THE VINE CONNECTION NEWSLETTER

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1 THE VINE CONNECTION NEWSLETTER The Vine Connection is all about reaching out to each other and our community FEBRUARY 2014 VOL.2 # ISSUE #2 This Month s Ministry Focus: The Men s Ministry was designed to give men opportunities to engage in various activities focused on building relationships around Jesus. During the past year the Men s Ministry completed multiple service projects to include painting the exterior of a home and repairing porches. We have also completed various landscaping projects and interior home repairs for the community and Vine folks. The Men s Life Group has been meeting regularly throughout the entire year and has completed studies on Taking Responsibility for Your Life, Foundations of the Faith, and Soul Detox. We are currently studying Spiritual Warfare. This is a relevant, heart hitting subject, and all men are encouraged to attend. We are able to make real life changes when we embrace God s word and can rely on other men to help us along the way! The Men s Outreach Progr continues to be in the planning stages with a goal of having at least one project secured every other month. The goal of this ministry is to meet the physical and spiritual needs of the community. We also hope to have fellowship events such as golf outings, shooting range time and back yard BBQ s throughout the year. Your help is needed to step up and be involved with planning. While our Men s Life Group is active in meeting every other Wednesday, we have been unable to expand the Men s Ministry beyond our Life Group studies. A rejuvenated vigor with respect to leadership perspective, as well as participants who have a heart and desire to serve the community is our prayer request. Please also pray for wisdom and guidance in regards to the Outreach progr that focus not be lost on the mission and goal of this rejuvenated ministry. Pray for the continued attendance of the Men s Life Group and that all in attendance would come with the focus of identifying the fundental aspects of Spiritual Warfare as we further our dependence on one another and on God. You are encouraged to talk with Pastor Mark if you would like to step up and be involved with the Men s ministry! The Vine Church 1 S. Main Street Page 1.

2 The Vine Church Vision Statement is to connect people to Jesus Christ, who is The Vine, so that they may connect to each other and the community around them in order to have a growing relationship with The Vine. MINISTRY IN ACTION The Pastor s Ponderments Pastor Mark FAMILY BOWLING NIGHT When looking back through the year, my heart is deeply moved and encouraged by God sightings all around us. Our Leadership Te began to explore how The Vine can be a compelling missional community in February. This is becoming a defining factor of who we are as The Vine within our community. As the body of Christ, we have rallied to support fund raising efforts to help with practical necessities such as electric bills and clothing. We are providing meals to the New Hope Shelter on a regular basis, and are supporting the Tabitha s Table Food Bank with food, funding and volunteers. It does not stop there! We are sharing our stories with people about what Jesus is actively doing in our lives. We even had our very first mission trip. A te of nine people went to the Bronx to serve with Priority 1 Ministries and connect to various groups of people at their point of need. Hearts are changing and lives are changing. People are accepting Jesus as their Savior and being baptized! We now have multiple Life Groups meeting to provide connections, discipleship and equipping people to be centered on Jesus! People are mentoring people through life challenges and partnering together around the Word! 2013 has been a year of spiritual growth and ministry in action for the body of Christ! Philemon 6 I pray that you may be active in sharing your faith, so that you will have a full understanding of every good thing we have in Christ. This verse provides a focused frework for The Vine in To bring Philemon 6 to life, the body of Christ will take a new adventure in truly understanding who we are in Christ, and in how critical it is to have a full understanding of the Gospel, both from a knowledge perspective and a heart perspective! We will continue to become a compelling missional community as we surrender our lives more completely to Christ and His Word! To do this, we need each other. To live in this manner we need support and encouragement. To become a missional community your voice is needed and your heart is essential. The body of Christ, The Vine, is much more than a Sunday morning gathering,. We are a people of action! We are a people of love and compassion! Pastor Mark SNOW TUBING Page 2

3 COME & GET IT C.H.O.S.E.N. Happy New Year! It has been a while. If you haven t been to our student life group you have definitely missed out on some Awesome God moments. This year instead of having a New Year s Resolution we made New Covenants with Jesus. We gathered at Crossroads BIC with 2 other youth groups, and were even joined by a third, to make these new covenants with God. Some of us made a covenant to read our Bibles more, while others decided that we were going to spend more time praying with Jesus. There are those of us that thought we should do both. It was so much fun to sing praises to Jesus as a big group and hang out with others our age that we haven t seen in a while. After that, we went snow tubing again. Ski Liberty is so much fun, and who doesn t enjoy flying down a hill on snow and ice in a tube? Upcoming events include the Valentine s Day Fundraiser, movie night, and Youth Sunday (where we run the service!) Join us! We still gather at 6:30 on Thursday nights. GOD SIGHTINGS The following are reflections from members of The Vine Church that describe a time in their lives when God was real, and beyond a doubt, the Author of their lives! Does anyone have a story to share? Please see me (Lori Sewell) for your story to share how GOD have been real in your life. PRAYER FOCUS CORNER: The Obstacles of Worldly Thinking By Michael Youssef, Ph.D. Resisting the world s pressures can be painful. Paul warns, Everyone who wants to live a godly life in Christ Jesus will be persecuted, while evil men and impostors will go from bad to worse, deceiving and being deceived (2 Timothy 3:12-13). Jesus gives a similar warning: If the world hates you, keep in mind that it hated me first. If you belonged to the world, it would love you as its own. As it is, you do not belong to the world, but I have chosen you out of the world. That is why the world hates you (John 15:18-19). When we are following God s principles for living, when we seek purity and righteousness, when we act and speak with integrity, the world is going to resent us for it. We cannot expect a world in darkness to understand our desire to walk in the light. Regardless of the cynicism or ridicule we face, God calls us to His standard of obedience and righteousness. We don t have to do this work alone. The Holy Spirit will guide us through the obstacles of worldly thinking. The Bible will show us the truth when we are confronted by lies: All Scripture is God-breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness, so that the man of God may be thoroughly equipped for every good work (2 Timothy 3:16-17). The more time we spend in God s Word, the more our hearts and minds align with God. Choosing to do the right thing becomes easier when we begin to understand God s ways. Standing for the truth becomes easier when we find encouragement and strength in Scripture. But apart from God, we will quickly become enmeshed in the world s ways of thinking. Prayer: God, thank You for Your Spirit which is with me to guide me through the obstacles of worldly thinking. Thank You for Your Word which exposes the lies around me. Help me to stay in Your Word so that my heart and mind will be aligned with yours. Amen. This is the verdict: Light has come into the world, but men loved darkness instead of light because their deeds were evil (John 3:19). Page 3

4 Who suggested stones could be turned into bread? Last months answer: Joseph (Genesis 45:15) DID YOU KNOW? Newborn babies were rubbed with salt (Ezekiel 16:4). WORD OF THE MONTH Prayer (Hebrew: tephillah, greek: deesis) 1. A devout petition to God. 2. A spiritual communion with God as in supplication, thanksgiving, adoration, or confession. Why Pray? Prayer is our conversation with God. Christians through the centuries have found prayer to be an essential aspect of their spiritual life, both as a means of expressing themselves to God and of experiencing His presence. Scripture can also be used as a form of prayer as we ponder the living Word. Jes 5: Is any one of you in trouble? He should pray. Is anyone happy? Let him sing songs of praise. 14 Is any one of you sick? He should call the elders of the church to pray over him and anoint him with oil in the ne of the Lord. 15 And the prayer offered in faith will make the sick person well; the Lord will raise him up. If he has sinned, he will be 1. AOBJC 2. AAPOHHR BIBLE WORD SCRAMBLE 3. AEUZZNHEEBRC 4. PESJOH 5. EEIBMACHL New Search Ge: Last months answers: FIND THE FISH! Where s the fish? It is hidden somewhere in the newsletter. Enjoy the hunt. 1. Peace 2. Triumphant 3.Kingdom 4. Calvary 5. Gilgal AROUND THE BIC News and events happening with our larger Brethren In Christ Fily! Global Anabaptist Profile The Brethren in Christ Church in the U.S. has agreed to participate in the Global Anabaptist Profile study (GAP). This is the first major study of global Anabaptist-Mennonite churches. The overall purpose of GAP is to gather comparative data from a sple of Mennonite World Conference member churches. In addition to BIC U.S., Brethren in Christ churches in Canada, Malawi and Zimbabwe are participating in the study. All members and participants in Brethren in Christ churches in the U.S. are being invited to complete an on-line survey. Invitations to participate in the study are being sent to addresses available through the general church offices. Your participation is of critical importance. If you did not receive an and would like to participate you can access the survey through the link here Women s Life Group -BIBLE STUDY - meets first Monday of the month at church from 6:30-8:00 / contact Karen Shade facilitator (717) or Lori Sewell (717) for more information. Men s Life Group - meets every other Wednesday at the church from 7:00-8:30 / contact Pastor Mark (717) for more information. Prayer HOUR OF POWER - meets the other Wednesday at church 7:00-8:30 / contact Morris Fraley (301) for more information. Student Life Group - meets at the church every Thursday night from 6:30-8:00 / contact Esther Fairall (443) or Debbie Kelly (717) for more information. Couple s Life Group - meets every first Tuesday of the month at the leaders home from 6:30-8:00 / contact Morris & Sheri Fraley (301) for more information. MORE PLACES TO US CHECK OUT FOLLOW US: Check out the Website: 1 South Main St. Smithsburg, MD (301) Comments - Suggestions - Feedback thevineconnection_newsletter@yahoo.com Page 4

5 February 2014 Jes 5:16(a) Therefore confess your sins to each other and pray for each other so that you may be healed... NIV Sun Mon Tue Wed Thu Fri Sat 1 WLG Progressive Dinner 4:00 pm Nancy Barth 2 3 Women s Bible Study 6:30 pm 4 Couple s Group 6:30 pm 5 HOUR OF POWER 7:00 PM Alayja Roell Valentines Dinner Men s Bible Study 7:00 pm AnthonyBrooks Leona Miller President's Day Hour of Power 7:00 pm UNSTOPPABLE MOVIENIGHT 6:00 PM LEADERSHIP MEETING 6:30 PM 26 Men s Bible Study 7:00 pm REESE BROOKS