Marriage Seminar at New Life May 4-5

It was Richard Winter, professor at Covenant Seminary, who said the devil likes to attack marriages because marriage is one of the clearest pictures on earth of the relationship between Christ and his people. Is it then any wonder that there is so much tension and dysfunction in marriages?
New Life wants to help you and our community wage war against the enemy’s attacks on our marriages by offering a free two-day video-based marriage seminar on Friday, May 4, from 6:30 to 9 pm, and on Saturday, May 5, from 9 am to 3 pm, here at the church.

The video is called “The Art of Marriage,” and has been produced by FamilyLife, a ministry started by Dennis and Barbara Rainey and which has become best known for their “Weekend to Remember” marriage conferences that have been attended by more than 2.5 million people worldwide. The FamilyLife motto is, “Help for today, hope for tomorrow.”
Among the featured speakers on the video are Paul Tripp, Al Mohler, Dave Harvey, Wayne Grudem and Crawford Lorritts. These are all men whose materials I have read, and I can personally testify to their theological soundness and passion for the Gospel.

Here are the topics the video series will explore: Love Happens – God’s Purpose and Plan; Love Fades – Overcoming Isolation; Love Dances – Fulfilling Our Responsibilities; Love Interrupted – Communication and Conflict; Love Sizzles – Experiencing Real Intimacy; and Love Always – Leaving a Lasting Legacy.

A common response to news of yet another marriage seminar is to think that your marriage is fine, and that this kind of event is only for couples on the verge of divorce. But as the promo materials for this event indicate, every marriage is in a constant state of movement, and yours is either growing closer together, or moving further apart. And because of our fallen state as sinners, it is our natural inclination to drift apart. So even if you consider your marriage to be healthy and happy, there is always room for improvement. If your marriage is struggling, then it goes without saying that you should prayerfully and seriously consider attending.
But let me encourage you also to think not just of yourselves, but of others you know in your neighborhoods, workplaces and extended families who might be longing for an opportunity to improve their marriages. Pray that God would open their hearts to respond positively, and then invite these people to attend. Consider attending the seminar with them, so you can sit with them and make them feel welcome. This will be an opportunity for them not only to heal their marriage, but to hear the Gospel as well.

Available at the seminar will be an accompanying book that can be purchased for $17.50 the day of the event. Purchase of this book is not required to attend the event. Once again, admission is free.
Call the church office register for this seminar. The registration deadline is April 29. Childcare is limited, so early registration is encouraged. Check out the video HERE for more information about the content of the seminar.

Annual Church Beautification Day THIS Saturday

Spring has finally sprung! It’s a time to enjoy warmer days, sunshine, and the green grass and trees. It’s also a time to “spring clean” and beautify the church building and grounds that God has entrusted to us.
Please plan to join us Saturday, April 28, anytime between 10am-3pm to work on various projects at the church. Some of the projects to be completed include cleaning the interior of the church and weeding. We will provide a subway lunch. All skill and experience levels are welcome! Please sign up for on my.newlife.

Help with Recycling at New Life

On a given Sunday we go through almost 1,000 sheets of paper. This is a necessary need to inform the congregation of the order of the service and to communicate the events of the church. But like most printed publications, once the information is communicated, the paper is thrown away. Recycling today is very simple and an easy way to care for the earth that God gave us.

We are in need of someone who has a passion for caring for the earth to oversee New Life’s recycling needs. Contact the church office if you are interested in filling this role.

Easter Lilies for Sale

This year, in an effort to beautify the church for Easter, the decorating committee will be selling Easter lilies! We are offering the congregation a chance to purchase Easter lilies in honor or memory of an individual. The buyers then will be allowed to take their lovely lilies home after Easter Services. These Lilies will be $12 a piece–the plants will be 24-36″ with 5-7 blossoms each.

This will  be a great way to remember someone special as well as to help brighten the church on the day that we celebrate the resurrection of our Savior.  A sign-up sheet will be hanging in the breezeway. Orders must be placed by April 1 and checks can be made to “New Life” with “Easter Lilies” on the memo line. If you have any questions please contact the church office.

Calling all Spud-Lovers! Potato Bar April 20

“Don’t be a dud! Come have a spud! Support a Youth Group bud!”

Come build-your-own gourmet baked potato at New Life on Friday April 20, 5:30pm– 7:30pm.

Proceeds support the Jr. High Youth Group Summer Camp. Meal includes a large potato with any toppings from our toppings bar, drinks, & desserts.

 

 

Monthly Saturday Morning Men’s Discipleship Breakfast

Men’s discipleship will be having a monthly Saturday morning men’s breakfast with a short discussion about men’s spiritual matters and a time of fellowship and prayer, starting Saturday March 31, 9-10:30am. We want to invite all adult men to come out and join us for some good food and great fellowship with your brothers. This hopes to be the start of a fruitful and encouraging extension to our men’s group that already meets for weekly discipleship and prayer.

We will be accepting donations to help cover the cost of food as this is a non budgeted event.

For more info contact the church office.

Letter to the Congregation Regarding Pledge Campaign

Dear Church Family,

Psalm 118:1 proclaims, “Give thanks to the Lord, for He is good; His love endures forever.” How true those words ring, most recently in light of God’s  provision for us to move forward with the Growing Together Building Campaign. If you haven’t heard, we have met our goal of raising $320,000 in pledges and now embark on the next phase of this exciting project.

We want to thank all of you who have prayed and who have partnered financially with us to expand our church facility. In the midst of this great excitement, we must remain clear on the “adventure” that lies ahead. As with any important undertaking, there will be new challenges which will require your assistance, including the following:

• Ongoing prayer – for the unity of the body in this expansion; wisdom for members of the building committee, the architects and the elders regarding decisions that will need to be made; for accuracy in the plans, ease in acquiring the necessary permits, costs of materials, budgets and patience.
• Additional financial support – we continue to joyfully accept additional pledge amounts that can be used to further reduce the debt and overcome unexpected costs.
• Patience – as mentioned above, we are excited to embark on this next step, but there are many things that must take place before we can break ground.

For those who have been involved in other building projects, you are familiar with the processes that must take place before we can put a shovel in the ground. Last week, the elders gave approval to the architects to prepare the final construction plans, which will take place in April and May. State and local permitting will then follow in June and July, which should allow construction to begin in August. This timeline is tentative, but if everything goes as planned, the building should be finished around May 2013.

As we proceed, let’s keep in mind that the construction of this building gets us one step closer to our long-term goal of planting churches in central Indiana that more may hear the good news of what Jesus Christ has done for sinners.

Before closing, our greatest appreciation goes to everyone who has faithfully stepped up to sustain our three-service schedule over the past many months. We know how wearing this can be, yet you have been making this a reality each and every week. This obviously will need to continue, but now we have an end in sight!

Praise God the Father!

Pastor Bob, on behalf of the session of New Life Presbyterian

Easter Service Schedule

During Easter weekend there will be a Good Friday Service, starting at 7pm, on April 6, and the three service schedule will remain the same for Easter Sunday, April 8.

Celebrating St. Patrick’s God

Yesterday marked the annual celebration of St. Patrick’s Day, first commemorated in Boston in 1737.  It is sad, however, that most of the celebration today has to do with leprechauns and wearing green clothes with no mention of St. Patrick’s actual life or his work as a missionary for the gospel of Jesus Christ.

St. Patrick is often associated with Ireland, but he was not a native of Ireland.  St. Patrick was born in Roman Britain around the year 385. When he was about 16 years old, he was taken captive by invaders from Ireland, and taken back as a slave to shepherd sheep. It was not until 6 years later that he was able to flee 200 miles on foot over hilly and rocky terrain to reach the coast and find a ship. Allowed to board, Patrick escaped from his captors and returned home.

But shortly after arriving home, he had a dream that God was calling him to return to the superstitiously pagan land of his captivity. Against the pleas of his family, he left his home to proclaim the gospel in Ireland.  He was sent as an official missionary by the church in 432 and eventually became the Bishop of Ireland.

Though very few of his writings survive, it appears that St. Patrick’s ministry was one of proclaiming the gospel in an orthodox and faithful manner. Patrick was also a pastor and shepherd to the people, no doubt something impressed upon him in his years tending sheep in the Irish countryside. St. Patrick died in 465, allegedly on March 17. His tomb is marked and can be visited in Armagh, Ireland to this day.

But Patrick’s ministry continued to have a tremendous impact on the church and its development even after his death. Because it remained isolated from the rest of Europe, Christian Ireland became the center for copying ancient Christian texts and of learning when the Roman Empire fell to Germanic invaders.

Furthermore, it was the Irish who began sending missionaries into Europe to convert these invading tribes to Christ. So important was the work of Irish Christians during this period that James Cahill has written a book called How the Irish Saved Civilization.  Indeed, today’s world would looked markedly different if not for the life and ministry of St. Patrick.

But it’s ultimately the truths we learn about God from St. Patrick that are worth celebrating. For example, we see that difficult circumstances in life are used for God’s glory and our good. We would be right in asking the question, “Who was capturing St. Patrick at age 16?”  In an important sense, God was capturing him and claiming him for blessing and life. Patrick’s life demonstrates the truth that God works all things together for the good of His people.

We also see that God is faithful to His promise to build the church and that the gates of hell will not overcome it. He is directing the circumstances of history for the spreading of the kingdom. He is the Great Missionary, seeking worshippers from all nations, tribes, and tongues. He called the people of Ireland to himself, and used them to preserve the truth and to spread the gospel to others. And he used an ordinary person like Patrick to accomplish great things.

We can be encouraged because He is still building the church and He is still using ordinary people like you and me who are willing to go wherever He leads and bear witness to the gospel. While the life of St. Patrick provides us with an opportunity to reflect on church history and find encouragement from the saints who have gone before, it is ultimately St. Patrick’s God we celebrate and who is worthy of our worship, our hearts, and our lives.

 

 

Monthly Prayer Service this Sunday 3/25

The monthly prayer service is this coming Sunday (3/25). Please join us as we gather to give special attention to pray for our church and for individual concerns. We will meet at 6pm in the sanctuary.

 

 

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