You’re Invited

An invitation into God’s Kingdom (the good news)

 

I would like to offer you some Good News. To understand the Good News, one must first understand the Bad News. Benjamin Franklin famously said, “In this world nothing can be said to be certain, except death and taxes.”

 

A few determined individuals may be able to avoid taxes, but they’ll never outrun death. You see, when God created mankind, he gave us a place as sons and daughters in his kingdom. However, when the first humans rebelled, we became separated from God and his kingdom. We then became infected with sin and death because we were no longer attached to the source of life, God. Sin is a cancer that kills every single person on the planet. However, the problem of sin doesn’t only affect the end of our lives, but it affects us right now; every day we function as slaves to evil desires. Our daily lives are contaminated with selfishness, hatred, gossip, complaining, envy, pride, lust, and more. If we do nothing, all we can expect is to bear the consequence, which is eternal separation from God. (For God cannot allow sin to infest creation forever.) But… there is GOOD NEWS!

 

God provided a remedy for sin. This remedy not only delivers people from the wages of sin (eternal separation from God), it also delivers them from the power of sin. We can be set free from the grip of addiction, anxiety, self-hatred, rage, and every other negative condition.

 

When God’s son, Jesus, walked the earth, he proclaimed an amazing message: “the kingdom of God is at hand.” He taught this because he was about to make a way, by his own blood, for us to return to God. Being nailed to a cross, Jesus—a perfect and innocent man—freely chose to suffer wrath so that we wouldn’t have to. By his sacrifice we have access, once again, to the Life-giver. And God raised Jesus from the grave to show that the great foe, death, had been defeated.

 

God is offering you mercy and victory right now through Jesus Christ. He literally wants to give you a brand new life! Please contact us if you desire this gift or have any question about this Good News. God loves you and has shown that love through the cross of Jesus Christ. Don’t take this lightly. Right now, you can be reconciled to God (But you can’t accomplish that by your own efforts, which always fall short; only Jesus saves!). Please contact our pastor for a personal one-on-one meeting or chat.

 

If the answer is no—If you don’t want eternal life—If you don’t want to be free from the guilt and pain of a sinful life—If you don’t want to have peace with God…CHRIST STILL DIED FOR YOU and GOD LOVES YOU. If you change your mind or have questions, please reach out to our pastor. We are here to help.

 
 

An invitation to join Gulfhaven Mennonite Church

 

If the answer is yes—if you want to join Christ, or have already joined Christ, we would invite you to consider becoming a member of Gulfhaven Mennonite Church. We are a group of families and individuals that have submitted our lives to Christ and to one another. Often, in our culture, it’s tempting to treat churches like any other product that one may desire and consume by looking for one that meets *my* needs. However, church is supposed to be a place to worship God. Paul, an apostle of Jesus, defined worship as follows: “I appeal to you therefore, brothers, by the mercies of God, to present your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and acceptable to God, which is your spiritual worship” (Romans 12:1 ESV). This is an appeal for us to *serve* the people of God as opposed to the church serving us. Did you know the phrase “one another” is used approximately 59 times in the New Testament: “encourage one another”, “build up each other”, “admonish one another”, “honor one another”, “be devoted to one another”, “bear one another’s burdens”, and most importantly “love one another”, and more. Can you imagine the difficulty in fulfilling these admonitions without being deeply connected to the families and individuals in a local church? While we at Gulfhaven Mennonite Church may fall short of walking perfectly in these admonitions, God’s Spirit is continuing to work in us to create a place on earth where God dwells. Like Paul, an apostle of Jesus Christ, says, “So then you are no longer strangers and aliens, but you are fellow citizens with the saints and members of the household of God, built on the foundation of the apostles and prophets, Christ Jesus himself being the cornerstone, in whom the whole structure, being joined together, grows into a holy temple in the Lord. In him you also are being built together into a dwelling place for God by the Spirit.”

 

We don’t expect either of these decisions to be taken lightly. Feel free to come visit our church, attend as often as you like, get to know us, hear the word of God preached, and learn about Jesus. We gather for worship each week on Sunday mornings at 10:45am.