General

 by Jonathan Forster

Our weekend bulletin — 08/21/16

Inspirational Quote of the Week

“The worst evils of life are those which do not exist except upon our imagination. If we had no troubles but real troubles, we should not have a tenth part of our present sorrows.”
Charles Spurgeon

Girl Scouts backpack collection for food pantry

g6The Girl Scouts will be collecting new and slightly used backpacks and school supplies to help bless our clients at the Reach Out Church Food Pantry! If you are interested in donating, please drop off a backpack and school supplies into the bin in the foyer!

The Global Leadership Summit

GLS15-LogoThere will be a two-day event telecast live from the Willow Creek campus on August 11th & 12th to hundreds of locations in North America, and Gabby Knapp of Reach Out is organizing a group to attend. Early bird pricing ends on May
 15th, so please contact Gabby as soon as possible if you are interested! For more information and a list of speakers, check out the Willow Creek website.

Forge Youth Ministry Summer Events

forgeOur youth group has a brand new and exciting summer schedule for 6th-12th graders! Check out their schedule of events at their Facebook page!

Mission trip to Haiti

Please keep our team in your prayers as they travel home on Saturday, August 20. We look forward to hearing what God has done through them!

Men’s One-Day Conference in Rensselaer

allwewantisyouboxOn Saturday, September 10th all men are welcome to join our group to attend a one-day men’s conference at Community Gospel Church in Rensselaer, NY. Cost is $10 if registered before September 7th. To register, please fill out a form in our foyer and drop it in one of our offering boxes with your payment for the conference. For more info, please see Al Kulick or call the church office.

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 by Jonathan Forster

Our weekend bulletin — 08/07/16

Inspirational Quote of the Week

“Our Lord told His disciples that love and obedience were organically united. The final test of love is obedience.”
Bill Johnson

Thank you to everyone at Camp Expedition!

campexpeditionboxA huge thanks to all who attended and volunteered at Camp Expedition 2016! We couldn’t have done it without the financial support of the parents/guardians of the campers and the 100+ volunteers who helped throughout the week! You can see our recap below!

The Global Leadership Summit

GLS15-LogoThere will be a two-day event telecast live from the Willow Creek campus on August 11th & 12th to hundreds of locations in North America, and Gabby Knapp of Reach Out is organizing a group to attend. Early bird pricing ends on May 15th, so please contact Gabby as soon as possible if you are interested! For more information and a list of speakers, check out the Willow Creek website.

Forge Youth Ministry Summer Events

forgeOur youth group has a brand new and exciting summer schedule for 6th-12th graders! Check out their schedule of events at their Facebook page!

Mission trip to Haiti

Roberto and Rose Bonheur will be leading a mission trip to Haiti from August 12th – August 20th. We ask that you keep them and the team in prayer as they prepare for this life-changing mission trip.

Men’s One-Day Conference in Rensselaer

allwewantisyouboxOn Saturday, September 10th all men are welcome to join our group to attend a one-day men’s conference at Community Gospel Church in Rensselaer, NY. Cost is $10 if registered before September 7th. To register, please fill out a form in our foyer and drop it in one of our offering boxes with your payment for the conference. For more info, please see Al Kulick or call the church office.

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 by Jonathan Forster

Our weekend bulletin — 07/31/16

Inspirational Quote of the Week

“The kingdom of God must never be reduced to talk, ideas, and principles. The kingdom of God is power.”
Bill Johnson

Camp Expedition begins this Monday!

campexpeditionboxPlease keep all of our campers, volunteers, and staff in your prayers, that they have a wonderful and blessed time in our summer sports camp next week from Monday, August 1st – Friday, August 5th.

The Global Leadership Summit

GLS15-LogoThere will be a two-day event telecast live from the Willow Creek campus on August 11th & 12th to hundreds of locations in North America, and Gabby Knapp of Reach Out is organizing a group to attend. Early bird pricing ends on May 15th, so please contact Gabby as soon as possible if you are interested! For more information and a list of speakers, check out the Willow Creek website.

Forge Youth Ministry Summer Events

forgeOur youth group has a brand new and exciting summer schedule for 6th-12th graders! Check out their schedule of events at their Facebook page!

Mission trip to Haiti

Roberto and Rose Bonheur will be leading a mission trip to Haiti from August 12th – August 20th. We ask that you keep them and the team in prayer as they prepare for this life-changing mission trip.

Men’s One-Day Conference in Rensselaer

allwewantisyouboxOn Saturday, September 10th all men are welcome to join our group to attend a one-day men’s conference at Community Gospel Church in Rensselaer, NY. Cost is $10 if registered before September 7th. To register, please fill out a form in our foyer and drop it in one of our offering boxes with your payment for the conference. For more info, please see Al Kulick or call the church office.

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 by Jonathan Forster

Our weekend bulletin — 07/24/16

Inspirational Quote of the Week

“It is no use walking anywhere to preach unless our walking is our preaching.”
Francis of Assisi

Deadline for Camp Expedition registration is approaching!

campexpeditionboxCamp Expedition is just around the corner and we still have a few spaces left to register! If you haven’t registered your child yet, now is the time! We’re excited as we get our final preparations together for our favorite week of the summer, which is taking place from Monday, August 1st to Friday, August 5th. For more details and the registration link, please see our Camp Expedition page or register here.

Camp Expedition Volunteers

All of our volunteers and staff for our summer camp are required to attend our meeting next Saturday, July 30th from 9:30am – 11:30am. Lunch will be provided following the meeting. If you are interested in helping at Camp Expedition 2016, you can still sign up in the church foyer or call the church office to sign up.

The Global Leadership Summit

GLS15-LogoThere will be a two-day event telecast live from the Willow Creek campus on August 11th & 12th to hundreds of locations in North America, and Gabby Knapp of Reach Out is organizing a group to attend. Early bird pricing ends on May 15th, so please contact Gabby as soon as possible if you are interested! For more information and a list of speakers, check out the Willow Creek website.

Forge Youth Ministry Summer Events

forgeOur youth group has a brand new and exciting summer schedule for 6th-12th graders! Check out their schedule of events at their Facebook page!

Mission trip to Haiti

Roberto and Rose Bonheur will be leading a mission trip to Haiti from August 12th – August 20th. We ask that you keep them and the team in prayer as they prepare for this life-changing mission trip.

Men’s One-Day Conference in Rensselaer

allwewantisyouboxOn Saturday, September 10th all men are welcome to join our group to attend a one-day men’s conference at Community Gospel Church in Rensselaer, NY. Cost is $10 if registered before September 7th. To register, please fill out a form in our foyer and drop it in one of our offering boxes with your payment for the conference. For more info, please see Al Kulick or call the church office.

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 by Jonathan Forster

Our weekend bulletin — 07/10/16

Inspirational Quote of the Week

“The beautiful thing about this adventure called faith is that we can count on Him to never lead us astray.”
Chuck Swindoll

Deadline for Camp Expedition registration is approaching!

campexpeditionboxOur registration for Camp Expedition is filling up quicker and quicker, so if you plan on having a child attend, now is the time to register on our church website since space is limited! This year’s camp will take place from Monday, August 1st to Friday, August 5th. For more details and the registration link, please see our Camp Expedition page or register here.

The Global Leadership Summit

GLS15-LogoThere will be a two-day event telecast live from the Willow Creek campus on August 11th & 12th to hundreds of locations in North America, and Gabby Knapp of Reach Out is organizing a group to attend. Early bird pricing ends on May 15th, so please contact Gabby as soon as possible if you are interested! For more information and a list of speakers, check out the Willow Creek website.

Forge Youth Ministry Summer Events

forgeOur youth group has a brand new and exciting summer schedule for 6th-12th graders! Check out their schedule of events at their Facebook page!

Mission trip to Haiti

Roberto and Rose Bonheur will be leading a mission trip to Haiti from August 12th – August 20th. If you are interested in being a part of this life changing trip, please sign up in the foyer. They are in need of five more people to go with them on this life changing adventure. For more info please see Roberto or Rose.

Men’s One-Day Conference in Rensselaer 

allwewantisyouboxOn Saturday, September 10th all men are welcome to join our group to attend a one-day men’s conference at Community Gospel Church in Rensselaer, NY. Cost is $10 if registered before September 7th. To register, please fill out a form in our foyer and drop it in one of our offering boxes with your payment for the conference. For more info, please see Al Kulick or call the church office.

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 by Jonathan Forster

Our weekend bulletin — 07/03/16

Inspirational Quote of the Week

“Life becomes harder for us when we live for others, but it also becomes richer and happier.”
Albert Schweitzer

Happy Independence Day from us!

This Monday is July 4th, Independence Day, and we would like to wish everyone a blessed weekend as we celebrate the freedom we have in the United States of America. And as Christians, we can also celebrate the eternal freedom that Jesus Christ purchased for us! May you share the love of Christ with your family, friends, and neighbors this 4th of July weekend!

Forge Youth Ministry Summer Events

forgeOur youth group has a brand new and exciting summer schedule for 6th-12th graders! Check out their schedule of events at their Facebook page!

Camp Expedition registration now open!

campexpeditionboxWe are excited to announce that registration for the best week of summer is now live on our website! This year’s camp will take place from Monday, August 1st to Friday, August 5th. Space is limited and we were full by early July last year, so please make sure to register as soon as possible! For more details and the registration link, please see our Camp Expedition page or register here.

The Global Leadership Summit

GLS15-LogoThere will be a two-day event telecast live from the Willow Creek campus on August 11th & 12th to hundreds of locations in North America, and Gabby Knapp of Reach Out is organizing a group to attend. Early bird pricing ends on May 15th, so please contact Gabby as soon as possible if you are interested! For more information and a list of speakers, check out the Willow Creek website.

Mission trip to Haiti

Roberto and Rose Bonheur will be leading a mission trip to Haiti from August 12th – August 20th. If you are interested in being a part of this life changing trip, please sign up in the foyer. They are in need of five more people to go with them on this life changing adventure. For more info please see Roberto or Rose.

Men’s One-Day Conference in Rensselaer 

allwewantisyouboxOn Saturday, September 10th all men are welcome to join our group to attend a one-day men’s conference at Community Gospel Church in Rensselaer, NY. Cost is $10 if registered before September 7th. To register, please fill out a form in our foyer and drop it in one of our offering boxes with your payment for the conference. For more info, please see Al Kulick or call the church office.

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 by Jonathan Forster

Our weekend bulletin — 06/12/16

Inspirational Quote of the Week

“You are never too old to set another goal or to dream a new dream.”
C.S. Lewis

Forge Youth Ministry Summer Events

forgeOur youth group has a brand new and exciting summer schedule for 6th-12th graders! Check out their schedule of events at their Facebook page!

Camp Expedition registration now open!

campexpeditionboxWe are excited to announce that registration for the best week of summer is now live on our website! This year’s camp will take place from Monday, August 1st to Friday, August 5th. Space is limited and we were full by early July last year, so please make sure to register as soon as possible! For more details and the registration link, please see our Camp Expedition page or register here.

Care Net’s Baby Bottle Blessing

carenetbottlesWe have an opportunity to financially support Care Net, our local crisis pregnancy center, through their Baby Bottle Blessing program. We have empty bottles in the foyer and you can take one to fill up with your change and return by Sunday, June 19th (Father’s Day)!

The Global Leadership Summit

GLS15-LogoThere will be a two-day event telecast live from the Willow Creek campus on August 11th & 12th to hundreds of locations in North America, and Gabby Knapp of Reach Out is organizing a group to attend. Early bird pricing ends on May 15th, so please contact Gabby as soon as possible if you are interested! For more information and a list of speakers, check out the Willow Creek website.

Mission trip to Haiti

Roberto and Rose Bonheur will be leading a mission trip to Haiti from August 12th – August 20th. If you are interested in being a part of this life changing trip, please sign up in the foyer. They are in need of five more people to go with them on this life changing adventure. For more info please see Roberto or Rose.

 

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 by Jonathan Forster

Our weekend bulletin — 05/22/16

Inspirational Quote of the Week

“God delights to increase the faith of His children. We ought, instead of wanting no trials before victory, no exercise for patience, to be willing to take them from God’s hands as a means. Trials, obstacles, difficulties, and sometimes defeats, are the very food of faith.'”
George Mueller

 

Camp Expedition registration now open!

campexpeditionboxWe are excited to announce that registration for the best week of summer is now live on our website! This year’s camp will take place from Monday, August 1st to Friday, August 5th. Space is limited and we were full by early July last year, so please make sure to register as soon as possible! For more details and the registration link, please see our Camp Expedition page or register here.

Care Net’s Baby Bottle Blessing

carenetbottlesWe have an opportunity to financially support Care Net, our local crisis pregnancy center, through their Baby Bottle Blessing program. We have empty bottles in the foyer and you can take one to fill up with your change and return by Sunday, June 19th (Father’s Day)!

Memorial Day Picnic

memorialdaybox-e1431695417317We will be having our annual Memorial Day Picnic on Monday, May 30th. It all begins at noon in the church pavilion and we will provide the burgers and hot dogs. Please bring a dish to share, and don’t forget to invite your friends! All are welcome to attend!

Pastor Billy & Laura Ng

admin-ajaxOn Sunday, June 5th our very own Pastor Billy & Laura Ng will be speaking at both of our Sunday AM services. Billy has been ministering for thirteen years in the country of Romania with his wife Laura and we are excited to hear what God has placed on his heart! He also has authored two books which are available in our church bookstore!

The Global Leadership Summit

GLS15-LogoThere will be a two-day event telecast live from the Willow Creek campus on August 11th & 12th to hundreds of locations in North America, and Gabby Knapp of Reach Out is organizing a group to attend. Early bird pricing ends on May 15th, so please contact Gabby as soon as possible if you are interested! For more information and a list of speakers, check out the Willow Creek website.

Mission trip to Haiti

Roberto and Rose Bonheur will be leading a mission trip to Haiti from August 12th – August 20th. If you are interested in being a part of this life changing trip, please sign up in the foyer. For more info please see Roberto or Rose.

Home Group Bible Study

homestudythumb-e1442501025711Brian and Brenda Bovee are leading a home group Bible Study on Thursdays at 7pm. All are welcome to attend! For more info, directions, or to RSVP, please contact the Bovees or call the church office.

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 by Jonathan Forster

Our Foundations in Jesus – Resurrection of the Dead

 

foundations

Written on someone’s gravestone: 

Where I am now, you soon shall be
Prepare yourself to follow me.
Underneath some wag scrawled:
To follow you his not my intent
Until I know which way you went.

Here on Earth, we have faith in Jesus and everything He stands for. But when we are called to walk through the valley of the shadow of death (Psalm 23), i.e., when we kick the bucket, we shall see Jesus face-to-face.

Our physical bodies will run down and quit, but our souls and spirits will live on. Some claim we will just be out cold forever — like a deep sleep — but in reality, do we have further consciousness but on a higher plane?

2 Corinthians 5:8:  “We are confident … (that) to be absent from the body is to be present with the Lord”

Kiss off Earth, Hello Heaven!

Several Bible passages tell us that we do in fact awaken after our physical bodies die. Here are three:

  • “…No one can SEE the kingdom of God unless he is Born Again”.
  • “…no one can ENTER the Kingdom of God unless he is Born of water and the Spirit.”
  • “For God so loved the world that He gave His only-begotten Son that whosoever BELIEVES in Him shall have Everlasting Life.”
    • John 3:3, 5, 16

Note the verbs in those passages. You can’t do anything (that’s what a verb means: doing something) if you are taking a dirt nap. You have to wake up and be aware.

But how? Jesus does not throw surprise parties for someone’s salvation. Spiritual Resurrection happens while we are still physically alive and decide to follow Jesus. If you decide against Jesus, and ignoring Him is deciding against Him, you are choosing to spend eternity apart from God — a very unhappy place to be.

What about all those millions of people who lived and died before Jesus came to Earth? Are they just out of luck? (Read 1 Timothy 2:4-6 — it asks and answers that question.)

The answer is no. Those who were righteous in their generation (think Noah) fulfilled God’s plan for that time, and were saved by that means. Abraham’s obedience was accounted to him as righteousness. (See Genesis 15:6.)

Later, at a critical moment, Jesus tells the thief suffering on the next cross that he will be with Him in paradise. (Luke 23:43)

How do we know Jesus rose from the grave?

Many people claim that Jesus never rose, yet everything that Jesus claimed has come to pass. In the OT, there are over 700 prophesies concerning the Messiah, and every last one of them came true with Jesus.

Proof #1: The Holy Spirit. It does so much for us and it supplies peace that passes all understanding when we receive Jesus. Can some dead guy in a tomb do that for us? Not today! We might benefit from past actions, like people still benefit from Abraham Lincoln ‘s actions, but Jesus is right here right now, still doing good.

“…Jesus gave up His Spirit. At that moment the temple curtain was torn from top to bottom” – Matthew 27:50-51

Proof #2: The curtain hid the Most Holy Place in the temple. The curtain tore from top to bottom; if torn by men, it would have had to be from bottom to top, so we know God did it.

Proof #3: No more separation. Jesus took all the sins of every man, woman, and child for all time unto Himself so that we can (and should) approach God directly and boldly, with confidence of His full attention.

Proof #4: Jesus showed Himself in His resurrected body to the disciples. He let them touch Him and ate in their presence (See Luke 24:36-43.)

Jesus wounds showed, yet He was otherwise perfectly restored. The disciples recognized Him, so we can be confident of looking like ourselves when we get our resurrected bodies.

What about resurrection for Unbelievers?

Yeah, they’ll wake up alright, but it won’t be pretty. Revelation 20:11-15 tells us that these people will stand before the Throne of God, only to be reminded that they did not decide for Jesus while alive on Earth, were still in their sins, and had thereby chosen to go to Hell. Their names were not recorded in the Book of Life, so they were thrown into the Lake of Fire, a spiritual (or second) death. That’s gotta hurt.

The deciding evidence for the Lake of Fire toss was the absence of names in the Book of Life. We can rejoice as the Spiritually Resurrected (born again) group, because our names are recorded in the Book of Life. Want more?  Read Exodus 32:33, Daniel 12:1, Malachi 3:16, Luke 10:20, and Revelation 3:5, 21:27, and 22:19.

Conclusion

Too many people, including Christians, fear death. When we are re-equipped with our resurrected bodies, they will be 100% new. Our natural, or Earthly bodies may rot away, but those new jobs will be perfect and indestructible. No more aging, no more sickness, no more achy joints or backs… “poifect!”

Click here to return to the index of Foundations teachings.

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 by Jonathan Forster

Our weekend bulletin — 01/10/16

Inspirational Quote of the Week

“Enemy-occupied territory — that is what this world is. Christianity is the story of how the rightful king has landed, you might say landed in disguise, and is calling us all to take part in a great campaign in sabotage.”
C.S. Lewis

Men’s Breakfast

l

All men are welcome to join us for fellowship and a free breakfast on Saturday, January 9th at 9am. Join us for a delicious meal and devotional time to reflect on God’s word. The Men’s Breakfast takes place in the annex building and a donation is appreciated for the cost of the breakfast.

Forge Youth Ministries Launch next Wednesday

forgeWe will be having a prayer night on Wednesday, January 6th at 7pm in the annex. This is to prepare for the new youth group launch which is taking place the following Wednesday. All are welcome to join us as we pray over this vitally important ministry. Light refreshments will follow.

Praise and Prayer Day

On this Saturday, January 9th and Sunday, January 10th from 12pm-4pm, Deborah Dinkens will be leading an outreach at the Stop and Shop on Rt. 9 in Hyde Park. This will raise support for our upcoming mission trip to the DR and will be a great opportunity to connect with the community, and also pray with individuals when they request prayer. If you would like to get involved, please see Deborah.

Mission Trip to the Dominican Republic

Please keep our team led by Randy Spadaro in your prayers as they will travel to the Dominican Republic next week from January 15th to January 25th.

A Healthier Life Centered On Faith In God Home Group

optimized-victoryJoin Mary Ann Bovee in a six-week series focused on healthier living in God. These will take place on Thursdays at 7pm at her house starting January 7th. For more information, please see Mary Ann or call the church office.

Care Net Pregnancy Center Prayer Service

CareNetOn Tuesday, January 19th at 7pm our local pregnancy center Care Net is sponsoring “Forever In My Heart,” a memorial service of prayer and healing for those who have suffered loss in pregnancy. It will be taking place at the New Beginnings Church in Poughkeepsie and more information for the event can be found here on the Care Net page.

Foundations I & Old Testament Survey Classes

biblestudiesthumbWe are offering two different classes which are taking place on Wednesdays at 7pm starting January 20th. Foundations I will cover the essential beliefs of Christianity to encourage you to develop your relationship with God, and in our Old Testament Survey, Pastor Vic will guide us through the Old Testament to help us see its connection with the New Testament and discover how it applies to our lives today. Please sign up for these classes in the foyer!

Guest speaker: Elim Fellowship President Chris Ball

Pastor-Chris-Ball-e1436205294756On January 31st, the president of our church fellowship Elim, Chris Ball, will be speaking at both our 8am and 10am services. We look forward to hearing what God has put on his heart for us!

Thirst: A devotional on the Book of James

thirstdevotionalWe are happy to announce we have a new devotional written by our very own Nic Knapp, Gabby Knapp, and Pastor Jon Forster: Thirst! These five week devotionals are available in our bookstore and you can also order it on Amazon with this link.

 

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