Elevation North has News for YOU!

ARE YOUR STEPS ORDERED? If so, by who? And for what purpose? Do you, like me, ever feel like your life is going in a million different directions? You know what needs to be done … and you understand priorities. You are aware of deadlines. You’re ever mindful of lengthy lists. Yet – where do you start? You’ve already committed to simplify your life as much as you can. And you’ve seen some results from that. But the schedules continue to come, practically tumbling over each other as if in a race against time itself. It’s like the foreboding, charcoal grey storm clouds I saw a few evenings ago. They were literally rolling across the sky at break-neck speeds, churning, agitated, turning, tumbling over each other to get to the finish line – wherever that was. They held the potential of powerful destruction within their masses, and they had no intention of stopping before they started. I’ve never been one to be frightened of storms, yet I respect their capability to the utmost degree. I’ve seen the devastation they’ve left in their wake. I’ve seen the losses, the messes. The unrecognizable sights of the aftermath. And a few times, their fury took me to my knees in solemn, fervent prayer. I was begging God to intervene, to spare lives and belongings. The other night was no exception. And God answered. The storm clouds blew themselves out – or at least their color and strength were greatly diminished by the time they faded out of sight. And all was well! The Storm-Calmer … the Tranquility-Giver … the Peace-Speaker – He showed up and the clouds obeyed. Ultimately, peace and quiet reigned, and all was well! How I love it when in the midst of my churning schedules and overwhelming responsibilities, God shows up! How I love it when I feel like there is no way humanly possible to accomplish everything that is awaiting my attention, God shows up. He starts bringing people before me who offer to do this or help with that. I realize help is on the way! Sometimes He already has a surprise awaiting me, and what I was expecting to have to do, is already done when I get to that time and place! I’ve had lists full of people’s names who I wanted to/needed to call … and before I could find the time to call their number – my phone was ringing … and it was them! Do these things occur by happenstance or coincidence? No, I believe that when these things happen in the midst of our sometimes chaotic lives, God brings order to our steps. I believe that He brings “harmonious arrangement” to our days, even our lives! That’s what the dictionary says “order” is: harmonious arrangement. How I love the sound of that! How I love experiencing that gift from God! I also believe that is God’s favor being shown to us! Of course, not everything always turns out the way we’d like it to, or right when we want it to, so when the “storms” are raging the wildest, God comes and calms His child. We don’t always escape the storms in our lives, but we find that place of peacefulness and quietness that God provides. It’s the greatest place to be! Suddenly, there’s that consciousness that not only are our steps ordered by God, but times and places, as well! I love how God deals with storms. In the Old Testament, “the Lord answers Job out of the storm.” (Job 38:1) In the midst of all of Job’s devastating storms, comes the sound of God’s voice! God speaks and speaks to Job, and then Job answers the Lord. The storm of devastation is stopped, and the Bible says that “the Lord made Job prosperous again and gave him twice as much as he had before.” It says furthermore, that “the Lord blessed the latter part of Job’s life more than the first.” How’s THAT for the ending of a storm? (Job 42) Then the 107th chapter of the book of Psalms is filled with praises to the Lord for His unfailing love in the depths of our needs, and this is what verse 29 says: “He stilled the storm to a whisper; the waves of the sea were hushed.” Think of what a wondrous thing it is that God does for us ~ His children! He takes any kind of storm that’s raging in our lives, and He quiets it. Sometimes He quiets us. Either way, He’s doing a wonderful thing for us! And then there’s the stormy episode in Luke 8:24, where the disciples race towards a sleeping Jesus on the boat, shake Him awake, and scream that they’re going to drown! Ever feel that way when the storms are pressing in? Jesus gets up, and Scripture records that He “rebuked the wind and the raging waters; the storm subsided, and all was calm.” Jesus used His authority way back then in Israel on the lake, and today His authority is ours, if we will speak it into being. Our spiritual weapons can demolish strongholds, arguments and pretensions; and we can take captive every thought to make it obedient to Christ.” (II Corinthians 10:4) You see, we can even have a part in ordering our steps, through the authority that is ours in Christ Jesus! We can muzzle our storms and live in peace and calm – that’s God’s design and order for us! And let’s not forget to thank Him and praise Him!!!

IN A NUTSHELL . . .

- SUNDAY MORNINGS bring us such blessings … and these past few weeks have brought to us some special people! WELCOME to Dustin. Becky, Isaiah, and Miles (it was SO great having you worship with us!) … and WELCOME BACK to Cierra as she returns for another year of college (it’s great having you back again!). WE WELCOME Bobby, who worshipped with us for the first time this past week – it was great to have you with us! May God bless all of you!
- HAPPY 5TH ANNIVERSARY to Dustin and Becky on Sunday, August 15th! May God bless you two; we love you!!!

- LOOKING AHEAD . . .

- THIS SUNDAY, AUGUST 15TH: 10:00 A.M. – WORSHIP & PRAISE in a joyful setting as we move forward to the third “Fingerprint of God”: the Bible! Come and be blessed as we learn more about this incredible gift from God to us! Join us in singing and praying and in sharing as a family of God!
- 6:00 P.M. – SPECIAL CHURCH LEADERSHIP PLANNING MEETING for all the adults at the home of Pastor Doug and Debbie! Come prepared to share ideas & insights as we prayerfully consider visionary plans for the upcoming year of ministry and outreach!
- SEPTEMBER 12TH: 10:00 A.M. - FALL KICK-OFF with a special worship/praise service, potluck meal, game time, and fun for the entire family! Due to the extreme heat and no air-conditioning we’ve experienced recently, we will resume Sunday School and Youth at that time. We will break for these next four weeks only.
- OCTOBER 22-23: WOMEN OF FAITH CONFERENCE in St. Paul for two incredible days of “Over the Top” experiences with God and each other! Continue to set aside some money each week! See Tina or Debbie for more details! Be thinking of others you would like to see come along; we have 50 tickets!

- PRAYER OPPORTUNITIES . . .

- LET’S PUT GOD IN CHARGE OF OUR LIVES! Let’s praise Him … and praise Him. Over and over! Let’s bring our needs to Him and watch what He will do! Let’s hold up LaFawn, Shirley, Jimmy, Julia and her brother, Tina, James, and Sean, Mitchell in MI – all for divine healing! Please pray for Justin and others in the military; for our President and our nation; for our missionaries and pastors and those in leadership; for our church family, for relationships and unspoken needs, for provision and opportunities; and for a home for Elevation North!

- THIS WEEK . . . Remember, “A vacation is what you take when you can no longer take what you’ve been taking!” ~ Earl Wilson (And God says, “Come to Me for some ‘harmonious arrangement’ when you can no longer take what you’ve been taking!”)


Serving Christ Joyfully . . .

Pastor Doug and Debbie

Elevation North has News for YOU!

EXUBERANT! Living life with exuberance! For most people today, that seems rather unattainable! I hear stories every day that tug at my heartstrings, and I just want to “fix” everything for the ones who are spilling their hearts out to me. Some days even, I just want to “fix” everything for … my husband and me, eliminating some of the craziness of our never-ending schedules! There are moments when I hear myself declaring strongly, “God, I wouldn’t do all this for anyone but You!” Then I hear another woman pouring her heart out to me, sharing a family situation so private and with such extreme emotions, that I’m amazed at her pure honesty. There’s the love and the hate and the love again. It’s being in the place where you don’t know where to turn and you feel as if your life has gone into exile and you’ve been taken captive – and you have no idea how long you’ll be in captivity. But you know you’re committed for the long haul. There’s no bailing. And there’s no escape. Well, we feel like there’s no escape. We search for tiny moments of reprieve as if on a treasure hunt for precious gems. We anticipate the moments at the oasis as if we were totally parched and dry, unable to take even one more step! We enter that place of rest, a fleeting taste of heaven on earth, and we have to literally pull ourselves away as we re-enter the “reality show” of our lives. Is it possible to blend “craziness” and “exuberance”? Is it possible to blend “desperation” and “hope”? I believe there’s only one place where that exists. That’s in the “place of peace” that comes only from our Father in Heaven. It only takes effect when we walk in that peace – and when we practice living in that peace. That kind of peace changes everything. It calms the craziness and downsizes the desperation. It helps kick our spirits up a notch to exuberance and brings on a new dose of hope when we didn’t see even a hint of it before. Reading about Jesus’ disciples after His resurrection, we get a glimpse of ourselves and how this all fits together. Hearing the incredible news that Jesus was alive, the disciples huddled together in a safe place, fearful of those who had killed Him. They had locked all the doors, so they thought they were safe. Enter: Jesus! Locked doors don’t keep Him out. Locked doors are no hindrance to His entrance. When He wants in, He just comes in! For after all, He had a message of importance for His disciples … a message they badly needed. Simply stated, he said, “Peace to you.” Then He went on to show them the proof of His identity and His victory over death: the nail-prints in His hands and His side. The Scriptures say in John chapter 20, that when the disciples saw Jesus with their own eyes … “they were exuberant.” There’s that word! And what does it mean? Well, it means that when they saw Jesus – alive, they were suddenly full of high spirits and full of life, uninhibited! They spoke and responded without restraint. In the midst of all the joyous expression, Jesus repeats His greeting: “Peace to you. Just as the Father sent Me, I send you.” Wow … there it is! If we’ve ever wondered, well, there’s our call! But I really love what comes next! “Then He took a deep breath and breathed into them. ‘Receive the Holy Spirit,’ He said. ‘If you forgive someone’s sins, they’re gone for good. If you don’t forgive sins, what are you going to do with them?’” (That’s a REALLY good question: what ARE we going to do with the things we don’t forgive? And each of us can only answer that for ourselves!) You see, it’s in forgiveness that we also experience the peace that Christ brings! This past week my husband and I experienced some of that breathing into us as we excitedly awaited the arrival of our kids and grandkids! In a very limited amount of time, God helped us with preparations for their coming, though we still would have loved to have added a few more items to our list. But the necessary things were accomplished, and then “seeing Dustin & Becky and Isaiah & Miles and baby-to-be with our own eyes, we were exuberant!” What a great word to describe the intensity of our joy! We had already prayed that God would use us to be a blessing to our kids and grandkids – and our few days together proved to be a priceless treasure of togetherness and fun and laughter! We were even able to celebrate Isaiah’s 5th birthday a bit early! God had provided tickets for the amusement park at the Mall of America and what a glorious day of sunshine and fun with our two small grandsons come Monday morning! Fast rides, squeals of adventure, munching our lunch, walking around, and seeing the excitement in their eyes ~ was a special reward for this grampa and gramma who are always working! We were in high spirits and as full of life as they were … all of us uninhibited! Our time was a gift from God that transcended fatigue and longing for family. He breathed into all of us His good gifts from Above! Thank You, Lord! And dear ones, in the midst of your “todays”, may you find exuberance for your “tomorrows” – through the peace of Christ that passes all understanding!

IN A NUTSHELL . . .

- SUNDAYS ARE SOMETHING TO LOOK FORWARD TO – when God meets with us! He was definitely in our midst as we were blessed by the presence and ministry of Josh and Sarah Seykora and Noah and Caleb, from Perth, Australia! We were also blessed by many of their family who came to worship with us and fellowship with them! We welcome all of you in the Name of Jesus! Thank you to everyone who supported them so generously with a love offering! We encourage all of you to prayerfully consider becoming monthly supporters of this powerful Kingdom outreach through global missions!
- SPECIAL BIRTHDAY WISHES to Tanner on August 13th! God bless you with a great year, Tanner!

- LOOKING AHEAD . . .

- THIS SUNDAY, AUGUST 8TH: 10:00 A.M. – WORSHIP & PRAISE with Communion, as we continue to learn more about the “Fingerprints of God” through this series of messages that God has laid on Pastor Doug’s heart! You’ll want to be in attendance – and not miss even one message!
- 11:15 A.M. – SUNDAY SCHOOL – with classes for the entire family that will stir hearts, young and younger, alike! Taking a bit more of Jesus with us into our new week comes from being in His Word and from learning and growing together as a body of believers! Plan to stay for class after the service!
- FRIDAY, AUGUST 13TH: RE: FUEL summer event with an evening packed full of lots of fun activities & food & learning opportunities as we hang out together at Pastor D’s and Debbie’s house beginning at 6 P.M.
- SATURDAY, AUGUST 14TH: “ALL ABOUT GUYS” outing to the Twin’s Game at Target Field at 6:10 P.M. – see Pastor D or Isaac for last-minute details!
- SUNDAY, AUGUST 15TH: WORSHIP & PRAISE / AFTERNOON CHURCH LEADERSHIP & PLANNING MTG for the adults at the home of Pastor Doug and Debbie!
- OCT 22/23: WOMEN OF FAITH CONFERENCE – who can you invite to take in this “Over the Top” theme at the Xcel Center?! Begin setting aside a few dollars each week so you can come along!!!

- PRAYER OPPORTUNITIES . . .

- God loves working in the realm of the impossible! So when your needs loom large in front of you, remember that NOTHING is impossible with God! In the days ahead let’s remember Shirley’s knee replacement surgery on Monday and recovery/therapy; family situations; urgent, unspoken needs; Mandy; financial provision, divine healing for Tina, Jimmy, Julia, and her brother; for miraculous provision of a permanent place of worship for our Elevation North church family; for Seykora’s support level to increase; and most of all, remember to praise the Lord for WHO He is, and for His constant faithfulness!!!

- THIS WEEK . . . Remember, “When God opens the door, all we have to do is to walk through it!”

Serving Christ Joyfully . . .

Pastor Doug and Debbie