Good Friday morning Church Requel!
One might think that with Easter now over that there might be a lull in activity at church. We know that's never going to be the case at Church Requel, right? Lots of exciting things on the agenda coming up. Let me tell you about just a couple of them.
Brett Gets Baptized Next Sunday! First big news of the day... Brett Angel has decided that he would like to be baptized! Yay! Brett began his Christian journey one year ago the same weekend in 2017. How fitting that exactly 52 weeks later he should make that commitment public by being baptized in our church service.
This has some special meaning too beyond the obvious. You may not be aware of this detail, but the man who put our baptism pool together many, many times was Jack Nichols. A couple years ago he trained Don Angel how to do it. Now with Jack gone to his glory, our very first baptism since then will be Don's son - Brett. And guess who will be assembling our baptism pool? Brett's dad! I'm just certain that Jack would be so happy right now.
I also love Sheri's response when she heard the news. "Well Mark, we just have to have a meal afterward!" I tried to explain that we were already planning a pancake breakfast the next weekend. To which, Sheri asked me - "What's that got to do with anything?" Ha! So we're going to have a fun, simple meal after next week's service - soup, sandwiches, and salad - all compliments of Sheri Nichols. (I'm sure she wouldn't mind help, so let her know if you want to bring something to eat.)
Pancake Breakfast April 22nd. Two Sundays from now we will celebrate the ending of our Luke sermon series. We began our current series Christmas Sunday 2015. April 22nd will be our 96th and final sermon from the Gospel of Luke!
Dave Repp and Sheri Nichols have put their collective energies together to provide all of us with a fantastic pancake breakfast BEFORE the worship service begins! So plan to come early at 9:30 and fill up with pancakes. (But no dozing off from your sugar comas during the last sermon later than morning!)
Speaking of the Luke sermon series - the entire library of 96 sermons can be found online at YouTube. I remind you of this so that you can watch anytime. There is something really powerful about viewing these sermons in a short, concentrated period of time. God can speak to you through His Word many times and in many different ways. These are also easy to share with other people in your life - friends and family who could really benefit too! Here's the link to the entire library on YouTube.
What About This Sunday? We are not overlooking this coming Sunday! We have something very special planned! I believe you are going to LOVE LOVE LOVE the worship set that Brandi, Missie and Trish have planned for you. We will be singing "How Great Thou Art" by David Phelps, "Everlasting God" by Lincoln Brewster, "Call Upon The Lord" by e Elevation Worship, "Control" by Tenth Avenue North and "Broken Vessels" by Hillsong. These girls have worked really hard to make this worship time as special as it could possibly be. I'm so excited to worship with you all Sunday morning.
Our 94th sermon from the Gospel of Luke is entitled, "When Jesus Breaks Bread." We will be walking down the road to Emmaus along with the two disciples in Luke 24. They discover a 3rd walker with them. If you'd like a head start, you'll find the sermon notes already posted in your Bible app. Just click on "Events" and then choose "Church Requel." Or you can click here to open up another window in your browser window.
There are many times when Jesus is with us even though we don’t know it. But we can be sure of His presence when we break bread at the communion table. Two of His earliest disciples learned this truth shortly after Jesus’ resurrection as they were walking on the road toward Emmaus. These disciples knew all the facts, but their eyes opened to their faith beyond the facts. Will our eyes - and hearts - be open to the faith beyond the facts too?
Jam Band! One last piece of good news to share with you all: The Jam Band will meet again this Sunday after church. Why share this with all of you? Because the last time we got together, we thought we had enough songs ready that we could lead worship soon. So Brandi has us scheduled for the last Sunday in April - the 29th! Home grown live music at church! Won't that be great? We still need lots of practice, so we'll be meeting after church this Sunday. You all are welcome to stick around with us too!
Keep praying... for Shelli's mom, who was taken down to Riverside last Sunday and placed in intensive care with failing organs. Shelli told me some great news this morning - that her mom has improved to the point that she has been placed in a regular hospital room and may even be coming home soon! Yay God! The doctors tell Shelli that her mom is still quite seriously ill so let's keep praying. Shelli greatly appreciates those who have been praying for her family this week!
I think that will wrap up this week's edition of the Church Requel Friday Newsletter. Is there someone you know who would appreciate an invitation to Church Requel? Forward this to them and tell them how much you love your church. That invite may just be what they're waiting for! God bless! Love you all much! Pastor Mark
