My partners in ministry:
It has been another wonderful week of ministry at Oak Grove. Monday we sent Pastor Karen to Columbia and all reports from her have been exciting. One of the folks that needed community service hours cleaned up her office and got the school supplies organized. I was pretty happy about that. Ira got by this week and broke up the unwanted furniture and put it in the dumpster. I was pretty glad of that as well. I had good visits with Margaret B and Doris S this week. It was a week of lots of counseling and confidential pastoral care. Tues night was a great ping pong night despite the rain. It has become the newest venue for Spanglish relationships. Wed night was another solid ministry night at the church. The Bible study took its own natural course through John 11, the youth had a solid group of young people and Pastor Diana covered the children for Pastor Karen (thank you Diana!!) Friday night was another successful gift discovery night at the Discipleship Institute. A number of testimonies of what is happening there have hit my ears. I remain very proud of the institute and those who are leading it. I had six of our young leaders at my house Friday night for pulled pork. It is very rewarding for me to find time to be around the table with young leaders. I feel it more my calling and my future every day. Saturday was the men’s small group cookout for Alpha House. Emily R set up an afternoon for us to cook for the young mothers there at the home. We had a very nice evening feeding, meeting, and serving the young ladies and playing with the children. A good time was had by all!
I feel the need to send out a serious post-summer stewardship note. Our summer giving has been low as attendance has been. It is time to catch up, press on and to grow. I hope you all will use this new series starting Sunday as a time to get the Fall started with attendance and use the opportunities that you are given to invite others that God places on your path. Please use the cards we have printed to hand to friends, neighbors, waitresses, vendors and all you meet. Please come with anticipation and with an eye to greet and welcome each visitor. As we seek to reach out with the Good News of the Savior, please remember to give by faith as we walk by faith. And as I said Sunday, nothing happens without prayer. Please keep the church and its various ministries in your prayers as we make special efforts of evangelism and outreach this month.
Sunday morning the sun rose between the thunderheads and the orange and red split the storms and shown with hope to start a new day. With a number of heavy burdens weighing, wearying the dawn was a sign to encourage the heart. Vaughn was at his post. Pastor Karen left us a meditation about staying awake in end times from Mark 13:32-37. Pastor Diana was in the chapel and she a Johnny prayed for me and for Alejandro in proxy. I anointed the sanctuary. I did a circus act trying to put of the banner for the Desert Series. And I gathered the worship team together to pray for them. I know there is little new in this paragraph each week but there is little new or innovative about preparation. Maybe when I am gone there will be some who will not soon forget that preparation is the key to fruitfulness.
Sunday’s attendance was pretty spectacular. We had visitors both Spanish and English. There were a couple folks who just moved to town. There were some there that I have not seen for years who came back to celebrate with us. It did my heart good to see Curt and Jonathan continually run to the mechanical room for more chairs. I thought the room was not only full but it was electric. We started in prayer and went into a spectacular worship set with music that I thought had Church of God historical overtones – in other words, they were fast with so many words you could hardly spit them out! It was very connected and put God at the center of our celebration. Alejandro moved to the keyboard and did our offertory. It was a slow, passionate cry of love to the God of His salvation. Wow! Renee took the children’s sermon for Pastor and gave her testimony of work in the ministry and her becoming a “Spanglo”. She dismissed 21 children to Sharon and Nyssa’s care in Children’s Church! The music for prayer time was beautiful and the prayers were intense. That is an incredibly real time of ministry and worship. Pastor Diana asked Claudia to voice our corporate prayer. I was so excited that it was happening I almost forgot I was praying for someone! Pastor Alejandro shared a wonderful message about Jesus at our tables, in our homes. Took us on a nice journey through the families Jesus dined with. Then challenged us to put him at our table in our home in the midst of our family. He was moving fast at times and God bless Blanca she did a bang-up job of staying with him in translation. How wonderful was it to see the bright young woman that she has grown to be? Pastor Jorge bought a cake. Danny lit the candles. We sang happy anniversary. I cried like a baby. We ate the cake. We hugged lots of people. We had a Church Council meeting. (thanks to all our leaders who stuck around for our meeting!) To watch the service click here.
Notes I can remember:
1. Pray for Pastor Karen in Columbia.
2. Tuesday Jeri has surgery – please be praying.
3. Friday is Discipleship Institute.
4. Saturday Canzion will be in the sanctuary until 5 or 6:00pm.
5. Sunday is communion.
6. Monday is Labor Day the office will be closed.
7. Next Tues will be Adam’s first day in the church office!! :^)
That’s all for today, except to say thank you to you again for all you do – continue to connect with God, each other and the world.
Know that I love you – Denny