The Hollingsworths are moving—thankfully for only 10 months!

We are big fans of Taylor & Elisabeth & their crazy-fun crew!

We are so thankful for their joy, friendship, humility, encouragement, & love for the local church. And we are encouraged by the grace & gifting on their lives.

For all these reasons, several months ago we asked Taylor to attend the Sovereign Grace Pastors College next year.

WHAT IS THE PASTORS COLLEGE?

The Pastors College is a 10-month school for training pastors in Louisville, KY. It is led by & specifically designed to serve our Sovereign Grace family of churches.

Academic Dean Jeff Purswell & his staff seek to prepare a man’s mind & heart for pastoring God’s people. It prepares his mind—supplying him with the tools to study & proclaim the Bible & preparing him for a lifetime of study. It prepares his heart—helping him to walk in a manner worthy of the gospel in his personal & private life.

I (Walt) have attended several seminaries (slow learner, I guess!), but nothing compared to the content of instruction & quality of experience of the Pastors College.

WILL THE FAMILY GO TOO?

Well, Taylor & Elisabeth thought about leaving a few kids behind—but couldn’t decide which ones!

In all seriousness, they’re all going! They are packing up their apartment now & plan to move to Louisville on August 13. And they plan to return to Athens in early June 2021.

WHAT DOES THIS MEAN FOR TAYLOR?

As you know, Taylor has been serving as a pastoral resident of Trinity Grace since January.

Attending the Pastors College will be a significant opportunity to grow in his understanding of God’s Word & pastoral ministry. While he has had quite a bit of formal education, he is very excited about this opportunity. And we are excited about helping him to take advantage of this opportunity.

Attending the Pastors College will also be another step in his pastoral residency at Trinity Grace. While he will not be serving us while he is there, he will be learning & studying to serve us in the future.

After the Pastors College, we are planning for him to return to serving as a bi-vocational pastoral resident & prayerfully continuing towards ordination.

IS THERE ANYTHING WE CAN DO TO HELP?

Taylor & Elisabeth have been raising financial support for their living expenses next year so that he can focus on his studies.

In God’s kindness, they have already met their goal!

If you would still like to give, you can do so here. Toggle down to the Pastors College fund.

Also, watch for your inbox. I (Walt) will send out details soon about a way to bless them before they leave.

New Series this Sunday: Prayers to Pray in the Mess of Life.

Life is a mess.

We are troubled, because of sickness, suffering, & sin. But we also live in a troubled world.

Life in this world is a tangled mess of trouble—bad news, disappointment, job loss, addiction, angry outbursts, restlessness, back-stabbing, & so much more.

Jesus was right, in the world, you will have trouble.

Thankfully, the Bible never acts surprised by trouble. Nor should we. In fact, the Bible teaches us how to think, feel, walk, sing, weep, & even pray when trouble strikes.

This Sunday, we are beginning a new series in which we will walk slowly the first 10 psalms & learn some wonderful prayers to pray in the mess of life.

SCHEDULE (FOR THE PLANNERS!)

Psalm 1—June 28

Psalm 2—July 5

Psalm 3—July 12

Psalm 4—July 26

Psalm 5—August 3

Psalm 6—August 10

Psalm 7—August 17

Psalm 8—August 24

Psalm 9–10—August 31

RECOMMENDED RESOURCES

There are so many resources for studying the book of Psalms. Head over to the series page to see a few we recommend.

Farewell Acts—Until Next Time!

Believe or not—last Sunday was our last sermon on the book of Acts!

We heard 25 sermons from the book of Acts & studied it for nearly 10 months. We learned so much about community, mission, deacons, justice, & more. Most of all, we learned how we can live for something bigger than ourselves. As G. Campbell Morgan famously put it:

Most men are not satisfied with the permanent output of their lives. Nothing can wholly satisfy the life of Christ within his followers except the adoption of Christ’s purpose toward the world he came to redeem. Fame, pleasure & riches are but husks and ashes in contrast with the boundless and abiding joy of working with God for the fulfillment of his eternal plans. The men who are putting everything into Christ’s undertaking are getting out of life its sweetest & most priceless rewards. G. Campbell Morgan

Let us live now for the matchless fame of the Lord Jesus Christ.

WANT TO GET CAUGHT UP?

If you missed any of the Sundays or are new, you can head over to the Acts series page to download each message.

Or, you can search for Trinity Grace Church on Apple Podcasts & listen in.

A few pictures from baby dedications last Sunday!

It was such a privilege to pray for these children & to anticipate what God will do with their lives for his glory!

Below are a few pictures for you to enjoy.

CLICK THE PICTURE in the center to scroll through the gallery of pictures.

Photo Credit: our very own Ben Finch!

Wednesday Mail: Greetings, Trinity Grace!

Greetings, Trinity Grace: 

I don’t know about you, but I am more than a little burdened by everything going on in our country right now. 

The increase of COVID-19 positive cases & deaths. The continued expressions of prejudice & racism. The sweeping & unqualified criticism of police & law enforcement. The hard & yet not fully known toll of the pandemic on our economy. The name-calling & finger-pointing from both sides of the political aisle. And so on. 

I don’t know the answer to many of these questions for our country. They are very complex. And they are above my pay grade! 

But I am increasingly burdened that what we need as a church is unity. 

It would be very easy to form lines according to where we stand on these issues.

Do we believe wearing masks is an expression of others-focused love or white-knuckled fear? Do we believe systemic racism is a reality or a myth? Do we believe systemic police brutality is a fact or fiction? Do we believe many of these concerns are huge opportunities for all of us or just the latest example of the liberal left trying to push President Trump out of office?

It would be very easy for us to form lines according to where we stand & for disunity to quickly divide us. 

But that would not honor God. 

And it would not stand out in our divided culture. 

Our culture says: Unity = Uniformity.  

Anyone who is truly united with us must agree with us & not question us on anything personal or important to us.

The Bible says: Unity = Diversity Under Jesus.

We are united together through the blood of Jesus Christ alone—not our race, culture, background, wealth, gifting, political positions, or anything else. As Ephesians 2:18 says, “For through [Jesus] we both have access in one Spirit to the Father.” 

This type of unity doesn’t make sense to the world. It’s something the world cannot understand!

Yet it is a unity we are called to protect & proclaim. As Ephesians 4:3 says, “[Be] eager to maintain the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace.” 

So, how do we protect & proclaim unity?

By listening well & trying hard to understand those who think differently than us.

By being very careful with what & how we post on social media, at all times but especially on divisive issues.

By not repeating gossip or slander. And refusing to critically judge the motives of others. 

By not running away when relationships get tough. Or when someone disagrees with us. But by working through conflict & disagreement with humility & patience.

By encouraging & honoring others. And not being threatened when they do things better than us! 

By remembering what we share in common—salvation by grace alone!—& remembering that it is the most important thing.

And so much more.

I love all the many ways God is creating a truly united church among us. And I pray he does so more & more, as we walk together with humility & patience in the midst of a divided world.

Sincerely yours in Christ,

Walt

YOU are invited to this year's ADVANCE Conference!

One of the primary missions of Trinity Grace is to pass the gospel on to the next generation.

Among many others (!), this is one reason we love children & seek to partner with parents in instructing & discipling their children. It takes a community to raise a child & we need as much help as we can get—as any parent can attest!

This summer’s ADVANCE conference could be just the kind of help you need with your middle or high school student.

Each year our friends at Cornerstone Church invite youth & parents to set aside 3 days for messages, worship, & games of all kinds (human foosball, water blob, gaga ball, etc). And we’ve been invited again this year!

Here are all the details:

• WHEN: July 23–25

• WHERE: Fort Bluf Camp in Dayton, TN

• WHO: Middle & high school students

Sign up here.

If you would really like to go & money is preventing you from attending, please contact Walt.

Details for Men's groups this week & Women's groups next week!

Community Groups are where we get real & find real friends. (As you can tell by Daniel’s intensity & Brian’s happy face!)

This week, the men are gathering on Wednesday night (& next week the women will be!). Mark your calendar & make this time a priority. If you’re not in a group & would like to join one, head over to our Community Group page for more information.

In addition, we will be reading & discussing the article “Lethal Faith” by Kris Lundgaard. (Downloadable PDF)

Below are a few questions to consider as you read:

1. What are some ways people try to break sin’s power without faith & the Spirit of God?

2. Read the prayer on pages 143–144. What stands out to you about this prayer? What is the prayer saying to God that is important?

3. What are some of the reasons we can expect God to answer our prayers & give help? Read again the Scriptures on pages 145-146.

4. Philippians 2:12–13 tells us two important things regarding our struggle against sin. Based on this, what does Lundgaard tell us that we must never forget (page 147)? (The work of killing sin is our work—”work out your salvation”—& God’s duty—”for it is God in you.”)

5. All of us seem to have an Achilles’ heel—an area of sin in our lives that is hard to put to death. What is yours? How do the truths of this chapter help you cultivate lethal faith?

This summer, we're gathering at Ramble Creek!

This summer, we plan to gather at Ramble Creek each Sunday at 10:30am!

(Now, you may be thinking, where will meet after that? We don’t know—just as we didn’t know we’d spend half of this year so far fighting a pandemic!)

We are so grateful for the provision of this facility! Not many church plants have a facility right now to meet in & we are very grateful to God & Ramble Creek.

For now:

• We will be offering only the Crawlers class on-site for TGKIDS. (Thanks so much to the teachers for helping us live-stream TGKIDS for 11 weeks!)

• We will continue to observe moderate social distancing or other precautions.

• We will continue to worship & trust God.

We hope to see you Sunday!

A few recommended resources on understanding race & America.

There are so many opinions & positions about race & America being shared on social media right now. So many people speaking up & answering questions like, What’s wrong with America? Where do we go from here?

I encourage you to read & think biblically & carefully on these issues. And I encourage you to discuss these issues with family & friends.

Regardless of how you think through these issues & what you think the solutions are, below are a few resources I recommend to you:

“Justice & Mercy in the Death of George Floyd,” by Tony Carter. This sermon by my friend & pastor Tony Carter in Atlanta one week after the death of George Floyd is excellent. You can listen to the audio here or watch the video here. (Note: In the video, Tony begins preaching at about the 25 minute mark.)

“George Floyd & Me”, by Shai Linne. This blogpost by hip-hop artist Shai Linne is very vulnerable & insightful for understanding what it feels like to grow up as a black man in America. I believe it is always important to people different than us share in this way, but especially right now.

“Our Present Moment: Why Is It So Hard?”, by Kevin DeYoung. What is going on right now? Where did this come from? Why is it so hard? In this blogpost, pastor Kevin DeYoung takes a few steps back & helpfully explains many of the factors leading to this present moment in our culture. In the process, he mades some important points & raises some very important questions.

I hope those help you as you continue to think through these. There are definitely more things to read, but there’s a start!

Baby Dedications—Sunday, June 21!

As a church, we are rich with children—& most recently infants!

Though we haven’t done it yet, we plan to offer regular times to dedicate the children born in this church to the Lord. 

We do baby dedications for a number of reasons, including:

• We want to thank God. Children are a heritage & gift from the Lord (Psalm 127:3)!

• We want to give parents an opportunity to dedicate children to the Lord. Children are called to “do everything to the glory of God” (1 Cor. 10:31). Their lives are not their own. So, we want to give parents an opportunity to dedicate them to the Lord & commit to calling them to glorify God with their lives.

• We want to join with parents to help raise these children in the Lord. The church is a “gymnasium” for godliness, as John Calvin has said. So we pray with & commit to join with these parents in training these children for godliness.

All that said, we plan to have baby dedications on Sunday, June 21!

If you would like your children to participate, please fill out the form below.

Phase 2 of re-opening Trinity Grace—June 7!

We have now met for 4 weeks in our first phase of re-opening Trinity Grace. 

As the case numbers continue to be low for McMinn County & as nearly all currently active cases are confined to LifeCare, we will now proceed to the next “phase” of reopening, in compliance with the Governor’s recommendations for churches. 

We have consulted with our advisory team & many members & plan to proceed with the following precautions:

• We will continue with physical distancing between rows. 

• We will continue to disinfect all chairs, handles, surfaces, & restrooms prior to the service. 

• We encourage folks to exercise personal discretion in regards to wearing masks or other personal protective equipment (i.e., masks are not required).

• We ask the sick to stay home. 

• We encourage folks 65-years-old or older or with pre-existing conditions to prayerfully consider whether they should stay home or not. 

• We will offer TGKids as an option for children 4 & under during the sermon portion. They are obviously welcome to stay with you, but our childcare is available. Each childcare worker’s temperature will be taken & they will wear a mask during class.

That said, we will continue to livestream our Sunday service on trinitygraceathens.com or our YouTube channel for the foreseeable future.

Brinner is back—Friday, June 12!

There is only one person’s pancakes worth talking about in Trinity Grace! And all the high-schoolers know it… (Keljan’s opinion doesn’t matter!)

They will be served in abundance at our next Brinner for the high-schoolers.

So high-schoolers, mark your calendars:

• Friday, June 12

• 6:30pm

• The Alexander’s Home

"I'm happy to be one of the weird people now!"

Last Sunday, Sandra called us weird! But then, she shared her story last Sunday & said she was happy to be one of the weird people now!

Sandra—pictured above as a little girl with her father & younger sister—has quickly become one of our favorites. Her joy, wit, sincerity, & compassion are just a few of the reasons!

If you weren’t there last Sunday, you can read her testimony below.

Hello, I am Sandra Swafford. I currently work for Simmons Bank, not as cool as the Secret Service for those of you who have heard Scott Trew’s Testimony, but I do look for illegal activity. I have been attending Trinity Grace since October of 2019. 

I am from El Paso, TX. I lived there with my parents until I was 13 and then we moved to Waco, TX. Yes, I have met Joanna Gaines from Fixer Upper for those of you who are wondering. 

My home life was typical or so I thought. I grew up around drugs and alcohol but I thought that was the norm since everyone around me was living the same life. 

We lived in Waco for 2 years and then my mom got a call that her grandmother was passing away. She really wanted to come to TN to see her so we all loaded up in the car. I had never been to TN before so I was meeting my mom’s side of the family for the first time. 

While we were at my great grandmother’s house I met my cousins, Lee and Joy Swafford. We chatted with them for a while and my parents and Lee and Joy joked about letting me and my sister come visit for the summer, my mom would visit during the summer from Florida where she grew up and her and Lee were reminiscing about that. So apparently my mom took the invitation seriously. 

My sister and I were sent on a Grey Hound bus to Tennessee to stay the whole summer with Lee and Joy at the ages of 14 and 15. At this point I realized that they lived totally different than what I have grown up with; I wanted to stay and I even asked my mom if I could, multiple times (I was a kid I didn’t know better). 

Going back a little, Lee and Joy went to church and we did not. I had been to “church” on the church van but I never listened. It was more of a social outing for me. I started going to church with them. I was hearing things about the Lord that I had never been exposed to before. We went to a summer camp called Camp Cherokee and that is where I surrendered my life to the Lord. 

Fast forward to the end of the summer. My sister and I went back home and I was devastated. I was exposed to the love of Jesus and I did not want to let it go. I was home for about a month and I came home from school one day and my mom told me that I was moving to TN. I was excited but confused at the same time. My mom was told that I was doing drugs and things that a 15-year-old should not be doing, which I did not have the best friends so one would think that I was just like them but I wasn’t. Well let’s get real no one is perfect, I have made plenty of mistakes, but I was not a terrible kid.  My mom believed what she was told and so she sent me back to TN. So, there I go again a 15-year-old on a Grey Hound bus to TN. That was a scary experience. 

I was immediately accepted into a family that I was not born into. I was one of their children and a sister to 3 new siblings. That has definitely been a blessing in my life. 

But the Lord had a plan from day one. He has protected me from so many things and he has used me in ways I never could have imagined. He has given me things that I never thought would be a possibility for me.  

Now, how did I come to find Trinity Grace, or how did God send Trinity Grace to me? I actually met Eliana through Lee and Joy and she invited me to visit the church. I was attending church in Cleveland and I would pass the Middle School on my way to church on Sundays and I would think I really need to visit since she invited me. God began to deal with me about how I need to be serving in the community I live in. So, I felt like it was finally time to accept the invitation from Eliana. 

I immediately felt the love of God at Trinity Grace. I thought to myself, these people are weird. It was just different. It was the hands and feet of Jesus. 

I am so thankful for his saving grace and that I am a part of the weird people, the Trinity Grace Family. 

Read Acts 21–26 for Sunday!

This Sunday, May 31, we’re going to do something we have never done before. We’re going to take up & study a massive section—6 chapters!—of Scripture at once.

Usually, we take up bits of Scripture. However, this Sunday we’re going to unpack the meaning of Acts 21–26 in one sermon. Whew. Should be fun.

If you can, read through Acts 21–26 before Sunday. It will help you get your bearing & follow along.

if you plan to livestream & would like sheets for the kids to take notes, you can download them below.

• For older kids.

• For younger kids.

• Coloring sheet for the TGKids class.

In the meantime, here is a quote on the book of Acts to whet your appetite.

“This book [of Acts] contains unanswerable evidence of the truth of the Christian religion. It is a record of the early triumphs of Christianity. Within the space of thirty years after the death of Christ, the gospel had been carried to all parts of the civilized, & to no small portion of the uncivilized, world. Its progress & its triumphs were not concealed. Its great transactions were not ‘done in a corner.’ It had been preached in the most splendid, powerful, & corrupt cities; churches were already founded in Jerusalem, Antioch, Corinth, Ephesus, Philippi, and at Rome. The gospel had spread in Arabia, Asia Minor, Greece, Macedon, Italy, & Africa. It had assailed the most mighty existing institutions; it had made its way over the most formidable barriers; it had encountered the most deadly & malignant opposition; it had traveled to the capital [Rome] & had secured such a hold even in the imperial city as to make it certain that it would finally overturn the established religion & seat itself upon the ruins of paganism. Within thirty years, Christianity had settled the point that it would overturn every bloody altar, close every pagan temple, bring under its influence the men of office, rank, & power, & that ‘the banners of the faith would soon stream from the palaces of the Caesars.’ All this would be accomplished by the instrumentality of Jews—of fishermen—of Nazarenes. They had neither wealth, armies, nor allies. With the exception of Paul, they were men without learning. They were taught only by the Holy Spirit, armed only with the power of God, victorious only because Christ was their Captain, & the world acknowledged the presence of the messengers of the Highest & the power of the Christian religion. Its success never has been, & never can be, accounted for by any other supposition than that God attended it. And if the Christian religion is not true, then the change brought about by the twelve apostles is the most inexplicable, mysterious, & wondrous event that has ever been witnessed in this world. Their success will stand until the end of time as an argument for the truth of God’s plan, that shall confound the unbeliever & sustain the Christian with the assured belief that this is a religion which has proceeded from the almighty & infinitely benevolent God.” Albert Barnes (1798–1870)

That’s amazing. All that happened in the book of Acts was for no other reason “than that God attended it.”

Details for Community Group Meetings in June.

Community Groups are the heart & soul of our church. They are where true friendships are built & strengthened. They are where we really live together.

And we have missed meeting all together SO MUCH.

But it was so good to gather together as men & women this month.

As we look to next month, it seems wise for our Community Groups to only gather as men & women for the month of June. The dates for June are below. Contact your Community Group leader for more information.

• June 3—MEN

• June 10—WOMEN

• June 17—MEN

• June 24—WOMEN

In addition, in order to benefit more from our times together, below is an article for us to read for each meeting.

• For the first meeting: THE HAUNTED HOUSE (Downloadable PDF)

• For the second meeting: LETHAL FAITH (Downloadable PDF)

Picnic Lunch this Sunday, May 31!

This SUNDAY, we are gathering to worship together at Ramble Creek.

It has been a blessing to gather there & see more folks come each week. We cannot wait until we are all gathered.

We hope you can join us.

Afterwards, you are invited to join us for a PICNIC LUNCH on Ramble Creek’s beautiful grounds!

In keeping with the guildelines:

• Bring your own lunch

• Bring a chair/blanket/Eno/etc to plop down & bask in the sun

The two sides of contentment.

“The Lord removed layer after layer to deepen my dependence upon Him.”

The Lord is not in a hurry. As 2 Peter 3:8 says, But do not overlook this one fact, beloved, that with the Lord one day is as a thousand years, and a thousand years as one day.

Most of the Lord’s work in our lives is slow & careful, so we need not be afraid. Last Sunday, Mandy Tinsman reminded us of that & testified to God’s continued, steady work in her life. Read along & be encouraged!

Several weeks ago, I felt the Lord urging me to share my testimony.  This request was overwhelming because articulating thoughts is one of my greatest weaknesses.  However, as the Lord continued to nudge me, memory after memory of God’s faithfulness flooded my mind daily, and I began writing them down.  In less than a week, Walt asked me to share my testimony. This request confirmed it was time, so I prayerfully began piecing together my spiritual journey of God’s faithfulness in my life.

As a 3rd generation Christian, I felt the Lord calling me to Him during a weekly revival at my home church when I was 7.   Nothing extravagant happened that night, but my heart longed to do what I had been taught about, and I asked Jesus into my heart.  Later at 10 years old, I told my best friend that I did not want to live for God anymore but would return to Him after my teen years.  I was afraid I would miss out on all the fun if I lived God’s way. She begged me not to walk away from God and left me alone.  As I sat there contemplating, I felt led to pray. While praying, I saw 2 backs. One was smooth as a baby’s and the other had scabs all over it.  The scabs gradually went away, but left scars. It seemed like the Lord was showing me two different paths. If I followed my own desires, he would still love and forgive me, but sin would scar my life long past my teen years. On the other hand, I could follow Him and be spared much heartache.  In that moment, I prayed and committed to follow Him.  I have never regretted that decision!

Salvation as a child did not seem to change me much from the outside, but God was at work on the inside.  My mom taught me many things that greatly impacted my life.  She helped me memorize Scripture. She helped me to stay pure for marriage.  At the age of 12, I began praying for God to keep my future husband pure as well as purposing in my heart that I too would remain pure. God honored that prayer and protected us both.

Later in my mid teen years, I began struggling with whether I was truly saved.  I had good seasons of living out God’s commands, but then there were times that I was not faithful and felt distant from Him.  One afternoon, I asked God if I really was saved.  I sensed the Lord saying to me, “Did you ever purpose in your heart to leave me?”  I searched my heart and said, no. He assured me that he hadn’t left, and my struggle ended.  

 God continued to mold me as I gained a deeper understanding of Him.  All my life I grew up believing that our church group were the only people going to Heaven, and I am sure I was self-righteous without knowing it.  Eating lunch one day at work, I realized that I saw Christ’s attributes in my co-workers and wrestled with how could they not be followers of Christ? Immediately John 13:35 came to my mind: By this shall all men know that ye are my disciples, if ye have love one to another.  The Lord showed me then that He had followers outside of our fellowship of churches.  This was a powerful revelation for me.

Not only has the Lord been faithful to guide me over the years, but He has walked with me through many difficulties along this journey.  Once, when Marissa was only 19 months old, she drowned in our pool.  While performing CPR on her and screaming for help, of which there was none, I felt a voice say to me: “run.”  I scooped up her lifeless body and ran to where I “just so happened” to have my cellphone charging to call 911.  She regained consciousness during this time but continued going in and out and was care flighted to Knoxville.  On our drive to the hospital, the story of Abraham came to my mind and I had this surreal peace come over me that no matter the outcome, God was good, God’s ways were higher than my ways and His thoughts higher than mine.  By God’s mercies, she sits with us here today.  

So as I’ve grown in my understanding of who God is, it’s as if I am a never-ending stack of paper that He removes one layer at a time revealing my insufficiencies and deepens my dependence on Him.

I have come to see the gospel as the good news at any age and in every season.  He can take us from checking off a to do list of reading scripture, trying to be a good moral person, going to church and thinking that somehow we are going to get our life worked out to a personal living dynamic relationship with a loving Father, the King of Kings through his son Jesus.  

I hope hearing my story has encouraged you to trust the Lord with all your heart for He came not just to forgive us, but that we may have life, and to have it abundantly.

Church Planting in a Pandemic in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia!

WE WANT TO PLANT CHURCHES & WANT TO HELP CHURCH PLANTS LOCALLY & THROUGHOUT THE WORLD!

We have said many times that we as a church want to plant a church one day (hopefully sooner than later), but until then & after then we want to encourage & help church plants.

Last week, we sent a financial gift to Michael Granger to help him, his wife Kenean, & their team plant Trinity Fellowship Church in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia.

Michael (center), along with several members of the church planting team, being prayed for & sent out.

HERE IS AN UPDATE FROM MICHAEL

April was supposed to be a big month out here.  I guess it still was, just not in the way we had imagined. We had planned to start a church!  Back in March, we were going full speed ahead. Together with Abenezer and Nega, we traveled to Dubai in order to purchase sound equipment as it is not easily accessible and very overpriced here in Ethiopia.  Upon returning we were constantly meeting with individuals as we gathered our launch team. Then heading into April, Trinity Fellowship (that's the name of our church) was to have its soft launch followed by a hard launch in June.  In fact, we were all geared up to have our first service on April 12th. Worship songs were selected, we were going to take communion, and we were going to do a 4-week series entitled Why We’re Gospel-Centered.  But on April 11th, the government put out a new policy prohibiting gatherings larger than 4 people.  So at 11 pm, the night before our first service, an email was sent out to our team informing them that the service scheduled for the following day was officially canceled.  

We are now about 4 weeks into isolation and we do not leave the house for much more than groceries and the occasional ministerial appointment. But I think the most pronounced attitude in our hearts is that of thanksgiving and gratefulness.  We have seen first hand how difficult those living in abject poverty are faring and feel overwhelmed by the kindness of the Lord that we have a home, food, health, and Christ above all things.  

Looking forward, we're not sure when the government will allow us to meet; some are saying the height of this virus will hit us in Ethiopia sometime in May. Others say we're about to return to some kind of normalcy.  But, the church is not a building nor is it a service. It's the people. And so, I think you could say in one sense Trinity Fellowship has already been planted.  Even though we cannot have a service we are trying to have 1 or 2 individuals from the church over for lunch every Tuesday and Thursday in an effort to pray, read the Word, minister to them, create community, and establish fellowship.

Sharing the hope to be found in the story of Jesus sleeping in the boat as it fills with water from Mark 4 with this Muslim-background-believing family. Their father died one year ago and the mother recently quite her job at a hotel out of fear of contracting the virus. They were all smiles in their tiny home.

PRAYER REQUESTS:

Short term prayer requests:

• Please pray for Abenezer—for growth in wisdom, grace, theological discernment, and holiness; for our unity; and for a wife.

• Please continue to pray for Aster (the single mother who lives and works with us) and her two children. We want to disciple her and her children well.  Pray for unity in our relationships and for the gospel to powerfully heal and strengthen them.

• Please continue to pray for Muhammad and the Somali Christians.  Pray for the Lord's comforting presence in his life.

• Please continue to pray for my dad Mike Granger who continues to fight cancer.

• Please pray for a building for our church to meet in.  Our top two desired locations have fallen through.

• Please pray for God to grow Trinity Fellowship in holiness, unity, love for Christ, and love for one another.

Long term prayer requests:

• Please pray that God would give us grace for a life-long sustained obsessing love for the person of Christ.

• Please pray for total surrender to Christ.

• Please pray that God would help us to start a Christ-Centered Church in Addis Ababa that would serve as a model to all of Ethiopia.

• Please pray that God would give us faithful and gifted indigenous partners; that he would lead us to the right men to disciple and train for ministry.

New position: Deacon On Duty!

Drumroll please… We’ve created a new serving position at Trinity Grace: Deacon on Duty!

Each week one of our deacons—Daniel, Dustin, Gil, or Tim—serve as our Deacon on Duty. That’s D.O.D. for short!

(For the record, Kenton is not a deacon—even though he does make this picture & Sundays more enjoyable!)

With the changes of meeting at Ramble Creek & COVID-19, these men oversee all the setup. They carefully oversee cleaning & sanitizing all the bathrooms, chairs, surfaces, etc & set up the space for corporate worship.

Thank the Lord for these men & deacons to serve our church!