STORY-WRITER! That’s what He is … yes! He’s writing in a daily journal for each of us. But – unlike me, who pens words that describe our days or events or occasions, and sometimes my deepest heart thoughts on this life-long journey with God – He’s writing down my tomorrows before they ever happen. Before we ever breathed a breath on this earth, He wrote about each breath we’d ever take. Oh, He knows us so well! And all His plans for us, well He gets so excited about them, because He loves writing stories that someday we’ll tell to our children and grandchildren! Some of them are “hang-on-to-your-seat” stories … and when we look back and read them, it about takes our breath away! We remember gripping the steering wheel on those rides, but it didn’t do any good – because we weren’t driving. We had given God the wheel. And we were on the ride of our lives!!! And when we get to the last page and remember how it all ends, just like little children, we beg, “Read it again, God … read it again!” There’s nothing like living the story-line from the very beginning – to the very last words on the final page! Some of His stories we have practically memorized – we’ve read them so many times, or just sat back and closed our eyes as He read them to us with animated voice! Actually, He never, ever had to read the stories to us. He seemed to have photographic memory … or … oh yes, God knows everything! He just tells us the stories like He knows them to be. And we are always a captivated audience. Captivated by the wonder of His story-writing and story-telling ability. There’s nothing like a true story, you know. They’re the best ones, actually. We love the gusto of His laugh as He throws His head back when He is caught up in the moment of seeing us glued to the edges of our seats as we wonder what’s coming next! Sometimes WE don’t think it’s so funny, though. But that’s because we cannot see how the story ends – yet. He knows. He wrote the ending. And He’s laughing in pure joy over what He knows is coming. He sees the finish line at the end of this race, and He already knows we will cross it amidst cheers and applause. Even if there is no one else there to see us cross the line, the cheers and applause will be His. Those nail-scarred hands pat us on the back for running a good race. He’s a great illustrator of stories, too. We see ourselves digging in through the toughest parts of the race – He’s drawn that well. We see ourselves sending a prayer heavenward for needed strength and endurance – He’s sketched us looking up. We see ourselves stopping along the way to take time out of the craziness of this world to touch a life – and He’s painted Himself in the background looking at us with that “pleased Papa” look on His face. The story gets more interesting with each chapter. There are twists and turns and many mysteries. And there is only one place to solve them … and that’s on our knees. Right now, God is writing in our book at break-neck speed. Even speed-reading, we can barely keep up! There are changes appearing on almost every horizon of our lives. The new church location is being painted like a roller-coaster ride and while we love the view from the top, the drops suck the air out of us for a moment or two! We’re looking forward to having the ride slow down just a bit so we can move into the ministry curve around the next bend! With a few strokes of His brush, our work-hours are happily diminishing in unexpected ways that will allow us to catch our breath again and discover more of the hilarity and relaxation that have seemed to be oh, so distant for such a long time. At the same moment, He is penning the words in bold, bold print … TRUST ME! Because with diminished hours comes diminished paychecks. But the most beautiful entry in the book is flourishes of peace and rest and provision – and they are illustrated in ways that we could not have even pictured no matter how big our imagination was! Because God’s ways are beyond ours. All we know is that whatever He writes on the pages of our lives in the days ahead, the end of the storybook is going to turn out just as He planned … and that will be GOOD! And the really great thing is that hopefully whoever gets to read our story will see plainly without a shadow of a doubt, that our God is faithful! Through the ups and the downs, the questions and the answers, you can see Him on every page. Through the joys and the tears, He shows up. Through the excitement and the let-downs, He is there just the same. While our changes are painted all over the book, He always looks the same – we see no changes in Him! That’s so reassuring! And we think it’s an honor to have our “book” authored by none other than the God who knows our lives from the beginning to the end – and everything in between! I won’t be surprised if it makes the best-seller list! Come along and turn the pages with us!!
IN A NUTSHELL . . .
IN A NUTSHELL . . .
- THERE’S NOTHING BETTER than celebrating God together … and celebrate we did this past Sunday! God is writing the next chapter in Elevation North’s book, too, and we are all praising Him for miracles already done! Our special thanks to James for assisting with the Spaghetti Luncheon afterward, and to their family for the fresh flowers on the lunch tables! We appreciated everyone’s help on both Saturday and Sunday! You are all the best! And a special thanks to Matthias for taking the youth on the paint-ball expedition in the afternoon; everyone had a great time!
- A WARM WELCOME to Theo and his nephews, and also to Xavier who came to worship with us this past Sunday; thank you for blessing us with your presence! We hope you will all join us again soon!
- CONGRATULATIONS to Matthias and Liz and girls on the birth of Emilyn Olivia who arrived on October 6th, weighing 8 lb. 5 oz., and was 21” long! May God’s blessing rest upon your family!
- LOVING BIRTHDAY WISHES are sent to our son, DJ, who writes on our heart with his love and prayers in so many ways, as he celebrates his birthday this week on October 14th. May God’s blessings and favor be upon you in all you do – that He might be lifted up! We love you!
- BIRTHDAY WISHES go out to Lyndell who will be celebrating on October 12th! May God bless you with your best year ever!
- WE SAY FAREWELL to Ernie and Audry who moved to Texas this past week. You will be missed and we pray for God’s abundant blessings to be yours in your new location!
- CONGRATS to Sharon, whose softball team won first place in the regional Special Olympics tournament! We are proud of you and your accomplishment, Sharon!
- LOOKING AHEAD . . .
- THIS SUNDAY & NEXT, OCTOBER 9/16TH:: 10:00 A.M. – WORSHIP & PRAISE, continuing in our series on “Looking at Signs of the End Times.” Be sure to be a part of these timely messages from God’s Word as we see prophecy being fulfilled all around us!
- COMING UP SOON … Women of Faith Conference at the Xcel Energy Center in St. Paul on October 21-22! Come along with us for this outstanding time in the presence of the Lord with an arena full of women worshipping the Lord! Be sure to turn in your $89 ticket money this week so we can pass it on to Sonya. We still have tickets available … so keep inviting friends and family! See Debbie for more information!
- MEN’S STEAK FRY … Friday, October 21st at 6 p.m. … this promises to be a great guy’s night out! Don’t miss it!
- PRAYER OPPORTUNITIES . . .
- OUR LIST OF NEEDS is always long – but God’s ability to answer is even more amazing! He reaches us wherever we are at! That goes for Jimmy, Kay, Roger, Elsie, Wayne, Eva, Cherry and Johnny, Gerard, the Lundstroms, the Seykoras, our military personnel, our students, our government, our families & our churches! May God be lifted up!
- REMEMBER . . . What are YOU writing? “Live for something … Write your name in kindness, love, and mercy on the hearts of thousands you come in contact with … you will never be forgotten.” ~ Thomas Chalmers
Serving Christ Joyfully . . .
Pastor Doug and Debbie
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