Covenants are a big deal, did you know that?
I found out that if I put up the wrong type of fence or build a storage barn our Neighborhood Association Covenant will likely result in me getting reprimanded, fined or even forced to take down the fence or storage barn. Wow! These people seem to take this covenant serriously!
But covenants are meant to be taken seriously. If you look through the Old Testament you see God weaving, creating, adapting and enforcing His covenant with His people. In fact, it was because His people would not (or could not) keep this covenant with Him that He eventually threw up His hands (so to speak) and decided that something drastic must be done! The covenant progression kind of went like this...
...God makes a covenant with Adam and Eve that allows them to live in perfect relationship with Him forever in the Garden of Eden. They break the covenant. God has to begin again...
...God makes a covenant with Abraham that He will bless Abraham and his family and will bless the whole world through them...if they keep the covenant...but they don't. God has to begin again...
...God attempts to restore the covenant with people like Isaac, Jacob, David, various Judges, Kings and Prophets...but it never seems to work like God had hoped...God has to begin again...
...God decides that a NEW covenant is needed. A covenant based not on the righteousness and obedience of the people...but based on God's righteousness, love, justice and mercy...a covenant established by blood...the blood of His one and only Son...Jesus...who would pay the price for the sin, disobedience and failure of so many people...ALL PEOPLE...to keep God's original covenant...This is THE covenant...the final one needed...to reconcile people and the entire creation back to God!
Covenants are a big deal, did you know that?
And now your pastoral staff and Board of Directors is asking you to support a covenant. A covenant that in essence makes us accountable to our state ministry...and makes them accountable to us. After all...this is what covenants are...two parties mutually agreeing to be accountable to each other for the sake of a larger, more important cause. To accomplish something together they they might not be able to accomplish on their own. This covenant is good...it is coming at the right time...with the right motive...and is worthy of our support.
Covenants are a big deal...in part because when kept, they produce beautiful and powerful results! God is calling us to a new and powerfully productive day of mission-focused ministry at Mooresville Church of God. Let's not miss this opportunity!
Copies of this covenant are available on the Welcome Center in the church lobby. As you have questions email them to the office (info@mooresvillechurch.org) Our state minister, Dr. Doug Talley, will be with us on Wednesday, June 2 for a Question & Answer time at 7:00 pm. We will then vote on acceptance of the covenant on Sunday, June 6 immediately following the morning worship service.
Thank you for your partnership in ministry! Thank you for your prayers and participation in what our God is doing among His people TODAY!
In His Grip,
Pastor John
Saturday, May 22, 2010
Tuesday, May 18, 2010
Pentecost Pulpit Rotation
Join us this Sunday, May 23rd as we kick off our Pentecost sermon series and pulpit rotation!
We welcome Pastor Daniel Miller of the Kelley Crossing Church of God in Frankfort, In. and Pastor Andy Denniston of the Eaton Church of God in Eaton, In.
Series Preaching Schedule:
Sunday, May 23
Mooresville - Andy Denniston
Frankfort - John Crump
Eaton - Daniel Miller
Sunday, May 30
Mooresville - Daniel Miller
Frankfort - Andy Denniston
Eaton - John Crump
Sunday, June 6 & 13
Mooresville - John Crump
Frankfort - Daniel Miller
Eaton - Andy Denniston
Monday, May 10, 2010
Beirut Mission Team: The Story in Pictures
Here is Rhiannon, Maggy, Ron & Marlene sharing a meal with some of the Cedar Home girls. There are 21 total girls: 13 who range in age from 6 - 18 and 8 college age girls who are in a more independant living arrangement. Chadi & Joyce Melki and their staff are doing powerful and effective ministries with these fine young women and girls!
Here you have our team with most of the Heart for Lebanon team. A talented and committed group of young men and women who are impacting the very culture of a nation by their God-given mission and hard work! Camille & Hoda Melki and their staff are setting an example for how ministry is to be approached and lived out no matter where you live!
Rhiannon McKinley and Marlene Crump are visiting with one of many Iraqi families we visited in their homes. What a privilege it was to sit, talk, listen to their stories and minister to these good people. Many (probably most) of the Iraqi families we met were Christians who had been driven out of Iraq by Muslim extremists who had either killed some of their family members, kidnapped family members or threatened them simply because they were Christians. Most are now waiting to be permanently placed in other countries by the United Nations.
This is Pastor John with a little spitfire known as Simona. She keeps everyone hopping at Cedar Home. She is a great example of the life-change happening with each of the girls that God has entrusted into Chadi and Joyce Melki's hands.
We took some time to learn about the history and culture of Lebanon. What a great and interesting history it has! Here we are standing on a late 1st Century church floor in the city of Byblos. Though we don't know for sure, it's possible that the Apostle Paul, the Apostle John or some of their students might have spoken here at some point! The possibility alone left us in awe. We laughed because anything we have in the USA regarding our history is 234 years old or younger. So sites that are thousands of years old are almost beyond our comprehension!
These are the tallest Roman columns in the world! The engineering feat alone is breathtaking, but the intricate carvings and construction is incredible. You see Pastor John standing at the bottom of the first column and get a sense of how big they are! These columns are a part of a pre-first century pagan temple built by the Romans called Ba'albeck. It was a temple where people could come and worship any god they chose. Throughout the ruins there were sections devoted to certain gods. The temple is in a Shiite village of the same name. It is located in the beautiful Bekaa Valley, a valley set between two mountain ranges in the center of Lebanon. If you travel east from the Bekaa Valley you reach the Mediterranean Sea. If you travel west you enter Syria.
The Beirut Mission team will be sharing during our Sunday morning worship on Sunday, May 16th. We hope you can come and hear about what God is doing in Lebanon!
Here you have our team with most of the Heart for Lebanon team. A talented and committed group of young men and women who are impacting the very culture of a nation by their God-given mission and hard work! Camille & Hoda Melki and their staff are setting an example for how ministry is to be approached and lived out no matter where you live!
Rhiannon McKinley and Marlene Crump are visiting with one of many Iraqi families we visited in their homes. What a privilege it was to sit, talk, listen to their stories and minister to these good people. Many (probably most) of the Iraqi families we met were Christians who had been driven out of Iraq by Muslim extremists who had either killed some of their family members, kidnapped family members or threatened them simply because they were Christians. Most are now waiting to be permanently placed in other countries by the United Nations.
This is Pastor John with a little spitfire known as Simona. She keeps everyone hopping at Cedar Home. She is a great example of the life-change happening with each of the girls that God has entrusted into Chadi and Joyce Melki's hands.
We took some time to learn about the history and culture of Lebanon. What a great and interesting history it has! Here we are standing on a late 1st Century church floor in the city of Byblos. Though we don't know for sure, it's possible that the Apostle Paul, the Apostle John or some of their students might have spoken here at some point! The possibility alone left us in awe. We laughed because anything we have in the USA regarding our history is 234 years old or younger. So sites that are thousands of years old are almost beyond our comprehension!
These are the tallest Roman columns in the world! The engineering feat alone is breathtaking, but the intricate carvings and construction is incredible. You see Pastor John standing at the bottom of the first column and get a sense of how big they are! These columns are a part of a pre-first century pagan temple built by the Romans called Ba'albeck. It was a temple where people could come and worship any god they chose. Throughout the ruins there were sections devoted to certain gods. The temple is in a Shiite village of the same name. It is located in the beautiful Bekaa Valley, a valley set between two mountain ranges in the center of Lebanon. If you travel east from the Bekaa Valley you reach the Mediterranean Sea. If you travel west you enter Syria.
The Beirut Mission team will be sharing during our Sunday morning worship on Sunday, May 16th. We hope you can come and hear about what God is doing in Lebanon!
Wednesday, May 5, 2010
Beirut Mission Team: Mid-week Report
Sunday, May 2
After arriving at the airport we immediately discovered that our flight was significantly delayed. This would cause us to miss our connecting flight in Philadelphia. So the airline re-arranged our flight plans, sending us through Philly and London instead of Philly and Frankfurt, Germany. Doesn't sound too bad, except it added around 6 or 7 hours to our total flight time. Other than those changes in our plans it was uneventful flying all night. We were excited to be off on our ministry adventure!
Monday, May 3
After a 5 hour layover in London we headed off to Beirut! We arrived in Beirut around 11:00 pm Monday evening. Flying across the Atlantic Ocean has an element of fun and excitement, but is also really tiring! Fortunately our flights were smooth sailing as we tried to get some sleep and adjust to the massive time change were were about to experience. We lost 7 hours on our flight to Beirut. So when it's noon in Indiana, it's 7:00 pm in Beirut. We were met at the airport by Chadi Melki, the Director of Cedar Home. We got settled in and got a few hours sleep, already anticipating our first day of ministry!
Tuesday, May 4
We met Camille Melki, the Director of Heart for Lebanon at 8:00 am Tuesday morning. H4L's offices are in the Meditteranean Bible College building, right next door to Cedar Home. Camille and his staff took us into downtown Beirut where we distributed food to Iraqi refugee families. These families fled Iraq due to the war and persecution going on there to this very day. We were treated to lunch at a local restaurant by some friends of the H4L ministry: Brother Frank & Brother Stephen! It was a great time of fellowship with these two pastors and leaders from churches in Canada! In the afternoon we went in teams of 4 or 5 to visit some of these families in their temporary homes. It would not be possible to articulate the array of emotions you feel as you hear the stories of each family. There is a bit of everything... sadness... grief... relief... joy... anger... desperation. I encourage anyone reading this to ask one of our team to tell you a couple of the stories they heard. In addition to the Iraqi families, it was so inspiring to see the Holy Spirit power through the H4L staff! We are deeply grateful that God has placed these dedicated and Spirit-led people in Lebanon to minister to these desperate needs! Camille and your staff...THANK YOU for the great work you are doing on behalf of God's Kingdom!
After returning to Cedar Home for the evening we finally got to meet the 21 girls who call Cedar Home... well... home! Chadi & Joyce Melki are truly God's hands and feet for these girls who have all come from very difficult and sometimes tragic backgrounds! Rhiannon McKinley led devotions and small group discussions before supper. We chose a three part theme for the week on the topic of "Purity". Rhiannon's topic was purity in your actions. She did a great job! We then ate supper with the girls and then quickly settled in for our first "real" nights sleep in almost two days! We were ready for it!
Wednesday, May 5
Our day was identical in schedule to Tuesday: Iraqi food distribution in the morning / Visiting Iraqi homes in the afternoon. More powerful moments of ministry with the wonderful Iraqi people and the inspiring H4L staff! We were blessed by our time with all of them!
After arriving at Cedar Home the evening devotion, this time on the topic of "Spiritual Purity" was led by Marlene Crump. Another great job! We played a couple of games with the girls and then shared a great supper with them!
We then walked over to H4L's offices to meet with Milad, one of the H4L staff members. We wanted to hear his testimony of what God had done in his life. It was powerful to hear this man who was raised as a Muslim tell of his encounter with Jesus, the persecution he endured after his conversion, and his faithfulness to God's call into ministry! Thank you Milad for sharing your story with us!
After returning to Cedar Home we had an opportunity to hear Chadi Melki tell of some of the joys and challenges that come with caring for 21 young girls and women who have lived challenging and sometimes painful lives before coming to Cedar Home. Please continue to pray for Chadi and Joyce as they serve these girls! It is a powerful expression of the love of Jesus to watch them live every moment of their lives for others!
That's got you up to date so far! We will share some more in a couple of days! Thanks for your prayers for our team and for the ministries we are serving with! Blessings from Beirut!
In His Grip,
Pastor John
After arriving at the airport we immediately discovered that our flight was significantly delayed. This would cause us to miss our connecting flight in Philadelphia. So the airline re-arranged our flight plans, sending us through Philly and London instead of Philly and Frankfurt, Germany. Doesn't sound too bad, except it added around 6 or 7 hours to our total flight time. Other than those changes in our plans it was uneventful flying all night. We were excited to be off on our ministry adventure!
Monday, May 3
After a 5 hour layover in London we headed off to Beirut! We arrived in Beirut around 11:00 pm Monday evening. Flying across the Atlantic Ocean has an element of fun and excitement, but is also really tiring! Fortunately our flights were smooth sailing as we tried to get some sleep and adjust to the massive time change were were about to experience. We lost 7 hours on our flight to Beirut. So when it's noon in Indiana, it's 7:00 pm in Beirut. We were met at the airport by Chadi Melki, the Director of Cedar Home. We got settled in and got a few hours sleep, already anticipating our first day of ministry!
Tuesday, May 4
We met Camille Melki, the Director of Heart for Lebanon at 8:00 am Tuesday morning. H4L's offices are in the Meditteranean Bible College building, right next door to Cedar Home. Camille and his staff took us into downtown Beirut where we distributed food to Iraqi refugee families. These families fled Iraq due to the war and persecution going on there to this very day. We were treated to lunch at a local restaurant by some friends of the H4L ministry: Brother Frank & Brother Stephen! It was a great time of fellowship with these two pastors and leaders from churches in Canada! In the afternoon we went in teams of 4 or 5 to visit some of these families in their temporary homes. It would not be possible to articulate the array of emotions you feel as you hear the stories of each family. There is a bit of everything... sadness... grief... relief... joy... anger... desperation. I encourage anyone reading this to ask one of our team to tell you a couple of the stories they heard. In addition to the Iraqi families, it was so inspiring to see the Holy Spirit power through the H4L staff! We are deeply grateful that God has placed these dedicated and Spirit-led people in Lebanon to minister to these desperate needs! Camille and your staff...THANK YOU for the great work you are doing on behalf of God's Kingdom!
After returning to Cedar Home for the evening we finally got to meet the 21 girls who call Cedar Home... well... home! Chadi & Joyce Melki are truly God's hands and feet for these girls who have all come from very difficult and sometimes tragic backgrounds! Rhiannon McKinley led devotions and small group discussions before supper. We chose a three part theme for the week on the topic of "Purity". Rhiannon's topic was purity in your actions. She did a great job! We then ate supper with the girls and then quickly settled in for our first "real" nights sleep in almost two days! We were ready for it!
Wednesday, May 5
Our day was identical in schedule to Tuesday: Iraqi food distribution in the morning / Visiting Iraqi homes in the afternoon. More powerful moments of ministry with the wonderful Iraqi people and the inspiring H4L staff! We were blessed by our time with all of them!
After arriving at Cedar Home the evening devotion, this time on the topic of "Spiritual Purity" was led by Marlene Crump. Another great job! We played a couple of games with the girls and then shared a great supper with them!
We then walked over to H4L's offices to meet with Milad, one of the H4L staff members. We wanted to hear his testimony of what God had done in his life. It was powerful to hear this man who was raised as a Muslim tell of his encounter with Jesus, the persecution he endured after his conversion, and his faithfulness to God's call into ministry! Thank you Milad for sharing your story with us!
After returning to Cedar Home we had an opportunity to hear Chadi Melki tell of some of the joys and challenges that come with caring for 21 young girls and women who have lived challenging and sometimes painful lives before coming to Cedar Home. Please continue to pray for Chadi and Joyce as they serve these girls! It is a powerful expression of the love of Jesus to watch them live every moment of their lives for others!
That's got you up to date so far! We will share some more in a couple of days! Thanks for your prayers for our team and for the ministries we are serving with! Blessings from Beirut!
In His Grip,
Pastor John
Saturday, May 1, 2010
Beirut, Lebanon Mission Team Itinerary
Please be in prayer for our team leaving Sunday, May 2 for Beirut, Lebanon. The team consists of:
Pastor John Crump
Rhiannon McKinley
Marlene Crump
Pastor Ron Crump
Maggy Fisher
Here is the teams itinerary for the week. Pray for them throughout the week as the travel and serve:
Sunday, May 2
- Depart Indianapolis 3:15 pm
- Arrive Philadelphia 5:04 pm
- Depart Philadelphia 6:25 pm
Monday, May 3
- Arrive Indianapolis 3:04 pm
Pastor John Crump
Rhiannon McKinley
Marlene Crump
Pastor Ron Crump
Maggy Fisher
Here is the teams itinerary for the week. Pray for them throughout the week as the travel and serve:
Sunday, May 2
- Depart Indianapolis 3:15 pm
- Arrive Philadelphia 5:04 pm
- Depart Philadelphia 6:25 pm
Monday, May 3
- Arrive Frankfurt, Germany 8:45 am
- Depart Frankfurt 10:20 am
- Arrive Beirut 3:05 pm
- Settle in at Cedar Home for the evening
Tuesday, May 4
- 8:00 - Noon: Food Distribution to Iraqi Refugees
- 1:00 – 5:00: Home visits with Iraqi families
- 6:30 – 7:30: Devotion/Games with Cedar Home kids
Wednesday, May 5
- 8:00 - Noon: Food Distribution to Iraqi Refugees
- 1:00 – 5:00: Home visits with Iraqi families
- 6:30 – 7:30: Devotion/Games with Cedar Home kids
Thursday, May 6
- 8:00 – Noon: Breakfast & Staff Meeting w/ H4L Staff
- 1:00 – 5:00: Cedar Home projects
- 6:30 – 7:30: Devotion/Games with Cedar Home kids
Friday, May 7
- 8:00 – Noon: Iraqi Women’s Program
- 8:00 – Noon: Pastor John leading Devotions & Staff Meeting w/ CHO staff
- 1:00 – 5:00: Outdoor Activities with Cedar Home kids
- 7:00: Production of "The Hunchback of Notre Dame" by Cedar Home kids
Saturday, May 8
- Site-Seeing Day: Cedars of Lebanon
Sunday, May 9
- Depart Beirut 3:05 am
- Arrive Frankfurt, Germany 6:15 am
- Depart Frankfurt 8:25 am
- Arrive Chicago 10:31 am
- Depart Chicago 1:10 pm- Arrive Indianapolis 3:04 pm
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