasted" by Elevation Worship.) We will also share communion and pray together.
Many Guests Have Been Coming - We need all the regular attenders of Church Requel to come and be especially friendly. Did you know that we've had more guests the last two weekends than in any two weekends since we got started? Two weeks ago we had 23 first-time guests. Last weekend we had 14 first-timers. You are inviting and people are responding. Thanks so much and keep it up!
Stressbusters Invites - Speaking of inviting guests to Church Requel, this Sunday you will also find special invitations in your programs for our new "Stressbuster's" sermon series, which starts next weekend. During the next 7 weekends, we will take an in-depth look at the 23rd Psalm. We'll discover what God is really like and why we can trust Him with our worries, hurts and fears. Each week we'll examine one of the top sources of stress in our lives and what Psalm 23 and the rest of the Bible teaches us. Let's not be selfish about this new series. We all have stress in our lives and will benefit from this series. Your neighbors and friends could also benefit. So grab some extra invitations Sunday and pass them out next week!
New Leaders At Church Requel - I'm also pleased to share with you that Sheri Nichols and Randy Craig will join Steve, Jon, Nancy and me on the leadership team. As our church continues to grow, our leadership needs have also grown. Sheri has done a wonderful job leading our meals ministry on Saturday evenings. Randy brings us a great deal of business expertise. On this week's podcast, I talk more about our leadership team and how Sheri and Randy will help us. I also talk to my daughters, Jennifer and Jessica, about the wedding week. And - as always - we include last weekend's audio sermon, "6 Characteristics of a Mother's Faith." Click here to go to the podcast blog.
In other news...
Baptistery Special Fund. Three weekends ago we announced that we are raising funds to purchase a new portable baptistery for Church Requel. This will give us the ability to continue our tradition of baptising people within our worship services - always such a great blessing to everyone! As you can see in the photo on the right, when not in use the baptistery will store away nicely. This special fund opportunity will be available to you for the next 3 weeks. We are so grateful to Jack and Sheri Nichols for their willingness to make up financially whatever is lacking at the end of the six weeks. If you missed the announcement (or just want to see it again), click here to watch the video on our Facebook page.
Potluck Next Sunday After Church. Next Sunday will be another awesome day for so many reasons. Not only will we start our new sermon series, but we will also celebrate our very first potluck meal in our new location. We'll share the meal right after the morning worship service ends. Single folks bring one dish of any kind. Families bring one main dish and one side dish or dessert. The potluck social is the best way to get to know your new friends at Church Requel, so make sure you plan to stick around for the delicious fun! (You don't want Bryan - on the right - to have all the fun by himself!)
As we wrap up another CR weekly newsletter, I know we have so much for which to be thankful. When I think of Church Requel, I can't help but think of Jessica's sparkly, new wedding shoes. As she takes her first steps down the marriage aisle, her shoes are glittery new. Over time the glitter fades, but the steps of marriage just get better and better. We are taking our first steps as a church at Church Requel. We're enjoying the "glitter" stage of our fellowship. But let's never forget the truth of Romans 10:15 -
"How beautiful are the feet of those who bring good news!"
May your feet glitter with good news this week! Blessings to you! Pastor Mark
