OCTOBER 2023

NOTE FROM MARK
A few months ago, I was contacted by a person who was praying for the church with a group of people. This person is a godly person, along with their team of intercessors. They told me when they were praying for the church, there was this sense of warmth that came over more than one of the participants. It was a good warmth and it seemed to be communicating a growing fire of the presences of God at Neighborhood Church. In the same time of prayer, there was also a moment where as they continued to pray for the church, there was this overwhelming sense of sleepiness that came over at least one of the people. As I have prayed and talked about this with others, there has been a sense of both a growing fire of God’s presence and also a sense of spiritual sleepiness with some in the church.

I believe God desires to awaken all of us to his purposes and light a fire for him. Yes, this is dependent on God but also we can position and prepare ourselves. How do we do this? First, lean into your relationship with God. Make the time and space to be with him. Second, repent of your sin and rebellion. Repentance is the most positive word in Scripture. It means to turn 180 degrees, or turn away from our sin, rebellion, and selfish ways and turn to God. When we turn back to God, he brings new life. Third, confess our sin and need for forgiveness. 1 John 1:9 tells us when we confess our sins God forgives and this removes any barriers in relationship with God. Fourth and final, consecrate yourself to God. Consecrate means to be set apart for the purposes of God. We are meant to be different from those who do not know Jesus and we are meant to live in a way that shows Jesus with our lives and shares him with our words wherever we go. My prayer is that God would awaken all of us to his kingdom purposes.

MINISTRIES

NEIGHBORHOOD KIDS
Leader: Karin Sauder, karin.sauder@neighborhoodc.org
A safe place for children to meet Jesus, know Jesus & learn to share Jesus.

We are enjoying our beautiful fall weather in Neighborhood Kids! Our Global Encounters weekend was a ton of fun as Miss Bonnie hosted a terrific kids’ program with Chia-Lin, an Alliance missionary to the Congo. And of course, on Sunday, we had a beautiful international parade to celebrate the amazing countries and cultures in the world. 

The Fall Festival was so much fun. The trunk-or-treat and petting zoo are always big hits. Thank you to everyone who decorated their cars, volunteered their time, and donated candy to show and share Jesus with our neighbors.

BIG NEWS! We are thrilled to announce that Drew Patton said his very first YES to Jesus this month! Watch for his lightbox celebration coming soon.

There are several fun kids and family events coming up for the holidays, so watch your inbox for The Park Bench Neighborhood Kids newsletter coming in November!

NEIGHBORHOOD YOUTH
Leader: Tim Allen, timothy.allen@neighborhoodc.org
A place for teens to meet Jesus, know Jesus & be encouraged to share Jesus.

This past month, a handful of the Neighborhood Youth leaders shared their Jesus stories with the students on Tuesday evenings. This included two of our student leaders & international worker, Chia-lin, sharing their testimonies with the group as well. It was a great time learning about how God has worked in our lives!

WORSHIP & PRODUCTION TEAM
Leader: Mel Neely, melanie.neely@neighborhoodc.org
We are a diverse community of followers of Jesus Christ, empowered by His Spirit with one heart and one mind to invite and lead in declaring His worth.

The Neighborhood Church Worship & Production team continues to lift high the name of Jesus through our in person and online services.  This month, Mel Neely and Adaora led worship during our Sunday services along with our dedicated team of instrumentalists and vocalists.  We brought back the song, "Jesus Only" to the worship song rotation to accompany Mark's message, "Anchored in the Fourfold Gospel.  The song is said to be the most famous Alliance hymn.
https://youtu.be/sYqRqQQEpEs?si=TiMeZy2cYRNU2HQw

On Thursday evenings the team engaged with the Neighborhood Groups material focusing on our current “Anchored” sermon series.  These times were led by Mel.  We shared praises and prayer requests, praying for each other and over Neighborhood Church.

During our Global Encounters weekend, Mel, Evan and Eric had the opportunity to lead the songs, "Missions Flame" and "Great Are You Lord" at our Feast of Nations.

We declared…
"You should be the praise of every tongue, Jesus
You should be the joy of every heart
But until the fullness of Your kingdom comes
Until the final revelation dawns
Send us out"

Stay tuned for the November month in review to hear how God moved during Chain Breaking Worship with Adaora hosted at Neighborhood Church on November 4th.

Praise him with the tambourine and dancing; praise him with strings and flutes!
Praise him with a clash of cymbals; praise him with loud clanging cymbals.
Let everything that breathes sing praises to the LORD ! Praise the LORD !
Psalm 150: 4-6

Our Worship & Production team continues to thrive under the leadership of Jeff Geraci.  We are thankful to have a truly multigenerational team with middle school, high school and adult volunteers working together to make our Sunday services in person and online possible.  We are routinely using click tracks at our Thursday practices and now on Sunday mornings.  Thank you to Matthew Sutton for coming to do some additional training with the team in October.

BECAUSE of God's faithfulness, our Worship Team is living on mission as a multi-ethnic, multigenerational team being transformed by Jesus, empowered by the Holy Spirit and inviting the Neighborhood Church family to be launched on mission with them!

NEIGHBORHOOD GROUPS
Leader: Mark Trinkl, mark.trinkl@neighborhoodc.org
Our primary place for making friends, inviting God's transformation through Scripture and prayer, and living on mission together. 

At the beginning of November we finished the sermon series, “Anchored: Basic Beliefs and Practices for Following Jesus in a World Adrift.” Groups are wrapping up this semester and then will begin again in January with a variety of topics.  We are praying for more leaders to rise up to lead more groups and for God to multiply kingdom impact.

MISSIONS TEAM
Leader: Mark Trinkl, mark.trinkl@neighborhoodc.org
We are launched on mission to share and show Jesus from our neighbors to the nations. (Acts 1:8)

Fall Global Encounters was a great event with Chia-Lin, who is serving in Congo. Also many of our Neighborhood Church family members prepared both African food and cultural elements from their home countries for us to experience together. We encourage you to make a faith promise to be a part of God’s global mission in at least one of four ways: pray, give, go, and send. 

If you would like to discover more, give above and beyond to missions, or consider going to El Salvador this next summer for a week with Neighborhood Church, you can do that all at:  
https://www.neighborhoodc.org/global.html

SAVE THE DATES: 
Spring Global Encounters, March 1-3 

WELCOME TEAM
Leader:  Contact Rose Ojwiga, ojwiga@gmail.com
We will be a community that is authentic, transparent & creates space for real relationships (Acts 2:42)

We are grateful for the continued team that welcomes people in so many different ways. May God continue to create a spirit of hospitality at Neighborhood Church.

LEADERSHIP

STAFF
Mark Trinkl, Tim Allen, Linnea Allen, Melanie Neely, Karin Sauder,  Susan Scott, & Dana Zetterberg
Leader: Mark Trinkl, mark.trinkl@neighborhoodc.org
The staff manages Neighborhood Church ministry teams.

The staff continues to meet on a regular basis for planning, prayer and pursuing God's mission of seeing people transformed by Jesus, empowered by the Holy Spirit and launched on mission.

The staff is talking about goals for 2023 and how we can more strategically disciple people. We are excited for all the people God has connected with the church and want to help them grow holistically in their life and faith.

The staff has reviewed plans for remodeling the church to better serve both the needs of the ministry and community. Currently, the Board is in conversations about next steps. May God use this building for his purposes.

ELDERS
Mark Trinkl, Evan Homan, Steve Beardsley, Mark Neely, Solomon Jack, Eric Peacock, Jeff Geraci, Leader: Mark Trinkl, mark.trinkl@neighborhoodc.org
The Elders shepherd and give spiritual oversight to Neighborhood Church.

The Elders continue to meet on a monthly basis for prayer and spiritual care of people within the congregation. We are so grateful to be able to shepherd this congregation. If there is anything you ever need prayer for, please let us know. We are here to support you.

Please be praying for God to continue to raise up godly Elders in the church.

BOARD OF GOVERNANCE
Mark Trinkl (Chair), Evan Homan (Vice Chair), Matt Sale (Treasurer), Sarah Luse (Secretary), Angela Drumm, Steve Beardsley, and Eric Peacock
The Board of Governance (BOG) sets boundaries for the Pastor.

The Board will meet in December to approve the budget, review 2024 goals, and continue to look at the building improvements.

UPCOMING DATES

November 11: Winter Baby Shower
November 18: MCCH Hot Breakfast
November 19: MCCH Bagged Breakfast
November 28: Advent Event