February 2011 – Page 4

What I want to say to The Awakening this morning:

Posted on February 10, 2011 by johnmarkum

Good morning church!

I want to share just a few things with you that were on my heart this morning…

First of all, you are amazingly gifted, loved, and equipped to accomplish everything that God has called you to today. Walk in victory! You are more than a conqueror through Him who loves you! Romans 8:37
We are continuing our series, “Relationships: Mothers, Brothers, and Others” this Saturday by talking about love – just in time for Valentine’s Day. Make it a point to be there this week, and bring a guest with you! We have special gifts for each of our first time guests.
We are having Connecting Point next week, Feb. 19th, immediately after our worship time. Connecting Point is about 30 minutes long, and we provide some food and drinks, and give you an opportunity to learn more about our church family and how you can be a part of what God is doing here.
Take the time to get connected to a ministry! Serve somewhere. Be a part of what God is doing here so that people far from God may be awakened with life in Christ! Mark “Serve somewhere” on the back of your connection card this Saturday and we’ll talk to you about finding a place to serve.
Our website is changing and is a work in progress. It is almost complete, but please be patient as it is under some development. We do still encourage you to check it out, and direct others to the website to learn more about our Saturday night service in the meantime. qcawakening.com
We still have opportunities for some of you to go on a Missions Trip to Wichita, KS with us this summer (June 5-10). If you would like to consider going on this trip, be sure to grab an information packet this Saturday, and ask me any questions about the trip after the service in the foyer. We will need commitments soon!
Be in prayer for what God is doing in our church! This Saturday, I will take a little bit of time to share with you how God has been leading our senior pastor, staff, and myself, and how that affects our church. I’m very excited to bring this to you, and I am praying now that you will be there to hear it first hand.

Your pastor loves you! I pray for you everyday. I hope that today includes God’s greatest blessings, and opportunities for you to experience His faithfulness like never before. I can’t wait to worship with you again on Saturday!

Blessings,

Pastor John

New Series: Relationships

Posted on February 5, 2011 by johnmarkum

My leadership team and I wanted to take the month of February and deal with relationships. We wanted to broaden it past the typical series on dating or marriage though. We wanted to deal with all relationships, and communicate that somehow. So tonight, we began a new series called, “Relationships: Mothers, Brothers, and Others”. Above is a video to let you know about it. We hope through this series that people will feel empowered to see their relationships healed in the name of Jesus, and establish healthier ones. If you happen to be around the Quad Cities, we would love to have you as our guest. If you’re not in the area, you are welcome to see the message online later this week (www.qcawakening.com). And if you’re a preacher and want to take our series idea, graphic, and/or video to use at your church… be our guest! Email me or leave a comment if you want something specific.

See you all this week!

John

Minute to Lose it

Posted on February 4, 2011 by johnmarkum

I watched a very exciting episode of the new game show, Minute to Win It, with my wife the other day. It’s a very creative idea for a TV show and seems to be very family oriented: a breath of fresh air in such a value-deficient media. And who said only bad news sales?!

But as I got thinking about the concept, I began thinking of things that take a considerably longer time to earn, yet could be ruined in a brief moment of poor judgement. Doubtlessly, you can think of others to add to this list:

A good marriage. Takes half a lifetime to get right. Easily ruined in a variety of ways, and in less time than it takes to say “I did.”
Respect. You can work your whole life to develop the respect of your peers, children, spouse, and co-workers. One whoops can ruin a thousand at-a-boy‘s.
Health. Probably the first on the list that can be lost innocently. You can workout, lift weights, do routine cardio-aerobics, etc… One bad hit during a pick-up game and your limping for weeks (or longer).
Sobriety. From any substance. As Mark Twain once said, “Breaking the smoking habit is easy… I’ve done it hundreds of times.” You haven’t touched a drop of alcohol in years, and one tough day can push you to urges you haven’t given in to for a long time.
Purity. Once you cross those lines, you can’t uncross them. Losing something so precious and valuable to someone who has no intentions of committing to you is why God insists that sexuality be reserved for the safety of marriage. Plus, it saves you from a very uncomfortable conversation with the person you will marry.
Friendships. Some develop faster than others, but the best ones are always those that are forged by time. Good friendships are all too often torn apart by one act of betrayal, gossip, or selfishness.

Did you notice? None of these things are worth any amount of money. You would likely be very willing to empty every bank account you possess in order to keep the things on this list or in order to get them back. Don’t trade your most valuable possessions for something that is temporary and worth far less!

Blessings,

John