Sunday, April 24, 2022
Nearly 3000 years ago the prophets were used by God to speak his word to the nation of Israel. The Minor Prophets were not called ‘Minor’ because of their importance, but due to the fact that they were shorter in length. The themes that stand out from the Minor Prophets include: God’s covenant relationship with his people, calls for repentance, warnings of judgment including the Day of the Lord, promises of future deliverance, and looking forward to the coming of the Messiah. The message of the Minor Prophets is eternally relevant and we would be wise to listen carefully to what God is saying. Behind it all we will find that God is one who desires his people to leave behind the idols that bring them pain and to return to him with all of their heart.
We have study guides available to pick up in the foyer. They include some background information about each book and some questions to think about as you read at home.
Sunday Worship Services at 9:00am & 11:00am
Nursery care for children 0-2 is available all morning. Children’s Church is offered during the 11:00 service for kids age 3-5.
Something new…
Instead of the online Friendship Register, we have Connection Cards available on the backs of the chairs in the sanctuary. Guests can fill them out and take them to the Info Center for a free gift. Anyone can use them to submit prayer requests, request more information about ministries, update personal contact information, ask a question, or give feedback. They can be dropped into the offering boxes at the entrances to the sanctuary.
Sunday School Classes for All Ages!
We have classes for everyone age 3 - adult and nursery care for infants and toddlers. Classes will be held between the two worship services: 10:15-11:00am. Please plan to stick around if you attend the first service or come early if you attend the second service!
Responding to Progressive Christianity | There is a growing movement that is working to redefine what Christianity is all about. This movement is called Progressive Christianity. The impact of this movement is that people, who used to call themselves Christians, are now deconstructing and walking away from the church and the orthodox beliefs that are found in the Word of God. In this class you will learn the main points of Progressive Christianity and how to interact in a loving and gracious way with people who have been caught up in it. Parents, the world your children are living in will be absolutely filled with Progressive Christian ideas. You need to know what the Word says. We strongly encourage everyone to attend this important class!
Upcoming Events at a Glance
Apr 24 | Pizza with Pastors (for those new to New Life) | 12:15pm in Room 209
Apr 29-30 | Men’s Retreat
May 1 | Tim LaFleur Preaches
May 8 | Mother’s Day
May 15 | Community Evening of Worship & Prayer at Midwest Bible Camp, 6pm
May 18 | Youth Group Senior Honors Night
June 20-23 | Spark Studios VBS
(keep reading for more details)
Are you New to New Life?
We invite you to join us Sunday, April 24 after the 11:00 service (approx. 12:15) in Room 209 for Pizza with Pastors. It’s an opportunity meet some of our pastors and leaders, find out more about New Life, ask questions, and learn how to get involved.
Men’s Retreat - register now so we can be ready for you!
Fri & Sat, April 29-30
Men, don't miss this upcoming retreat! Pastor Tim LaFleur is coming all the way from Tennessee to teach us about what it means to be a gospel-centered man. Excellent teaching. Great times of worship. Plenty of fellowship and dinner from Qdoba thrown in! Cost is $20.00. Bring your sons. Invite your neighbors and colleagues. We are excited to see how God is going to use this weekend in our lives. See you there!
New Members
This week we welcome Craig and Cathy Burd as members of New Life Church! If you are wondering how membership works, you can read what our church constitution says about it here. We typically hold two membership classes each year. We’ll announce the dates/times here in the digital bulletin when we schedule the classes.
Youth Group Senior Honors Night
Wednesday, May 18
Each year our youth group celebrates with the graduating seniors on the last youth night of the school year. We’ll have a meal, worship, and a special guest speaker. Anyone in our church family is welcome to attend, as well as family and friends of our seniors.
Elder Nominations
If you would like to nominate someone to serve as a New Life Elder, please visit www.newlifeefree.org/elders or pick up a paper form at the Info Center.
We need to have the nominations by June 26.
VBS - June 20-23 (evenings)
We’re getting ready for Vacation Bible School this summer - mark your calendars! There are plenty of opportunities for youth and adults to serve.
Next fall, a group of Watertown area pastors will be leading a trip to Israel and you can go along!
We have brochures with more information at the Info Center in the foyer or you can use the button below to look at a digital version. The brochure includes a registration form. You do not need to have the COVID vaccine to go on the trip.
Discipleship Pathway
Are you ready to take the next step? Find out more about how to get involved in a Life Group or a D-Group.
Deeper in Relationships
From June 2021 to August 2022 we will go deeper in relationships with people outside and inside the church body to intentionally share the grace and love of Jesus Christ with them and to grow together as his disciples.
The Gospels are full of stories of Jesus intentionally engaging those inside and outside the family of God. We want to know and obey the words of Jesus and we also want to emulate his lifestyle. We will be a people who are willing to get out of our comfort zone and make building relationships a higher priority in our everyday lives. We know that in our post-Christian culture it is a poor strategy to sit back and wait for people to attend our worship services. We challenge every person at New Life to meet, talk to, get to know, and go deeper with at least 1 person within our church family and 1 person outside our church family each month!
In the coming months you can anticipate sermons about reaching out to others with the love of Christ, evangelism training taking place in Life Groups, continued times of prayer, and an overall focus on building relationships with people in the six counties all around us.
