#1 Our Final Numbers for Sunday were 290 in Attendance with 10 coming forward with a need of a Resurrected Life. Why do Numbers matter? Because every number has a name, and every name has a story, and every story matters to God and God entrusted us with 290. WOW
#2 I love that this church is embracing the value of the soul by inviting friends and family to hear the word of God. Some of you invited a person who came forward.......Awesome! It was worth it wasn't it. For those of you who invited someone and they didn't come forward......Awesome! they are one step closer to knowing who Jesus really is. For those of you who invited someone and they didn't come.........Awesome! Gods timing is always better than ours, don't give up on them but keep on praying for them.
#3 Some things that I won't forget from Sundays Service.
.......Every Testimony of a Resurrected Life. Your stories are still touching lives.
.......Khayla singing those first words "He's not mad at You, He's not disappointed..."
.......the words "the reason that the resurrection has not helped you is
because you don’t know HIM."
.......the courage it took for those ten to come forward to seek a resurrected life.
.......the willingness and passion of every member of our church to serve others.
and finally I won't forget how much our church has matured. Men and women owning leadership roles. Men and women surrendering to serve. Men and women loving God and others. I love my Life. Please be praying for our next series "All" beginning this Sunday and watch for some exciting news about the next phase of newLife.
I was so excited on Sunday I invited 4 people to come and they each brought someone else with them who needed to hear the word and be loved on!!! and they all came( each had been to our church before) and they were impressed with how happy and friendly everyone was now!!! :)
ReplyDeleteLOVE MY LIFE
Its great to see what happens when God trusts us with his will.
ReplyDeleteHebrews 11:6
But without faith it is impossible to please him: for he that cometh to God must believe that he is, and that he is a rewarder of them that diligently seek him.
I wasn't sure how many went forward, I don't know why they did, yet I have prayed constantly for them. I don't need names, or reasons, I just know their lives in some way needed Resurrection. There was one lady that caught my attention, because of the tears in her eyes after the service. I saw her and her husband come in, and I saw her afterwards, and there was a change. I am praying without ceasing for her and her husband to come on Sunday, I am begging God to bring her back, if not this Sunday, then the Sunday after. I can't wait for Sunday!
ReplyDeleteThose words that Khayla sang have been on my heart and on my mind...I sing it at night when I should be sleeping, I sing it at work around the kitchen, around the house,downloaded the song so in the car, since she sang it two weeks ago...as well as We will overcome...God is working through those words on me...I didn't raise my hand that I was seeking a resurrected life but I am! My heart was thrilled that absolutely everyone that I invited came that said they would...and my friend Betty even invited her friend Vicki and Vicki brought her son's girlfriend and her daughter...Betty was moved to tears from Randi's testimony...Betty doesn't cry happy or sad in front of ANYONE!!! Luckily my friend Joan didn't hear the testimonies because she fights depression and would have had to leave, both loved your animated preaching. My sister came, invited by two other people as well as me, and of course my Mom came and enjoyed your message as always. Tara, Elsie's friend was a return visitor from Christmas...she brought her son Wyatt! God is good and numbers do matter...it shows us through our faith in Him we are able to share our stories and our lives with our friends and family and be real. Like you said there are people who did not come...it's ok God's not mad at them and we shouldn't be disappointed, it is about timing and sometimes it is just plain HARD to walk through those doors! Did I mention what a GREAT song service it was absolutely worth the sacrifice! LOVE MY GOD, LOVE MY HUSBAND, LOVE MY CHURCH, LOVE MY PASTOR LOVE MY LIFE!
ReplyDeleteAbsolutely loved Sunday!!! I had friends show up that were first timers and returning visitors! For the ones that didnt come, your right, Gods timing is perfect! I have been praying for one girl imparticularly for years and Im not going to give up! Last week I heard the song I BELONG by Kathryn Scott and it brought me to tears because NOTHING can keep us from Gods love and that is my prayer for not only this girl but for those that came forward and those that keep returning! That song goes hand in hand with Romans 8:38 and that was part of our ladys bible study yesterday, funny how things seem to all flow together! How amazing it is to BELONG to Jesus!!! Loved Khaylas song, Hes not mad at you, what a perfect way to end the service, so many people think thats who God is. So thankful that the friends who did come got to hear that!!! So blessed to be apart of NewLife and whitness those who have been and are being resurrected!!! Pastor, LOVED that you threw in "depart from me for I never knew you" into your message! After hearing that message many many times it finally grab hold of my heart over 4 years ago now and is what started my change in wanting a real relationship with Jesus!!!
ReplyDeleteAnother thing that is pretty cool about our church: I was preschool helper yesterday and another mom stayed to help. I had mentioned something about church and later that morning she came up to me and asked where I went. I told her NewLife and she says, "OH THATS THE CHURCH EVERYONE IS RAVING ABOUT"! hahaha Made my day!!! WE are making a difference!!! Pray that her and her family come on sunday, they know they are welcome!!!
Is it Sunday yet??? Cause I cant wait!! <3
What a service full of blessings that was for me, personally. I had never told 'my story' before, not like that, all at once, and especially to many people. I prayed over what God wanted me to say and he let the words come. I have been feeling pulled to do so for a while, to pull that ugliness out into the light once and for all. My prayer was that it helped one person. After service, several people pulled me aside and talked to me about their personal experiences.
ReplyDeleteI am feeling that the more I speak about what has happened to me, the less power those events have in my life.
I feel like clay on a potter's wheel being molded into something beautiful and new. I can't wait to see the finished product!
I wasnt in the service on Sunday but I did get to hear the testimonies of some of the ladies and the songs sang from upstairs. I was really touched to hear that someone I invited not only came but cried her eyes out during one of the ladies testimonies, her heart was touched, she identified with someone who was not only feeling her pain, but that her life was restored,I can only think because everyone has mentioned it that the words Khayla sang he's not mad at you really is the way some people feel because they dont know any better yet, They dont really know his love so the heavy burden they have been carrying has weighed heavy on their heart, Im thankful for Sunday, the songs, the message, and I hope it brought my friend and her daughter to a place where they now know there is a loving God and loving people in the world today who really care. I pray that this ladie who has been on my heart returns, Im not through inviting her, and I pray this is just the beginning of something even greater, I see some life in some of the people who have been so repressed, this is just plain down right exciting to me. sj
ReplyDeleteSunday WAS awesome! Thank God for His help with the music, and sound and the message! Those 10 people at the "alter" both broke my heart and filled it with thanksgiving! The only downer was that I could not hear the testimonies from where I was at the piano! On second thought, it was probably good I couldn't hear; sometimes I have trouble playing and crying at the same time! I plan on asking those ladies to share their story with me sometime! I am really missing the fact that there is no mid-week service this week... even if just to praise and thank God for last Sunday!
ReplyDelete