Thoughts from the Pastor

8-7-19

Hey everyone!

As you can clearly see, I am still not good at keeping up with a blog...almost seven months!!!

It has been a very busy summer in the life of the church and in my own personal life. Amber and I are waiting for our 5th child to be born in about 6 weeks! Summer is winding down and the calendar seems to be a bit less busy.

This summer has been filled with kids camp, VBS, teen camp, trips, and other aspects of ministry that have taken time themselves. It seems that this past 3 months have simply flown by because of how busy I have been.

I am reminded, that no matter how busy my calendar is. I must stop and rest. I must stop and refocus. I must stop and retreat.

Jesus did this often in his 3 1/2 years of ministry on this earth...He would get away with his Father to pray and rest...then he would reconnect with his disciples and followers...then he would have the strength and energy to do ministry and serve the people. However, the unique thing that would happen next is the fact that the cycle would begin again, after ministry, Jesus would need to retreat again.

As the school year is quickly coming upon us I challenge you to go into this year with a focus on doing the work that God has you doing, however, never forgetting to take time and rest.

2-20-18

Hey everyone!

      The concept of MORE is something that fairly understood in the world we live in today. We as a people want more than what we have, we seem to want the latest and greatest, and if someone has more than we do, we do what it takes to get more for ourselves.

      God desires MORE for us, however, it is different than just earthly possessions. He wants to give us MORE than we can hope or imagine! Think about that for a second...what we hope and dream for ourselves, God wants to give us MORE than that!

     Ephesians 3:20 in the New Living Translations says this, "Now all glory to God, who is able, through his mighty power at work within us, to accomplish infinitely more than we might ask or think." We are our own limitation in this life when it comes to our walk with Christ and service to His Kingdom. God wants you to love MORE, give MORE, show MORE compassion, and truly be MORE like Jesus in everything you do and everywhere you go!

     As we at New Horizon enter into a new church year we look forward to MORE! We believe that God wants us to be MORE like Jesus so He can give us MORE blessings! MORE families, MORE kids, MORE teens, MORE adults, MORE dreams, MORE hopes, MORE of Him!

     You are invited to join us as we trust God moving forward as a church to reach out and be MORE of a blessing to each other, to our community, and to the Kingdom of God!

     #moreJesus, #NHNaz

11-26-18

Hey everyone!

      Sorry it has been a while since my last post...as you can quickly tell, I am not a dedicated blogger! However, I wanted to share some updates since my last post.

     Summer was a busy time for us as church camps were happening, district assembly came and went, and families took vacations. We had a great summer getting to know more about the church and the people who call New Horizon home. Heading into fall we had a less busy schedule to contend with, however we as a  church kept marching forward for Jesus! We have seen more growth in the church raising our Sunday attendance to 60+!!! God is so good! He continues to bless us as  church as we keep reaching out to the lost, broken, and unchurched of our community!

     As fall is on it's way out and winter approaches, we are looking forward to a wonderful advent season as we celebrate the one who we worship all year long! Let us never stop being thankful for what we have and we we get to celebrate with!

---Pastor Chris

7-30-18

Hey everyone!

        God is up to some amazing things in our church! We have seen many more new guest worship with us...we have seen 4 new members join the church, with more joining soon...we have seen and set new attendance records in our Sunday AM service. But the growth isn't just contained to our Sunday AM worship service...we are also seeing growth in our Sunday PM service and Wednesday night Bible Study (Adult & Teen).

     As summer starts to wind down and families begin to prepare for the start of another school year, let this be a time where we really settle into finding, and being part of a great church! I personally invite you to come and be our guest at New Horizon...our prayer is that you feel welcome by the people, but most importantly that you feel the presence of the Spirit of God as you worship with us!

     Let's keep reaching out to the lost and unchurched...THEY NEED JESUS!!!

---Pastor Chris

6-14-18

Hey everyone! As you can quickly tell, I don't blog very often! But I did want to give you an update on what God has been doing and wants to continue to do at New Horizon.

We have seen God's hand of blessing on our church since we began back in May...friendships have been formed, the kinks are getting worked out, and we are seeing NEW FAMILIES every week. So far there has been two new families that are now calling New Horizon their church home...PRAISE GOD!

The biggest change that has happened has been the RESTART of our Children's Ministry program. We are almost done with the re-model project that will give our kids a great new BIG space where they can worship on Sunday Morning's during Kid's Church.

We hope that you will join us soon as we at New Horizon continue to do whatever it takes to reach the lost and unchurched in our community!

---Pastor Chris

4-26-18

Hey everyone! I just wanted to share with you my excitement and anticipation I have for when we are able to finally get to New Horizon and get to work! As I sit in my office here in Illinois and count down the days, I am amazed at what God has already begun to do in my heart and mind. Giving me new ideas, special messages, and different ways to connect with the people and the heart of not only New Horizon but the community around the church!

I want to encourage you all as we prepare for the GREAT days ahead, let us start with the most important thing we can do...PRAYER!!! Jesus said that His Fathers house shall be called a "House of Prayer"...SO LET'S BE A PEOPLE OF PRAYER!!!

But what do we pray for???

First of all, we need to pray for the lost...those who are not saved. The Bible makes it very clear that those who don't have a relationship with Christ will not be able to get to Heaven and will be forever hopeless without God in Hell.

Next we need to pray for ourselves...that God will open up doors so that He can use us to reach into the lives of those in need...we are the hands and feet of Jesus...it's time for us to be just that!

Then we need to pray for others...it isn't selfish to pray for ourselves before we pray for others simply because we need to be ready ourselves before we are able to sharpen others...however, we need to lift others up to the Throne of God. Putting other's needs before ours allows us to show them the true love of Jesus.

But prayer is more than just sharing our requests with God...prayer is a time where we can connect with God and simply PRAISE HIM for everything He has blessed us with us...or simply, who He is, and what He means to us!

So church, let's pray today...and EVERYDAY!!! See ya soon!

---Pastor Chris