Grace Notes

Miscellaneous

Sarah in Washington State

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WA 1 Last weekend Sarah flew to Washington state to speak for a girls’ weekend camp. I wasn’t there, but thanks to Melodie Kirk (on Sarah’s right), I still have pictures to post to share about the special weekend.

Since I wasn’t there to kill the spiders in her cabin like she usually has me do, she had to kill all 5 of them herself. But she said they stood still and let her kill them, so she was grateful for their compliance.

Washington 3 We’re grateful for Kimbrlee, the 18-year-old Bright Lights leader who hosted the camp. Sarah said she did a wonderful job, and it sounds like the Lord really blessed … even more than anyone expected!

Washington 4
The theme was “Speaking the Truth In Your Heart.” Here were the topics Sarah covered over the weekend:

Let the Word of Christ Dwell in You Richly
Learn to discern lies of the world that are not consistent with Scripture, to delight in God’s Word, and to build every area of your life upon it!

Speaking Truth about God
Choose to reject the lies which girls often believe about God and to trust in Him fully. Grow deeper in your personal walk with Jesus Christ by getting to know His character.

Speaking Truth about Self
Take your eyes off yourself and put them on Jesus! Understanding who we are in Christ is the key to security and joy.

Speaking Truth about Emotions
Learn the dangers we as girls face in the area of emotions, and how to use your emotions to glorify the Lord.

Speaking Truth about Sin
Understand that the answers to dealing with guilt, regrets, and temptations are found in God’s Word. Only in Jesus will we find forgiveness, and gain power over sin and strength to walk in victory!

Speaking Truth about Purity
Choose to honor the Lord in your relationships with young men, to wait for God’s best in marriage, to walk by faith, and to use your single years for Christ.

Speaking Truth about Witnessing
Overcome common excuses and fears, and gain practical ideas about how to be a bold witness for Christ!

Washington 2 There were four small group discussion that met four times.

IMG_0643 There was also some free time for hiking, Frisbee, games, mother/daughter time, etc.

Today Sarah received an e-mail from a camp attendee with these words: “… We had a wonderful seven hour discussion on the drive home. 🙂 [My sister] and I were just talking today and saying how what Jesus did there is indescribable in a way… partly because we’re still processing everything, but it was just so good. We were trying to figure out how to describe it to people who asked us about it. We decided that one way we could say it was getting plunged into Truth, and soaking all weekend. :)”

Of course, that wasn’t Sarah–that was the WORD OF GOD bringing comfort and encouragement to their lives. Praise God for the Truth that sets us free!

If you are interested in hosting a “Speaking Truth in Your Heart” camp or weekend in your area, contact us for more information.

IMG_9817 Nickie put together a 31-page booklet that includes an outline of Sarah’s sessions.

IMG_9811 It includes the content of her Power Points (common lies girls believe, and Scriptures which refute them) as well as extra little Biblical studies.

IMG_9815 Lies have consequences! Often when we get to the root of our struggle, we see that we are telling ourselves something that is not true about God’s character. That’s what this little activity Nickie created is about. (She actually created it and some others like it for Sarah’s latest book-in-process on this subject. This is just a little preview. 🙂 )

Announcements/Bright Lights Conferences

Upcoming Bright Lights Conferences in St Louis

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We’re excited to announce that we’ll be running Bright Lights conferences in St Louis in the end of June. We are praising God for how details have been coming together, thanks to the hard work of our friend Allison Whisler who is our hostess in St Louis.

Bright Lights Conferences_banner
This is our image designed for sharing on social media. We also have an email with more information about the conferences for spreading the word. If you know families in Iowa, Illinois, or Missouri who might be interested in the conferences, you can email us and request this informational email. Or if anyone would like actual paper flyers [smile] we’d be happy to put some in the mail to you.

Bright Lights Conferences 2016 from Tomorrow's Forefathers, Inc. on Vimeo.

We would greatly appreciate prayer that the Lord would use these conferences to point the hearts of young ladies and parents to Jesus Christ.

See the conference flyer and more info here. See our online store to register for either of these conferences.

Family News/Witnessing Stories

Saint Patrick’s Whirlwind

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IMG_9672 Here was the group who came with us to the St Patrick parade to share with people about the history of Saint Patrick and the gospel. With the flurry of activity going on downtown, the afternoon feels a bit like a whirlwind. Praise God the gospel was part of the whirlwind.

IMG_9669 Patience and Adde — ready to get busy!

IMG_9695 These were my two helpers! They did fabulous.

IMG_9676 Hannah passing out tracts (Sometimes the dogs are even more interested in the tracts than the people, haha )

We praise God for the many good conversations He arranged. Nickie and Patience shared that one of the girls they talked with was so grateful she gave them a hug as they were leaving.

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Some people at the parade start acting extra animated because they’ve been drinking. My dad gets extra animated because he’s so excited about the gospel conversations he’s having 🙂 . He was running around giving tracts to everyone and then he had a couple sentences he’d explain with great enthusiasm…

IMG_9708 “… America needs a Patrick. God used Patrick to change Ireland by bringing them the gospel. That’s what we need in America. We need more Patrick’s!”

People would usually smile and agree. My dad told us later he talked at length to a total of eight individuals who were very serious about the gospel. Praise the Lord!

IMG_9710 Dad was also very tickled to discover that this man is an acquaintance of ours. He lives across the street from our church.

There are too many good things that happened to report them all. Praise God for the privilege He gives us of being His ambassadors.

Announcements/Videos/Witnessing Stories

Evidence for the Resurrection Video

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Evidence for the Resurrection Gospel Tract from Tomorrow's Forefathers, Inc. on Vimeo.

I was vividly reminded a couple weeks ago that when GOD is coordinating encounters, we can move forward with courage and excitement. I pray the story on this brief video encourages some of you to use these three questions that lead into gospel conversations.

Remember, for the next two weeks people will be focused on the resurrection of Jesus more than any other time of the year. Talk about OPPORTUNITY!

To read our gospel tract on “Evidence for the Resurrection,” click here.

Announcements/Thoughts

“Evidence for the Resurrection” Gospel Tract Now Available

We received a shipment today that we’ve been anxiously awaiting … 15,000 copies of our “Evidence for the Resurrection” gospel tract. They are now available on our online store in packs of 50, 100 and 500. You can read the inside here.

IMG_9470 We are grateful to Nickie for the new design. [smile]

The resurrection of Jesus is an awe-inspiring study, because the deeper we look, the more we find that our faith is built on unshakable ground.

We have found this gospel tract to be received with interest and appreciation–especially over the Easter season. Most Americans will agree with you that Easter means more than bunnies, and they appreciate something meaningful and interesting to read.

Many have never heard that we actually have evidence that Jesus rose from the dead. They need to hear that it’s not just a story, it’s a historical fact that has never been refuted. And since Christianity stands or falls on the resurrection of Jesus (1 Corinthians 15:14), we’d better be able to show others that this event truly happened!

“…He shewed himself alive after his passion by many infallible proofs, being seen of them forty days, and speaking of the things pertaining to the kingdom of God.” Acts 1:3

Announcements/Miscellaneous

New St Patrick Gospel Tracts Available

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This year we printed our St Patrick’s Gospel Tract in bulk in order to make them available for others to distribute also.

IMG_9405 Shelby (who volunteers weekly for Bright Lights) is busy folding, counting, and preparing the tracts to ship out.

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You can order 50 for $4 from our online store here. There are also options on our online store for larger quantities, folded or unfolded.

Are there are some people in your life that you want to share the gospel with but you aren’t sure how? I’d recommend using this tool as a starting place. Just this morning, I gave one of these to our mail man and the man who empties our dumpster. I’m so grateful for how a holiday provides a wonderfully natural way to witness… people are receptive, thankful, and curious.

Miscellaneous/Thoughts

“Facing A Task Unfinished,” and using St Patrick’s Day!

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I am so excited about the “Global Hymn Sing” that Keith and Kristyn Getty are organizing for this Sunday. Partly, because I really love the message of this song! If you haven’t heard about this yet, the Gettys are inviting thousands of churches around the globe to sing the new hymn “Facing a Task Unfinished” together on Sunday, February 21st, 2016. Learn more here.

The command to, “Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations” (Matthew 28:19), begins whatever side of the globe we are currently on! A great place to start is to coordinate a group of friends to pass out gospel tracts on St Patrick’s day–a month from today.

We are revising our St Patrick’s gospel tract this year to have them printed in bulk. They’ll be available for order in about two weeks. Nickie is working on it right now as I type…

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May our hearts’ prayer be the same as the song below, “Saviour, whose love constrained them, to toil with zeal untired, from cowardice defend us, from lethargy awake! Forth on Thine errands send us, To labour for Thy sake.”

… We bear the torch that flaming fell from the hands of those
Who gave their lives proclaiming that Jesus died and rose
Ours is the same commission, the same glad message ours
Fired by the same ambition, to Thee we yield our powers

O Father who sustained them, O Spirit who inspired
Saviour, whose love constrained them, To toil with zeal untired
From cowardice defend us, from lethargy awake!
Forth on Thine errands send us, To labour for Thy sake …

We go to all the world, His kingdom hope unfurled
No other name has power to save, But Jesus Christ The Lord.

Original Words by Frank Houghton. Original Music by Samuel Wesley. New Words and Music by Keith Getty, Kristyn Getty, Ed Cash, and Fionan de Barra; © 2015 OMF International, Getty Music Publishing (BMI), Alletrop Music (BMI), and Fionan de Barra (all admin. By MusicServices.org)

See here for all lyrics.

Witnessing Stories

Rodeo Crowd or Bernie Supporters?

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IMG_9061 Last night some friends and I went downtown Cedar Rapids to pass out gospel tracts. We thought we would be giving them to people that were going to see a rodeo in the US Cellular Center. Little did we know that Bernie Sanders was also speaking downtown. We were thrilled to see hundreds of Bernie supporters walking down the sidewalk…now we had more people to give tracts to! They eagerly took the gospel IQ quizzes we were passing out. I think they may have thought we were part of their campaign. 🙂

IMG_9057 Shelby and Luke also did a great job sharing the gospel with some people protesting the rodeo. They seemed to think they were good enough to get to Heaven on their own. Yet, if this could be so, why did Jesus need to die? His death on the cross was unnecessary if we could get to Heaven by our good lives. Galatians 2:21 says “if righteousness comes through the Law, then Christ died needlessly.” I hope they remember this point.

IMG_9065 My friends and I look back over the evening with gratefulness to God for how he arranged the circumstances, provided swarms of unexpected people, good weather, and good conversations. Praise the Lord.