News & Views May 5

MAY MEMORY VERSE
No, O people, the Lord has told you what is good, and this is what he requires of you:
to do what is right, to love mercy, and to walk humbly with your God.
Micah 6:8 NLT

MAY 9th WORSHIP
Connecting Point - 9:30 A.M. - Dining Hall
Grand re-opening continues
Worship  - 10:00 A.M. -  Family Center Gym and Online
NLC Kids - 10:00 A.M. - Rooms 101,103
Carlos Huerta, preaching  -  Music by Erica Vasquez, Al, Beth and Josh

"For God so loved the world..." begins one of the most quoted verses of the Bible--a favorite for many of us because it was key to understanding and accepting Jesus as God's Son and our Savior. We're glad to have received his gift of eternal life, and to devote ourselves to worshipping and serving him with gratitude every day of our lives.

"For God so loved the world..." is also an example to us. God's love for us--undeserving as we are--was the motivation for our salvation. In his love for us God reached out to us and gave us what we needed, even though it would mean his greatest sacrifice. When Jesus commanded us to love our neighbors as he loved us, he was simply calling us to live as partners with our loving God. "For God so loved the world..." means we are to love the world and reach it with the good news of salvation in Jesus.
 
I am learning to love Dinuba and its people. I need you to pray for me that my love for Dinuba and its people will grow. I pray that for you. It's easy to love our family and friends. Jesus knew that about us. By giving us his love he intends and even commands us to love beyond our family and friends as he does. He is making a new family through faith, and if we're to be his partners we'll need more and more of his love to motivate us to move toward those we don't already know and love.

Next Sunday morning, May 16th, I've invited Sandy Sills, CEO/President of the Dinuba Chamber of Commerce, to come to NLC. I've asked her to come because I admire her love for Dinuba. Sandy has been a strong Christian leader in our community for decades, and will be retiring from the chamber next month. Her replacement, Heathe Jones, will take her place and may join Sandy at NLC next Sunday, as well. I want to thank Sandy, listen to her heart, and join her in praying over Heathe as she will soon be taking over.

Last month Sandy took the initiative to bring City Advance director Sam Estes to Dinuba to pull together a task force aimed at transforming Dinuba. Sam is a Mennonite Brethren pastor who led Grace Community Church in Sanger. It was there that he led a similar task force to transform Sanger. And the results have been amazing! Sam now directs City Advance, a non-profit organization whose mission is to "connect, equip, engage and coach leaders with a vision for collaborative city movements to advance the gospel of the kingdom, resulting in measurable spiritual and societal change." Sandy Sills wants that for Dinuba. So does New Life Community!

NLC is hosting Dinuba's new community task force on June 10th. This will be the second meeting of the task force, which includes Dinuba's pastors and ministry leaders along with its civic, business, school, and professional leaders. Pray that God's love for Dinuba will become more and more evident in our willingness to collaborate with each other and to solve together some of the more challenging issues facing our community.

Think of the impact of God's love on your life. Consider the joy His love has brought you, and the freedom and power it has given to live for him, generously and without shame or fear. Reflect on the hope God's love has fostered within you that lifts your spirit to overcome obstacles and raises your eyes to see beyond suffering and even the grave itself! How could we not want such things for the people around us? These gifts of God's love were never meant to be contained and enjoyed by a few. They were meant, as was Jesus' forgiveness from the cross, for everyone.

As the song we've sung recently reminds us, "I will build my life upon your love, it is a firm foundation...Open up my eyes in wonder and show me who you are, and fill me with your heart and lead me In your love to those around me." (Matt Redman, et. al.)

Make Pray & Go your next step in loving Dinuba. It's an accessible ministry to begin moving your heart toward those around you. Here's how it works:

• Sign up for one day a month (or more often if you choose). Contact Nori Naylor or the church office.
• Walk your assigned streets while praying for each household. The map coordinator will let you know where to go.
• Leave a door-hanger on each door/step letting the household know they were prayed for. 
• Report back to the map coordinator with the streets you were able to walk and pray.

What happens next? Some households may respond by contacting the church to talk or for specific prayer. The Response Team will handle those contacts, pray over them, and connect them to ministries that will help and introduce them to Jesus.
What if you encounter someone on the street while you're praying? Smile. Introduce yourself. Offer to pray for them. Give them a door hanger.

New Life Community will have a prayer booth at Blessing of the Bikes this weekend.
Please contact Stan & Ann Isaac to sign up for a time to come and meet people,
and to pray for and encourage them.

Please claim your dishes!  Janet Warkentin will have a table by the south gym door on Sunday. Check if anything belongs to you and take it home.  Thanks! Unclaimed items may be donated to the Home Resource Center, so be sure and look over the table on May 9th and 16th.

Bruce Smith says Mother's Day roses can be picked up on the Women's Ministries cart in the Family Center. Thanks for participating with your contribution to Right to Life!

Dawnings Pregnancy Care Center's "Change For Life" fundraiser baby bottles are available on the Men's Ministries workbench in the Family Center.  Please sign the sheet on the clipboard when you take a bottle to fill and return by Father's Day, June 20th. Thank you!

Received Last Week (5/2):..........$6,253
Received this year to date: ...$327,855
Budget to Date: ………..…....... $344,447
Budget Goal: ………..……..........$521,591
Needed Weekly: ……..……......…$10,763

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COVID-19 precautions: Praise the Lord we may freely gather for worship!
As the coronavirus continues to mutate and spread, please maintain 6' of distance and wear a face covering on the church campus to protect yourself and others. Thank you.

Questions? Call 559-591-1176 or office@newlifedinuba.org