Mars Alliance Church

Today we worshiped at Mars Alliance Church, 997 Route 228, Mars, PA 16046, 724.776.9400, www.marsalliance.org, Rev. Joseph Toomey, Lead Pastor.

Scripture – Matthew 7:7-23 NIV

“Ask and it will be given to you; seek and you will find; knock and the door will be opened to you. For everyone who asks receives; the one who seeks finds; and to the one who knocks, the door will be opened.

“Which of you, if your son asks for bread, will give him a stone? Or if he asks for a fish, will give him a snake? If you, then, though you are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father in heaven give good gifts to those who ask him! So in everything, do to others what you would have them do to you, for this sums up the Law and the Prophets.

“Enter through the narrow gate. For wide is the gate and broad is the road that leads to destruction, and many enter through it. But small is the gate and narrow the road that leads to life, and only a few find it.

“Watch out for false prophets. They come to you in sheep’s clothing, but inwardly they are ferocious wolves. By their fruit you will recognize them. Do people pick grapes from thornbushes, or figs from thistles? Likewise, every good tree bears good fruit, but a bad tree bears bad fruit. A good tree cannot bear bad fruit, and a bad tree cannot bear good fruit. Every tree that does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire. Thus, by their fruit you will recognize them.

“Not everyone who says to me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter the kingdom of heaven, but only the one who does the will of my Father who is in heaven. Many will say to me on that day, ‘Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in your name and in your name drive out demons and in your name perform many miracles?’ Then I will tell them plainly, ‘I never knew you. Away from me, you evildoers!’”

Bob’s thoughts:

Although we arrived just as the service was starting, we were greeted during the welcome time and I got to greet a Marine who serves as an associate pastor…that always makes me feel welcome.

I meant to get a closer look at the screens but the support system made them look like they belonged there, and the placement was excellent. I could only find small crosses like the ceiling fixtures but there is a striking stained glass cross window at the rear of the chancel behind some drapes. I thought it would be great to uncover it for parts of the service. A scenic vista was projected lightly on the side walls during the message.

We “gray hairs” seemed to outnumber the youth…a bit unusual for contemporary worship. The lead singer was hard to understand when she spoke, I don’t know if the problem was fixed later or it was just that the words were on the screen.

A courageous witness came from a young woman we assumed to be a member till we spoke with her later. She had suffered with sexual identity issues till surrendering her problem to Christ. What He did is not a surprise but the strength He gave to her to relate her story was overwhelming / impressive / inspiring. I understand she suffered rejection and abuse from those who should have been supportive.

I heard Christ speaking through the message to come to the Lord with asking, seeking, and knocking. We are all guilty in our walk. I find I am always reluctant when it involves me. To come to Christ asking for healing for others is natural every day, but I seem to need to be hit upside the head with a few bricks before I ask for myself, even with a history of not being forsaken in those prayers.

The pastor did an excellent job of making the Scriptures relevant to the congregation, and used modern imagery to help explain the analogy of the HOV lane for the narrow way. I thought he could have included that you can’t get in on your own…you need someone with you – Jesus Christ.

Jan’s thoughts:

It has been 3 years and a new pastor since we last visited this church. The modern, sprawling facility is clean and well kept with pleasing aesthetics. Since we arrived about 5 minutes late to this contemporary service, we missed some of the music.

I was pleased to witness the commissioning of a group of young people for a mission trip to Charleston, South Carolina. The leader who spoke stated they are trusting God for their safety and the good He will bring from their efforts.

The praise band lead singer had a strong, lovely voice and I enjoyed hearing her lead her original composition.

Prior to introducing a speaker, the pastor asked that all children under the age of 10 step outside in the hallway with the pastor’s wife to play a few games for 10 minutes. The visiting speaker, Amy, proceeded to give her brave personal testimony that centered on her struggle with same-sex attraction. This message was exceedingly well presented with no hint of excuses or self-pity, just her personal story of her efforts to “work harder” to remove this from her mind and life. Her story concluded with her ultimate success which came only as a result of finally surrendering to Jesus Christ. Her concluding reminders were that “strongholds grow in the dark” and we each need to know who we are and who God made us to be.

Amy’s testimony was followed by a call for those desiring prayer.

The message was untitled as far as I could tell, but covered a lot of ground with some great points and terrific graphics that were on point.

For the familiar ask, seek, knock passage, he said the first step was to just ask; the second step is to seek, which is asking + action; and the third step is to knock, which is asking + action + attitude.

I appreciated this encouraging message and the passion with which it was delivered.

Our prayer for this church:

Lord, we pray that those who needed to hear the witness take it to heart and that we all strive for the straight and narrow way. Amen.