Good Friday morning Church Requel!
I love my Friday mornings. I always imagine that I'm sitting here with all of you. I imagine your faces and your families and our friendships. I think about the upcoming weekend when once again we can gather together as loved ones of our Heavenly Father. Some of you let me know you look forward to these Friday morning love notes too. Thank you for that!
Sunday morning we consider Jesus' words in John 10. What a wonderful chapter! The debate continues between Jesus and the religious leaders of his day. Jesus tells us that he is the gate as well as the gatekeeper. Jesus is the shepherd and we are his sheep. We hear and listen to his voice. We learn that the reason Jesus came to Earth is that we "may have life and have it to the full!"
Wow! This is such good news! Some people stumble when told that Jesus is the only way to salvation and to God. Some people wonder. I have some thoughts to share with you from my own wonderings this week and can't wait for Sunday to get here. I hope you feel the same. If you want an advanced peek, check out my sermon notes here: http://bible.com/events/49029091.
Here are the songs we plan to sing Sunday morning: "This Is Amazing Grace" by Phil Wickham; "A Thousand Hallelujahs" by Brooke Ligertwood; (NEW) "Fear Is Not My Future" by Maverick City Music; "Agnus Dei / How Great Is Our God" - a brand new mashup by Brandi!; "Revelation Song" by Kari Jobe; and "King Of Kings" by Hillsong. It looks to me that once again Brandi has planned an amazing worship experience for us!
For those who cannot attend in person, you can watch online. What a wonderful opportunity. I just learned that 99-year-old Georgiana has been sick for a couple days (she should be going home today). But even she figured out how to watch online. (I bet she's back in person before you know it!) Maybe you know someone who can't get out and would be encouraged to watch. Tell them about our Facebook Page or share this YouTube link with them!
https://www.youtube.com/live/2zEnjDrUYho?feature=share
Saturday Morning Bible Study - A brand new study begins tomorrow morning at 11am. We meet in the Chome at Church Requel. Brian Betts will lead this study using the book, Mere Christianity, by C.S. Lewis. Brian is going way above and beyond by also making biscuits and gravy for everyone who comes! Yay! There is a 22-minute discussion video available if you'd like to check it out before you come. https://drive.google.com/file/d/135f0JvscuBOb-GtqYk6HTJc5jxVF9AWI/view
Saturday Night Neighborhood Meal - Thanks for many of you signing up once again to serve our neighbors a warm, free meal. We are also pleased to see that Eric and Cindy will be leading the way for this service opportunity! Plan to show up by 4pm. We serve the meal at 5pm. We are usually finished by 6pm.
March of Prayer - Sunday March 5th. It is hard to believe that this year's March of Prayer event has already come around again. This is something truly unique about the churches in Mansfield, Ohio. I know of no other place on Planet Earth where this happens. Each day in March (and this year all the way through Easter Sunday in April) a different church will host from 6pm to 8pm. Our evening to host will be Sunday, March 5th. So get this date on your calendar now. Already our band is making plans.
This year the March of Prayer will have an emphasis on addiction recovery, the casualties of addiction, the cost of addiction and the source of healing from addiction. We are most thankful for Pastor Paul Lintern for his leadership of the March of Prayer.
I hope that you will plan to attend many of these services. Soon, I will have a full schedule available for all of you. Maybe you could talk with some of your friends and make plans to go to some of these services together. Each one is special and reflects the unique worship styles of the different congregations involved.
Love you much! Hope to see you Saturday and Sunday both! Pastor Mark
