Calvary E-News
Sunday - June 21, 2009
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Sunday's Message:
Why God Formed Man | Genesis 2
Welcome to Calvary Church. Whether you are a father or are celebrating with your father, I hope this is a great day for you and your family. Fathers are so important and yet often are maligned and ridiculed as being out of touch. One of the important roles we fathers play is showing our children who God is. If we live a loving gracious life, we reveal God as loving and gracious. I pray that is the role you play or had modeled for your life.
Today, we will learn more about the role we all play in bearing the image of God to a fallen world and the world of angels. Since we were created in God's image, that has specific relevance to our daily lives which we will explore together this morning.
So, thank you for worshiping with us as we learn about the God of Wonders from the book of Genesis.
Pastor David Mitchell
A note from Calvary Church | June 25, 2009
Dear Calvary Family,
One of the headlines this week was about the erratic and bizarre behavior of the governor of South Carolina. This conservative Republican serves in the “Bible belt” where there seems to be a church on every corner. His story reminds me so much of what we will explore this coming Sunday from Genesis 3.
Governor Mark Sanford had been absent with no explanation. The staff first said he was hiking the Appalachian Trail. Then he was spotted at the Atlanta airport. Finally, he confessed to adultery with a woman in Argentina.
Here is a man with a wife and four sons. He met this “other woman” eight years ago as just a “friend” and the relationship deteriorated into full sin.
My point: He lied to himself about the sin, he lied to his wife and children, he lied to his staff and state, and lied ultimately to all who heard his story. He had no regard for the consequences of his sin, no guilt in the midst of his sin, and deceived himself to think this sin would never be disclosed.
I am reminded of my own quote at this point - “you never find in sin what you enter sin to find.”
I go into this detail as a reminder on how Satan loves to work. The same strategy which caused this Governor to sin, lie, cover up and destroy his family, is the same strategy Satan used in the Garden of Eden with Adam and Eve. Ecclesiastes 1:9 says, “That which has been is that which will be, And that which has been done is that which will be done. So there is nothing new under the sun.” Satan has not changed his tactics since the beginning of time because they have been successful since the beginning of time. He tempts us to sin, deceives us with lies and we keep falling for it.
All this to say, be sure to join us this Sunday as we learn about Satan’s strategy and lies. We are all susceptible to his temptation and we all have areas of vulnerability. We all need to gather to worship the Lord and strengthen our faith through Christ and the love of each other. Celebration worship is at 8:45 am and Elevation at 10:45 am.
Plan now for our Vacation Bible School, August 3-9. We need you to invite your friends and help serve with us. A highlight this year is the premiere showing of a new VeggieTales movie on Wednesday night, August 5. The FISH radio will be here, broadcasting live, along with Big Wave Dave. This is a great opportunity to invite friends and neighbors. Learn more at http://calvarylife.org/vbs
Also, we desperately need people to serve in our preschool area during the Elevation service. We have many more young children now, but our support staff has not grown to keep pace. Please pray about serving that second hour. Contact our Calvary Town children’s ministry office at town@calvarylife.org or 714.550.2348.
We are beginning a new ministry in July called “Treasure Box.” Once a month, anyone can order a week’s supply of groceries for $30. Our hope is to reach out to those in need in our community and be a real expression of the love of Christ. You will hear more about this ministry starting this Sunday. Learn more at http://calvarylife.org/treasurebox
Our Calvary Christian School is still enrolling for this fall. Please share with your friends the great opportunity for a full, quality education which includes music, arts, and computer along with strong Bible teaching, even as public schools are cutting back in many of these areas. Learn more at http://ccschool.org
I look forward to worshiping with you Sunday. It is so important that we stay strong in Christ and His Word because the enemy is doing all he can to undermine our faith and church. We all need each other, and my prayer is that we continue to grow with unity in our community of Christ at Calvary.
Pastor Dave
Calvary Church is a community where we CONNECT with God and others to GROW in our faith so we REACH Orange County and the World for Jesus Christ.
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