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Greetings GraceLife!

We are now in the midst of Holy Week, remembering Christ Jesus’ last days on earth as He prepares Himself for the Cross through prayer and prepares His apostles for what is to come.   We will solemnly consider His crucifixion on Good Friday and celebrate His victory over the grave on Resurrection Sunday (Easter).  Praise the Lord, He is Risen!  He is Risen, indeed!  

This past Sunday, Palm Sunday, we were overjoyed in celebration of 34 baptisms at GraceLife!   To help prepare those declaring their decision to accept Christ as their Savior, affirming their belief that He died for their sins, was crucified unto death, then rose from the grave in victory over death, Pastor Joe reminded us all of God’s Old Testament covenant by circumcision followed His New Testament covenant by the blood of His Son.  Hallelujah!   

Here is our quick look at events coming up this very special week and a look ahead as well.  

 Mar 31st  – Adult Bible Study at MB, 7pm, Room 105

Apr 1st – Sisters in Prayer (MB Fellowship Corner) and BLAZE Youth (MB Loft), 7pm

Apr 2nd –  Deep End Dinner/Bible Study at ML this week, 7pm

      (Note:  Women’s Bible Study at MB, 10:15am - noon, will NOT meet this week.)

Apr 3rd – Good Friday service at MB, 6:30pm, Auditorium/Sanctuary

Apr 4th – Saturday Men’s Bible Study at MB, Gym Classroom, 201C, 8-9am

Apr 5th at MB (Happy Easter!)

  • 6:30am – Easter sunrise service, outside (look for the tents!)
  • 8:15 – 8:30am – prayer time with our leadership
  • 9am Easter worship service
  • 10:30am Easter worship service
  • 10:15 – 11:30am -- BLAZE Youth classes (no Adult Christian Education classes)
  • 10:45 – 11:30am -- GL Kids -- infant-5th grade classes
  • Note:  No BLAZE Youth afternoon activities

Apr 15th/16th (noon to noon) – Giving Challenge (email exchange) for Day4Hope (July 18th)

Apr 19th through May 10th (Mother’s Day) – Diaper Drive for Food Pantry 

Apr 23th through 26th – Local support to Kairos Prison Ministry 

Apr 28th – New Hope Girls Ministry Visit – 7pm - 8:30pm, at MB, Auditorium/Sanctuary

May 3rd – First Sunday Luncheon at MB, Gym

Sharing a few thoughts – 

One more thought about this past Sunday…After our baptisms at each service, Pastor Joe invited those who also wished to be baptized to sign up for our NEXT baptismal service which is planned for July 26th.  A sign-up sheet will soon be available in our MB lobby.     

More event/activity details –

Mar 31st – Our Adult Bible Study at MB meets on Tuesday nights, 7pm, in Room 105!  Our study focus is the book of Judges, using Tim Keller’s “Judges for You” as a secondary source. Tonight, our study will be led by Mike Hamel and we will begin Judges, Chapter 8, referencing “Judges for You”, Chapter 7. 

Apr 1st -- Our Sisters in Prayer and BLAZE Youth meet on Wednesday nights at MB, 7pm. SIP meets in the Fellowship Corner; Youth meets in the Gym Loft. 

Apr 2nd – 

  • Deep End Dinner/Bible Study at ML, 7pm
  • (Note:  Women’s Bible Study at MB, 10:15am - noon, will NOT meet this week.)  

Apr 4th – Saturday Men’s Bible Study at MB, Gym classroom 201C, 8-9am, led by Lewis Rosove.  

Apr 5th  –  Resurrection Sunday (Easter!) is finally here this Sunday!  Here’s what happening at MB!

  • 6:30am – Easter sunrise service, outside (look for the tents!)  Coffee service and pastries will be available in our lobby following the service.
  • 8:15 – 8:30am – prayer time with our leadership
  • 9am Easter worship service
  • 10:30am Easter worship service
  • 10:15 – 11:30am -- BLAZE Youth classes (no Adult Christian Education classes)
  • 10:45 – 11:30am -- GL Kids -- infant-5th grade classes
  • Note:  No BLAZE Youth afternoon activities 

More details of our Sunday mornings are provided in paragraphs below.    

Sunday Mornings at Mount Beneva

  • Parking – Please let us know of any parking issues you may have.  
  • Lobby
    • Greeters are available to welcome and assist you.  (As you’ll see later in this post, we need more Greeters and Connection Center volunteers!!  If you would like to serve in this way, please speak with someone at our Connection Center.)  Also,  visit the Connection Center with questions, or for sign-ups, books, t-shirts and more!  
    • Nametag requests continue to be processed. Nametags can be located in the drawers by the sitting area.  
    • Coffee, snacks and pastries are provided for your enjoyment and are refreshed throughout the morning by our hospitality team. Please enjoy your food in the lobby and bring only lidded beverages into the auditorium/ sanctuary.  Thank you!
  • Open prayer time with our leadership is available to you, Room 105, 8:15 – 8:30am.
  • Worship services are held in the auditorium/sanctuary at 9 and 10:30 am. 
  • Christian Education classes are held from 10:15-11:30am for Adults in the Gym classrooms and our BLAZE Youth in the Loft;  and from 10:45-11:30am for Children in the children’s wing in the main building.  Our Adult CE classes which will resume after Easter are:
    • Sermon on the Mount led by Mike Hamel (Gym classroom 201B)
    • Biblical Love led by Jeff Lawson (Gym classroom 201C)
  • Connect Cards can be found under the seats in the auditorium/sanctuary and at the Connection Center.. Use these to provide contact information, request contact from us, or ask for prayer.  (An online version of the Connect Card is also available through our website.)

Looking further ahead…!  

April 3rd, 2026 (Good Friday) -- We will be having a Good Friday service on April 3rd, starting at 6:30pm at MB.  

April 5th, 2026 (Resurrection Sunday – Easter!) -- On Easter Sunday at MB, we will offer an outside sunrise service (look for the tents!) at 6:30am in addition to our 9am and 10:30am worship services.  (We will not be having Adult Christian Education classes on Easter Sunday.)  While our Hospitality team will be providing pastries/coffee on Easter Sunday as we normally do, we are not planning for a separate food event.

We continue to observe the season of Lent (a 40-day season of introspection, repentance, and spiritual discipline leading up to Easter). Pastor Keith is providing (through our website email) reflections during this season to help us ready our hearts for Easter

More upcoming events, so mark your calendars!

April 15th-16th (noon to noon) – Giving Challenge –This Giving Challenge will be an email campaign to raise funds to support this year’s Day4Hope (July 18th).  

April 19th-May 10th (Mother’s Day) –  Diaper Drive for Food Pantry  – In response to regular requests for diapers at our Food Pantry (at ML), we, in honor of Mother’s Day, are asking for donations of disposable diapers that we can supply to our Food Pantry for distribution over the four Sundays (Apr 19th, 26th, and May 3rd, 10th).  A bin will be placed in our Lobby for collection.

April 23-26 – Support to our Kairos Prison Ministry – We’ll be seeking support for this 4-day event to be held at the Zephyrhills Correctional Institute.  Your support may include: participating in a prayer chain; writing notes/cards of encouragement for those in attendance at the event; coloring placemats that will be given to the attendees; praying for all (attendees and volunteers) involved; and, of course, baking cookies for the attendees.  (Remember, no raisins or nut products, please.)  We’ll have sign-up sheets available soon in the lobby.  

April 28th – New Hope Girls – The leadership and team from New Hope Girls will be visiting us, from 7-8:30pm, Tuesday evening at MB, to share their ministry of hope to girls and their mothers in the Dominican Republic!!  Please feel free to visit their website at  newhopegirls.com.  Created and led by Joy Reyes, hers is a remarkable story of God’s calling and His work through Joy and her team as they rescue girls from exploitation and abuse.  You won’t want to miss this opportunity to hear what great things our God is accomplishing through our missionaries in the Dominican Republic!

May 3 – First Sunday Luncheon

July 18th – Day4Hope (D4H)

July 20th-24th – Vacation Bible School

Stewardship Thoughts 

During this Easter season, perhaps stewardship is not about doing more, but about becoming more aware – more aware of God’s presence, more aware of the needs around us, more aware of the opportunities we have each day to reflect Christ in the way we live.  Easter stewardship is a response of gratitude. Because we have received so much, we choose to give. Because we have been shown mercy, we choose to extend it. Because we have been given new life, we choose to live it well.  So as we move beyond Easter morning, let us carry its message into our daily lives—not just in words, but in action. May we be faithful stewards of the gifts we’ve been given, and in doing so, become living witnesses to the hope of the resurrection.

Ministry Spotlight

This Easter, we are reminded that we are not just people who celebrate the resurrection, we are people who carry its message.  So wherever we are sent—across the world or across the room—may we go with open hearts, willing hands, and a message that still changes lives.  Christ is risen—and the world needs to hear it!   

Blaze Youth Student Ministry

Students in grade 6-12 are invited to join us in the Loft (upstairs MB Gym) during our weekly meeting times.

  • Sunday mornings 10:15-11:30am
  • Sunday evenings 4-6pm
  • Wednesday evenings 7-8pm

Other Group Prayer Opportunities

In addition to our Weekly Prayer Meetings on Sunday mornings and Monthly Prayer Meetings, we also have a prayer chain here at GraceLife, a way for many to pray for the needs of those in our GraceLife family.  

  • How do I request prayer for myself or others?  You may submit your requests for prayer through our Connect Cards, email, note, text, or verbal request to our leadership or member of our Admin Team, or to Cindy Lanoue-Foster or to me (Dreama).  We’ll then post your prayer request for distribution to those who have indicated their desire to be part of our prayer chain.  
  • How do I become part of the prayer chain?  Just indicate to a member of our Admin Team that you’d like to be part of the prayer chain OR sign up at the lobby’s sign-up table (by the seating area) and we’ll make that happen.  Prayer is powerful and we are privileged to pray for one another.

Hospitality Ministry

Volunteers are needed for the hospitality team! Please respond to this email if you are interested in helping prepare/serve food for our fellowship times!  

Children’s Ministry 

We are so blessed that our Children’s Ministry continues to welcome more and more children to GraceLife!  That means that more and more volunteers are also needed for Sunday mornings! We’re looking for volunteers with servant hearts to help care for our youngest members of the GraceLife family. If you’re interested in serving in our Children’s Ministry, please stop by the Connection Center or contact Jackie. 

Greeters and Connection Center Volunteers Needed!

We are seeking more volunteers to serve as Greeters and at the Connection Center for both the 9am and 10:30am Sunday morning worship services.  Whether it’s a first-time visitor to GraceLife or a member of our GraceLife family, we want each person who enters our Lord’s house on Sunday morning to be warmly welcomed, to be assisted as needed, and to be, frankly, surprised at the evidence of abundant love at GraceLife.  If you are interested in serving in this way, please stop by the Connection Center and let us know.

Reminder

Please identify your giving recipient as “GraceLife Sarasota”. If you have questions, please contact Randy Coryell or Dan Deems.