MidWeek E-Newsletter |
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Issue: # 242
| September 5, 2013
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Beginning a new series on the letter of James, Pastor Phil introduced us to the author. This "James" (there are 3 in the New Testament) was the younger brother of Jesus, although that's not the authority he claimed. James saw himself "as a bond-servant of God and
of the Lord Jesus Christ." (vs 1)
James didn't believe in his brother as the Messiah until after the resurrection when Jesus appeared directly to him. After that, James becomes a radical believer and eventually becomes a chief leader in the church in Jerusalem.
James here in this letter wrote about practical Christian living, not a thick theology on salvation or other concepts. He illustrated that the Gospel must cause impact in how we live!
Out of the gate, James started on a common, yet very difficult topic:
Consider it all joy, my brethren, when you encounter various trials, knowing that the testing of your faith produces endurance. And let endurance have its perfect result, so that you may be perfect and complete, lacking in nothing.
We need to let our mind rule our emotions, rather than the other way around. Our Faith - that is "knowing something you know to be true" - leads us to this kind of living. If we know that God is trying to build us for "endurance," then we won't be surprised by trials. In fact, in our trials, the main lesson is "endurance," more often than it is a "particular teaching point."
Suffering is a mechanism that God uses to perfect/complete us. When we change our mind about trials, then you can see it's God's hand shaping our life. Through the process of struggle & endurance, we become complete and receive God's blessing!
"Blessed is the one who perseveres under trial; for once he has been approved, he will receive the crown of life which the Lord has promised to those who love Him."
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TEACHER DEDICATION & PROMOTION SUNDAY
9:00 AM Children will promote to the next grade Sunday School class in the church sanctuary. (
10:15 AM We will have a time of prayer and blessing for our teachers during the main service. Special musical number by our own teachers - Miss Haley Helfer and Mrs. Corrie Villa.
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BBQ POOL PARTY WITH FEARLESS
Tuesday September 10
6-9pm
@ The Deaton's
1041 E. Tehachapi Dr., Long Beach, CA 90807
Cost = $5 (includes dinner!)
If you bring a friend, cost is FREE!
Bring: your towel, swimsuit & friends and join us for a night of fun.
Questions: Contact Kevin Edwards (562) 822-1587
Check out the FEARLESS MINISTRY page online
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 INTERNATIONAL FRIENDSHIP NIGHT
Friday September 13th
from 6-9pm
at Los Altos Grace (Fellowship Hall).
Our first night was a great start, and yet we are going to need some help with our next time. Let us know if you would be willing to do any of the following:
1) Transportation- pick up/drop off student(s)
2) Food preparation help.
3) Be a Table Talk person - conversation leader(Question asker!!!)
4) Help Setup/Clean up
5) Could you lead/play an Americana folk song? (ex: Yankee Doodle Dandy, others) Maybe give a little history with it and teach it to our group.
You can let Mike Jentes at mjentes@LAGBC.org
More info and an invitation for others on our webpage
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MISSION OF THE MONTH: ICDI works collaboratively, in long-term partnership, with communities in central Africa, empowering people with sustainable access to clean water, transformational sanitation principles, and improved agricultural resources.
"...our teams have given clean water to an estimated 30,000 people who didn't have clean water just a few months ago. That's an average of 500 people per day!"
Read more about current ministry updates online. If you would like to financially support the ministry of ICDI you are welcome to do so through your regular offering, or you can use the Donation button above to do so online!
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SERVE OUR KIDS!
Our Children's Ministry during the Junior Church time has some open slots for the opportunity to teach and influence our kids. 1st-5th grade (10:30AM after worship in church) needs a teacher on the... - 1) 4th Sunday of each month
(12 times per year) Starting Sept 22nd
2) 5th Sunday (4 times per year) Starting Sept 29 Please see Cindi Stone or call 562-596-3358 X803.
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SEPTEMBER PRAYER UPDATE FROM PRECIOUS LAMB
� Please continue to pray for our new classroom. We have had many items sponsored off of our wish list and are continually fundraising to be able to open our doors. We are pleased to announce that we have raised 25% of our goal in new monthly giving towards the second classroom...
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 HISTORY OF GRACE BRETHREN SUNDAY CLASS
Starting Sundays on September 22 , during the 9am hour, Mike Jentes will be teaching an elective class open to anyone in our church family.
We will learn from the history of our Grace Brethren movement about our beginnings, our impact and also apply it to our lives today!
The motto of the Brethren church was originally expressed in German in the 1700s: Die Bibel, die ganze Bibel, und nichts als die Bibel . In English this meansThe Bible, the whole Bible, and nothing but the Bible. Have you ever heard that before?
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SEPTEMBER UPDATE
IT'S NOT EASY, BUT IT IS WONDERFUL!
Those words tumbled from the mouth of Pastor Javier Forero as he led a multi-ethnic worship service. It was Sunday morning and several hundred of us were gathered for the National Grace Brethren Conference...
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 MISSIONARIES OF THE MONTH-
Cecil & Debbie O'Dell Discipling the Japanese with Encompass World Partners |
HOST JAPANESE STUDENTS THIS FALL
We have a golden opportunity to share the love of Christ with the Japanese in our own homes!Compass USA has been bringing students from the Osaka, Japan area for the last 7 years. This year 110 middle school students are visiting America through this particular program. Their stay in the Long Beach area is from 10/31 - 11/4. The students arrive early afternoon on Thursday, go to Disneyland on Friday, spend the weekend with their host family and then depart on Monday morning. Last year some of our church family hosted students: "We really enjoyed hosting two girls last fall. Nanako and Tomoyo were sweet and appreciated our time together. They were eager to try all kinds of food and to go to the mall and the beach. It was hard to say goodbye at the end of the weekend. We loved hosting these two girls and are signed up for this Fall!" - Shelly Deaton
Again, it's a short stay, but a great investment. It provides a great opportunity to engage with the other side of the world in our own home as well as a simple opportunity to love them with Christ's love. In exchange, your family has the opportunity to get a scholarship for your children to travel to another country: Japan, France or Spain. You can see the details here at http://aili.us . In any case, I'd love to partner with you in the gospel. Please call me 562.879.0191 or email lachica.pipeline@gmail.com if you have any questions about hosting. In Christ, Amy Lachica
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Press on!
Los Altos Grace // Mike Jentes
Los Altos Grace Brethren Church
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