COMPositions 17

THANK YOU LORD!

UPWARD SUNDAY was an incredible opportunity to witness and celebrate what God is doing through our annual 8 week sports ministry called Upward Basketball & Cheerleading. The number of volunteers who take considerable time to invest in the lives of children and youth in our community is amazing. From set up to clean up, Coaches to concessions, and scorekeepers to referees; everyone worked together as a team and made it a phenomenal season in spite of the cutbacks and limitations of COVID. The weekly practices and games provided many opportunities to learn some new skills, make some new friendships, experience a positive environment, and hear about God’s great love for all people. A huge thank you to Jonathan Sisson and his executive team for organizing and overseeing another great season in the midst of a pandemic. And a sincere thanks to all the volunteers who pitched in and made it happen. To God be the glory!

Our ANNUAL BUSINESS MEETING took place this past Wednesday night. Though the turnout was small there was a positive spirit and everything on the ballot was ratified. The 2021-2022 Budget of $720,000.00 was approved. This is a reduction of $77,000.00 from the 2020-2021 Budget and $76,205.00 below our total 2021 Income. We anticipate the restrictions and limitations of COVID will be lifted at some point thus allowing us to resume some of the ministry expenses which were reduced or eliminated due to COVID. In addition, Nedra Bradley and Charles Stewart were approved for a 3 year term on the Governance Board which they will assume on March 1st. Please be sure to welcome them and make it a point to express your appreciation to Marilyn Cole and Dewayne Joyner who rotated off the Governance Board this year. On behalf of the Governance Board and Staff, we sincerely appreciate your confidence, participation, support, and prayers as NorthPark seeks to show and share the love of Jesus to Meridian and Lauderdale County. May God continue to bless, direct, and provide as we keep a clear vision, maintain our common values, and offer ourselves as living sacrifices.

Here at NorthPark we want to provide hope & assistance for people to seek, discover, & experience an intimate relationship with God. Whether that person is far from God or deeply rooted in their faith,….because we believe everyone has a next best step. We believe this can best be achieved by pursuing 3 vital relationships:
1.INTIMACY WITH GOD  (Genuine Worship)
    Intimacy is cultivated through the consistent practice of the “spiritual discipline” which consists
    of personal Bible reading, prayer, solitude, fasting, simplicity, & service.

2.COMMUNITY WITH INSIDERS  (Intimate Fellowship)
    Community with fellow believers is cultivated through the consistent practice of the “one
    another” commands like love one another, forgive one another, honor one another, encourage,
    one another, bear one another’s burdens.

3.INFLUENCE WITH OUTSIDERS  (Christian Service)
    Influence with “not yet believers” is cultivated through intentional acts of compassion in Jesus’
    name, being active in community events, and hosting engaging activities.


Everything we do here at NorthPark is focused on these objectives. Although COVID has significantly limited our church activities and the participation level of many people, we have been blessed to be able to gather for weekly worship on Sundays and regular Wednesday night activities without incident for the last 49 weeks. Praise be to God! And thank you for your diligence in masking and social distancing. With the increasing availability of the vaccines and the decrease in serious cases, I am hoping more people will feel comfortable returning to these weekly gatherings and reinvesting in these important relationships. We hope to add more activities in the coming months as confidence increases and the number of cases continues to go down. For the time being and the foreseeable future, we will be following the current mask and social distance protocols.

As you know, a logo is a graphical design used by businesses and churches to convey a succinct message by which the organization can easily be recognized.  It is a tool to build an identity and generate a favorable impression about the organization.  A logo needs to be simple and memorable for the greatest impact. The NorthPark logo displays a cross in the center of two of the Chapel towers which are a distinguishing architectural design. The towers represent the building where we meet,….the cross points to Jesus whom we preach. The logo can be seen and conveys an impression, but it is still up to us to share the good news and tell others about Jesus. I want to challenge you to join me in making it a point to display our logo publicly and share the good news about Jesus regularly with your family, friends, classmates, and co-workers. Now as always, but perhaps more than ever,….people need the Lord!

ATTENTION MEN: If you are retired or able to stop by before work, I want to invite you to join us for a weekly Men’s Breakfast on Thursday mornings at 7:00 AM at the Meridian Cracker Barrel. You can come when you’re able and stay as long as you’d like, order a full meal and enjoy some conversation or just stop by for a cup of coffee and say hello. No reservations are necessary and everyone is welcome.

For His Glory,  Pastor Greg

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