April 22, 2020
My name is Carrie Harpell and I am blessed to be able to share a little of my heart with you today. I had the privilege of helping to launch Restoration Church from the beginning, praying and strategizing in Rob’s basement, serving coffee and being a part of the hospitality team for several years and have been a prayer partner since then.
I attended several of the prayer meetings last fall led by Mary Beshara and Michael Nybakken and through that, and my small group, I was encouraged to start my own 40 days of prayer. I started my “first 40 days” back in January of this year, which of course was prior to any awareness or knowledge of the Coronavirus. I recently finished my my second 40 days of prayer during this Stay at Home time for COVID-19.
To be honest this second “40 day” was even better than the first. My first round I was intent on praying for specific people in my life and was so sure God would “change” their hearts and ha! Nope. It was frustrating as I didn’t see any noticeable changes but God sweetly pressed upon me that this time was for He and I, that He was desiring for me to change personally!
That first 40 days was mostly my heart changing. HE helped me to see from His perspective and not my own. This second round brought me to be even more thankful and hopeful for God’s goodness, and to trust Him more.
I wish I could say I was like the woman in the movie “War Room” but I’m not. My early morning 6am time is pretty humble and random. Nothing formal. I sit in “my chair” in my sitting room and start my prayer with praise and thanksgiving to God, not only for His provision in my life, but for all the treasures He gives me during the day that I don’t want to miss.
If I come across a verse, I pray that specifically over “my person” or “persons” I’m praying for. God is super cool in that way. He brings verses to mind in so many ways: from tweets from Beth Moore or different sermons we watch online, especially now since there are so many! I love reading the blogs by Sylvia Neusch. I was even pressed upon by a movie, The Case for Christ, which is Lee Strobel’s personal story.
Basically, my prayer time is running to Him to start my day, praying and reading His Word. I usually do pray a specific verse over a person. And it may be the same one for days in a row or I come back to it. I truly believe God just wants us to come before him, willing to be molded and transformed, and He does the rest.
Today friends, I’d love to encourage you, especially in this time we are walking through, to carve out time to sit before God in prayer. He so desires our time and attention. He doesn’t want us to just endure this quarantine time, He wants us to anticipate what He’s doing and expect good change. He IS faithful! Let us also be faithful!!
Be blessed today!
Carrie
Welcome Soren Youngberg
We celebrate the birth of Soren Floyd Youngberg, 4lbs 10oz, 17 1/2in long, born to Nick and Andrea Youngberg on April 8, 2020 at 8:52am. Soren is also welcomed by big brother and sisters Leif, Veil, and Maren. Soren will be spending some time in NICU before coming home but he and Andrea are both doing well. Please keep the Youngberg family in your prayers during this time and praise God for a healthy mom and baby. We welcome the Restoration family to support and bless them by providing meals. Please sign-up through THIS LINK Note: Meal Train recommends all Meal Trains utilize Restaurant or “Contact-Free” delivery when providing support during COVID-19.
*THIS SUNDAY*
Communion Sunday
This Sunday we’ll be celebrating communion during our online worship service, Sunday, April 26. Communion is a sacred practice in the Christian church instituted by Jesus Christ. The bread and cup represent and remind us of Jesus’ body and blood freely being offered to restore us with God. We’d like to invite you to participate from your home by gathering the communion elements before Sunday morning so you are not scrambling to find something in that moment. You may not have the traditional elements of bread and juice/wine on hand to use, so feel free to use what is meaningful and available to you. Our desire is to experience Christ with us as we break the bread and drink the cup, whatever those actual elements may be. We look forward to participating with you online Sunday morning! The recipe for our typical Communion bread can be found HERE if you want to make it yourself.
Photo Contest
We can all agree that church has looked very different over the last few weeks. One of the ways we can keep connected is through pictures. We’d love to see pictures of you participating in church online, spreading kindness to your neighbors, praying, zoom chatting with your small group, or what it looks like when you worship with your family at home. All entries will be entered into a drawing for a $25 Target gift card. We’d like to use these pictures on Facebook, our website, and in our weekly newsletters so please know that submitting these images provides us with permission to do so. Please send images to info@restorationcov.org. We’ll draw for the gift card on Friday, May 1.
New Beginnings Message Series
Did you know the Easter story is a new creation story? Jesus died and was buried on a Friday, like a seed placed in the Earth by God, that sprung forth on Sunday. Jesus’ resurrection inaugurates the new creation. The Church first referred to Sunday as the eighth day. Creation was completed in six days, God rested on the seventh day, but at the resurrection God started a new beginning. God didn’t just raise Jesus from the dead; the resurrection of Jesus began an era where God is making all things new.
Small Groups Meeting Online via Zoom
In these unprecedented times, it’s more important than ever to have face time with friends and family – even if it’s virtual. We recognize the huge value in this opportunity to stay connected and some of our small groups have formed online zoom chats to stay connected:
- Women’s Group – Every other Monday at 7pm – led by Erin Garcia
- Men’s Group – Every Saturday morning at 7am – led by Chad White
- Prayer Group – Every Tuesday 7-9pm – led by Mary Beshara and Michael Nybakken
These groups are all easy to join. Please reach out to DanielMorgenstern@restorationcov.org to get connected to these zoom chats or to find the group that fits best.
Adultish? Group Meeting
Is being an adult still something you do instead of something you are? Does your phone have notes for your taxes saved next to the dankest of memes. Then we have a group for you! Adultish? A group for people somewhere between comic books and National Geographic. We know there are a lot of you stuck at home with a lot less to do so why not hang out with us. Join us Fridays on Zoom to play some party games on Jackbox! Text Daniel at 952-686-8408 for any questions or issues connecting.
Sunday Coffee Time
Are you missing after service chats by the coffee cart? Join us after the message Sunday on a zoom call for our virtual coffee meeting; we’ll bring the company you bring the coffee. We will break up into groups of 3-4 callers to give you a chance to chat and check in on folks you might not have connected with otherwise. A link will be posted in the Facebook chat at the end of the service on Sunday.
Care during COVID-19
We’ve been in contact with people from Restoration and people from our neighborhood school, Westview Elementary, to find out how we can best help families during this unusual time of need. In lieu of our usual Food on the First food collections for April and May, we will be collecting gift cards throughout the next two months to provide to families in need. If you are willing and able to partner with us, please send grocery gift cards from Target, Cub, Aldi, or Walmart to Michele Jacobson, 14230 Audobon Way, Rosemount, MN 55068. Michele will coordinate getting the gift cards to these families. If you are a family in need, or know of a family in need, please call, text or email the church 952-373-1274 or info@restorationcov.org and we will do what can to assist.
Update from Michele: The Westview families in need of assistance have been very thankful for the extra help during this time. We put together a basket and bag of grocery items for them, along with the gift cards people sent, and delivered them last Friday. We have more gift cards to deliver this week. I am so proud to be a part of this generous church!
Calling all Writers
The world is changing by the minute. Conversation and connection in this strange time of uncertainty is paramount. Have you experienced new thoughts and emotions stirred up by isolation or having your kids home 24/7? Are your kids experiencing fears or frustrations they want to talk about? We want to hear it if you’re willing to share with us! We’re always looking for writers of all ages and stages to contribute to our News and Notes articles. You don’t have to be an amazing writer, you just need to have something to say or share. Has something you’ve heard or experienced sparked or inspired you? We’d love to hear about it or hear a piece of your story. We also have people to help edit if you have something to share, but aren’t sure how to say it. Contact KerryStok@restorationcov.org if you’re interested or have more questions.
Online Giving
There’s no time like the present to set up online giving. Because our regularly scheduled worship service will be online for the next few weeks, online tithing is a way to remain faithful in your giving even in the most uncertain of times. Decide in your heart how much to give. And don’t give reluctantly or in response to pressure. For God loves a person who gives cheerfully. And God will generously provide all you need. We encourage you to consider giving online so that your giving is regular and easy to manage – it’s easy to sign up HERE.
Pray or Receive Prayer
Now more than ever, people are turning toward prayer or are in desperate need of prayer. We have an amazingly gifted prayer team you can depend on for prayer. They’re always looking for other prayer warriors if you want to join or if you need prayer for any situation, you can contact them. We believe in the power of prayer and know that God is listening. We would love to pray for you. If you’re interested in joining the prayer team or have any prayer requests, send them to our prayer team at prayer@restorationcov.org
RESTORATION KIDS
Contact: ChrystineVilhauer@restorationcov.org
Hello families,
I am sure most of you have heard me say before (probably many times) that at Restoration we believe strongly in empowering parents to be the spiritual leaders of their child’s faith. You have so much more time and influence in your child’s life than we ever could. That is especially true now. As parents, you are now not only the most important influence but likely one of the only daily influences our kids have to hear about God’s word and see what that means for our lives. It is also still true that Restoration Kids is here to support you. We are working to make sure you have access to the Bible lesson content your kids would have gotten on Sunday mornings as well as discussion prompts and activities to help engage your child around these topics. We are also working on some creative ideas to help keep the sense of community and fun as the weeks at home continue. Make sure to follow us on Facebook so you don’t miss anything!
As always, if you have any questions or need anything at all, please do not hesitate to reach out to me at ChrystineVilhauer@restorationcov.org. I am praying for your families and want to know how you are doing over the next few weeks!
Restoration Kids Weekly Challenge
Have you been keeping up with the weekly Facebook challenges? These easy challenges are something fun for kids to do and a way to connect with other Restoration families. We have loved seeing what everyone comes up with. Plus there are prizes!
This week’s challenge is to recite our memory verse and post a video on our Facebook post. This week’s winner will receive a $15 Target gift card!
What We’re Learning in April
Preschoolers
Everywhere we look in spring we see green starting to push through the soil and trees heavy with buds getting ready to bloom. Everything just feels so ALIVE! It’s the perfect picture to help teach preschoolers that Jesus is alive! We are sharing with preschoolers the life changing truth that Jesus is alive and He wants to be their friend forever. We are planting seeds that we pray will grow and bloom into a faith that is as alive as Jesus. A love that will love like Jesus. A compassion that will care like Jesus. A life that will give like Jesus.
Elementary
We live in a me-centered world, where people act as if the world revolves around them. Figuring out how to be humble can be difficult. But we don’t have to figure this out on our own. When Jesus was on earth, He gave us the ultimate example of humility. Jesus is God, and He put that aside for us. Through His life and death, He also showed us how to serve others and put them first.
RESTORATION STUDENTS
Contact: DanielMorgenstern@restorationcov.org
Restoration Students Update
We don’t have to tell you that there is a lot of uncertainty in these times. A lot of things we assumed were immovable aren’t and a lot of things we thought would never have to change are. We, the Restoration Student Leaders, first want to emphasize that, though we don’t fully understand, we feel the loss and unease of our students. We too have lost or seen things shift that we depended upon. It is frustrating and disappointing to feel so out of control and we mourn for our students that have to go through this very adult thing so early.
What we can control is our ministry and our spiritual orientation. The Restoration Student Leaders are committed to take every opportunity to keep on keeping on when it comes to Restoration Student Ministry. That means that student gatherings on Wednesday nights have changed but haven’t ended. Invitation days are still happening. That means that we still affirm and act on what God has said about us and our responsibilities. Restoration Student Ministry will remain a stable part of our life and we encourage and pray that wherever you and your students are you find things that you can make stable. Remember the word in Hebrews 13: God has said, “Never will I leave you; never will I forsake you.” So we say with confidence, “The Lord is my helper; I will not be afraid. What can mere mortals do to me?” Jesus Christ is the same yesterday and today and forever.
View past News & Notes by clicking HERE.