Pastor Jay
“Following Jesus” Series Starts This Week
Now through Easter, come explore discipleship through the “Following Jesus” sermon series.
- March 10 – The Invitation
- March 17 – Those Who Left
- March 24 – Long Distance Disciples
- March 31 – Toward the Cross
- April 7 – To the Ends of the Earth
We’ll learn what discipleship really means, the importance of counting the cost, life transformation, and what discipleship looks like in modern times. See you there!
The Valley Comes with the Vision
Almost without fail, God’s most faithful followers end up in the pit. Or prison. Or exile in the wilderness. It comes with the territory. The valley comes with the vision.
Sometimes the valley prepares you for the vision. What would Joseph have been like if he hadn’t been thrown in the pit, sold as a slave, and shut up in prison on trumped-up charges? The pit, Potiphar, and prison prepared Joseph for the palace (Genesis 50:20). We see the same kind of preparation with Moses tending sheep in exile for 40 years (Exodus 2). Or Daniel and his friends being forcibly removed from Jerusalem and marched to Bablyon as prisoners.
We can look at those instances and say, “See. Just wait. God has a purpose in all of this. He’s preparing you for something greater!”
But sometimes the valley comes after the vision, in spite of the vision, because of the vision. Abel died at the hands of his brother because he was faithful to the vision (Genesis 4). Elijah was hunted because of the vision (1 Kings 17) and then went through debilitating depression after God had used him in a powerful way (1 Kings 19). Jeremiah was thrown in a cistern where his feet sunk into the mud (Jeremiah 38:6). John the Baptist was beheaded, Jesus was crucified, and most of the disciples died in exile or as martyrs.
And we ask, “What happened? Didn’t they have a vision from God?”
Yes, they did. And the vision was more important than their comfort. It was bigger than life. It was greater than death. It was more real than the passing things of this earth.
The valley comes with the vision.
New Pastor Marshall Bowers
Pastor Marshall Bowers will be the new pastor at Renew Community Church sometime in June or July 2012.
He brings a mix of rich experiences, including pastoral care, preaching, teaching, and administration to this position.
Until Pastor Bowers arrives, our head elder Jay Perry will be preaching and helping out as much as he can.
Special Worship Service this Weekend
This Sabbath the youth team from Atlanta Adventist Academy-Twin Cities (AAA-TC) is coming to lead worship, preach and share testimonies. I am so looking forward to what God is going to do among us this Sabbath as we join together to worship.
AAA-TC is our Seventh-day Adventist High School program that is available for our youth. The campus is at Minnetonka Christian Academy, and the students sit in classrooms that are linked live via video to other Seventh-day Adventist campuses in Georgia and Tennessee. Some instructors are physically at our Twin Cities campus, and other instructors are at the other campuses. All the students see and interact with the teacher and the other students in real time. This is the education of tomorrow happening today!
I invite you to attend this special worship service tomorrow and see firsthand how the Lord is impacting and leading our youth. Renew Community Church is proud to support AAA-TC both spiritually and financially. Please consider bringing a special offering for our High School program.
Also continuing this Sabbath is the Bible Marking Class, which follows the worship time at 4:30 pm. See you Sabbath!
Schedule Change Through Oct 22
This coming Sabbath, September 24, we are changing our schedule a little bit. We will continue to have our worship time at 3 pm just as we always do, but we will have the class time at 2 pm instead of after the worship time. To complement with our Decoding Prophecy series which continues over the next several weeks in Shakopee, we will have a Bible Marking Class at 2 pm every Sabbath until October 22. A Bible Marking Class teaches you how to mark key Bible verses on special topics so you are able to give Bible studies to friends.
Also, following our worship time this sabbath we will share some light fellowship food. The goal here is to socialize longer while having something to eat. This is more stand- or sit-and-chat food, not the big entrees that we regularly bring to fellowship meals. So bring some food and invite a friend!
- 2 pm – Bible Marking Class
- 3 pm – Conversation Worship Time
- 4:30 – Food and Fellowship Time
Worship at Lions Park September 3
This Sabbath, September 3, we will meet at Lions Park in Shakopee for an unplugged worship time.
Lions Park is right across Adams Street from our regular location, New Creation Lutheran Church. Let’s enjoy worshiping the Creator outdoors! There will be no regular sermon, but instead an open testimony time to share the ways God has called us to step out in faith and what He did and is doing now. We will also have a potluck-style fellowship meal afterwards. This is picnic-style, so bring a dish ready to share. Invite a friend!
Where: Lions Park in Shakopee, Adams Street (Just across the street from New Creation Lutheran)
Shelter 2 (across the parking lot from the children’s playground)
When: 3 PM
If the weather is bad, we will meet at New Creation Lutheran.
See you there!
Understand Bible Prophecy
On September 8, a great event begins in Shakopee that you don’t want to miss! Decoding Prophecy is an evening Bible presentation series that will take you on an incredible journey through the most compelling book of our day, the book of Revelation in the Bible. You may have heard a lot of wild things about Revelation and what it says about our world today.
This series by Michael Sady will answer your questions and show you new questions to ask about living in the days just ahead.
Michael Sady will teach you sound principles of reading and understanding the prophecies of the Bible. More than that, he will show you another compelling example of a person in a dynamic relationship with Jesus Christ.
I encourage you to check out the website for this event, www.DecodeProphecy.com. You can check out the event schedule, register for FREE, and send invitations to your friends.
Decoding Prophecy starts September 8!
AmericInn Hotel Conference Room
Canterbury Road and Highway 169
New Class Starting This Weekend
This Sabbath, May 28, we are starting a six-week series called God Provides. In each session we will watch a short film of a powerful Bible story displaying how God provides for our deepest needs. We will discuss how the principles we discover apply to our financial lives today.
UPDATE: God Provides Class Series – Starting May 28
A new class series called God Provides starts May 28!
This six-week series incorporates shorth-length videos of six Bible stories.
God reveals Himself as…
- Creator
- Redeemer
- Sustainer of all things
He has every resource to meet any of your needs.
In each class, we will connect what we discover about God to the financial needs in our society today.
Renew Time to Pray! Time and Location Change
Renew Time to Pray! is our weekly prayer time facilitated by Kristin Breiner. It has moved to a new night and a new location. Now on Tuesday evenings 6:30 – 7:30 PM, it is at Susanne Covington’s home in Shakopee. Go to our website for directions, by clicking on calendar and select Time to Pray!, then click on “map and directions.”
You can also let us know about any prayer requests you have by clicking on our prayer page. You can submit requests there as either private or public. If private, the pastor and prayer coordinator receive those and pray for them confidentially.