news updates

May 1, 2022

PA Capitol Bible Study: Entering a Life of Hope

With the legislators at the PA Capitol, we've started a new study series that will walk through the book of Colossians. Below is an excerpt from our initial study in April.

For Paul, the pivotal piece to making sense of what is happening in the lives of the Colossians, and for that matter, the impact the gospel is having all over the world of his day comes down to this, a life of hope was now available. The way into this life is by hearing and understanding the grace of God in truth. Because what happens when people begin to take possession of the life-giving hope presented in the gospel, made available through Jesus, new life springs forth from their inner being.

The hope Jesus brings fills one with joyous anticipation of good because the goodness and generosity of God are now available to them in the tangible circumstances of their lives. This new divine principle moved the early Jesus followers in Colossae out in action because of their unwavering confidence in Him that expressed itself in a costly love for all those near them. It was nothing but the love of God that had filled them to overflowing and then spilled out, touching the lives of others.

To access the complete study, click the study: Colossians 1:1-8 - Entering a Life of Hope

Devotional Content

The following Devotionals on the topic of "Trust in God: The Key to Life" have been distributed to the legislators, staff, and friends of the ministry over the last month. Please contact me if you would like to be included on our devotional distribution list. To access the online devotional material, please click the specific link below:

Apr 27, 2022 - Ask, Seek, and Knock...But Don't Pretend!

Apr 18, 2022 - The Social Context of Faith

Apr 8, 2022 - Now It's Your Turn

Events at the Capitol this Month

1.) 2022 Commonwealth Prayer Breakfast

Please consider joining us for our annual Commonwealth Prayer Breakfast on Tuesday, May 24th at the Penn Harris Hotel.

This will be a time when multiple community and civic leaders around the state will be leading us in a collective time of prayer. Our speaker for this year's prayer breakfast is the United States House of Representatives Chaplain Margaret Grun Kibben.

Click here to register for the event online.

Please contact me if you're planning to attend the breakfast. I would be blessed by the opportunity to connect with you and show you around the Capitol if you're available.

2.) Pennsylvania Bible Reading Marathon

Joe Bevar, the organizer of the Bible Reading Marathon reached out to me about his plans to bring this event to the PA Capitol. Joe and his team have organized similar events at the US Capitol in Washington DC, and the State Capitols in Indiana and Tennessee. Pennsylvania is next on their list as they seek to expand the Bible Reading Marathon to each of the 50 States.

I've been asked to be part of the Opening Ceremony on Saturday, May 21st at 2 pm on the steps of the PA Capitol. If you would like to participate in reading the Bible as part of the Pennsylvania Bible Reading Marathon, click here for more information.

Prayer & Service

Prayer: Tomorrow, May 5th is the National Day of Prayer. This year's theme verse is from Colossians 2:6-7: "As you, therefore, have received Christ Jesus the Lord, continue to live your lives in him, rooted and built up in him and established in the faith, just as you were taught, abounding in thanksgiving." Please take some time tomorrow to pray. Click here for more information about how to participate, right where you're at, in the National Day of Prayer. For specific PA legislators to remember in prayer, go to our prayer tool: https://www.pray1tim2.org/states/pa

Prayer: In preparation for what figures to be an above-average turnover in the legislature due to retirements and redistricting I will seek to make contact with those running for office for the first time following this month's primary. Please pray for these efforts to bless and minister to those seeking office prior to the fall election.

Service: Please contact me if you would be interested in helping me track down contact information for those running for office for the first time.

Prayer: In an effort to provide a cohesive approach to our printed and digital material in Pennsylvania, please pray that we are able to find a graphics designer that can align our various pieces of communication, (i.e. devotional content, Bible studies, ministry updates, note cards, and support case documents) so that it can be easily identified with our ministry. Also, pray for the necessary funds to pursue these design changes and the ongoing printing of this material.

Service: Please contact me if any of the material that comes out of the PA ministry has touched your heart, stretched your thinking, or encouraged you to deepen your walk with Jesus. I would love to carry on this conversation with you personally and see how I might be a help to you.

Prayer: Please pray as we continue to seek ministry partners that provide ongoing support for our work at the PA Capitol. Over the last quarter, we have averaged $4000/month out of this year's monthly goal of $5000/month.

For all those who have given so faithfully to our ministry, I just want to thank you for all the ways you have allowed our work at the Capitol to continue.

If you are able to help towards meeting our monthly goal, please click here for further instructions on how to give to this work.

Your Servant for Jesus’ Sake,