Hope Notes 1/30/14

Dear Friends of Hope ~

My husband has a pin that he put on his golf bag. It says, "Born once – die twice.  Born twice – die once".  Isn't that cool?  First off, it's a great conversation starter.  Most anyone who reads it is quick to say, 'what does THAT mean?".  So I love it for that reason, but I also love it for taking such a big truth and spitting it out so succinctly.  Plain and simple.  Black and white.  Just the facts, Ma'am. For believers, it's easy to understand.  But when you begin explaining it to the casual golfer who's just out for a round of golf, it becomes a little more complex; you need to go a little deeper.  That one little pin opens the door for a conversation that has the potential to plant a seed and reach a person's soul for eternity.  Think about whether you have an item like that (a tee shirt, a bumper sticker, etc) that you could use to open up a life changing discussion with someone, and then go look for the opportunity!

 

SATURDAY EVENING & SUNDAY MORNING MESSAGE

February 2 – Beyond Hope (John 5:1-15)

Did anyone ever try to encourage you by telling you, "If at first you don't succeed, try, try again."?  We know that there is power in perseverance.  And without a doubt, life calls for getting up again after failure.  But coming up short over and over again may be the best we can do.  If you've ever faced this kind of discouragement where hope seems to drain away and no matter how close you come, you never get there, then you can identify with the lame man in this story.  We find him right next to a possible 'answer' for his problem, but he is hopeless nonetheless.  Let's take a look at how Jesus brings hope to those who are beyond hope. 

 

MESSAGES AVAILABLE
Did you know that Sunday's worship service is available on CD immediately following the service for FREE?  Pick up a copy for yourself or for anyone you would like to share Hope with.  Pastor Mark's messages are also available on our website, www.hopechristianfellowship.org.

 

PRAYER HUDDLE

9:30 – 9:35

The prayer huddle is open to anyone who would like to come pray - but it is specifically intended for those who are serving on that Sunday.  So if you're scheduled to be in kids' ministry, greeting, in the tech booth, on worship team, or any other ministry role for a given Sunday, join us at 9:30 sharp to pray together for God's power in each of us.  We can do all things through Christ, and nothing of worth without Him, so let's come together each Sunday to ask for God's Spirit to fill us and use us!

 

SUNDAY MORNING PRAYER TIME
Our Sunday morning prayer time is open to everyone. We start at 9:15 am in one of the classrooms. We pray for the services that morning and for the needs in the church. If you would like to participate, just show up! Contact Pat Harkin at Prayer Team with any questions.

 

OPPORTUNITIES FOR SPIRITUAL GROWTH

 

FEBRUARY CHALLENGE VERSE

Proverbs 25:28

"Like a city whose walls are broken through is a person who lacks self-control."

 

WEDNESDAY EVENING BIBLE STUDY

7:00 – 8:15

1Corinthians

Make sure you set aside time to come and study God's Word mid-week.  This helps keep you rooted in Scripture and connected to each other.  Childcare is provided.

 

WEDNESDAY EVENING CHILDREN'S PROGRAM

7:00 – 8:15

Keep Jesus fresh in your child's mind and heart!  We have classes for children ages 3 – 5 and for those in 1^st – 5^th grades.  Nursery is provided for infants thru age 2.

 

YOUNG ADULTS

7:30 in Youth Room

First and Third Monday of every month

Anyone who has graduated high school up to their early thirties is welcome. See Pastor Mark or Dana for more information. Childcare is provided.

 

GOD'S GIRLS

Women's Bible Study – Bible Bus Stops

This study meets the 1^st and 3rd Monday of each month from 7:00 – 8:30pm.  There will be discussion and reflection on the Proverb of the Day taken from the One Year Bible. It's like riding the bus; jump on and off anytime you are available!

 

 

OPPORTUNITIES FOR FELLOWSHIP

 

SMALL GROUPS

We're here to help!  If you have not found a group and want to be in one, please sign up on the "Free Agent" list on the table next to the resource room.  We will be forming groups from the names on the list.  Our goal is to place everybody in a small group that is on the list by the end of January, so sign up quickly.  You are still free to form your own small groups (or add to them) - but please make sure your group is registered with Damon Briggs so he knows what groups have been formed.  Any questions, you can contact Damon via email at damon.briggs@mitchellandness.com.

 

HCF SOFTBALL LEAGUE

It's hard to believe that baseball season is right around the corner with all this cold and snow, but it is! We'd love you to join our team!  It's an awesome chance to meet and fellowship with not only Hope's family but other churches in our area.

Hope Fellowship's softball team is open to our guys and ladies. You must be 15 before the start of the season. Games are played on week nights; usually once or twice a week (6:30, 8:00 or 9:30). Fields are in Sewell and Pitman. Season runs from April to mid July.

Contact Lenny Little with any questions at littlemanlenny@yahoo.com.  

 

MEN'S BREAKFAST

Second Saturday of Every Month

8:00 – 9:30am

Come and join us for a delicious breakfast and a good time of fellowship/sharing with the men of Hope.  Feel free to bring a friend!  Open to men 18 and older. See Steve Jones with any questions.

 

MEN'S MORNING PRAYER MEETING

Every Friday at Church

6:00 am – 7:00 am

A fellowship of praying men contending for His will done on earth as in heaven.

 

YOUTH NEWS

 

GROW GROUPS

Stay tuned…….

 

ROOTED WEDNESDAYS

We'll continue our look at what it means to be 'Rooted' by looking at being rooted in prayer.

 

ANNOUNCEMENTS

 

CHILDREN'S MINISTRY CONFERENCE

Saturday, March 22^nd

Children's Ministry Workers! You are invited to a Children's Ministry Conference here at the church on Saturday, March 22^nd from 9:00am-2:00pm. It'll be an awesome and unifying time as we discuss where our Children's Ministry is headed and what the next few months will look like.  We'll also take time for training and group discussions.  Breakfast and lunch will be served.  You won't want to miss it!  

 

THE ROSE PETAL/PROM GOWNS

Saturday, February 8^th 10:00 – 3:00

If you are a young girl whose family is experiencing financial difficulties, The Rose Petal would like to offer you one free prom gown of your choice!  Just come to Beacon Academy Pre-School in the Harbor Pavilions, 570 Egg Harbor Rd, Washington Township, NJ.  Contact Lisa Minner at lisaminner13@aol.com with any questions.

 

RECOVERY SUPPORT GROUP

We here at Hope are looking into the possibility of forming a 12 step Christian recovery support group to help those struggling with addiction. We are also looking for anyone who is involved in recovery, has knowledge of recovery and would be able to help us start this group. If you are interested in helping or attending, please contact Liz McCool at 856-423-7919 or email her at irelandljm@netscape.com.

 

CHURCH DIRECTORY PHOTO SESSIONS

This Sunday, February 2^nd, is your last chance to have your photo taken for our new directory.  If you haven't done so yet, make sure you stop by the Youth Room after church and get your picture taken. We want every family to be represented in the directory.  It's such a great resource to put names and faces together.  Remember, you do not need to be a partner of Hope to be in the directory.  Contact Lois Hartwell (foolsforchrist7@yahoo.com) with any questions.

 

MARRIAGE CONFERENCE

February 14 – 16^th

We're getting a group together to go to the Family Life "Weekend to Remember" conference in Hershey, PA.  You can siignup online at www.familylife.com.  Our group name is HopeWoodbury.  Hotel reservations & costs are separate.  Don't miss this chance to invest a weekend into your relationship, spend some time focused just on the two of you and get some powerful training from God's Word about God's design for marriage.  See Pastor Mark with any questions.

SPECIAL ANNOUNCEMENT:  For the first time since we've been attending this conference, Dennis Rainey and Bob Lepine will be the main speakers!  They are the president and vice-president of Family Life and the hosts of the radio show, "FamilyLife Today".  Don't miss this opportunity to hear what God has laid on the hearts of these men!

 

JOIN THE CONVERSATION!

Don't be shy!  Jump in and get engaged in some spiritual conversations via social media stuff like facebook and twitter.  We'd love for you to share your thoughts and your spiritual journeys so that we can walk through life a little more 'together'.  Share something you're thankful for, share what God is doing in your life through the challenge verse, share what you learned at our last service, etc.

 

OPPORTUNITES TO SERVE

 

COFFEE TEAM

Have you been enjoying our coffee café?  Why not lend a hand to our Coffee Team and take a turn occasionally to set up on Saturday night (about 15 mins) and cleanup on Sunday after the service.  Contact Jeff Toomin at jktoomin.98@comcast.net with any questions.

 

SUNDAY MORNING OPENING

We're looking for anyone who would be interested in helping Matt or becoming a part of the Sunday morning openings for kids.  You would be playing some games, singing together, and other fun stuff!  If you think you might like to get involved, contact Matt at mruss80@gmail.com.

 

SATURDAY EVENING CHILDCARE

We'd like to have some basic childcare for our Saturday evening services.  Anyone interested in watching little ones (3 and under) on a rotating basis, please contact Pastor Mark.

 

TEACHERS AND AIDES NEEDED

We have a need for Sunday School teachers and aides for the 3-5th grade classroom beginning in January. Teachers work on rotation, with 2 weeks in the classroom and 6-8 weeks off. We could use one to two more teachers for this age group. We would also like to have an aide in the classroom at all times. High school teens, this is a great way to minister to the younger kids! We would like to make "teaching teams" of one teacher, one aide, so if an adult-teen team is interested in working together, let me know. Thanks so much for your willingness to serve our youngest family members.

Please contact Mary Lebeau (marylebeau@verizon.net; 856-316-6301) if you're interested or if you have any questions about the program.

 

FOOD PANTRY

Please check the expiration dates of any donations and place in the basket located outside the kitchen door. Contact Karen Blythe with any questions or if you are interested in helping with our pantry.

 

THIS WEEK'S WORKERS

Nursery                          TBA

Toddlers                         TBA
Pre K – Kindergarten     Bill McGinness, Isaiah Owens, Angel Nolan
1^st & 2nd                       Lisa Fiorile

3^rd - 5th                         Mary LeBeau, Dylan Ott
Counters                       TBA
Greeters                        Glen Baade

                                      Delores Baade
                                      Ellen Boales
                                      Diane Beardsworth          

Wed. Evening                Kathleen Toomin, Naidona Ott

 

HOPES PRAYER TEAM
If you have a prayer request, please fill out a prayer request card and drop it in the offering slot at the back of the church on Sunday or use the "Prayer Request Form" on our website. If you have any questions or would like to join the Prayer Team, please contact Pat Harkin directly at Prayer@hopechristianfellowship.org.

 

PRAYER REQUESTS

Sunday Morning Children's Opening – Let's keep Matt Russell in prayer as he leads in this new venture for our children.

"And pray in the Spirit on all occasions with all kinds of prayers and requests. With this in mind, be alert and always keep on praying for all the Lord's people." Ephesians 6:18

 

Alive in Him,
Lois

 

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