Archive for September, 2009

Church Planting, Ministry Formation, Worship, Young Adults

I’m So Excited…and I just can’t hide it…(as the song goes)

I’m so excited about what God is and has been doing in and through Veritas the last few weeks. He has done exceedingly more than we can even dream or hope. I feel so blessed to be able to be involved in this new adventure in faith, mission, service, and worship. Here are some of the things that have me excited…

1. This past Sunday we had an amazing turn-out. Now we aren’t all about numbers…but it is awesome to see people coming and having interest. We had 41 people there and when you subtract a friend who brought her small church (I think there were 7 there), and 2 “friends” of Veritas….you get 32 people (including kids). Some of the 32 have been there all 3 weeks, some for 2 weeks, and about 8-10 visited for the first time this past Sunday. Two of the ones who have been there all 3 weeks are F&M college students and they are amazing. I met the one for lunch on Thursday and had a great conversation and I am meeting the other one tonight for coffee (and probably dinner for her). Another who has been there every week is an amazing artist, poet, and overall great person who gets what we are all about and probably travels 30 minutes or so to be with us each week.

2. The visitors who came on Sunday is another reason that I am excited. A couple came with their two children. The father is a friend from years back and is a drummer. He spied the Djembe sitting up front and asked if anyone was playing it… I said I normally did but he would be more than welcome. So he got up and played Djembe during the 1st musical worship set. They have been looking for a missional church to be involved with, and will be returning this Sunday. Another couple came because of our presence at Purple Door. This couple blew me away (the wife’s name is Trinity…instant connection). He is ex-Amish (which is a story I would love to hear) and she is an amazing artist. We have connected via Facebook and it looks like they will join us this coming Sunday.

3. Last evening we had our second worship planning session with 4 of us there. The ideas were flowing last night around our next series entitled “We have questions, do did they”. The thoughts, ideas, and comments that flew around the table last night was amazing. The synergy was evident and electric. I’m excited about the next sermon series.

4. This Sunday is Service Sunday where we go out into the community to seek to be a blessing. At this point we plan to walk through Marietta and pick up trash in various places (streets, parks, etc..) I will be calling the borough office tomorrow to see if there is anything we could do for them.

Anyway I am so excited about what is going on and the future of Veritas. And that’s why I had to write this because I am excited and I just can’t hide it….

29 Sep 2009 comments off

Church Planting

Veritas Begins Sunday, Sept. 13th

Ryan Braught is a church planter who’s put many posts on this website. The church that he is planting, Veritas, is holding its first regular worship service this Sunday!

Here’s what Ryan wrote a few days ago for prayer requests:

1. Launch Sunday: Pray that God would be drawing people to come to the Launch Sunday. Pray that all the various details that need to be done this week will get done. Pray that everything would come together and that Sunday morning at 10:45 AM would be an amazing experience. Pray for those who come who are “true prospects” that they would feel welcomed, loved, and experience God and that they would want to return.

2. CRU: I will be going to Elizabethtown College tonight to attend CRU (Campus Crusade) and to hopefully share a little bit about Veritas as well as hand out Brochures and CD’s. Pray for a fruitful time of relationship building, sharing, and networking. Pray that God may speak to some of the CRU group about being a part of Veritas.

3. Jobs: This has been an area of concern for the past few weeks. As of right now I still don’t have a part time job, and my wife hasn’t found anything in the teaching field (she works now as a substitute and at Sylvan…but would love to find a part time teaching job in a local school district). Pray that God would bring about the right job(s) and that we would have the patience and the trust to wait upon him. Pray also that I would be assertive in seeking out employment. I’ll be making a call today to a person who owns a new café that will be coming to Lancaster. Pray for that conversation (if it happens). Pray for doors to open for either one of us, or the both of us.

4. Prayer Vigil: We are hosting a prayer vigil this coming Saturday September 12 from 7 AM to 7 PM (EST). This is where you sign up to pray for Veritas for one hour wherever you are. All you have to do is to reply to this e-mail letting me know what time you want to pray for us and I will send you another list of prayer request, praises, and ideas of how to use the 1 hour.

5. Finances: So far we feel that we are in a pretty good spot with finances. We have, at this point, enough finances (if we stick to budget) to cover until January. Please continue to pray for us that finances will continue to come together. Pray for the congregations that we have spoken to about partnering with us financially. Pray for other congregations to step up and support us. Pray that God would be glorified in the area of finances.

This week is exciting and there is a lot to do (write a sermon, get a bunch of stuff, set up, finish painting the Veritots room, etc… Pray that I won’t be so busy that I forget to stop and pray and seek God’s guidance.

If you’re not on Ryan’s prayer list, I would invite you to join with many who are praying for these requests. Let’s pray for God to do a mighty work through Ryan and the people that God has called to partner with Ryan in this effort!

Blessings to you all,
Jeff Glass

07 Sep 2009 1 comment