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::truth::

The Father’s Heart

As we have been looking at the parable of the prodigal sons in Luke 15, one thing we must notice is the father’s heart for his lost boys.  One is lost in his rebellion; one is lost in his religion. One is lost in his immorality; the other is lost in his morality. But neither is entering the father’s joy.

I can see these brothers pointing fingers at each other. I can hear the younger saying, “You religious hypocrite with your self-righteous judgementalism, you are far worse than I am. At least I am authentic and true to myself”.

The elder brother would respond, “You selfish little (fill in the blank), you waltz out of here shirking your responsibilities, blowing all your opportunities, and now you come slinking back, the lizard you are, hoping Dad will bail you out. Get a job and a life!”

Yeah, I could see that.

But notice the Father’s heart for both his boys. He embraces the younger son without reserve. And he goes out to the elder son to plead with him to join the feast.

I know younger brother types who have come to Christ from a pretty rough background, but who sometimes wear that like a badge and pride themselves on their “relevance”. And I know elder brother types who have come to Christ because being religious was the right thing to do. Only later did they discover the gospel was for them too!

But it’s not really about how you came to the father. It’s about the father! It’s about his heart, his joy, and his feast! And it’s about embracing anyone who is invited to the father’s feast.It’s about younger brothers and elder brothers joining hands and joining the father’s feast. We are all there by grace because the gospel is for us both!

And besides, it’s all about the father!

The well wisher of your soul’s happiness,

Pastor Tom

::prayer::

Michael C.:  Please pray for Le in Haiti.  He is trying to find what God has for him.  He needs a job and is considering school.  Pray that he will know and follow God’s will.

Debbie S.:  Please pray for my friend Amy, who is in Rehab.  Pray for her salvation and for courage to make changes in her life and to overcome her past.

John D.:  Pray for me to gain the inner strength I need to confront my challenges.  Pray that Camila and John Paul continue to find the Lord through their participation in Southwest Church.

Deb T.:  Pray Jim will receive the position at the Polynesian Hotel, and that he feels better with no reaction to the steroids.  Also, pray that Erica can sign up for the classes at Valencia – especially Sign II with the teacher she wants.

Nancy W:  Praise the Lord for His kindness to me through many special friends!  Please continue to pray for our family needs.

Pray for Wendy in Cambodia and Lindsey as she leaves Tuesday to join Wendy. 

Darlene M is out of the hospital and cleared of any heart problems. Pray for the resolution of her continuing headaches and dizziness.

::mission::

Be interested:  Everyone has a story. Find out where people are from, how they got here. Ask about their spiritual background. Find out where they are on their spiritual journey. Everyone you meet bears the image of God, no matter how torn, bruised, or twisted. And they have an innate hunger for God, though it is misdirected in all kinds of ways. Your job is to awaken that hunger and point them in the right direction. Be curious!

From Cambodia:

“Hey everyone! I made it safe and sound to Phnom Penh and had no trouble with visas or baggage or anything. Didn’t get much sleep on the plane, but hopefully will catch up on some tonight. I am staying in a room with Wendy tonight and then tomorrow, we are off to the "field."  No quite sure what that means yet, but am excited to find out! We will be there for a few days and then beginning of next week will go off to Battambang, I think.”

 Got to go,

 love you all!

 Lindsey

::community::

Honoring Our Grads: This Sunday we will honor our High School graduates during our morning service. Way to go, guys!

Garage Sale for Summer Camp: Clean house and donated your sellable items to our Lake Swan Camp youth fund raiser. Bring your items to the Welch’s before the garage sale on Saturday, June 5^th.

Memorial Day Weekend Picnic! Summer’s here and the time is right for grillin! Bring a side dish this Saturday, May 29^th, to the Phillip’s “Beach” for a great day of fun in the sun (and in the lake!).

Matthew’s Hope Homeless Dinner:  On Tuesday, June 22, we will be having dinner with the homeless at Matthew’s Hope. We need “worker-bees”, meal planners, chefs, and relationship builders. Please plan to participate and thanks for your response!

Family Fun Night at the YMCA:  This summer we will be hosting a series of family fun night activities for the community at the Roper YMCA Family Center. We kick it off on Saturday, June 12 at 5:30 PM with a family movie night complete with hotdogs and popcorn!  Fun ‘n Games night will be Saturday, July 10^th and a poolside “Dive-in Movie” will be August 21^st.  If you can help plan or be a “worker-bee” please let us know!

The Prodigal God – a Church-Wide Spiritual Adventure

·         Message series Sunday 10:30 AM!

·         Men’s Group – Wednesday nights at 7PM at Tom McCoy’s home.

·         Women’s group – Thursday nights at 6:45 PM Tricia Phillip’s

·         Pick up a book for weekly reading

Sunday, May 30^th         

·      Set–up: Jeff P & Tony L

·      Nursery: Sue & Annie McCoy

·      Snacks: Eloise Bender

·      Prayer: Lois Childress

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Lake Party!

• When: Saturday, May 29  10:00 a.m. or as early as you’d like to come!
• What: Burgers/condiments and drinks/ice provided by the church.  You bring sides, salads, or dessert.
• Bring: Chairs, blankets, etc. to sit on;  sunscreen; and lots of fun!
• Where: Phillips’ Picnic area on Lake Butler, 1475 Kelso Blvd.  Windermere, FL  34786                       
• Reply:  Please reply to Tricia Phillips at jphillips20@cfl.rr.com and let us know you’re coming, how many, and what food you’ll be bringing to share with us. We’d like to know so we can have a burger for you! Or call 407-877-2751

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::truth::

“Tom, I need to tell you something”, he said.

I must be in trouble, I thought!

I had gotten to know “Gary”, one of the regulars at “Lucky’s Lake Swim”, a few months ago. As we had built our relationship, he discovered I was a pastor (I never let on that I am a pastor too early – I like the look of surprise in people’s eyes when they find out!). Last year Gary had pulled me aside and asked me if I would pray for his business*.  He described the struggles he was having and the fear of losing everything in this economy.

I, of course, offered to pray, and did. 

Every now and again I mentioned to Gary that I was still praying and inquired how things were going. I must confess a bit of fear, lest the business continue to tank and God and my prayers got blamed!

But this morning Gary called me over. “Tom, I need to tell you something”, he said, “I just wanted to thank you for praying for me. Things are really turning the corner for my business and I am sure that is because of you and your prayers.”

I, of course, deferred the credit to God, “I’m just a middleman” I told him.

He responded, “Middlemen are what make business work!”

I thanked him for his kind words and we parted.  But I am most excited for our next conversation about Christ, now that I have banked a little spiritual capital with Gary.

I suppose the point is this: build relationships wherever you can, be up front and honest about your faith, offer to pray what people share their concerns with you, and always give the glory to Christ!

The well wisher of your soul’s happiness,

Pastor Tom

*When someone asks you to pray for them, that means what they will say next is really, really important to them. So handle it with care.

::prayer::

Sandee L:  Nichole- anxious about her next step with school.  Nichole & Jordan- keep focus on God.  Jordan may need another foot surgery.  We need to decide in about 1 week.

Eloise:  Pray for my healing from physical issue.  Pray that Trent will keep the appointment to see Nicole’s counselor and that he will put into practice any good advice he receives.  Praise:  Nicole’s medication for ADHD is helping a lot!  In fact, she made all A’s last progress report which is amazing for a child who had to repeat 1^st grade!

Lois:  please continue to pray for workers at Quisqueya Crisis Relief who will soon be looking for work.

Andria:  Praise that my brother got a second interview for a job in his field!!

Deborah T.:   Praise for God’s blessings during Erica’s finals!  Jim is seeking a new position at work.  Pray for a positive change.

Nancy W.:  Please pray for our continued needs as a family.  James will eb able to complete his high at Mid Florida Tech Tuesday (a good thing!).  Pray for God’s healing touch for Janna who is still sick with laryngitis and a sinus infection. And Stephen with inflamed tonsils!

Pray for Wendy in Cambodia working with RDI.  Pray for good health, protection and empowerment to do God’s work!

::community::

What are you doing to build community? Who are you going to connect with, outside of “church” gatherings? Do it!

The Prodigal God – a Church-Wide Spiritual Adventure

·         Message series Sunday 10:30 AM!

·         Men’s Group – Wednesday nights at 7PM at Tom McCoy’s home.

·         Women’s group – Thursday nights at 6:45 PM Tricia Phillip’s

·         Pick up a book for weekly reading

Church Picnic!  Saturday, May 29th at the Phillip’s "Beach" on Lake Butler. Be there!

Pastor Tom at Mepkin Abbey: Pastor Tom will be on a spiritual retreat Monday, May 24^th through Friday, May 28^th at Mepkin Abbey in South Carolina. Many thanks for your prayers for him!

::mission::

Get to know your neighbors / listen for their needs. To be human is to be poor. Or in other words, everyone has needs. The challenge of suburbia is that there are many more ways to conceal that poverty, and similarly that it will take more effort to get into a position where a neighbor can reveal their needs. Be intentional about building relationships. Share meals, play poker, have block parties, whatever it takes.

Mike & Sue Farho (Tunisia) – Pray for the Farho’s and the growth of the Sousse Church, that many more new believers will be added to their numbers.  Pray for those in the area that have respiratory issues due to the volcanic ash.

Wendy Andrew (Cambodia) – Continue to pray for Wendy, for her health and safety.  She has been traveling around to various villages assisting with testing the water supply. Please also pray for her conversations with Mak, a monk and the next door Wat (temple).

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