Continued from page 1 – enjoying the journey
Church expenses do not pause when we head out of town, so your continued faithfulness, especially during these travel months, helps us keep our finances stable. Keep up the good work.
We’ re also making quick progress on our Parking Lot Capital Project. By the time you receive this newsletter, the work should be nearly or fully complete – no more dodging potholes! This $ 201,000 project is going to serve our church well for years to come. Thanks to your generous response, we have received about $ 140,000 in donations and pledges so far. We’ re almost there! I hope everyone will participate so we can fully cover the project without pulling from our capital reserves. Those funds are set aside for important ongoing maintenance and the HVAC replacements we know are coming soon as several units have reached the end of their life cycle and will likely need attention in the next couple of years. Your support now helps ensure our future stability.
This summer has also been rich spiritually. Thank you for engaging with our 8-part series, 2
“ Pioneers of Promise.” From Abraham’ s faith to Ruth’ s loyal love, we’ ve walked with these Old Testament pioneers and seen God’ s faithfulness in fresh ways. It’ s been a joy to journey through these stories together, and I am grateful for the way you have engaged week after week.
Starting August 9, we are moving into a new four-part series called“ Good Fruit.” In Galatians 5:22-23, Paul describes the fruit of the Spirit as love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control. These qualities are the visible evidence of a life led by the Holy Spirit rather than by our own efforts. Over these four weeks, we will pair the nine fruits to help us better understand, embrace, and cultivate them. We will discover that these are not things we achieve by sheer willpower alone, they grow as we surrender to the Spirit’ s work in us. Through biblical teaching and practical steps, we will learn what it means to abide in Christ, yielding our lives to His transforming power so our character reflects Jesus. In a world that often feels fruitless, these qualities can make a real difference in our relationships, workplaces, and daily witness.
At the heart of it all, our gatherings are about relationships. We are strengthening our church family bonds as we support each other through the highs and lows of life. I want to encourage you to continue to make weekly worship on Sundays a priority, and to stay plugged into a small group or Sunday School class. There is something powerful about showing up consistently— not out of obligation, but because we belong to one another.
Summer may be winding down, but God’ s work in and through us is just getting started. The invitation extended by Jesus to his earliest disciples continues to be offered to us,“ Follow me.” Will we extend that invitation to others? We may not always know where we are going, but we know who we are following. God is faithful. Therefore, we expect great things, and we are certain we will enjoy the ride!