Dear Brothers and Sisters,
The early Christians knew that Jesus had given them a calling: “You will be my witnesses” (Acts 1:8). They also knew that they didn’t have it in themselves to meet the demands of this call. When Peter and John are told not to speak in the name of Jesus anymore, they boldly tell the leaders that they must obey God rather than men. They then return and tell the believers what had happened to them (Acts 4:23). How does this group of believers respond? They turn to prayer.
In the face of opposition in Acts 4:23-31, Jesus’s followers pray to the “Sovereign Lord” who is Creator of all and is directing all of history. Furthermore, their prayer is fully in alignment with their calling to be witnesses. They ask God to give them boldness to proclaim the gospel of forgiveness of sins to their community, which included their opponents! This is a prayer that God answers: “And when they had prayed, the place in which they were gathered together was shaken, and they were all filled with the Holy Spirit and continued to speak the word of God with boldness.” (Acts 4:31) The way Luke tells it, there was no way that the people of God could fulfill their calling apart from the empowering boldness that the Spirit provides. As twenty-first century Christians, we have access to this exact same source of power because Jesus is still alive, ruling on his throne, and present with his people through the indwelling Spirit.
Click here for the link to this Sunday’s worship service (9:30am).
Church Directory
Our updated church directory is now available. If you requested a hard copy of the new directory, it will be available for pickup this Sunday in your box. If you did not have a chance to sign up for the directory on the sign-up sheet this past Sunday, please contact Rosa Matos in the church office (630-231-8230; [email protected]) and she will make sure you receive one. Please note that though we were hoping to provide digital access to the directory as well as via an app today, we are still working out some delays. We hope to provide access through our website soon.
Haiti Donation List
Thank you for your generosity in donating items for Haiti. Once again, here is the list of items if you would like to donate items for VBS and the orphanages here a list of items. Please place donated items on the table in room 8.
- jump ropes
- soccer balls (deflated)
- colored pencils
- pencil sharpeners
- scissors
- construction paper
- bubbles
- glue sticks
- children’s watercolor paint sets
- pipe cleaners
- popsicle sticks.
If you have questions about other items to donate, please feel free to contact me about this.
Praises and Prayer Requests
Lou Carter: Praise God that Lou Carter is continuing to heal and regain her strength during physical rehabilitation at Johnson Healthcare Center. She hopes to return home this Sunday.
Karla Van Der Molen: Karla is experiencing progressive weakness and significant loss of dexterity in arms, shoulders, and hands. Please pray for strength and healing for Karla and guidance for the doctors.
In Christ,
Pastor Rhett