Mor'Easter! . . . (pictures)
"I know there is one out here somewhere!" One of our young ones, Sarah, during the egg hunt.
The Balocca's, Jittawaits, and Snograsses at breakfast.
Some more of our young people at the Easter breakfast. (left to right: Sam, Nate, Kaitlyn and Anna, Tatiana, and Will.)
Easter Morning Pic's
The breakfast Easter morning was a great success and a good time for all of us to get to know one another better. After our talk this weekend about: "hospitality", it only seems appropriate that we share some images of us "making space" for one another last weekend.
Here are pictures from our brief baptism ceremony. I think I've included these before but just in case you didn't get to see them. (left to right: Kiera Balocca, Harrison Hill, Will and Nate Flesher)
Wheatland Mission Pictures
For the next few days I am going to post some photos from our Easter weekend. Several of you have sent me photos and if anyone else would like to send me some that woud be great. It was a wonderful weekend.
On the night before Easter we lit the Paschal candle and then everyone was invited to light their own candles off of it. By the way, I want to thank David and Ed for making sure that our candle lighting time was safe.
There are more to come!
UNIFY 06...this Friday
Hey gang, below is some info on Unify06. This is a special event that our friends, Nameless Faces, are putting together. The details are below. Let me encourage as many of you as possible to be there to support these guys.Unify06 is a gathering to worship God -- specifically, to cluster
together the young, collegiate, and adult generations to seek the face
of God, that they may seek the lost of this nation and the globe.
There is a goal to be reached that Jesus prayed for in John 17. The
goal was that all of us would become zealous for God in one heart and
mind. This goal is attainable only by unity. The latter result will
convince this godless world that God sent Jesus Christ to this planet,
and that God is obsessed with you and I! God is awakening every eye to
see His fame, and loosing every tongue to confess His name. We, as
Nameless Faces, are witnesses of this and we are called recklessly to
finish the task of global evangelization in this generation.
That's why Nameless Faces exists, and why we are gathering this
generation in Wichita for Unify06, April 21, 2006, where hundreds of
people will merge into one building for one night for one purpose,
with one heart and one mind in worship of one God. First, to be
unified with God, then reconciled together to carry out the
unity-request of Jesus.
Along with worshiping together in silence, solitude, and song, there
will be teaching from Joe Skillen which will inspire challenge and
change in the hearts of the redeemed. We want all who attend to leave
a lifestyle of staleness, and lodge into a lifestyle of unity, through
the Giver of Life. We are inviting people from every tribe, people,
language and nation to be unified with us. Seek Justice. Encounter
God. Process truth. Proclaim Jesus.
What a weekend!
This has been a great weekend for the Wheatland Mission and our family. First, we had a wonderful service last night. It was a great time of worship, prayer, and "going through" some of the key events of Holy Week. What a way to express love and affection to Christ. It ended with a special candlelighting ceremony as we lit our candles off of the the Paschal candle.
Second, the Easter morning breakfast was great too. We had a great turnout for the breakfast. However, I must say that I was encouraged to see how our body is coming together and I only regret that we waited this long to have a community wide meal together. I hope many more will be just around the corner. Let me thank the Roggs for hosting our event this morning. Also, let me thank the Moser's, Reichs and many others of you who helped make this morning a success. Last but not least, thanks to all of you who brought food. I did not leave hungry.
Third, this was a wonderful weekend for our family because Harrison, our youngest, was baptized this morning. Harrison, Kendra Balocca, Nate and Will Flesher were all baptized after our breakfast at the home of John and Pam Flesher. It is exciting to see our group grow, not merely via numbers, but more and more in the likeness of Christ.
I am looking forward to the weeks and months to come at the Wheatland Mission.
P.S. I have a special prayer request. As many of you know I have been completing a degree in New Testament. This week I travel to Knoxville, TN to defend my a thesis I have been writing for several months. Please pray for me as I travel and I as I meet with my thesis committee. Also, keep my family in your prayers while I am away. God bless you all.
Don't Forget The Holy Week Blog
Here is the link in case you were wondering:
holyweek
Easter Weekend at the Wheatland Mission!
Things to look forward to this week with the Wheatland Mission.
Saturday NightWe will have our regular worship gathering at the Foundry Saturday night at 5:30. BUT, it won't be our regular worship gathering. We will share in a unique service of worship, prayer and communion. Our focus on Saturday will be on the hope of resurrection and our worship time will be a type of prelude to our Sunday morning breakfast/celebration. We will gather around the Lord's table together to a feast in Christ's honor.
Sunday MorningWe will gather at 9:00 AM at the Tall Grass EAST Clubhouse. (Don't confuse this with Tallgrass Clubhouse. Directions are below.) We will begin our time with a brief time of worship and celebration of Christ's resurrection. After that we will break the Lenten fast by celebrating together with a meal.
Here are a few details about our Easter morning breakfast.
- biscuits and gravy, coffee, and juice will be provided
- please help by bringing something to contribute; like fresh fruit, pastries, an egg dish, your favorite breakfast item, etc.
- celebrate the end of your fast by bringing a sample of the food items that you fasted from through the season of Lent
-
in order to adequately prepare please e-mail me at paul@wheatlandmission.com and let us know if you think you will make itDirectionsTallgrass East Clubhouse is located in the Tallgrass East Neighborhood.
From 21st and Webb go north on Webb until you reach "Clubhouse" the main entrance into Tallgrass East. Follow street to 9910 Clubhouse. Look for the pool and the playground.
Coming from Andover on 21st. Take 21st past Target to Clubhouse and take a right. You will be entering the south entrance of Tallgrass East. Follow the road until you see the pool and clubhouse. (9910 Clubhouse)
Here is the link for our Holy Week blog. This blog is designed to help guide your thoughts and prayers during the week leading up to Easter. Just click below:
holyweek
Palm Saturday and Child Dedication this Weekend!
This weekend will be our Palm (Sat)Sunday Service. This will be a special worship gathering for us as we continue to prepare for the observance and celebration of Christ's crucifixion and resurrection.
This weekend is our family service and our first Child Dedication time. Let me share a couple of important details for those of you with little ones.
First, your children are always welcome to be in the service with you whether it is the week of our children's service or not.
Second, this weekend, toddlers may be checked in at the beginning of the service. Preschoolers, however, will join us for the first part of the service and then they will be dismissed. As mentioned above, if you want to keep your preschooler in the service with you that will be fine.
Third, all the elementary aged children will be in the service with us throughout. We will have some special activities for them during the service.
Fourth, we don't have an actual nursery or crawlers room yet. However, we hope to have that up and running in the very near future.
Finally, don't forget that this weekend is our Child Dedication time. It is not too late to have your child participate if you wish. Just call me at 992-1540.
Some Warnings From The Spiritual Formation Workbook
Many of us have been taking part in the
Spiritual Formation Workbook through our house churches. In addition to observing a fast this has been one of our Lenten projects designed to help us deepen our walk with Christ. This material is tremendous for many reasons but the reason I appreciate it so much is that it focuses on
spiritual exercises. Sometimes we refer to these things as spiritual disciplines and in our church we have called them
missional practices. Our faith is active and not something that is simply lived out between our ears. It is lived out in our daily interactions with others, our regular experience of God, and through those things we do to advance God's kingdom on earth.
However, in the process of doing these things it is easy for us to miss the point entirely. We may be tempted to take things into our own hands and attempt to do God's work for him. It is easy to think that growth in the Christian life is about what we do more than it is about God's Spirit working in us. Before getting fully involved in the exercises outlined in the
Spiritual Formation Workbook the authors give us three important precautions.
.
First, do not be afraid to fail. To reach a goal is not the reason you do a spiritual discipline; it is to experience God. Even in failure you are learning new and valuable things. Wow. Our maturation process is not a matter of checking items off a list. It is a lively, engaged interaction with God. Doing one of the exercises perfectly might provide a perfect result. But, if you struggle in the process or if you find yourself just not getting in the groove then take a break and ask God for direction. Your failure in the process may be exactly what he wants you to experience. It may be the very way God wants you to experience him.
Keep your emphasis on God, not on the method. It is hard initially, but try to think about why you are doing an exercise rather than what you are doing.C.S. Lewis said, "You are not really dancing if you are still counting the steps." I don't know how to dance and I can barely count. However, the point is clear. If we spend all our energy making sure we pray just right or meditate just thus and so we will likely miss the point of our praying, which is God. Like a kid learning to waltz we won't enjoy the dance until we stop focusing so much on the method and actually learn to move with the music. Paying attention to why we do what we do gets us out of the head (counting the steps) and into the heart (the real dance).
Feel free to modify any exercise to fit your needs. Adapt the exercise you choose to challenge your strengths and support your weakness.We are all gifted in different ways. We are all wired differently. This diversity is not a liability to God's Kingdom but rather one of its strengths. God made us unique on purpose. Therefore, each of us will require different types of spiritual exercises in order to grow up in Christ the way we were designed to. Don't be afraid to take on an exercise that seems strange to you. It is good to be challenged. By the same token, don't hesitate to further expand one of your strengths.
Above all else, let us be reminded that the purpose of the
Spiritual Formation Workbooks, the purpose of our house churches and weekend worship, and the purpose of the Wheatland Mission itself is to make all of us more like Christ. It is about Jesus. If what we do causes us to be less like him then we must strategically abandon it. If what we are involved in makes us more Jesus
y, then let us do it even more.
Our April 1st Podcast Available
Listen to the April 1st service below or subscribe to it on iTunes.
This has been a great weekend for the Wheatland Mission and our family. First, we had a wonderful service last night. It was a great time of worship, prayer, and "going through" some of the key events of Holy Week. What a way to express love and affection to Christ. It ended with a special candlelighting ceremony as we lit our candles off of the the Paschal candle. 
Third, this was a wonderful weekend for our family because Harrison, our youngest, was baptized this morning. Harrison, Kendra Balocca, Nate and Will Flesher were all baptized after our breakfast at the home of John and Pam Flesher. It is exciting to see our group grow, not merely via numbers, but more and more in the likeness of Christ. 
