God’s word is truly the best way to express matters of the heart.  I could not find better words to describe what Ash Wednesday means to me than this piece of scripture.  I humbly ask that you use God’s word as a tool for prayer and study during this time of reflection.  Remember always that the season of Lent is more than just giving up things we love to do and wearing funny ash crosses on our foreheads.  It is a time where we can renew our minds with true repentance and not treat God like an abstract object of worship, but invite Him into our heart’s and home’s.  For He has been and always shall be with us, guiding us and loving us with His perfect will.  Remember that there is a man named Jesus who lived two thousand years ago, who teaches us what it means to be truly alive, who lived a perfect life, who died on a cross for our sins, and who’s love conquered death.  This is the wonderful God we serve.  He gave up all things for us, though we didn’t deserve it.  But in that truth lies the beauty and wonder of Christ.  For it is not about us, but about Him.  And through Christ’s sacrifice He has made us children of God!  Let us worship and praise our Lord and remember Him during this season and in every other.  This is what Ash Wednesday means to me, so what does it mean to you?

DO NOT FORGET: $100 PER TEEN IS DUE THIS TUESDAY FOR OUR TRIP TO TAMPA.

NO EXCEPTIONS!!!!!!

See everyone for sports night Tuesday 5-6pm in tradition. Some of us are going to the church after for a pancake dinner for Fat Tuesday! See you there!

$10 entry fee has to be in cash!!

See you guys there!!

ALL FUNDRAISING orders are due on Sunday!!! Remember to bring them!!

No meeting on Valentine’s Day!

Mini Golf Tournament is Saturday February 18th 11am-1pm $10 per player and 50% goes to our youth group!

At the core of this video is the radical message of the gospel which as Christians is the heart and soul of our faith and something that as leaders Katrina and I are always happy to share with others.  We know that the man who made the video used some strong language, partly I believe for shock factor, but also to drive a point home.  That point being that Jesus Christ is the Lord of our lives and the sustainer and emblem of our faith. 

This discourse and the view points expressed in them were made from careful inspection of scripture, wise counseling, and lots of prayer! 

Religion=Law

First what is Religion?  Religion by definition is a set of beliefs or principles that are taught or discussed.  So Religion is the laws of our faith.  But what laws?  When Moses led the Israeli nation out of bondage from Egypt he took them through the wilderness to the foot of Mt.Sinai(Exodus 19).  There at Mt.Sinai the nation of Israel received not only God’s Law (The Ten Commandments, National Laws, etc.) but also something much more.  For the first time our God had revealed His perfect and holy nature to a select people on Earth.  He revealed His perfect love and glory, but also His perfect justice and His abhorrence of sin.  We on the other hand, as humans looking on the truth of scripture, should realize just how far we miss the perfect standard of God. The law was given to us not only as a set of requirements to be kept perfectly, but as a mirror to show us our sins.  But in this truth is the path that leads us to Christ.  It was through Jesus’ perfect keeping of the law and sacrifice we were set free under the penalty of the law and now live under grace.  That grace fills us with the capacity to live by the law of the spirit.  (For more info see Romans 5:12-21; 6:1-14). This is such a beautiful part of the Gospel.  All of us should know that it is not through self effort or atoning work that we achieve salvation or love, only through a truly repentant heart, belief in Christ and God’s mercy are we able to walk the path of the spirit.  “For in it, (The Gospel) God’s righteousness is revealed from faith to faith, just as it is written: The righteous will live by faith” (Romans 1:17) 

Religion=Hypocrisy/Self-Righteousness

Unfortunately, not everyone in the history of God’s people have lived by the spirit.  For anyone who studies the Old Testament can see the vicious cycle that the nation of Israelwas trapped in until the coming of Christ.  It was a cycle of reliance upon the written word of God, and not God Himself.  A cycle of Israel falling away from God, God’s wrath upon the nation, God’s providence in bringing them back and so on.  Let it be a lesson to us and a reminder that no matter how far away we may drift from God in our lives, that thanks to the glory of Christ and the love of our Heavenly Father, He will always be with us.  

In the Gospels we are introduced to a new sect in Jewish society, the Pharisees.  The Pharisees were masters of God’s written law and instructors to the people of Israel, but they were still sinful men and used the word of God for their own selfish gain.  Throughout the Gospels we see our Lord in constant struggle with this group.  The Pharisees had become hypocrites and men who preached about God’s nature but did not know Him in their hearts.  For a perfect description I would suggest reading Matthew 23. 

Conclusion

We know these are just two long and drawn out examples of what the man in the video is trying to say, but we must take time to hear his words.  And just as the man in the video clarified so we would like to also.  Katrina and I love the Church!  It is where our home and family reside and constant Church activity is what God surely wants from His children.  But our youth should know that the Church is a gateway to Christ and that He should be the object of our attention and worship.

A message to TNT parents

 This is a moment as parents where we need to challenge our children.  Guide them to places in scripture where God has shown us the dangers of legalism, hypocrisy, and self-righteousness.  Let them explore and discover the wisdom that is hidden in God’s word and let them use those beautiful minds that God has given them! 

There are a lot of nuances in the video’s definition of Religion. After hearing from and speaking with parents and older adults we found that some feared that the video may lead children and outsiders to think that the poet is bashing the Church.  But that is not the case. Our children are a lot smarter then we give them credit for.  Most teens that we spoke to seemed to understand the message completely.  We would like you to know that in us showing this video to the youth and in any lesson that we teach, we only want the best for your children.  Katrina and I are committed to the youth not just in friendship and love, but also hopefully and humbly building their walk with Christ.  For we want all of the group, including ourselves, to be able to confidently and firmly say one day the words of Saint Paul, “Therefore as you have received Christ Jesus the Lord, walk in Him, rooted and built up in Him and established in the faith, just as you were taught, and overflowing with thankfulness.” (Colossians 2:6-7)

The Enjoy the city coupon books are here! They are $20 each and every book that you sell goes towards your activity fund for the year. Each book is an $8 profit. We will be selling them until 2/12 all money and orders are due then. Please get your seller packet from us on Sunday!!!

Saturday in Tradition @ 1pm we are volunteering at the Little Smiles Arts & Crafts zone for the kids! Meet us there at 1pm. Volunteer hours will be given for participation. All teens are welcome to participate. *Remember you will be helping small children and are free to leave when you want. We will not be supervising you but will be helping do arts and crafts at the same time*

Sunday is youth Sunday. Hopefully everyone is coming to the 10:30 service. We will save seats for you guys in our pew. We like to show you guys off to the congregation! We are so proud of everything that you guys have done!

RAK week is Feb 5th-11th. Get involved and help us spread some happiness!!!

Men’s club dinner is Feb 10th, looking for 2 volunteers to help us assist. Free food to volunteers…Yum.

Feb 14th- Phil and I are hopeless romantics so there is no meeting on Valentine’s Day. We love you guys but….no meeting.

Feb 18th is our Mini golf tournament @ 76 golf world. $10 each player. Bring your friends and form a team to compete for the trophies! All ages welcome!

Feb 21st is FAT Tuesday!! More info for you guys coming soon!!!

 After the 7:30/ 9:00 and 10:30 services THIS Sunday we will be trying to get people to sign up for our mini golf tournament and selling coupon books. 

Taste of Italy Festival: Saturday, January 28th. We are volunteering starting @ 1pm in the Little Smiles Kid Zone to help with Arts & Crafts.

Sunday, January 29th the 10:30 service is going to be youth Sunday. If you are interested in helping with the service please let us know. Thanks to all who have already volunteered! This is a great opportunity to show the congregation that we care about our church and want to be involved.

**Challenge- Whoever can email or text us first with 5 movies that they would want to watch for an upcoming movie night with not too much profanity, no sex or nudity can have two free games of bowling passes for Saint Lucie Lanes.**