The latest news, photos, audio, and resources from all ministries at BLCC.
MAY
5 Intergenerational Evening Prayer
No Programs for Teens or Children PreK and Older
6-10 Spring Week of Prayer
9 GriefShare
10-11 A Praying Life Seminar
12 Infant/Child Baptisms & Dedications
No Evening Prayer or Programs
16 GriefShare
17-18 Jr. High Camp Out
Quakertown Women’s Conference
19 AM Lord’s Supper
Welcome Lunch
24-26 Sr. High Canoe Trip
26 No Evening Prayer or Programs
27 Church Office Closed
A 2nd Mid-week Class: Our men's ministry is now organizing a 2nd mid-week discussion group. It will meet on Tuesday or Thursday nights, and will start with Book 1 of "Every Man a Warrior." Interested? Please contact Dick Oswald or a church staff member.
This retreat is reserved for women who are attendees of Community Evangelical Free Church. If you are not part of CEFC but would still like an opportunity to hear Nancy Guthrie speak, we are hosting a public event on Friday evening, March 13, and you may click here to register for that event.
Ladies, join us as we take a break (just one day this year) to refresh, refocus, and enjoy one another during a day of learning, discussion, and prayer. Our speaker, Nancy Guthrie, will be sharing with us from the Old Testament books of Ruth, Esther, and Hosea. We'll look at three women who needed a redeemer, how he was there for them, and how he's there for us in our need.
On the day of the retreat, arrive at the church between 8:00 and 9:00 AM when a delicious continental breakfast will be laid out for you.
Nancy's first session will begin promptly at 9:00. Session times will include worship, speaker presentation, and small group discussions.
Lunch is included and will be a great time for fellowship.
We'll complete the program around 5:00, but please plan to stay if you can for the optional afterparty including dinner and party games.
“God has been preparing me my whole life for teaching his Word,” says Nancy. “He has blessed me with so many sound Bible teachers—from my college Bible classes, to Bible Study Fellowship leaders, gifted pastors in my church, and authors I worked with during twenty-five years with various Christian publishers—as well as the excellent teachers I listen to on my iPod while walking in the park.”
But the most important way God has prepared Nancy is by giving her a love for him and his Word. “I want to figure out who he is and what he’s doing. God’s Word is a treasure to be mined. The deeper I go, the more I see its wisdom, the more it authenticates itself and reveals to me the amazing story of God’s plan of redemption through Jesus Christ.”
Nancy’s life experience of the death of two children has also significantly affected her teaching and formed in her an openness and authenticity that inclines people to listen. “I’ve had to dig into God’s Word for answers about God and how he works, and the women I’m addressing often have the same questions.”
Nancy and her husband, David, and son, Matt, make their home in Nashville, Tennessee. In addition to speaking at conferences around the country and internationally, she and David are the co-hosts of the GriefShare video series used in over 12,500 churches. They also host Respite Retreats for couples who’ve experienced the death of a child. Nancy is pursuing a master’s degree from Reformed Theological Seminary Global.
Our mens Wednesday night Bible study begins on January 7 at 7:00pm. "Every Man a Warrior" book #1 covers the essential skills of discipleship. Skills to develop: Having a Quiet Time, Meditating on Scripture, Prayer, and Application of the Word. If you are interested in previewing the lesson and audio, go to www.everymanawarrior.com.
Meets in the church sanctuary. All men are welcome -- no need to sign up ahead of time!
Sonship is a deep gaze into the blessings and privileges of being a child of the King.
Each day has enough trouble of its own. It is not the same thing to say that living a peaceful life is living an easy life. Living in the freedom and confidence of being God's child replaces fear and anxiety with hope and joy in the midst of life, not apart from it.
Would you like to be part of a small group who will explore the riches of God's grace that he has lavished on us with all his wisdom and insight?
Sonship 2015 begins on Tuesday evening, January 6 from 7-9pm, and runs for 16 weeks. There are still a few seats remaining. To sign up, send an email to Al Kimball (al.kimball@cefcelverson.org). The cost is $30. Class is limited to 16 (give or take one or two) on a first come, first-served basis. Don't wait! Don't be late!
Tired of the holiday rat race? Know someone who's really struggling at this time of year? King Solomon did, too. Despite living hundreds of years before Christ was born, Solomon's wisdom in the book of Proverbs speaks in a remarkable way to the pressures of December in the 21st century.
Written by pastor Steve Estes and beautifully illustrated by CEFC member Sarah Bland-Halulko, A Better December explores in a brief and easy-to-read way what Solomon has to say, and how Scripture points to "someone greater than Solomon" as truly the best thing that could possibly happen at Christmas.
CEFC has 100 copies of A Better December available at a great price. Whether looking for a copy for yourself, or as a gift to give to someone else, please contact the church office to reserve yours today. Also available from New Growth Press.
“Here’s a book like you’ve never read before. It meets us at the intersection of ancient biblical wisdom and the dreams, struggles, and disappointments that are part of our Christmas season. With humor, poignancy, and clarity Estes demonstrates that Solomon knew things about our holidays that we all need to know. With the help of Solomon, Estes shows you how you can have a Christmas that actually matches the message of the season you are celebrating.”
On Friday, December 5, 63 children in grades K-6, gathered together for our Children's Christmas Party, "Walking With the Wise Men," where they enjoyed "Go Fish Guys" music videos, created star ornaments, ate star shaped sugar cookies (both craft & snack to represent the star that the wise men followed), played games, and heard the wise men share about their journey to find the newborn King. Praise God for the glorious good news of Christmas, and the many volunteers whose offering of time and talent helped to make the evening a success. A very special thanks to our great God and Father, to those who lifted this evening up in prayer, and those many, many volunteers who contributed in various ways.
There are two ways you can make Christmas happier for others this year.
The Deacons and the Missions Committee have partnered to collect gifts for Christ's Home for Children in Paradise, PA and accept donations to help fight Ebola in Africa.
Choose an ornament from the Giving Tree in the Gathering Room, shop for that item, and bring it to the church so we can give it to a deserving child at Christ's Home for Children. Or, make a monetary donation in the collection box next to the Giving Tree to help the people in Sierra Leone suffering from the effects of the Ebola epidemic. Please make checks payable to CEFC and write "Deacon Christmas" on the memo line.
Musa's Story
The Ebola epidemic has impacted the economy of Sierra Leone such that people who were literally living day to day are now threatened with starvation.
Musa is Rick Renninger's point man in Sierra Leone. With a small team of volunteers, Musa has been distributing rice and medication since August. He has been able to help people like a school teacher Rick met while there, whose income has dropped to zero because schools are closed.
Besides helping Christians in need, Musa has reached out to a blind community, a village of Liberian refugees, people in remote villages, and a village of war-wounded people, many of whom have lost one or more limbs in Sierra Leone's brutal civil war between 1991 and 2002. Since Ebola victims' families are ostracized, Musa has also reached out to them in rice distribution.
We are seeing in this initiative not only an opportunity to love our neighbor, but to display the love of Christ, and it is not going unnoticed. A new church has already been planted, and the seed sown in preparation for a harvest that has already begun.
Please donate generously to purchase rise for Musa's people. Thank you.
Children are placed with Christ's Home for Children through county children and youth agencies primarily due to abuse, neglect, or abandonment. Children from birth to eighteen years of age receive services to address their medical, educational, emotional, spiritual, and social needs.
The mission of Christ's Home for Children is to serve needy or neglected children and youth by providing a stable, caring home built upon Biblical principles while meeting their educational, medical, emotional, and social needs.
e are committed to quality programming and services that exceed community standards while providing exceptional value.
We accept the authority of the Bible translated into action to meet the spiritual, physical, emotional, and social needs of those we serve.
We strive to fulfill the command of Jesus, "Love your neighbor as yourself," as an integral part of our daily ministry.
Visit our website at www.christshome.org.
Last Thursday, our church participated in the Elverson Parade with a Noah’s Ark float! Len and Ruthie Noble were Mr. and Mrs. Noah as they supervised tigers, monkeys, zebras, butterflies, bees, sheep, cats, dogs, elephants, chickens, frogs, raccoons, foxes, and a cow. Bob Shirey graciously loaned his trailer, supplied a barn for the construction phase, and pulled the float during the parade. Our grand vessel won 2nd place in our division.
In keeping with the parade’s theme of “Down on the Farm”, the following description was submitted to the judges’ booth with help from the Jesus Storybook Bible:
A long time ago, people were mean and violent to each other. Almost everyone cared only for themselves and they never thought about God. Sadness was everywhere. God decided to wash away all the hate. A man named Noah obeyed God by building a big boat and gathering a pair of all the animals in the world into this large ark, like a farm. God caused it to rain for 40 days and for 40 nights, but he kept Noah, his family, and all the animals in the ark safe. It was down on the farm on the ark. When the rain stopped, God promised to never destroy the world in the same way again and he gave people a sign of his promise, the rainbow. At Community Evangelical Free Church in Elverson, we celebrate that God continues to rescue his people through his Son, Jesus Christ. For God so loved the world that he aimed his bow at his own heart so that you might have life today.
As CEFC has many people currently pursuing higher education or planning to attend college or grad school in the future, the question of how to cover the cost is on many families' minds. The video below is a revised version of a seminar that Jere Scott Bradshaw originally gave at Conestoga Christian School, and we hope it will be helpful to anyone attending college as they prepare for a life of Jesus Christ.
“As I prepared for school, my fear about paying for the cost of the education led me to have a sleepless night. “How can I navigate these next years when I can’t even put my head down tonight?” Over the next few years God showed me that I needed more that financial assistance, I needed to know the Gospel better. This video is a summary of what the Lord taught me during my studies outside of the classroom.”
As you watch the video, you may find the notes in the PDF below to be helpful.
The sound of women greeting each other, sharing stories, eating together, and browsing through sale items warmed the atmosphere of the sanctuary. Over 90 women showed up to kick of the Fall Bible Studies with a delicious brunch including autumn-inspired cupcakes, fruit trays, breakfast casseroles, and drinks. Megan Royes spoke candidly about Christ's work in her life, sharing stories from her work with Disciplemakers, and her own experiences as a wife and mother, steering her children toward Jesus. Our entertainment for the morning was our lively auctioneer, Rich Hornberger. Somehow he was able to auction off items while refereeing an entire room of women! He also successfully distracted people from the fact that they were bidding against their friends -- the favorite quips of the morning were, "Don't worry, you'll still be friends!" and "It's only money!" In short, the auction was our most successful ever. The Holy Spirit lifted our hearts toward heaven, and outward toward each other.
The proceeds from the auction will be used to cover the cost for childcare during our women's Bible studies which begin this month.
Brick Lane Community Church
52 S. Brick Lane, PO Box 299 | Elverson, PA 19520
(610) 286-6790 | info.desk@brick52.org
