Pastoral and Executive Staff:
Jim Samra, Steve Gibson, Tom Olsson,
Ruth Gudbrandson, Joy Gillette
A Beautiful Year
in John’s Gospel
— Jim Samra
One of the highlights for me this year has been a rekindled
joy of preaching. Spending every Sunday morning in the
Gospel of John has been powerful. We have studied deep
truths about Jesus, what it means to believe and the kind of
beautiful life that believers have been given by God. I have seen
God work in powerful ways through the sermon series to bring
people to faith, as well as encourage Christians to seek to live
out the beautiful life in practical ways in our community.
This emphasis on the Gospel of John has corresponded
with a church-wide focus on evangelism, specifically the
challenge to pray daily for three non-Christian friends and
neighbors. In May 2010, I returned from my study break
with the sense that God was calling us to focus on evangelism
despite the fact that evangelism is not my natural giftedness.
Yet, God gave us the promise that HE would make us fishers
of men. It was not up to us, but up to him. And so we began to
pray. And God has done incredible things.
I love looking out in the congregation and seeing people
who have come to faith as the result of these prayers. These
are not just stories of nameless, faceless individuals – but real
people who were once lost and are now not only believers but
also participating actively in our church. There have been
numerous testimonies during Sunday morning services and as
part of baptisms that are powerful stories of God’s work in the
lives of the people we have been praying for this year. When I
see the candle lit on our platform, my heart soars. When it is
unlit, I am moved to pray more fervently for people to come to
faith. I know that many of you feel the same.
Thank you for your faithfulness in praying. This simple
initiative has been embraced across the spectrum of the church,
and the results have been exciting. You have prayed faithfully
2
2 | Calvary Church Annual Report
Thank you
for your
faithfulness
in praying.
This simple
initiative has
been embraced
across the
spectrum of
the church and
the results have
been exciting.