Midweek Memo

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Hello Five Oakers!  This is Kent O'Grady, Director of Small Groups Ministries. I came on staff in June 2011 and have been leading small groups for over 15 years in three different churches. My career as a State Trooper has had me move all over the state of Minnesota. My wife and I now reside in Woodbury and have been coming to Five Oaks since 2004. We'll celebrate our thirty-year anniversary this month. We're empty-nesters and have two sons, two daughters (in law) and one granddaughter. My heart is to help others grow closer to God through prayer, study of Scripture and growing relationships with one another in the Body of Christ. As the Director of Small Groups I have a ring-side seat to the work of the Holy Spirit in the hearts of People. What a blast!

#1 - I hope you had a great Independence Day. My wife Cindy, and I joined some neighbors as we enjoyed the spontaneous display of pyrotechnics in our neighborhood. 

In many countries of the world, an expression of faith in Christ will bring harsh persecution and death.    This week, as we celebrate our country’s independence and our religious freedom, let us remember and pray for our brothers and sisters in Christ who live in countries where they can’t enjoy these freedoms.

#2 - As our church grows, it can be hard to get connected to others as close to a thousand people come and go across three different service times on the weekends.    Experience teaches us that the best way to connect with others and grow in your knowledge and love for God is in a small group.    A small group is a group of up to 20 people who meet three of four times each month.  People from all backgrounds and at all points on their spiritual journey get together to socialize, learn from God’s Word, pray and serve together.  People from all faith backgrounds are welcome.  It is in our diversity that we learn and grow.  You don’t need to be a Bible scholar to be in a small group.   You can participate in the discussions at whatever level you choose.  You won’t be asked to pray out loud unless you are comfortable doing so.   We have mixed groups, men’s groups and women’s groups. 

Lastyear
Here is a small group photo from last year!

Serve
Here is our small group serving at Ronald McDonald House in Minneapolis.

Come and check out a small group.   Contact me at the contact info below.  Let’s get together and find a small group that’s right for you.  

#3 - Here are your comments, plus some of mine from last weekend:

  • Loved the Tim Keller message, right on! So good, so challenging to all of us. (If you missed the message this past weekend, catch it on the webcast.  You don’t want to miss this message. Tim Keller’s sermon on the parable of the prodigal son from Luke 15, was both inspirational and thought-provoking.  Many of us can relate to the younger brother who rejected the father wanting to be his own God.  We went our own way only to discover our chosen path was full of loneliness and disappointment.   When we discovered that our path was full of thorns, we came back home to our Father and He welcomed us home with open arms.  A familiar story for sure. But how many of us have drifted, at times, into the role of the elder brother in the Scripture?  How many of us have tried to be our own God and earn our way to heaven through our obedience and “damnable good works”?    I know I have at times.   It is something that I need to guard against as I continually check my pride and motive as I serve the Lord.  I need to remember that my salvation is ONLY through the sacrifice of Jesus Christ on the cross.  It is recognition of that sacrifice that I seek to grow and serve, not to earn my Father’s heart and blessing, but in gratitude for His gift of sacrifice.    I am accepted, therefore I obey.)
  • Five Oaks is always a blessing to us!
  • Awesome!
  • Great worshiping with Five Oaks today! 
  • I loved the worship team today. What a great mix of talent and honest worship!
  • I loved the songs “White Flag” and “I Will Follow” by Chris Tomlin from last week! Let’s do those again!  (I love Chris Tomlin’s music too!  He gets me up on my feet with my hands in the air in worship!   I’m sure that we will hear more of his work during our worship at Five Oaks.)
  • Thanks, Dan, for the hymns as part of worship!
  • Thanks for the hymns!(I love contemporary Christian music, but the old hymns speak to my heart in a unique way.   They brought back some great memories of going to church with my aunt over forty years ago.  Thanks for including some of the great hymns with a contemporary arrangement.  These hymns were right on point with the message..  It was a great worship service.   Thanks, Dan and the entire worship team.)
  • Loved having live drums without shield! Music was full of energy. Loved worshiping together. 

#4 - Please pray for the kids and leaders at Challenge this week.  Challenge is a youth conference of the Evangelical Free Church of America (EFCA) in New Orleans.   Five Oaks has 113 students and leaders attending the conference.   Pray for their safety and that these kids will grow in their love of the Lord at this conference experience.  Five Oaks has committed to pray specifically for the speakers, leaders and kids during the rally on July 5th at 6pm. Join us at Five Oaks (room 101) or pray wherever you are on July 5th at 6pm. 

Serving Him together, Kent O’Grady

612-868-7260  - kogrady@fiveoakschurch.org