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July 6, 2017
Dear MLEPC Members and Friends,
Greetings in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ! I hope you are doing well and are seeing God's hand at work. It has been such a joy to get to know you all (okay, y'all, as my people say) and see what the Lord is doing in this congregation.
Do you ever struggle with trusting God's will in your life? Sometimes, the Lord has plans that are hard to understand - they make no sense in the moment. Even so, we have the assurance in Romans 8:28 that God will work all things together for the good of those who love him. As we continue our series on the Lord's Prayer this week, we will be wrestling with the issue of praying for God's will--and not our will--to be done. Why is it such a struggle to hand the reins to the Lord? As I said in the first sermon in the series, we have to keep going back to the first beginning - we have a Good Father, who is the Almighty God, who loves us and wants what is best for us. That is the source of trust and the source of his will. Pray for God to open our hearts to his leading throughout our church and community!
One place I have seen the Lord leading in this congregation is through Mission:Possible. It is incredible to me to see literally hundreds of people engaged in this massive program. Many thanks to all of you who have committed your time and heart for this ministry!
If you have not signed up for a Mission:Possible team yet, there is still time! We need more volunteers for a number of ministries:
- Are you a morning person? Consider Coffee on the Wing! Share the love of God and a good cup of coffee with weary commuters.
- Do you love the Food Network? Why not join the team in the kitchen? We have 14 meals to prepare, so you can jump in to one or more slots. Or bake goodies at home - celebrate the Pittsburgh cookie table tradition!
- Know how to hold a paint brush? Think about joining one of our two construction teams.
We have lots of other opportunities as well. We need pray-ers, hosts at Summerfest, gardeners, blood donors, and many other volunteers. Check out our website to learn more.
And especially this week, we want to highlight the donations list. The full list is on our website here and will also be an insert in the bulletin this week. Items include soft cover Bibles, full-sized toiletries, school supplies, and kits for kitchens, baths, and bedrooms.
The biggest thing you can contribute in the next two weeks is prayer. Will you pray for even 5 minutes a day for Mission:Possible? Pray for God's will to be done in this community as it is in heaven. Pray for the volunteers and team leaders. Pray for all the people whose lives will be touched by our outreach. Pray for follow-up plans, that seeds we plant can be watered and tended as we seek to make disciples. Pray for joy, strength, energy, protection, and more than anything, for God to be glorified in all we say and do!
Many blessings,
Pastor Carolyn
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