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Pastor Ken
Friday, August 01, 2008 5:53 PM
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Greetings Family of God,
As I write you this month, I cannot remove from my thinking all that is transpiring in our world around us: the economy, the upcoming elections and so many world situations, that we all face so closely, as we truly live in a world with a global view. It seems as if, looking from the natural view, that dramatic changes could come upon us quickly, bringing about a very different life than the one we presently live. I don’t ever want to be an alarmist, but the possibility of such changes are not something we can ignore any longer. We cannot continue to go about “our” business as usual. We must begin to answer the call of God to engage in His purpose to redirect the direction humanity is heading.
1 Timothy 2:1-3 states I exhort therefore, that, “first of all,” supplications, prayers, intercession, and giving of thanks, be made for all men; for kings and for all that are in authority; that we may lead a quiet and peaceable life in all godliness and honesty. For this is good and acceptable in the sight of God our Savior.
Notice with me, that Paul, our brother, exhorts us. In other words, he is attempting to draw us closer to God through a strong challenge, then he brings us a great truth for us to live in peace and the security of a quiet life, we must First pray for those leading us in the natural world. Prayer, supplication and intercession, and giving of thanks must be consistently made. If not, Satan will gain a stronghold over those “kings” and authorities.
As many of you may be aware, God has challenged me to a deeper life of prayer. I am seeking the Lord for our state, our nation, our families and our church, every night between 7 – 9 p.m., here at the prayer room. Please consider joining me. Our prayer times have grown and are really experiencing the presence of the Lord. Now more than ever we need to “seek” the Lord our God in prayer. As Paul wrote, so I write, for this is good and acceptable in the sight of God our Savior.
In other words, brethren, the Lord is watching!
Keep the faith, watch closely for the Lord, and love one another.
Pastors Ken & Tonja
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Pastor Ken
Tuesday, July 01, 2008 5:51 PM
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Dear Family of God,
Greetings my friends and beloved in Christ. I pray that grace will be multiplied to you in this new season we have just entered. God is always present to give us His peace and wisdom as we draw near to Him. As I write this month, I think of the admonition found in James 5: 7-9 “Therefore be patient, brethren, until the coming of the Lord. See how the farmer waits for the precious fruit of the earth, waiting patiently for it until it receives the early and latter rain. You also be patient. Establish your hearts, for the coming of the Lord is at hand. Don’t grumble against one another, brethren lest you be condemned. Behold, the Judge is standing at the door!” Patience is such a powerful tool we can use to overcome a lack of trust. The farmer may not be able to fully explain why the plant grows and brings forth the harvest, but he is certain it will. This certainly is based upon God’s purposes and His faithfulness to OVERSEE His purpose. You, my friend, are God’s child, stamped for His purpose. Early rain and latter rain will water our lives appropriately to bring forth the “fruit” God deserves. Remember, we did not create the purpose, He did, and since it is His purpose we can count on Him to bring it to full harvest! When we establish our hearts we are saying and living in the ways of the Lord, walking with Him as Adam did in the garden when he walked with God’s voice leading him along.
Our times together in the Lord’s presence have been amazing. Let us keep pressing as Paul did to know the Lord!
Have a blessed and safe summer.
We love you,
Ken & Tonja
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Pastor Ken
Sunday, June 01, 2008 5:46 PM
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Hello Family of God!
As summer approaches, so does the excitement of the season changing, bringing us warmer, (or should I say, hot!) weather, BBQ’s, swimming, beach trips and vacation plans beginning to take form. What a blessing to be free people in a country of such opportunity. God has truly blessed America!
Tonja and I want to thank you for your ongoing commitment to The Gathering and a special thank you to all the wonderful families that participated in the Missions’ Sunday celebration. What a terrific day! Great food, amazing fellowship and heat that could fry an egg on the sidewalk - we are so grateful for the cool weather upon us once again. You know, a lot has changed in our lives in just nearly one year. We have become a unified body of believers who really love each other and are growing in the likeness of our Lord Jesus Christ. Think with me… we are all learning to really pray and see God do amazing things for us all, we are meeting as life groups building families and singles into the body of Christ, we are seeing God revive our youth and send them His fire, our children are ministering to the Lord through worship and arts, our senior believers are more alive and pressing God for the kingdom to manifest now! We have so much to be thankful for and we are just beginning to witness what God has planned for each of us.
We all will be astounded by the great works of the Lord that are coming to us! Take courage; be strong in the Lord and in the power of His might, for such a time as this has God brought us to His kingdom. Great exploits and mighty miracles will we witness, as His glorious presence becomes our only desire.
God’s glory is what He wants us to not only experience, but to live in. Keep releasing your faith in the greatness of our God, because this is His time to show off His power and love for His people!
Your Servants,
Ken & Tonja
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Pastor Ken
Thursday, May 01, 2008 5:43 PM
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Dear Family of God,
As I write to you this month, the words of the Apostle Paul in his letter to Philemon resound in my heart towards you all…”I thank my God, making mention of you always in my prayers, hearing of your love and faith which you have toward the Lord Jesus and toward all the saints, that the sharing of your faith may become effective by the acknowledgment of every good thing which is in you in Christ Jesus.”
Like Paul, I thank my God for the many reports of your love and faith being demonstrated to so many in and out of the family of God. I consistently hear how you all are touching lives with God’s love and so many people receiving God’s healing touch upon their lives because of your faith in operation. For a shepherd to hear these reports so often brings confirmation not only of God’s purpose, but His presence working through His people in The Gathering as well! Yippee! I know this may not be a contemporary term any longer but I will shout it regardless. Please remember that the sharing of our faith becomes effective by acknowledging every good thing which God has given to us through Jesus Christ.
I dare ask you family, what awesome things have been given to us? What things can we share about to so many in need? We have peace, love and joy. We have families that truly love each other and mutually pour into our lives the very substance of God. Every week we meet in the spirit of unity and experience the power of God that is really transforming our lives. And we are beginning to look a lot like Jesus around here. Think with me for a moment…how have we changed in the past few years? We have become a place known for its tangible love! A place known to help people find their way! A place known where people can find God’s acceptance, and be placed into a real family! A place known for the mighty presence and power of God to heal and deliver us of strongholds! A place known for God’s ability to help single parents find His provision! A place known for family restoration!
Let’s keep utilizing all God has entrusted to us to share our faith effectively. We have so many lost around us just looking to find someone who can fill their need with Jesus’ love and acceptance. Let’s be the one God uses to save the lost and fill His house with His children from afar!
Be strong in the Lord and the power of His might! Be encouraged in your faith, for God is able to do exceedingly abundantly above all you can ask or imagine!
We love you and appreciate each and every one of you!
Pastors Ken & Tonja
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Pastor Ken
Tuesday, April 01, 2008 4:29 PM
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Dear Family of God, The Lord is so good and His failthfulness is incredible! As you may know we are now well on the way to paying off all debt on our new church home. So many have given testimony of how God has been bringing in expected finances, showing us His great ability and we must boast on the Lord for His awesome power over the economy! Don’t lose hope, be like Isaac and sow in the midst of famine; God can only reward your faithfulness to His purpose and when we do so He is truly pleased with our faith. Family, we are in a time of experiencing the unity of the spirit, our hearts are being knitted together in true Christian fellowship and we are certainly growing in the love of the brethren. I am so pleased with your growth and the maturity that you have been walking in these last six months! Think with me; just six months ago God birthed The Gathering @ Corona, and look how far He has brought us. We have endured much hardship as good soldiers, our eenmies have been vicious and unrelenting in their pursuit of the righteous and we in turn have beome more like our Lord Jesus because of our enemies! Even the devil works for us according to God’s unchangeble plans. Truly He is giving us passion for His purpose, provision for His plan and wisdom for His ways! This is our season and guess what? It will not end, but only grow stronger and more fruitful as we press into seeking our God with all our hearts. Be strong in the Lord and in the power of his might! May the Lord bless you and keep you and cause His face to shine upon you. We love you so much and will never stop praying for you. Pastors Ken & Tonja
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