May 4, 2007

Dear Resurrection Family,

I'm writing this e-mail from Asheville, North Carolina where I will speak to 450 pastors and church leaders about leadership, evangelism and preaching. Those of you who have taken Disciple Bible Study may be interested to know that Zan Holmes, the guide for Disciple, is with me as one of the conference speakers. Please pause for a moment to pray that God will use me to bless, encourage and equip these pastors and church leaders that their churches might more effectively reach non-religious and nominally religious people for Christ. I'll be back in Kansas City later tonight.

Here are a few things I want you to know about:

1. 154 Adults and Children Join Resurrection at Coffee with the Pastors.
2. Doctors, Dentists, Nurses and Medical Professionals Read This Please!
3. Yolanda Villa to Become Kansas City District Superintendent.
4. Last Chance to sign up for Alaska Cruise.
5. Beeson Institute at Resurrection Next Week.
6. This Weekend in Worship: John the Apostle Returns - 15 years older.

1. 154 Adults and Children Join Resurrection at Coffee with the Pastors.
We had a wonderful group of adults and children who professed their faith in Christ and officially became members of the church this last weekend at Coffee with the Pastors. You'll have a chance to welcome them this weekend as you greet them in worship - their names will also appear in the bulletin insert. Welcome to each of you who joined - we are grateful and proud to be your church family!

2. Doctors, Dentists, Nurses and Medical Professionals Read This Please!
If you are a medical professional I'd like to invite you to join me this Sunday afternoon from 3:00 to 4:30 pm in the Wesley Chapel to hear about our hopes for a new ministry focused on medical and dental missions here in Kansas City and around the world. I'll kick off the discussion and then you'll have a chance to hear from others about the opportunities and vision for medical missions through the Church of the Resurrection. This is exciting. Join me in the Wesley Chapel this weekend.

3. Yolanda Villa to Become Kansas City District Superintendent.
The Bishop of the Missouri Area has announced that Yolanda Villa, our Executive Pastor of Congregational Care, will become the District Superintendent in the Heartland Central District (Kansas City, Missouri) effective July 1. This is exciting and a particular blessing given our current feasibility study related to partnering with Grand Avenue Temple in downtown Kansas City. Someone pointed out that, if we pursue this partnership, Yolanda will become my boss - at least as it relates to our efforts at Grand Avenue! Congratulations to Yolanda - this is an exciting move for her!

4. Last Chance to sign up for Alaska Cruise.
This is the last chance to sign up for the cruise to Alaska. LaVon and I will lead four sessions on my book, Making Love Last a Lifetime, and Lance and Kelly Winkler will be lead worship. We'll see one of the most beautiful places on our planet; and we'll have a renewal of wedding vows service at sea. If you are interested in more information, click on this link.

5. Beeson Institute at Resurrection Next Week.
Next week we'll welcome the Beeson Institute to our campus. The Beeson Institute is affiliated with Asbury Theological Seminary and provides an opportunity for pastors and doctoral students to visit leading churches in the country and to hear from pastors and church leaders about various dimensions of leadership. It rotates to Saddleback, Willow Creek, Church of the Resurrection and several other churches. This particular module is focused on building staff teams. If you would like to see the brochure about this, or know a pastor or leader in an area church who might be interested in attending, here's the link.

6. This Weekend in Worship: John the Apostle Returns - 15 years older.
Thank you to all who sent notes or e-mail about last weekend's message. I'm glad that it spoke to so many of you. Some asked who was doing the make-up and how long it took to become transformed into the Apostle John. The women, who are doing the make-up, wig and beard work with the Lyric Opera and Starlight. It takes between 30 and 45 minutes to complete the make-up. Each week during this series I'll take you back 2000 years, to the time the New Testament books were written, and tell you the story of the New Testament in the first person, as the Apostle John. Last week John was about 35 - the age he was in the gospels. This week, he'll be in his 50's, the age during the events of the latter part of the Book of Acts. I'll tell you about these events and help you to see them with fresh eyes. I hope to help you hear God's word for your life from Acts. Next week John will age another ten to fifteen years as he/I tell you about the writing of the Epistles. On the last week, as an elderly man, John will tell you of the events of Revelation and what precipitated the writing of this book. If you missed last week, you can catch it on-line (be sure to watch it rather than just listening to it). Go to this link to watch last week's message. These sermons are designed to be very accessible for your friends who don't go to church. Invite them to join you this weekend! I am looking forward to sharing this story with you!

Tonight is the Resurrection Auction - we have so much great stuff for you to bid on and buy, and it will be a time of great fellowship; but more than that, it will be a chance to change the world for the people in Pinetown, South Africa who will have a church building as a result of your generosity and one family here in Kansas City who will have a Habitat House to move into, thanks to your efforts. Plan to come tonight to the auction.

See you in worship!

Adam