Newcomers & Guests

My role at PF is at times ambiguous; aside from being PC’s wife, the answerer of questions, the last-minute detailer, etc., I serve as the overseer of newcomers. Having found this to be natural my whole life makes this an easy fit for me.

One of the first things we noticed about PF was the friendliness and warmth of the people. That has not changed! We hear time and time again about how much people feel welcomed and accepted when they walk through the doors. This is one thing that sets our church apart from others. Let me encourage you to continue to be that church! We see between 50-100 visitors walk through our doors every week; some for the first time, others returning. These are souls looking for what can fill the void in their lives, and we should do everything we can to make it easier for them to connect with God.

It may seem that we have an over-the-top attitude for our guests, but if we can all view it from the perspective of welcoming them into our “home,” you will realize that is exactly how it should be. When I’m expecting company in my home, I do my best to clean up, get out my best dishes and spend time fixing something special for them. We try to make them feel wanted and special…no different at church!

This is also why I’m so very excited for our Not Without You plan! It will allow us the space to really connect with people and make them feel welcomed. There will be at least 40 different spaces where people can sit and chat. Right now, we have one. Think about it! This is a great time not only for us to welcome visitors, but to connect with each other!

There is a church in Minneapolis that encourages the 30/30 principle: come 30 minutes early and stay 30 minutes after service just to connect with others. I would encourage you to think about this and if not 30, make it 10/10 or 20/20. We are exhorted in the scripture to “Spur one another one on…” I would like you to pick up this challenge and run with it! Be the church God has called us to be! Praise FELLOWSHIP!

Joy Apple

Sacrifice

Sacrifice -- what is it? Sacrifice ought to be a willing surrender of a part of us (at some cost to ourselves) for the greater good. At the heart of all sacrifice there must be an offering that originates in the heart of the redeemed. It is founded in gratitude in having received what we have not deserved or earned. It begins and ends for all of us at the cross.

George Sweeting, former president of Moody Bible Institute, once said, "When we come to the end of life, the question will be, 'How much have you given?' not 'How much have you gotten?'" Oswald Chambers once said, "The meaning of sacrifice is the deliberate giving of the best I have to God that He may make it His and mine forever: if I cling to it, I lose it, and so does God." Those thoughts give us all time to pause and reflect before the incredible opportunity God is bringing to this church family. It tells me that our motives need self-examination in regard to how much of the Master's love we possess.

As I thought about this in my own life, I had to pause and thank God for His unending love toward me. It reminded me of a piece of advice my own dad once told me: he used to say, "Son, there are more important things in life than me." It helps me today to be absolutely certain that we, as Christians, are called to sacrifice because we are recipients of His sacrifice. The people who will be among us in the future are from a long line of broken bodies and shed blood. They will join our living history in enacting the dream of God [which] is a people - a family of the redeemed - sustained and transformed by mutual love. Lets all do what God makes possible.

You are loved and important to God and to me,

Pastor Jon

Giving

Ever since walking through the doors of PF in December 2010, we have felt God's presence and have been witness to the wonderful things he is doing. You can feel the Holy Spirit working and it is one of the most exciting things we have ever had the pleasure to be a part of.

After hearing Pastor's Chucks sermon on tithes and offerings as well as the simulcast by Pastor Morris and when we heard of the exciting plans God has for this church, we were definitely prompted by the Holy Spirit to pledge bank stocks that we had been saving for retirement. We are so confident that God will provide for us exactly what we need that there really wasn't much to discuss about this decision, which may sound crazy but it was pretty automatic because we truly KNOW that our God has always and will always supply our needs. We are honored to serve such an awesome God and to be in fellowship with so many followers of Christ.

Bill and Cindy Fale

Prayer and Fasting

Prayer and Fasting

Prayer and fasting is defined as voluntarily going without food, tv,or anything else that consumes your focus or time in order to focus on prayer and fellowship with God. Prayer and fasting often go hand in hand, but this is not always the case. You can pray without fasting, and fast without prayer. It is when these two activities are combined and dedicated to God's glory that they reach their full effectiveness. Having a dedicated time of prayer and fasting is not a way of manipulating God into doing what you desire. Rather, it is simply forcing yourself to focus and rely on God for the strength, provision, and wisdom you need.

What the Bible Says

The Old Testament law specifically required prayer and fasting for only one occasion, which was the Day of Atonement. This custom became known as "the day of fasting" (Jeremiah 36:6) or "the Fast" (Acts 27:9). Moses fasted during the 40 days and 40 nights he was on Mount Sinai receiving the law from God (Exodus 34:28). Prayer and fasting was often done in times of distress or trouble. David fasted when he learned that Saul and Jonathan had been killed (2 Samuel 1:12). Anna "worshipped night and day, fasting and praying" at the Temple (Luke 2:37). John the Baptist taught his disciples to fast (Mark 2:18). Jesus fasted for 40 days and 40 nights before His temptation by Satan (Matthew 4:2). The church of Antioch fasted (Acts 13:2) and sent Paul and Barnabas off on their first missionary journey (Acts 13:3). Paul and Barnabas spent time in prayer and fasting for the appointment of elders in the churches (Acts 14:23).

The purpose of Christian fasting should be to take our eyes off things of this world & focus our thoughts on God & to gain a deeper fellowship with God.

There is an appetite for God-And it can be awakened. We invite you to turn from the dulling effects of food and the dangers of idolatry, and to say with some simple fast: "This much, O God, I want you."

Our appetites dictate the direction of our lives--whether it be the cravings of our stomachs, the passionate desire for possessions or power, or the longings of our spirits for God. But for the Christian, the hunger for anything besides God can be an arch-enemy. While our hunger for God--and Him alone--is the only thing that will bring victory.

Do you have that hunger for Him? "If we don't feel strong desires for the manifestation of the glory of God, it is not because we have drunk deeply and are satisfied, it is because we have nibbled so long at the table of the world. Our soul is stuffed with small things, and there is no room for the great." If we are full of what the world offers, then perhaps a fast might express, or even increase, our soul's appetite for God.

Between the dangers of self-denial and self-indulgence is this path of pleasant pain called fasting... For when God is the supreme hunger of your heart, He will be supreme in everything. And when you are most satisfied in Him, He will be most glorified in you.

Prayer and Fasting

Prayer and fasting is defined as voluntarily going without food, tv,or anything else that consumes your focus or time in order to focus on prayer and fellowship with God. Prayer and fasting often go hand in hand, but this is not always the case. You can pray without fasting, and fast without prayer. It is when these two activities are combined and dedicated to God's glory that they reach their full effectiveness. Having a dedicated time of prayer and fasting is not a way of manipulating God into doing what you desire. Rather, it is simply forcing yourself to focus and rely on God for the strength, provision, and wisdom you need.

What the Bible Says

The Old Testament law specifically required prayer and fasting for only one occasion, which was the Day of Atonement. This custom became known as "the day of fasting" (Jeremiah 36:6) or "the Fast" (Acts 27:9). Moses fasted during the 40 days and 40 nights he was on Mount Sinai receiving the law from God (Exodus 34:28). Prayer and fasting was often done in times of distress or trouble. David fasted when he learned that Saul and Jonathan had been killed (2 Samuel 1:12). Anna "worshipped night and day, fasting and praying" at the Temple (Luke 2:37). John the Baptist taught his disciples to fast (Mark 2:18). Jesus fasted for 40 days and 40 nights before His temptation by Satan (Matthew 4:2). The church of Antioch fasted (Acts 13:2) and sent Paul and Barnabas off on their first missionary journey (Acts 13:3). Paul and Barnabas spent time in prayer and fasting for the appointment of elders in the churches (Acts 14:23).

The purpose of Christian fasting should be to take our eyes off things of this world & focus our thoughts on God & to gain a deeper fellowship with God.

There is an appetite for God-And it can be awakened. We invite you to turn from the dulling effects of food and the dangers of idolatry, and to say with some simple fast: "This much, O God, I want you."

Our appetites dictate the direction of our lives--whether it be the cravings of our stomachs, the passionate desire for possessions or power, or the longings of our spirits for God. But for the Christian, the hunger for anything besides God can be an arch-enemy. While our hunger for God--and Him alone--is the only thing that will bring victory.

Do you have that hunger for Him? "If we don't feel strong desires for the manifestation of the glory of God, it is not because we have drunk deeply and are satisfied, it is because we have nibbled so long at the table of the world. Our soul is stuffed with small things, and there is no room for the great." If we are full of what the world offers, then perhaps a fast might express, or even increase, our soul's appetite for God.

Between the dangers of self-denial and self-indulgence is this path of pleasant pain called fasting... For when God is the supreme hunger of your heart, He will be supreme in everything. And when you are most satisfied in Him, He will be most glorified in you.

Pastor Chuck

Faith

Zoo -vs- Safari

When I was a little kid I used to love Saturday mornings. Our typical routine was to get up watch some cartoons while mom made biscuits and chocolate gravy. After partaking of this “southern food of goodness” we would all pack up in the car and head to the local zoo. I loved going to the zoo. It was so much fun to see all the animals especially the chimpanzees. My love only deapend during one of these saturday morning adventures one of the chimpanzees flung what my sister thought was mud, it was epic. My love for the zoo has led me to many zoo adventures across the country. I still enjoy going and seeing the animals. My love for the zoo diminished a little in 1998. In 1998 I was asked to help lead a three week group tour to Africa. On this group tour I had the experience of a life time. I went on a safari. The sights were breath taking like nothing I had ever seen in a zoo before in fact if you think about I was the animal in the cage or the jeep this time. As we drove over the rugged and muddy roads and caught glimpses of some of the most majestic animals in their own habitat. We saw lions, running at full speed. Giraffes, Elephants, hippopotamus’s it was a total sensory overload. One of the most exhilarating parts of the trip is when we came around a bend in the road that was overgrown by vegetation which limited our view. As we came around the corner their standing in front of us was a full grown rhinoceros. I was not worried till our driver reached for the riffle that was by his side. Fortunately for us and the rhino decided that taking on our jeep was a bad idea and moved on. I saw things that day and experienced sights that still captivate me to this day.

This is allot like faith. As we get ready to start this capital campaign my wife and I have discussed what are going to give. My first response was well lets look at the budget and see what we can afford, “What is safe”. Essentially its like going to the zoo. You know what you are going to see and it will be safe and their is no risk or adventure. After praying with Belinda and listening to god we have decided to go on the safari. We feel god has asked us to increase our faith and give to the point where it might not be safe, it is going to be an adventure but I believe that in this adventure of faith like my safari in Africa we are going to see things like we have never seen before. We will look back years from know and have great stories to tell of the amazing things that God is going to do as a result of our obedience. I personally am just tired of living in faith only when I have to, like when the car breaks down or some other unforeseen emergency. I have asked God to teach us to live a life of faith adventure and I would challenge each of you to ask God what adventure he would want to take you on. I promise like my safari when it is over you will never be the same.

Pastor Chris

God Wants To Talk With Us

If My people who are called by My name will humble themselves, and pray and seek My face, and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven, and will forgive their sin and heal their land. (2 Chronicles 7:14 NKJV)

If someone were to hand you a phone and say, "It's for you. It's the president of the United States!" you'd know it was a joke straight away. You wouldn't believe it for a second. You'd be like, "yeah right, why would he call me anyway?"

Have you ever stopped to think about what prayer really is? Prayer is like picking up your personal cell phone and having a conversation with the One who spoke the universe into existence! You never get His voicemail, and He's never to busy to talk as long or as short as you need. And the craziest thing about it is that God truly cares, and He wants to talk with us and to meet our greatest and our smallest needs!

I once met the most influential leader of the Church in the West African nation of Sierra Leone. When the government of that broken and war torn nation needs the assistance of the churches, he's the man they call. When the Islamic leadership needs to send a message to the only stronghold standing between them and total political dominion in all of North Africa, they call this man. He knows 2 Chronicles 7:14 to be true. He starts each morning on his knees in prayer at 4am. He prays for four hours, unless he has a really busy day ahead, in which case he gets up even earlier and prays five to six hours. That just sounds totally foreign to our western minds, but this man understands that he's desperately in need of the hand of God on his life in order to carry out the work at hand! He's runs dozens as orphanages (which he built), and has personally discipled hundreds a pastors (whom he oversees).

When I met him, I was struck with what a humble man he is, though he could have a lot to genuinely be proud of. In that moment, I was also struck with how prideful I am, though I ain't done nothin'! All that time in prayer conversing with the King of the universe has put everything in perspective for my friend, and he lives every hour in light of what matters most for eternity. I was deeply convicted to grow in the area of prayer. It doesn't have to be hours on end, but it should be quality time every day.

All of the hundreds upon hundreds of promises in the Bible are available for you and me! Prayer is the point of activation for those promises. And as we remind God of His goodness, He wants to speak a word to our hearts each day to give us encouragement, guidance, direction and conviction, if we'll only take the time to ask, listen, and be prepared to treasure His words.

The practice of reading the Bible, praying for understanding, and writing down what we sense the Lord whispering to our hearts is the practice of Life Journaling. This discipline is the essence of the Spirit filled life, and it's the only way to develop a true friendship with our awesome Creator! We will never lack the wisdom we need to meet any circumstance head-on with the power to endure and to affect change in the earth!

So let's pick up the phone; what are we waiting for!?

Aaron Herman

Not Without You - Why For Kids

The Why for Kids

We have a nice looking nursery that is visible when you walk in the front door, a sufficient preschool area, and a whole lot of room for elementary kids. So why are we talking about making changes to the children’s ministry area. Why in the world would we need to change anything to accommodate families with young kids? I am so glad you asked...

We do have sufficient space for our three age-appropriate environments, but we also have several issues that need to be resolved in each area. First off, our space for nursery is right off the main entrance, our preschool is way in the back of the building, and our elementary kids meet somewhere in-between. With so many families having kids in multiple areas, it becomes exhausting for parents at pick up and drop off times. We could all learn to live with things the way they are and deal with a little discomfort, but what about new families. We need to make it easy for new families to feel comfortable and welcome in our building. It is difficult to communicate and guide families through our maze of a building each weekend. The proposed layout would position all age-appropriate environments for children birth through fifth grade in the same area of the building. This would allow us to create a brand-new family entrance to accommodate for each and every parent with young children.

There are countless additional issues that are solved with the new proposed layout. More accessible bathrooms for both elementary and preschool, a secure registration space, and a single, centrally-located entrance to the children’s ministry area. All these are intentional changes being made to provide improved ministry for the families of Praise Fellowship. We want to make things easy for new parents with young children and safe for each and every family that walks through these doors.

Pastor Brian Dorheim