Element Church

Yesterday we worshiped at Element Church, 205 North Avenue, Millvale, PA 15209, 412.449.9006, www.elementlife.com, Erik Germesin, Lead Pastor.


Scripture – NIV

John 19:17-18, 28-30 –

Carrying his own cross, he went out to the place of the Skull (which in Aramaic is called Golgotha). There they crucified him, and with him two others—one on each side and Jesus in the middle.

Later, knowing that everything had now been finished, and so that Scripture would be fulfilled, Jesus said, “I am thirsty.” A jar of wine vinegar was there, so they soaked a sponge in it, put the sponge on a stalk of the hyssop plant, and lifted it to Jesus’ lips. When he had received the drink, Jesus said, “It is finished.” With that, he bowed his head and gave up his spirit.

Luke 9:23-26 –

Then he said to them all: “Whoever wants to be my disciple must deny themselves and take up their cross daily and follow me. For whoever wants to save their life will lose it, but whoever loses their life for me will save it. What good is it for someone to gain the whole world, and yet lose or forfeit their very self? Whoever is ashamed of me and my words, the Son of Man will be ashamed of them when he comes in his glory and in the glory of the Father and of the holy angels.


Bob’s thoughts:

There was a time when I was in Millvale often, but it has been a number of years ago. Then twice in the last week because of traffic backups we ended up going past Element Church. We both took it to be God getting our attention as to where to worship today.

We were greeted when we walked in and offered coffee and doughnuts. A number of people stopped to say hello, including some of the pastors. I was thanked for my service and met two other Marines.

In front there is a larger wooden cross with white painted slats angled to accent the cross.

The words on the screen were in sync with the songs till the closing song.

David Ebert spoke of his mission in Africa with Overland Missions. An interesting interaction with African chiefs, divinely orchestrated, I’m sure.

The pastor made reference to the cross: “They are everywhere,” but alas, many supposed Christian churches do not have a cross.

Communion was offered albeit silently, and not in unison.

The church is working to be oriented to the neighborhood and bring Christ’s love to the area.

We were thankful that a number of those we met took the time to talk after the service.


Jan’s thoughts:

I have been nowhere near Millvale since our last visit to Element Church in March 2012, and this past week I drove past their new location twice, both times unplanned. We took this as God’s direction and went there for worship.

We arrived quite early and had plenty of time to enjoy coffee and donuts along with friendly conversations and a chance to look around. The building had been a bank previously; the vault is still intact and is now used as an office. The church feels casual, functional, uncluttered, and focused on their mission to “Know God, Grow in God, and Show God to Others” with a solid outreach plan covering the entire year.

The service began with musical worship led by a single guitarist who also led the vocals with a strong, expressive voice.

The pastor introduced Pastor David Ebert, a missionary supported by this church. Pastor David serves in Zambia with Overland Missions, an apostolic organization that is “working to establish the Kingdom of God in a kingdom of darkness.” He told of the progress being made in this country and surrounding areas and the amazing doors opening in their efforts to begin a tribal chaplaincy program there. He credited Overland’s faithfulness to the Word of God for the increase of their influence and asked for prayers for wisdom, tact, and insight.

The message was the second part of the series, The End of the Beginning: Crucified. The pastor emphasized the importance of recognizing the brutality of Christ’s crucifixion and death, and since this congregation will not have a Good Friday service this year, he felt it important to speak to it today.

The pastor spoke concurrently about Christ on the Cross and His directive to His followers to take up their cross daily and follow Him. He stated that Jesus was never weak when He was on the cross.

The Message Notes (found on the church website) provided the main points.

What Happens When We Pick Up Our Cross?

1 – Picking up our cross looks like death, but it is actually the only way to find real life.

2 – This real life is intimately connected with walking step-by-step with Jesus.

3 – Picking up our cross changes our perspective from the here and now to the eternal.

He ended with a powerful reminder: When you think it is the end, God has a new beginning for you.

I was grateful Communion was served following this emotional message and also for the time given by several pastors and members for conversation after the service.


Our prayer for this church:
+Father in Heaven, we pray for Your continued presence and guidance among this church. Please help them as they work to serve this neighborhood where You have planted them. Amen.

Element Church

Today we worshiped at Element Church, P.O. Box 5863, 400 Lincoln Avenue, Millvale, PA 15209, 412.736.9006, www.theelementchurch.com, Pastor Rich & Jodi Jones, Lead Pastors.

Bob’s thoughts:

There is an old joke about going to a fight and a hockey game broke out…well in a way, we went to a bar and a church broke out. The bar is in an old church building and the church sets up to worship there.

We were warmly welcomed by a number of people. Signage is pretty well non-existent, but they are using someone else’s space. The music would have been too loud for me without earplugs and sitting in the back.

The bar was set with coffee and water, which was much appreciated when my cough returned. I heard talk of property they were working on and was pleased that it is for their outreach programs and worship will remain where it is. A man in a wheelchair distributed some handouts, so there is handicapped access somewhere.

There was a girl of about 2½ whose dance below the stage was a real treat. There was a healthy mix of age groups present.

My only worship disappointment was in being unable to find a cross anywhere.

The sermon was about how God calls us to take an uncomfortable step before He does the impossible in our lives. I think that has been true in my life. When we had to move from Crafton and had no idea where we would go or how we would find the resources, God called me to get ready to move and I started giving things away. When I cleaned out, a cousin gave me a house at South Hills Country Club with the statement “I don’t know why, but I would like to give you the house.”

I still resist obeying God sometimes, but He still amazes me when I act as He requests.

Jan’s thoughts:

Never having been to Mr. Small’s Theater before, I was unfamiliar with the place. Today I learned that it had been a Catholic church, was then transformed into a theater (a non-traditional type, obviously), and now on Sunday mornings is used for worship by The Element Church.

The atmosphere was casual and the people friendly in a comfortable way. Prior to worship we had extended conversations with a few people including a Marine who seemed to keep a watchful, helpful eye on us the remainder of the morning, which was appreciated.

Needless to say, this worship experience was different than…all the others, actually, but there were many remarkable points: the mix of ages was surprising, from very young to much older; they understood and brought us chairs when we said we might have a problem with the volume and wanted to stay toward the back; a number of people simply came up and welcomed us…it was simple, the way it’s supposed to be; several took the time to have a longer conversation and answer our questions. It just felt unpretentious and relaxed.

We were glad we stayed toward the back for the first couple of songs (after all it is a rock service) but I freely admit that many wouldn’t have an issue with the volume…it’s our ear conditions that make it an issue for us. The last couple of songs were quieter, and the band had a terrific sound all the way through the service.

Once a month they recognize a volunteer with a “Foam Finger of Awesomeness” and today it was presented to our new Marine friend, which was awesome in itself.

The sermon is part of a series based on a book called “Sun Stand Still: What Happens When You Dare to Ask God for the Impossible” by Steven Furtick. Pastor Furtick is the founder and lead pastor of Elevation Church in Charlotte, NC, which in its four years has grown to more than 6,000 people in regular attendance at three locations, according to Amazon.com.

The sermon, like the book, challenges one to contemplate audacious faith, noting that when we ask God to do the impossible, He usually asks us to do something uncomfortable. He read Joshua 10:12-14 in which Joshua prayed boldly that the sun would not advance – and it did not for an entire day.

Many inspiring points came from his message, which became a tag-team event when it was completed by an Associate Pastor. She listed the three Steps of Preparation:

1 – Trade off to trade up (you must give up the old in order to receive the new);

2 – Setbacks can be set-ups (what looks like a failure often is an opportunity for God to show up and show off);

3 – Divine vision creates tough decisions (God’s plans require something substantial of us, usually in terms of giving up something and/or changing our thinking).

The final reminder of the morning was that “testimonies don’t come without a test” (which I liked), and the question we all need to ask ourselves: “What uncomfortable thing is God asking me to do in order to see Him do the impossible?”

The book sounds intriguing and challenging, and that’s how I felt about the message. It’s the sort of thing that makes me nervous that God is forewarning me that He plans to ask me to recklessly abandon control over my world. If He does, I will surely be recalling this message.