Know the story…Be the people…Expand the Kingdom
If you would like to contribute to the eNews or converse with the editor, send an email to tfbyam1@hotmail.com
A fresh eNews is posted each Monday and updated on Wednesday
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IN THE eNEWS THIS WEEK
THIS I PRAY
TUESDAY GATHERING: Revelation 3:1-13
SUNDAY COLLEGIUM: October 9—Who are we and why are we here? – Who are we?
SERMON NOTES—Effective Prayer, part 2: Key Principles For Receiving Answered Prayer
REGULAR HAPPENINGS
UPCOMING EVENTS—Next: The Church has left the Building, October 23, 11 AM
tfbcollege pix on flikr
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Staff:
Pastor G (TFB Youth Min Pastor) gbenjamin49@gmail.com
Laura (teacher, AKA the mad tangent rider; eNews editor) lkspringer@gmail.com
Leadership team:
TBA
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THIS I PRAY
I pray that we would know the story of God for what it is--God's glorious work through all of time, bringing everything into conformity to his will--and would be honest about the story of ourselves--that we are messy people learning to follow Jesus.
I pray that we would be the people of God--members of Christ's body and members with all Christ-followers (even those who do not seem to be as spiritual as we are). I pray that we would be connected with the believers at TFB, actively participating in the life of our local congregation.
I pray that we would expand the kingdom, not only by telling others about Jesus, but also by taking a hard look at our lifestyle choices, by being broken by our own worldly conformity, and by deciding to live lives that point to Jesus.
Source http://lauraswritings.blogspot.com/2005/09/yeah-like-she-said.html
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TUESDAY GATHERING: Revelation 3:1-13
Tuesday, October 11
Worship Space
Worship Curator for October: JonathanP
Holy, by Brenton Brown
Holy Holy God Almighty
Who was and is to come
God of glory You’re so worthy
All the saints bow down
...
Study Space
Revelation 3:1-13
1. Grab a pen, a highlighter, and a copy of Revelation.
2. Prayerfully read the section twice, listening for God’s voice. After each reading, write down your thoughts.
3. Look over the passage. Are there any historical, cultural, grammatical, or literary details that should be investigated? Using the Bible and tools (bible dictionaries, commentaries, study notes), investigate those details.
4. Look over the passage once again, ask the following questions, and then discuss the answers.
o Who are the main characters?
o What are the main issues?
o Where does this take place?
o When did/does/will this take place?
o Why does John shape the message this particular way?
o How does he want the readers to respond?
5. Look over the passage once again and ask:
o What is God saying to us?
o How does God want us to respond?
Many at Thyatira had become corrupted by culture, worshiping idols and committing sexual sin. It is all too easy to become corrupted by culture. One of the most powerful forces for cultural corruption is the movie/television industry. Stories are very powerful and most movies are crafted by the writers, directors, and producers to make a point and influence culture. This means we must be intentional in our entertainment. Otherwise, the cultural corruption will sneak in without our even knowing. Hollywood Jesus is one place to get some information that will help you be more intentional: http://www.hollywoodjesus.com/. Another place is the Progressive Culture page at Relevant Magazine: http://www.relevantmagazine.com/pc.php
Don’t let the world pollute your soul without you noticing. Be intentional about your entertainment and spend time with God so you begin to develop his perspective on things.
Good info on the seven cities can be found at: http://www.luthersem.edu/ckoester/Revelation/main.htm
Each of the messages to the churches follows a basic pattern.
Not all the parts are in every message.
For the messages to Ephesus and Smyrna, label each section.
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Next week, October 18, we’ll continue discussing Revelation 3:14-22, the letters to each of the seven churches—Laodicea, and we’ll be wrapping up the messages to the letters before we go on to chapter 4.
Get more out of the gathering by bringing more to the gathering! Study ahead:
- Wednesday and Thursday: Pray through the passage as a whole. Write down any thoughts.
- Friday: Using bible handbooks and bible dictionaries, hunt down any cultural or historical info that might shed some light on the passage.
- Saturday: Lay out all your notes and talk them over with God. Ask questions. Write down any thoughts.
- Sunday and Monday: Try to answer some questions:
- What is God saying to us?
- How does God want us to respond?
- What other stories (in the bible, in history, in your own life) come to mind as you read this?
- If you had to explain this passage to someone else, what would you do or say to make it clear?
Bible study helps can be found at http://bible.crosswalk.com/
Also, good info on the seven cities can be found at: http://www.luthersem.edu/ckoester/Revelation/main.htm
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Do you know a person who is asking tough questions about God and the mess of life? Great! Invite them to the Tuesday Gathering for our Revelation discussion. Pick up a flyer in the college room.
Questions are exactly what we’re looking for…
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SUNDAY COLLEGIUM: October 9—Who are we and why are we here? – Who are we?
Key Passage
Matthew 28:16-20 ESV 16 Now the eleven disciples went to Galilee, to the mountain to which Jesus had directed them. 17 And when they saw him they worshiped him, but some doubted. 18 And Jesus came and said to them, “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. 19 Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, 20 teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you. And behold, I am with you always, to the end of the age.”
What we learned last week:
Know the Story
- God: In his steadfast love and holiness, he will bring his kingdom to his intended end.
- Life: This side of eternity, life is a mixture of sin and glory.
- Part of a people: We join a family—a nation—of God-followers that spans time and place.
- Unified in Christ: Christ is present in his people every moment.
- Go wide: We are to make more disciples of all nations.
- Go deep: We are to become more and more like Jesus.
One Point
Everything we do flows from who we are. Culture, personality, character, experiences, skills, and passions have a part in our behaviors and beliefs. Everything we do in ministry flows from who we are as the people of God. Everything we do aims at the three goals of ministry: know the story, be the people, and expand the kingdom. The TFB College Ministry does this through three intentions.
- We intend to be so certain of Jesus’ continuing presence that we are free to tell God and each other the true story about ourselves;
- We intend to expand God’s kingdom by recognizing, preparing for, and participating in God’s continuing story; and
- We intend to expand God’s kingdom by working together to tell God’s Story to all who will listen and challenging listeners to become followers.
The specifics change as the group changes. New collegians come in and others move on. Some go away to school and others stay local. The specifics change, but the goals and intentions remain the same.
Project
Since the group changes, we keep asking a key “who we are and why we are here” question: “If the TFB College Ministry could be everything God wanted it to be in three years, what would that look like?”
From a list of about 20, we narrowed to three:
- Inreach
- Outreach
- All about Jesus
Here are most of the draft media projects so far (a couple went home for further editing, one supposes…)
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Prep for October 16
Think about our three priorities, then ask: “What should we do this year to head in that direction?”
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SERMON NOTES—Effective Prayer, part 2: Key Principles For Receiving Answered Prayer
Pastor Charlie Rice
October 9, 2005
YOU NEED TO HAVE AN HONEST RELATIONSHIP WITH GOD. John 15:7; 1 John 1:8-9
*Am I currently ignoring any of God’s principles? 1 John 3:21-22
*Do I really want God’s will for my life? 1 John 5:14-15
YOU NEED TO EXERCISE A FORGIVING ATTITUDE TOWARD OTHER PEOPLE. Mark 11:24-25; Hebrews 12:15; 1 Peter 3:7
YOU NEED TO BE WILLING TO BE A CHANNEL OF BLESSING TO OTHERS. Proverbs 21:13; 1 John 3:17; 1 Timothy 6: 17-18; James 4:2-3
YOU NEED TO PRAY IN JESUS’ NAME. John 14:13-14; John 16:24
Note: praying “in Jesus’ name” is not a formula; it is praying with the realization that Jesus is Lord and Savior. There are no magic words.
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REGULAR HAPPENINGS
SUNDAYS
WORSHIP GATHERING @ 9:15 am—Main Worship Center
Intergenerational worship gathering with indy-folk-rockish music and good preaching… too fun!
“COFFEE HOUSE” @ 10:30ish
Coffee, conversation, and donut holes in the TFB Courtyard.
COLLEGIUM @ 11 am—TFB College Room
Collegial teaching time led by collegians
SUNDAY GATHERING @ 7:30 pm—place varies
Contact ElisaB or MattC for details
TUESDAYS
TUESDAY GATHERING @ 7:15-9:00 pm— TFB College Room
Hangout and conversation, guided by a teacher-facilitator; often resembles Mr. Toad’s wild ride, but with bibles.
Currently: Revelation
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UPCOMING EVENTS—Next: The Church has left the Building, October 23, 11 AM
The Church has left the Building—Torrance Street Faire: October 23, 11 AM
Mid-Term retreat—Camp Pursche, late October or early November
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