Church Requel Blog - Writings of Mark Pierce

This Week At CR: Fall Festival Roundup

 

Good Friday morning Church Requel!

Six days have gone by since the Fall Festival and I'm still trying to come up with the right adjectives to describe it. Wonderful, awesome, and exciting all seem too mundane. Perhaps a simple "Wow!" best captures the feeling of amazement that we all experienced last Saturday. I'm not a big believer in the Build-It-And-They-Will-Come philosophy, but in this case that seems to have been the case. 

We have always tried to count and keep accurate records of events. However in this case it's most accurate for us to just say "in the hundreds." We got to the point where we could count 'em or serve 'em, but we couldn't do both. We know we made up 100 goodie bags for the kiddos. Those were gone in the first 45 minutes. We know we cooked 200 hot dogs. Those disappeared by an hour fifteen. We also experienced a huge bump in the neighborhood meal that evening, when 225 meals were enjoyed - an all-time record!

I couldn't continue this letter without saying a big "thank-you" to our children's director, Tamira Barnes, who imagined this event back in June. To put that last statement into perspective, Tamira was only serving as our temporary children's teacher for two months back then. Yet in one of her very first meetings with Brandi and me, she asked: "Why don't we plan a Fall Festival?"

To her credit Tamira is the big picture dreamer and planner. She never doubted that our neighborhood would respond so enthusiastically. And she led well. Tamira will be the first to tell you that her team was amazing. They met regularly, relentlessly asked for sponsors and gifts, and gave of their own time and resources. They even created their own Facebook group page where they could dream up ideas together.

Tamira knew that I would be writing this letter to you today. She texted me last night and asked me to include the following: "Thanks to ALL for making the Fall Festival an amazing success!!! It was an awesome day of serving together and loving our community!!! To which we all say, "AMEN!" 

Let me just add one more postscript to this fantastic Fall Festival follow-up. (Pastors and their alliterations - we just can't help ourselves.) Our own Rick Jensen took some amazing photographs of the events last week, just like this one on the right. He has also uploaded them to his photo website and made them available for download. Check them out while they're available. Thanks Rick!

This Sunday: Friend Or Fool? So onto future events and plans. We are looking forward to a great Sunday worship service together (11am at this location for potential guests.) My sermon is entitled, "Fool or Friend?" and comes from Ephesians 5:15-20. You've heard of the acronym BFF, right? We usually think it means Best Friend Forever. However, it could also mean Baloney From a Fool. Which are you? Which are your friends? How do you know? Sunday I'll talk about six traits to look for in a friend. This will be a great talk for your kids to hear!

Speaking of the kiddos, this Sunday will be the first Sunday of the month - so our elementary aged children will be joining their families in the sanctuary and will be worshipping with us. Of course our nursery will still be open for our pre-schoolers. (Thank you Sonnie and Mari!) Don't forget to set your clocks back an hour. You don't want to be left behind!

Whenever our children join us in worship, we try to involve them in the worship and this week will be no exception. Paityn Hall, Phyllis Stanfield, and Anna Scott will be joining Brandi and Dinah on the Praise Team. Wyatt Stanfield will be sharing our announcements. 

We have a couple other special events happening Sunday. Before the sermon, sisters Brandi Walker and Trish Trubachik will be performing a skit together. The skit is written by Brandi and is called, "Wanna Be Friends?" Brandi and Trish play the parts of young children - not much acting there if you ask me, but should be plenty entertaining!

After the talk we have a quartet of friends singing one of my favorites: "Circle of Friends" originally performed by Point of Grace. Brandi, Dinah, Trish and Missie Walker will sing together and send us on our way at the end of the worship service.

Doesn't this all sound terrific? I bragged earlier about Tamira Barnes dreaming big. And it's true! I also love that Brandi Walker, our Creative Worship Director, dreams big every week.

Women's Bible Study On Wednesday. Our ladies are meeting every Wednesday at our home for their Fall Bible study led by Mary Kay. They will meet again this coming Wednesday night at 6:30 pm. If you missed the first couple, it's not too late to join in the study. This is a great way to get to know some of the other women in the church. 

Women of Faith - From Survival To Revival  will be taking place here in Mansfield next weekend on November 7th and 8th. Tickets are still available but going fast. (Don't let the cost of $25 keep you from going. We'll pay for your ticket if you want to go!) Just let Mary Kay, Cindy Thoman or Tamira Barnes know if you want to attend. Should be a great time of study and fellowship for our Church Requel ladies!

Thanksgiving Potluck November 15th. Bring your best dish... or dessert... or bag of chips! Ha! Let's enjoy a massive potluck on Sunday, November 15th and give great thanksgiving for the way the Lord has blessed us this year. Families bring two dishes of any kind. Single folks bring one dish. We'll enjoy this meal together immediately following the morning worship service.

New Members Class November 22nd. Been thinking about joining up with Church Requel? Want to know more about our church? This one-day seminar will answer your questions. The Belong Class begins at 8:30 am and ends at 1:30 pm. It includes a free continental breakfast and a Subway lunch. You do not have to join the church if you attend the class. However, attendance is a requirement if you wish to become a member. I'm pretty excited - looks like we have about a dozen planning to attend. Just another sign of healthy growth!

We've come to the end of another long letter from your pastor. I love writing you each week and letting you know about what's happening in the life of Church Requel. Remember that the church is not the building we meet in but the people who meet in the building. That's you! Thank you for being such a wonderful congregation. Mary Kay and I know we are truly blessed.

Hope to see you Sunday! Pastor Mark 

Both Feet In [Podcast]

Are you “both feet in” when it comes to your Christian faith? I explain that living to please God and still living in a way that doesn’t please God is a “double-minded” existence. We consider 5 heart checks of whether we’re all in with Jesus. Then we talk about 3 ways to make sure we’re both feet in with God.

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

Click to Listen!

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

Both Feet In [Video Sermon]

Are you “both feet in” when it comes to your Christian faith? In this talk I explain that living to please God and still living in a way that doesn’t please God is a “double-minded” existence. We consider 5 heart checks of whether we’re all in with Jesus. Then we talk about 3 ways to make sure we’re both feet in with God.

Both Feet In from Mark Pierce on Vimeo.

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

This Weekend at CR: Fall Festival!!!

Good Fall Festival Eve Church Requel!

Usually I write "Happy Friday" to you all, but not today. Today it's all about the Fall Festival. We're one day from our BIG DAY!

How wonderful and powerful it is when so many different people come together. Everybody pulling together, pooling their resources, using their skills for a common purpose. Why, it's almost Biblical in it's proportions!

Free games. Free Food. Fun for the entire family from 1 - 3pm Saturday at Church Requel! It's all hands on deck tomorrow. Even if you haven't signed up for anything, just show up. We'll give you a fun job. Set-up begins at 10am. The actual Festival begins at 1 pm. Tear down begins at 3pm. Tell everyone you know. Our entire purpose in offering this festival is to serve our neighborhood. Let's shower some love tomorrow, what do you say?

At the risk of surely leaving out some amazing stories, let me tell you about just a few of the things going on. Festival attendees will enjoy face painting, games, pumpkin decorating, and a fall picture booth. A DJ will be playing great music and announcing prizes. The apple cider will be flowing. There even will be a "Sponge toss at the pastor" game. What's not to love?

The prizes for tomorrow are amazing! Door prizes for both adults and children from places such as little Buckeye Children's Museum, Pursnickity, 2 Cousins Pizza, free Red Box video rentals, Salon Vivace, Coney Island, Hobby Lobby - literally too many to mention!

All kids will receive a free ticket to the Richland Carrousel plus chances to win additional free tickets. Kids 11-17 will have a chance to win a $50 Walmart gift card. Kids 5-10 will have a chance to win a brand new bike. Kids under 5 will have the chance to win a giant adorable Teddy Bear! How do they win? I understand they will all be guessing the number of candy corn in a jar. Sounds fun!

We will also be giving away coats, hats, scarves and gloves to anyone who needs them along with gently used house items and toiletry items. Last night I saw the number of coats that have been donated and could barely hold back my amazement. You are such a giving community! You WILL make an impact on your surrounding community with your love!

The volunteers for the Fall Festival have made another big impact on our KidsMin Director, Tamira Barnes. Last night she told me, "A few weeks ago I stood in front of the congregation and asked them for help with this event. They have responded with such love and enthusiasm that it brings tears to my eyes. The generosity and 'all hands on deck' attitude has truly been amazing!!! I could not be more proud to call Church Requel my home!"

Let's make this inaugural Church Requel Fall Festival a day we will never forget. I'm looking forward to serving with all of you tomorrow. Let's make a huge impact in our downtown neighborhood!

And Then On Sunday... Yes, there will be life after Saturday. The weekend continues on! We have a fantastic worship service planned for Sunday morning at 11am. Brandi, Jana, and Cindy will lead us in some of our favorite worship songs: "Blessed Be Your Name," "Amazing Grace," "10,000 Reasons," and "You Are Good." I'm looking forward to continuing our study of Ephesians with a sermon I've entitled, "Both Feet In." Of course, we'll pray together and share communion too.

The kiddos will have a great time Sunday too. In KidsMin, the children will kick off the morning with some fun fall-themed "Minute To Win It" games. Also they will be carving pumpkins and learning about the first step to becoming a new creation in Christ. They'll learn they also need to clean out the "gunk" in their lives. Our pre-schoolers will continue their stories out of the book of Genesis, learning this week about Jacob and Esau and making good choices.

Women's Bible Study On Wednesday. Our ladies met this past Wednesday at our home for their Fall Bible study led by Mary Kay. They will meet again this coming Wednesday night at 6:30 pm. If you missed the first week, it's not too late to join in the study. This is a great way to get to know some of the other women in the church. 

Women of Faith - From Survival To Revival will be taking place here in Mansfield on November 7th and 8th. Tickets are still available but going fast. (Don't let the cost of $25 keep you from going. We'll pay for your ticket if you want to go!) Just let Mary Kay, Cindy Thoman or Tamira Barnes know if you want to attend. Should be a great time of study and fellowship for our Church Requel ladies!

Thanksgiving Potluck November 15th. Bring your best dish... or dessert... or bag of chips! Ha! Let's enjoy a massive potluck on Sunday, November 15th and give great thanksgiving for the way the Lord has blessed us this year. Families bring two dishes of any kind. Single folks bring one dish. We'll enjoy this meal together immediately following the morning worship service.

New Members Class November 22nd. Been thinking about joining up with Church Requel? Want to know more about our church? This one-day seminar will answer your questions. The Belong Class begins at 8:30 am and ends at 1:30 pm. It includes a free continental breakfast and a Subway lunch. You do not have to join the church if you attend the class. However, attendance is a requirement if you wish to become a member.

If you've made it this far, write me and let me know. I have some extra candy corn to pass out! Seriously I know many of you do read this from top to bottom every week and I appreciate it. The truth is that there is so much going on in our new downtown church. You're making a difference in the lives of our neighbors and as a result our church is growing. It's wonderful to partner with you.

Sleep well tonight! We'll all need it tomorrow. Blessings upon you! Pastor Mark 

The Myth Of More [Podcast]

The myth of more is that the more we have, the happier we will be. Not true. In fact, always wanting more of what others have is a sure way toward unhappiness. I discuss 5 hard truths about coveting as well as 4 ways to practice the antidote to always wanting more. Based on Ephesians 5:1-6.

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

Click to Listen!

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

The Myth Of More [Video Sermon]

The myth of more is that the more we have, the happier we will be. Not true. In fact, always wanting more of what others have is a sure way toward unhappiness. I discuss 5 hard truths about coveting as well as 4 ways to practice the antidote to always wanting more. Presented on October 19, 2014. Based on Ephesians 5:1-6.

The Myth Of More from Mark Pierce on Vimeo.

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

This Week At CR: The Myth Of More

Good Friday morning Church Requel!

Mary Kay and I returned to Mansfield this week. We enjoyed a wonderful two weeks down in Myrtle Beach. The sun shone every day with temps in the 80s. We were so fortunate. The only day it rained was the day we had to leave. Mary Kay and I enjoyed the weather, but we even more enjoyed our visit with our hosts, Dad and Julie. I think they enjoyed the visit too - the last thing Dad said to me as I drove away is that they already booked the condo again for next October.

I met with Brandi and Tamira yesterday afternoon and really enjoyed hearing all the stories of what's been going on at Church Requel in our absence. It sounds like things are really moving in the right direction with the Fall Festival, scheduled for a week from tomorrow. So many of you have volunteered your time, talents and resources. Thank you! Tamira tells me there is one last planning meeting scheduled for Sunday at 4:30 pm at the church. There also are still a few specific volunteer jobs we need to fill. Tamira will have a list with a signup sheet in the foyer Sunday morning.

Speaking of Sunday morning, I'm really looking forward to being back in the pulpit with you in our continuing RELATE study of Ephesians. This Sunday our focus will be on Ephesians 5:1-6. I've titled the sermon, "The Myth of More." We'll learn 5 hard truths about coveting as well as the known antidote. This is a timely talk because the world around us works continuously to convince us that we need more things. But what are we really living for? Will our lifestyle be determined by culture or by Christ?

Dave Johnson, Ian Jensen, and Dan Logan are putting their musical talents together for a praise band Sunday morning. You'll love their praise songs: "This Is Amazing Grace" by Phil Wickham, "All The People Said Amen" by Matt Maher, and "Starts With Me" by Tim Timmons.

If you have any kids in your family, you'll love the creative lessons that our KidsMin team has put together. What does candy corn, a moustrap and the Bible have in common? You'll have to come to KidsMin to find out as they learn about making wise choices. Our preschoolers continue their lessons from Genesis as they learn about patience, laughter and stars. I'm told they may even come home singing the classic Sunday school song, "Father Abraham."

Just one more reminder in this week's Friday message... Ladies be reminded that your Bible study begins this coming Wednesday, October 22nd at 6:30pm. We're still planning for the Bible study to meet at our home this first week. We'll see how it goes. If so many come that we can't fit everyone in, we'll move the study to the church in future weeks. I'm kind of jealous for all our ladies. I'd love to sit in on a Bible study led by Mary Kay Pierce!

So many wonderful things are happening at Church Requel. Thank you for your faithfulness and support. May God richly bless you as you serve! Hope to see you Sunday morning at 11am! - Pastor Mark

4 Ways To Improve My Relationships [Podcast]

Many of us want better friendships in our lives. Jeff Barnes tells us that the best way to start is to become better friends ourselves to others. In this October 12, 2014 Church Requel audio talk, we learn 4 ways to improve our relationships from Ephesians 4:25-30.

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

Click to Listen!

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

4 Ways To Improve My Relationships [Video Sermon]

Many of us want better friendships in our lives. Jeff Barnes tells us that the best way to start is to become better friends ourselves. In this October 12, 2014 Church Requel talk, we learn 4 ways to improve our relationships from Ephesians 4:25-30.

4 Ways To Improve My Relationships from Mark Pierce on Vimeo.

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

This Weekend at CR: 4 Ways To Improve Relationships

Happy Friday to you all Church Requel!

I LOVE this photo of Church Requel taken by Rick Jensen. A beautiful summer morning. Church doors open. The grass is green. The flowers are in bloom. The flag is up. The leaves are still on the trees! A great photo of the church building... but not a picture of the church! That's right. This is not the church. It's just the building where we meet.

You are the church! The relationships that you form with everyone else at Church Requel - that's the church. When you get together with your CR friends, that's church. When you serve our neighborhood meals, that's church. When you visit someone from CR in the hospital, that's church.

Some of you might remember a little dittie I learned as a child. We would make motions with our hands that I recall to this day. "Here's the church and here's the steeple. Open up the doors and see all the people." It's the people who make it a church! It's you who make it Church Requel!

4 Ways To Improve My Relationships. Sunday morning we'll continue our study of Ephesians, focusing on 4:25-30. Along the way we'll learn how the people of God should be able to relate to one another. If you have a good friend, spouse, partner, or fellow church member, with whom you would like a better relationship, then this sermon is for you! Jeff Barnes will talk frankly about authenticity, anger, generosity, gossip and encouragement. There's not a single one of us - including yours truly - who won't find some ways to improve relationships in these verses.

Brandi and Haleigh will be leading our worship music. They have been rehearsing several special songs including, "What A Savior" by Laura Story, "One Thing Remains" by Kristian Stanfill, and "The Motions" by Matthew West. Nancy Roop will be back reminding us of all the great things happening at CR. And Steve Thoman will be back too, leading our communion and prayer time!

Fall Festival Planning So Exciting! I love the things I'm reading from the planning team on their Facebook Group Page. Here are just a few of their ideas. If you have any spare coats in your closets, bring them in. They will be distributed at the Fall Festival. They are talking about a "Balloon Pumpkin Wall For A Treat" game. A photo booth with some Autumn focus will be offered. A "Mystery Bowls" game, where blindfolded kids try to guess what they're feeling. They're doing something that requires lots of rubber duckies, but I haven't exactly figured out why. LOL. And maybe my (least) favorite? Hit The Pastor With The Sponge game.

It's all in good fun. We really need everyone's participation on October 25th. The festival itself will only last 2 hours, from 1pm - 3pm. We need lots of help with setup, with tear down, and with folks to actually run the game booths. I've said it for a couple weeks now: All Hands On Deck!

Women's Bible Study.  Have you ever had a friend call you and say, "Let's have coffee?" When you hear that you know exactly what that means. They want to be with you. They want to talk to you friend to friend. They want to let you know they love you.

This is the name of the new 6-week Bible study for women, which begins Wednesday evening, October 22nd: "Let's Have Coffee!" The Bible study will focus on Mark 12:30-31a. The ladies who participate will take this key Scripture apart, line by line, lesson by lesson. The core message? Loving God and loving people. (Hey, that would be a great mission statement for church. Oh wait... that IS our mission statement!)

Sounds like a great time of study and fellowship. Plus, I'm kinda partial to the leader of this study! I've known her for 37 years! So, let's have coffee and dive into this Fall's Bible study series. The study will begin at 6:30pm on Wednesday evening, Oct. 22nd. We'll meet at Mary Kay's place (my place too), unless so many sign up that we need to move it to the church.

3 More Upcoming Dates To Remember:

• Women of Faith "From Survival To Revival," Friday & Saturday, November 7th & 8th
• BELONG Membership Class, Saturday, Nov. 22nd, 8:30am - 1:30 pm.
• Thanksgiving Dinner Potluck after church on Sunday, November 23rd.

Lastly, we want to thank you. Mary Kay and I are really enjoying our time away at Myrtle Beach. We've both been pushing pretty hard in our respectful ministries, and I can just feel my batteries recharging back to full strength. Yeah, those last few weeks I was running pretty close to empty. Just wait until you see the new, recharged version of Pastor Mark! Scary!

In all seriousness, I value my time with my father. Dad is 83 and still going strong. But each October I'm jealous for my time away with him here at the beach.

And I value my time with my Father. There's just something about sitting out on the deck, listening and feeling the ocean tides below, that reminds me of just how big He is.  

I'm reading some good books, listening to some good music, and enjoying Dad's incredible cooking. Yes, Mary Kay and I even go for evening walks on the beach!

We're close to the end of our two-week vacation. We are leaving Tuesday and plan to be back in town Wednesday. So I'll be back with you at Church Requel next Sunday. Thank you for allowing me some time away. I really do miss you all and look forward to being with you again soon.

With great love and affection, Pastor Mark

The New Self [Podcast]

Christians are to put on a new self and take off the old self. Desiring to change from the old me to the new me is called repentance. In this October 5th Church Requel talk, Jeff Barnes shares 5 things we should know and do about repentance.

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

Click to Listen!

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

The New Self [Video Sermon]

Christians are to put on a new self and take off the old self. Desiring to change from the old me to the new me is called repentance. In this October 5th Church Requel talk, Jeff Barnes shares 5 things we should know and do about repentance.

The New Self from Mark Pierce on Vimeo.

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

This Weekend at CR: The New Self!

Good Friday morning Church Requel!

I hope your week is going well. Friday is here and that means Sunday morning is right around the corner! And that means another worship experience at Church Requel! Yay!

Our sermon Sunday morning is titled, "The New Self." This talk comes at a perfect time. Have you noticed all the news lately about selfies, the self-photographing craze that can't seem to get enough of self? ABC has a new television show named "Selfie." Apple phone fans now must be careful not to send out accidental selfies. If regular selfies are not enough, Instagram now offers time-lapse selfie photos. They call it Hyperlapse. Just two weeks ago Kirsten Dunst released a short 3-minute movie "Aspirational," in which two fan girls jump out of their car to take selfies with Kirsten. Neither wish to talk with Kirsten. They just want to take and post their selfies.

When watching Kirsten's short film, I couldn't help but think that our selfie generation has more opportunity than ever to see itself. Yet for all we see of ourselves, we appear more blind than ever about who we really are. It seems as though the more we see of our outsides, the less we see of our insides.

Sunday we'll take a close "self-examination" of the Biblical teaching for each of us to put off the old self and put on the new self (Ephesians 4:21-24.) Maybe - if you're lucky - you might even grab a selfie with the preacher!

Since it's the first Sunday of the month, our older elementary kids will be joining us in the sanctuary for the entire worship service. I even hear that Elijah Jensen will be back in the pulpit to deliver the announcements. 

And for the first time ever - we have a praise team made up of some of our Toddler Tikes! Leia Walker, Lincoln Pierce, Lila Pierce, Sisily Angel and Samantha Russel will be joining Brandi for some praise music. They are even going to recite some of the creation days poetry they've been learning down in their classroom. Should really be special so get those cameras ready!

One last mention about Sunday - Brandi Walker has been working up a really special "special" to sing at the end of our worship service. It's called "Hello My Name Is," written by Matthew West. We will be showing some unique video to go along with this meaningful song. You won't want to miss it!

And Now For The Rest Of The Church Requel News...

Fall Festival Planning - Tamira Barnes and her team of 15 are ramping up in a big way for the Fall Festival on October 25th, from 1pm - 3pm. We were thrilled with how many of you signed up last week to help with setup and teardown or to man (or woman) one of the game booths. But we need even more of you to help us out. This is an all-hands-on-deck event. We are hoping for many families in our neighborhood to discover Church Requel in their midst. This past week we put out the banner in the front. Next week we'll put out the posters on the sides. More than anything, though, we need you to invite people to come and celebrate with us!

Southern Gospel Concert Wednesday - The Garms Family is a full-time traveling group of eight musicians. Oh - and they happen to all be in the same family! They bring a fresh take on classics and share original songs through Southern Gospel, gospel bluegrass, hymns, and their own unique style of acoustic Christian music. You can read more of their story of why they decided to travel and sing. Here's a cool highlight reel from their 2013 Concert. The concert begins Wednesday at 7pm. There's no charge for tickets, but we will collect a free-will offering to support them. Come early for the best seats!

3 More Upcoming Dates To Remember:

• Women's Bible Studay begins Wednesday, Oct. 22nd at 6:30pm at Mary Kay's home
• Women of Faith "From Survival To Revival," Friday & Saturday, November 7th & 8th
• BELONG Membership Class, Saturday, Nov. 22nd, 8:30am - 1:30 pm.

I hope you are inspired by all the wonderful things God is doing in our midst. What an exciting time to belong to Church Requel. I wish you all could have been with me during our Newcomers' Meet and Greet Pizza event last Sunday after church. Our newest attendees love belonging to CR. They are enthusiastic. The thing they mentioned over and over again is how loved they each feel when they come. That's God's love being expressed through you... and it's contagious! Let's see if we can't spread a little more of it around!

With great love and affection, Pastor Mark