Good Friday morning Church Requel!
I'm writing you this morning still in the afterglow of our praise team rehearsal last evening. This weekend Aaron, Chris, Tamara, Bessica and Makayla join Brandi on the platform to lead our worship singing. Their set is amazing - "Ever Be," "Unbroken Praise," "Glorious Day" (my fav), and "Good Good Father." Last night was relaxed and just fun. Everyone came prepared and with hearts full of love.
Apparently the feeling and sound were obvious to more than just me. Olivia, walking by the church, heard the music and came in to watch. Before the night was over she was singing with us too!
Sometimes one must sit back and just marvel at what God is accomplishing through us. I couldn't help but think back to the beginning when our church was confined to the space of a living room. I certainly could not foresee our present opportunities - and the fun we would have pursuing those opportunities - in downtown Mansfield at the Point of Grace.
My Story For God's Glory. We will be trying a new worship element this coming Sunday morning - something that Brandi and I have been working on for about a month now. We're calling it "My Story For God's Glory." We will give you the opportunity to briefly tell us what God is accomplishing in your life. Your story doesn’t have to be at it’s conclusion. You may be right in the middle of your story and may not know where God is ultimately leading you. However, this gives you the chance to give God the glory for however your story ultimately unfolds.
Here are the guidelines we have developed to make this as good as it can be. (1) Keep your story brief so that others may also share. Don't write anything down. Keep it spontaneous and impromptu. (2) Stand where you are and I will bring a handheld microphone so that everyone may hear you. Some of you don't like mics. We get that. I'll hold the mic for you. You just focus on your story. I'll make sure people can hear you. (3) If appropriate we may stop and pray for you and your story before moving on to someone else’s story. (4) We will give as much of our worship time as necessary - even delaying the sermon to next week if necessary - so that everyone who wants to share his or her story may do so. (5) We don’t expect everyone to share their story. Sunday may be your opportunity to listen and learn from others. Ok - that’s it! Five easy rules. If this goes well, we will continue to offer this worship element from time to time in the future. What do you think?
When We Don't Understand. If we do get the chance to enjoy the sermon I've prepared for this Sunday we'll talk about what to understand when, frankly, we don't understand what's going on. As I read that sentence I realize that it might be a bit... un-understandable. Our Scripture passage will be Luke 18:31-34. Jesus tells his disciples about everything that is going to happen. As we read it with the 20/20 vision of history, it appears to us that Jesus is speaking as clearly as possible. Of course the disciples did not have our view of history and couldn't grasp how it would be possible for the Son of God to die and suffer.
What I love about this passage is that in verse 34 the disciples just admit that they don't get it. "We don't understand," they say. What I love about that is that I can identify. Can't you? Aren't there times when we simply say to God, "I don't get it. I don't understand!" Hey! We're in good company! Even the disciples didn't get it when Jesus was standing right there with them.
So what should we do when we don't understand? Is there anything we CAN understand when we don't understand? I believe so. My sermon will be composed of 8 things we CAN understand in life's most difficult moments. I hope we have the chance to talk about this Sunday. But... part of the mysterious Spirt-led worship we are anticipating for Sunday morning is that we will just have to wait and see. If God should lead more of you to share your stories, then my story can wait a week.
Thank you for your faithfulness! Last Friday afternoon I did a little bit of financial work for our church and thought I would share the results with you this morning. Through the first six months of this year, you all contributed $33,702 to Church Requel. Thanks so much for your generosity! This compares to $29,475 in 2016, $33,544 in 2015, and $32,073 in 2014 - all for the first six months of the year.
Next Event - Pool Party and Church Picnic on August 12th. I know it's a month away, but it's not too early to begin talking about this next fun event. Our annual church picnic is one of the highlights of our year - and we hope this year is no exception.
We are doing things a bit differently this year, so it's worth talking about now. For one thing, we have been given the opportunity to hold our picnic at Shelly Acres - FOR FREE! This is going to save us some money over our normal pavilion reservation charge. As a bonus - there is a great pool there and anyone who wants to may go swimming as well! Woohoo!
Where is Shelly Acres you ask? It's located at 1002 Twin Lakes Drive on the north side of town near the airport. Eddie Walker works there in the summers and has made this event possible for us. Thanks Eddie!
The other difference from prior years is that this will be on a Saturday night, not on a Sunday after church. We hope all of you can come. Swimming is optional - the fellowship and good food is not! Everyone should plan to bring a side dish and/or dessert to share. The church will provide the burgers, hotdogs, buns, paper plates, utensils, and water and/or lemonade. You all bring everything else - especially your joy and love for one another.
PHOTO OP! This is also the time when we take a group photo of our church. You won't want to miss that either!
Sign Up For The Indians Game. I know this is a couple months away, but we need to pay for the tickets now. We have reserved 40 seats for the Friday, September 8th Indians game against the Baltimore Orioles at 7:10pm. It's also Sugardale Dollar Dog Night AND there are fireworks after the game!
Let's thank Brandi for arranging such a special night for us. Please let Brandi know if you want to go and then give her your money so we can pay for the tickets. You also can go to give.ChurchRequel.org if you'd like to pay for your tickets online with your credit card. If you decide to use our online donation site, make sure to select the designation "Indians Tickets 2017" in the drop down box. Several of you have already paid for your tickets this way. Thanks!
Let's keep praying... for Jenny Repp, Aimee Medina, Loni Nauman and Jack Nichols. Many of you are also using our online prayer chain group on Facebook for your prayer requests too. This past week Jennifer Carrick shared the good news that for the first time in 2 1/2 years, Baby Cayden was able to go home. Jennifer's family has been praying for this youngster since he was born. He is the son of Sicily's and Violet's teacher. Also this past week we learned (on the FB prayer chain) that Marci's stress tests came back good with no blockages! Yay! Finally, Roger Marvicsin called this week to tell us that he lost his great nephew in a motorcycle accident. Keep his family in your thoughts and prayers. Thank you all for your ongoing prayers for the members of our church. We plan on doing a bunch of praying for all this coming Sunday morning too!
Long letter today. Lots to talk about. Lots going on. Lots to praise Jesus for! Hope to see you all Sunday morning at 11am!
Love you! Pastor Mark
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