Sunday, July 18, 2021
I Corinthians | Church Renewal
Even in the early church there were all kinds of issues, problems, distractions and sinful behaviors. Paul wrote 1 Corinthians to bring spiritual renewal to a church that was in desperate need of it. Week in and week out we will find this book to be incredibly relevant for our day and time. We will learn what it means to be a healthy, gospel-centered, unified Church that makes a difference in the six counties all around us. Hope you and your family will join us!
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.
Sunday School classes are taking a break and will start back up after Labor Day. In the meantime, we will have cookies and coffee available between the worship services. We invite you to stick around after the 9:00 service or come early for the 11:00 service to spend some time catching up with friends or getting to know someone new.
3 Ways to go Deeper in Relationships on Sunday Mornings at New Life
Talk to and connect with people who are alone. You may be the person that helps them feel loved and cared for.
Talk to and connect with people who you don’t know. God continues to bring new people to our church. Let’s make sure they know we are excited they have joined us.
Invite people over to your house or to a restaurant for lunch. Yes, it will feel spontaneous and out of your comfort zone but the hospitality you show will make a huge impression to others.
We encourage you to fill out the online Friendship Register when you worship with us online or in person. You can share prayer requests, ask questions about our ministries, or just let us know that you’d like someone to contact you.
Upcoming Prayer Opportunities
Sunday, July 18 | Concert of Prayer is leaving the building!
This summer we will be taking some of our Concerts of Prayer into the counties around us. On Sunday, July 18 we will gather to worship and pray at the Finstad farm (15809 425th Ave, Bradley, SD) at 6:00pm. We’ll have a time of fellowship afterwards with refreshments. If you have trouble finding the farm you can give Dave and Carol a call at 605-784-3215.
From Watertown: go north on Hwy 20, the farm is on Hwy 20 - 9 miles past the junction of Hwy 25.
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.
We will having a time of Child Dedication during our Worship Services on Sunday, August 8. If your family would like to be a part of this or if you would like to learn more about Child Dedication please contact Lezlie in the church office - 886-1977 or lezliee@newlifeefree.org.
Golfers, Mark Your Calendars!
The New Life Golf Tournament will be Saturday, July 31 at 8:00am at the Castlewood Golf Course. Men and women age 14 and up are welcome! Golfers will pay their own green fee ($25) and can stick around for lunch together in the club house afterwards. Please let us know if you are planning to come. You can use the button below or sign up at the Info Center on Sunday morning.
The Church Campout is back…
and we are well on our way to filling the hill at Memorial Park! We still do have a couple of sites left in the Upper Loop, but you will need to let us know and pay by Monday, July 19. After that, we will be turning the sites back over to Memorial Park. Stop by the Info Center on Sunday or send an email to Rachel (rachels@newlifeefree.org). Cost is $50 for two nights (Aug 6 & 7).
Non-campers should mark the dates on their calendars, too. Everyone is welcome to sit around the campfires, enjoy the giant slip-n-slide, swim at the beach, take part in the boating activities and join us for a church family meal and baptisms on Saturday evening.
If you or your child/teen would like to be baptized on Saturday, August 7 at Lake Kampeska or you would like to learn more about believer baptism please contact Lezlie in the church office - 886-1977 or lezliee@newlifeefree.org.
Recommended for Membership
The New Life elders are recommending Doug & Myrna Becht and Andy & Jomi Schoeman for membership. In following our church constitution, their names will be posted here for two weeks and then they will be welcomed into membership. 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 - in the fall and spring. We’ll announce the dates/times here in the digital bulletin when we schedule the classes.
Our Annual New Life Congregational Meeting will be held Sunday, August 29 at 10:00am. We’ll hear from staff and ministry leaders. Members and non-members are welcome to attend. Members will be voting to approve next year’s budget and new elders. Annual reports with the recommended budget and recommended new elders will be available soon.
Christmas in July
This year, we are going to try something new with Operation Christmas Child at New Life. We are asking for donations of clothing, personal and school items this month and we will hold on to these items until November when we have the packing party! We will collect the items in the foyer on Sundays - July 25th and August 1st. This a great time to look for deals on school supplies and summer toys and clothes clearance!
EFCA Crisis Response Team
Steve Austvold is leading a team from the Dakotas and Minnesota to serve the people of Lake Charles, LA who are still recovering from being hit by two hurricanes in the fall of 2020. The button below will lead you to more details about the trip along with contact information for Steve so you can ask questions or sign up to go!
Youth Summer Events
Check the event calendar for topics and locations. Hope you can join in!
PASTOR BILLY’S BOOK RECOMMENDATION FOR SUMMER
Surviving Religion 101: Letters to a Christian Student on Keeping the Faith in College
We want to let you know about an exciting opportunity coming up here at New Life Church!
On August 29 & 30 we are going to do something called "The Mark Drama." The Mark Drama is an "easy-invite, non-cringe evangelistic event for non-Christians and an inspiring way for Christians to experience the power of Mark's gospel freshly."
For this to happen, we need 15 people who want to share the Gospel through acting out the book of Mark. We won’t be using any costumes or props and no previous acting experience is necessary. Are you interested in learning more? Do you think this might be something that God wants you to do to reach out to others?
If you would like to get involved please call John Florey at 605-868-3127 or email him at john.florey@intervarsity.org. Thank you!
