Yesterday, Pastor Byron shared a special message to celebrate TGP receiving a building and property 1 year ago. You can hear the message here. Today, I’d like to look at a few God things that have happened since this time last year.

 

First Wednesdays

In 2004, before Byron, Todd, and Nancy were pastors, the Barkules opened their house to young adults struggling with grief over the death of a fellow young adult from their church. That became the launching pad for what was called “The Barkules Group.” The group was hosted every Wednesday night. Nancy would prepare dinner for everyone who came. She did this to follow a word from the Lord: “You feed them physically, I will feed them spiritually.”

Once the Barkules Group transitioned into a church called the Gathering Place, the season for Wednesday nights began to wane, as more and more older adults began attending. Now that we have a building, we have recognized the need to have a time and space for young adults to experience God together.

In light of this need, our elder Jonathan and a faithful member, Sami, have partnered to launch a once a month gathering specifically for the young adult demographic. We are calling it “First Wednesdays.” Each evening is different. One evening could be about someone sharing how they experience God through an artistic expression. Another night may have someone sharing how they experience God through playing music. Still other nights may be how people have God encounters watching movies. It’s aim is to be a place where young adults can share how they experience God and learn how others experience Him.

 

More Preachers on Rotation

2018 will be a year that we are intentionally bringing more preachers from our ranks to the pulpit. Starting this year, you will occasionally see our elder Cara, and members Sami and Shannon giving messages. They won’t be as regular as the others, but they will be sharing the word in tandem with our other leaders.

It is exciting to see our pulpit diversify with such godly, wise, and mature women. We are excited to see what the Lord does through them for the church and for their own faith walks. Where most churches have a main preacher that gives roughly 60-70% of the Sunday messages, our preachers believe in diversifying the preaching experience. The reason for this is that we believe the Lord has gifted many in our flock to share His word. We want to train and equip people the Lord highlights to us for the work of the Kingdom. You may notice that many of our ministries contain this element. TGP’s philosophy is about empowering others to godly living and relationships as well as helping develop their spiritual gifts.

 

I-61 Ministry Training

I-61 is our inner healing ministry. In the last year, our elder, Cal, has been involved with developing inner healing resources for Christians in Lake County. He has also developed training seminars to develop believers interested in the I-61 ministry. The more people we have trained for competent sessions, the more appointments we can schedule. It has been an exciting time for the I-61 ministry. Details are forthcoming about a wider network of resources for inner healing.

 

Prophetic Gathering

Our elder, Jonathan, has been having our ministry team host Prophetic Gatherings over the last few years. Because the time slots have filled up rather well, we have begun to have them more frequently. This has been a great opportunity for TGP prayer ministers to share the heart of the Father to people and to grow in their ability to hear from Him. Now that we have a permanent home, we are able to schedule the sessions that work for the ministry team.

 

So these are just a few things that have gained more momentum now that we have a place to host gatherings. We are celebrating this 1 year anniversary of receiving the building because we have seen the Lord move in amazing ways in favor of our church. We were gifted a property in the middle of Lake County, IL. Since we have moved in, the excitement has brought new visitors in our doors. We are looking at developing a children’s ministry and a nursery team, with policies in place for safety and care. We have plans for developing other gatherings, such as seminars and classes throughout the year.

 

If you were part of the celebration potluck yesterday, I hope you enjoyed a time of celebration and fellowship.

In keeping with our church’s vision, I hope you were able to experience our Lord’s

 

Presence. Love. Power.

 

If you are blessed by the ministries of TGP, would you prayerfully consider financially supporting them. You can give online by clicking here.