TFPC EM NEWSLETTER - FEBRUARY 5, 2020

Breath of Hope

Today is February 5, 2020

Welcome to your mid-week!

Usually the Christian response to tragedy is prayer and mourning. Prayer is the Christian's natural expression of empathy. It is a prayer of lament and anguish; a way to express human solidarity with those who suffer. And mourning with those who mourn takes it one step further. It is where we cry and comfort and stand with those who mourn.

But the Christian response cannot end there. In the face of hopelessness we must share the message of hope that is the gospel message. 

God loves us so much that he saves us from this fallen world. God sends Jesus to pay the penalty of sin and, through him, we are saved. We have the hope of eternal life through the resurrection of Jesus Christ.

As Jesus said:

John 11:25-26 
Jesus said to her, “I am the resurrection and the life. The one who believes in me will live, even though they die; and whoever lives by believing in me will never die. Do you believe this?”

And this is not a feeling or an emotion. This hope is the living hope that Apostle Peter talks about in 1 Peter 1:3. It is the hope that is firm and secure, as Hebrew 6:19-20 tells us.

This is the eternal hope that we have in Jesus Christ, the hope that comforts us in the face of tragedy, and the hope that, as we pray and mourn with people, we need to share.

God's blessing upon you this week and I look forward to seeing you all this Sunday.

- Frank Kim

Recording of the Sermon: N/A [Due to Technical Difficulties]
Opening Praise: N/A [Due to Technical Difficulties]
Cell Group Discussion: HERE

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Upcoming Events

• Feb 5 (Wed) – Start of Horizons Cell Group. 7pm @ the Benedicts
• Feb 21 (Fri) – Youth Group Apologetics Seminar, 7:30pm
• Feb 23 (Sun) – Parent’s Meeting, 12:30pm 
• Feb 28 (Fri) – Skid Row Prep
• Feb 29 (Sat) – Skid Row Mission
• Mar 6 (Fri) – Start of Woman’s Cell Group
• Mar 8 (Sun) – Cell Group Open House/Mixer @ ELIM

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Volunteers Needed!

• Youth Ministry FEMALE Teachers Needed!
• "Youth Ministry needs more teachers to serve and minister to our youth! If you are interested in serving in the Youth Ministry as a teacher, please contact P.Edward Kim: shin.e.kim88@gmail.com​

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TFPC EM NEWSLETTER - JANUARY 29, 2020

Learning The Language

Today is January 29, 2020

Welcome to your mid-week!

"Sanctify them by the truth; your word is truth" is what Jesus prayed for his disciples at Gethsemane.

For Jesus, the disciples protection and unity and joy was found in being set apart, in being different. And the only way that his disciples could do this was through the word of the Lord. 

As language is important to culture, so the bible is important to being a Christian.As Peter says:

1 Peter 4:11a
If anyone speaks, they should do so as one who speaks the very words of God. 

This is what Jesus desired for us.

Now, I think every Christian knows the importance of the word of the Lord. The challenge is that we fall into sin. We don't prioritize it, are apathetic toward it, or feel like we don't need. 

This is why Jesus' last prayer for us so important to remind us, once again, to try.

The Bible is not supposed to be a burden. The bible protects us, guides us, it answers those big questions in life, but, most of all, it encourages us and reminds us of the truth.

How do I know that you are wonderfully made? That you are worthy to be saved? That you are loved? It is found in the word of the Lord.

How do I know that no matter what you've done there is forgiveness? That reconciliation and restoration is possible? It is found in the word of the Lord.

How do I know that there is peace to be had, no matter the storm; joy to be had, no matter the hardship; hope to be had, even in the face of death? It is found in the word of the Lord.

God's blessing upon you and I look forward to seeing you all this Sunday.

- Frank Kim

Recording of the Sermon: HERE
Sermon PPS: HERE
Opening Praise: HERE
Cell Group Discussion: HERE

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Upcoming Events

• Jan 31 (Fri) - College Ministry Friday Night Service - KICK OFF!. 7:30pm @ EM Chapel 
• Feb 2 (Sun) – PV Cell Group. 3pm @ the Hongs
• Feb 5 (Wed) – Start of Horizons Cell Group. 7pm @ the Benedicts
• Feb 13 (Thur) - YMF Cell Group. 6:45pm @ the Fellowship Hall
• Mar 6 (Fri) – Start of Woman’s Cell Group 7pm @ Pastor Frank's Office
• Mar 8 (Sun) – Cell Group Open House/Mixer. 12:30pm @ Elim Cafe [Updated]

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Volunteers Needed!

• Youth Ministry FEMALE Teachers Needed!
• "Youth Ministry needs more teachers to serve and minister to our youth! If you are interested in serving in the Youth Ministry as a teacher, please contact P.Edward Kim: shin.e.kim88@gmail.com​

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TFPC EM NEWSLETTER - JANUARY 22, 2020

Wonder Breath

Today is January 22, 2020

Welcome to your mid-week!

Psalm 139:14 tells us that we are "wonderfully made” by God. We are a wonder, a marvel, by definition, a surprise mingled with admiration, caused by something beautiful.
 
Why does God make us so wonderfully? Why make us with so much intricacy and detail and ability? Why? Because he cares about us. He cares about us so much that he pays attention to the details.
 
More so, we are priceless to God. When we rebelled, when we were ‘damaged’ by sin, God did not throw us away and start over. No, he spent the time and energy and paid the price to restore us back.
 
Just as France is willing to spend a billion dollars and half a century restoring the Notre Dame Cathedral, so God does even more so for us because we are that priceless; that irreplaceable; that loved by God.
 
And there, there is the application.
 
On one hand, it is to believe how God views you. Despite what the world says, despite the insecurities and cultural and social pressures placed upon you, you are worthy to be saved. You are worthy enough that God died for you.  You are beautiful, wonderful, and loved by God as you are. That’s how he views you.

At the same time, the quintessential gospel verse reminds us that God loves everyone. Everyone. That how he views you and the act on the cross he did for you, he did for everyone. Therefore, as his people, we need to hold his same view of others as he has for us.
 
God’s blessing upon you this week and I look forward to seeing you all this Sunday.

- Frank Kim

Recording of the Sermon: HERE
Sermon PPT: HERE
Opening Praise: HERE
Cell Group Discussion: HERE
 

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Upcoming Events

• Jan 22 (Wed) – YMF Cell Group
• Jan 24 (Fri) - Skid Row Prep
• Jan 25 (Sat) - Skid Row Mission
• Jan 24-26 (Fri-Sun) – KM Revival
• Jan 26 (Sun) - Ministry Council
• Jan 31 (Fri) - College Ministry Friday Night Service - KICK OFF!. 7:30pm @ EM Chapel [UPDATED]
• Feb 2 (Sun) – PV Cell Group
• Feb 5 (Wed) – Start of Horizons Cell Group
• Feb 23 (Sun) – Cell Group Open House/Mixer
• Mar 6 (Fri) – Start of Woman’s Cell Group

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Volunteers Needed!

• Youth Ministry FEMALE Teachers Needed!
• "Youth Ministry needs more teachers to serve and minister to our youth! If you are interested in serving in the Youth Ministry as a teacher, please contact P.Edward Kim: shin.e.kim88@gmail.com​

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TFPC EM NEWSLETTER - JANUARY 15, 2020

Breathing the Gospel

Today is January 15, 2020

Welcome to your mid-week!

This past Sunday Pastor Diana preached on what it means to breathe the gospel, and she looked at the root of the word 'breathing.' 

In one way, breathing is what we do every day. It is the breathing that is unconscious; the type that we don't think about nor put a lot of effort into.

In another way, breathing is when we gasp in desperation. It is when we come out of the water, when we have a panic attack, when we feel like we are suffocating.

Both types of breathing are used in this verse:

Job 33:4 
The Spirit of God has made me; the breath of the Almighty gives me life.

The Spirit aka the breath of God has made me. We don't think about it, but we are God's creation. We don't put any effort into it, it is just who we are. But, it is my desperation for God that gives me life. It is in my gasping for Him that gives me purpose. It is in my anguish for him where I find peace.

And there, there is the challenge of the message.

In all the things we need in life - water, food, and shelter - how important is breathing? How important is breathing to live? If we don't breathe for ~3 minutes then we die, physically. The same goes for our spiritual need of breathing in the gospel. If we don't breathe spiritually then we will die. We will see division and anxiety and fear and we will die.

So, the question is, are you spiritually breathing? Are you desperately seeking the Lord?

God's blessing upon you this week as you meditate on what it means to breathe the gospel, and I look forward to seeing you all this Sunday.

- Frank Kim

Recording of the Sermon: HERE
Opening Praise: HERE
Cell Group Discussion: HERE

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Upcoming Events

• Jan 17-19 (Fri-Sun) - EM College Retreat
• Jan 22 (Wed) – YMF Cell Group
• Jan 24 (Fri) - Skid Row Prep
• Jan 24 (Fri) - College Ministry Friday Night Service. 7:30pm @ EM Chapel
• Jan 25 (Sat) - Skid Row Mission
• Jan 26 (Sun) - Ministry Council
• Feb 2 (Sun) – PV Cell Group
• Feb 5 (Wed) – Start of Horizons Cell Group
• Feb 23 (Sun) – Cell Group Open House/Mixer [Updated]
• Mar 6 (Fri) – Start of Woman’s Cell Group

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Volunteers Needed!

• Youth Ministry FEMALE Teachers Needed!
• "Youth Ministry needs more teachers to serve and minister to our youth! If you are interested in serving in the Youth Ministry as a teacher, please contact P.Edward Kim: shin.e.kim88@gmail.com​

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TFPC EM NEWSLETTER - JANUARY 8, 2020

The Gospel, Then Everything Else

Today is January 8, 2020

Welcome to your mid-week!

Our church vision for 2020 is "A Community that Breathes the Gospel." Our vision verse is:

1 Corinthians 9:23
I do all this for the sake of the gospel, that I may share in its blessings.

When Apostle Paul wrote this, he was sharing to the church of Corinth how far he was willing to go for the sake of gospel. Though he was a Roman citizen, he chose not to exert that authority but chose to become weak. Though he was a Jew, he chose not to look down upon the people who his culture would call dogs, but, instead, embrace them. Though he was a Pharisee, he chose not to use his own title within his own community. In his own words:

1 Corinthians 9:19, 22b
Though I am free and belong to no one, I have made myself a slave to everyone, to win as many as possible...I have become all things to all people so that by all possible means I might save some

Based on this context, our vision for 2020 is more than a call to prioritize the gospel. It is a call to change, a call to humbleness, a call to selflessness. 

The challenge, therefore, of Apostle Paul is to not place ourselves at the top of our list of priorities. It cannot be ourselves or our culture then everything else. Families and churches have split when this is the case. It must always be the gospel. The gospel must be at the top of everything. It must be the gospel and then everything else.

God's blessing upon you this year and I look forward to seeing you this Sunday.

- Frank Kim

Recording of the Sermon: HERE
Powerpoint Show: HERE
Opening Praise: HERE

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Upcoming Events

• Jan 11 (Sat) – Early Morning Joint Service/Prayer for the New Year
• Jan 12 (Sun) – PV Cell Group
• Jan 17-19 (Fri-Sun) - EM College Retreat
  • Registration Forms available in the EM Chapel
• Jan 22 (Wed) – YMF Cell Group
• Feb 2 (Sun) – PV Cell Group
• Feb 5 (Wed) – Start of Horizons Cell Group
• Feb 23 (Sun) – Cell Group Open House/Mixer [Updated]
• Mar 6 (Fri) – Start of Woman’s Cell Group

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Volunteers Needed!

• Youth Ministry FEMALE Teachers Needed!
• "Youth Ministry needs more teachers to serve and minister to our youth! If you are interested in serving in the Youth Ministry as a teacher, please contact P.Edward Kim: shin.e.kim88@gmail.com​
• Skid Row Mission Leaders Needed!
  • Caroline and Phil (our current leaders) will be having their first baby early next year and need people to take over the mission. Responsibilities are one Friday night for a couple of hours and Saturday morning for the actual mission each month. Training is available. Questions/Interested please contact Caroline: ccshin@gmail.com
• ​Parking Ministry Volunteers Needed!
  KM is looking for  3 or more volunteers to help man the parking lot from 10:50 AM to 11:40 AM on Sundays. If interested please contact Elder Joy Chung at jc@towerescrowtorrance.com

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