FHL Week

FHL Week 2012: Neighborhood Clean Up Martindale-Brightwood

July 23, 2012 Merlin Gonzales FHL Indiana, FHL Week

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FHL Week 2012: Unity in Martindale-Brightwood

July 23, 2012 Merlin Gonzales FHL Indiana, FHL Week

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The Kingdom of God in our cities

July 23, 2012 Merlin Gonzales FHL Indiana, FHL Week

It was a cool cloudy Sunday morning. Normally, I would be in a church service inside a cool building either listening to a sermon or giving one. Today, my wife and I drove to the Monument Circle for the 8th Annual FHL Week Prayer Celebration.

We started at 1:30p with our first multi-church-bilingual service at the Circle. My message was about the Kingdom of God in our cities. Here’s an excerpt from my message:

Jesus said in Mark 1:15, “The time has come,” he said. “The kingdom of God has come near. Repent and believe the good news!” – NIV

The good news that God’s Kingdom is at hand! Jesus prayed, “Your Kingdom come, your will be done on earth as it is in heaven.”

What would your neighborhood look like if you could say, “The Kingdom of God is here.”

Is the atmosphere of heaven spreading in our neighborhoods and your places of work? Jesus is no longer on earth but He commanded each and every one of us to represent Him and to co-labor with Him to expand His Kingdom. He wants us to…

Proclamation of the Kingdom

To share the Good News that whoever repent and turn around from their sins and accept Jesus as their Lord and Savior will inherit the Kingdom. Jesus sent His early disciples to proclaim the Kingdom of God. He wants us to proclaim the Kingdom wherever we go.

Luke 9:1-2, “When Jesus had called the Twelve together, he gave them power and authority to drive out all demons and to cure diseases, ²and he sent them out to proclaim the kingdom of God and to heal the sick.”

Jesus has given us power and authority to continue His work here on earth starting in our own Jerusalem – Indianapolis, Anderson, Pendleton, Greenwood and Martinsville. Are you using the power and authority that God has given you?

John 17:20-23, “My prayer is not for them alone. I pray also for those who will believe in me through their message, ²¹that all of them may be one, Father, just as you are in me and I am in you. May they also be in us so that the world may believe that you have sent me. ²²I have given them the glory that you gave me, that they may be one as we are one — ²³I in them and you in me—so that they may be brought to complete unity. Then the world will know that you sent me and have loved them even as you have loved me.”

Demonstration

Today is the start of FHL Week. We come together in unity to be the tangible expression of God’s love to the nations. Through projects and services, many people get connected and are introduced to our Lord Jesus Christ. Our message is still the same – it’s all about our relationship with God and with others. Good works are noble but they will not bring people to heaven; only by turning from our sins and by accepting Jesus as our Savior – proclamation.

However, our good works are fruits of our faith in Him as we co-labor with God in expanding the Kingdom of God here on earth.

Proclamation alone is not enough; Jesus called us to also demonstrate the Kingdom through our works. Ephesians 4:12-13, “to equip his people for works of service, so that the body of Christ may be built up 13 until we all reach unity in the faith and in the knowledge of the Son of God and become mature, attaining to the whole measure of the fullness of Christ.”

Jesus said that the Kingdom of God is at hand. This coming week, hundreds of people will unite to make everyone aware that the Kingdom of God is already present in our neighborhoods through acts of kindness, mercy, prayers and through sharing the Good News.

Application

When we meditate on the goodness of God, we will experience His goodness. The more we focus on Him, the more others see Him in us. We are being transformed to His likeness. In the Book of Exodus, Moses ask to see the face of God. He waited on Him without any distractions. When Moses went down from the mountain, his face was transformed because God met Him at the mountain.”

In order for us to transform our neighborhoods, we need to be transformed and have higher awareness of His Presence in our lives and in our neighborhoods.

Proverbs 23:7a, “For as he thinks in his heart, so is he.” -NKJV.

Awareness directs our action and our collective action changes our culture. Therefore, the prayer, “Your Kingdom come, Your will be done on earth as it is in heaven” begin with our awareness and faith backed up by our actions. You and I are Ambassadors from Heaven and we represent the King of Kings and Lord of Lords. That’s why the verse…

Matthew 10:7-8, As you go, proclaim this message: ‘The kingdom of heaven has come near.’ ⁸Heal the sick, raise the dead, cleanse those who have leprosy, drive out demons. Freely you have received; freely give.”

As we end this service, I will pray that God will grant all of us grace to be aware of the power and authority that Jesus promised to all of us. We know that His Presence is here right now.

There’s power in the Name of Jesus!

Isaiah 60:1, “Arise, shine, for your light has come,
and the glory of the Lord rises upon you.”

It’s your time to rise; you are a part of the army that is rising up! This generation is called to proclaim and demonstrate the Kingdom of God in our cities. You are called and commissioned to expand the Kingdom of God in your neighborhoods, cities, and to the ends of the world.

Busy weekend

July 3, 2012 Merlin Gonzales FHL Indiana, FHL Week

Many things transpired this past weekend. I started Saturday with an 8am Staff meeting with Religion in the News (RIN) at Channel 8. We planned the “Give Back” day for the staff during FHL Week. We decided to start a garden for one of the families who will be receiving other household services.

This month’s edition of RIN features FHL Week. I invited 3 Guests to be on the show: Lourenzo Giple – a Project Manager; Jonathan Granados – a Youth Leader for FHL Youth Conference; and Angie White – a recipient of household services and other projects.

Later that afternoon, my wife, Annie and I, and our 2 children, Kayla and Andrew, went to a Concert at Conner Prairie. We had lots of fun. It was a great time with my family.

My typical Sunday morning involves either preaching or visiting churches. However, instead of getting ready to go to church, I spent my morning appreciating God’s creation in my garden. While tilling my garden, Annie read the Bible for my mother on our back porch. As she was reading Ezekiel 37, the Lord spoke to me to preach on it that afternoon at Nuevo Amanecer, a Hispanic church. After tilling my garden, I went to my study room to read Ezekiel 37. It was the introduction that I was seeking for the sermon I had prepared earlier.

I arrived at the FHL office to meet my 12:30 appointment, Tarie White, a single mother of 3 children. She was to receive a donated vehicle from FHL. She was very thankful to receive the 1997 Saturn.

After transferring the title, Tarie drove the car home smiling and praising God. My wife and I hurried to our van to proceed to Nuevo Amanacer (New Horizon Church). I had preached at this church a few months earlier and was invited back to help the leaders encourage the congregation to action. At the end of my message, I sensed the Holy Spirit’s Presence and that the people’s hearts were ready. Everyone in the congregation came to the front for impartation, prayers and blessings.

We were invited by the Pastor and his family to eat dinner at a Latino Grocery/Restaurant. We got to know more about each other while sharing pleasantries. We had great time and thoroughly enjoyed the delicious authentic Mexican food.

We left the restaurant to go to another Hispanic church, Iglesia Wesleyana Monte de Sion. We watched the FHL worship band’s rehearsal for the upcoming Prayer Celebration at the Circle. They sounded great, but more important was that together, they ushered in the Presence of God.

Once we got home, I recorded the Day 22 Prayer and drafted this Blog. As I look back at this weekend, I realized how blessed I am to be a participant in the expansion of the Kingdom of God in Central Indiana. God had used me and my wife to share God’s love to my family and to others, such as the single mother, who I had just met for the very first time. What a blessing for me to see God use my hands as an extension of His Hands, my resources to bless others and use my talent for His Glory!

Three Town Hall meetings in 2 days

March 9, 2012 Merlin Gonzales FHL Indiana, FHL Week

Last Wednesday, I joined the planning meeting in Pendelton, IN for the FHL Week in Pendelton/Anderson area. There was 2 pastors, 2 church leaders and a Chaplain for the Pendleton Police department. They are planning to something neat for the public servants (Can’t reveal what they are yet until they finalize the details of the project. They will share the same idea with the Anderson churches to see if they would like to do the same. The next step for them is to talk with several other town leaders for a few more projects they have in mind. They are looking to partner with churches, government and businesses. To find out more about the Pendleton/Anderson area, you can contact Wellspring Church at 317-491-2319 and ask for Facundo Cortez.

Later that night, I was at the West Indy Town Hall. It was attended by about 15 people mostly from the Cloverleaf area. Many thanks to our host, Pastor Larry Evans of Cloverleaf Baptist church. We had pizza and drinks and we shared the purpose of the meeting – Neighborhood Makeover). We had a brief brainstorming to identify the needs in the neighborhood. It was amazing to hear what the residents shared with everyone. Needless to say, everyone wants to get involved We were surprised by a Reporter from Indianapolis Star who stayed for the entire 1.5 hours to gather data for an article. The next planning meeting will be on Tuesday, March 20th at 7p. They will be identifying possible projects for FHL Week. For more info about the West Indy area, please contact Pastor Larry Evans at 317-750-1659.

Last night, I was at Martinsville Town Hall meeting held at JK’s Cheesecake Cafe. I did not know what to expect since this was a brand new area for FHL. As soon as I arrived there, we were greeted by our Host Jason & Shannon Suttles and 2 FHL volunteers. We set up the projector and sound system while people started to come. There were lots of finger food and drinks. Just before we got started, the room was full with more 20 people. I share the history of FHL and the purpose of the meeting – to answer the question “What would Martinsville look like we you could say, “God’s blessings is present and active here.” All the attendees answered the question; here are some answers (see the picture on top of this Blog): address the impoverish areas, neighborhood clean up, educating the youth to be more active and healthy, unity of churches, food pantry, prayer teams, etc. Later, I found out that there were Pastors, business people and community leaders present at the meeting. Everyone wants to get involved. The next planning meeting (purpose is to narrow down the possible projects) is tentatively scheduled on Friday, April 13th at JK’s Cheesecake Cafe located at 110. E. Morgan St 46151. For more information, please contact Shannon Suttles at 812-272-5451

For other FHL areas, please contact me at 317-578-3370. Looking forward to working with you in changing the world…in our community. Our next Town Hall meeting will be at Southport City Hall at 7pm on Monday, March 12th.