Church Requel Blog - Writings of Mark Pierce

Elect Exiles [Podcast]

We begin our study of 1 Peter, chapter 1, with just the first two verses. Here we discover 5 characteristics of who we are in Christ as Christ-followers.

Click to Listen!

Podcast: Subscribe in iTunes | Play or Download in new window.

Video Sermon: Elect Exiles

We begin our study of 1 Peter, chapter 1, with just the first two verses. Here we discover 5 characteristics of who we are in Christ as Christ-followers.

Elect Exiles from Mark Pierce on Vimeo.

 Follow along with the online sermon notes or download the fill-in-the-blanks PDF sermon outline.

This Week At CR: First Peter Series Begins

Good Friday morning Church Requel!

Pastor Mark here with our weekly "What's up at CR?" newsletter. I hope this week has been a good one for you and that you are looking forward to an awesome weekend.

I am writing you from my patio, where the temperature this morning is a cool 60 degrees. I'm surrounded by beautiful flowers maintained by my equally beautiful wife, Mary Kay. The photo on the right is one of her Gerbera Great Smokey Mountains that has bloomed so beautifully this week.

Mary Kay and Jessica are visiting Celina again for a couple days, taking care of the transfer of many of Mary's mom's most precious posessions. Yet even while she is struggling with her own griefs, she called me this morning with the news of someone else struggling with great sadness. I am amazed by her compassion. This morning, pray for Mary Kay and also for her friend suffering from unspoken tragedy this day.

First Peter Sermon Series. We will begin a new study Sunday morning from the New Testament book of First Peter. I am quite excited by this study, one in which I have been actively involved for most of this summer. For the rest of July and August, we will consider the unique and incredible claims of Christianity from Peter. He was the disciple that Jesus called "the rock," whom he would build his church upon. We have Peter's conclusions of our faith written 3 decades after the resurrection of Christ.

For most of this past year, our sermon series have been topical in nature. We've examined what the Bible has to teach us about our relationships ("You Make Me Crazy"), our purpose ("What On Earth Am I Here For?"), our finances ("Financial Fitness"), parenting our children ("Raising Amazing Kids"), and life management ("Directions For Living"). I love topical sermons series and we will return to this way of teaching in the fall.

However, for the rest of this summer, I'd like to take you deeper into the Word of God. I propose to spend the next six weeks studying 1st Peter chapter 1 on a verse by verse basis.  Instead of starting with a topic and asking what the Bible has to say about it, we'll start with the Bible and see what topics come our way. Here's an outline of where I see us going over the next six weeks:

July 27 th  - “Elect Exiles” 1 Peter 1:1-2

Aug. 3rd - “Imperishable Inheritance” 1 Peter 1:3-5.

Aug. 10th - “Tested By Fire” 1 Peter 1:6-9.

Aug. 17th - “Holy Conduct” 1 Peter 1:13-19

Aug. 24th  - “Foundational Christ” 1 Peter 1:10-12; 20-21.

Aug. 31st (Labor Day Weekend) - “Forever Word of God” 1 Peter 1:22-25.

I encourage you to bring your Bibles with you to church. You might also wish to bring a spiral bound notebook in order to take your own notes. This could be an exciting time of spiritual growth for you and for all of us at Church Requel. 

Splash Park Tomorrow (Saturday) Morning. We love to have fun together at Church Requel too! Tomorrow morning at 10am, let's all meet in the church parking lot. This is not just for families with kiddos. This event is for everyone. Bring a sack lunch with you. We'll caravan up to Ashland Spash Park together. Once we are there, the children can go and have fun with all the water splash toys. Most of us adults will hang out together in a shaded picnic pavilion we have reserved for ourselves. We plan to return to the church by 1:00pm. Come hang out with your CR friends! I'll be there along with my daughter, Jennifer, and her three children.  Want to enjoy a laugh again at Brandi's expense? Here's her funny video invitation!

Sunday Morning at Church Requel. I've already written you about the new sermon series, but there's lots of other great things going on Sunday morning at CR! Many of our folks have gotten together for a live praise and worship time. I listened to them practice Wednesday evening and was amazed. They just get better and better! Many thanks to Dan Logan playing drums and guitar, Ian Jensen playing bass guitar, Tamira Barnes playing keys, Jeff and Brianna Barnes singing, and Bryan Trubachik running our new soundboard.

Tamira also has a great teaching time planned for our children Sunday morning. The elementary kids were a little jealous of the marshmallow slingshots the preschoolers made last Sunday. So they are going to be learning about David and Goliath and how to slay the giants they face in their lives. Tamira tells me the kiddos will be doing a scavenge hunt, bravery bags (I have no idea what a bravery bag is - but I think I need one!) as well as marshmallow slingshots! They also will be making a video promo for the Minute To Win It Game Night on August 15th !!! Sounds like it's going to be a really fun jam-packed Sunday in KidsMin!!!

This week has been a challenging one for me personally. Some weeks are just like that. Plans don't always work out. Disappointments come our way. Sometimes tasks are harder than we expect. Yet despite the frustrations, I am convinced that God has called me to lead you, to teach you and to care for your spiritual growth. I've never had a job I love more than this one. Please continue to pray for my strength and guidance. Your pastor, Mark

Stepping Outside My Comfort Zone [Podcast]

Faith is believing that God is who He says He is and that He will do what He says He will do. Trusting God usually takes us out of our comfort zone. I tell the story of the Empty Jar and the Widow and, along the way, we learn about 4 steps that take us outside of our comfort zone.

Click to Listen!

Podcast: Subscribe in iTunes | Play or Download in new window.

Video Sermon: Stepping Outside My Comfort Zone

Faith is believing that God is who He says He is and that He will do what He says He will do. Trusting God usually takes us out of our comfort zone. In this July 20th sermon at Church Requel, I tell the story of the Empty Jar and the Widow. Along the way, we learn about 4 steps that take us outside of our comfort zone.

Stepping Outside My Comfort Zone from Mark Pierce on Vimeo.

 Follow along with the online sermon notes or download the fill-in-the-blanks PDF sermon outline.

This Week At CR: Marshmallow Slingshots!

Good Friday morning Church Requel!

I'm writing you from Celina, Ohio - home of the fighting Bulldogs, the largest manmade lake in Ohio, and the prettiest girl I ever met! Mary Kay and I are visiting her hometown for a couple of days before returning home for Church Requel Sunday morning. I hope you are enjoying a terrific Friday too!

Before we talk about what's up for this Sunday at CR, we need to celebrate the great Sunday we enjoyed last week! As you can see from the pictures on the right, we enjoyed a record number (over 30) kids in KidsMin last Sunday. We love how Church Requel is growing and there is no place it's growing faster than with our children age 10 and under!

This is not what so-called church growth experts figure will happen. Usually the best a church can do is just hold on to it's congregation throughout the summer and then hope for more growth when school starts up in the Fall. What we are witnessing at Church Requel is God-provided and we are most thankful.

Let me share some more good news with you about our Kids' ministry! Tamira Barnes and I had a very long talk this past week about the Church Requel ministry and her part in it. It seems clear to both of us that God is using her in a very powerful way to reach our young people for Christ. Beyond that, her many years in ministry - including church plants, children's ministries and worship ministries - has been a great encouragement to me personally. Originally Tamira was only going to work at Church Requel during the summer months. But given everything good thing happening here, Tamira has decided to continue serving our children and our church as Children's Ministry Director! Anyone else excited besides me?

Marshmallow Slingshots. Tamira is not resting on past successes. I asked her yesterday what she had planned for this Sunday morning. Now I can't tell you exactly what this means, but she told me that the preschoolers will be learning about David and Goliath. (That part I understood.) Then she said: "Marshmallow slingshots alert!!!" I have to admit that sounds fun, entertaining, and delicious. I wouldn't be at all surprised if we have a few extra adults volunteering to "serve" in the Toddler room this Sunday morning. (How is a preacher supposed to compete with marshmallow slingshots?)

Tamira tells me that the Elementary kids will continue learning how to keep their focus on God. They will be playing with blindfolds and yes... more marshmallows are involved! 

Guest Guitarist Sunday! Brandi and her worship team continue to work hard too! Brandi tells me that our own Dan Logan has a friend, David Hill, who has agreed to sing and play with him this Sunday morning. David will be singing "Voice of Truth," made famous by Casting Crowns, right after the sermon. What a great way to exit!

I'm also excited about our opening worship time. I will be joining Brandi on the Praise Team singing some of my personal favorite praise songs including "Only A God Like You," "Let The People Praise Him," "Day By Day," and "You Are The Way." I had so much fun practicing with Brandi. It's been a while since I had the privilege of leading our praise music and I'm really looking forward to it!

Funny Announcements Sunday. Speaking of Brandi, I have to tell you one more thing about Sunday morning that will be so much fun! Nancy Roop, who usually keeps us posted about all the things happening at Church Requel every week, will be away on vacation this Sunday. So our staff team (isn't it wonderful to have a staff team now?) decided to produce an announcement video for you. Have you ever known Brandi Walker to ever do anything halfway? The picture on the right is from the video, when she is talking about the Kids Splash Park coming up this coming Sunday. She is hilarious! 

Widow and The Jar. We will wrap up our Directions For Living sermon series this Sunday with the sermon, "Stepping Outside My Comfort Zone." I'm really excited about this talk from 2 Kings 4. We'll look at the story of Elisha, the widow, and her empty jar. Along the way we'll learn four different steps that take us outside our comfort zone. How long has it been since your faith was stretched? We'll discover that it only takes a little bit of faith to make a big difference! 

Tuesday - New Generations Youth Sing! This coming Tuesday we are in for a very special treat. The New Generation Singers will be singing at Church Requel this Tuesday evening, July 22nd at 7pm. This is an 85-voice Christian youth choir from St. Joseph, MO. Check out www.ngsingers.com for more information. We are asking households to host 2-4 of the youths after the concert until the next morning. They can sleep two in a bed and two on the floor; that is what they plan for! You will feed them breakfast and bring them back in the morning. If you can help, call Pat at 419-756-1372. Mary Kay and I have committed to housing six singers. This will be an awesome opportunity to invite family and friends to your church for a non-Sunday morning event. We expect a sell-out for this no-charge event, so come early!

Next Saturday - July 26th CR Family Splash Party. Cool down those hot summer days with fun at the Ashland Kroc Center Splash Park, 527 E. Liberty Street, Ashland, Ohio. We will meet at Church Requel at 10am, then caravan up to Ashland. Families pack a lunch for each kiddo big and small. We’ll drive back to Church Requel by 1pm. FREE family fun!

Friday - August 15th “Minute To Win It” Back To School Pizza Bash at Church Requel. 6pm - 9pm. I know this is still a month out, but I'm hoping all our families will put this on their calendars and prioritize this fun event now. Going back to school doesn’t have to be so painful, especially if you can win cool prizes, eat lots of pizza and enjoy the company of all your CR friends! 

Wow! Lot's of great things are happening this summer at Church Requel. I love being your pastor. I can't wait to see you again on Sunday. Have a great weekend! With great affection, Pastor Mark

Making Our Time Count [Podcast]

Our time on Earth is so short compared to eternity. We all want to make our time count. But how do we do that? What matters most is not the duration of our lives, but the donation of our lives.  In this July 13th talk at Church Requel, I teach the A,B,C's of time management.

Click to Listen!

Podcast: Subscribe in iTunes | Play or Download in new window.

Video Sermon: Making My Time Count

Our time on Earth is so short compared to eternity. We all want to make our time count. But how do we do that? What matters most is not the duration of our lives, but the donation of our lives. In this July 13th talk at Church Requel, I teach the A,B,C's of time management.

Making My Time Count from Mark Pierce on Vimeo.

Follow along with the online sermon notes or download the fill-in-the-blanks PDF sermon outline.

This Week At CR: 50s Party And Sister Singers

Good Friday morning Church Requel!

Are you ready for a great Friday night tonight? We will be meeting at Kelly’s Mini Golf and Dairy Bar, located at 1280 South Main Street in Mansfield.  Tonight's Fifties Theme Night will include vintage cars, a sock hop DJ, and car hop service to provide you with old fashioned burgers and milkshakes! So come join the fun tonight from 6-8 PM and look for all your Church Requel friends and family. Let's enjoy the pretense that we're all several decades younger than we really are. As Fonzie would so eloquently put it: "Ehhh!"

Feed The Neighbors Saturday. Tonight is fun for ourselves. Saturday night is service in love for others. We plan to meet at Church Requel at 4pm. We expect between 100 and 150 hungry folks to arrive between 5pm and 6pm. Bring yourselves, your servant attitudes, and your most delicious homemade desserts. Let's also thank Jack and Sheri Nichols for their awesome leadership.

Sisters Sing Sunday! Dinah and Jody join Brandi up front in worship leadership Sunday morning. We'll all be singing some of our Church Requel favorite worship songs, including "Everlasting God," "10,000 Reasons," and "How Great Thou Art."  As we prepare our hearts for our prayer time, Dinah will sing, "It Is Well." At the end of our worship service, Jody will lead the congregation in singing, "Amazing Grace." It should be an uplifting worship time.

Rocks and Kiddos. Tamira Barnes tells me that our Elementary children will be learning that God is our Rock and our Strength. So of course Tamira will be using rocks in some pretty elaborate ways Sunday morning. (Almost makes me want to be a kiddo again!) She also tells me that our toddlers will still be floating in Noah's ark. After all, it did rain for 40 days and 40 nights!!!! Our toddler / nursery children can continue to bring their favorite stuffed animals with them to church. I'm told that little Sissily Angel even brought in a pair of spiders last week. Tamira was most grateful that they were plastic!

Making My Time Count. The adults will continue our Directions For Living sermon series with a talk I've titled, "Making My Time Count."  As an average American you'll live 25,550 days. Whatever you're going to do with your life, you'd better get started! Time is running out...at least on this side of eternity. You only get a relatively few years of life on this planet. Sunday we're going to talk about not just how long you live, but HOW you live. Along the way, we'll learn the A,B,C's of time management. Needless to say (but I can't resist) you won't want to be late for a talk on managing your time well.

Concert Tuesday July 22nd.  The New Generation Singers will be singing at Church Requel on Tuesday evening, July 22nd at 7pm. This is an 85-voice Christian youth choir from St. Joseph, MO. Check out www.ngsingers.com for more information. We are asking households to host 2-4 of the youths after the concert until the next morning. They can sleep two in a bed and two on the floor; that is what they plan for! You will feed them breakfast and bring them back in the morning. If you can help, call Pat at 419-756-1372.  This is an awesome opportunity to invite family and friends to your church for a non-Sunday morning event. We expect a sell-out for this no-charge event, so come early!

Saturday - July 26th CR Family Splash Party. Cool down those hot summer days with fun at the Ashland Kroc Center Splash Park, 527 E. Liberty Street, Ashland, Ohio. We will meet at Church Requel at 10am, then caravan up to Ashland. Families pack a lunch for each kiddo big and small. We’ll drive back to Church Requel by 1pm. FREE family fun!

Friday - August 15th “Minute To Win It” Back To School Pizza Bash at Church Requel. 6pm - 9pm. I know this is still a month out, but I'm hoping all our families will put this on their calendars and prioritize this fun event now. Going back to school doesn’t have to be so painful, especially if you can win cool prizes, eat lots of pizza and enjoy the company of all your CR friends! 

New Sound Mixer Purchased and Installed! I'm thrilled to report that our new soundboard has been delivered and installed by our own tech dude, Jonathan Pierce. I had the privilege of being his assistant yesterday as we connected up all the wires and cables. To me it looks like something right out of Star Trek. It's an amazing piece of equipment. Let's continue our patience and encouragement for our sound tech team as they will have to learn all about a complicated piece of equipment. And be sure to thank Jonathan for his leadership! We are thankful for the generous donations that have already come in to help us pay for the new soundboard. If you'd also like to help out, just mark your donation envelope: "Soundboard."

This has been the best summer ever at Church Requel. Our church is growing with new families and new commitments to Christ. I'm looking forward to celebrating with many of you tonight, Saturday and Sunday - a triple CR weekend! Blessings, Pastor Mark

Staying Mentally Fit [Audio Sermon]

The Bible teaches us to remain mentally fit.  We do that in three ways: (1) Guard access to our minds; (2) Learn new things continuously; and (3) Exercise our minds continuously. In this audio sermon I  teach practical habits from the Bible to keep a sound mind.

Click to Listen!

Podcast: Subscribe in iTunes | Play or Download in new window.

Staying Mentally Fit [Video Sermon]

The Bible teaches us to remain mentally fit.  We do that in three ways: (1) Guard access to our minds; (2) Learn new things continuously; and (3) Exercise our minds continuously. In this sermon video, I teach about practical habits from the Bible to keep a sound mind.

Staying Mentally Fit from Mark Pierce on Vimeo.

Follow along with the online sermon notes or download the fill-in-the-blanks PDF sermon outline.

This Week At CR: Children Praise Team!

Yay! It's Friday! It's the 4th of July! It's the start of a long holiday weekend! It's only 2 days until Church Requel gets together again! Ok, so maybe you don't really get as excited about that last one as the others - but I'm writing you today so you will know WHY you SHOULD be really excited about CR this coming Sunday morning.

Let me give you fourteen reasons why Sunday morning at Church Requel is going to be so awesome! Sicily, Violet, Anna, Leia, Lila, Grayden, Cohen, Lincoln, Rachel, Nathan, Emma, Alexis, Liam and Phyllis! Our kiddos will be leading our worship experience this Sunday! How awesome is that?

This past Wednesday evening our church was filled with children - and their parents (God bless them!) - on one of the warmest and muggiest nights of the year so far. But that didn't stop them from singing their little hearts out. You will want to be at church Sunday to try to keep up with the energy of our kids as they sing "God's Love is Big," "Lord I Lift Your Name On High," and "Put Your Hands Up."

We'll also continue our Directions For Living sermon series with a talk about how to stay mentally fit so your journey through life can be more productive and rewarding. Your mind is a special gift from God. You’ve seen that commercial: “A mind is a terrible thing to waste.”  The Bible has a lot to say about staying mentally fit. We'll summarize the Bible’s teaching in 3 ways: (1) Guard access to my mind; (2) Learn new things continuously; and (3) Exercise your mind regularly. Want a head start for Sunday? Check out the sermon notes on your Bible app (click on LIVE) or click here.

Next Friday Night: Fifties Night! Let's have some fun next Friday night! Church Requel families are invited to join the fun at Kelly’s Mini Golf and Dairy Bar. A 50’s Theme Night is planned that includes Vintage Cars, a Sock Hop DJ, and Car Hop Service to provide you with Old Fashioned Burgers and Milkshakes! 

Come join the fun on Friday, July 11th from 6-8 PM at Kelly’s located at 1280 South Main Street in Mansfield. See YOU there!! 

A Week From Saturday: Feed The Hungry After our fun together Friday night, we'll gather together the next night at Church Requel to feed our hungry neighbors. Sheri and Jack Nichols lead our team of cooks and servers. All volunteers should show up by 4pm. We begin serving food at 5pm until 6pm. It usually takes us another half hour to clean up. Bring willing and service-oriented hearts as well as your delicious, homemade desserts.

We have lots of other fun events planned for the rest of the summer, which we'll tell you all about Sunday morning. In the meantime, enjoy your mid-summer break. Love you all much! Pastor Mark