The Slings and Arrows of Outrageous Fortune

If ever there was an example of Satan's attack, our church plant would be one. After being forced to worship elsewhere on Christmas and New Year's, Michael's continued back problems (he also had a cold back in the fall and suffered from food poisoning two weeks ago) it would be easy to fall into discouragement. Fortunately, our church is strengthening its resolve and finding renewed encouragement in light of the slings and arrows.

Yes, these distractions were again on full display this week as I received the the phone call Sunday morning to which I've becomed quite accustomed. After significant progress with his physical therapy and treatment on his herniated disk, something happened Saturday to re-aggrivate the condition and Michael was again in unbearable pain on the other end of the phone line. Yes, boys and girls, once again I had to preach on the fly. It's okay. I don't really mind. It's part of my job, and in light of this critical time in the life of Ascension Church, I'm happy to step up to the plate. It does make for an increasedly hectec Lord's Day, which is quite a challenge.

Entertainment Suggestion: I always try to encourage enthusiasm for our work and ministry here in Queens, so allow me to make a suggestion to that end. For an authentic depiction of life in New York City's largest borough, tune in to "The King of Queens," which airs on Monday nights on CBS. The scenes and depictions are dead-on accurate and each of the characters reminds me of someone I know. It also airs in syndication on UPN (check your local listings).

Prayer Concerns: We have broadened and are continuing our development of evangelistic projects. We are looking to incorporate these efforts into a logo for all Ascension Church literature (weekly bulletins, letterheads, web page, etc.). Several people from the church met with a graphics designer this week and we are confident in developing a good design for this church. Continue to keep Michael in your prayers. He was able to actually stand up during our meeting with the graphics designer, but his back problems have not exactly gone away. Pray for me also as I prepare the multitude of material I will need for licensure and ordination in this Presbytery.

Until next week, take care for now and God-bless.

Off to the Races!

This past Sunday was our broadening service and in a certain sense we are off and running. We had the best music we've been able to sing yet. Our music program is developing and it was good for us and our visitors that it has improved and the improvement was quite obvious. Our Christian Education work also began this week and we are hoping to grow the program both in numbers and scope. Lastly, it was also great to see our church name, "Ascension," in print on the bulletins for the first time. Now that Ascension Church has it's greatest definition yet, we will be developing interactive ministries aimed and sharing the Gospel with our neighbors in Forest Hills and the surrounding communities.

We did encounter something of an adventure however, and that was the weather. Last Saturday it rained all day, heavy at times, though temperatures were unseasonably mild. Overnight the New York City area experiences a cataclysmic drop in temperature. When I awoke Sunday morning, we had a coat of ice over a bed of solid ice from the previous day's rainfall. These factors, combined with fiercely strong winds made for dangerous driving conditions and an overall nasty outdoor experience. Undoubtedly, some of the people we invited to our broadening service were inhibited by the weather, but... Praise the Lord, we still had a pretty good turn out of visitors and launch community alike. God's providence is wonderful considering that even the parking lot of the school from whom we rent was glazed with ice making even the trip from the car to the building a measure of faith.

Saturday evening, I took the boys from the church to see The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe. Though a rather lengthy film (2 hours; 19 minutes), it was quite well done and true to the C.S. Lewis classic (did any of you know he preferred to be known as Jack?). I'm not going to write a movie review, but I would recommend the film if you haven't already seen it.

Prayer Concerns: Please continue to pray for Ascension Church. We are on a tight budget and have some big plans for the near term. I am looking at Presbytery licensure (the pre-call phase of ordination) and it appears that I will need to do everything short of raise the dead to get licensed in is Presbytery. On top of my increasingly busy schedule with church activities, licensure reports, forms, tests, etc. will need to be squeezed into my schedule. My financial picture hasn't gained much focus in the new year. After July, my Redeemer Fellows stipend (75% of my current income) will disappear as the internship program I am in closes and my regular work begins. Consequently, I need to think ahead and continue to request additional financial support. If any of you are considering increased support or new support, please send checks made out to Redeemer Presbyterian Church (my name on the memo line) to my address: 83-44 Lefferts Blvd. Apt. 3C; Kew Gardens, NY 11415. I am thankful to those of you who have pledged support and am trusting God to meet my needs.

Until next week, may God continue to richly bless you.

There's Something about that Name

At last, brothers and sisters, we have finally announced the name of our church. After months of canvassing neighbors, discussion amongst the launch community, research and a tremendous amount of prayer, we are no longer the Forest Hills Church Plant. We are now Ascension Church. I know what some of you are thinking. There's a trend out there in the PCA to call new church plants Redeemer. In fact, it seems that every time I read about a new church in this denomination, it's called Redeemer. Acesnsion is intriguing and memorable without being a theological compromise. It points to our outward face in sharing the gospel and our focus on preaching God's kingdom here in central Queens. This week's bulletins for our worship service will be the first to bear the new name. This is one more step in our early-stage growth and we are all very excited.

This Lord's Day, as I've been mentioning to you, is our broadening service. I've been inviting most of my friends to come, as well as some local pastors I know in the hopes that a connection would be made. We have also sent out an e-mail invitation to the various contacts Michael and I have made over the past few months and we are expecting a larger crowd than we've had in our pre-launch services. Some of these will be individuals that we will be encouraging to attend our services weekly, while others are people we have invited in order to make them aware that we are out here and want to be a resource and well connected in the community. Please pray for our preparations for this important worship service as we are hoping to put the best foot forward not for our own glory and recognition, but that God will receive all the glory in our church planting efforts.

Finally, the Post Office changed the price of a stamp from 37 cents to 39 cents and almost no one knew it. In fact, the Post Office did such a poor job publicizing it, this blog entry may be the first some of you are hearing about it..I'm just glad this didn't happen over the Christmas holiday or my mailing would have seen a little problem. Well, it looks like I'll have to raise more money this year to cover postage. Oy Vey! Please keep Ascension Church in your prayers.

Until next week, may God continue to richly bless you.

We Now Return to our Regularly Scheduled Program

After an unintentional break in our church planting efforts, January brings us back to reality as we look forward to our broadening service on the 15th.

More on that in a second. First, the holidays were busy for me. I went with my parents to my sister and brother-in-law's home in Connecticut for the New Year (since we didn't have a worship service on the 1st with the church plant). It was great to spend some time with my nephews Tyler (3) and Zachary (1). I also thought I'd bless you all with a picture of them. It snowed on New Year's Eve there and the whole area looked like a Christmas post card. The New England coast always looks like a post card, but even more so this time. We had a fire going in the fireplace and it was festive. Of course when you put an animated group of people like my family together, it's interesting to put it mildly.

As I said earlier, our broadening service is scheduled for January 15th, and we are very excited. Our music program, under my direction, is taking shape and we are already rehearsing music not only for this week, but for the broadening service so we can put our best foot forward at that service. We will share our name with the launch community this week after the worship service (I'll inform you here next week) and our programs are seeing renewed life with the new year. Our home fellowship groups re-convene beginning this evening and I plan to take the boys in the church to see The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe next weekend.

My friend Becky made the observation that I represent a portion of a deck of cards: My name is Jack and I'm serving the King in Queens. To expand the metaphor slightly, we'll have our ace if we can get a full house on January 15th. I know you're laughing out loud right now.

Prayer Concerns: Michael continues his physical therapy for his back amidst all our planning. He is doing a wonderful job keeping focus despite his pain. Invitations have been sent out for our broadening service and we hope to keep some of these visitors and invite them to worship with us regularly. Following the broadening, we will be developing a concerted evangelistic effort leading up to our public launch near Palm Sunday. Many of you have shown me great generosity over the holidays with your contributions to our work here. If any of you are still considering additional support or joining with me, you can make checks out to Redeemer Presbyterian Church with my name on the memo line. Send them to me at 83-44 Lefferts Blvd. Apt. 3C; Kew Gardens, NY 11415.

That's all for this week. Check back next week for my announcement of our church name.