Wednesday, July 31, 2013

Counseling Resource



We desire to spiritually support our members through the different challenges of life.  Our primary vehicle for spiritual support are Life Groups. Life Groups are a place where members can share needs, pray for each and receive spiritual support and encouragement.

While we hope that many needs can be meet in small groups, we realize that often times a member may need a trained counselor or a specialized support group to provide the needed help.

While our church does not have “in house” counseling, or support groups, we can point you to two local organizations that can help.  These local resources can supplement the spiritual support our church provides.  One of the organizations focuses on counseling, the other offers  support groups.  To learn more, check out our Counseling Resource Page.

Tuesday, July 30, 2013

Online Giving


New for 2013 – Online Giving!
Our church has just put in place a full-feature online giving option! With our new online giving site, you’re able to give from any computer using your checking account, credit or debit card.  You will also have the ability to make recurring gifts from your checking account or credit card.  To learn more about this new feature, check out– www.newlifecommunitychurch.net/Giving/Online

Frequently Asked Questions…      

What are the advantages of online giving?
Online giving is a convenient way to give.  In an increasingly paperless world, it eliminates the need to write checks and enables you to give from anywhere.

What if I try online giving and don’t like it?
There is no requirement to continue to use online giving.  It is very easy to begin or stop.

Can I give with a credit or debit card?
Yes, online giving allows you to use both credit and debit cards.  In addition, you can use your checking or savings account for online giving.   

Can I schedule recurring donations?
Yes, you can specify whether you want your contribution made one time, weekly, twice per month, monthly, quarterly, or yearly. You can set up as many schedules as you would like.

**Note: When you schedule a recurring donation, a small validation amount (.11 cents) will pend to your account BUT WILL NOT be charged or post to your account.  It is only for validation purposes.  Please allow 2-3 days for this amount to disappear.

What if I need to change the amount of a recurring gift, or cancel altogether?  You can view, edit, or delete a scheduled contribution at anytime, including the credit card, date, frequency and amount as long as you created an account on the giving page. 



Will I still receive a contribution statement?
You will receive an email confirmation every time you give online.  And at the end of the year the church will provide a “Year End” Giving Statement which will include both your online and in person giving.

Is online giving secure?
New Life uses “Simple Give” as our online provider.  All information is encrypted with 256-bit SSL encryption.  It is the same technology used by banks and e-commerce companies to keep your information safe and secure during transactions.

Are there any fees involved with online giving?
Not for the giver.  The church pays any fees associated with online giving.

How will my online giving transaction appear on my bank statement?
You bank statement will list a transaction from New Life Community Church.  

When will contributions be taken from my account?
Contributions will be taken from your specified bank account within 48 business hours of the date you requested.  This time frame allows time for the contribution to process through your financial institution and the church’s financial institution.  If the date of your contribution falls on a weekend or a holiday, the transaction will be initiated on the next banking day.

Who do I contact for more information?
Please contact the church office at 951.736.5433 or by email at finance@newlifecommunitychurch.net 

Can you help reach our community?


Many of the people who attend New Life came as result of receiving a flyer in the mail. This has been an important way for us to let our community know that we’re here, and that we want to help other’s know Christ. We want to continue this practice by sending a flyer to each home within our immediate area – approximately 15,000 homes. We need your help to do this.

Church finances are tight, so the only way to do this is through a special giving. We’re looking for people who can give, over and above their regular giving, to help us reach out to our community. The total cost breaks down to about $30 to reach 100 people. Can you help with the cost of this outreach? If so, when you make your gift, designate it to “mailer."

Life Group Questions for Personal Growth

 

Each week, we provide an outline during the weekend service. On one side, we provide the Bible passage to look at during the service. On the other side, there are discussion questions that connect to that same weekly passage. These questions are designed to interact and apply the passage. 

These questions are used by our Life Groups that meet throughout the week. But these same questions can be used as a personal study tool. If you are not yet part of a group, you can use these questions during your personal Bible study time. They can provide an opportunity to dig deeper and reinforce the passage from the previous weekend’s service. Also, if you miss a service, both the message and the questions can be downloaded online.

Monday, July 29, 2013

Weekend Message Values


(Note: This is part of a larger series on the weekend messages. Click here to see the original post)

Different church’s and different speakers have different styles when it comes to the message.  Different styles are great, but the following are three values that hope shape every message at New Life Community Church.

           We believe that messages change lives when they have…..

1) Biblical resonance – The speaker is saying what God’s word is saying

  • Heb 4:12 For the word of God is living and active. Sharper than any double-edged sword, it penetrates even to dividing soul and spirit, joints and marrow; it judges the thoughts and attitudes of the heart.

  • 2Ti 2:15 Do your best to present yourself to God as one approved, a workman who does not need to be ashamed and who correctly handles the word of truth.

2) Life Relevance – That takes God’s word into people’s worlds and helps them put it into practice

  • Matthew 28:20..Teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you…

  • Mt 7:24 "Therefore everyone who hears these words of mine and puts them into practice is like a wise man who built his house on the rock.

3) Empowered and Prepared Delivery – That comes from a spiritually prepared speaker who is ready to share God’s word.

  • 1Th 1:5 because our gospel came to you not simply with words, but also with power, with the Holy Spirit and with deep conviction.

Behind the Scenes – The Weekend Message

A visible part of the weekend service is the weekly message. In this series of blog posts I’ll (Mike Hannah) share some behind the scenes information on the how and why of the weekend message. The topics I’m planning to cover are….

1) Why I like to Plan Ahead
2) Why I like going through books of the Bible
3) Why I Break the Books of the Bible into Smaller Series
4) Why Guest speakers are scheduled during the year
5) Three Values that Mark the Weekend Message

Stay tuned for upcoming posts

Thursday, July 25, 2013

Next Up - 1 Peter



I’m pumped about the next book of the Bible our church will be studying. We’re finishing up a study in the book of Acts, and next up will be 1 Peter.  1 Peter is a great book that teaches how to live for God, even in the midst of difficult circumstances. I thought I would take a moment to share how I put together the plan for going through a book of the Bible. 

1) Picking a Book of the Bible – I will pick a book of the Bible based on a sense of prayer, a sense of what the church needs, a view towards what books we’ve recently covered as a church, and other factors that may lead toward covering a certain part of God’s word.

2) Getting the Big Picture – My first step is to go through the book to become familiar with the overall teaching of the book, and the different topics it covers. The goal is to get an overview of what this portion of God’s word says.

3) Breaking the Book into Bite-Sized Passages - My goal is to divide the book into passages that I can cover during a weekend service. So I will go through the book of the Bible and break it into bite-sized chunks for several months out. In the case of 1 Peter, I broke the book into eleven passages, and hence eleven potential messages. 

4) Grouping the Passages into Series - My next step is to group the passages into series. In the case of 1 Peter I ended with three series. Above is a rough draft of my plan for 1 Peter.

5) Begin Work on the Weekly Messages - Once the overall plan is set, I begin work on the weekly messages. Each message takes shape on a weekly basis, beginning on Monday the  “Week Of”. Meaning… I normally begin work on the message 6 days prior to sharing it.

Hope this gives a quick snapshot of how I put together a series…

In the past, I’ve done a series of blog posts that looks at…
- Why I like to Plan Ahead 
- Why I like going through books of the Bible 
      - Why I Break the Books of the Bible into Smaller Series 
      - Why Guest speakers are scheduled during the year

I’ll try to repost those soon.

 See you Sunday!
 Mike

Unstoppable

The mission and message of Christ is Unstoppable! Jesus says, “I will build my church and the gates of hell will not prevail”.  2000 years later His message is still changing lives. Join us for a five week series in which we’ll see God use persecution and problems to advance His purposes.  Series starts on Sunday, July 28th

Topics Include:
·      God uses persecution to create expansion
·      God uses false accusations to get out the truth
·      God uses a shipwreck to start a movement
·      God uses prison to reach the palace

      Sunday service times at 9:30 & 11:00 AM

Wednesday, July 24, 2013

Baptism Class- August 4th


Our next baptism is coming up. To find out more about baptism come to our baptism class on August 4th, 12:15 to 1:00 pm.

In our Baptism class, you will learn what the Bible teaches us about baptism and why it is an important step in your relationship with God.

Sign up sheets will be available on Sundays, so stop by the information table this Sunday or send us an email to sign up.

For more information, check out our Baptism page here, or email us at info@newlifecommunitychurch.net

Tuesday, July 23, 2013

Good News on the Financial Front…

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As many of you know, the last five years have been financially difficult for our church. It got so bad, that in November of last year, we made a special announcement to the church: Unless something changed, we would not be able to stay in our building. We informed the church of the situation and asked the church to pray
Since that announcement in November, we’ve meet our budget each and every month. This is the first time this has happened in over five years! We are thankful to God, and thankful to each member who has played a part.

Visit Our Giving Webpage


To learn more about giving at New Life, check out our giving webpage. It answers many frequently asked questions and includes helpful resources on giving at New Life and other topics such as “What does the Bible teach about giving?” You can even give to New Life online through our web page. To visit just click here!

Mexico Outreach

 
Our church supports an orphanage in Ensenada, Mexico called Estado 29. Towards the beginning of each month, a team of volunteers goes on a one-day trip to Ensenada to help share God's love.

To find out how to get involved in this ministry, check out our outreach webpage here, or email us at info@newlifecommunitychurch.net

Gospel For Asia


Each month, our church supports a missionary in India through Gospel for Asia. The name of the missionary is Sailendro Kochhap, who serves in the Jeypore Orissa Region shown above. Please take time to pray for Sailendro. If you’d like to help financially support Sailendro, just make a note on your giving that says “GFA”. If you’d like to find out more about Gospel for Asia and the Jeypore Orissa Region, click here.

Welcoming our New Kidzlife Coordinator

Join us in welcoming Genevieve Monge as our new Kidzlife Coordinator. Genevieve is a long time church member who has served as a dedicated volunteer in Kidzlife, as well as a valued member of the church staff.
  
As Kidzlife Coordinator, Genevieve will now focus her attention on the important task of helping our children follow Christ. Please welcome Genevieve and pray for her as she starts this new position.
  
Genevieve can be contacted at kidzlife@newlifecommunitychurch.net

Monday, July 22, 2013

Good Bye….Apostle Paul Style

On Sunday we looked at how Paul said goodbye to a group of people in Acts chapter 20.  Here is a quick breakdown his comments to the leaders in Ephesus…

· Paul reminds them of his life. Vs 18- 19
· Paul reminds them of his message. Vs 20-21
· Paul reminds them of his mission. Vs 22-24
· Paul reminds them He has discharged his duty toward them. Vs 26 -27
· Paul gives them a final charge.  Vs 28- 32
· Paul reminds them of his integrity and calls them to follow his example in following Christ. Vs 33-35
· Paul prays with them a final time. Vs 36
·  Paul expresses heartfelt affection for  them.  Vs 37
  
To hear the message check out our online catalogue of weekend service messages.

Thursday, July 18, 2013

June Giving Update

  June Giving Update

And my God will meet all your needs according to his glorious riches in Christ Jesus. - Phillipians 4:19
 
Thank you to everyone who gives at New Life.  Your giving is an important part in the ministry work of Jesus Christ at our church. 




Is there anything else I need to know?

-If you’re someone who regularly gives to God at New Life: Thanks! Your giving makes a difference.
 

-If you’re someone who is not yet giving:  Make a decision to get involved. Take the first step toward the biblical practice of giving. You can find out more about giving here.
http://newlifecommunitychurchblog.blogspot.com/search/label/giving
 

-And for everyone: Please take time this week to pray for the finances of both our church family, and the individual families that make up New Life. 

Promotion Sunday

Hello parents of New Life! Sunday, August 4th all kids moving into the next age or grade will start in their new class. To find out which class your child should be in stop by the Kidzlife Welcome Tent on Sunday. We know that some kids may have unique situations. If you are unsure about which class your child should be in, please contact the church office or email us at kidzlife@newlifecommunitychurch.net

Tuesday, July 16, 2013

Recurring Giving


At our new online giving site, there is the option to set up a recurring gift to the church. You can designate whether you would like this gift debited from your checking our credit card. You can also specify whether you want your contribution made one time, weekly, twice per month, monthly, quarterly, or yearly. See below for some frequently asked questions on recurring giving. 

What if I try online giving and don’t like it? 
There is no requirement to continue to use online giving.  It is very easy to begin or stop. 

What if I need to change the amount of a recurring gift, or cancel altogether? 
You can view, edit, or delete a scheduled contribution at anytime, including the credit card, date, frequency and amount as long as you created an account on the giving page. 



Are there any fees involved with giving online? 
Not for the giver.  The church pays any fees associated with online giving.

Is there anything else to know with recurring giving? 
When you schedule a recurring donation, a small validation amount (.11 cents) will pend on your account BUT WILL NOT be charged or post to your account.  It is only for validation purposes.  Please allow 2-3 days for this to disappear.

Women's Life Group

Hey Ladies, we’re hoping to start a life group for women. Life groups get together each week to discuss the passage that we looked at during the weekend service.  They are a great place to connect with others to share life and grow spiritually. 

Our next step towards starting a women’s life group is finding a potential leader. If you, or someone you know might be interested in learning to lead a life group, contact us at groups@newlifecommunitychurch.net  to let us know of your interest.

Monday, July 15, 2013

85%

85% of all people first came to church becasue a friend or family member invited them. Take time to reach out to people in your life. For more information on reaching out, visit our, "Who's Your One" webpage.

First Hand Faith in Christ



On Sunday we looked at the importance of a first hand faith in Christ. Here is a link to helpful resources to….

·      Learn what it means to a have a real relationship with Christ

·      Learn how to know whether or not you’re going to heaven

·      Discover the importance of baptism

·      How to grow as a follower of Christ. 

You can find it online at… www.newlifecommunitychurch.net/start.

Wednesday, July 10, 2013

First Hand Faith in God’s Word


Last Sunday we talked about developing a  First Hand Faith in God’s Word.” Here is a link to online resources to help you grow in your understanding of the Bible. Check it out for more information.