"God intervenes when we intercede." - Tim Wilkins, founder of Cross Ministry
According to a recent survey 47 percent of terminal cancer patients say their spiritual needs are not being met by their religious community. - Source: Christianitytoday.com
Hey everyone. Hope you are having a great day. It is hot and windy here in Morris today. We need some rain. I found these quotes in Rick Warren's newsletter and they grabbed me. Just the idea that someone who is terminally ill would sense that their religious community is not getting it done. That is sad. Who do you know right now who needs a little attention and compassion? You might be the only God they are going to see today. Show them His love and you could help them find hope in otherwise impossible situations.
I want to ask you to pray for my Aunt Nancy who has started chemo treatments for non-Hodgkin's lymphoma. She lives in Indiana and she is pretty sick. Also, pray for Lori Ritter and Dave from our church family. Lori will have surgery tomorrow (Friday) and then they will decide if she will need cancer treatment. This will be a difficult time for a young family with two little girls. Please lift them up. "God intervenes when we intercede." Let's get busy. Thanks. Pastor Kevin
Thursday, May 24, 2007
Wednesday, May 2, 2007
A Funny thing happened in Dallas
Hey everyone - I am in Dallas for two days at a Ministry Advantage training session. In Ministry Advantage I work weekly with a ministry coach who helps me become more systems-oriented about how we do ministry here at New Community. As a young church this is sometimes an overwhelming task, but I feel that our church is truly benefiting from this experience. Anyway I am here in Dallas where it is cloudy and about 80 degrees. I am in a hotel that is surrounded by interstates (I30, 35 and 635). Out my window are three layers of roads. Not too pretty, but I am close to the church for these sessions. I will return home on Thursday evening.
I had a funny experience that I will have to share Sunday. It is especially funny since we are in the midst of the "Pure Sex" series. I am safe and my mind is still pure, but Satan is very tricky. You will have to come Sunday to hear the rest of the story. Oh, and I saw Elvis walking through Midway Airport on Tuesday afternoon. People are strange!
As I sat in these sessions today I was overwhelmed with how much work we have to do to make New Community the church God wants us to be. Our community is lost and hurting and there are not very many people who seem to care much about that. This church is going to keep caring and showing God's love. Then I realized how far God has brought us. In 5 years we have changed from a small group of about 20 meeting in the Weber's home to a growing, vibrant church family of 350. God is the only one who could have orchestrated this change. We have seen lives transformed by God's power and people are stepping up and serving in so many ways. For those of you who have been privileged to be part of this experiment, I say, "I have the utmost respect for you and I love every one of you." This is possible because you are allowing God to work in you and through you.
Not that we have arrived - I don't believe we will ever arrive until the day we get to walk through the gates into God's presence - but I love the fact that I get to work with the best group of people a pastor could ever hope for. Thank you for believing in the vision and mission of New Community. Because of you people are connecting with Jesus and their lives are being transformed by the power of God. You are awesome and I just had to tell you. And I cannot wait to see how quickly we are allowed to impact the next 500 people from Grundy County. Let's get to work! See you Sunday. Pastor Kevin
I had a funny experience that I will have to share Sunday. It is especially funny since we are in the midst of the "Pure Sex" series. I am safe and my mind is still pure, but Satan is very tricky. You will have to come Sunday to hear the rest of the story. Oh, and I saw Elvis walking through Midway Airport on Tuesday afternoon. People are strange!
As I sat in these sessions today I was overwhelmed with how much work we have to do to make New Community the church God wants us to be. Our community is lost and hurting and there are not very many people who seem to care much about that. This church is going to keep caring and showing God's love. Then I realized how far God has brought us. In 5 years we have changed from a small group of about 20 meeting in the Weber's home to a growing, vibrant church family of 350. God is the only one who could have orchestrated this change. We have seen lives transformed by God's power and people are stepping up and serving in so many ways. For those of you who have been privileged to be part of this experiment, I say, "I have the utmost respect for you and I love every one of you." This is possible because you are allowing God to work in you and through you.
Not that we have arrived - I don't believe we will ever arrive until the day we get to walk through the gates into God's presence - but I love the fact that I get to work with the best group of people a pastor could ever hope for. Thank you for believing in the vision and mission of New Community. Because of you people are connecting with Jesus and their lives are being transformed by the power of God. You are awesome and I just had to tell you. And I cannot wait to see how quickly we are allowed to impact the next 500 people from Grundy County. Let's get to work! See you Sunday. Pastor Kevin
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
