MARCH 2018
640 Grosvenor St. London Ont N5Y 3T4 519-858-4123 churchalcc1@gmail.com #abundantlife_london Twitter: @LifeALCC www.alccnet.com
discovery| simplicity | empowerment
Desperate Prayer….One of the greatest joys I have experienced over the years is answers to prayers. Personally, I have seen people healed, jobs created, finances provided for and a variety of other things. I am convinced that the church only goes ahead as we pray and seek the Lord. Many years ago, someone came to me and asked if they could renovate and donate their time and resources and give the church a functioning Nursery. Of course, I was thrilled that someone would spend over $2000 to have this happen. Well, I remember standing in our nursery with that person when it was completed but we had NO BABIES to use it. So our next prayer request was, Lord fill it please. 2 Chronicles 7:14 New International Version (NIV) 14 if my people, who are called by my name, will humble themselves and pray and seek my face and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven, and I will forgive their sin and will heal their land. I love this passage because the people of God were in a desperate place and needed to hear from heaven. Our church was dying from no babies and needed to hear from heaven! Last week, it was reported to me, that 7 babies were in the nursery. Now we are overfull and don’t know what to do. Great problem and a great answer to prayer. God hears desperate prayers. Folks, our church needs you to pray the same for Abundant Life Church. As a ministry, we are at a crossroads and need prayer for wisdom going forward. Pray for God to fill our church on Sunday. Pray that God would meet our financial needs. (we are falling behind and close to red mark) Pray that people would volunteer to help in the ministries. (we are in great need in this area again) Pray that God would strengthen the staff. Pray that God would continue to visit us on Sunday morning. Pray that our people would be faithful to attend Sunday services. Yes, we need prayer at this hour. Do I sound desperate? Good, then you have my heart. May our Father helps us to pray at this hour! Praying with you for our future! PB and Kathy Most of the time that we experience silence, it’s in awkward moments. Let me tell you my first hand experience practicing silence and solitude. It was super awkward for me. I heard about it when I was a teenage in church and thought that it sounded like I should try it. So I did. Most times lasted seconds. I didn't get it. I thought to myself: this is a waste of time. Let me also tell you how it changed my life. Jesus withdrew to spend time with His father; our Heavenly Father (Luke 5:16). But see verse 15, how the crowds got great in numbers and there was so much demand. He could handle it all as God. There is nothing like being in solitude with God. Jesus seeks God and continues on. See, I got to the point that I was fed up with everyone else’s opinions, demands, pressures and didn’t know what to do. So I began ranting to God. I threw up, per say, all over God and I found myself on the floor, seeking Him and I went silent. Why would I want to be silent before God? We need to know His voice (John 10:27). It’s so important for us as He is our Shepherd. The one who breathes life into us. Imagine if we knew His voice better. Let me tell you that my son knows my voice when he is doing something He shouldn’t and how he loves hearing my voice: it’s time to do something, it’s affirmation, it’s time to be with dad. (Habakkuk 2:20). Sometimes, it’s going to be in an inner impression, a prompting, a picture that may come to mind; you don’t want to limit the possibilities but you do want to seek scriptural backing. In silence, God said, “you will be a shepherd of many sheep”. It was mind blowing. I got up and remembered what I read in about David in Psalm 78:70-72. I got excited although I didn’t know what it meant but I knew I heard from God. God would lead me as my Good Shepherd. I’ve done it a handful of times in my life. When God is promptly me to. God never disappoints. Word of advice: if you are wanting to practice silence and solitude, cast all your cast to Him first (1 Peter 5:7). Everything that is bottled inside. Give everything to God so you can seek God alone (Psalm 63). Shhhh, in the silent zone, Tony Mejia
We are glad you are here, and we trust that feel at HOME. It is our hope and prayer that you will join in as we share our lives, struggles and celebrations of faith together. We believe life is about discovering our faith and purpose, and using this discovery to live out His plan for us with passion. We call ALCC our HOME. We are intentional about relationships with God and each other to bring this message of HOPE to our community.
Good Morning Café When we wake up in the morning, we all have our rituals, traditions and “must do’s” before we head out the door. That’s why we offer our to you at 10 am.
Good Morning Café
You will be greeted by a warm and friendly smile from one of our weekly hostesses and you can choose a beverage of coffee (hazelnut or regular), tea (regular or seasonal favourite), juice and not to mention a homemade snack from our dedicated Café Team. So come a little early to enjoy this time of relaxing and the opportunity to get to know your fellow Lifers!
Good Morning Café@ 10 am
people matter to God
Sundays 10:30- noon
Ages 0-3 years Welcome Care Givers! Feel free to sign your child in at any time during the service. Some care givers would like their child to stay with them for the music or until they (the child that is) gets restless. Once you have signed them in, you can pick them up at the end of the service by signing them out again. Ages 4-11 Your kids will enjoy the variety of stations and Bible learning activities offered in the PlayRoom. It’s a fun and diverse time of games, Bible story, application and snack.
discovery| simplicity | empowerment
THE STORY PLayRoom & Paradise Kids For the next few weeks leading up to Easter, we will be discovering who Jesus is and what it means to believe that He is the Son of God. From His birth to his coming again, our PlayRoom and Paradise Kids will follow along with the topics of their mom and dads. This makes great conversation around the dinner table and bedtime. ENJOY THE JOURNEY
people matter to God
LIFE SMALL GROUPS Have you ever read something in your Bible, had a question about life or experienced an AHA moment with God? Our LIFE SMALL GROUPS are a great place to discuss God, faith and how to apply His truth to our lives. Join us Sunday’s 4 or 6pm, Friday’s 7 pm discovery| simplicity | empowerment
An evening with delicious food inspiring tales from our Missions Experience A short video presentation your opportunity to participate
Music Practice Mon. March 12 & 26 @ 7 pm people matter to God
discovery| simplicity | empowerment
9:45am—10am Downstairs
people matter to God
Since 2005
12 Step Recovery Program Based on Matthew 5:2-12 (The Beatitudes)
Step 7: HUMILITY We humbly ask Him to remove our shortcomings. “If we confess our sins, he is faithful and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness.” (1John 1:9) Step (7) is about walking in humility. After examining our life closely (as we did in Steps Four, Five, and Six,) we may feel cut off from God. Considering the scope of what we have done, we may feel unworthy to ask God for anything. Maybe our sinful behaviors are despised as the lowest kind of evil by those whom we consider respectable. We may struggle with self-hatred. Our genuine remorse may cause us to wonder if we even dare approach God to ask for his help. God welcomes us, even when we feel this way, Jesus told this story: Two men went to the temple to pray. One was a Pharisee, and the other was a dishonest tax collector. The proud Pharisee stood by himself and prayed this prayer: I thank you, God, that I am not a sinner like everyone else, especially like that tax collector over there! For I never cheat, I don’t sin, I don’t commit adultery, I fast twice a week, and I give you a tenth of my income.’ But the tax collector stood at a distance and dared not even lift his eyes to heaven as he prayed. Instead, he beat his chest in sorrow, saying, ‘O God, be merciful to me, for I am a sinner. ‘ I tell you, this sinner, not the Pharisee, returned justified before God. For the proud will be humbled, but the humble will be honored” (Luke 18: 10-14) NLT. When we put our life in God’s hands, he will reshape us as he sees fit. It is our humility that allows us to accept the fact that he is the Creator. Our new life may be similar to the one we left behind or entirely different. God is the master craftsman. Whatever he does, we can trust that he will recreate our life beautifully, one we get out of his way!
Thursday’s 7 pm Closed Women’s Group Mondays 7-9 pm POTLUCK March 29 @ 6-7pm discovery| simplicity | empowerment
Doors open 5:30 pm Come early & join in the PRE-YOUTH activities
Student ministry 11– 18 years
finding connecting belonging
IGNITE equips teens with personal faith to take on our changing world. We are taking a journey from Sept-May to read the Bible from cover to cover with THE STORY. We will explore God through history and the world around us. IGNITE is a space where we can be ourselves without fear of judgment. Group activities, music and talks geared to inspire us to live a God filled life. people matter to God
This easy-to-use and fun mobile app will help keep you on track with a video and a reading plan THEBIBLEPROJECT
Abundant Life Community Church Abundant Life Church @LifeALCC
@abundantlife_london
Abundant Life Community Church – London