Acts 20:24 “I consider my life worth nothing to me; my only aim is to finish the race and complete the task the Lord Jesus has given me—the task of testifying (living witness) to the good news of God’s grace.” (NIV)
I do not have to survive. What a statement Paul was making in regards to his life. In the end, Paul was driven forward daily by the one aim of living as a fully devoted follower of Jesus. Paul recognized that in order to follow Jesus to any place, parts of Paul would not survive. Paul was at peace about this and so am I. Let’s be honest about our lives . . . there are parts of me that should not survive. I don’t even want them and yet there they are, alive and kicking! How about you? Are there any parts of you not worth keeping around? Parts of you that should not make it out? Paul challenged us from Acts 20 to allow God to do THAT work. Today is a great day for this to be done. Release THAT to God and we will feel the freedom we have been longing for. You know what THAT is . . . let God have it right now . . . and pick up freedom, hope, and happiness.
This coming Sunday Bishop Sherwood Carthen will be speaking! You know how good that will be! Bring a friend, camp out, come early, cancel everything else because you won’t want to miss it. I will be here too and ready to be refreshed.
Summer is closing and the fall is approaching. Our new series “What On Earth Am I Here For?” starts September 8. This study will be accompanied by Life Groups, which are groups of 8-16 people meeting in homes for six weeks. We are very excited for this because of the content and because of the new people we’ll get to know. I am personally challenging you to be part of it in at least one of three ways:
1. Commit to join this study for the whole six weeks on Sunday mornings!
2. Commit to a Life Group! Sign-ups are August 25, September 1, and September 8. The cost for the participant guidebook is $10; couples can share. Scholarships are available if needed.
3. Commit to facilitating a Life Group for six weeks! You pick the day or night of the week. We are hoping for 45-50 groups, conveniently covering our whole area.
We look forward to seeing you this weekend as we come together to celebrate the goodness of God, catch up with friends and experience God together.
Pastor Craig, Becky, Seth, Hannah and Riley the dog
P.S. As I am writing this, some of the 450 kids who we are providing backpacks for are picking them up! Way to go church! This is a huge WIN for the church and our community!
