MAD Week is here! Are you mad?! Are you getting madder by the day? Mad Glad (alias Elizabeth Norman) has been trying to “trip our triggers” all month to get us on board to “Make a Difference” for Jesus this weekend. I trust you’ve found your spot and are ready to go. Last Sunday night we once again had a great time as a church family at the Annual Talent Show. We saw loads of talent and some “non-talent” all to benefit our local mission projects. Miss Sallie Felton served again as our resident Master of Ceremonies, entertaining us all and keeping “the show on the road” – with some occasional “off roading” of her own! We had a great group of performers from singers, dancers, a signer, piano and flute players to “boomwhackers” and many others in between. Special thanks to Joe Blake for bringing the sweetest ice cream in town (and for giving the Senior Pastor an extra bowl!). I’ve heard over $5,000 was raised! Our winner will be announced on Father’s Day Sunday.

This weekend the First Church family will “be the Church” not just “come to church” as we gather Saturday and Sunday mornings at 8:00 for a quick breakfast and devotional time before heading out to various ministry sites: The Tapestry Project, Skyline McKee and 8th Street, OKC Compassion, Regional Food Bank, Exodus House and right here at First Church! Come dressed to work and to enjoy two great days of fulfilling our First Church vision of “Serving with Love” the people of OKC. It’s going to be great! Remember – our primary worship service is this Sunday evening from 5:00–6:00pm in the sanctuary. We’ll worship, see a video highlighting our weekend, and I’ll bring the evening devotional. We’ll also be given the opportunity to offer our Faith Promise commitments for 2010 to support our missionaries in the field: Seth, Charles, Solomon, Rose, Talitha, Susan and Jose Luis, and Ben and Daisy. Can’t wait to hear all the great stories of God’s faithfulness this weekend!

A simple strategy to reach others for Jesus is to: Pray, Care and Share. That’s what MAD Week is all about! Are you mad yet?! Get mad and Make a Difference for Jesus and His Kingdom right here at home. As I mentioned two weeks ago, being a missionary isn’t about “crossing the seas” as much as it is “seeing the cross.” Jesus went to the cross for us; surely we can go to serve others in His Name. Don’t’ miss the opportunities of this weekend. We do a great job serving together for Marathon Weekend; we can do the same this weekend too! Bless you all!

Yours in Christ,
Mark

P.S. Not having our regular services on Sunday morning does make a Pastor a little nervous… as always, please remember First Church with your tithes and offerings this week. As you know, the ministry of the church never takes a vacation. Thanks!