GraceLife Sarasota News!

Greetings GraceLife!

Pastor Joe’s message this past Sunday, #24 in the series “A Sinner in Love with God”, this one called “Facing Evil”, was based on 1 Samuel 26:1-16.  In this passage, David (again) has an opportunity to kill his “predator”, Saul, but does not.  While David recognizes the evil intent of Saul, he, having learned a lesson on restraint from Abigail, chooses to trust in God to justly deal with Saul.  When we face evil, typically we either react in fear and shy away from addressing it, or we act with arrogance and assume God’s role as purveyor of justice.  Of course, we need to avoid both of these reactions.  Pastor Joe’s message provided helpful thoughts for us as we try to apply these lessons from David to our lives.   As usual, you are encouraged to listen to this message (first time or again!) through our website (select “Messages”). 

Pastor Joe welcomed Gil, our new Director of Connections, and his wife, Beth, to our GraceLife family!  Gil comes to our staff experienced in helping larger congregations foster spiritual growth among all worshippers, so we are looking forward to his ideas and guidance over the coming months!  

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

May 5th – Tuesday evening Adult Bible Study at MB, 7-8pm, Room 105.  As Judges continues (12:8–13:25), Israel’s decline becomes more evident—marked by fractured relationships, weak leadership, and spiritual drift. Yet even in this quiet and sobering stretch, God remains at work. Before deliverance ever appears, He sovereignly initiates it, as seen in the announcement of Samson’s birth. These verses remind us that while sin deepens and human leaders falter, God’s purposes do not fail—He is already preparing salvation by grace, pointing beyond flawed deliverers to the greater Redeemer to come.

May 6th –  Sisters in Prayer at MB, 7pm, Fellowship Corner; no meeting of BLAZE Youth, but  new Student Ministry schedule coming soon!  

May 7th 

• Women’s Thursday morning Bible Study at MB, 10:15 - noon, Room 105
• Deep End Dinner/Bible Study at ML, 7pm  

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

May 10th  at MB, “Happy Mother’s Day!”

• 8:15 – 8:30am – prayer time with our leadership in Room 105
• 9am worship service in Auditorium/Sanctuary
• 10:30am worship service in Auditorium/Sanctuary
• 10:15 – 11:30am -- Adult Christian Education (CE) merged class in the Gym classrooms; BLAZE Youth classes in the Gym Loft
• 10:45 – 11:30am -- GL Kids -- infant-5th grade classes     

This Sunday, May 10th (Mother’s Day) is the last day to participate in our Food Pantry Diaper Drive!  Please leave your donations at the decorated table (left side) in our Lobby.  

Looking a little further ahead…!   

May 13th – New Women’s Bible Study coming up, Wednesday evenings!  A flyer with sign-up sheet is available in the MB Lobby.  You may also sign-up online through our website.  

June 7th – First Sunday Luncheon

July 18th – Day4Hope (D4H)

July 20th-24th – Vacation Bible School!  Volunteer sign-up sheets are now available in our MB Lobby, along with a flyer providing more details about this exciting opportunity to serve.  

Stewardship Thoughts 

Stewardship in this 1st Samuel scriptural passage means honoring God with what we’ve been given – even when misusing it would be easier, faster, or more rewarding.  It’s about how you manage what’s been entrusted to you – not just money, but power, opportunities, relationships, and influence.  In this moment described in 1 Samuel 26:1-16, David treats everything as something entrusted to him.  For example, power… David had the power to end Saul's life, but good stewardship of this power meant restraint.  He recognized that not everything you CAN do is something you SHOULD do.  Further, David shows that being a good steward often looks like choosing to trust God’s perfect justice instead of our own.  So, when facing evil, we are called to practice restraint and trust.  He will handle the rest.  

Ministry Spotlight

This passage in 1st Samuel shows that ministry is less about doing great things for God and more about handling difficulties, particularly evil, the right way.  David models for us a leader who:  trusts God instead of forcing outcomes; honors structure without enabling evil; and acts with courage but stays under control.  Let us learn the lessons God’s Word provides.

Other Ministry News

Thank you to all who supported our recent Kairos prison ministry event at Zephyrhills Correctional Institute.  Your cards/letters of encouragement, your colored placemats (special thanks to our GLKids!), your cookies, and your prayers were great blessings to both Kairos retreat candidates and volunteers.  Our GraceLife family member and lead for our Missions Committee, John Shelton, volunteered at this 4-day event, so please feel free to ask John for more details; he will be excited to share experiences of God’s mighty Hand at work at this retreat.

Also, we reach out to thank Joy Reyes and Joye Andrew, of New Hope Girls, who, with our support, offer safety, purpose, and Christian hope to the Dominican Republic through their New Hope Girls ministry.  Their visit to us last Tuesday night was filled with encouragement for what God is doing in the D.R.  We will have more news coming soon with regard to further opportunities for us to help them make even more of an impact for God in many D.R. communities.     

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 4-5pm

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.

Volunteers Needed – 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!  

Volunteers Needed – 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. 

Volunteers Needed – Greeters and Connection Center 

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.  

Updated App

Our updated GraceLife Sarasota app is now available for your use!  Please access, browse around, and enjoy! 

More about our 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 have been merged into one (Better Together!) and are continuing the “Biblical Love” study.  The merged class meets in Gym classroom 201B/C.  Jeff Lawson and Mike Hamel will share in teaching the class.

Connect Cards can be found 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.)

Reminder

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