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Before the Retreat on May 30

Isent a number of E-mails to ourfolks asking for prayers. Duringthe Retreat I put a prayer rock inmy pocket. At certain momentsduring the Retreat I would takethe rock out of my pocket andput it near my materials. It was awonderful reminder of the spiri-tual support that many peopleshared through prayer.I believe that God gave us thisPurpose Statement; that ourSteering Committee discerned

God’s direction; and you helped

through your prayers. Thankyou!The entire process wasinvigorating!Thanks to all of you who havekept Chain of Lakes New Churchin your prayers. Your prayersupport is the best way for nowthat congregations and individu-als can support our newly form-ing congregation.Thanks to all who offered prayersupport as the Steering Commit-tee of Chain of Lakes developed

our new church’s Purpose State-

ment. Our Purpose Statement

answers the question, “Why dowe exist?” For three months the

Steering Committee and I prayedover and discussed our responseto that question. You helped bykeeping this process in ourprayers. We eventually developed ourPurpose Statement at a Retreaton May 30

. We then continuedto pray over and refine what wedeveloped. The Steering Com-mittee voted on the followingPurpose Statement at our Junemeeting.

“We are called to be an

authentic, Christiancommunity where:Strangers become friendsFriends become disciplesDisciples impact the

world.”

Thanks For Your Prayers

Chain of Lakes Presbyterian Church

Prayer Newsletter

July, 2009

Participants at the Blessing of the Animals in thePark on Sunday June 28. We enjoyed a picniclunch and fellowship after blessing our pets.

Volume 1, Issue 3

Inside this Issue

Thank You For YourPrayersPage 1Prayer StoryPage 2Prayer ResourcesPage 2Current Prayer RequestsPage 3Contact InformationPage 3

Prayer Story from Pastor PaulPrayer Resources

Prayer Resources

The following are some wonderful resources that can support our Prayer Life:

http://prayer.blogs.cor.org/

This is a blog about prayer done by the prayer ministry of Church of the Resurrection, a large Methodist Church inKansas City, Missouri

http://www.pray-as-you-go.org/

This is a prayer site run by the Jesuits in Britain. They offer a ten to 13 minute daily podcast on prayer that can be

downloaded. I’m thinking about downloading it into my

IPOD and listening to it on my drive home.

http://bible.christianity.com/devotionals/

Click on the devotional tab and a person will find a very large number of daily devotionals.

http://www.prayerventures.org/store/tip_sheets.html

I just came across this organization called Prayer ventures.They have some resources about prayer including some

articles called, “7 Secrets to Effective Intercession” “Prayer Walking” and “Praying as Husband & Wife.

http://www.ewestminster.org/thin_places

Thin Places is an ecumenical newsletter with a particular interest in the contemplative spiritual journey.

As I’ve shared in the previous Prayer Newslet-

ters I enjoy talking about prayer and sharing prayer stories from my own prayer life.

In recognition of John Calvin’s 500th birth-

day, Princeton Seminary is encouraging peo-ple to read through the Institutes in 2009.They created a web site with a daily readingschedule, weekly commentaries, and a mes-sage board.This is an excellent idea and I decided in Janu-ary to follow along on the reading schedule.I read through the Institutes in seminary, butthis time it became a chore.I started off by reading the Institutes duringmy own personal devotion time. I hadplanned to read through the New Testamentin 2009, but initially decided to substitute theInstitutes. I started off fine, but by mid-Aprilrealized that reading Calvin and reading theNew Testament are far different. I discoveredI was hungry spiritually. I stopped reading theInstitutes and started reading the New Testa-ment during my devotions. That was a goodchoice.

I didn’t give up on Calvin, though. I would

find time during the day to keep on the read-ing schedule. Butwhen my familymoved out of ourhouse in Rochester,my Calvin readingwas cast aside. I gotbehind on the read-ings. Eventually Idecided to give upon reading the Insti-tutes in 2009.However, recently during my prayer time, Ifelt a gentle nudge to come back and read theInstitutes again. When I felt this nudge I asked

God, “How am I going to catch up?” I felt a

response to read for 15 minutes during theday at the office; start out with the current

day’s reading, and then find a way to readwhat I’ve missed.

That is the plan for now. I do believe thatthe nudge was from God

—

so I am sticking to

it. Don’t hesitate to ask me how my reading

is going.

Page 2Volume 1, Issue 3

Participants enjoying the picnicin the park on June 28th