We all need grace, don’t we? God’s grace is greater than any mess we find ourselves in. What’s messy about your life right now? Where do you need God’s grace in Jesus to clean house?
Messes come in as much variety as there are people. And each of us get messy in our own multitude of ways. Sometimes we screw up our lives, sometimes we are blind to the messes we make and need to wake up, sometimes circumstances beyond our control mess us up.
This year Trinity will be supporting the Clothe-A-Child Drive again. This is a drive which will help ten local elementary students within our school district be able to have new clothes for the 2016/2017 school year. You can sign-up at church on Sunday July 10 & 17, 2016 or in the office during office hours during the week. You will need …
Jesus takes the frayed strands our lives and weaves a tapestry of grace. Jesus is not surprised at the messy places life finds us and he’ll never turn his back on us. No. Matter. What.
On Tuesday evenings July 12 & 26 from 6:30-8:00 p.m. we will be having some fun family activities outside on the lawn at Trinity (moving inside if inclement weather). All are welcome – bring your friends! Contact Kristin Brouwer at 712-737-4542 if you have any questions.
On Monday morning July 11, 18, & 25 from 9:00-10:30 a.m. we will be offering a time for moms and women of Trinity to come enjoy coffee and fellowship. There will be coffee and refreshments in the Cafe area. Childcare will be provided. Contact Kristin Brouwer at 712-737-4542 if you have any questions.
The message this week takes us to one of those hidden messes. In the story of the man with two sons, we see the mess of the younger son – the one who went off and rebelled against his dad. Sunday we’ll look at the mess of the older son. He was just as lost, maybe even worse. He stayed home, he did everything right, he never disobeyed. And he was messed up. Watch what happens when the veil is pulled back.
Here are a few photo highlights from the June 18, 2016 Collide Youth Lock-in.
This week we’ll see the same story of redemption play out, only through the lens of an insider – someone who had power and was in authority, but whose life was just as messy as anyone else’s. On Sunday we’ll look at Zacchaeus. And hopefully we can learn a few lessons from Zacchaeus not just about how we should live, but also about who our God is and how He operates among our mess.
We currently have a team serving on a mission trip in Africa from June 5-21: Sally and Laird Edman, Michelle and Maddie Christy, Julie Andersen, Jon and Larry Opgenorth.
Here are some of the social media updates Jon Opgenorth has posted:
June 7, 2016: Our Uganda team has made it safe and sound to Mukono. Thanks for your prayers.
June 8, 2016: Morning update in Uganda: We head out with Words of Hope follow-up team called Bethesda. We will walk with them as they do do door-to-door outreach. As our friends in America lie down to sleep, pray for us as we head out the door. Such a special time already. On a fun note – my phone is not working in Uganda. The team has agreed that this is God’s gift to me (and to them). I only have limited access to my digital world. I cannot check my e-mail because I have 2-step verification which requires my phone to receive a text. Alas, with no working phone, I cannot receive a text, so I am on a forced e-mail sabbatical for now….
This week we begin our summer series entitled MESSY GRACE. It is a recognition of the beautiful reality that God is at work in the midst of our messiness.
Over the past number of years I have had the joy of watching several chalk artists do their amazing work. They begin with a blank black canvas and cast broad strokes of chalk onto this canvas in no seeming order. Layers upon layers of chalk are added to this work until a beautiful picture begins to emerge and you are left amazed. But this is not all. The chalk artists’ then turn on a “black light” to reveal that beneath the surface is another scene of even greater beauty and wonder. It always takes my breath away.
