From The Desk of Pastor Tom…

There is an excitement building about what God is preparing us for at CFA (Chandler First Assembly) this coming fall. We have a great response for Leadership for Life Groups and they are all feeling an anticipation for what God is about to do!

The Life Group Leadership Training will begin in July and Life Group sign ups will begin in August! You will see tables set up in the lobby of the church where you can sign up. Watch for more announcements on these two important times!

Last week I was in one of my meetings with Dr. Ron Woodworth and he shared with me about the churches in Costa Rica. They heard about what we are preparing to do in our Life Groups. They want to send a film crew to Chandler AZ to document how we are doing it and take it back to their churches. I’m talking about churches that have 2,000, 3,000 and even up to 10,000 people in them. God’s call to disciple the body of Christ through Sermon Based Life Groups is not unto CFA only but to the Nations.

In July, I’m going to be personally training the Life Group Leadership Team in my home. I will have three to four Life groups every two weeks. They will be trained in many different levels of ministry in our Life Groups such as…
· Praying with a Life Group member who has a financial or physical need.
· Sharing some verses of Scripture with a couple who are considering a job change.
· Meeting with someone who has just received the Lord and sharing with them how to walk in their journey of faith.
· Meet with a couple and disciple them in their marriage and family issues.
· How to visit someone in the hospital or family member who is a shut-in.
· How to share God’s Word in the Life Group meetings.
· Developing skills in becoming an encourager.

As you can see the body of Christ will be ministering to each other in so many practical ways! Yet there is so much more I will be doing in developing the quality of leadership in which you so deserve and in which will bring Glory to God.

Now to the purpose of this letter is to inform you that because of all of this training we will not be having Sunday evening services.

I will be meeting with Life Group leaders on Sunday nights and as well on other nights of the week. It will take me around six weeks to complete the training.

However, soon we will be giving you an opportunity to sign up for a Life Group in the lobby of the church in August. We will need to know what day of the week would fit your schedule best for being in a Life Group (Monday, Tuesday, Thursday, Friday, Saturday or Sunday) CFA Life Groups will be starting late in August.

A verse that has come to life for me in recent months is 1 John 4:12 NLT. “No one has ever seen God. But if we love each other, God lives in us, and His love has been brought to full expression through us.” God’s love is brought to FULL EXPRESSION through relationships with other members of the Body of Christ. That’s how God designed it, and we can’t alter the design.

My sincere hope is that you will connect with other members in life-giving relationships. That’s why we call them Life Groups. Life Groups give life. Life Groups open our hearts to God in ways that we simply cannot do alone.

Don’t isolate yourself. The very piece of the puzzle that your life needs can often be found in the heart of someone else. We want you to invite your friends, neighbors and relatives to experience a Life Group.

Remember, healthy churches grow and growing churches reproduce! Acts 2:46-47 NIV “Every day they continued to meet together in the temple courts. They broke bread in their homes and ate together with glad and sincere hearts, praising God and enjoying the favor of all the people. And the Lord added to their number daily those who were being saved.”

This August be sure to connect…
Get Life and Get Connected!

Blessings,

Pastor Tom and Arlene Rakoczy