This Sunday July 22, 2009

Just a little FYI for you.

This Sunday, July 26^th is going to be AWESOME!  As if there is ever a Sunday that is not.  Perry will be speaking about volunteering and will be encouraging those who are not serving to start.  I say all the time that you guys are the sermon illustration every week, this week more than ever.  He will be referencing Ephesians 2:10 and Acts 6:1-7.  Please get your bible out and read over those passages right now.   Meditate on those passages over the next few days.

You guys are in ministry and leading this vision.  I want to invite you to stand on the front line with me this week and be contagious.  We want to serve people over and beyond and set the example of a healthy body.  There are a few ways you guys can help to make this happen.

1. Be here!  Let’s have so many volunteers every service that people start to ask why.  We’d love to have you hang out for more than one service if you’d like.  The more volunteers the better!
2. Wear a NewSpring t-shirt.  It can be your No Perfect People shirt or any NewSpring shirt.  We want you guys to stand out more and to clearly represent.
3. 3. Be Ready!  Be ready to go over and beyond with your service.  If you greet, greet with enthusiasm.  If you clean, clean with enthusiasm.  If you park cars, sale shirts or coffee, do it all with enthusiasm. 

Romans 12:11 “Never be lazy in your work, but serve the Lord enthusiastically.”

I know that my life has been changed so much since I started serving at NewSpring almost ten years ago.  I can say that I would probably not be married right now if it had not been for this church and our challenge to get involved here.  I’ve grown closer to the Lord in so many ways.  My world has been rocked!  Most of you can relate.  I know because I’ve heard your stories of life change.  I’ve seen firsthand marriages healed and spouses saved.  Don’t you want that for everyone?  Let’s love on some people this weekend and have fun.  I look forward to serving alongside you.

Philippians 2:1-4 “Is there any encouragement from belonging to Christ? Any comfort from his love? Any fellowship together in the Spirit? Are your hearts tender and sympathetic? Then make me truly happy by agreeing wholeheartedly with each other, loving one another, and working together with one heart and purpose.  Don’t be selfish; don’t live to make a good impression on others. Be humble thinking of others as better than yourself. Don’t think only about your own affairs, but be interested in others, too, and what they are doing.”

Small Thank You July 21, 2009

So I’m standing in the lobby on Sunday and one of our amazing Parking team volunteers comes up to me and shows me this picture that a little kid gave him in the parking lot.  This volunteer has a special robot dance he does for the kids as they are pulling into the parking lot.  He says that parking cars is his time to dance and encourages other people to find their place to dance in ministry.  He proceeded to tell me he saw this little kid walking towards him so he stopped traffic to see what he was doing.  The kid then handed him a picture he had colored that said “thank you for volunteering”.  He was blown away.  He then wrote me this e-mail on Monday morning.

“I found out when i got home from my daughter, who also volunteers, that the children’s elementary dept had the kids do these sheets of papers. I just wanted to say that when i got home and i realized just how big our God is… I lost it. You see, this morning I prayed to the Lord that i wanted to be closer to Him. i wanted to have a closer personal relationship with Him. i also prayed last night that we would have at least 20 first timers per service. He showed me not to limit Him with a number because He blew that out of the water by having over 90 in the first two services. Then, to have a little young man come up to me and hand me a little piece of paper to an area in the parking lot that i am not usually in and to have it speak to me so profoundly after i had that conversation with God this morning…well i just can’t put it into words. I do not believe in coincidences. God had this planned before i even talked to Him.

Please understand i am not special but i am blessed. i am blessed with a great family, a great church and most of all a great and glorious God who took the time to make all these things come together today and just to make me smile….with a little piece of paper.

I can’t stop crying as i write this because i am in such awe. Please thank the KidSpring volunteers for me and let them know i will never forget this day. That little piece of paper is now proudly on my fridge where it will be displayed for a long time.”

Zip

Hebrews 11:1

I love you, Zip!  You are amazing.  Thank you for showing people Jesus every week.  Thank you for doing your DANCE!

Greenville Campus July 14, 2009

Happy one year anniversary to NewSpring, Greenville Campus.  God has done some truely amazing things over the past year in Greenville.  Here’s a little note from Howard, the campus pastor.

Today is July 13th, and one year ago today, we open our first multi-site campus in Greenville.

I just wanted to write a quick note to everyone to thank you all for all that you have done in making this first year a HUGE success! No matter what your role, you have played a key part in reaching people for Jesus in Greenville! In the past year, here are just a few areas of life change we have seen:

• almost 600 people ask Jesus into their lives!
• over 350 people go public in baptism!
• over 300 people attend a financial class!
• over 400 kids coming to church on more than one Sunday!
• over 145 students come to a Fuse event!
• countless relationships restored,
• the list could go on and on!!!

I want to thank all of you for praying for us as a campus, for coming and helping us, for giving to Gametime and most importantly for showing and teaching us how we do ministry!! There is NO WAY that this kind of life change could or would have happened without everyone’s involvement. I just want to let you know, that God is using all of you to accomplish more than you can ever ask or imagine!

On behalf of the hundreds of lives changed, and on behalf of the Greenville staff and myself, I want to say a HUGE and very emotional THANK YOU!!

gratefully,
Howard