Thank you to Lori Rohrer and the whole team that made to brunch after worship such a success! The kids had a blast trick or treating and playing games in the back family room. The food and fellowship were awesome. And we even got to know a few new visitors. Thanks to the clean up crew for allowing Lori to get the kids to their games on time! Thanks Sarah for an awesome message and covering so I could help cook! Next one is Sun Nov 26th. Who ya bringing?
Joe Toy Newsletter below. Also see a list of freebies available from Lisa Wenner
Good Morning Spirit-Filled, Compassionate, On-Fire-for-the Lord, Co-Laborers! That's you, right? Let's break it down...
Spirit-Filled: If you believe in Jesus and have received Him as your Lord and Savior, you have His Holy Spirit in you.
Compassionate: well are you? God is compassionate and wants to show His compassionate love through you. Are you allowing that? (I think we have a pretty compassionate gathering of believers. But only you can answer that for yourself).
On-Fire-For-The Lord: Do you have a burning passion for God and a missionary zeal for the lost? Are you doing what you can with what you got? Does Christ and serving Him take precedent in your heart, life, and actions? Are you all in? (I see this being played out by many in our fellowship. Again, only you and God know for sure if you are sold out for Christ). Remember, we are only as strong, loving and compassionate as our weakest members (especially in the eyes of the world).
Are you a Co-Laborer? We all have a role to play in God's Good News Delivery Co. St. Matts. Division. You have a custom made just for you, where you are in life and according to your abilities part to carry out until God calls you home. We need you and each other to become the dynamic movement of God we are created to be.
Some of those co-laborer job descriptions are: prayer warrior, giver, encourager, server, helper, teacher, steward, leader, evangelist, shepherd, disciple maker, follower of Jesus, discerner of times, rebuilder of cities, etc.
We have many stepping into and fulfilling their custom made roles and we are here to help you and new disciples to find and grow in theirs. Thank you sprit-filled, faithful, all-in co-laborers!
So, pronounce this salutation over yourself, our fellowship and those God is drawing. We are: Spirit-Filled, Compassionate, On-Fire-for-the Lord, Co-Laborers! Then keep praying these into life! Who is Jesus to you? How is that affecting your life? Who can tell by your actions that you love Jesus? What's next? Ask God those questions and who He wants you to co-labor with and then actually follow His lead. He has great plans for you and us. He is on the move! PTL! What's your part? Who is He sending you with or who are you bringing along on this bestest of all time adventure?
The day ahead is full of promise, potential and God's best for you! How cool! How are you planning and preparing to respond? Meditate on our devotionals today. They speak into all of this. Sit at Jesus' feet like Mary, listening, learning and then pour out yourself at His feet in worship and adoration. He alone is worthy of all we have! All we are and have is a gift from God. How are you stewarding His love? Start by working on growing at living and loving like Jesus and do so with some friends. Have a Jesus-filled day! Shalom!
Joe Toy News:
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Dear Friends,
Every year in mid-October, the state fair opens up in Raleigh for eleven days of family fun. This year over 960,000 people attended the fair. It is an amazing sight to see streams of people roll into the entrances each day. Who doesn’t like the fair? There are awesome events, exhibits, music, rides and great food. This event provides us the opportunity to reach thousands of folks with the gospel.
Each day, we were blessed with a location not too far from one of the many gate entrances. As people pass us by, they hear the preaching of the gospel, view a gospel sign and are offered gospel literature. The ideal set up is to have one preacher and two others engaging people in conversation and passing out tracts. The crowds are very receptive and friendly and a lot of Christian folk give us the thumbs up, encouraging words or just thank us for being there. At times, there is the usual scoffer, but it is extremely rare.
One such man from a Jehovah Witness background challenged me on the Trinity and the Deity of Christ. As I opened up the scriptures to him and defended Christ’s divinity, he stopped inferring that I was ignorant and began to assault my character by calling me names. At that point our conversation was over and I told him, “Have a nice day.”
Probably, my favorite moment at the fair was on our last day there. We arrived on Saturday morning as the fair opened and passed out literature to those waiting in line, then began to proclaim the gospel. With a team of four men we were able to pass out over four thousand gospel tracts in four plus hours of ministry. At times, it was as if we could not get them out of our hands fast enough. It was a great way to end our five days of fair outreach ministry. If you do the math, almost 88,000 people a day come to the fair. It’s like eleven straight days of college football game outreach except with more people who are a lot more friendly and receptive.
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| It is hard to believe that we have only three more NC State football game outreaches. Time truly flies by. Our last outreach was awesome as we had a team of five men, which allowed us to preach and minister at two locations. We got way more coverage to bring the gospel to the crowds. Jacob Bradshaw and Jason Bingham came from Eastern Carolina to join us, both of which have outreach experience. It is a sacrifice on their part as they have full-time jobs and take time away from family to assist us. They are both bold witnesses for Christ. It is a joy to watch Jason engage folks in conversation as they head to the game. It is almost as if every time you look over at his location, he is talking to someone. Jacob loves to preach the gospel and offers a tract to every one who passes by. I love providing men like this the opportunity to use their gifts. It is always an asset to have Paul Infranco and Daniel Springs with me, as both of these men have years of outreach experience and do whatever is needed. One of the awesome things that the Lord has done for me down here is to allow me to work with some bold, Godly men. |
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Our weekly schedule still consists of assisting some folks two days a week at their abortion ministry at Drake Circle and Jones Franklin Rd. Recently, a young man asked for prayer as he wanted to keep his child, but his partner was not excited about having a baby and a five month old child. We prayed for him and shared the gospel with him as she was at the crisis pregnancy center getting an ultra sound. It is only a God thing to have a crisis pregnancy center next to an abortion clinic.
We also spend two days a week at UNC and NC State sharing the gospel with college students. At both of these campuses, we have seen professions of faith. In due time, the Lord will reveal the legitimacy of these commitments. Lastly, we continue to share the gospel at Moore Square Bus Station. The increased police presence shows us the desperate need for the gospel to transform lives. Each time we show up six to eight Bibles are picked up by people who are seeking spiritual truth. One young man was listening to Pat McClanahan proclaim Christ and approached Pat with a desire to be saved. He called out to Jesus for salvation right then and there. PTL
Keep us in your prayers. The Lord is at work. God Bless You.
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