GCV Blog

Vietnam is one of the last five nations with a Communist government and ranks #16 among the countries that persecute Christians. The minority Christian population numbers less than 10% of the population, and there have been increasing attacks on them. Christians have great difficulty in obtaining the mandated government registration for their churches. In addition, church buildings have been demolished by government officials, and pastors have been jailed.

True story. We scheduled this review of Kevin DeYoung’s book Crazy Busy: a (mercifully) short book about a (really) big problem several months ago. It’s just that some things came up, the schedule got rearranged, we had several other projects that were more important. Basically things just got a little crazy. And busy. In other words, I needed this book even more than I thought, and you might too.

Hume Lake 2015 by Pastor David Parents and campers, the time has come! If you’d like to attend Hume Camp this summer (June 7-13), now is the time to register. Camp can be a unique time of spiritual challenge and growth. It’s certainly a lot of fun and a great time and place for our kids to hang out together. More importantly, however, the concentrated amount of preaching and spiritual emphases can lead to lasting growth. Key dates Feb. 15: Grace Church registration begins March 1: Registration for families outside of our church begin April 19: Second deposit due ($150) May 17: Final deposit due June 7-13: Camp Finances Ponderosa total (High school): $520 Meadow Ranch total (Junior High): $520 Wagon Train total (3rd-6th grades): $450 $100 non-refundable deposit due at registration $150 non-refundable deposit due April 19 Final amount due May 17 You can register online at graceofthevalley.org/hume-lake You can also register through the Grace Church app at resources/forms list. If you would like registration help, please feel free to call Sarah at the office (897-8788). Also, we will have a table at the Hub Feb. 22 and March 1 to help answer any questions. humelake.org

We are thrilled to welcome Blake Boys and his family to Grace Church of the Valley. Blake has just finished his first full week as a pastor here and we are excited to have him here and working. Blake will be giving the majority of his time overseeing our Sunday worship as he chooses songs, arranges the service order, shepherds the music and sound teams, leads rehearsals, develops musicians, works with facilities, and more. Blake will also be giving time to our media, including our website, app, social media, and audio and video resources. In addition, Blake will help plan and administrate events.

As Pastor Scott began the book of Jonah last week, one of the issues he covered was the debate about Jonah being a literal, historical book. That topic made me think of how essential our fundamental, basic convictions about the Bible are. One of God’s blessings through kids is the reminder of how much we assume. For instance, before our kids were born I was under the mistaken impression that babies are born with some basic understandings. Turns out that not only are children born without basic communication abilities, hand-eye coordination, or motor skills, there’s even a learning curve on how to eat. To eat! Pretty hard to get more basic than that.

We are on the brink of some really exciting developments when it comes to more permanent facilities for our church family. Depending on the finances the Lord provides by January, we have the potential of beginning some construction in April or so. As we’ve considered the importance of the next few months, we’ve also returned to why we think this facility is a critical need and a wise move forward for the Kingdom. Over the next few weeks, I’d like to share some of the thought process, principles, and vision that is driving us forward into the next stage of our building project.

Seven years ago Grace Church officially began. For seven years, God has been graciously growing and shaping us. God uses means like His Word, prayer, and fellowship to grow us, and so while we ought to be grateful for the past we ought also to look to the future for faithful ministry and growth. Below is a list of ministries that you can grow in as we enter a new ministry year. Let’s pray that God will grow us all the ways He wants to as we move into year eight!

September is just right around the corner! Because of our church’s anniversary, as well as summer vacations ending and school beginning, we often restart ministries in September that we took a brief break from. Our Adult Bible Fellowship and Sunday school hour is one of those ministries that we resume in earnest. I’d like to encourage you to make the 9:00 hour a priority for your family in this new year, as well as let you know what’s coming up.

For everything there is a season, and a time for every matter under heaven… a time to kill, and a time to heal; a time to break down, and a time to build up; (Ecclesiastes 3:1, 3 ESV)