New Message Series: Redemption
This week we will be kicking off a new sermon series called Redemption: Brokeness To Blessing. Join us as we study the book of Titus together and discover how we can go from being broken to being a blessing to others.
Awakening- Youth And Young Adult Event
On Friday Feb. 8 we will be taking a group out to Allison Park Church for Awakening, an event for youth and young adults. There will be free pizza, inflatables, the band Annasay, and a message by Evangelist Johannes Amritzer. It’s going to be a great night. If you’re interested in going with us, please let us know immediately. Permission slips for students under 18 are available at our welcome center. Here’s a video with a little more info:
Renewal Week Recap
Our week of Spiritual Renewal was tremendous. We had roughly 140 people in combined attendance over the 3 nights with at least 10 people committing their lives to Christ! More than that I heard many testimonies of how God worked in the lives of several people bringing healing, clarity, and peace.
God is always faithful to draw near to those who draw near to him. It is so amazing to be a part of a church where God is moving! There’s nothing like His presence. It was great having Pastor Bobby to bring God’s Word to us. My heart really resonated with something he mentioned on Sunday: the best days for this church are yet to come!
Guest Worship Leader Tonight
Tonight we will be having as a special guest worship leader my brother David Santistevan. Also joining him will be his worship team from Allison Park Church. Dave is a tremendously gifted musician, songwriter, and worship leader. He is actually in the final stages of developing his first professional worship record. Dave’s heart for God and his passion for worship is contagious! You won’t want to miss tonight!
We feel strongly that the emphasis tonight is to be miracles. We are going to be believing God to move powerfully. Come expecting a life-changing encounter with God. Also, if you know someone who is in need of a miracle, feel free to bring them with you tonight @ 7!
Renewal Thoughts Part 3
I can’t even begin to describe how incredible last night was. Bobby spoke to us about the difference between winning and losing life’s battles from Joshua 6 & 7. He told us that the Christian life can basically be summed up in one word: obedience. And furthermore, winning life’s battles is a matter of living in obedience to God. There are times when God’s will does not make sense to us. To the natural mind God’s command to the Israelites to march around the city of Jericho and shout did not make a whole lot of sense. However, as they stepped out in faith and obedience, they experienced the victory of God.
Whenever we choose to live in disobedience we will always experience defeat. In ch 7, a guy named Achan decided that he didn’t want God to be his boss anymore by disobeying God’s command to not take anything from the Jericho wreckage. As a result 36 Israelites died in their next battle and Achan and his family suffered the death penalty. Whenever we choose to live in disobedience it never affects just us. Those around us suffer as well.
Another memorable point that he made was that it’s easy to shout after the victory, but God requires us to shout before the victory. God says “Obey, then I will bless you.” But so often we change the order and say, “God if you’ll bless me, then I’ll obey.” When that happens we are in fact living in disobedience.
The service concluded with a powerful time of praise and worship around the altars. I’m even more excited about tonight!
Renewal Thoughts Part 2
Had an awesome night at the renewal services kick off! God’s presence met us in a powerful way. Bobby spoke to us from 2 Samuel 6 about undignified worship and living our lives to be pleasing to God. He challenged us to be more concerned with God’s approval than man’s approval. One especially memorable thought was: you will either worship God or criticize those that do. He also told us that sometimes God asks us to do things that appear foolish to the world, yet give glory to God.
We had a tremendous time of worship after the message, just praising God and enjoying his presence (even with a broken guitar string!)… can’t wait for tonight!
Here are some more thought’s I’ve been thinking about spiritual renewal.
As a result of living in a sin-sick world, we often accumulate barriers in our lives to experiencing spiritual renewal. One of these barriers is what I’ll call hardening. Hardening is something that can take place gradually in our hearts. Often times, spiritual renewal involves repentance and humility more than feelings of blessing. In fact, the way to experience the joys of God’s blessing is to become truly repentant and humble.
Consider Hosea 10:12 “Sow for yourselves righteousness; reap steadfast love; break up your fallow ground, for it is time to seek the Lord, that he may come and rain righteousness upon you.”
When it refers to “fallow ground” it is talking about hard ground. In the same way a farmer must till the soil before planting a crop, we must till the soil of our hearts in order to experience the rain of God’s righteousness upon us. So often the soil in our hearts can harden because of any number of things. What is necessary is a breaking of the fallow ground, a softening and tenderizing of our stony hearts.
The way to do this is to simply humble ourselves before God and admit that we have allowed ourselves to become hard and indifferent to spiritual things. Since God opposes the proud, it is through humility that we will experience his help and healing. We all have the propensity to fall into gradual hardening. That’s why it is so important to develop a lifestyle of repentance and humility.
This is also the heart of another classic passage on spiritual renewal, Acts 3:19-20, “Repent therefore, and turn again, that your sins may be blotted out, that times of refreshing may come from the presence of the Lord.”
How Can I Speak The Truth To Others?
Check out this great video from John Piper about sharing your faith with others.
Renewal Thoughts Part 1
One time I heard somebody say that scheduling a revival is kind of like trying to schedule a hurricane – you just can’t. While I agree with that statement in a sense, I also believe that we have a part to play. Even though God is the one who ultimately brings true spiritual revival, I believe that we can position ourselves to receive it.
Sometimes I feel that God desires to speak to us, but so often we don’t take the time to listen. In the same way, God may be desiring to do a work in our lives, but we will not realize it until we actually take time to receive from him. This involves specific time in which we can devote our mental and spiritual attention to him. Scheduling time devoted to spiritual renewal is one way of offering ourselves to God by saying, “Here I am, come and work in my life.” It is deciding to block out other activities that tend to steal our attention from interacting with our heavenly Father.
My prayer for the services these next few nights is that we would truly make ourselves available to God. I pray that we would take a posture of heart that says, “Come and do whatever you want to do in my life.”
New Children’s Pastor
This week we welcomed Annie Jensen as our new children’s pastor! Annie comes to us from Chicago, IL. We are extremely blessed to have her join our team. Annie went to school with Jess and I at Central Bible College where she majored in Missions.
At ACC we place a huge priority on our children. We will be blessed to have Annie give direction and leadership to all areas of children’s ministry. Some exciting things are on the way including renovations of the children’s worship center and improvements in the care and development of our nursery ministry.
As we welcome Annie to the team, we are sad that Pastor Cal will no longer be with us. We have always known that his time with us would be limited. We are in tremendous debt to this man of God! He has been an incredible blessing to our church, our children, and our community. He will be with us for 2 more weeks before going on to pioneer a children’s ministry at Bridgepoint Church, a new church plant in Tarentum, PA pastored by my friend Greg Krowitz.
Prayer Rally Tonight
Tonight at 7pm we will be having an all church prayer rally. We will be taking time to seek God’s presence in worship and also pray for his power in our lives, families, church, and community. There is power in prayer. Prayer is basically declaring our dependency on God. Above all we want the church that he can build, not the church we can build. Join us for this time we are setting aside to pursue his kingdom.
Life Group Opportunities
Beginning in February we will be swinging back into Life Groups. For this Spring semester we have 6 groups that will be meeting at various locations, times, and days of the week. This Spring we will be offering:
Alpha Starting Point—Ambridge
Leaders: Hank & Mary Niewola
Description: Starting Point is a Life Group designed for anyone interested in learning about the basics of the Christian faith. Explore the Christian faith in a relaxed setting over ten thought provoking weekly sessions. Topics include: Christianity: Boring, untrue, or irrelevant? Who is Jesus? Why did Jesus die? How can we have faith? Why and how do I pray? Why and how should I read the Bible? How does God guide us? What does the Holy Spirit do? How can I resist evil? Does God heal today? For more info about the Alpha Course, check out their website.
When: Mondays 7:00-8:30pm
Where: Ambridge Christian Center
424 Duss Ave., Ambridge, PA 15003
Adult Community Group—Center Twp.
Leaders: John & Jeannie Wisinski
Description: This group will be studying the book “Intercessory Prayer” by Dutch Sheets. Learn about the purpose, power, and practice of prayer. Find answers to the questions: If God is all-powerful, why does he need us to pray? If we pray and nothing happens, does that mean God isn’t listening? Receive encouragement and inspiration to pray for the impossible. Order the materials here.
When: Tuesdays 7:00-8:30
Where: Wisinski Home
Aliquippa, PA
Adult Community Group- Harmony Twp.
Leaders: Jim & Terri Santistevan
Description: This group will by studying spiritual formation based on the life of Christ. Develop a practical strategy for your spiritual growth. Enrich your walk with God by engaging the following topics: Discovering a balanced vision of Christian faith and practice; Practicing the prayer-filled life; Practicing the virtuous life; Practicing the Spirit-empowered life; Practicing the compassionate life; Practicing the Word-centered life. Order the book here.
When: Mondays 7:00-8:30pm
Where: Webb Home
Ambridge, PA
Young Adult Group—Monaca
Leader: Meghan Wisinski
Description: This group is for young adults ages 18-30ish. Study the book and video course “The Life You’ve Always Wanted: Spiritual Disciplines For Ordinary People” by John Ortberg. Find answers to the questions: What does true spiritual life really look like? What keeps us from living such a life? What can you do to pursue it? Discover an encouraging and challenging approach to a Christian life that’s worth living. A life on the edge that fills our ordinary world with new meaning, hope, change, and a joyous, growing closeness to Christ. Order the book here.
When: Fridays 8:00-9:30pm
Where: Wisinski Home
Monaca, PA
Youth Breakout Groups—Ambridge
Leader: Jessica Santistevan
Description: Transit Student Ministries is for all Junior High, High School, and College students. After the worship and message, students will be given a chance to express what they are learning during youth breakout groups. Everyone has something to share and everyone has something to learn.
When: Wednesdays 7:00-8:30
Where: Ambridge Christian Center
424 Duss Ave., Ambridge, PA 15003
Celebrate Recovery—Ambridge
Leaders: Jerry & Colleen Parone
James & Amy Pawelkoski
Description: Celebrate Recovery is a Christ-centered, biblical, and balanced program to help people overcome their hurts, habits, and hang-ups. Gain lasting freedom from addictive, compulsive, and dysfunctional behaviors. At Celebrate Recovery you will discover our personal, loving and forgiving Higher Power – Jesus Christ, the one and only true Higher Power.
When: TBA
Where: Ambridge Christian Center
424 Duss Ave., Ambridge, PA 15003
Turning Dreams Into Reality
This month I was asked by the Beaver County Times to submit an article for publication. Apparently they periodically select area pastors to give them short sermonettes to put in the paper. I suspect it will be published later this month.
Turning Dreams Into Reality
Do you remember when you were a child and anything was possible? Do you remember when all you wanted to become was a movie star, a professional sports player, or an astronaut? I think that somewhere deep inside, all of us want to live a life of significance. We all want to make a difference, leave a mark, and somehow change the world. The problem is that life has a way of quenching our vitality and pulling us into conformity. After a while we may even despair of ever seeing our dreams come to reality. So what do we do when we find our hope for the future diminishing? How do we get out of the rut?
The Scriptures teach us about a young man named Joseph. His story can be found in Genesis 37-48. In two separate dreams God showed him that he would become a great leader. Upon telling his brothers about the dreams, they became so angry and jealous that they wanted to kill him. Fortunately for Joseph they opted to just throw him into a pit instead. Then, realizing that they could make some money out of the situation, they sold him to some foreign traders who were passing through. To make a long story short, Joseph’s journey further took him to the depths of an Egyptian prison, with no hope of release. In the midst of all this adversity, Joseph maintained his integrity and relationship with God. He also continued to use his talents and gifts by interpreting the dreams of some of his fellow inmates. Joseph was later asked to interpret the Pharaoh’s dreams. In the end, he became the leader of all Egypt, second only to the Pharaoh himself. Through his wisdom he also saved the entire Egyptian civilization by helping them to adequately prepare for seven years of famine.
Maybe like Joseph you’ve found that life has taken you in a different direction than you hoped. Perhaps nothing could look worse for you than the current state of your life. We can learn from Joseph’s experience that we can have hope. We don’t need to lose heart. If God has placed a dream in your heart, you can be sure that he will bring it to pass no matter what situation you find yourself in right now. We only need to maintain integrity, trust in God, and put our gifts and talents faithfully to use. If we do this, God will surely make his dreams for our lives into a reality in his time.
Mike Santistevan
www.ambridgecc.org
www.mikesantistevan.com
Practicing Greatness
The premise of the book was basically that great spiritual leaders do not become great accidentally, they become great on purpose. McNeal then describes 7 key disciplines that leaders must pursue in order to become great in the sight of God. I’ll explain them below:
- The Discipline of Self-Awareness- McNeal says that great spiritual leaders have a great sense of self-awareness. In other words, they know who they are and what God has called them to do. They also know how God has wired them as well as the different experiences and of their lives that have made them into the people they are. They are also aware of their strengths and weakness. They also aware of how they come across to others. They are comfortable with who they are.
- The Discipline of Self-Management- Here he discusses how great spiritual leaders learn to manage their emotions and guard against temptations.
- The Discipline of Self-Development- Great spiritual leaders never stop learning. They never stop growing. As they are aware of who God has made them to be and who he’s not made them to be, they focus on developing their strengths. They know that their greatest potential for God’s kingdom will be reached through developing the gifts and strengths God has given them.
- The Discipline of Mission- This is the conscious discipline of staying focused on the mission that God has called the leader to. They know how to keep themselves from time-wasting distractions.
- The Discipline of Decision Making- Here he contends that great leaders develop their decision making skills. They know how to stay in touch with God for his direction and are also in touch with the people they are leading. They make sure to get all the facts straight before making decisions and are also sensitive to the timing of certain decisions. They know that the right decision at the wrong time is just a bad as making the wrong decision.
- The Discipline of Belonging- This is where great leaders intentionally build close relationships and guard against isolation. They are close with their spouses and family. They realize the importance of developing deep and meaningful friendships.
- The Discipline of Aloneness- Great spiritual leaders build time into their schedule to meet with God. They know that their relationship with him is the ultimate source of their life and ministry vitality.
Intentional Mission Strategy
We had a great service this past Sunday. It was the kick-off of our E3 series. This series is all about revealing our intentional strategy for making disciples.
Just as spiritual growth does not happen by accident, so a church does not accomplish its mission by accident. A church will only accomplish its mission if it does so on purpose. Sunday we defined our mission like this:
Our mission at ACC is to lead people into a growing relationship with Jesus Christ by helping them to experience God, excel in spiritual growth, and express his love to the world.
Our intentional strategy is thus summed up in these 3 words (each of these links to previous posts I have written about them):
This series will be about expounding on each of these.
New Series: E3
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This Sunday we will be starting a new 3-part message series called “E3: Making Disciples In 2008.” In this series we will be diving into the heart of our mission as a church and our direction for ’08. What does E3 stand for? Come Sunday and find out! You won’t want to miss this important series.
Pray Global Prayers
Check out this interesting post on prayer from John Piper.
Goals For 2008
On Sunday I challenged everyone to set aside some time to take some personal inventory and set some personal development goals for the new year. I specifically challenged everybody to set spiritual goals and physical goals.
The old saying rings true that if you don’t know where you are going, any road will take you there. As each of us gains greater clarity into the person that God is calling us to become, we will be able to pursue growth to that end in practical and intentional ways.
We must be both practical and intentional because spiritual growth does not happen by accident. We are only kidding ourselves if we think we can get somewhere we’ve never gone by doing what we’ve always done. In order for us to grow spiritually we must pursue it intentionally and proactively.
In addition to setting spiritual and physical goals, I’d like to encourage everybody to set some goals in a few other areas. Growth in these areas will help us in our effectiveness for God’s kingdom:
1. Mental development goals
Find some new ways to stretch yourself mentally this year. Set some goals for reading and reflection. I am always reading books that help me grow in areas of spirituality, Scripture, leadership, and communication.
2. Dietary goals
Decide in advance what types of foods you need to decrease or cut from your diet. Sometimes we can short-circuit our productivity for God’s kingdom by poor eating habits.
3. Friendship goals
Take some steps toward developing new friendships and strengthening old ones this year. Maybe more tv nights could be turned into dinner or coffee with friends. Since we were created for relationships, we must continually guard against the danger of isolating ourselves.
