Discipleship

A Thursday Challenge (are you ready for something to chew on?)

I have an uncle who sends me a lot of articles. (Hi Uncle Frank!) He reads a lot and shares a lot and I very often find myself reading things that I wouldn't have otherwise seen. The best thing about having a personal library curator is that I have a chance to be challenged in my thinking, my theology, my discipleship practices, my leadership... and on and on it goes. I love to learn new things and to be challenged, especially when it comes to my walk with Christ which can get comfortable so quickly.

So for this week's devotional I wanted to share something that Uncle Frank sent to me recently. This one made me stop and think. It came back to mind while I was driving the kids to their activities. It came up in conversation over dinner. And now I give it to you as some food for thought. I hope you enjoy chewing on this one! (Click on the image below to read it.)

See you on Sunday,
Pastor Tracy

PS - You don't have to agree with everything a writer says (though you might) to be challenged by it. And don't be afraid to be surprised by what tugs at your heart.


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This Sunday

WHAT DOES JESUS SAY ABOUT...?
Wisdom & Foolishness

Join us on Sunday at 10am as Bjorn continues our fall series.

Follow along with the message on YouVersion.

What's growing in your life? (TBT the symbolic planting on New Year's Eve)

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Remember back on New Year's Eve (5th Sunday!) last year when we planted grass seed to represent what God was speaking to our hearts for 2018? Do you still have the tag that you put on that planter?

There are seven Sundays remaining in this year and so... what did God grow in your life in the past 11 months? Have you had a chance to look back and think about it?

It took me until the middle of January to decide what I wanted to write on my planter. As I was driving down the highway one night I felt God speak to me about needing to learn to TRUST. Trust Him in everything, with everyone. I had been having some deep anxiety about travel since the middle of 2017, something that was very new to me. (I used to love to fly.) My 2018 calendar had four trips involving air travel that would give me butterflies every time I thought about them. Almost daily throughout this year I was intentional about allowing the Holy Spirit to renew my mind (Romans 12:2) and recognize that fear and anxiety are not ever something that is from Jesus. He is the Prince of Peace and He is the giver of the Comforter. This year of flying ended with an 18-hour flight home from Ethiopia. And guess what? I was OK. I was calm and I was able to trust that the Lord was with me and surrounding me. When I started to feel nervous I would open up my Bible app and start to read. By the end of the trip, even with some very heavy turbulence, my heart was settled and I knew that God had walked with me through something significant. It mattered in the moment, but I know the lesson is also planted in my heart for the future. I'm so grateful.

How about you? Do you have a story of how God has grown something in your life this past year? One of the most encouraging things we can do as a church family is to share how God is moving. This week, why don't you think and pray about it and, if you're willing, send me your story. I'm excited to hear how God is working in your life!

In Christ,
Pastor Tracy


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This Sunday

WHAT DOES JESUS SAY ABOUT...?
Truth & Lies

Join us on Sunday at 10am as Bjorn continues our fall series.

Follow along with the message on YouVersion.

An Invitation to "The Commands of Christ" (are you up for a beta-test?)

Wednesday nights are a key time for us a church. We call them Connecting Point 1 because we prioritize them as a place to connect outside of the Sunday morning service. They are a great opportunity to meet with others and intentionally invest in our personal discipleship while we help others with theirs. I'll admit that leaving the house after dinner on cold, dark nights can be challenging (could we implement a sweatpants and slippers policy for CP1?), I am consistently amazed at how much I learn and am challenged by my group. It is absolutely, always worth it.

Starting next week (November 14th) we are going to be starting something that I believe will be a great resource for our church. Pastor Del has written a course called "The Commands of Christ" that is intended to help believers know how to live out the Great Commission. When Jesus tells us to "teach them to obey everything I have commanded you," what are those things that He actually commanded? How can we obey if we aren't sure? This course is practical, easy to follow and personally challenging.

Here's the invitation... We are going to be beta-testing this course for Pastor Del on November 14, 21 and 28. After that, you will get a copy of the remaining lessons so that you can continue to work through them at your own pace. That's right - fresh content, right from inside of our church family, relevant to where we are in our discipleship journey, world-class quality training in your hands... and you're invited to join us.

If you've never been to CP1 before, why not join us for these next three weeks? If your schedule simply doesn't allow you to be with us in person, we will be making The Commands of Christ available to you via PDF or hardcopy at the end of the month. Talk about a life-giving personal devotional tool!

There is one catch... since we are beta-testing this for Pastor Del, we would love to have your feedback as you work through the material. That's it!

So let me recap this invitation...

  • Connecting Point 1 - Wednesday, November 14, 21,28 @ 6:30-8:00

  • "The Commands of Christ" by Pastor Del Wells (we're beta-testing!)

  • As we won't finish the whole course, we will make it available to the whole church via PDF or hardcopy (upon request) as a powerful personal devotional tool.

  • We'd love to have your feedback on the course content as you go through it so that it can be taken out of beta and made available more widely.

I'm excited about this opportunity!! Please join us on Wednesdays!

And don't forget that Jeremy Feller (missionary in Ethiopia) will be speaking on Sunday. It will only be available live so you won't want to miss being with us this weekend.

Blessings,
Pastor Tracy


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This Sunday

WHAT DOES JESUS SAY ABOUT...?
Influence

Join us on Sunday at 10am as Jeremy Feller continues our fall series.

Follow along with the message on YouVersion.