Church Requel Blog - Writings of Mark Pierce

Guest Praise Band Video Promo

We created a little invite video we are sharing with family and friends over on Facebook. We have a guest praise band coming and plan to share a potluck meal afterward. Cool!

Guest Praise Team and Potluck! from Mark Pierce on Vimeo.

This Week at CR: Guest Praise Band & Potluck!

Good frosty Friday morning Church Requel!

I was determined NOT to open this letter with yet another commentary on this frigid winter we have endured. I have failed. We all like to set records and it looks likely we may have set a new record for the coldest February in the history of Mansfield winters. Yay.

My dad enjoys a love of poetry and did his best to share his love with me. Anne Bradstreet is our earliest American female poet, born with the first Puritan generation to begin life on American soil. Surely few knew winters worse than those of Massachusetts Bay Colony in the mid 1600s. Mrs. Bradstreet reminds us:

"If we had no winter, the spring would not be so pleasant: if we did not sometimes taste of adversity, prosperity would not be so welcome."

The good news is that we are less than 3 weeks away from spring. In fact, a week from Sunday - in a mixed blessing of good news and bad news, we SPRING forward. Again, yay.

Guest Praise Team Sunday. So let's talk about some real good news. We have a stellar Sunday worship experience planned! The Rolling Plains United Methodist Praise Team will be leading our worship Sunday morning. This large group includes both instrumentalists and singers. A large portion of our worship service, both at the beginning and again at the end, will include a worship concert like atmosphere with lots of singing together! I've heard the songs they have planned.  You will not want to miss this special experience.

Potluck Sunday! Our celebration will not end when the last song has been sung. We plan to enjoy a traditional Church Requel feast in our kitchen downstairs. Bring plenty of food to share with one another and a little extra for our guests from Zanesville. We have fed as many as 200 in our Saturday night meals. Wouldn't it be great if we broke THAT record this Sunday? Let's provision well for an amazing party!

Brandi's Words Of Wisdom. This morning those of us involved in serving Sunday morning received these words of advice from Brandi Walker. I share them with all of you...

 There are SEVERAL things to make note of for this Sunday's service.  First - please make sure you are EARLY so that you can get all of your Pot Luck items squared away in the kitchen so you can be upstairs in plenty of time for the worship. (The band will actually begin playing about 5 minutes before the service begins.) 

Second - we are going to have many GUESTS coming with the Rolling Plains worship team so please be sure to be extra "Church Requel-ey." My definition of Church Requel-ey (continues Brandi) is WELCOMING and LOVING - I know you all will be!!  They will need us to show them where the restrooms are, show them where their children will go, show them where the coffee and donuts are, etc.

Third - INVITE ... What an amazing opportunity our little church has to have this Worship Group coming in ... There is no better time to invite people to come with you! And they get to eat at the potluck too.  :-) 

Well said Brandi.  Let's set our own new winter record this Sunday at Church Requel! Yay!

The Countertops are installed!! Our office downstairs is nearly complete! This past week Dave Repp and Steve Mandusic installed our countertops, creating three separate workspaces for our staff and volunteers. They did a beautiful job! Make sure to check out our new digs Sunday during the potluck!

I'd also like to thank all of you for your financial faithfulness during this month. Normally we would anticipate a disastrous February when combining a closed Sunday with extra spending on our new office space. Not so! Our treasurer, Nancy Roop, told me that this past week you gave an amount equal to and above what you normally would have given in two weeks! Our February bottom line is very close to break even as a result! Wow. Wow. Wow. Thank you for your sacrificial support of your church! 

In Coming Weeks... Here are some of the things we have to look forward to in coming weeks!

• KidsMin singers leading worship on March 15th. Start practicing your hand motions now!
• Feeding the hungry on Saturday, March 28th, the night before Palm Sunday.
• Parenting two-week mini series after Easter, which will lead us to...
• First Child Dedication ceremony since moving to our present location on April 19th.

• Ashland Theological Seminary Professor Dr. John Byron preaching on April 26th. Do you want to know where I received my love of all things New Testament? John is a passionate and gifted teacher and writer.
• Our next Belong Membership Class on Saturday, May 2nd. This is a great way to learn all about Church Requel, whether you decide to become a member or not.
• Mansfield Christian School Image singing on May 3rd (including our own Haleigh Trubachik!)

There are time when I am deeply humbled to serve as your pastor. This has been one of those weeks. Church Requel has long since taken on a life that goes beyond your pastor and staff. This week, in particular, I've watched as you've prayed for one another, sacrificed for the church body, and loved on one another in extravagant ways. 

Later today, Brandi and I are planning on making a short promo video for this weekend. Watch for it on our Facebook page and CR blog. Then share it with all your family and friends. And remember... let's be extra "Church Requel-ey" this Sunday! Passionately yours, Pastor Mark

Melancholy Mat [Podcast]

Why do some people receive miracles while others don't? Here is the audio version of last Sunday's sermon. We considered the miracle story from John 5, when Jesus heals the lame man stuck on his mat. We learn 4 lessons about miracles. Do we know what we really want? When it comes to our prayer life, we should be specific and not be a wandering generality.

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

Click to Listen!

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

Melancholy Mat [Video Sermon]

Why do some people receive miracles while others don't? This past Sunday I considered the miracle story from John 5, when Jesus heals the lame man stuck on his mat. We learned 4 lessons about miracles. Do we know what we really want? When it comes to our prayer life, we should be specific and not be a wandering generality.

Melancholy Mat from Mark Pierce on Vimeo.

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

This Week at CR: Let's Try Again!

Good Friday morning Church Requel!

"To requel or not to requel..." That was the question we were all facing this past weekend. With a massive Saturday snowfall and plunging Sunday temps, combined with a Richland County declared Level 2 Snow Emergency, we made the call to cancel our services last Sunday. 

Aren't you glad things are so much better this morning? Right! My car thermometer declared this morning's temperature to be -15 degrees during my morning jaunt to breakfast just before sunrise. For a moment my brain kicked in and asked if I was really that hungry? My stomach quickly answered with a rumble!

I hope you all are just as spiritually hungry to gather together this coming Sunday morning. Brandi, Tamira and I met this week and rescheduled our plans for the next few weekends.

This coming Sunday morning we revisit our original plans for our missed Sunday last week. Brandi, Trish and Brian will lead our worship singing with "How He Loves Us," "Everlasting God," and "You're Worthy Of My Praise." Tamira Barnes is back from her week with her mom in Florida to teach our children.

(Oh yes, Tamira was SO GLAD to be back in frigid Ohio! NOT! She did share one story with me of how her Floridian relatives and friends are suffering with the cold too. It got down to the 60s prompting one to begin wearing a winter scarf. Almost makes you feel sorry for them. Again... NOT!)

Ugly Sweater Sunday - Since it is still so cold, let's also go ahead with our original idea for last week, the "Ugly Sweater Sunday!" Bring out those relics of winters past and layer them up. Let's give the Stay Puff Marshmallow Man and the Michelin Man a run for their money. This could be a lot of fun. Above you get a hint of what your pastor plans to wear!

Bible Reader et al. From Afar. One last thing I want to tell you about this Sunday. I'm excited that my daughter, Jillian, who has been staying with us this past week, has agreed to read our Scripture Sunday morning. That also means... drum roll... that my 5-week old grandson, Titus, is planning on making his first ever appearance at Church Requel! Yay!

Melancholy Mat. In John 5 we discover a man whom Jesus healed despite the fact the man didn't ask for the healing or believe in Jesus. We will address the WHY and WHAT. Why did Jesus perform this miracle and what should we learn from it? And how should we respond when the other guy gets his miracle, but we don't? Four lessons about "Other Guy" miracles this Sunday morning. Want to start preparing your heart now? Here are your sermon notes.

We have some great plans for next week too...

Rolling Plains Praise Team Next Sunday! We are delighted to announce that we have guest worship leaders next weekend. The Rolling Plains Methodist Church Praise Team from Zanesville, Ohio will be here next Sunday morning to lead our worship experience. This contemporary praise band consists of 8-11 people including both singers and instrumentalists. They take one Sunday a month to lead worship at smaller churches. What a blessing for us! Invite family, friends and neighbors! Come expecting an awesome worship experience!

Potluck Meal Next Sunday Too! Our Praise Team guests next Sunday are not asking for any financial rewards. However, we can't send them home hungry! Let's plan on staying after the worship service to celebrate together with a huge meal. Families bring two dishes of any kind. Single folks bring one dish of any kind. Church Requel will provide paper plates, utensils, cups, coffee and lemonade to drink. Let's generously provide a feast to share with our guests.

In Coming Weeks...Your staff met for a long afternoon yesterday making some great plans for the next few months. Winter will not always be here. Spring is coming! We are preparing for the thaw! Here are some of the things you have to look forward to:

• KidsMin singers leading worship on March 15th. Start practicing your hand motions now!
• Feeding the hungry on Saturday, March 28th, the night before Palm Sunday.
• Parenting two-week mini series after Easter, which will lead us to...
• First Child Dedication ceremony since moving to our present location on April 19th.
• Ashland Theological Seminary Professor Dr. John Byron preaching on April 26th. Do you want to know where I received my love of all things New Testament? John is a passionate and gifted teacher and writer.
• Our next Belong Membership Class on Saturday, May 2nd. This is a great way to learn all about Church Requel, whether you decide to become a member or not.
• Mansfield Christian School Image singing on May 3rd (including our own Haleigh Trubachik!)

We also have a few surprises we can't tell you about. Otherwise they wouldn't be surprises.

Despite the cold we have so much to be thankful for. Our church family is right at the top of our gratefulness lists. We have one another and the continuous reminder of how much Jesus loves us. I've watched this week as you have continued to check in and pray for each other. Let's not allow the weather to keep us apart one more week. I'm looking forward to worshiping and praying together this Sunday morning. 

Love you all much! Pastor Mark

Church Requel Is Closed Today

Good Sunday morning to you Church Requel!

We are canceling our morning worship service today at 11:00. Currently Richland County is under a level 2 snow emergency. It is also bitterly cold at -8 degrees. Stay inside and worship our Lord privately this morning. 

Affectionately yours, Pastor Mark

Will Church Requel Close Sunday?

As of this Saturday afternoon Richland County is under a Level 2 Snow Emergency. If this Level 2 Snow Emergency should carry on through Sunday morning, we will cancel Church Requel. Check back Sunday morning for the final word. In the meantime, stay warm and off the roads if at all possible.

This Week at CR: Ugly Sweater Sunday!

Good Friday morning Church Requel!

So it's going to be cold Sunday. Frigid, deep-down, cold... Could be the coldest February 15th in the history of all February 15ths.

To which we say, bring it on! Let's party! Let's celebrate! Let's declare Sunday to be "Ugly Sweater Sunday!" Reach back deep in your closet. Find that wild sweatshirt. Rediscover that 1980s sweater. Don't dress for success! Put on those layers in all their glory!

Then come on down to Church Requel to worship the Lord Jesus with all our mismatched might! Let's not let the outside cold cool us down one little bit on the inside. We have some great things going on a Church Requel and I can't wait to share all the good news!

Welcome Dave Repp and Dan Logan! Our leadership team grew by 2 men this week. Dave Repp and Dan Logan join Jonathan Pierce, Nancy Roop, Sheri Nichols and myself on the Church Requel Board of Directors. Dave recently retired from a career as an engineer. He brings a mechanical, hands-on ability. He has been working almost every day on renovating an office space for Church Requel staff and volunteers. Dan volunteers in setup and teardown teams and has been very involved in our worship teams, playing both guitar and drums. Dan also brings great management strengths and personnel insights from his job in Cleveland. We are most blessed to have Dave and Dan join the team. Please let them know how much you appreciate them!

Jeff and Eddie Team Up! KidsMin kiddos will enjoy the dynamic teaching duo of Jeff Barnes and Eddie Walker. Things have been going so well lately down in KidsMin. We had 17 children in KidsMin last Sunday plus 4 in our Nursery! These kids learned about "4 Guys And A Mat" - the story of Jesus' healing along with the value of choosing really good friends. 

This week Jeff and Eddie will continue by teaching all about feet. They will be playing some crazy foot games. What's with the foot fetish? The Bible has some foot frenzy lessons about having beautiful feet for our Lord Jesus. 

We miss Tamira as she has gone down to Florida to take care of her mom, who is recovering from hip surgery. We pray for Tamira's entire family. Our kiddos love Tamira too! However, they will have a blast with Jeff and Eddie Sunday morning. High energy combined with great teaching! What a great opportunity for our young families!

Brian Betts Joins Brandi & Trish! The adults have some awesome worship experiences to look forward to as well. Many of you remember that Brian Betts sang with our Praise Team this past Christmas Eve. He loved doing it. And we loved him doing it. So this coming Sunday he'll join Brandi and Trish leading us in "How He Loves" by David Crowder Band, "Everlasting God" by Lincoln Brewster, and "You're Worthy of My Praise" by Big Daddy Weave & BarlowGirl. Rumor has it that Brian, Brandi and Trish will now be a once a month regular praise team. Yay!

Other Guy Miracles. We'll continue our Signs & Wonders sermon series with a teaching from John 5:1-15. I'm calling Sunday's sermon, "Melancholy Mat." We'll learn about the miraculous healing of the invalid man by the Sheep Gate pool. This miracle is a surprise, because it doesn't match the pattern of dependence upon Jesus we have seen in the other miracles so far. The man in this story appears to have given up hope and doesn't even ask for healing. By the end of the story, we discover he's not even much of a fan of Jesus. Yet he receives his miracle.

Anyone else struggle with this? Why do some people, who - on the surface - seem less deserving, receive their miracle while you still wait for yours? Sunday we discover four lessons for when miracles don't go our way.

Office Construction. I mentioned earlier that we are continuing to build a permanent workplace downstairs for our staff and volunteers. This past week we ordered the new countertop. We anticipate it will be installed this coming week. Over the course of the next month we will be ordering office equipment. I can't tell you how excited Brandi, Marci, Tamira and I will be when won't have to go all over town to get our printing done. Some weeks the program printing goes through 4 different hands before it arrives in your hand! Our costs are temporarily higher than our offerings because of these one-time expenses. We thank you for your past faithfulness and ask you to be extra generous in your giving, if this is possible for you.

Rolling Plains Methodist Praise Team & Potluck - March 1st. When the opportunities come, they really pour in! At our staff meeting today with Brandi Walker, I learned that she and Tamira have been working behind the scenes to invite in a worship / praise band from Rolling Plains Methodist Church from Zanesville, Ohio. This contemporary praise band consists of 8 - 11 people with both singers and instrumentalists. They take one Sunday a month and go to other smaller churches, where they offer their worship leading services.

We also decided that this would be the perfect weekend to have a potluck meal afterwards and at the very least send them all away with full stomachs. So mark your calendars for March 1st. Plan to come with hungry hearts and hungry bellies! Should be an awesome morning.

I wish I had more space and time to tell you about all the really fantastic things going on right now behind the scenes at Church Requel. Stay tuned for some other exciting news to come. In the meantime, stay bundled up. Keep warm. And find yourself one ugly sweater! Warmest blessings, Pastor Mark

Relative Recovery [Podcast]

Christians should exhibit a faith in Christ regardless of their disappointments and discouragements from life. But what about a Christian's faith in Christ when disappointment and discouragement comes from Christ Himself? In last Sunday's talk, I considered that Jesus doesn't always respond the way we expect. Surprisingly, we also discovered that Jesus is never the author of an "easy believism." 

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.

Relative Recovery [Video Sermon]

Christians should exhibit a faith in Christ regardless of their disappointments and discouragements from life. But what about a Christian's faith in Christ when disappointment and discouragement comes from Christ? In Sunday's talk, I considered that Jesus doesn't always respond the way we expect. Surprisingly, we also discover that Jesus is never the author of an "easy believism." Our faith can be tentative, temporal or transforming. This was one of my more difficult sermons to talk through.

Relative Recovery 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: Relative Recovery

Hey everyone! Pastor Mark here with your Friday newsletter about what's happening at Church Requel. Sunday we will consider what might we learn from another one of Jesus' miracles - this one we read about at the end of John 4. A man leaves his sick child behind, hikes 20 miles to find the miracle giver. By the time he meets Jesus, he receives a discouraging message from the miracle giver.

Can you identify? Having you been waiting for God's healing for such a long time that inside you've just given up? Is the only message you've been receiving lately been a message of discouragement? Sunday we learn that real, genuine, resolved faith is a faith that does not get discouraged easily. When we're finished I hope you'll agree: We don't just believe in miracles. We depend upon them!

I'm looking forward to worshiping with all of you Sunday. Brandi, Jana and Missie will lead our worship singing. Tamira and DeeDee have some great plans for our elementary children. Jessica and Dave will teach our pre-schoolers. And we have a special video message from some folks who have been watching Church Requel from long distances away!

You won't want to miss! See you Sunday morning at 11! - Pastor Mark

 

Inside Info [Podcast]

Jesus has the inside info on what we need to be able to worship Him in spirit and in truth. In this audio sermon, I use the story of the woman at the well from John's gospel to examine 4 pieces of inside info Jesus freely offers His followers.

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.

Inside Info [Video Sermon]

Jesus has the inside info on what we need to be able to worship Him in spirit and in truth. In yesterday's sermon I used the story of the woman at the well from John's gospel to examine 4 pieces of inside info Jesus freely offers His followers.

Inside Info from Mark Pierce on Vimeo.

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