3/6/2010

It’s been a busy week at the Power House in Baltimore, Maryland.

It started out Sunday with Morning Worship. As we gathered we learned that one congregant’s home had been broken into on Saturday. We also learned of equipment being stolen from the park. The topic for the message was the Transfiguration.

At Kids’ Church we started talking about the book of Ruth. For the craft time we made a dessert together. Though I wasn’t too sure about this project one of the kids said that this was, “The best Kids’ Church EVER!”

We had a steadier stream of kids coming to SonRisers this Wednesday. Over 60 participated in it. Of them 10 were either new or hadn’t been to church since at least June. That evening after the NA meeting we shared insights during the Mid-Week service.

We had three different requests by other groups to use the church for community based activities in the upcoming weeks. These included the census bureau, Americorps, and the middle school. We also had a request to meet for information from a University of Maryland student who is writing a paper on interactions among community organizations.

We worked on next week’s visit from the group from Michigan State University. Throughout the week we hammered out some details, made last minute adjustments, and made final preparations. Among those things was the fact that Paul’s Place had overbooked volunteers the day they were scheduled so only a portion of the crew can go that day.

Gloria and I joined with several other community leaders Thursday night at the church for a meeting lead by Americorps. In it we discussed community issues and possible projects in which Americorps could engage.

We also learned this week of the first person to be hired as a result of taking the Census Bureau test at the church. Hopefully it will be the first of many jobs that come from those tests.

Friday night brought Pizza Church. For the first time in ages, all three groups had similar numbers of kids in them. The first group finished up its video curriculum, the second group finished the book of Ruth, and the third group continued its study of the Gospel of Matthew.

Five of our kids got up early on Saturday morning to go to the Hunger Challenge in Springfield, Virginia. Sarah picked them up at the church around 8:30. She’ll return them on Sunday afternoon.

This week kids started getting acceptance letters from local high schools. Bryce was accepted at Baltimore Polytechnic Institute. We’re still waiting on word from our other 8th graders.

The students from Michigan arrived in town around 6:30 p.m. After dinner in a local restaurant we gathered at the church to talk a bit about the week ahead. Once we finished that and had a time of devotions, the band set up for the morning then we took people to their host homes.

Looking ahead to next week we have our full schedule of activities. The band from Michigan will the music during Morning Worship on Sunday. That afternoon we host the University of Maryland’s Community Health Fair. We expect the kids who attended the Hunger Challenge to return to Pigtown sometime Sunday afternoon. Throughout the week, the students from Michigan will be working in conjunction with several community groups, including Diggs-Johnson Middle School, The Friends of Carroll Park, and Paul’s Place. In addition, I have an interview with a University of Maryland student on Thursday. We have a pastors gathering in Virginia during the day on Saturday and our monthly Solid Rock Café on Saturday evening.

Along with the individuals and activities mentioned, please keep the following families in the forefront of your prayers:

The Burley Family
The Lydick Family
The Cizic Family
The Stichcomb Family
The Miskimon Family
The Iman Family
The Sigafoose Family
The Brown Family

Thank you for your continued prayer support.

Jeff and everyone at
The Power House
“Building the Kingdom of God Here and Now”
PowerHouseMD@Juno.com
www.pigtownchurch.org
http://thisweekatthepowerhouse.blogspot.com/