Nowadays, it can be a challenge for churches to even have a regular attendance of its members once a week. For example, it is common today to find the attendance on a given Sunday morning service is only half the total number of the membership of the church. We even hear the question asked "Why should I come to church on Sundays when I can worship at home on my own?"

God’s Word in Hebrews, however, urges us 'not to give up meeting together' (Hebrews 10:25). In fact, the early church understood worshiping together was not just a once-a-week event, it was a daily occurrence. Sunday morning worship was a given for the early disciples. But it did not stop there. Their faith in Jesus was 24/7. They knew everyday they would face challenges. To be strengthened to meet those daily challenges, therefore, they needed to experience fellowship and worship with the body of Christ each day.

There are times when we come to church on Sundays we are energized and uplifted to face the week ahead. But when you really stop to think about all that goes on during the week, do we really expect one hour on Sunday to be enough to address all the issues we will face throughout the next week? There are a number of activities at the church which provide for fellowship, support and study. But even more so, we need a time when we gather as the body of Christ to worship and pray. We need a time when we can deal with those real life issues that come up throughout the week.

That is why we have begun a new worship opportunity called REACH OUT every Tuesday at 7 p.m. While it may not be everyday like the disciples, it is a start. It is an opportunity for us to meet together more than just once a week for worship. In Acts 2:42-47, it says ‘when the disciples met daily, they prayed with each other, they had fellowship, they devoted themselves to the teaching of the Word, and they shared in the breaking of bread (Holy Communion).' In a similar way that is what REACH OUT is about. REACH OUT stands for Renewing and Encouraging All (through) Christ’s Healing: Outward Upward & Together! REACH OUT is for the whole body of Christ to gather to renew, encourage, worship, break bread, pray, and receive the new life Christ offers us. This midweek time to gather is geared toward addressing some of the real-life issues we face during the week.

REACH OUT is also a time in which we can express our love to the Lord. There’s a joke I came across recently that puts it rather well: "Those that attend Sunday morning love the preacher. Those that attend Sunday night love the church, and those that attend midweek services love the Lord!" (From an article on the web by Cooper Abrams "What’s So Important About Attending Church?") Well, as much as I enjoy receiving love from others, worship is really about loving the Lord.

So I want to extend an invitation to all to come Tuesdays at 7 p.m. to REACH OUT. Every Tuesday in our Sanctuary we gather for worship and prayer. Each week we have a lay person (a person who is not a pastor) share about how a particular verse has impacted their life in an everyday kind of way. And, we gather in groups to pray with each other about what we are facing in our lives. Tuesday topics will address many of the real life situations you may be going through right now. You may want to come to hear how God can guide you through a particular situation. Or maybe you’ve seen how Jesus has been working in a particular situation and you feel God calling you to share your experience with others.

Our theme in April is ‘Fools for Christ’. What does it mean for us to risk looking foolish for Jesus? Each Tuesday in April we are exploring themes like trust, sharing our faith, our weakness in light of God’s Strength.

Our theme for the Month of May is "Breaking the Chains". We will address those addictions and items which try to keep us in bondage. And we will see how Jesus Christ offers us freedom from the chains we face.

If you would like to share, or have a need to talk, Pastor Bill and I would love to hear from you and talk further about it. If you would like to simply come, all are welcome. Come let us worship together daily! Having a week faith is actually a strong faith. It will strengthen us in the Lord to face those everyday challenges. So come to REACH OUT and begin having a ‘week’ faith.