Haiti
On Sunday I was so proud of our church family as we collected $495.25 to be sent directly for immediate relief in Haiti. Praise God for that!
We will be sending the money through Convoy of Hope, an organization associated with our fellowship, the Assemblies of God. The following is an excerpt from our national Superintendent George Wood sent to all AG pastors regarding the situation in Haiti:
“I want to highlight again the dire need for relief assistance in Haiti. Numbers are still inconclusive on the deaths but we know they are staggering. Over 3 million people in Port-Au-Prince have been adversely affected by the tragic earthquake that hit this island on Tuesday evening. Already the poorest nation in the Western Hemisphere, Port-au-Prince has for all practical purposes been left in ruins.
AG in Haiti: The Assemblies of God has two missionary families on the ground there, and reports are that they are safe. But we have 273 churches and more than 66,000 members and we do not know the fate of most of them, including their superintendent, Rev. Calixte Fleuridor.
Convoy of Hope has had an ongoing ministry in Haiti where they feed 7,000 children every day. So their warehouse there was full of food, water, and other supplies in order to meet that huge daily demand. Amazingly, the warehouse had just been restocked.
Donations: With needs so great, we cannot possibly meet them without the help of churches and members here in the United States. So I am appealing to our churches and leaders to give sacrificially for relief efforts in Haiti. I am especially appealing to our 12,400 churches to take an offering this Sunday for Haiti relief and send these funds to us so we can immediately respond with help. You can donate money online by clicking “Help for Haiti” button on the www.ag.org homepage or by sending donations to 1445 N. Boonville Ave., Springfield, MO 65802 marked Haiti Relief.”
Week of Prayer
Our annual Week of Prayer and Fasting is currently underway. Just a reminder about our 2 special prayer meetings this week. These special prayer times are all about calling on God to do what only he can do. Apart from his power we can accomplish nothing.
New Series: Foundations
This Sunday we kicked off a new 5-week series on our core doctrines.
It seems popular today to pit things like “doctrine and theology” against “following Jesus” as if doctrine somehow hinders our walk with God. Such a dichotomy however, is unnecessary. In fact, if we fail to say we know anything about God for certain, how can we be sure we are really following him? If I don’t know anything definite about a person, can I really know them? In the same way, the purpose of doctrine and theology is to enrich and empower our experience of following Jesus by helping us to know him as he is according to his self-revelation in Scripture.
The words of Paul to Timothy are just as piercing in our day (perhaps more) as they were in the 1st Century:
“For the time is coming when people will not endure sound doctrine, but having itching ears they will accumulate for themselves teachers to suit their own passions, and will turn away from listening to the truth and wander off into myths (2 Tim. 4:4).”
So, in the spirit of avoiding the error to “not endure sound doctrine,” this series is about reaffirming the foundations of our faith and helping us stay on track in our pursuit of God. As in all things, balance is needed. Orthodox theology without a passionate, living relationship with Jesus leaves us empty just as passion for God without any grounding in truth leads to chaos and heresy. As we study our core doctrines, let’s add the flame of passion to the study of truth.
Here’s the rundown:
- Jan. 3: Scripture
- Jan 10: God, Man, & Salvation
- Jan. 17: The Holy Spirit
- Jan. 24: The Church
- Jan. 31: The End Times
On a related note, many people have recently expressed interest in becoming members of the church. This sermon series will serve as the required course. After listening to these teachings, anyone interested in membership is invited to join us on Sat. Feb. 6 from 10am-2pm for our next membership day.
