What a great storm! Winter delayed its arrival only to come in with a loud – I’M HERE! We’ve had fun as a family ‘weathering’ through long power outages and shoveling our way out to the road. Hot chocolate, board games and cooking dinner in the dark while trying to stay warm. I did make it out to the church Tuesday before the storm hit and again on Friday after the roads were a little more clear of ice.

Speaking of ice and church, we had the front parking lot and driveway of the church cleared of snow on Thursday. So with the rain and warmer temps clearing away most of the rest of the snow getting to church service tomorrow is safe and easy. It will be great to all be together in worship, the Word and fellowship see you all there – 10:00am

“O LORD, our LORD, how excellent is YOUR Name in all the earth, YOU who set YOUR glory above the heavens!”         Psalm 8:1

What an awesomely wonderful KING we serve – see you tomorrow,

PS

The Lord prosper you, bless you and keep you so that you have your best year ever!

And the Spirit and the bride say, “Come!” And let him who hears say, “Come!” And let him who thirsts come. And whoever desires, let him take the water of life freely.

And HE who testifies to these things says, “Surely I am coming quickly.” Amen. Even so, come LORD JESUS!

The grace of our LORD JESUS CHRIST be with you all. Amen.                                                                                                                                                                         Rev.22:17, 20-21

Joy to the world the Savior has come. Peace on earth JESUS has paid for all our sins reconciling our broken relationship with our Creator, the Father of all. Hope for all who believe in the One and only Savior who is coming again to reign forever. Love given, love expressed, love experienced in JESUS CHRIST!

JESUS, GOD’S Gift of Love to you!

I love “Thanksgiving”, the day is one of my favorite days of the entire year. I enjoy our family gathering, I enjoy the food, I enjoy everything about it! I especially revel in the joy of knowing that at least on this one day in our nation many people are stopping to give thanks to GOD, who otherwise may not. Our nation is in turmoil, many are struggling financially with the future not offering a brighter day. Yet it is always right and good to give thanksgiving to our GOD for all HE has done.

Thank YOU FATHER GOD for the very breath of life, for the privilege of living, for the awesome wonder and joy of knowing YOU through YOUR SON, my Savior, JESUS CHRIST! Thank YOU for granting me a family, thank YOU for my church family and thank YOU for never leaving us nor forsaking us! Thank YOU that YOU do not change, YOU are the same yesterday, today and forever, Malachi 3:6; Hebrews 13:8. Thank YOU for all YOU provide, for every spiritual blessing, for every earthly blessing and for sustaining my life from day to day with the security of knowing I will spend an eternity with YOU and all who love YOU! Thank YOU for YOUR amazing grace sufficient of all of my needs – THANK YOU!!!

I could go on and on how about you?

PRAISE the LORD and Happy Thanksgiving!!!!

PS

What a great and fun event Trunk-r-Treat was this past Monday evening. It was a great turnout and every one had alot fun and a whole lot of candy. Some of us got a little wet – can we say drenched under a makeshift platform with a toilet resting on top from which the ice-cold water was flushed out onto whoever was sitting underneath. I still shiver just thinking about it and wonder where in the ‘pastors job description’ is the paragraph about sitting under a toilet.

It was so much fun watching all the kiddos have a blast in the big blow-up bus (thank you Central Park Neighborhood Church for letting us use it!); shooting hoops, trying to win a goldfish and all the other activities going on. Of course the candy was the feature of the night and everyone who loaned their vehichle trunk did a great job making it fun for all – great decorating you all!

Most impressive was the huge number of people who gave of their time and talent to make this so successful – over 40 adults and about 20 students – awesome, so thankful to be in this church family with such incredibly giving and talented people who care for others as they share the love of Jesus with all. You are the best!

Special thanks to Pastor Pat and Hope who lead the way, making all of this possible. I am so grateful for the two of you and am really blessed to be serving with you.

PS

Looking forward to tomorrow as our youth group will be leading our entire celebration service. Greeting, ushering, hosting and facilitating our worship, the youth of our church family will be doing it all. It is going to be a great time in the Lord!

Looking forward to seeing you all there and to experiencing fellowship in the presence of our Lord Jesus Christ!

PS

Remember tomorrow evening beginning at 6:30pm in the GHFC sanctuary we will be encouraging, honoring and praying for Kaj and Janell Martin as we send them out to serve Living Way Church in Seattle. Of course we will doing a small amount of ‘roasting’ as well – any one feel like cutting a tie off of a certain someone? How about we men wear a sweater, especially if you have a sweater vest (Idon’t)!

It is going to be a very fun and encouraging evening for all. We will have childcare up to age 5.

May I encourage you to write a word of encouragement or if the Lord has given you a ‘word’ for them to write it and give it to them during the service. We will have a time for sharing so you will be able to speak those words to them. We will be recording the entire evening as well and giving the CD to the Martins.

The LORD is good and HE has great things planned for the Martin family, the church they will be pastoring and for all of us at GHFC – praise the LORD! HIS will is unfolding for us all as we continue to partner with HIM in all things and in every way. What an exciting adventure we are on, an adventure with great benefits and all to the glory of the awesome, wonderful GOD we serve.

Look forward to seeing you tomorrow morning at 10am and tomorrow evening at 6:30pm.

Love you,

PS

Warmest greetings to you with every blessing from our Lord Jesus Christ, you are greatly appreciated and loved.

The Lord is building His Church

This letter comes your way as a means of informing you of a decision, a decision by one of our pastoral staff, Kaj and Janell Martin, to follow the Lord to a new assignment. May I encourage you to read this letter in its entirety as it is intended to assist you to both know and to understand how and why this decision has been made. Thank you in advance for your time in doing so.
First I want to encourage you, this is a God decision, not a man decision. Also, please know it is not Foursquare policy to tell someone they must go from one place to another but rather Foursquare policy is to assist all to hear the Lord and follow His leading.
This pastoral transition began with a call to me from our District Supervisor, Dave Veach. Dave informed me of a need in the historic Foursquare Church in Seattle. The church had been vibrant for many years but over the last several years had declined both in attendance and in influence in its community and was presently without a pastor. Dave explained to me that through a prayerful process of seeking the Lord for who He was calling to pastor this church Kaj and Janell kept coming to mind and thus the call to me. Dave wanted to know if I would allow him to talk to Kaj and Janell about becoming the pastors of Living Way Church in Seattle. My initial thought was no, Kaj and Janell are too vital to our team and church family. This was a very unexpected call. Kaj and Janell were not looking for another assignment and we certainly were not looking to send them elsewhere. Dave asked me to take a week to pray and consider whether or not he should approach the Martins. It was during this time I knew I had to say yes. I love Kaj and Janell, I love working with them and do not want them to ‘go’ but ultimately that is not my decision to make for them. After a week of prayerful consideration I knew in my heart I must allow Kaj and Janell the opportunity to seek the Lord and to hear directly from Him if this was just an opportunity or His open door for them. I also knew that if this was the plan of man it would come to nothing but if it was God’s plan no one can stop it, Acts 5:38-39. After much prayer, discussion, fact-finding and more prayer it became clear to Kaj and to Janell that the Lord was asking them to go. In seeking to assist them in this process I did my best to talk them out of it knowing that if I could, then it was not the Lord. All of this was done through prayer, tears and all the emotion that comes with a sudden change in plan. We had to acknowledge this is God’s doing so there is no alternative but to obey Him.
Living Way is a church family numbering 38 people, including 22 college students, in need of a pastor, the kingdom of God must be expanded and Father God is calling us to release His servants to fill the need. Our ‘word’ for the year is ‘GO, I AM with you’, how could we then say, “don’t go”. It is not my plan, it is not what I desired and it is not what I thought would happen but then I am not God – aren’t you glad! God is building His Church in His way and in His timing. As I have been in prayer I have been giving thanks to our heavenly Father for working His will in all of us even when the full measure of what He is doing is yet to unfold before us. I know, as you know that our God is love and all His decisions are motivated out of His love for all. He is all wise and all knowing and would not ask this of the Martins or of us
without a very specific purpose and plan for all concerned. We must follow Him, yielding to His will with faith, while in hope patiently allowing all He intends through this transition to unfold. He knows how to build His Church.
So after much prayer it is with heart filled confidence, trust and hope in our Lord that I announce our sending out Pastor’s Kaj and Janell Martin to follow the Lord to His new assignment to pastor Living Way Church. They will be just as great a blessing to another church family as they have been to us. Will we miss them, absolutely! Can we cheer them on, pray for them and support them in going according to His will, we must! There last official Sunday will be October 9th and we will give them a BIG send off that same evening. Although they will begin pastoring in Seattle soon after
their last Sunday here, moving their family and household to Seattle won’t take place until mid-December.
Please be in prayer for them and know that when we send out our best we can expect God’s abundant provision and blessing for us. Father God is doing and will continue to do great things in us and through us.

Thank you for your prayerful consideration of this announcement. This coming Sunday, October 2nd, pastor Kaj and I will be sharing during our celebration service. Should you want talk to us prior to Sunday please call us or stop by the
church office. We know this announcement will be a shock to many in our church family, just as it was to us, so please let us assist you in accepting what the Lord is doing – it is a good, God thing!

Yours in prayer,
Pastor Steve Purdue

This past Wednesday night I had the privilege of being part of a great gathering. Our youth group hosted an evening of worship and prayer to kick off the beginning of the new school year. I was so impressed with the leadership team of Pat and Hope Farmer, what a gift they are to our church family. As the students were encouraged to go after Father God in worship and prayer they pressed in all at their own pace, but with heightened desire to seek Him and to know His answers to prayer. We ended with the students gathering around all the adults in attendance, laying hands on us one at a time and praying over us – that’s when the prayer really came alive! It was a great to hear the hearts of the students as they expressed their love for God and their appreciation for all us.

The Lord is good! Tomorrow marks the 10th anniversary of 9-11 when our nation was so brutally attacked by Islamic terriorists. As we remember that day and reflect on its effects on us and the world around us ten years latter – let’s keep our minds fixed on our Father God so that our hearts may be settled to continue to obey Him in loving Him with our all and our neightbor as ourselves, no matter who our neighbor may be.

Tomorrow evening beginning at 6pm at Stewart Field in Aberdeen, we will be gathering with the rest of our Grays Harbor Community to remember and reflect on 9-11-2001 while we make ready for whatever lies ahead. It will prove to be a very inspirational time. A pre-event concert will begin at 5:45pm so come early and enjoy the inspirational yet contemporary music provided by our local National Guard. See you there!

PS

Summer missions and summer camps are proving to be extremely fruitful. Thank YOU JESUS for all YOU are doing and are continuing to do.

The Yakima Mission’s Team returned Thursday afternoon full of joy and great reports of their spiritual lives being strengthened. People were served, loved and ministered to through a variety of activities – hanging drywall, playing catch with a football, enjoying games with the children – being the hands, the mouth and the heart of JESUS to all. We’ll hear a testimonial report tomorrow morning from one young lady eager to share her experience from the trip.

12 of our youth attended the high school camp at King’s Way Camp in Sequim this week. I have only heard a couple of reports through the week but each gave statements of GOD doing great things in every student who attended. I can hardly wait until tomorrow morning when we will also hear a testimony from one who attended the camp and was wonderfully met by the LORD there.

The Lord’s Pantry was open this past Thursday ministering to about 60 people. Our volunteers were (are) incredible, wonderful, loving people, servants of King JESUS giving freely of themselves to HIS glory. It was so encouraging to me to see those coming for food being ministered to in prayer, in the sharing of the gospel and in the expressing of care and concern for each of them. Thank’s to each of you who gave your time, energy and love to make the Lord’s Pantry a ‘house of GOD’. I appreciate and love each of you!

Praise the LORD! HIS Word to us for this year continues to unfold and be fulfilled in us and through us. May the HOLY SPIRIT continue to anoint, lead and encourage each of us to:

GO – I AM with you!

Matthew 28:18-20

Blessings,

PS