Weekly Message / Prayer Request

Acts 2:42 Men’s Fellowship

“By this we know love, because He laid down His life for us. And we also ought to lay down our lives for the brethren.” 1 John 3:16 NKJV

This past weekend the providence of God was definitely visible in my life. Not that there is ever a time when it isn’t at work; but there are certain times when you can really see God’s hand working. For just as He directed the chain of events which led to the crucifixion of his Son (Acts 4:27-28), everything in our lives happens according to His purpose.

As many of you know, I am continuing to seek out God’s will for my life; or you also may be well aware that I have been considering the question of leadership-what makes a good leader and identifying them in your ministry; or you may know that I am seeking God’s wisdom in making the best financial decisions for my family; or if you have been with us any period of time for our Wednesday night meetings, you would know how serious I am at seeking and living out biblical Christianity.

Each one of these topics has been at the forefront of my thoughts and prayers. And because of prayer, each one of these was addressed by a session I attended at the Northwest Ministry Conference this past weekend at Overlake Christian Church. It was absolutely amazing how God arranged these sessions to tackle where my focus has been these past few months.

Yet what I have generally always found is that God will many times go one step further. He will take it to the next level and challenge you to die to self, pick up your cross, and follow Him daily. That is always His challenge for our lives. He will say, “…yes you have come this far, but there is more distance to travel” or, “…yes you have given this up, but there is more you need to do.” His work continues in our lives well after when we feel it is necessary.

And by the providence of God, this chord was struck again Saturday morning…

Because God challenged me what would it look like if I was to live out this verse from 1st John? What could happen if I truly demonstrated this before the men of this group?

It can never be enough to meet together once a week and check in with each other if we are to live out this verse. What God has called is well outside of the idea of a social club or a place to get away from the daily routine. I believe God has not designed this group to be our personal ‘third place’ if I may liberally use Starbucks lingo (I am married to a former Starbucks store manager so it is easy for me to slip in verbiage from Starbucks).

Instead I believe there is something more for each one of us in this verse. Our place in this fellowship is not that this is our ‘third place’, but instead the ‘true place’. We have been called into a community of believers. It is about community; being there for one another during time of crisis; caring about each other at such a level we look at each other as if we are family. The Apostle John even said, “…we ought to lay down our lives for our brothers.”

Jesus put it this way when He spoke with his disciples saying:


"A new command I give you: Love one another. As I have loved you, so you must love one another. By this all men will know that you are my disciples, if you love one another.” John 13:34-35 NIV

It really is about love. We should love others the same way that Christ loves us. If we do, then we will be living life just like Christ wants us to live. For we are part of a community, part of the same ‘body of Christ’.

This is why Peter says we are being built into a spiritual house, a holy priesthood (1 Peter 2:5). He does not say we are being built into holy priests. It is about the entire ‘body of Christ’ manifest through all of us, not any one individual.

Therefore let us focus in on the group this week and put our thoughts on the reason why we are together in Christ. If we do, then I believe we will see the brotherhood that God designed with Christ as the head, the firstborn over all Creation.

This is how I believe we live out Biblical Christianity.



Prayer requests

Paul – pray that God will continue to guide him in Eastern Washington and protect him during his travels

Ernie – praise God for his goodness, pray for his brother-in-law Jerry who may be released from the hospital here soon, pray of Nathan who is about to finish basic training, pray for all the Christians who are in Sudan and Congo

David – praise God for the life he provided him, pray for wisdom at work as he takes on a leadership role, pray the Lord will open up an opportunity for him to goto Bible College

Ramon – praise God for continually bringing him work, praise God for the health of his wife, pray that his daughter may be comforted while she is going through counseling, pray that he may have the strength and ability to put in wood floors at his son’s house

Bill M – praise God for touching his heart about giving thanks as a way of learning, pray for the men of the Acts group, pray for his grandchildren who were exposed to whooping cough and that they may remain healthy.

Richard – pray that he will be able to have a stronger foundation in faith

Tim D – praise God for His faithfulness, pray that all the believers in the church will have the desire to seek out Him and to reach out to others

Carmine – pray that he will be strengthened at work with his relationships with coworkers
Greg – praise God for having other brothers in Christ, pray for his daughter who moved out that they all will be watched over, pray for the leadership of the church that they will provide Biblical leadership

Mark – praise God for continuing to work in our marriage relationship and strengthening it everyday, pray for continued discernment on making the right financial decisions, pray for Mardee and Rick that through the birth of their baby daughter there may come an amazing testimony and that God’s glory may be revealed

***Pray that Northshore can continue to make an impact in the local community for our Lord Jesus Christ

Continued prayer needs

Calvin – pray that he will find a good work family balance and that he may find success at work, pray that he will be able to return to the group soon

Joe T – pray for his brother who unintentially overdosed on Tylenol, praise God he lives, pray for his son Joey who is dealing with seizures, pray for his wife, praise God for his patience and that his oldest son accepted Christ

Gary S – praise God for the job he was able to find in Oklahoma, pray for his marriage and that God will help them be able to work through the distance and any trouble they may be facing

Brett S – praise God for bringing him here to the group healthy and with energy, pray that he will continue to have some more good days of strength and health

Sky – praise God that the move to Bellingham has gone smoothly and he is now attending a school up there

Jimmy – pray that he will be able to walk more consistently with the Lord

Dick – praise for his new job that it is a good fit and he can be successful

Kelcy – pray for all the pastors and leaders within the Church

Stephen G – pray for strength in teaching kids at school so they may learn and become better students

Steve S – pray that he will be able to trust more in God

Nelson – pray for the President-elect that he will be a man of God, pray for his brother Bob

Tim W – pray for wife who is going to Germany to visit parents who may not be doing well, pray that a great deal of success came from the auction which happened on Saturday night

Larry Miller – pray that he will be able to find work, pray that he will be able to strengthen the marriage ministry at Northshore

Tim H – pray for his wife to find her ministry

Gary – pray for strength as he works through all the various stresses of life, pray for the health of his wife

Brent – pray that he will find clarity and guidance for finding the right person to marry

Chad – pray for continued seeking of purity in his life


Future Meetings

**** Wednesday, April 1st, 7:00-9:00 pm, meeting with Tim Dresler at Northshore Christian Church

Wednesday, April 8th, 7:00-9:00 pm, regular meeting at Northshore Christian Church

**** Wednesday, April 15th, 7:00-9:00 pm, meeting with Tim Dresler at Northshore Christian Church

Wednesday, April 22nd, 7:00-9:00 pm, regular meeting at Northshore Christian Church

****Wednesday, April 29th, 7:00-9:00 pm, meeting with Tim Dresler at Northshore Christian Church


Group Happenings

“Ephesians: The Wealth of God in us”—A study through the book of Ephesians, verse by verse, chapter by chapter, so we can discover all we have been given by God…

As the world continues to tell all of us all what we do not have and what we are lacking; as each one of us continue to struggle through tough economic times; as the Church continues to face new challenges; I believe there is no better time than to truly discover all we do have as Christians. We have been blessed beyond measure through our Lord Jesus Christ and by Him have access to all of God's promises.

By studying all the topics covered in the book of Ephesians together in this fellowship of men, my prayer is that all of us will truly come to understand that we have "The wealth of God in us".

Pray that this study will be a tremendous blessing to each one of us, a blessing to the Church, and an opportunity for the Acts 2:42 Men's Fellowship to continue the calling God has placed on all of our hearts...

I invite you to invite others so that through this study, we can minister unto others and share the love of God.

God bless and I look forward to seeing you at our next meeting.

In Christ,
Mark


Ephesians Study Outline

Here is the outline of the study plan we are looking at covering while we study the book of Ephesians:

Part number
1. Ephesians 1:1-14 Salutation / Predestination, Redemption, Inheritance in Christ
2. Ephesians 1:15-23 Resources in Christ
3. Ephesians 2:1-10 New Life in Christ
4. Ephesians 2:11-22 Unity in Christ
5. Ephesians 3:1-13 The purpose of the mystery revealed
6. Ephesians 3:14-21 God’s Fullness for the Church
7. Ephesians 4:1-6 God’s Plan for Faithful Living in the Church
8. Ephesians 4:7-16 God’s Son Endows and Builds the Church
9. Ephesians 4:17-32 God’s Pattern and Principles for members of the Church
10. Ephesians 5:1-14 Walking in love / Living in Light
11. Ephesians 5:15-21 Walking in wisdom / Filled with God’s Spirit
12. Ephesians 5:22-6:9 God’s standard for Authority and Submission in the Church
13. Ephesians 6:10-17 God’s provision for His children’s spiritual battles
14. Ephesians 6:18-24 God’s appeal for prayer in the Church / Benediction

Memory Verse

“But you, be strong and do not let your hands be weak, for your work shall be rewarded!”
2 Chronicles 15:7 NKJV