April snow again!

For the third weekend in a row this spring, we have had an interesting weather experience - the white stuff! I have never been a part of spring like this before! Thankfully, the past two weeks brought the snow after most of the Sunday programs were complete. However, its pretty tough to plant in the snow! It's downright difficult to play baseball and softball and have track/field meets in the snow. Hopefully this is it - on to warmer weather - this week!

GT's Top Five:

#1 - ROOTED - we began our all-church rollout yesterday with 117 participants and facilitators gathering in the Family Life Center to begin their 10 week discipleship experience. Well done FCC! We prayed for 75, hoped for 100, and watched as you reminded us to stop dreaming average dreams! These 9 ROOTED groups will meet each Sunday morning from 9:10-10:40 in various locations throughout the building. Pray for these groups. Pray for these individuals. And don't forget - another ROOTED rollout will happen in September - there is room for YOU!

#2 - Young at Heart - our ministry for 55 and over returned on Friday and we had around 100 folks in the Family Life Center - good start to the new year! And yet many of you who are 55 and over did not make it on Friday - we want YOU! Join us on Friday May 4 for our next YAH gathering and watch for info from Marcia Wise and Jan Dial about upcoming trips!

#3 - OVATIONS - last night, Cody Monkman and the advisory team of the Neighborhood Care Center hosted an appreciation dinner in the Family Life Center, which also served as an opportunity to roll out a new ministry of the NCC: the King's Kitchen. Great job by the two Chad's - Ijams and Whitlock - they made sure the food was awesome and the servers knew what they were doing. Great job by the two small groups who tackled the serving. Great job Bonnie Karr for making pie for 125 people! (I'm pretty excited we have the leftovers in the kitchen at church!) But most of all, great job to everyone who is serving the Lord with passion through the ministry of the Neighborhood Care Center!

#4 - FAN the Flame - the 12th concert sponsored by FTF is less than two weeks away! Sunday evening April 22 at 6pm featuring Jason Gray and Chris August. Tickets are $15 for the first 7 rows and $10 for the rest of the sanctuary. Money raised above and beyond the cost of the concert will support the VAULT! Get your tix this week in our office or at www.itickets.com. And if music isn't your thing, buy some tickets anyway and get them to me and I will find folks who will enjoy the concert!

#5 - Elder Nominations - if you are a member of FCC, you can participate in the Elder Nomination process through Sunday April 22 - forms are at the welcome center and in the office. You can return your correctly completed form to the office or put it in the offering bag on Sundays April 15 or April 22.

Jot the following down - much is happening in the life of our church:

** RELOAD for MEN in April will meet on Tuesdays April 10 and April 24 at 6am!

** Intentional Church Conference in Decatur is April 21 - I'll pay your cost - just let me know if you want to attend!

** the Vault dinner/auction - Saturday April 21 at the Wapella Community Center!

** Fan the Flame - Sunday April 22 at 6pm.. 

** Ladies Night Out - Thursday April 26 at 6:30pm in the Family Life Center

** All-church ICE CREAM SOCIAL - Sunday evening April 29

** Rotary Chicken Dinner - pick up/drive through - Tuesday May 1 from 4:30-6pm - get your tix in our church office or from any FCC rotary member! Money raised supports local food banks, including FCC's!

** Mother/Daughter Banquet - Saturday May 5 - featuring guest speaker Jill Savage! Get your tix on Sundays in the foyer!

Finally this week, I want you to pray for three families in particular that are grieving the loss of loved ones:

First, please pray for the LCU community and especially the Kurka family at the passing of longtime popular professor Bob Kurka at the age of 64 last week. Dr. Kurka was one of a kind and was always a personal encourager to me. His void will certainly be felt.

Second, pray for the Mark Kane family at the passing of Mark's mother in Kentucky. Mark is our first service sound guy most Sundays - he is the go-to sound person for the choir, and all four Kane kids (now young adults) are doing good things for the Lord! Mark's wife Kim leads worship each week at nearby Kenney Christian Church. The funeral is this morning in Kentucky - pray for the Kane family!

And finally, pray for the Delmar Sandage family. Delmar passed away about 4am this morning after a 3 1/2 year battle with pancreatic cancer and will definitely be missed at FCC and all over central Illinois. But he is in pain no more! Delmar lived for Jesus in an open and inviting manner like few I have encountered in life! Pray for Amy, Emily and the entire family as they prepare to celebrate his life!

Have a great week - see you Sunday - read Ephesians 2:1-10 as you prepare for worship on Sunday!

blessings,

GT