Pastor’s Pen
Trust the Process
I was working on refinishing some hardwood floors this week. I sanded them down and stripped the old finish off of them. I smoothed them out with some finer grit sandpaper. I cleaned them thoroughly to make sure there was no dust remaining on the floors. I applied the first coat of finish and let it dry. I then went back and applied a second coat of finish. The whole time I was working on the floors I kept smiling at how amazing I knew they were going to turn out. You see, this wasn’t the first time I had refinished something. This wasn’t the first time I had refinished floors. I have done it enough to know the exact process required. I knew how to use the equipment necessary to do the job and above all, I knew exactly what they were going to look like once I was finished.
As I thought about all of these things while I was working, I heard God speak and He said, “Hey Rick, I do that too.” In that one moment, I was overwhelmed by the presence of God. Joy and I have been making the transition to Buffalo and it has been a long process. There have been moments where it felt like we have been getting stripped down. We have felt tired and pushed to our limits at times. I understood what God was saying and He didn’t have to say anything else. God has been bringing us through this process for a purpose. This isn’t the first time He’s done this. He knows exactly what it will take to get to the finished product and more importantly, He knows exactly what it will look like when it’s finished.
Paul said in Philippians 1:6 that “He who began a good work in you will bring it to completion.” What God was telling me in this moment was that I could have confidence in Him and trust Him and trust the process. I don’t refinish wood to make it look ugly and destroy it. I refinish it to bring the natural beauty to the surface and seal and protect it for years to come, and God told me “I do that too.”
No matter what you are facing today and no matter what struggles are present in your life I want to encourage you to trust the process. God is making something beautiful and His finished products are more beautiful than you can ever imagine.
I can’t wait to see you all this weekend as Pastor Paul continues the Majestic Mindset series “Why Think Like a Sinner When God Sees You as a Saint”. –Pastor Rick.
Tent of Meeting
The Sheridan VBS group has graciously loaned us a huge tent to hold services for two weeks on our new property. At present, we plan to meet under the tent on the weekends of July 29-30 and August 5 -6.
We will put the tent up on Sunday afternoon July 22. (It takes 50 able-bodied people to put up the tent and take down the tent). Are you one of 50 who can help?
Let’s all be in prayer, invite our friends, and trust God to meet with us as He met with Moses in the Tent of Meeting.
Our next meeting is July 17.
We would love to see you there.
Strengthen Our Hands
Our cash in hand and Faith Promises for Strengthen Our Hands now stands at $ 3,240,120.
Our Building Task Team chair Casey Freise announced on the weekend that we have selected Van Ewing Construction as our Contractor. Van Ewing has 7 years of experience in building churches, the foreman assigned to our property has a Bible College degree and believes the worksite will be a place of ministry. We are excited to be partnering with Van Ewing Construction.
If you haven’t had a chance yet to trust God with a Faith Promise, there are cards on the information table. Simply fill out the card or use the QR code to make a Faith Promise of what you are trusting the Lord to do through you.
Save the Dates
Tent of Meeting-July 29-30 & August 5-6
Community VBS – August 7-10
Equip-Experiencing the Presence November 3-5
Grace Fellowship is headed to the DR May 5-10, 2024
15 people from Grace will be building a house in the Dominican. The house will be paid for by Grace, each participant will pay their own airfare and transportation and meals while in the Dominican. Pray about it, are you one of the 15.
New “Daily Bread” devotional books and other inspiring books are available on the book rack in the Foyer @ GF
We are Better Together
There are small groups available for everyone
Children’s Ministry
Saturday Evenings 5:30– Children’s Church (K-5th grade)
Saturday Evenings 5:30- Nursery (Infants to five yrs.)
Sunday Mornings 9:30 –Children’s Church (K-5th grade)
Sunday Mornings 9:30 –Nursery (Infants to five yrs.)
Flashpoint Youth Ministry
Flashpoint Youth activities will be announced throughout the summer. If you would like to get text message notifications text “Flashpoint” to 307-370- 7203
Adults
Women of Grace Bible Study meeting every 3rd Monday @ 6:30- Find Your People by Jennie Allen
Wednesday Mornings 9:00 – Coffee With Grace streaming live on Facebook and YouTube
Wednesday Night Prayer Group 6:30 @ 535 S Pinnacle
Thursdays at Noon-Missions Prayer
Thursday Evenings 5:30-7:00 Ladies Bible Study
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