Announcements - January 22, 2017

Resources for the Gospel of John Series: In order to help you get the most out of this series, you’ll find three resources on the Information Table: A Brief Introduction to the Gospel of John, by Pastor Charlie, An Introduction to the Gospel of John, by Pastor Charlie, and Gospel of John Sermon Journal, by Mike Mitchell.

Winter Carnival Saturday, February 18: Please mark your calendar for this event, which is the date of our GCF outreach and Haiti mission trip fundraiser. Contact Pastor Kevin for more information. Invite your friends now. Invite cards are available.

Sanctity of Human Life Sunday Today: In celebrating life and remembrance of the anniversary of Roe v Wade, Abba will have a display on the Missions Table. Information about the ministry and educational items are available. Thank you for your prayers and support in the “Fight for Life."

Biblical Counseling Conference: The conference is sponsored by Faith Lafayette and Grace Church in Eden Prairie will be hosting. Training dates are February 24-25, March 24-25 and April 28-29. As a fellowship, we desire to equip the body to care for the body as part of making disciples for the glory of Christ. This regional training program will provide you with additional materials and expertise to help you help others have victory over difficult or challenging life situations.

Wednesday Morning Prayer Meeting: Anyone who would like to join in corporate prayer may do so. The prayer time is from 6:00 a.m. to 7:00 a.m. at the church office.

Next Week’s Fighter Verse

We who are strong have an obligation to bear with the failings of the weak,

and not to please ourselves. Let each of us please his neighbor

for his good, to build him up..

Romans 15:1-2

Comments

The Secret of all Failure is our Failure in Secret Prayer

“We may be assured of this—the secret of all failure is our failure in secret prayer” (12). So writes the anonymous author of the classic little book on prayer entitled, The Kneeling Christian (Zondervan Publishing House, Grand Rapids: 1971). He means that the reason we so often fall into sin or live in discouragement or fail to bear fruit is because we do not cling to God in Christ above all things. We do not diligently seek him or lean on him or plead with him or draw on his strength. We give ourselves to busyness over communion with God and in this way we seek to accomplish in our flesh what can only be accomplished in the power of the Spirit. Giving first place to what our dear author calls “secret prayer” is indeed a key to the Spirit-filled life but let’s be clear: prayer is not magic, rather, it’s a relationship. It’s not as if we simply have to file requests with God, being careful to use just the right words so that we can get him to respond as we wish. God is not a vending m

Deacons - How They Serve and Strengthen the Church (Part 1)

One of the next important priorities for GCF is to establish deacons in the life of the church. On March 14, 2021 we were able to establish an elder team. Currently, we have a team of four elders overseeing the congregation of GCF. However, there is more work to be done. I have come to see that establishing an elder team was the bare minimum that needed to happen for GCF to survive. I believe GCF now needs to turn our attention to raising up a team of qualified and willing deacons to serve the congregation so that it will not only survive but thrive. I would like to begin a series of blogs on deacons to help us understand who they are and what they do in the life of the church. In this blog let me provide three reasons why I think deacons should be near our top priority. Number 1: It is Biblical. Paul instructs Timothy to install elders who will help him pastor the church. For whatever reason, it seems the churches in our circles treat the installment of elders as non-negotiable

Does the Doctrine Divide? by Patience Griswold

“Oh, I try not to talk about doctrine. It’s so divisive.” This is a sentiment that I’ve heard expressed, as well as implied, on many occasions, and one that raises the question, does doctrine divide? In answering this question, we must keep in mind a very important truth and that is that everyone holds to some sort of doctrine . “Doctrine” is defined as “a belief or set of beliefs held and taught by a church, political party, or other group.” Regardless of whether or not someone publicly holds to a statement of beliefs from a particular church, every Christian, by definition, holds to a particular set of beliefs. As Carl Trueman observes in his book The Creedal Imperative , [W]hile Christianity cannot be reduced to doctrine, to mere teaching, it cannot be meaningfully separated from it, either. Even the most basic claims, such as “Jesus is Lord,” carry clear doctrinal content that needs to be explicated in a world where, as we have noted before, every heretic has his text and n

Glory of Christ Fellowship

Search This Blog