HE KNOWS HOW TO TAKE CARE OF HIS OWN! And I’m so very glad He does! Who’s HE? Well, none other than our Father in Heaven! And how do I know? Well, because THIS week, He has held my hand, walked beside me, gone ahead of me, flanked me on the rear, invited me to draw close, intervened for me, literally infused His strength and spirit into me, and then, He even carried me! He has kept me well, given me resources beyond my own in every way imaginable, ministered to me divine protection, stirred my dreams and passions, sent family and friends to touch my life – including my sweet husband, put new opportunities into my path, reminded me of His promises, and in a voice a bit louder than usual, told me to come to Him and rest! And so, I did. That’s why this weekly update is coming a few days late. And you know what? Even though it’s late … I know that life will go on! And I will have been a bit more renewed and refreshed to tackle whatever lies ahead in the coming week that will be filled to overflowing! I will be more effective to undertake God’s work in our ministry ~ both in the church and in the marketplace! I love the first part of Jesus’ teaching in the Beatitudes as written for us in Matthew 5. This is what He said, “You’re blessed when you’re at the end of your rope. With less of you there is more of God and His rule.” That’s so true! When we’ve done all we can, all we know how to do … and there’s still more waiting to be done, we RUN to God for help. We FOCUS on His promises. We SEEK out His perfect will. We ABANDON ourselves to His plan. And when we live our lives that way, God can take even better care of us, because we’re actually giving Him permission to be in control – to rule His way! And of course, His way is always best, anyhow! Also, in Matthew, chapter 5, following the Beatitudes, Jesus tells us why we are here on this earth. It’s not about us, but about a life so much bigger than we usually can grasp. He says, “Here’s another way to put it: You’re here to be light, bringing out the God-colors in this world. God is not a secret to be kept. We’re going public with this, as public as a city on a hill. If I make you light-bearers, you don’t think I’m going to hide you under a bucket, do you? I’m putting you on a light stand. Now that I’ve put you there on a hilltop, on a light stand – shine! Keep open house; be generous with your lives. By opening up to others, you’ll prompt people to open up with God, this generous Father in heaven.” That’s how I see our ministry, both as individual followers of Christ … and corporately, as our Elevation North church family. We were never created to be a secret. We were never gifted to have those gifts unused. We were never called to shun our God-given mission. We are never enabled to give up. We are never filled and not asked to be poured out. We are never given God-appointments that we cannot keep. What we DO need, is wisdom and discernment from God, so that we will always be tuned in. Ready to engage. Willing to obey. Eager to be used. We think of Jeff, who we’ve been praying for. A man in his mid-sixties, suffering from brain deterioration that sometimes pushed him towards violence because his medication could not be balanced, was on the verge of being put in a mental facility. This broke his son’s heart, and the family pursued 27 nursing facilities, hoping to place him there instead. They all refused to take Jeff because of the tendency towards violence. We’ve never met Jeff, but God prompted us so strongly to lay hands on a relative and anoint her with oil as she stood in for him as we prayed for a miracle on his behalf. As the hours and next few days passed, God wouldn’t release Jeff from our hearts and we continued to believe for God’s divine touch in his life. Less than a week later, we were informed by this relative, that a nursing home had taken him in as a resident! Miraculous! But not because of our power. God did it all, yet He prompted us to become a part of that miracle through obedience to what He asked us to do. We’re still praying for complete healing and restoration in Jeff! And now we’re also praying for a young 13 year old boy whose brain is being pulled into his spine, and without divine intervention, this condition will take his life. Please join us in standing on the promises of God and claiming a supernatural miracle for Michael. Who knows what God has planned for his life? Remember why we’re here? God’s Word says, repeating from Matthew 5: “By opening up to others, you’ll prompt people to open up with God, this generous Father in heaven.” What more can I say? Let’s just do what He says, for He really knows how to care for His own!
IN A NUTSHELL . . .
IN A NUTSHELL . . .
- WHAT A POWERFUL MESSAGE we received this past Sunday as Pastor Doug poured out his heart through the Word of God as we continue on our 50-Day Spiritual Adventure! He emphasized how much we need each other, and explained the benefits of choosing an accountability partner who will spur us on to greater things in God as they come alongside us and stand with us in our walk with the Lord.
- OUR SPECIAL THANKS to Isaac, who runs the sound system for us; to Mary, who takes care of our tithes and offerings and obligations through her treasury position, and to Chuck and Merv who assist her on Sundays, to Pam, who helps lead worship songs; to Cierra for teaching our little ones, and to Justin, who leads our youth group. All of you are ministering through your gifts, and we thank you for blessing us at Elevation North! And to everyone else who helps us with the “taking-down” process each week after worship, and the many other ways you bless us in your own unique way, we thank you and are so grateful! May God bless each one!
- BELATED HAPPY BIRTHDAY WISHES to Zalee and to Charlotte on March 4th! May God bless you both!!
- LOOKING AHEAD . . .
- THIS SUNDAY, MARCH 7TH:
- 10:00 A.M. – WORSHIP & PRAISE – focusing on our Lord Jesus Christ, and moving forward into our 50-Day Spiritual Adventure, “Promises Worth Keeping”, with Pastor Doug preaching on “Practicing Purity in Thought and Action”. Our sins push us to the tendency to fall and fail, but God helps us get back up and on track to live a winning, victorious life through the Holy Spirit. Come and be a part of this powerful service – don’t miss it!
- 11:15 A.M. – SUNDAY SCHOOL – we are never too young or too old to continue learning more about our God and what He has put in His Word to help us live overcoming, exciting lives! Please join us for classes!
- 6:00-7:30 P.M. – YOUTH – RE: FUEL session at Clinton Falls Town Hall with Justin planning an exciting time of going deeper in your walk with God - plus always, a great time of fun and fellowship with activities and snacks! Let’s work on doubling our group ~ and then doubling it again! Invite, reach out, and keep reaching out!!!
- COMING SOON … EASTER SERVICES, MOTHER-DAUGHTER TEA, & MORE CHURCH FAMILY EVENTS!
- 10:00 A.M. – WORSHIP & PRAISE – focusing on our Lord Jesus Christ, and moving forward into our 50-Day Spiritual Adventure, “Promises Worth Keeping”, with Pastor Doug preaching on “Practicing Purity in Thought and Action”. Our sins push us to the tendency to fall and fail, but God helps us get back up and on track to live a winning, victorious life through the Holy Spirit. Come and be a part of this powerful service – don’t miss it!
- 11:15 A.M. – SUNDAY SCHOOL – we are never too young or too old to continue learning more about our God and what He has put in His Word to help us live overcoming, exciting lives! Please join us for classes!
- 6:00-7:30 P.M. – YOUTH – RE: FUEL session at Clinton Falls Town Hall with Justin planning an exciting time of going deeper in your walk with God - plus always, a great time of fun and fellowship with activities and snacks! Let’s work on doubling our group ~ and then doubling it again! Invite, reach out, and keep reaching out!!!
- COMING SOON … EASTER SERVICES, MOTHER-DAUGHTER TEA, & MORE CHURCH FAMILY EVENTS!
- PRAYER OPPORTUNTIES . . .
- HOW GREAT IS OUR GOD!!! That is not only the title of a beautiful song, it is pure truth! God reveals His greatness to us day after day – from morning to evening – and all night long! He is still in the prayer-answering business, and we’d love to have you continue to pray with us for Jeff and Michael with brain conditions; for Nancy in her job-search; for the sale of Bucholz’ house; for healing for Julia, her brother, Shirley, Hazel, Helen; for God to be with Leslie and his family; for wisdom for each of us; and for God’s servants in ministry!
- THIS WEEK . . . “Remember, “Praise is the best auxiliary to prayer.” ~ Andrew Melville
Serving Christ Joyfully . . .
Pastor Doug and Debbie
