Another visit to Vroom St. Church, Jersey City

This week, Sue & I want to thank God for another worship experience at the Vroom Street Evangelical Free Church, Vroom St., Jersey City, NJ. As I mentioned in a precious blog, this is one of the most ethnically diverse churches in the heart of Jersey City. My friend, Pastor Bill Sweeting, has been the pastor there now for a year, and already there are significant signs of new life and vibrancy at this church. They have a new worship team ("Grace Notes") that plays a variety of hymns and choruses. They are truly committed to reaching out in their community for Jesus Christ. I gave the morning message, about Abraham, and what it is to walk by faith- Hebrews 11:8-10- "By faith Abraham, when called to go to a place he would later receive as his inheritance, obeyed and went, even though he did not know where he was going. By faith he made his home in the promised land like a stranger in a foreign country; he lived in tents, as did Isaac and Jacob, who were heirs with him of the same promise. For he was looking forward to the city with foundations, whose architect and builder is God." I believe that it was an encouragement to all of us and a reminder that we need to live our lives totally surrendered to Him! After worship, we went with our "Jersey City family" (Soni, Patrick, M.G. and India) to lunch along with the Sweeting family. Bill was healed, as we had prayed (he had a fever for three days last week), and was well on his way to full strength, and he enjoyed a full meal with us. Pray for this vital ministry, and that it will continue to be a beacon of light for the Jersey City area!

Worship at two places of healing and hope- Camp Hope & Market St. Mission- August 6th
Sue & I want to thank God for our experiences in worship at two places of healing today, Camp Hope and Market Street Mission. Camp Hope is a drug and alcohol rehab program for women in Oxford, NJ (sponsored by Times Square Church and the Teen Challenge ministry). Market St. Mission is a drug and alcohol rehab program for men in Morristown, NJ.
The morning service at Camp Hope was a blessing in many ways. Worship was simple and heartfelt. The morning message was entitled, "The Simple Life". The pastor spoke on how to simplify our lives by leading lives of total surrender to the Lord, no matter what He wants us to do, no matter where He wants us to go! Such a simple message, but so powerful! Sue and I went forward, and again surrendered our lives to the Lord, to do with our lives and our family whatever He desired, no matter what it may be! What a freeing prayer- I believe that it is the only way to pray and to live. I hope and pray that you will also pray and live this way! (by the way, as you are praying for this ministry, pray for Sue's cousin's daughter, Kristen, who began this program a couple of months ago, but left after a few short weeks- pray that she will come back and give herself completely to the Lord, and to be delivered from her drug addiction)
Then, Sunday evening, we went to the evening worship at Market St. Mission. It was an incredible service- again, simple, but powerful and heartfelt. The pastor (Nelson Seda, a Spanish Pastor from Flemington, NJ) spoke on the story of David vs. Goliath, and what it takes to tackle the "giants" that we face in life- whether it be alcohol and drug addiction, or family problems, or problems at our place of work. We need to face them with the courage and faith of David! Then, we shared communion with the men and women who were gathered with us. What a blessing it was, and how much "at home" we felt as we were welcomed with open arms by these families of God in these ministries of healing.
Pray for these vital ministries, and for the hundreds of men and women who have been set free from their addictions to drugs and alcohol through Camp Hope and Market Street Mission!