A few weeks ago, I found myself standing on the sand at the ocean’s edge at 3am. Needless to say, I was the only one there. There’s nothing like a good jog in the middle of the night to give you a fresh perspective on life. And in that moment alone, I had this deep sense that God was reminding me of an important lesson on joy. It was as if he was saying, “Don’t forget to enjoy your life, Dave. I have given you so many blessings, and I am with you wherever you go. Enjoy it.”

So for the past few weeks, I’ve been trying an experiment in joy. As I wake up each morning, I’m trying to remind myself, “Enjoy this day. Enjoy God. Enjoy what he puts in front of you.” As I interact with people throughout the day, I’m trying to first enjoy them before I try to help them or fix them. And as the day comes to a close, I’m trying to stop and be grateful for what God has done during that day.

As we move into the holiday season, I want to share two things I’m learning in my experiment with joy.

Continue reading Dave's thoughts on joy.

Grace has teamed up with Free Wheelchair Mission to purchase 250 wheelchairs by Christmas. We will be able to send a container of wheelchairs out that will begin to help some of the 100 million of those who are in need. Just $63.94 lifts a life and changes it forever, all in the name of Jesus!

You can donate online at www.freewheelchairmission.org - just make sure to denote Grace Fellowship as your church to help our goal of funding 250 wheelchairs by Christmas.

CLICK HERE to view a video showing how your wheelchair donations will be used.

The time has come to invest in our church facility and we need your help.  On October 9th and 23rd we announced to our church community our plans for a comprehensive facility renovation.  This $900,000 facility improvement plan will address our long-running deferred maintenance issues as well as provide improved sanctuary seating capacity and space functionality.  If you missed our announcements you can hear a recording by clicking HERE.  Details of this plan will be mailed to all members for whom we have an address.  To see a detailed version of this plan in PDF form along with Frequently Asked Questions (with answers) please CLICK HERE.

As we embark on raising the necessary funds to complete this project, we want the Lord to be glorified in all aspects of this initiative.  As the Lord leads you to invest in our community and specifically our building, you may do so by writing a check to Grace Fellowship Church, designating our Facility Renovation Fund or you can make a donation online via this website.  CLICK HERE to give online and by selecting Building Renovation Fund your gifts will be directed appropriately.

We are grateful for your financial support of the work of Grace Fellowship Church.  Our ability as a church to make disciples who will not only believe in our Lord but also follow Him in daily life depends on your generosity.  Thank you for prayerfully considering your part in this stewardship adventure.

The Elders

Our Sunday school classes will be starting a new curriculum on September 11th which they will use throughout the entire school year.  The Children's Ministry (kindergarten through fifth grade) uses John Piper's Children Desiring God curriculum.  The goal of our ministry as well as Piper's curriculum is "to impart to children a vision of God, who He is, who we are in relation to Him, and to establish them with a foundation of doctrine and truth."  Our desire is for our children to see God as the hero of every story, to have a God-centered worldview and a faith that will hold them when difficulties come.  We want them to love the Lord their God with all their heart, with all their soul and with all their mind. CLICK HERE to learn about each of our teachers and the curriculum being taught this year in each class.

Kids make you stupid. A friend of mine recently said this to me, and he meant it in the best way. There’s something about the wonder of a newborn baby that captures our attention and causes us to forget ourselves. And that self-forgetting can lead us to make some of most ridiculous and regrettable sounds and facial gestures imaginable. For Carrie and me, these first three weeks with our new daughter, Adele, have been full of those wonderful, self-forgetful moments.

Experiencing the gift of Adele has led me to reflect on the gift of God’s grace in our lives. A simple definition of grace: receiving what we don’t deserve and can’t repay. That two-part definition sums up God’s grace pretty well, and it certainly sums up our experience of little Adele.

Continue reading Dave's reflection on Adele's birth.