SENDay Lunch and Commissioning Party
This coming Sunday, October 25 will be our last time gathering together inside the walls of Harrah Church for the next 4 weeks.
The Word of the Lord to us was this:
Church,
Equip the Saints to be my witnesses to the ends of the earth!
Part of this obedience for us was to practice house church. We saw a great progression of the Royal Priesthood during the months we practiced house church in the spring, and we believe the Lord would have us to continue fanning those flames into the future. (If you still don’t know where you’ll be attending house church, reach out to someone you know and ask where they’re going! If you don’t know anyone, fill out THIS FORM and we will get you plugged in to a house church near you!)
To celebrate the SENDING of the saints, this weekend we will have a lunch and commissioning party!
We have purchased over 200 pounds of meat that will be smoked for our meal on Sunday.
YOU. DO. NOT. WANT. TO. MISS. THIS. FEAST!
Bring a side and dessert to share. Anything that goes with BBQ will be awesome.
Also, please note that we want our big kids to witness this SENDING party so we’ve elected to keep them with us in worship this weekend. Childcare will be available for children 5 and under.
We can’t wait to celebrate with you this Sunday!
What to Expect This Summer
Greetings Harrah Church family,
On Sundays this summer, we will worship together at 10am with a potluck to follow. You can find all the information about worship gatherings - including summer menu plans - on our events page at www.harrahchurch.org/events.
We know that joining back together in a large group might raise some concerns about protecting your health, and we want to encourage each of you to sit with the Lord and follow His lead on when you return.(Ecclesiastes 12:13)
If the Lord is leading you to continue staying at home, please join us online at www.facebook.com/harrahchurch.
For everyone returning to worship with us in person, feel free to communicate what your boundaries are and what you feel comfortable with to those around you. The Word says we should look not only to the interests of ourselves, but also to the interests of others, so love your spiritual family well and prefer others over yourself. (Philippians 2:3-4)
We know that for a church full of HUGGERS navigating the waters of social distancing might be a little challenging. When in doubt about how to greet one another, just ask!
Still have some questions? This might help.
What should I expect this Sunday?
We are in phase 3 of the governor’s plan to re-open our state. This means that we are mostly back to business as usual. Our Sunday mornings will look a lot like they did before we closed our doors.
The lobby will be open for fellowship with your spiritual family.
There will still be a greeting/hand shaking time after worship.
The nursery will be open for children 5 years of age and below. Kiddos ages 6 and up will worship with their parents for the duration of the summer.
We will worship the Lord, pray in the altars, and hear the Word preached with all authority.
What about masks?
You are free to wear a mask if you want to! If you choose not to wear a mask, you will not be required.
What if I don’t want to participate in the greeting time?
No worries! If you aren’t into all the hand shaking and hugging that goes down in this building, you may stay seated during the greeting time and we’ll just say hello to you from a distance.
Will I still be able to practice social distancing during the service?
The requirement for an empty row in between every row of seated people is no longer in effect. There will not be specific seating allowing for social distancing at this time.
Will you be providing masks and hand sanitizing stations?
We will not provide masks for you to wear, but we will certainly support you wearing your own. Touch free hand sanitizing stations are found throughout the building.
Grace and peace to you all,
Jenny Brockman
...and when He saw their faith...
And when he saw their faith…
17 On one of those days, as he was teaching, Pharisees and teachers of the law were sitting there, who had come from every village of Galilee and Judea and from Jerusalem. And the power of the Lord was with him to heal.[d] 18 And behold, some men were bringing on a bed a man who was paralyzed, and they were seeking to bring him in and lay him before Jesus, 19 but finding no way to bring him in, because of the crowd, they went up on the roof and let him down with his bed through the tiles into the midst before Jesus. 20 And when he saw their faith, he said, “Man, your sins are forgiven you.” 21 And the scribes and the Pharisees began to question, saying, “Who is this who speaks blasphemies? Who can forgive sins but God alone?” 22 When Jesus perceived their thoughts, he answered them, “Why do you question in your hearts? 23 Which is easier, to say, ‘Your sins are forgiven you,’ or to say, ‘Rise and walk’? 24 But that you may know that the Son of Man has authority on earth to forgive sins”—he said to the man who was paralyzed—“I say to you, rise, pick up your bed and go home.” 25 And immediately he rose up before them and picked up what he had been lying on and went home, glorifying God. 26 And amazement seized them all, and they glorified God and were filled with awe, saying, “We have seen extraordinary things today.” Luke 5:17-26
This story has given me pause over the last couple of days. Honestly, it was what the Lord reminded me of as I was sitting in a place of worry. You see, the group of women I am discipling are practicing this week. They are practicing being ministers of the Gospel. It is a huge gift for me to be able to watch them, and an even bigger gift to the ladies who will learn from them. We have invited a large group of women over to my house to learn how to Eat the Word. With each person that RSVP’d “yes” my excitement grew, and so did my worries.
I was concerned about how many people were coming to my house. Was it going to be too crowded for people to feel comfortable? Would there be enough parking in my driveway for all the cars? Is it a problem that there’s only one bathroom? Is there going to be enough food? These uncertainties replayed over and over in my head ad nauseam. I began to lose sight of the mission because of all the other things I was focused on.
Yesterday morning I (finally) realized I was worrying about a ton of things, but I had not yet asked the Lord what he wanted. I offered a quick prayer asking the Lord for direction and was immediately reminded of this story from Luke 5. I got out my Bible to read the whole story for myself and could clearly hear my answer from the Lord.
The people that want to get close to Jesus push through the crowds. They find a way. They rip holes in rooftops and rappel down from the ceiling to get next to him. These people get to see miracles. These people get to hear the Lord speak to them personally. These people are ones that are set free from the things chaining them down.
This has given me tremendous relief from my anxious thoughts. Jesus is enough, and the people that are willing to press in despite the crowds, the obstacles, and the traps that the enemy lays… they’ll get to see him with their own eyes. Look back at verse 26: And amazement seized them all, and they glorified God and were filled with awe, saying, “We have seen extraordinary things today.”
C’mon Jesus.
Bye, worries!
God Disciplines His Children
I was scrolling through Facebook this morning when my friend, Melissa, posted something about the word “restore.” I’m loving all the stuff she’s posting lately as she’s digging into the Word and using it as a mirror for her life. I stopped to read it and this is what it said:
“The Lord brought the word Restore to my mind this morning.
Have you ever thought about the process of restoring say with a piece of furniture?
It's a process that is dirty, painful and at times lengthy. There are times when the restorer has to take it to bare bones in order to achieve its full potential.
I used to think of God restoring me as calm and peaceful but when you think about the details of the
restoration the peace and calm come when God stands back and admires his creation.”
I was immediately reminded of Hebrews 12, which if I’m honest, helped me survive my early days being discipled. There were so many things in my life that didn’t reflect him, and I felt like I was constantly “in trouble” with the Lord. Have you ever felt that way? I’m sure my d-group and spiritual family even heard me use the phrase “I got a God spankin” more than once or twice.
One day, while lamenting inwardly about how hard I thought Jesus was being on me, I stumbled into Hebrews 12 and saw the most beautiful thing I’d ever read and it was H O P E to my bones:
5 And have you completely forgotten this word of encouragement that addresses you as a father addresses his son? It says,
“My son, do not make light of the Lord’s discipline, and do not lose heart when he rebukes you, 6 because the Lord disciplines the one he loves, and he chastens everyone he accepts as his son.”[a]
7 Endure hardship as discipline; God is treating you as his children. For what children are not disciplined by their father? 8 If you are not disciplined—and everyone undergoes discipline—then you are not legitimate, not true sons and daughters at all. 9 Moreover, we have all had human fathers who disciplined us and we respected them for it. How much more should we submit to the Father of spirits and live! 10 They disciplined us for a little while as they thought best; but God disciplines us for our good, in order that we may share in his holiness. 11 No discipline seems pleasant at the time, but painful. Later on, however, it produces a harvest of righteousness and peace for those who have been trained by it.
My friend’s furniture illustration hit the nail on the head. The furniture owner restores his belongings because they’re treasured by him. If not, he’d simply toss them out. How beautiful is this picture of our creator loving us so much that he joins us in this process of sanctification? And since Scripture is so much better at saying things than I am, here’s what else I’m reminded of:
1 John 1:9 ESV
If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.
1 Peter 2:24 ESV
He himself bore our sins in his body on the tree, that we might die to sin and live to righteousness. By his wounds you have been healed.
Titus 3:3-7 ESV
3 For we ourselves were once foolish, disobedient, led astray, slaves to various passions and pleasures, passing our days in malice and envy, hated by others and hating one another. 4 But when the goodness and loving kindness of God our Savior appeared, 5 he saved us, not because of works done by us in righteousness, but according to his own mercy, by the washing of regeneration and renewal of the Holy Spirit, 6 whom he poured out on us richly through Jesus Christ our Savior, 7 so that being justified by his grace we might become heirs according to the hope of eternal life.
Matthew 9:13 ESV
Go and learn what this means, ‘I desire mercy, and not sacrifice.’ For I came not to call the righteous, but sinners.”
If you’re in need of some restoration, lean in to Jesus and his Word. Let him cut off the dead weight (John 15:2 calls this unfruitful branches). You can trust him.
It won’t be pleasant, but it will be worth it.