April 2008

Hey! Need a Night Out with the Family?
Why not come on out to Grace this Saturday, April 12 at 6:30 pm
All you need is bring the family and a couple of your favorite games and snacks to share. That's all there is to it. Simple, huh? There will also be a movie shown in the sanctuary.

VBS Leader for the Squeaky Beakers Still Needed!
 
And you are asking…. Just who are the Squeaky Beakers?  Well, they are the cutest little three year olds that attend Vacation Bible School.  You will notice them right away…  They come in on Monday holding tight to Mom’s hand, yet feeling very proud to be able to be “one of the big kids”.  And by the end of the night when Mom and Dad come back, they start to cry because they are having so much fun, they just don’t want to go home!  The Squeaky Beakers have their own age appropriate curriculum full of fun activity options!  As the leader, you will be responsible for the Bible lesson, games, crafts, etc. that you choose to use from the curriculum. We will provide plenty of helpers, snacks,  Chadder’s movie and music!  If interested, please see me right away for more details!
 
Also, needed is a caregiver for the Baby Beakers!  This year we would like to provide nursery for the volunteer’s children that are under age 3!  Again, please see me if you are willing to love on some babies from 5:45 to 8:00 during the week of August 4th-8th.  This job can be shared between several people to fit your schedule if needed!
 
Thanks for your help! Donna Haas 527-6593

Adult Choir
  Our Adult choir is wrapping up this season, and I am looking ahead and forward to next season.  I have several great numbers for us to do in mind.  We need YOU.  Would you consider joining our choir to sing for the Lord?  Maybe you can commit to praying for the choir.  Another way to help is to help with the purchasing of new music.  Your family, Sunday School Class, Bible Study Group, or even you can sponsor a choir member for $25.00.  That would include music and accompaniment for the new songs for next year's choir.  If you are interested in helping out, please see Renee Griffith.  
    I believe an important part of ANY group in the church is evangelism.  I would like to see the choir do an event for Christmas and one for Easter.  Of course, it would include songs!  But, more importantly, songs with the message that Jesus came and died for EVERYONE.  Please pray for our effectiveness and that we would choose the right music for those who come to hear.  Also be thinking about who you can invite.  Who do you know in your neighborhood or work place that needs to hear how much Jesus loves them?
    There are a few changes being planned for next year's choir.  We will be working out of books more, with songs worked on being put together into a Gospel presentation.  Another great change is we will have practice CDs available for sopranos, altos, tenors, and basses.  Each tape will have a certain singing part louder than the rest so each singer can hear and learn their part outside of choir practice.
    It is the desire of the choir to be God's choir.  Not Grace's choir, not my choir, not any one person's choir.  Just a group of people being blessed by singing for the Lord, and blessing those who hear.  Please consider being a part of God's choir in any of the ways already mentioned.
 Another way you can help is to come on Wednesday nights to watch children.  We have several children to watch now, and are hoping more will be joining us next season.  Could you come watch them play for an hour during choir practice?  This would be a blessing to you and to the parents, and eventually, to the entire church!

Don't Forget our El Paso Food Pantry
Donations are needed year around. While at the grocery store or like WalMart, why not pick up some extra food or paper goods for the Food Pantry. Nonperishable food is need like canned or boxed mixes. Also paper goods like toilet tissue, paper towels and even disposable diapers are needed. You can bring your donation to the basket in foyer here at church OR, better yet, save someone from Grace from transporting the goods to the Food Pantry. There is a receiving door on east side of the Food Pantry building on Rte. 24 open 24/7.
There is a great need and we can help!


How Can a Smashed Birthday Cake Help Us Learn About Spiritual Gifts?
by
Pam Finck

As I was folding clothes the other day and listening to In Touch Ministries, I heard Dr. Charles Stanley give an illustration that has stuck in my head ever since. It went something like this:

Let’s say we’re all at a birthday party. At the appointed time, amid our cheers and applause, the hostess appears in the kitchen doorway carrying a three-tiered cake she spent hours baking. It’s decorated with lots of fancy icing and flowers. We all o-o-o-o-o and a-h-h-h-h-h as she begins to walk slowly toward the table where we are all waiting anxiously. Suddenly, she trips! The cake goes flying from her hands and lands in a heap on the floor.

We all clasp our hands over our mouths in disbelief and disappointment, and emit a collective groan. Thankfully, it takes only a few seconds to recover from the shock and mobilize into action. This is where our spiritual gifts begin to make themselves known….naturally.

The guest with the Gift of Prophesy says, “Hey! Look at that! The cake is all over the floor!”

The guest with the Gift of Administration begins pointing to other guests saying, “You get the broom, you get the mop, you keep the dog away, and you get another plate. We’ll see if we can salvage any of this!”

The guest with the Gift of Mercy says, “Oh no! I’m so sorry this happened! I can feel your pain!”

The guest with the Gift of Service grabs a bucket from the under the sink, fills it with hot water, finds an old washcloth and begins washing down the woodwork.

The guest with the Gift of Giving says, “I’ll be right back! I’m going to the store to buy another cake!”

The guest with the Gift of Teaching says, “Now let me show you why that happened. See? That cake could have been placed on a smaller plate and wouldn’t have been so hard to carry.”

The guest with the Gift of Discernment says, “I just knew something wasn’t right…I could feel it when I walked in the door.”

The guest with the Gift of Exhortation says, “I’m sure it was a wonderful cake! The next one you make will be even better!”


What if everyone at that party had only the gift of mercy? I wonder how long they would sit around empathizing with the hostess before anything was done about moving on. What if everyone at the party had the gift of giving? Would ten or twelve new cakes show up? What if everyone had the gift of administration and no one had the gift of service? Would everyone be directing the clean up leaving no one to do the work? This party just wouldn’t have gotten back on its feet if all the necessary gifts weren’t working just like they were supposed to.

God has prepared work for us to do, and He equips us with spiritual gifts in order to complete it. We need to identify our gift (or gifts) so we can fulfill our God-given roles in the church. If we don’t, then it’s a little like having plugged up ears, or wearing mittens while typing. We just don’t function as efficiently as we could, and when this happens, our church lacks something.

Here are some scripture verses that talk about spiritual gifts. If you read them you will have begun the quest to find out how The Lord has gifted you.
1 Corinthians 12:1-13


Hey Kids!
    Would you like to sing this summer?  Do you have Monday evenings free?  Would you like to perform for Corn Festival in September?  If you can answer yes to all these questions, then hurry to see Renee Griffith. 
    I would like to prepare a musical called "I Am a Promise" during the summer for kids 4 years and up.  We will practice 2 Mondays in June, July, and August from 6:30-8:00.  It is important that each child makes all the practices!  We will then present our musical on Thursday at Corn Festival.  This is a chance to spread the Gospel through our most winning members!
    If you would be willing to help with set design, costumes, crowd control, props, or puppets, I WANT YOU!  Please contact Renee ASAP.  
     We will need 15 children to make a go of it.  Let Renee know by the end of April  (April 27) if you or your children are interested and willing to put in a little extra time this summer.  I will order materials and set practice dates when I know there is enough interest to make this project a GO. 
    Call Renee at 527-5016, email at; kidbiz@fairpointl.net, hand me a note with names and numbers at church, or come visit me at the library!

Ephesians 4


Don't Forget
Our 4th Sunday Meal is April 27th
 Next Leadership meetings - Tuesday, May 6
 Elders - 5:30 pm Team leaders - 7:00 pm


Notes About and From Kovrov
   If you ever wonder if it is really important to do mission trips I hope Anya's testimonial will help you to see and understand why we do them.  Anya was lead to the Lord by her mother but she still needs the encouragement that we try to offer through our trips.  If someone had not gone to Russia to share the gospel, Anya's mother may never have come to the Lord and Anya may have never had the chance to know Jesus either.  I hope this is an encouragement to you as you read it.
Bill    

Please note the forwarded message:
Hi everyone, You may recall that several months ago I sent out an email regarding a financial need that Anya at the Calvary Chapel in Vladimir needed. Some of you responded to it and a few of you are thinking about it.
For all your benefits, attached is Anya's latest personal newsletter - basically it's her testimony. I thought you would be blessed to read it. Anya still needs funds. Her monthly funds are still under budget. On top of that, she is praying about and hoping to go to Germany for the Calvary Chapel conference that will take place there this summer.
If you feel moved to assist Anya, here's how you can do it. Send a check to

ECCU (Evangelical Christian Credit Union) PO Box 2400 Brea, CA 92822-2400 On your check put "for deposit to account No. 1095871". Funds will go directly to this ministry account and there is no charge for the church in Vladimir to draw out the money on the Russian side. I've been asked, but unfortunately have to say that this credit union isn't set up to do electronic transfers from your checking account, so for those folks who would like the ease of sending a monthly payment electronically that option is not currently available. If you have questions let me know. Thanks for your prayerful time in reading Anya's letter. It's a blessing. Sandi


Dear friends,

First of all thank you for your prayers and support. It is a big blessing for me and my family.

My name is Anya. I`m 30 years old and 12 of them I walk with Jesus. My mom was a believer and she was the one who faithfully prayed for me to be saved. She is with Jesus now and it brings joy and peace to my heart to know that we`ll see each other again.

I live with my grandma and my father. They are not believers and it makes things very tuff sometimes. Especially it happens when we can not agree on how to bring up my younger brother. His name is Daniel. He is 12 now. Our father had left family when my brother was born and came back when my mom died. So after my mom died the Lord told me to step up and take responsibility for Daniel. The whole situation is not simple, I need a lot of God`s wisdom.

Three years ago I had this privilege to start working in our church office full time. It is a huge blessing and a responsibility too. The Lord has being so faithful in everything. I can see Him working along side with me in every little detail. I could never imagine myself in this place: working on church documentation, organizing church events (even big ones such as conferences and seminars), making plans for teams to come and serve here and so on. I had so many doubts and fears, but God lovingly covered them all step by step. There is so much room for growth in my job! And this fact makes me feel good. I like to learn new things. Looking back I can see how God took me through so many difficult things and taught me to trust and depend on Him. And actually He is teaching me that every day. “Not by might, nor by power, but by my spirit, saith the LORD of hosts.” (Zech.4:6)

Besides working in church office I do some ministries. It is funny to remember, but when I just started coming to church, I used to think that there are only the holiest people in worship group and Sunday school ministry. It sounds funny because to prove the opposite God had put me into both. I know how imperfect I am and know that it is only by His grace and mercy I can be part of worship group. I consider it as a great privilege and love to sing for the Lord knowing that it is not about me at all.

My other big ministry is Sunday school. God had called me there in 1999. Many of those kids I was teaching back then are grown up now and serve the Lord along side with me. Every time I think of it this brings tears to my eyes. It is a blessing to see how this seed sawn years ago is growing and bringing fruit of God`s glory. A year ago our pastor Pasha asked me to become a leader of Sunday school ministry. For years my job was to be a “right hand” for those who lead Sunday school. I got used to be a helpmate and enjoyed this role a lot. But now it was something new to start. I said yes trusting the Lord to teach me how and what to do. And He`s again being so amazingly good and faithful. We had many interesting events with our Sunday school kids. We try to have VBS program every summer for a week or two. And this past winter (for the second time in our church`s history) we were brave enough to do winter VBS program. It turned out to be so much fun and such a big blessing for everyone involved! It was a big project. We had 5 days of activities, Bible lessons and outside games (imagine kids in snow piles!). Then there was a special Christmas service where we invited unbelievers. Our kids sang a song before the congregation and then enjoyed making cookies for people in the church and our neighbors. The next day was a great day of The Concert. Our teachers and helpers worked hard to make this event fun and blessing. We acted out a Christmas play with costumes and all. Our kids all had something to share: a Christmas poem or a song or musical performance with some kind of instrument (we even had one boy playing clarinet). Their parents were in the hall sharing this special time with us. Actually it was a big family night. I could just feel how love of Christ fills up the hall and overflows. It was unforgettable.

In Sunday school we have three age groups. The youngest is 2,5 to 6 years old. The one in the middle is 7 to 11. And our teenage group is 12 to 15. We don`t have too many kids coming for midweek service Wednesday night so there is a mixed class there. The youngest group is going through book of Acts, the middle and teenagers are in Gospel of John.

Our nearest project for Sunday school ministry is to make a CD of worship songs we accumulated in many years. We just want to make our “song luggage” helpful for those who are already doing worship for kids and also for those who would like to start doing it. We also think that it would be helpful for other churches around the region. There is a lot of work in this project and we need a lot of wisdom on how and when to do it. Our plan is with God`s help to start in a couple of weeks. I`d appreciate your prayers on this particular subject.

We also plan on having VBS this coming summer, but don`t know when yet.

So, I think I`d better stop for now. And I want to say again how much appreciated your help here.

May our loving God fill you up with His peace, joy and love every day. May His presence be clear in your life.

With much love in Christ Jesus,
Anya

“O clap your hands, all peoples; Shout to God with the voice of joy. For the LORD Most High is to be feared, A great King over all the earth.” (Ps.47:1,2)