Jesus Is The Gift

Merry Christmas to our friends! We have some awesome opportunities to share Jesus this Christmas season! He is the Ultimate Gift that has already been given to us! Join us for Christmas caroling on December 5th! Our Sunday School Christmas Program is always a special time. See you there on December 12th at 6 pm. You will be blessed by the choir's musical "O Holy Night" on Sunday morning, December 19th, at 10:45 am. And most special of all will be our time of worship on Christmas Eve at 6 pm. Invite someone to come with you!


Oh, what a miracle Christmas is! God came to us so we could come to Him! Have a most blessed Christmas.

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Jesus is the Gift

Jesus is the gift that perfectly fits every heart and it is with His love that all celebration starts. We rejoice in Him as we remember His birth and thank God for sending His only Son to earth.

His life led from a manger to a cross on a hill where He faithfully followed His Father's perfect will. He freely laid down everything so that we could live and there is no greater treasure anyone could give.

Like a scarlet ribbon His love wrapped around the cross and He offered it to us all at the greatest cost. So each time that we give we remember what He's done and honor the perfect Gift - God's one and only Son.

For God so loved the world that He gave... John 3:16

My Tribute of Thanks

"By him therefore let us offer the sacrifice of praise to God continually,that is, the fruit of our lips giving thanks to his name." Hebrews 13:15

I sometimes cannot believe we are already in November of 2010! The new year will be just around the corner before we know it! When we come to the month of November, I immediately think of Thanksgiving…a time of giving thanks!

Giving praise to the Lord is one of the best ways to express our thanks to God for His many blessings and yet, I wonder how many of us do it on a regular basis? I’m not just talking about “saying grace” before we eat…or the list of blessings you may write down during this month. I’m talking about Hebrews 13:15…continually offering praise!

Continual doesn't just mean once a year or even once a day for that matter. It implies that it is repeated without interruption. David said in Psalm 34:1, "...His praise shall continually be in my mouth." He also said, "At midnight I will rise to give thanks unto thee because of thy righteous judgments." (Psalm 119:62) When's the last time we found ourselves up at midnight thanking the Lord? Later on in that same psalm David says, "Seven times a day do I praise thee because of thy righteous judgments." Do we stop seven times a day to praise God? Do we even stop once or twice to praise Him?

My desire for you this month is that you develop a lifestyle of praise to our Lord…realizing WHO God is and who we are not! Oh, may it be an amazing time of giving thanks to our Lord…not only in November but throughout the entire year!

I close with one of my favorite songs...”My Tribute” wriitten by Andre’ Crouch…

How can I say thanks for the things You have done for me? Things so undeserved yet you gave to prove your love for me. The voices of a million angels could not express my gratitude. All that I am, and ever hope to be, I owe it all to thee. To God be the glory, to God be the glory. To God be the glory for the things He has done. With His blood He has saved me. With His power He has raised me. To God be the glory for the things He has done. Just let me live my life and let it be pleasing Lord to thee. And if I gain any praise, let it go to Calvary. With His blood He has saved me. With His power He has raised me. To God be the glory for the things He has done." Have a most blessed Thanksgiving!

Help Deploy The Truth

Through Faith comes By Hearing's Military BibleStick project, our nation's troops are hearing the word of God while (or preparing for) deployment. The Military BibleStick is a digital Audio player that is pre-loaded with dramatized recording of the entire New Testament. Chaplains from every branch of the military are flooding Faith Comes By Hearing with requests. For $25 you can purchase Military BibleStick plus Bibles for their families. Between now and Veteran's Day (November 11th), we'd like to see if we can raise some funds to purchase a few Military BibleSticks. Stop and look at the display in the sanctuary.

October is Pastor Appreciation Month! Don't forget to express your thanks to Pastors Doug, Jeff and Becky!

We're looking forward to having Rev. Dave and Brenda Babcock, Global Partners' missionaries from Austria, with us on Sunday, October 24th, at 10:45 am. We'll have a potluck dinner following the service.

We Had An Awesome August - Let's Have a Super September!

August was awesome at Anoka Wesleyan! It started off with a block party on “Minnesota Unite Nite”! We were able to meet many of our neighbors and the jumping castle/slide was a HUGE success with the kids!

The next week we had a rockin’ time at our “Crocodile Dock” Vacation Bible School!! It was so much fun to hear of the “God sightings” that took place…it was a VBS where fearless kids shined God’s light!

We collected school supplies, zippers, Advil, and several personal items which will be going to Honduras this month to help in the ministry of Pastors Oscar and Maria. They will be deeply touched with your kindness! I hope you had a chance on Sunday to see the reversible sun dresses that one lady has been making! Pray for her as she delivers them to Honduras.

And to close the month out, we had an awesome afternoon for our Sunday School picnic at Orono Park in Elk River! Wasn’t the baptism service special!

And now it is time for Super September! It is back to school for our church kids! Thanks so much for praying for them as they return...in fact, why not ask our church kids from time to time how you can specifically pray for them! And let them know you love them too! Our Kids' Klub has kicked off its "Big God" series with lots of new faces this fall! Our Youth Group is growing...and the Young Adults are having an awesome time! Don't have a church home? Come join us!

It's Time For Vacation Bible School!

August is a busy month at Anoka Wesleyan! We had our Block Party this evening and had a wonderful turnout! We had a blowup jumping toy which was a wonderful attraction for kids! And the big and little kids all enjoyed when the Anoka Police stopped by to thank us for being part of "Minnesota's Nite to Unite!"

Now we are set for Bible School starting on Sunday, August 12th. Our theme will be "Crocodile Dock" -- encouraging kids to be on the lookout for God sightings! It's for all kids from ages 3 through 99! It will be August 8th through August 12th and will be a fun week of seeing God in action! Cost is $3.00 per person. There will be a class for teens and adults. To preregister, write anokawesleyan@yahoo.com or call 763-427-1068.

And don't forget to come to our Sunday School picnic at Orono Lake in Elk River on Sunday, August 22nd at 1 pm! See you there!

Guest Speaker on Human Trafficking - Sunday Morning, July 18th - 10:45 am

Sandie Morgan will be our guest speaker Sunday morning, July 18th, at 10:45 at Anoka Wesleyan. Her topic will be the local church's response to Human Trafficking. We invite to you attend.

Sandie is a Registered Nurse and has served on the board of the International Nurses Association in Athens, Greece where she lived for ten years. It was there that she discovered human trafficking while doing a story for Lydia Living magazine. She also serves as Director of Vanguard University’s Global Center for Women and Justice and is adjunct professor of Family Violence and Human Trafficking. www.vanguard.edu/gcwj. Sandie served as a Human Trafficking Dialogue Facilitator at the National Association of Evangelicals Global Leaders Forum in Washington D.C. and was invited to the first Whitehouse Roundtable on Human Trafficking. She has hosted the Senior Director for Global Projects from the US State Department for the first Economic Roundtable on Human Trafficking in Southern California as well as in Athens, Greece at the Athens Bar Association, as well as current Human Trafficking Ambassador Luis CdeBaca. Sandie Morgan is Administrator of the Orange County Human Trafficking Task Force enlisting the local community in partnership with law enforcement against the modern slave trade. As an advocate for victims of human trafficking, Sandie guest lectures in universities, community groups, and churches. Sandie has been interviewed by the LA Times http://articles.latimes.com/2008/01/10/metro/me-parsons10, the OC METRO Business Magazine http://www.ocmetro.com/NEW_SITE/metro031308/women.php. the OC Register, http://www.ocregister.com/articles/trafficking-229036-morgan-human.html KOCE – Real Orange, and other media. Developing community grassroots awareness is critical to ending slavery. She partnered with other members of the OC Community on an awareness video, The Cost of Demand which can be viewed at www.live2free.org. Changing the way we think about the forces that drive demand for human trafficking is her goal. She says, “The modern salve trade is a business fueled by demand. Consequently, to some degree we are all part of the problem or part of the solution. We contribute to demand by turning a blind eye to pornography and sex tourism or by making choices that reward companies that keep their bottom line under the rest of the market by the use of slave labor.”

Block Party and VBS in August

Mark your calendars now to attend two special events in August! We will be having a neighborhood Block Party as part of National Night Out on August 3rd from 6-8 pm! There will be food, games, music and fun! Come join us at 1930 Branch Avenue in Anoka!!

Vacation Bible School will be August 8-12th at Anoka Wesleyan from 6-8:30 pm for ages 3-99! VBS is always such an awesome time...plan on coming and inviting a friend! Cost is $3.00 for five days of a great time at "Crocodile Dock"!!!!

Remodeling Updates

The elevator lift is now complete and will take individuals to the sanctuary, the entryway, and the fellowship hall! It is regularly used each week! Ken has also completed the ramp for the front entrance, so no more step! The church is now handicap accessible! The next projects will be to replace the front entry doors, create a handicap restroom, put stairtreads on the concrete stairs, and replace the sound system! It's exciting, isn't it! Thank you for your faithful support in these projects! May the Lord receive all the honor and glory! I'll post some pictures soon!

Welcome, Jeff and Becky!!

On Monday afternoon, Jeff and Becky Poe moved to Anoka! They will be ministering to the young adults and the youth of Anoka Wesleyan! We're so excited to have them here! Jeff and Becky are recent graduates of Bethany Bible College in Sussex, Canada.

Did you know that there are 48 million young adults in the United States? We, as the church of Jesus Christ, want to empower this generation to use their gifts for the benefit of people and the purposes of God...to help them unlock their potential!

Be praying for Jeff and Becky as they start their new ministry!!!

Memorial Day

We were able to attend the community service this morning which was very touching and respectful. How grateful I am for the men and women who have served our country...and how humbled I am by those who have given their lives for our freedom. As the Gold Star parents laid the wreath for their child at the base of the memorial, I must admit my heart ached for them for they know the true price of freedom. The speaker for the program shared that our solders are ordinary men on an extraordinary mission to make a difference in our world because of freedom. During one part of the program, those from a particular area of the armed services were to stand..the Army, the Navy, the Marines, the Air Force, the Coast Guard, etc... I watched as young and old proudly stood to their feet...men and women who have been willing to be used. It was a sobering time.

I often wonder about those men who signed the United States Declaration of Independence..under the words "We hold these truths to be self-evident."...the list of names of men who were willing to stake their fortunres, their honor, and their lives on a few convictions that changed the world.

Jesus changed the world with a few who were willing to die for what they believed. He began with only twelve men...men that He chose to be with Him. These twelve were indeed special for they walked and talked with Jesus for those three years of His ministry...they learned from Him in person! And at the end of Christ's earthly mission...He sent these apostles out with the good news of the Gospel. We recently studied the first part of the book of Acts...the beginning of the Church after the visitation of the Holy Spirit at Pentecost. I had goose bumps as Doug shared from that portion of Scripture. But don't stop with Acts! Continue on in the Word, and you will see as multitudes heard of Jesus and followed Him, some went on to change the world!
And the neat part is that this is still what God is doing today -- He still uses people -- people who are willing to be His instruments for change in the world...ordinary people on an extrodinary mission...willing to make a difference in their world because of the freedom from sin offered through Jesus Christ! He uses us when we are willing! It doesn't take great people to do great things...just ordinary people on an extraordinary mission in service to an Omnipotent God! Are you one of them???

Pledge of Allegiance

In 1892, Francis Bellamy, a minister from Boston, first published the Pledge of Allegiance. Originally the word "God" was not in the pledge. But on June 14, 1954, President Eisenhower signed into law a provision that added the words "under God" to the pledge. Later President Eisenhower commented, 'In this way we are reaffiarming the transcendence of religious faith in America's heritage and future; in this way we shall constantly strengthen those spiritual weapons which forever will be our country's most powerful resource in peace and war.'

May This Be A Blessed Easter

As grateful as I am for the blood my Jesus shed on the cross, I am even more thankful that my Savior did NOT stay there. He not only paid the price for our transgressions -- He rose again! Jesus' sacrifice made it possible for you and I to enjoy the exquisite delight of union with Christ and also to experience the abundant life He promised!!! In the craziness of this present world, have hope for an amazing tomorrow! Jesus, thank you for the gift of salvation! Have a most blessed Easter!

SpringLife Is At Anoka Wesleyan

SpringLife began February 28th at Anoka Wesleyan and goes through May 2nd! It will be an exciting two month adventure where we focus on personal evangelism and spiritual formation. Our focus is on "Ready 4 More?" Who do you know that needs to hear the Good News? Add them to your ultimate "to do" list this spring! Our Post-It prayer wall is in the front of the church...be sure to add the names of those you are praying for to come to know Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior. May we learn to intentionally share our personal faith stories in Jesus with someone and may we commit to becoming a better follower of Jesus in the year ahead!

God's Valentine for You!

Happy New Year

May 2010 be an amazing year of spiritual growth as you walk with Christ your Lord! May you show His love in word and deed to a world that so desperately needs a Savior!

During the month of January, Pastor Doug will be speaking on FOUNDATIONS...you won't want to miss a Sunday morning!

We're excited about our elevator lift project at the church! It indeed is a step of faith! The project will cost approximately $50,000 and will provide access to the sanctuary and the fellowship hall plus, it will have a ramp at the front entrance! Thanks for praying as to what the Lord would have you give or pledge!