Fall Offering Letter (2006)
November 1, 2006
Dear Family of Friends,
We have enjoyed a tremendous season of growth this fall as we have studied the book of Joshua together. Most encouraging to me have been the men and women—mostly in the second service—who have made a decision to believe in Jesus Christ.
As we conclude our study of Joshua, we move directly into the holiday season at Grace. Beginning with Thanksgiving, we pause to thank the Lord for His bountiful blessings and provisions. Then we begin our Christmas celebration with our adult musical, Wondrous Gift, Nov. 30 & Dec. 1 & 3. This will be a powerful retelling of the Christmas story and will help to refocus our attention on truly wondrous gift of our Lord Jesus Christ born in Bethlehem more than 2000 years ago. In addition to our adult musical, we will also celebrate with our kids’ choirs on Dec. 17 as they present Miracle on Main Street. Our kids’ musicals are always a delight to watch! We will conclude our Christmas celebration with our traditional Candles, Carols & Communion service on Christmas Eve. This year we will have two services, at 5 p.m. and 7 p.m. Plan now to celebrate the birth of our Savior on Christmas Eve with Grace Church.
Finally, I want to ask you to join with me in praying for our offering on Nov. 19. Each year we give two special offerings at Grace. In January of this year I asked each family to prepare to give “one month to the master” this November. I challenged each family to give the equivalent of one extra month’s mortgage payment or rent payment to the Lord. The first $50,000 of this offering will go towards capital improvements on our facility, and the rest will go directly towards the principal on our mortgage. It is my prayer that we can take another giant step towards becoming debt free and preparing for the next phase of ministry the Lord has prepared for us. Enclosed with this letter is a special envelope for your special offering on Nov. 19. Bonnie and I are looking forward to giving our gift to the Lord for His glory.
In Christ, Where it is Safe,
Phil Winfield
Senior Pastor
Giving Letter (7/2006)
July 17, 2006
Dear Family of Friends,
I hope you are enjoying your summertime! As I write this, the temperatures are soaring into the 90s during the day. I can’t help but think, however, of the many U.S. soldiers serving in Iraq today. I read a news account recently that temperatures in Iraq will reach into the 110 to 120 degree range! These men and women deserve every vote of thanks and appreciation we can give them.
God has certainly blessed us in so many ways. For me, the highlight of 2006, so far, is to see the new church in Newton growing and reaching people for Christ. Pastor Dan is doing a great job of leading and shepherding Grace Church of Newton. A couple of weeks ago there were 160 people in attendance for the morning service, and the church averages 130 on a weekly basis. Praise the Lord!
God is also using the people of Grace Church to carry the gospel to Central Iowa. Going Public With Your Faith continues to bear fruit as people put out their faith flags, cultivate relationships, and when the moment is right, share about how Jesus Christ has impacted their life.
As we look forward to the last half of 2006, we are preparing for a new teaching series this fall on the Old Testament book of Joshua. The book of Joshua tells the story of the nation of Israel possessing the promise land. It is filled with incredible spiritual lessons and principles that have great application to us today. I can’t wait to begin this September.
Fall is also the time to get plugged into ministry. Coming August 27 we will have our annual Ministry Focus, a mini “ministry fair” in which you can see all of the opportunities to get involved serving Christ through Grace Church. Whether it is working with our next generation or using your musical talents, there is a place for you at Grace.
Finally, remember our “One Month for the Master” offering in November. I am putting a little money aside each month so I can participate and give in this offering.
May the Lord richly bless you and keep you, my dear family of friends!
In Christ Where it is Safe,
Pastor Phil
Christmas Letter (2005)
December 8, 2005
Dear Family of Friends,
One of our goals as a church family this year was the establishment of missionary housing. Last month—by a margin of 96 percent—we voted to purchase a house five minutes from the church. Sitting high on a hill on Grandview just west of E. 29th Street, it is clear this was once a farm house and was surrounded by farmland. As the city of Des Moines grew, the neighborhood was built around this 1880s home and incorporated into the city. Thinking about its history as a farm, the name “Harvest House” came to me. What a better description for a home for missionaries that “Harvest House.”
On Sunday, December 19, we will give our annual Christmas Missionary Offering. This year’s offering will go towards the purchase of Harvest House. What excites me is that this is a project in which our entire church family can participate. First, we have taken the step of faith and voted to purchase the home. Second, we need to give. This is an investment in missions that will have a lasting influence. For years to come, Harvest House will be a haven of rest and restoration for foreign missionaries both our own home grown and others that come our way. Finally, we can all get involved in making Harvest House a comfortable, friendly environment. There will be small home improvement projects, landscaping, hospitality teams, and more!
Harvest House is an exciting addition to our ministry and to the mission emphasis of our church. To see more pictures and a complete outline of our plans for Harvest House, visit our Web Site—www.gracehome.com—and follow the “Harvest House” link on the front page.
Let me say on a personal note that Bonnie and I have never been as encouraged as now concerning the ministry God has set before us. You are precious to us. Each of you is special. Many of you are new to Grace Church and others have been here for years having sent us out as missionaries to Peru way back in ’89. No matter when you came we are happy to be part of this “Family of Friends”, and are glad you are a part. I pray we can faithfully stick to the purpose of magnifying the Lord Jesus Christ by “bringing people into God’s family, building people up in God’s family, preparing people for service in God’s family and sending people out to evangelize from God’s family.”
We wish you a very Merry Christmas and Happy New Year. Of course we pray that we all will remember Christ at Christmas. He is the reason for the season.
In Christ where it is safe,
Phil Winfield
Anniversary Celebration 2005
Monday, October 24, 2005
Dear Family of Friends,
"What on earth am I... oops! are we here for?"
That is the question we have been seeking to answer during the 40 Days of Community over the last few weeks. The most important part of the whole program is the âweâ part. We are better together. It is true. So many times we are committed to working together to get things done when God actually wants us to work together to give him glory. Togetherness is the key thought.
That leads me to announce the two reasons we want to celebrate together as the Family of Friends on the 20 of November.
First we want to celebrate what God is doing in our church family. God is doing some awesome things in the lives of our people and we want to hear about it and to rejoice with them.
Also, 26 years ago God put it in the heart of Pastor Bob Wynveen and a handful of believers to come together to start what is now Grace Church. The years have passed and the Lord has built his church. Wow, has he built his church. Someone estimated that about 2100 different people come to Grace Church in a 4 week period. Well, we want you to all come on the same day. We want you to come and to celebrate the great things God has done. What better way to do this than to do it together? So, at 9:30 AM on the 20th of November we are going to have one giant service. Yes it will be a very full auditorium but what a blessing to be together for that one service. Here is how we plan to celebrate.
- Extended praise and worship
- Fantastic special music and Guest Artist Warren Rogers accompanied by the Grace Church Choir
- First ever balloon drop right in the auditorium
- Giant anniversary cake to share in the FLC
- Photo shoot of the Body of Christ. This requires a little explanation. 1 Corinthians 12:20 says, "But now indeed there are many members, yet one body." We are celebrating the 40 Days of Community and 26 years as the local body of Christ called Grace Church. Weather permitting, we are going to draw an outline of the body of Christ on the parking lot (or somewhere on the grounds) and then we are all going to stand together inside of it to represent the Body of Christ here at Grace Church. We are going to take an overhead picture of the body called Grace and then give every family a copy of the picture and also mount one at an entrance of the building. I canât wait. Please be here and stand with us in the Body of Christ picture.
Finally, it is also time for our annual Harvest offering. We ask that you make a sacrificial gift twice a year to the ministry outreach of Grace Church. Letâs make it a love offering to the Lord for 26 years of glorious ministry here at Grace. I am ready to give my double tithe. I pray that everyone will join me. It is time to celebrate. Celebrate with us.
Guess Who's Coming to Dinner Letter
“D’gyaeatyet?”
What? Well it is a Deep South way of saying “did you eat yet” I know it is sort of southern. But I do want to talk to you about eating; it is one of my favorite subjects. Specifically, I want to talk to you about a special meal that Matthew Put together for a few friends in honor of Jesus. The story is told of how Levi, a tax collector, was called to follow Jesus. Let’s read it in Luke 5:27.
27After this, Jesus went out and saw a tax collector by the name of Levi sitting at his tax booth. “Follow me,” Jesus said to him, 28 and Levi got up, left everything and followed him.
29 Then Levi held a great banquet for Jesus at his house, and a large crowd of tax collectors and others were eating with them. 30 But the Pharisees and the teachers of the law who belonged to their sect complained to his disciples, “Why do you eat and drink with tax collectors and ‘sinners’?”
31 Jesus answered them, “It is not the healthy who need a doctor, but the sick. 32 I have not come to call the righteous, but sinners to repentance.”
The change in Levi was so great that his name was changed to Matthew because Levi, the crooked tax collector, just didn’t fit him any more. He wanted his other friends to know what Jesus had done for him. So he planned a meal at his house and invited publicans (tax collectors – not too loved by anyone) and Jesus. He spent his money and gave his time to introduce his friends to Jesus. What a wonderful idea!
In a few weeks we are coming together at the Convention Center with The Grace Fellowship of Churches for a joint meeting. Evangelist Junior Hill will give a gospel message, the Grace Fellowship will make a public proclamation of its intention to be a blessing and not a burden to Des Moines and its people, and we will kick off our 40 Days of Community campaign. What a wonderful opportunity for you to bring a friend.
Let me help you bring your friend to a service that will at least plant the gospel seed in his/her heart and may even see them come to Christ the same day:
- Start to pray about the person(s) the Lord would have you invite. We will give you memory jogger next week to help you think of those people.
- Put their name on the possible guest list that we will provide. Pray diligently for them and look for an opportunity to invite them to the Community Service and to lunch.
- Invite them to come with you September 25. Take the two-part invitation for lunch and the community service and prayerfully invite the person or family to the Community Service and to Lunch either at you home, or at a restaurant. If the first person turns you down then just ask another person on your list.
- Let your church family pray with you for your friend. Bring the part that says, “Guess who’s coming to lunch” (dinner) including only the first names of the guest(s) and your full name to the church. Leave the other part with your guest as a reminder of the appointment. At the church we will have in the atrium a four sided “Guess Who’s Coming to Dinner,” display. It will serve as our prayer center for the weeks leading up to the Community Service.
- Let your guest know you are looking forward to dinner with them. As September 25th approaches, we will pray together for your friend or family member and you will make one final contact to make arrangements to get together at the convention center and then dinner afterwards.
- Enjoy the day. After attending the service, you can dine together and of course hopefully have the opportunity to talk about what they heard. There are no evening activities at the church that night so you have the time to spend with your guests!
- Just imagine. Imagine what it will be like if each family brings only one person on September 25. We could easily see 500 first-time guests come to hear the gospel. Would it not be wonderful to see many of our friends and family trust Jesus as their Savior that day!
Here is a wonderful opportunity. Let’s not waste it. I believe this simple meeting and dinner invitation could make the difference in the lives of dozens if not hundreds of individuals. Attempt Great things for God; Expect great things from God – William Carey.
Ephesians 3:20 (NKJ) Now to Him who is able to do exceedingly abundantly above all that we ask or think, according to the power that works in us, 21 to Him be glory in the church by Christ Jesus to all generations, forever and ever. Amen.
Let’s give God Glory!
Pastor Phil