What a Day at the Park Saturday!

If you missed the Community Gathering picnic at Red Mountain Park Saturday (4/28), I guess we understand ... but we're sure sorry you missed it!

The LORD delighted us with a dust-and-rain storm right at the 3:00 hour! Though some thought this signaled the cancellation of the picnic, most of us waited it out in our cars, and came out when the coast was clear. The storm actually cooled off temperatures, and made for a great barbecue. We sang a bit, ate a lot, and shared even more (thanks again to the event-planning team that made it all possible!).

It was very encouraging for all of us to hear so many express their heartfelt desire to see Christ's Church show herself rich and strong through EVBC in Mesa. We caught of glimpse of just how many dedicated and gifted people the Spirit has brought together. We heard about the great things going on in our Home Groups. We heard many testimonies of people ready to participate in the emergence of this community. It truly helped reaffirm the EVBC vision for Area Ministries for all of us.

As we head into the summer, we will be doing a lot of praying, studying, brainstorming and planning. A full-blown launch of Area Ministries at EVBC will take place in September, so much will need to be set in motion during the next four months. Please pray that all of us in Mesa will be faithful to the mission ahead of us, and that the right people will find the right places of service to make it all possible.

And ... pray about YOUR involvement. Do you sense the Holy Spirit "nudging" you toward any of these ministry areas?

Home Groups? Men's Ministries? Event Planning? Student Ministries? Service Projects? Missions Support? Women's Ministries? Teaching? Connecting New People? Biblical Counseling? Caring for the Sick? Prayer? Discipleship/Mentoring? Children's Ministries?

I can't tell you how encouraged I will be to hear from you if you're interested in helping make any of these ministries happen in our Mesa area. So don't hesitate to drop me an email or give me a ring, and let me know what's on your heart.

"We ought always to thank God for you, brothers, and rightly so, because your faith is growing more and more, and the love every one of you has for each other is increasing." (2 Thess. 1:3)

God's best to you all,
Bill

BillHartley@EVBC.org
480.889.3940 - evbc
480.388.2635 - cell

Mike Pickard, blowin' in the wind!







The Event Planning team, waiting out the storm...

Red Mountain Park ... this week!

AREA EVENT: RED MOUNTAIN PARK on 4/28
Red Mountain Park - Eagle Ramada - 7800 E. Brown Road - 3:00 - ???

Plans are being finalized for our day at the park this Saturday. We do hope you are planning to attend.

This is being billed as a "Meet the Pastor" event ... but it really is FAR more than that. It's really a "Meet Each Other" event, which is why it is so important for you to be there! God has raised up a great group of people at EVBC to be His church in Mesa, and the Spirit has blessed us all with gifts - which He intends for us to use for the mutual edification of one another. So bring your family, your appetites, your gifts and your dreams to the park on Saturday, and we'll begin to see who we are, and together see a vision grow about how we can make the light of Christ shine in Mesa.

The schedule has us gathering at 3:00. Then, at 4:00, we'll all come together for some singing and sharing. We'll eat immediately after this, at about 4:15.

See you all soon!


CONNECT2_MESA BEGINS 4/22

Connect2_Mesa will continue to be offered during the 10:30 hour in room 213. This 9-week "class" is designed to foster connection in our new Area Ministry format.

The course content is laid out in 1-week topical studies, so you can start your Connect2_Mesa participation on any Sunday... so feel free to jump on board this Sunday.


"Though you have not seen HIm, you love HIm, and though you do not see Him now, but believe in Him, you greatly rejoice with joy inexpressible and full of glory!" (1 Peter 1:8)

God's best to you all,
Bill

He is Risen!

He is Risen!

It was a glorious Easter Sunday at EVBC! Over 6,500 people gathered to celebrate that Jesus is risen - truly the central theme of our faith. As our family was singing "Christ the Lord is Risen Today", I couldn't help but think, "yes, and He is risen tomorrow, too...and the next day!" Our hope is that the thrill and gravity of the resurrection will stay with you all well into the months and years ahead...for He is risen indeed!

The following Sunday was also a rich one. In our Connect_1 class, two round tables were packed with people from Mesa exploring the possibility that God would have them make EVBC their home. Most if not all have committed to joining our Connect2_Mesa course beginning this week! God is truly adding to our number daily, which is exciting.

With these blessings in mind, here are some Mesa Area reminders for you:

CONNECT2_MESA BEGINS 4/22

Beginning on this Sunday, April 22, Connect2_Mesa will be offered during the 10:30 hour in room 213. This 9-week "class" is designed to foster connection in our new Area Ministry format.

This is certainly a great opportunity for you who are new ... but also for all those from Mesa who...
a) would like to meet more Mesonians,
b) are wanting to hear more about the Area Ministries vision for EVBC, and
c )who have never been in the Connect_2 class before (which is most all of you!).
If you are scheduled to serve during the 10:30 hour, please honor that commitment ... but, if you're not, I hope you'll consider joining us.

(Just so you know, the course content is laid out in 1-week topical studies, so you can start your Connect2_Mesa participation on any Sunday...so, if you can't begin on 4/22, just jump on board on the 29th, or in May. You're welcome to begin at any time!).

RSVPs are helpful - just drop me an email (BillHartley@EVBC.org).


AREA EVENT: RED MOUNTAIN PARK on 4/28
Red Mountain Park - Eagle Ramada - 7800 E. Brown Road - 3:00 - ???

We're hoping for a great turnout for our picnic in the park on Saturday the 28th. We'll eat, play games (kids and adults), and have a great time connecting. I'll also be sharing a few thoughts about the vision for EVBC in Mesa...and we may even do some singing together! (we'll aim to do this at around 4:00, so please try to be there at that time if you can).

This will be an important time to gather as an Area prior to all of us going our separate ways during the summer months, so I do hope you and your family members can make it a point to be there.

House of Refuge Workday - 4/21

Our apologies - the House of Refuge Workday scheduled for 4/21 had to be canceled. A new date for a workday is yet to be determined, but we'll let you know as soon as we have something set.

Area Ministries at EVBC

The move toward Area Ministries at EVBC is an extremely important initiative...and will take much prayer and committed effort to bring to realization over the next several months. I look forward to sharing this vision with many of you in the days ahead, and my hope is that you will embrace the idea, and be ready to do what you can to make it happen. With so many families in the area, it's a daunting task to try to meet you all quickly - feel free to contact me if you want to hear about this vision sooner than later!

These are great days at EVBC! Thanks for sharing your gifts and energy with us as we embrace His future for our fellowship.

God's best to you all,
Bill


Bill Hartley
BillHartley@EVBC.org
480.889.3490 office
480.388.2635 cell

Hello from the new guy...

Dear EVBC Mesonians (or it is Mesans? Masonites?),

Greetings! It is my pleasure to have accepted the call of EVBC to become the new Mesa Area Pastor. I officially stepped into this role on April 1st, and am eager to meet you all, and find out how God has been working in your lives.

As an initial blog entry, I would simply like to point out some important events ahead of us that I'm hoping you will be able to attend:

CONNECT_1 THIS SUNDAY 4/15

EVBC will be offering a Connect_1 class this week. There are already 12 signed up to attend from Mesa ... but there's always room for more! My wife Karen and I will be there, and would love to see many of you come out for this special time. It begins at 10:30 in room 100, and goes until 2:00. Lunch and child care are provided, as is an open Q&A time with Pastor Tom. If you'd like to attend, just let me know (Billhartley@EVBC.org).

CONNECT_2 MESA BEGINS 4/22

Beginning on April 22nd, Connect_2 Mesa will be offered during the 10:30 hour in room 213. This 9-week "class" is designed to foster connection in our new Area Ministry format. This is certainly a great opportunity for you who are new ... but also for all those from Mesa who would a) like to meet more Mesonians, and b) who have never been in the Connect_2 class before (which is most all of you!). If you are scheduled to serve during the 10:30 hour, please honor that commitment ... but, if you're not, I hope you'll consider attending. RSVPs are helpful - just drop me an email (BillHartley@EVBC.org).

AREA EVENT: RED MOUNTAIN PARK on 4/28
Red Mountain Park - Eagle Ramada - 7800 E. Brown Road - 3:00 - ???

We're hoping for a great turnout for our picnic in the park on Saturday the 28th.
We'll eat, play games (kids and adults), and have a great time connecting. I'll also be sharing a few thoughts about the vision for EVBC in Mesa...and we may even do some singing together! This will be an important time to gather as an Area prior to all of us going our separate ways during the summer months, so I do hope you and your family members can make it a point to be there.

House of Refuge Workday - 4/21

For those of you with a servant's heart and handy hands, please consider helping out on Saturday the 21st at our House of Refuge workday. It is scheduled to go from 7-4. If you would like to find out more about House of Refuge and the workday, please contact Dave Finney (dfinney57@cox.net)

See you soon?

Whether it's at Connect_1, Connect_2, Red Mountain Park, the House of Refuge, in your Home Group, on campus at EVBC, or shopping at Basha's, I really am looking forward to meeting you all as soon as I can. If you have any needs, concerns, or simply want to chat, please don't hesitate to be in touch (contact information is below). And stay tuned to the Blog for updates and articles designed especially for our Mesa community.

God's best to you all,
Bill


Bill Hartley
BillHartley@EVBC.org
480.889.3490 office
480.388.2635 cell