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On Sunday, we welcomed John and Julie Wright. They work diligently to restore hope and dignity to those who are hurting, helpless, and lost in Central Asia. They come alongside Kyrgyz people to equip, support, teach, and serve the people of Kyrgyzstan. You can learn more about how lives are being changed on their website https://actofkindness.blogspot.com

There’s a freedom and excitement that comes with knowing exactly what God wants you to do and exactly where He wants you to be—even if you find yourself in tough situations. On Sunday, John shared a conversation he had with his mentor just before he had set out to the mission field. His mentor asked him what’s the absolute worst that can happen. “Probably living under some bridge somewhere!” But then he continued, “If you are where God wants you to be and you find yourself living under a bridge, it’s because the Holy Spirit wants you living under a bridge. And if you are living under a bridge with the Holy Spirit and Christ Himself is sitting at the right hand of the Father interceding for you, then I want to be under the bridge with you!” 

The view from on top of a bridge looks great—everything is nice and neat. The vistas are pristine and clean. The air is fresh and pure. But it’s often under bridges where ministry takes place. It’s dirty. It’s dark. It’s dank. Without the difficult unseen work below, the bridge wouldn’t have the integrity to stand. So if you find yourself under a bridge with the Holy Spirit, take heart…and know that your work is not in vain!

Starting This Sunday…

Galatians 5:16 says, "Walk in the Spirit, and you shall not fulfill the lust of the flesh." What does it mean to walk in the Spirit—and what does walking in the Spirit look like? Join us this Sunday (August 4th) as Pastor Dominic begins a special study series in what it means to walk in the Spirit.

For the remainder of the summer, we will be suspending Children's Ministry as we renovate the lower level space. Children will be welcome, as always, to join parents in the ballroom for services. It will be an amazing opportunity for young and old alike to worship the Lord together!

Just a reminder…we will continue to have a live video feed of the service in the welcome area with additional seating.

Be Encouraged

“The night is nearly over, and the day is near; so let us discard the deeds of darkness and put on the armor of light.” 
–Romans 13:12

This past Sunday, John Wright shared about the time he and his family first arrived in Central Asia. They were staying in an older apartment when the plaster started to crumble and fall off the wall. Needing a quick fix, they hung a carpet on the wall until they could properly take care of it.

Time passed. Though the carpet was on the wall, the crack was still there behind it. The more time that passed, the more convinced John became that the problem was spreading. Not wanting to dig into it and find more problems, he preoccupied himself with other projects…for 10 years!

During that time, the perceived problem had grown in John’s mind. For all he knew, the whole wall might need to come down at this point! Wouldn’t it be better to just keep it covered…pretend it’s not there…just not face it. But the time had come to deal with it. John took the carpet down…and found the problem hadn’t grown. It only took a small amount of patch and a putty knife to fix. Within a matter of minutes, the wall was fixed. 

We all have these carpets hanging in our lives. We’re afraid of what’s going on behind them. We hide away in the dark places the things that we are afraid of. And in our imaginations, we make them larger than reality. 

But if we believe that Jesus is the light, we don’t need to fear the problems we are trying to cover up. The night is nearly over—it’s time to discard the deeds of darkness. God has given us an armor of light to address the issues we attempt to mask. When we remember that Christ sits at the right hand of the Father and He intercedes for us, we can just take down the carpet and expose the problem to the Light, and let the Healer start to repair what’s been broken.

Listen & Grow

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