Culturally Savvy Pt 1

Weekly Bulletin

Announcements

• All House Group Hosts and Facilitators, there is a manditory meeting
Monday Night 7pm at the Inge’s house. Dessert and Drinks provided.

• Outreach/Mercy Ministry team meeting this Tuesday night May 1st.
We will be meeting at 8:30 pm at Joe Muggs Coffee.

• Children’s Church Volunteers Needed. We are growing and in need of people
to help with Mystery Kids. If you have children or would like to serve in our
children’s ministry please see Kacey Ball to find out how you can help.

Prayer

If you have a prayer need please email: prayer@mysterychurch.com

• Pray over the poverty in this area--its effects on children and adults.
• Pray against the addictions of the city that give false hope and comfort.
• Ask God to give you compassion for people and a heavy heart for the city.

Sermon Texts

Exodus 5 & 6, John 14:1,6,18, 25-27, 29, 16: 33, Eph 3:8-12, 14-21, Phil 3:3,7-11,12-21

Deservedness

“Man puts himself where only God deserves to be and; God put himself were only man deserves to be.”- John Stott

PODCAST

You can now listen online to our Sunday teachings or take Mystery with you on your iPod.
Visit mysterychurch.com and click on "listen" in the main menu. Find the current weeks teaching as well as past sermons from our Sunday night worship service.

You can also subscribe to our podcast via iTunes. SUBSCRIBE NOW
Aint technology grand!



Love Live Enjoy

For the Week

Long time not personal update so here goes....

Well it has been nuts around here latey. We are almost 2 months into meeting outside the home and nearing our first month since publicly launching our new service. We have had 50+ people a week and have seen lots of new faces in the last few weeks and hope to see some of you again really soon.
Childrens ministry, after a packed Easter, realized the need for more volunteers very shortly. If you are interested please see Kacey on Sunday.
Home groups are in full swing. If you would like to get involved in one of these they meet Wed. night and are currently studying John Stott's Basic Christianity (a must read for any Christian or anyone with questions about Christianty). Theres fun conversation and great food to boot. Look for Anna Link On Sunday's or email us at info@mysterychurch.com.
I spent the last week in bed sick with all sorts of crud and in the process lost me trusty Mac to hard drive failure. Back your junk up kids, back it up...
We began and new series on Sunday mornings, teaching through Exodus through the summer. Our three weeks into Exodus have tought us the following: God is good. God is big. And God takes himself very seriously. For more seriously sadly than we take him. He is soveriegn, severe, sufficient and most of all is the means to our salvation. His grace and his love are without merit and compare.
See you Sunday.

Steev

Conversations about Christ

There is a great post by Ed Stetzer over at The Resurgance on Starting conversations with people about Jesus.

"Sharing Christ can be a challenge in our culture today. It often seems like we've become the guy at the front of the supermarket peddling a newspaper subscription—the one everyone avoids. There are always challenges that come with the opportunities. But how do you deal with these challenges? Part of it is finding a starting point."

It's a good easy read and subject that we must address if we are indeed to live out the mission of Christ in our lives and for the city.

Full Post here: Beginning a Conversation about Christ.

Not for thyself O church

“These places of worship are not built that you may sit here comfortably, and hear something that shall make you pass away your Sundays with pleasure. A church in (Joplin) which does not exist to do good in the slums, and dens, and kennels of the city, is a church that has no reason to justify its longer existing. A church that does not exist to reclaim heathenism, to fight with evil, to destroy error, to put down falsehood, a church that does not exist to take the side of the poor, to denounce injustice and to hold up righteousness, is a church that has no right to be. Not for thyself, O church, dost thou exist, any more than Christ existed for himself. His glory was that he laid aside his glory. . . . . To rescue souls from hell and lead to God, to hope, to heaven, this is [the church’s] heavenly occupation. O that the church would always feel this!” -Spurgeon

On Being A Missional Church

Dr. Tim Keller on being a missional church.

Click the image for a short video from the Desiring God Conference.

Good stuff to think about as we address our city and the cultures we live in.

Religion or Redemption?

“The first question is this,“ do I believe that Jesus came into the world to save sinners, or to make them into good people? Do I think the Gospel is at all a moral message“ or is it a redemptive message? Only the true Gospel would compel me to love and bring Jesus to people so far off.” – Mark Lauterbach

NO FOOLIN!

Hey everyone.
THIS Sunday April 1st is Mystery's official Launch. We would love to have you join us Sunday evening beginning at 5:30pm for worship (childrens church is available). We gather at historic First Presbyterian Church in Down town Webb City.
Please be in prayer for the weekend. Bring a friend and share in the fun.

It is a time to celebrate and see God move in great ways!

PRAY HARD & INVITE MANY.

COME JOIN US!

Faithfulness & Perseverance

“Perseverance is not the result of our determination, it is the result of God’s faithfulness.”- Eugene Peterson

10 Ways to Avoid Building Community Within the Church

Mystery has as one of its values community. Real authentic, gut level commmunity is our goal. This is however one of the hardest things to find in any church. Community involves honesty and honesty involves risk, something most people, even followers of Jesus seem to struggle hardilly against. Mystery is a church where it is ok not to be ok. We want to be people who love one another and live alongside one another and enjoy each others company, humbly following the example of community set forth in the the Trinitarian God we worship.

Here is a great blog post featuring 10 ways to avoid building community in the church. Sad but true. I see myself in several of them. How about you?

"#9 Make your default response “everything is great”
People will always ask how you are doing. Make sure that you have your “default” answer ready so that when they ask you are ready to say, “everything is great!” This must be your default response, otherwise you might actually let on that your life is not perfect, or worse, that you are struggling."

Read the complete blog here.

Romans 8:28

God is in deed a good God. Yesterday First Presbyterian Church of Webb City voted to allow us to continue to use their facilities for one year! We have been meeting their this month knowing that we may be asked to leave but the votes are in and majority of the congregation believes this is a relationship from God.
Please join us in praising the Lord for his provision and encouragement.
Thanks to everyone who has been praying for this.

Romans 8:28

The Cheif End of Man

As we move forward on Mission to love God and make him known in the city I find it good to look into the traditions and thoughts of those who have come before us. What is our purpose? What are we to do with our lives? Why do we exist in person and as the church? All valid questions fitting to us today.
The Following are the first two questions and answers from the Westminster Shorter Catechism completed in 1647 to answer some of these pressing thoughts annd give guidance to Christians in knowing their identity and living their purpose.

Q. 1. What is the chief end of man?

A. Man's chief end is to glorify God, [a] and to enjoy him for ever. [b]

[a]. Ps. 86:9; Isa. 60:21; Rom. 11:36; I Cor. 6:20; 10:31; Rev. 4:11
[b]. Ps. 16:5-11; 144:15; Isa. 12:2; Luke 2:10; Phil. 4:4; Rev. 21:3-4

Q. 2. What rule hath God given to direct us how we may glorify and enjoy him?

A. The Word of God, which is contained in the Scriptures of the Old and New Testaments, [a] is the only rule to direct us how we may glorify and enjoy him. [b]

[a]. Matt. 19:4-5 with Gen. 2:24; Luke 24:27, 44; I Cor. 2:13; 14:37;
II Pet.1:20-21; 3:2, 15-16
[b]. Deut. 4:2; Ps. 19:7-11; Isa. 18:20; John 15:11; 20:30-31; Acts 17:11;
II Tim. 3:15-17; I John 1:4

Taken from Westminster Shorter Catechism

Prayer for the Week

We desire to be an effective church. Prayer is a crucial way for us to be effective.
Depending on God’s Grace and asking for his mercy and provision.

Ask God for opportunities to share Christ’s love each day.
Pray for Joplin, Webb City & the Surrounding Area
Pray for God to send more people to actively join Mystery on Mission
Pray for the new house groups that are starting next Wed night.
Pray for who you could invite to Mystery for our April 1st Launch and
For Easter Sunday service as well.

1 Thessalonians 5:17

New House Groups

Living Example

“Anyone who claims to be intimate with God ought to live the same kind of life Jesus lived.” 1 John 2:6 MSG

Acts 29 Network

Mystery is a member of the Acts 29 Network. The Acts 29 Network exists to start churches that plant churches. A29 is planting churches that are missionaries in their respective communities sent by Christ with the gospel (John 20:21). It is our desire as a network to plant 1,000 new churches in the next 20 years.
As a church Mystery has a personal goal of planting 10 New churches in the next 10 years. Currently we set aside 10% of everything coming into Mystery for the purpose of growing the kingdom through the planting of gospel centered, missional churches. We are supported in part by several church plants and we also support a church plant with our monthly giving.
Come share the vision and support the planting of new churches- Mystery and Acts 29.