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Letters Archive: November 2003 Back to our Homepage Dear Loving Church Family, Everyone had lots of fun at the Harvest Carnival. Families have reported that they are so thankful for the wonderful ministry to children provided by First Assembly. Parents appreciate the large number of children’s videos and other resources that can be borrowed from the Church Library. We commend parents for regularly visiting the library and picking up books and videos that teach Godly values to their children. Also, we commend parents for consistently bringing your children to church on Sundays and Wednesdays. There is a noticeable difference in the behavior of children whose parents bring them to Kids Time every week and the children whose parents do not place a high priority on church attendance. Parents, please think ahead to your child’s teenage years. You will be so glad you obeyed God’s command to “train up a child in the way they should go and when they are old, they will not depart from it.” The opportunity for training is greatest when your children are young. When their childhood years are gone, your opportunity to influence your child’s spiritual life is greatly diminished. God has given parents the responsibility for shaping the destiny of their children. As a Church Family, we are providing the very best for our children and you will reap huge benefits if you do your part as a parent to set an example of regular church attendance for your children. Your actions are communicating a clear message to your children as to whether God is first in your own life and they will follow your example. Blessings on you Grandparents who are putting forth an effort to bring your grandchildren to church whenever parents fail to fulfill their responsibility. God will reward you! Randal and the Cleansing Retreat ministry team returned from Cabot, Arkansas, where God manifested His presence in a strong way. On Saturday morning, just before lunch, there was a sovereign move of God that touched each person there. Elroy Rhodes said that he hadn’t experienced such a supernatural move of God since we led the first Retreat at Brownsville Assembly. We recall that special Saturday night service at Brownsville when worship continued for over an hour. They called it “Glory in the Dark” because the lights were lowered as everyone had their eyes fixed on God. We saw a blue mist fill the sanctuary and God poured out His love bringing restoration and healing to every heart. The team had this same experience in Cabot as they returned there for the 4th time to lead a Retreat. The anointing on the Cleansing ministry is increasing. Please keep Randal and the ministry team in prayer as they minister this month at Retreats in Lowellville, Ohio; Modesto, California; and Tostedt, Germany. The Saginaw Retreat will be December 5th & 6th. If you are qualified for Retreat Ministry, please turn in a Retreat Application and write “Ministry Team” at the top. If you have never attended a Retreat, please plan to attend as a participant. Beginning this week, Randal will be taping new videos for the Cleansing Ministry called "A Better Life Course". God has led us to make this change in order to reach a wider sector of the population. As we pray "The Prayer of Jabez", our territory is being enlarged. With the German version expanding into Europe, new faith is being required to meet the challenge of these opportunities. At Monday night Prayer Meeting, a prophetic word admonished us to "use our faith so it would grow." Please come and be a part of these "live video taping sessions." Randal needs you there to pray and to provide the classroom setting. People will be seated at round tables as Randal teaches; using the same setting as we use in a regular class. Please attend if possible. Either way, you can be praying for Randal on these dates scheduled for the 7 p.m. taping sessions: Tuesday, Nov. 4th; Thursday, November 6th; Tuesday, November 11th; and Tuesday, November 18th. The world’s population is now more than 6,314,000,000. Nearly 53,931,000 people die each year – most likely half never have heard of Christ. Our missions ministries reach around the world through our Church Family giving financially. We have observed a down-turn in giving toward missions this year. I urge you to consider the destiny of the lost. We can make a difference in where people spend eternity. Let’s press in and pray for the lost and invest in missions. The Clothed With Love and Total Life Center Ministries are reaching over 1,000 people for Christ every year by meeting the physical needs of people and sharing the gospel with them. With cold weather comes requests for blankets and warm clothes, especially socks. We have found a source for blankets on the web and are purchasing them for $3.80 per blanket. “Jetta’s Blanket Fund” is a wonderful place to sow seeds. You know the power of sowing seeds to meet your needs. Jetta suggests that you buy blankets for the needy and make it a seed offering, believing God to provide you with lower heating bills this winter. Jesus told us that if we give to the poor we will never lack in our own lives. His Word is true. Also, thank you for helping us take advantage of the sale on canned vegetables at Meijers. We spent $500 and the sales receipt showed that we saved $1,531.25. We’ve been asking God to stretch our food money for TLC and CWL. What an answer to prayer! Many healings continue to take place in our church services at First Assembly. On October 12th as Randal ministered, numerous people were healed. Mary Kubik had back pain for over two years and was on medication. God healed her and she’s had no back pain for over three weeks. Jackie Kirk (age 2) had picked up Nikki’s, (her mother’s) hot curling iron as she was getting ready for church. The palm of her hand was burned with blisters rising. Nikki pondered whether to take Jackie to Redi-Med, or to go ahead and come to church. They decided to come to church and believe God to heal her. During the service, Randal was giving Words of Knowledge about healings that God was performing. He spoke about someone’s hand and continued to describe the condition that matched Jackie’s burned, blistered palm. Nikki said that Jackie looked up at her and said, “All better”. God had healed her hand and she had no more pain. During that same Sunday morning service of Oct. 12th, Betty Marialke was healed of asthma. She had been unable to breathe at times and wondered if she was going to survive these attacks. Since God touched her that Sunday morning, she’s been able to breathe normally and hasn’t needed her “inhaler”. Jasmine Kirk (age 6) was hospitalized with a bad virus and doctors were unable to find treatment and medicine that would clear up her problem. God touched her and every morning she has been waking up saying, “I feel great!” They know Jesus healed her. She was singing in the Children’s Choir at the Harvest Carnival and her energetic praise was evidence of her healing. Ruth Huerta shared a miracle of provision as she went to minister in Cabot, Arkansas. After paying for her airline ticket, she only had $10 to buy food during the weekend. She didn’t tell anyone about her lack of funds. A family in the Cabot church hosted Ruth and Ramona Ortega and Katherine Munoz, allowing them to stay in a trailer that is kept as a temporary home for missionaries and evangelists. They also gave each of the women $40 for food and provided a car for them to drive. Ruth and Ramona and Katherine said they felt God’s love so strongly in that trailer and from their host family, who also had them over for dinner on Saturday night following the Retreat. Through the love shown by our ministry team, an aunt of the hostess came to Christ and 18 people were baptized in water during the Sunday morning service in Cabot. Our new web site, www.firstassemblysaginaw.org, is up and running with over 100 pages of content. Regular updates will be made and current announcements posted. Pictures from the Harvest Carnival can be seen soone. Look for our precious children in their costumes and pictures from the “Human Video” performed by the Youth. You can see your Pastor and wife as a “Cowboy and a Korean Missionary.” These monthly letters will be available under the heading of “Shepherd’s Voice.” We are so grateful to our son-in-law, Timothy, who provided this wonderful web site for the Church Family. Joyfully Serving the Master and His People, Pastor Fred and Jetta Smolchuck |
View the Pastor's
• July 2007 •
Meet Pastor Fred Words to Live By • Daily Bible Reading Guide • Better Life Course by Randal Smolchuck |
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