The Great Gobbler Giveaway!

This year our church is giving away Turkeys to families in our community who have financial needs. This is a huge help in our community and we have literally 100+ that we try and give to. However, we cannot do it without you're help. Please let us know if you can donate turkeys or give money towards turkeys ASAP! Make checks out to Grace Community Church and write Turkeys in the note section. You can mail checks to 598 E Ellendale Ave. Dallas, OR 97338 or drop them in the offering plate on Sundays leading up to Thanksgiving.

Remember the words of Jesus, "Then the King will say to those on his right, 'Come, you who are blessed by my Father; take your inheritance, the kingdom prepared for you since the creation of the world. For I was hungry and you gave me something to eat, I was thirsty and you gave me something to drink, I was a stranger and you invited me in, I needed clothes and you clothed me, I was sick and you looked after me, I was in prison and you came to visit me.'

"Then the righteous will answer him, 'Lord, when did we see you hungry and feed you, or thirsty and give you something to drink? When did we see you a stranger and invite you in, or needing clothes and clothe you? When did we see you sick or in prison and go to visit you?'

"The King will reply, 'I tell you the truth, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers of mine, you did for me.'"

How fleeting life is...

Please be in prayer for the Tawney family. They recently lost their son Ian who was a Marine in Afghanistan. If you are available, there is a procession down Ellendale at around 2:30 on Friday as they bring the body back to the family. The funeral is at Faith at 11am on Saturday.

This is a harsh way to be reminded just how fleeting and fragile life is. James 4:14 says, "What is your life? You are a mist that appears for a little while and then vanishes." 1 Peter 1:24 says, "All men are like grass, and all their glory is like the flowers of the field; the grass withers and the flowers fall." We are so insignificant. Yet, to God we are very significant. Paul describes God as someone "who wants all men to be saved and to come to a knowledge of the truth."

Let us celebrate our God given significance while humbly realizing the reality of our insignificance! We have a God who loves us and cares for us more deeply than any of us can understand!

Verse of the Day...

I will praise you, O LORD, with all my heart;
I will tell of all your wonders.

² I will be glad and rejoice in you;
I will sing praise to your name, O Most High. Psalm 9:1-2

If you are like me, I cannot honestly say that I praise the Lord with "all my heart." What would that look like? I praise Him with some of my heart for sure! And then do I "tell of all Your wonders." What would that look like? Do I rejoice in Him? The only part of this passage I feel confident in is singing praise to His name. We do that each Sunday at Grace and I do it in the car to Lincoln Brewster worship albums. However, it seems I have a long way to go to capture the heart of these verses. How about you?

Awesome Giveaway from a Great Company

Logos Bible Software is giving away thousands of dollars of prizes to celebrate the launch of Logos Bible Software 4 Mac on October 1. Prizes include an iMac, a MacBook Pro, an iPad, an iPod Touch, and more than 100 other prizes!

They’re also having a special limited-time sale on their Mac and PC base packages and upgrades. Check it out!

Giving Out Grace...

Therefore lift your drooping hands and strengthen your weak knees, and make straight paths for your feet, so that what is lame may not be put out of joint but rather be healed. Strive for peace with everyone, and for the holiness without which no one will see the Lord. See to it that no one fails to obtain the grace of God; that no "root of bitterness" springs up and causes trouble, and by it many become defiled; that no one is sexually immoral or unholy like Esau, who sold his birthright for a single meal. For you know that afterward, when he desired to inherit the blessing, he was rejected, for he found no chance to repent, though he sought it with tears. (Heb. 12:12-17)

I came across this passage this morning in my reading and was immediately struck by the phrase "See to it that no one fails to obtain the grace of God..." How often do we go through life and fail to make use of opportunities to give away the grace of God? Of course, by ourselves we cannot do anything. However, that is not a reason to not share! If we are faithful in sharing, the Holy Spirit will be faithful in working! Isaiah 55:10-11 says,

"As the rain and the snow come down from heaven, and do not return to it without watering the earth and making it bud and flourish, so that it yields seed for the sower and bread for the eater, so is my word that goes out from my mouth: It will not return to me empty, but will accomplish what I desire and achieve the purpose for which I sent it."

Let's make sure we are giving everyone a chance to hear of God's Grace!

Fall is here...

This is what life in Oregon is all about. It is cold, rainy and gloomy. Many people seem depressed with the coming of the fall. Bad weather, back to the mundane routine of life. However, I love the fall. As soon as the first big rain comes, the first leaf starts to turn, the first dark dark night we experience signifies the coming out of hot apple cider, pumpkin spice lattes, reading a good book on the couch in a warm house and the countdown to Christmas!

This is the best time of year for me! And this year, I can live it all as if it were the first time thanks to our beautiful baby girl! Every experience for her will be the first time. So bring on the rain and the cold! Good stuff is ahead!

Verse of the Day...

Philippians 3:12 - I don't mean to say that I have already achieved these things or that I have already reached perfection! But, I keep working toward that day when I will finally be all that Christ Jesus saved me for and wants me to be. (NLT)