WELCOME MORNING WORSHIP EVENING WORSHIP. November 11, Persecution and Revival Acts 8:1-18 Square: Pastor Brad Knetsch and Gerson Miranda

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1 WELCOME November 11, 2012 MORNING WORSHIP Square: 9 and 11 am Ford: 10 am Persecution and Revival Acts 8:1-18 Square: Pastor Brad Knetsch and Gerson Miranda The Circle Gets Wider Acts 10 Ford: Pastor Dave Beelen OUR GIVING Today: General, Missions Next Week: General, Christian Education Sermon Series: Empowered by the Holy Spirit EVENING WORSHIP Square: 6 pm Transforming Power of the Gospel for an Ethiopian and his Nation Acts 8 Jonathan Bascom OUR GIVING Today: Mel Trotter Next Week: Fogotten Man Ministries Our VISION: To Be a Diverse Community Following Christ Together

2 Welcome to Madison Square Church! If you are new today, please stop at the Information Center for connection info that will help you get to know us. We invite you to take advantage of the ministry opportunities available today. If you would like your children to stay with you during the worship service, pick up a special bulletin for them at the back center doors. Also, there is a Cry Room available for you to care for your young ones and still see and hear the worship service. Later on, check out what s happening in our regular ministries or special events. You can find all this detail in your weekly bulletin just turn the page and keep reading. We hope that you see God here today. If you have any questions about us, we d love to hear from you. Please contact Bill Wiarda at ext. 215 or bwiarda@madisonsquarechurch.org. SQUARE SUNDAYS 8:45 am Missionary Prayer in Room 302 (second Sundays) 9 and 11am: NURSERY: Newborns-3 years old downstairs CHILDREN S CHURCH in the MultiPurpose Room SPECIAL NEEDS MINISTRY: oneon-one attention in Room 314. Call Kristen Buurma at ext. 213 for reservations. SUNDAY SCHOOL for youth and adults more info on classes at the Information Desk. Children s bulletins and crayons can be picked up from the cabinet by the center doors at the back of the Sanctuary. Pick up the Take Home Questions from the Children s Resource Board in the MultiPurpose Room for more sermon-related activities. Do you need a Bible? You can pick up a free one at the Information Desk. Empowered by the Holy Spirit Sanctuary Set The design through color and shape flows from Acts 1:8. The central ceiling design captures our being called by Christ and empowered by the Holy Spirit to go into the world with the gospel. The fluidity of the design speaks of the dynamic, organic way in which this happens. Our eyes are drawn from the ceiling to the front where the cross keeps our gospel focus clear.

3 MOVE With Us Teacher needed: Our 4- and 5-year olds are in urgent need of a teacher! If you have a passion for the word of God and God is moving you to help our youngsters apply it to their lives, please contact Missy Flockhart at mflockhart@madisonsquarechurch.org or ext The Lost and Found is overflowing! Please visit the bins in the south stairwell off the Lobby to claim your lost items. Parents-please visit the L & F in the nursery. We have two overflowing bins. Unclaimed items will soon be donated. The new church website madisonsquarechurch.org is here to serve you. You ll notice all of the great features you ve come to love including bulletin and sermon downloads as well as loads of resources at your fingertips. You ll now see multiple styles of interactive calendars so you can find events in the way you need to see them. Contact, permission, and room request forms can now be accessed via the web too. Please give it a try and send feedback to bwiarda@madisonsquarechurch.org. Dickinson Elementary students are in need of uniforms. Let's MOVE together with our neighborhood school for our uniform drive. Dates and details coming soon. Living Out God s Heart for Justice What does the Lord require of you? To do justice... Many of us know that directive from Micah 6:8, but what else does the Bible have to say about justice, or what we call social justice? How do we practically respond to that call in our own community? Come to the discussion on 7 pm Wednesdays in Rom 307 with Jordan Bruxvoort. Mark your calendars for the youth ministry-led evening service Nov. 18. We will hear a testimony of forgiveness and reconciliation. After 35 years in prison, Ross Hayes left the Ionia Maximum Correctional Facility where waiting to greet him with support and forgiveness was Dale Daverman, whose greataunt was killed by Hayes. This will be a powerful night! Youth will meet at 5pm at Madison Place for snack and head to the evening service at 5:45pm. We will be finished at 7:45pm Teens on the MOVE High School: This evening we will dive further into Leave a Legacy as we ask the question, "Why did God make me?" Join us from 5-7:30pm at Madison Place. Middle School: 6:30-8:30 Nov. 15 at Madison Place ~ This week: Gossip

4 Making Room Debt November 2012 I am writing to you concerning a financial matter affecting Madison Square Church. In March 2006, Madison began raising pledges for its Making Room campaign. Part of this campaign included purchasing and renovating what is now Madison Place. Madison Place is a tremendous ministry facility for our church and elevates the neighborhood too. In August 2011, with congregational support and Council approval, Madison borrowed $208,000 to complete the project. Utilizing Making Room campaign pledges collected through September 2012, we have paid the loan down to about $168,000, but there is only enough left in the Making Room fund to make one more payment. After October, monthly payments will have to come out of Madison s General Fund putting an additional burden on that fund. From now through the end of the year, we pray that the Lord will open heaven s store house and pour out sufficient funds to retire the Madison Place loan this budget year. I know that many of you have given to the Making Room campaign in the past and for that we are truly thankful. I hope that you will consider an additional gift. I also know there are many of you who did not attend Madison when Making Room started or even when Madison Place was completed. Now is your chance to participate in the Making Room campaign and help retire our outstanding debt. I hope that each of you will prayerfully consider making a special gift over and above your regular tithe so that we can retire the Madison Place debt with minimal impact on Madison Square s General Fund. Please mark your gifts for Making Room Debt Retirement. You can also contribute online at by clicking the link for Online Giving. Questions? Contact me at makingroom@madisonsquarechurch.org Blessings, Scott Huebl Treasurer, Madison Square Church

5 It s Time to Celebrate! standup! is coming on Nov. 18! Next Sunday morning our church family will celebrate the faith commitments of children, teens, and adults who want to go public and standup! with their faith. We will celebrate at both services with testimonies and baptisms. Invite a friend and join us for this great celebration. Pastor Joy is on sabbatical through Jan While she is away, there are a few people assisting with pastoral care to ensure that you still have the support you need. Get in touch with us at the church office at or via pastoralcare@madisonsquarechurch.org. For weddings, pre-marriage counseling, baptisms and funerals, office@madisonsquarechurch.org. Copies of the letter that Pastor Joy referenced in her Oct. 28 sermon are available at the Information Center. We value your input, so if you have questions that aren't answered in this letter or would like to engage in further dialogue please contact Pastor Dave at ext. 206 or dbeelen@madisonsquarechurch.org or one of the elder co-chairs, Mart Hollebeek at marthollebeek@lifestorynet.com or Ben McKnight at brmcknight@sbcglobal.net. Our Giving October Report Square Ford Budget so far this year: $463,163 $66,176 Offerings received so far this year: $433,943 $59,609 Amount needed to stay on budget: $ 29,220 $ 6,576 Dear Madison family members, Thank you for your faithful support. Offerings so far this year are behind what is needed to stay on budget. Please prayerfully consider how the Lord might be leading you to help Madison at the Square and at the Ford financially. S.O.A.P. Bible Study SU Romans 3-4 M Genesis 4-7 T Joshua 6-10 W Psalms 3-5 TH Job 3-4 F Isaiah 7-11 SA Matthew 3-4 Use S.O.A.P. Every Day Congregational Scripture Memory Acts 1:8

6 Let s Bag Hunger! Madison Food Pantry needs your help to provide food items for our families in the congregation and the community this holiday season. Last year, with the help of your generous donations, we were able to feed over 400 families during the Thanksgiving and Christmas holidays. Please help us exceed that number this year by picking up a bag at the Information Desk, filling it with nonperishable items and returning it to one of the bins in the lobby by Dec. 15. Gift cards from local merchants are also welcome. If you have any questions contact Nicole Simpson at or n.simpson@restorersinc.org. Christmas Celebration: Attention Parents: At the evening worship service on Dec. 9, children will lead us in a special intergenerational worship service. We will be learning Christmas songs in Children's Church and will ask all children who would like to be part of the service to come to two Sunday afternoon practices as well. If your child attends worship in the sanctuary but would like to be involved, he/she is welcome to join us for the first half hour of Children's Church throughout the month of November so that they can learn the songs. We will also be asking a few children to read a script, dance, or be a part of a drama which reenacts the Christmas story. Please contact Dena Willis: willis.dena@gmail.com (or call the church office at ) for more information or to find out how your child might be involved. Thanks! We need to talk... New Community Living Conversations are back! Come, learn and talk with others about issues that affect us as a multiethnic church. Newcomers to the conversation are welcomed and encouraged to attend. There will be food, learning, and fellowship. There are monthly activities. Come to one, two or three each quarter! November 27th - Movie: Dakota 93- Madison Multi-Purpose Room, 6-9pm December "Get on the Bus" trip: On Dec 19, 2009 the U.S. government officially apologized to Native Peoples... but did not tell anyone, says Pastor Mark Charles. Join him at the U.S. Capitol, where the apology will be publicly repeated. Calvin College, Madison Square Church and Restorers are hosting this trip. For more information, check out wirelesshogan.com/us_apology_to_natives/press_release. Cost: $65. Please see for registration information January TBA - Book Discussion: One God, Many Tribes by Richard Twiss.

7 THANK YOU FOR SUPPORTING OUR MISSIONARIES! WE'RE TAKING THE GOOD NEWS TO THE ENDS OF THE EARTH! Troy and Faith Bierma serve the Lord and you with Christian Reformed World Missions (CRWM) in Kathmandu, Nepal. Faith is the daughter of our members Joel and Patty Hogan. Praises: Nepal has one of the fastest growing churches in the world! Last May, fifteen students graduated from the Evangelical Presbyterian Theological Seminary (ETPS), where Troy teaches and serves as academic dean. Graduates of EPTS are involved in evangelism and church planting. The Biermas' children, Yazzie and Priya, were delighted when their dog gave birth to five puppies! Pray for: political peace, and that the Nepali people will be able to work sufficiently to eat, despite the frequent political strikes which stop all work. the demands of the Biermas' life and work in Nepal, that they would have good health, strength, and wisdom. the planning and preparation for the Biermas first furlough from Nepal in January 2013 the graduates as they continue their studies and engage in their churches' ministries, Pray that they will grow deep in their faith with the help of God's Spirit. Joel and Jeannie Huyser serve the Lord with CRWM in Managua, Nicaragua. Praises: Leaders of the transformation network in Leon, a city 100 km west of Managua, told of the outreach to youth at risk, people suffering from HIV-AIDS, and victims of human trafficking as a result of their teaching the Biblical worldview to the churches. Pastoral couples in Leon have been trained by the Nehemiah Center to counsel couples dealing with domestic abuse and the Lord has used this to heal marriages. The Huysers were able to visit with some of their supporting churches and visit all of their children and grandchildren and were refreshed by their home leave this summer. The Huysers were safe after their confrontation with robbers in their bedroom in August. Jeannie even witnessed to the robbers! Prayer Requests: CRWM partners from Asia, Africa, Europe, and Latin America visited Nicaragua in September to learn about transformational network strategies that enable grassroots leaders to tell the Good News of Jesus to their communities. Please pray that they will be humble and learn from each other, and listen to God, to make the Good News visible on the streets of their communities, Pray for the Huysers' house in Nicaragua to sell, and for wisdom about where to live in the future that will be safe for Jeannie during Joel's frequent travels all over the world.

8 Requested Announcements CORR (Congregations Organizing for Racial Reconciliation), a combined ministry of Coit, Madison Square and Church of the Servant is sponsoring two special events on Nov. 13. Tom DeWolf and Sharon Leslie Morgan, who have co-authored a book entitled Gather at the Table will offer us their insight and guidance. There will be a pastors and church leaders lunch at noon at Madison Square Church and an evening presentation at Church of the Servant at 7pm. Contact Victoria Gibbs (vgibbs@madisonsquarechurch.org or ext. 212) to register. CRWRC Disaster Response Services is involved in a Needs Assessment in two counties in NY due to Hurricane Irene, Aug Mart & Mary Hollebeek from our congregation will be on a team from November Please support them with your prayers while they are on this assignment. Pray for safety, good health and opportunities to touch and give hope to hurting people in this relief ministry. Write them a note while they are on site: Hotel Vienna, Attn: DRS Volunteer, 107 Route 296, Windham, NY Raising Children Without Racism: a seminar presented by Partners for a Racism-Free Society, 7-8:30 pm Monday, Nov. 12 ($15) or 11:30 am-1:30 pm Tuesday, Nov. 13 ($25, lunch included). Topics include: talking to your children about race, attitudes and culture, reflecting on personal bias, age-appropriate conversation. Bethlehem Church, 250 Commerce SW. staff@prfc-gr.org to register. Schedule of events at Madison for Thanksgiving week Wed. Nov. 21: Evening activities cancelled except Children s Dance (5:30-6:30) Thurs, Nov. 22: Thanksgiving service at 10 am. No Middle School Youth Group Sun. Nov. 25 am: Cancelled: 4's and 5's Sunday School class, Children's Church, teen and adult Sunday School. Children are invited to worship with their families in the Sanctuary. Please plan accordingly: consider bringing journaling paper and crayons to journal during the sermon like they do in Children's Church. Be sure to pick up a Children's bulletin and go through your child's answers with him/her after the service. Sun. Nov. 25 pm: Worship Service, 6 pm. High School Youth Group cancelled. GET IN TOUCH! Madison Square Church Monday - Friday, 9:30 am 5 pm BWiarda@madisonsquarechurch.org for weekly updates.