Get Ready For Sunday

Hi everyone, I wanted to share my heart before this Sunday. I love Spring and I love the turning of new seasons. There is always something to learn from change and transition. Spring means new life, new hope and the story of Easter, and more light! I love lighter evenings and the opportunity to get outside more.

Spring is also a season for planting. Obviously I am not a gardener or a farmer but I do know that much.

As you know, I have been teaching and preaching a lot about the importance of alignment and fighting for our destiny as individuals and as a church family. I actually believe that when we align ourselves to a ‘house’ that God connects our destiny to that house. Alignment with the Lordship of Jesus means alignment with his body and the expression of his body through the local church. (Psalm 92:12/13) “Those who are planted in the house will flourish”.

I believe that we are entering a new season of growth and momentum. We are seeing more people respond to Christ, the presence of God in our services is increasing and there is a greater passion and expectancy in us as a people.

This Sunday is the official start of Spring, when we ‘lose’ an hour of sleep but we move into a natural season of more light! As a church we have called it a day to ‘spring forward’ into a new season for you and your family and for us as a church.

This Sunday we will plant some ‘seed’ into our future as a church, we will pray and declare God’s promises over us as a church family and we will stand in faith with you to see growth and increase.

Growth can’t happen without sowing. Faith is our journey, Faith is our history, but historic faith is not enough we must have living faith. (The Bible says in Hebrews ‘The just shall live by their faith’)

So I am asking you to prepare your hearts for this weekend.

• pray for the weekend services, for growth and increased momentum and for salvations in the house of God
• Be intentional about who you can bring. We are seeing people respond at all our services on Sunday’s at the moment. We want that to continue and be ‘normal’
• Ask God what you will give into our ‘spring forward offering’. We want to line up together and see the scales ‘tip’ in our favour
• Remember we will be giving a portion of our offering into Hope City Church Frankfurt as a seed into the Nation of Germany and because we believe in the vision of Siobhan and Steve Bullock in Frankfurt and Hope City Pastors Dave and Jenny Gilpin
• Be expectant and come early to the Services. I know we have technically ‘lost’ an hour, but when we start strong with a sense of expectancy and faith and we are all together it is so powerful! You may need an extra shot in your coffee but its worth it!
• Come with the things that you are believing for. We want to stand together and believe with you as our church family, to see a new season of growth and change for you.

We love you and can’t wait for Sunday .

John and Lisa

Please also pray for Lisa and I as we are travelling to Shropshire on Friday / Saturday to be with Ps Daryl Williams at Riverside Church Burton-on-Trent (part of the GBC family). We will be travelling back on Saturday night so I will definitely need a coffee on Sunday am!!

Influence 2012…Your Stories

INFLUENCE 2012 has come and gone. What an incredible time. Here are some of the thoughts that were spoken over the weekend…

1. Jesus never allowed his emotional life to dominate His spiritual life

2. Jesus was about doing good not feeling good

3. How you are feeling is not changing how heaven is listening

4. Celebrate the disciplined ones that just get on with the Christian walk, not just the wild ones that see incredible change

5. We are called to make disciples not Christians

6. We will mess up but mercy disarms the executioner

7. Destiny is a quilt not a patch

8. Heaven may be silent but it’s not deaf

9. It’s okay when you don’t know. Don’t try and force it, just stay there until

10. God will winnow your life. He will throw it up into the air, blow his breath through it and clear away some habits, some people, some chaff. Just let him do it.

11. Don’t go back to what you know but step out in faith, that’s what activates and pleases God

12. Church is a place full of ideas

13. It’s not what we have but what we do with what we have

Would love to hear what you thought. How have you been challenged? What if anything might you do differently from now? Leave your thoughts in the box below…

Your Xcel 2011 Highlight

Thought it might be fun for you to share your Xcel highlights with us – include photos in your comments too. Here’s a list of just some of the things we have done this year….

• Influence 2011 – our first ever Church Conference in the Xcel Centre
• Christmas Production 2011
• Summerfest with PK
• Servolution – including the incredible Family Fun Day
• Church on the Green
• Volunteer Party
• Xcel Mens Getaway
• Rock Nations / Kids Camp
• Visiting preachers – Dave Gilpin, Clive Urquhart, Jane Evans, Ian Green, Chris Denham, Steve & Rachel Mawston, Magnus Persson, Philip Cameron & team
• Preaching series – ‘Faith, Hope & Love’, ‘I AM XCEL’, ‘Pioneer’, ‘Time, Talent & Treasure’ (including the pie video), ‘WHAT?’

Or maybe for you it was something else, something less dramatic but just as significant. This is a call out to all of the Xcel family to upload those pics, share some thoughts & let’s see how 2011 has had an impact.

Xcel.Vision.Me.Stacy

How’s Your Eyesight?

In Matt 6 v 22-23, Jesus said that if our eyes are good, our whole body will be full of light and if we are to be the light of the world, then how important is our eyesight? Of course I’m not talking about our natural eyesight… I’m referring to our ‘spiritual eyesight’.

I don’t know about you but I quite like to watch people I don’t know. I find them fascinating. I often observe and wonder about their lives… are they happy or depressed, wealthy or in masses of debt, healthy or ill, abused or the abuser, a friend of God or not? We cannot always tell from outward appearances can we? Whatever life these people have, the fact remains…they need Jesus. They need to be reconciled back to their Heavenly Father and live as they were created to live. They were not created to be ripped off by this world.

In the world we live in it is so easy to become wrapped up in the busyness of our own lives but I believe God wants us to truly value our eyesight and use it as intended. Let’s not walk around with eyes closed. I believe God wants us to live like this individually but also corporately as His church… as part of His global church that means us too, Xcel church. I believe God wants us to see as He sees, with Compassion and of course Compassion causes us to act.

Therefore, I am so thrilled that we ARE a church that has eyes open and in turn ARE meeting needs locally and globally. We ARE being the light of the world, but let us purpose in our hearts to do so more and more. People are depending on us for life now and in eternity. It’s time to shine!

[Stacy is part of the Pastoral Team at Xcel Church, as well as being a Connect Group leader. She is married to Richie and they have 2 boys]

Xcel.Vision.Me.Joshua

Sometimes it’s hard to see the bigger picture and in amongst all that life can throw your way, you can find yourself struggling to see God’s plans and purposes for your life.

I’ve grown up in Xcel Church and decided from a young age that the heart beat and DNA of the church family was very similar to my own personal values. Something just feels right about the culture and atmosphere within the church, the constant stories of answered prayers and the exciting journey that God is taking us on, undoubtedly demonstrates to me, that God is moving in and through Xcel church.

When I was 18 I decided to take a year out and volunteer within the church and seriously, it was one of the best years of my life. Getting planted and involved in Xcel has set me up for the rest of my life. Following that year I went to University to study social work during which I met my now wife. We have decided as a couple that we don’t want to miss out on what God is doing and that Xcel Church is worth travelling to from Sunderland every week.

I’ve been involved in worship team, youth ministry, connect groups and various other aspects of church life and they have all helped to bring my own life in line with the promises of God. I’m happily married, both my wife and I are in full time employment and my whole life is evidence of the Xcel vision statement ‘to create a faith-filled environment and transform lives’.

I can only encourage you, that if you don’t know what God’s plans are for your life, to get involved, start serving in the House of God and get planted in the House, it will cause you to flourish.

[Joshua Barr has a heart to serve. He is a worship leader, Connect Group leader and part of the Planet Youth Leadership team. He & his wife, Faith, are passionate about reaching people, connecting people to God and building His house in any way they can]

How To Reach People…

Here are some great thoughts about becoming more missional-minded. Maybe it’s easier than we thought.

Could you add any more ideas to this list?

What are your experiences & challenges in reaching out to the people in your world?

Don’t forget that Xcel Church will be giving out invite cards this Saturday – meet at Jacksons Coffeehouse at 10am. Plus you can get involved with Xcel Local, the community projects that are going on. Fill in a volunteer application to join the team

Xcel. Vision & Me, Julie.

‘Without a vision the people perish’. ‘Those planted in the House of God will flourish’.

Both of these scriptures have been relevant and directional to me on my daily walk with God. I have been attending Xcel Church for almost 30 years now and I love God, love people and love my church. I love serving in Gods House as it gives me an opportunity to be a part of the Xcel vision. As David wrote in the Psalms ‘I would rather be a doorkeeper in the House of the Lord…than be anywhere else’. By aligning my vision with that of Xcel Church, I believe I am blessed and that my life is flourishing.

It’s not always easy fulfilling the vision but I know it’s for a great and bigger cause. It is definately rewarding when someone thanks you for going that extra mile and putting that one person before yourself. When you are passionate about something you invest your time in to it and that’s why every Sunday 10.30am & 6pm you will find me and my family at Xcel Church – living our dream, making a difference and living for the cause.

[Julie Sutherland is part of Xcel Church. Along with her husband Tim, she is a CG leader, as well as a Connect Team leader on a Sunday helping people feel welcome. Check out our website for more information on how you can become a part of Xcel Church]

Life in the Fast Lane

We are building up to our ‘miracle’ vision Sunday.

Next week from Wednesday 21st until Friday 23rd I am calling us as a church to fast and pray. The difference between a ‘fast’ and a ‘diet’ is that the time we would normally take to prepare and eat food, we use to pray and read the Bible.

The benefits of fasting…

1. Denies our natural desires
2. Helps us tune into the Holy Spirit
3. It’s good for our bodies to take a rest
4. It changes us and shows God that we mean business!
5. We are doing something together which promotes unity and a faith-filled environment.

Fasting does not twist God’s arm. We are not ‘persuading God to do things’ but we are becoming more in step with God and His voice.

There is a definite link between fasting and praying and the power of God’s Kingdom being released. When the disciples couldn’t cast out a demon when Jesus was on the earth, Jesus said “This kind can come out by nothing but prayer and fasting”. [Mark 9:29] 

We don’t have to fast completely from food and water. Some may wish to do a partial fast, to do a Daniel type fast (vegetables only) or to fast the internet, tv or sweet things. The key is that we all do something and we take in whatever we choose to do (be aware of medical conditions that mena you are unable to fast from food). However, in most cases we can miss a few meals.

Save a bit of money and time, and pray into our vision Sunday. Have a fantastic week and let us know the great things that God is doing.

Don’t forget that on Vision Sunday, as well as bringing our vision offering, we will be presenting our prayers and faith goals for the coming year. We are standing with you as a team and believing to see God do the impossible.

See you in church.

John

[Pastor John Greenow is the Senior Pastor at Xcel Church]

Reaching People

Every church has its own expression.

Every church has it’s own unique calling, it’s own unique vision.

Every church is playing its part in the bigger Kingdom cause. Everything we do is about Jesus and about reaching people. There is nothing better than seeing people become Christians. It truly is the greatest miracle.

Have a read of a familiar story that Jesus told, then take a moment to reflect – who is my neighbour, how available am I really making myself to reach them, help them, how willing am I to be inconvenienced for the cause?

The Xcel Vision is ‘to create a community that loves people and is passionate about reaching their world, and the world’. This is not just a challenging thought but undoubtedly a challenge to fulfill as well. As part of the our Miracle Sunday on the 25th of this month, we want to stand with every individual from Xcel Church, believing for breakthroughs in your own world. Maybe part of that is seeing some people that you know & love giving their lives to Jesus.

Leave a comment giving us their first name only & we will start to pray for them, that God will begin to move on their heart, that opportunity will open up for conversations, maybe even an invite to an event at church in the future, for you to lead them to the Lord.

Hold onto His word as you pray. Check out John 3:16 & 2 Peter 3:9

The Xcel Vision

Our vision statement is incredible. It is packed full of intent, full of purpose and full of possibility. To see it fulfilled takes each of one of us playing our part. We would challenge you this month as we unpack the statements and spend time highlighting some aspects of what our focus will be during the next 12 months to ask yourself a question – how am I contributing to the accomplishment of the vision?

Vision inspires. Vision motivates. Vision excites. 

It requires some action too. Edison said that genius is 1% inspiration and 99% perspiration. Our vision statement is the 1%. Our actions account for the 99%. Think of the difference we will make as we pool our resources, give in faith and work hard. Lives will be transformed. Your life can be transformed. God will be made famous in our region.

VISION IDEA: Pray into vision month and the next 12 months for Xcel Church.