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Pastor's Note | Monday, September 30th

We all need reminders of God's faithfulness and of how we impact the lives of others. I received such a reminder in the mail this past week and think you should know about it too.

A young professional woman visited Good Shepherd a few weeks ago from out of town. She received one of our typical "Visitor Letters" to which she replied with a letter of her own. Here is an excerpt from her letter:

It was such a pleasure to attend Good Shepherd's worship service with one of my closest friends (then she named her friend) who speaks highly of both Curtis and Werner and the church. I am so happy that she has found a place where she feels comfortable and wants to plug in. Curtis' sermon the Sunday I attended spoke to me and my friend's boyfriend who is exploring the whole "Christian thing."

We all loved how open Curtis was about punching a wall and breaking his hand - it was real and honest. There is so much grace in that; it made his faith walk real to me and especially to my friend's boyfriend.

On the car ride to church I shared with my friends how much I dislike worship and every time it starts, without fail, I start yawning. I don't know why, but I always struggle with worship. When Curtis spoke about worship not being about us, but about God, it hit me that I need to get straight with why I do what I do...

Isn't that a tremendous expression of the way God worked through the worship leadership, through Curtis and his words, through the realness of those in worship around her, and through the agency of the Holy Spirit?

It's an example of why we exist as a church - to enable people to become followers of Jesus who experience God (Connect with God) in worship, grow in knowledge of God and knowledge of our faith, and to demonstrate the love of Jesus by serving in love.

Last week we welcomed six new members for whom I am very thankful - people of all ages who have said, in so many words, "I want to be part of this community of faith in a formal and committed way so not only can I connect, grow and serve, but I can help enable others to do so." What a privilege it is to welcome these new members as they join with us all to honor our Lord Jesus.

This week we have embarked on a new journey through a series of messages and small group studies on the topic of The Gospel in Life, looking at how the good news impacts our lives not just on Sunday mornings but throughout the week and in all of life's circumstances.

I want to encourage you to get into a group that will dig more deeply into the topics in this eight-week series. Three are groups meeting on Tuesday morning at 9:30am, Wednesday evening, and at other times throughout the week. Why not commit to an eight-week experience with these new small groups. Give me a call at 562/493.2553 x112 if you need more information about these groups.

With gratitude,
Pastor Jim

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