First Service

Yesterday was our first Sunday morning service. Mind you it was -26 outside, however we still braved the cold along with a good group from our home church in Alexandria. We had 23 in attendance in spite of the cold. Two of these were first time visitors from Barnesville. The service went well. We started out with family focused Children's ministry (the whole family participates in the children's ministry). Barb was dressed up as a hero and talked about Moses leading the Israelites out of Egypt. There was lots of singing, moving and balloons. We then transitioned into Prayer and Praise. Ben, our worship leader, did a wonderful job of leading us into the Lord's presence. Then I got to speak on the topic, "What is a Christian?". After the message, everyone met in age appropriate life groups where there were introductions, announcements, prayer requests, response cards and discussion questions related to the message. One lady responded on her response card that she wanted prayer on reestablishing her relationship with Jesus.

My topic next week is "Why Jesus?". Please pray that God's word speaks into the lives of those who are in attendance.

Location, Location, Location!

One of our biggest challenges has been where are we to meet. We want to meet in a location which is easily accessible to all who come. We also want to meet at a time which will work for those we want to serve. We've been praying about this issue for some time now. We've decided to start meeting on Sunday mornings at the Barnesville Senior Center. This site previously was researched but we were told it was not available to rent regularly since they wanted it to be available to Seniors whenever they needed it. We are gaining access to this site on a weekly basis at this point with the understanding that they will give us a two weeks notice if someone else rents it. It is a start. Please pray with us that God will provide us a location which we can call our own.

Lots of Driving

We've been busy the last two weeks. On Friday Dec 1st, Barb and I traveled to Minneapolis where we participated in training with Crown Ministries (www.crown.org). There we were trained to facilitate their Biblical Financial Study. This study for Life Groups is a 10 week in-depth study of what Scripture teaches about money and possessions. Life Group Members have confirmed that marriages are being strengthened and individuals are finding their way out of debt. They are also becoming consistent savers, generous givers, and prudent consumers. Most importantly, people are entering into a closer relationship with Jesus Christ as they learn to apply His Word. Groups meet for 2 hours every week and meetings include Scripture memorization and interactive discussions.

There are four requirements for life group members:

1. Daily prayer for each member of your group
2. Memorize one assigned Scripture each week
3. Complete weekly homework assignments - both Bible study and practical application. (approximately 2 hours of homework per week)
4. Attend a minimum of 8 of the 10 classes
   

We plan on offering this study to the Barnesville area soon. Stay Tuned!

On Friday Dec 7th, we traveled to Minneapolis again. This time we picked up Ben Collins from the airport. Ben is a Barnesville native who was a youth pastor and worship leader at a church in Portland, Oregon. He has returned to work with us. We are excited to have him here with us.

Thanksgiving Update

We had a great Thanksgiving. I, once again, ate too much. Everything was sooo good it was great. We had all our kids home. Alicia, Brian and Brie were with us all weekend. We played games and watched movies together.

Barb's sister, husband and five kids were also with us. So we had a full house. Our family time was fun and blessed.

Jesus 101 Online Course

Would you consider studying Jesus with me (1 hour/week) in my online group? Jesus 101 is a 6 week, 12 lesson online course that briefly surveys Jesus` life and teaching, emphasizing Jesus` own words. If you`d like more information, go to http://jesus101.barnesvillefamilychurch.com "

Fall Pictures

Fall is upon us!

What a blessing fall weather is! I really like the trees and colors. In my devotions lately, I've been learning about humility. Humble yourself in the site of the Lord and He will lift you up - that song has been on my mind alot lately.