Sunday, September 3, 2017

Allison Park Church

Today we worshiped at Allison Park Church, 424 Duss Avenue, Ambridge, PA 15003, 412.487.722, www.allisonparkchurch.com, Campus Pastor John Holt.


Scripture – NLT

Luke 5:1-11 –

“One day as Jesus was preaching on the shore of the Sea of Galilee, great crowds pressed in on him to listen to the word of God. He noticed two empty boats at the water’s edge, for the fishermen had left them and were washing their nets. Stepping into one of the boats, Jesus asked Simon, its owner, to push it out into the water. So he sat in the boat and taught the crowds from there.

When he had finished speaking, he said to Simon, “Now go out where it is deeper, and let down your nets to catch some fish.”

“Master,” Simon replied, “we worked hard all last night and didn’t catch a thing. But if you say so, I’ll let the nets down again.” And this time their nets were so full of fish they began to tear! A shout for help brought their partners in the other boat, and soon both boats were filled with fish and on the verge of sinking.

When Simon Peter realized what had happened, he fell to his knees before Jesus and said, “Oh, Lord, please leave me—I’m such a sinful man.” For he was awestruck by the number of fish they had caught, as were the others with him. His partners, James and John, the sons of Zebedee, were also amazed.

Jesus replied to Simon, “Don’t be afraid! From now on you’ll be fishing for people!” And as soon as they landed, they left everything and followed Jesus.”

2 Corinthians 3:2-3 –

The only letter of recommendation we need is you yourselves. Your lives are a letter written in our hearts; everyone can read it and recognize our good work among you. Clearly, you are a letter from Christ showing the result of our ministry among you. This “letter” is written not with pen and ink, but with the Spirit of the living God. It is carved not on tablets of stone, but on human hearts.


Bob’s thoughts:

It has been a while since we last visited but I don’t remember needing earplugs then or if there was a cross. I do think I would have remembered if there was music louder than the prayers. I noticed some members writing during the message…I hope they were taking notes.

I missed some of the early greeting, but people were friendly.

Some points from the message: “We see problems, Christ sees possibilities.” A good question for the congregation: “Who needs the Good News in your sphere of influence?” Another I liked: “Obedience is a turning point.”

The pastor told a story of a parishioner who stopped to invite a couple to church; after many invitations, they came, and soon family came with them.

There was a woman who came to worship at my first long-term church. Every Sunday I tried to engage her in conversation and got nowhere…I had all but given up. One Sunday the pastor asked me if I had said hello and when I relayed her lack of past response, he urged me again. This time I was met with a joyous greeting. The pastor hadn’t mentioned that she had accepted Christ that Saturday in his office and he knew how frustrated I was from trying over the months to engage her in conversation.

Of late God has given me a joyous ministry of prayer with salespeople: I’ve gotten to seek those who seem less than cheerful. I would like to say it brings joy to their face, but more often it is tears. A simple touch or prayer is overwhelming to them, and me too. When you minister to someone, it is never only one way.


Jan’s thoughts:

Two new pastors have come on staff here since our last visit just over two years ago. It’s encouraging to see the excitement and energy here.

We arrived a couple of minutes into the service, so it was already dark. We were greeted at the door and welcomed with handshakes and hugs. We found our seats in the far back and were invited to help ourselves to coffee.

The music was well done, led by a drummer and two women vocalists, one of whom also played the keyboard. Once we were in the room, the volume was good.

I loved the wall decorations behind the platform: I only got to see them from a distance but they looked like metal tubs on the wall and each tub was lined with lights that changed color to coordinate with the background color on the screens. It sounds plain, but they were striking!

Allison Park Church and its satellites (including this one) are arranging to collect donations to help victims of Hurricane Harvey, of course. We were also treated to a preview of Senior Pastor Jeff Leake’s upcoming sermon series which will be tied in to their Life Group meetings as well.

The message was presented by Campus Pastor John Holt and was called “Let’s Go Fishing!” As he outlined the Scripture detailing Jesus’ encounter with Peter and the other fishermen, he emphasized Jesus’ ability to see the possibilities instead of their failure and His encouragement of His soon-to-be followers.

My two favorite parts: the statement that obedience is a turning point in our life story and obeying brings blessing, and that catching fish, you make them die…catching people, you make them live.

At this point, they outlined some of their innovative plans for community outreach over the next month or two, reminding the worshipers that Jesus knows where the fish are.

We appreciated the time both pastors took following worship for conversation.


Our prayer for this church:
Lord, we pray this, Your church, will be empty, that they be the church out in the neighborhood winning souls for You. Amen.

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