Cindy and the children of KidsMin pray over their new Adventure Bibles.
My dear Church Requel family,
Good Friday morning! I hope this day finds you healthy and happy and filled with God's possibilities for a wonderful day.
I know two CR folks, who are thrilled this day has finally arrived. This evening Cotton and Margie will be married at the church. I have the great privilege to officiate in their celebration. Their marriage is especially personal for me, because Cotton and Margie met at Church Requel and have served together regularly at the Saturday night meals. What a great affirmation that God knew exactly what He was doing when He planted the idea of CR in my heart! Congratulations Cotton and Margie. May your marriage be blessed, filled with serving one another and others.
I'm also thrilled to share this photo (above right) from KidsMin. The children and Cindy are gathered around their new Adventure Bibles as they pray together. I think this may be my all-time favorite photo from Church Requel. We continue to see many children coming to CR every weekend to learn more about Jesus. Next weekend, October 6th, Diana will bring the children up front of the congregation. They will play a Bible Trivia game to show off some of their newfound knowledge. Let's make sure to thank Diana Devolder and all the volunteers who have stepped up to make KidsMin a reality!
This weekend we continue our You Make Me Crazy sermon series. Last weekend we talked about 4 ways people express their anger: the Machine Guns, the Mutes, the Martyrs, and the Manipulators. If you missed it (or want to hear it again) you can watch it here or listen to it here. This coming Sunday we'll give you 5 ways to disarm your button pushers. How can you respond to the anger you feel when people push your buttons? I know you won't want to miss this talk.
Your response to these talks on relationship skills so far has been affirming. One of you wrote, "Another day of getting schooled... Got to church with an open mind and heart and then the Holy Spirit comes in and fills us beyond our expectations every time!"
Several of you have wrote me notes like this person. "I'm loving this sermon series. I'm begging [my family members] to listen."
Yet another wrote: "Laughed out loud listening to you tell about your cousin Cheryl, and her southern 'bless your heart' expression. Reminded me of that character Deputy Chief Brenda Leigh Johnson (played by actress Kyra Sedgewick) on the TV show 'The Closer.' ... I had no trouble IDing myself as the Mute."
How have these relationship talks impacted you? I'd love to hear from you. Write me an email and tell me how God is working in your life!
We have lots of other great events coming up in the next month, so grab your calendar and reserve a few dates.
Women's Bible Study Wednesday. Our ladies got off to a great start a couple weeks ago with this new Beth Moore study, Living Beyond Yourself. Over the course of this quarter the ladies will be talking about the gifts of the Spirit. How do you live in God's power and outside of your own power? So many women have joined up that we've had to move the venue from the Pierce home to the church fellowship hall. If you missed the first orientation meeting, it's not too late to join up. Show up at the church at 6pm this coming Wednesday!
Men's Breakfast Saturday, October 12th. Our fellows have decided they don't want the women to have all the fun. So we're going to put together a group of our own. Of course when the guys get together, we have to have two elements to make it a home run: Saturday morning and breakfast! Plan to show up in the Church Requel kitchen by 9am on Saturday, October 12th. In addition to great food and awesome fellowship, we plan to introduce a new Bible study aimed right at the heart of men. Thank you Randy Craig for getting us started!
Game Night Friday, October 18th. We love to play games at Church Requel! Board games. Card games. Parlor games. (You don't know what you're missing until you've played Sardines in the Chome!) So on Friday evening, October 18th at 7pm, plan on bringing your favorite games and your favorite snacks. We'll set up the tables downstairs in the fellowship hall for a grand festival of gamesmanship. This is a fun event for kids of all ages. All children are invited. (Remember, everyone is a child of someone!)
Membership Class, October 26th. Our next Belong Class will be held at the church on Saturday, October 26th starting at 8:30am. Already a half dozen of you have signed up. Here's the scoop about the class. Registration begins at 8am. We'll serve a continental breakfast so you won't be starving and we'll keep the coffee flowing all morning long. We'll serve a Subway lunch at noon. We expect the class to be finished by 1:30pm. If you want to know more about Church Requel, I urge you to sign up. You are not obligated to become a member if you decide to come to the class. However, you cannot become a member without first attending a Belong Class.
Isn't it great to see how many wonderful things are happening at Church Requel?!
Love you all much, Pastor Mark
