Brothers and Sisters in Christ,
Last week, on the final day of our cohort, we talked with a survivor of sexual exploitation. She shared some of her story and how the Lord is working through her to help other women exit situations where they are being exploited. We also talked with a former classmate of mine who is running a ministry to reach out to women in strip clubs.
One of the suggested actions from my former classmate was that pastors talk about the topic of sexual exploitation, sexual violence, or sexual assault at least once a year. Now, when I heard this suggestion, I thought “When would I ever have a chance to do that?”
Turns out that the Lord knows! This week, I’ll be preaching from Genesis 34. If you are unfamiliar with this chapter, it is about the defilement of Dinah. Put differently, Dinah, Jacob’s only daughter, is raped. And chapter 34 is about how the people around Dinah deal with it. This Sunday, we will be talking about sexual exploitation and how we can respond.
This is not an easy topic, but my hope is that you will understand what you can do with a topic like this. You may want to shy away from it, but the Lord doesn’t shy away from it. He knows the full extent of the depravity of humanity, and yet he came to rescue us. In fact, he moves towards us in our sin for restoration (if we turn to him) or ruin (if we turn away from him). May we turn to him and find him to be all that we need.
Please continue to pray for the nations of Israel and Ukraine and South Sudan. Pray that the wars would end. Here is a suggested list of prayers if you are at a loss for words in how to pray: https://send.org/story/hh_pray_for_ukraine. And https://worldrelief.org/blog-prayer-for-israel-and-gaza/ Thank you for kneeling on behalf of the people of Ukraine and Russia, Israel and Gaza, Sudan and South Sudan, and taking a stand (or a knee in prayer) against the forces of darkness in this present age.
This Week (Sept. 20-26, 2024):
1. Tonight, Sept. 20, 2024, the Living Stones Friday Night Bible Study is meeting from 7:30-9:30 to study the topic of “Purpose Restored”. You can read Acts 3prepare in advance. Join in person in Room A-218 or online via the following link at 7:30 pm:
https://zoom.us/j/685376249?pwd=cWtyUk1pckJiRHJxZVZCSGdJZWw2UT09
Meeting ID: 685 376 249
Password: 840840
Join by phone: +1 929 436 2866 US (New York)
Also, the Bible Study group John is leading will be taking a break this week (Sept. 20)
2. CrossPoint Community Sunday School meets this Sunday – September 22 in the Koinonia Room (A-216). We are continuing our study of Church History, going back to the beginning of the church. We will use the following link for those who wish to join online this Sunday:
https://us02web.zoom.us/j/491248585?pwd=RnpLcnpjQ01nTGZLSmhaZ3l4L3dKQT09
Meeting ID: 491 248 585
Password: 403767
Join by phone: +1 929 205 6099 US (New York)
3. This Sunday, Sept. 22, 2024, at 11:25 am, our CrossPoint Community Worship Service will start and Pastor Nathan Willems will be preaching. Pray for him! Join us for worship at CBCGL!
Text: Genesis 34
Title: Responses to Rape
Live stream via Youtube: https://www.cbcgl.org/live-stream/
4. Each Wednesday, such as this coming week (September 25) at 7:45 pm, you are invited, encouraged, and requested to join our weekly prayer meeting. We will not grow in Christ without growing in our dependence on God through prayer. In September, we will be praying with a focus on the promises of God. The link is found below in the section on prayer.
Administration / Events
1. We have a missions update (so check out the missions tab in the bulletin)! You can provide support for James Liang (at UConn), and pray for Gordon and Maggie who are serving in France and are seeking to run some activities related to the Mid-Autumn festival to draw others to Christ.
2. CPCM has reserved the Multi-Purpose Room this Saturday from 1:30 to 4PM for sports. We can play any game, from Ping-pong, badminton, pickleball, volleyball, basketball; we can do it all. The room is reserved only for CPCM members, so it is highly likely you will have lots of space and time to play whatever you want. The goal is to build deeper bonds through shared interest and activity. The contact person is Joshua Zhang.
3. Sunday Lunch Service is available at CBCGL with $5 lunches that are first-come, first-served. Pizza is $2 per slice and Ramen is available (priced variously according to size).
4. Women’s Bible Study Kickoff! – It’s been a long summer and now with fall coming this week we are once again starting up our women’s Bible study KEEPING IT VERTICAL. The lesson is in the Fruits of the Spirit.
Our kick-off meeting starts: Tuesday, October 1st, 1 – 2pm
At CrossPoint Community Fellowship Room 218 with Refreshments!
We meet the first and third Tuesday of each month to learn, share and grow in the Lord. Come join us and meet new friends, and bring more friends along! Contact jeannemic50 (at) icloud.com
5. Save the Date: October 6 is our bi-annual townhall meeting during the Sunday School hour. We look forward to hearing from you anytime, but also seeing you then!
6. All other announcements can be found here (in our CrossPoint Community bulletin).
For Prayer:
1. From Bishop J.C. Ryle – “To be prayerless is to be Christless, Godless, and in the high road to destruction…It will always be found that when prayers are few, grace, strength, peace, and hope are small.” Please join our Wednesday night prayer meeting (7:45 – 9:15 pm) even if you can’t participate the whole time.
https://zoom.us/j/758587937?pwd=aS9sZUdxcm1janNNM2I2aXJ6Smx2QT09
Meeting ID: 758 587 937
Password: 030086
Join by phone: +1 929 436 2866 US (New York)
2. We’d be glad to pray for you. If you need prayer, you can submit your prayer request via the following link: https://www.cbcgl.org/pray/
In Christ, your servant, SDG,
Rev. Dr. Nathan Willems
Associate Pastor of CrossPoint Community – A Ministry of CBCGL