Satuday, April 26, 2003

Saturday, April 26 A gorgeous day in Minneapolis. Finished my speaking at the Love INC conference a few minutes ago. I spoke this morning on “The Mystery of Unanswered Prayer,” and the Lord seemed to touch many hearts. God willing, I’ll be back home in a few hours.

Friday, April 25 I’m writing this from my hotel room in Minneapolis. Had a wonderful time speaking to the Love INC gathering this morning. This afternoon I spent several hours at the Mall of America, aptly named because it is the largest mall in the US. Bought a few things, including a Christmas present that will go into storage until December. I speak for a second time tomorrow AM and then return home Saturday afternoon, God willing.

This Sunday we are baptizing 20 people in our worship services. I will be preaching the final message in the “Praying with Paul” series. We have a special congregational meeting at 6 PM to vote on the financing for the renovation campaign. May the Lord establish the work of our hands for his glory.

Thursday, April 24 Don’t forget the informational meeting tomorrow night at 7 PM regarding the proposed renovation plan. When you come to church on Sunday, you’ll notice blue tape on the floors and walls denoting where the new construction will take place. We also have colorful posters in each construction location… . The congregational meeting is set for 6 PM Sunday night. We’ve added one final walk-thru at 5:15 PM for those who would like a tour and explanation of the proposed renovations. I’m flying later today to Minneapolis to speak at a conference for Love INC on Friday and Saturday. Robert Odom leads this dynamic ministry. Last night’s “Z” was Zacharias (Luke 1).

Wednesday, April 23 Tonight is my final time to teach the ABC Bible study. We’re studying a Bible character whose name begins with Z. I haven’t decided yet between Zephaniah, Zechariah, Zerubbabel and Zacchaeus. You’ll have to be there to find out who it is. New sermon series called “Total Forgiveness” begins May 4 May 4 Forgiveness: Healing the Hurt We Never Deserved May 18 Forgiveness and the Lord’s Prayer May 25 Judge Not! June 1 Is Total Forgiveness Realistic? June 8 The Final Step: Blessing Your Enemies

Tuesday, April 22 Bruce Smith, pastor of Ebenezer Baptist Church in Vancouver, BC, led his congregation in a Holy Week outreach featuring a house-to-house distribution of 5000 copies of “An Anchor for the Soul” in the neighborhood around the church along with outdoor evangelistic services. Here is his report: “V-I-C-T-O-R-Y!!! Anchor! week was the most significant week of ministry I have ever had the opportunity of leading. We had 20-30 (at least) decisions for Christ from the community. We verbally shared the gospel with hundreds. We distributed between 6,000 to 8,000 pieces of literature. On Sunday we had 300 attend (about a 50% increase from a typical Sunday) and lots of them were people who accepted Christ during the week. We saw conversions from Buddhism, Sikhism, Hinduism, Atheism and even a couple from nominal Christianity. God is GOOOOOOOD!” PS Bruce grew up at Calvary and is the son of Ian and Shirley Smith. Monday, April 21 Yesterday’s total attendance set an all time record of 1990. We thank God for sending us so many people with hungry hearts to hear the Word of the Lord.

Tonight is the first of two informational meetings regarding the proposed expansion plan. The meeting runs from 7-8:30 PM. I plan to be there. I hope many of our members will come for a guided tour along with a time for questions and comments.