Issue No.

36, August 2012

Praise and Glory to God:

God continues to provide faithfully for Renewal in every way, encouraging us weekly as He continues to build our church body in number and spiritual growth. God consistently provides opportunities for us to love and serve our city well and our people have been faithful to eagerly engage. Praise God for the new families and individuals whove made Renewal their church home this summer. God has been gracious in continuing

to build our church. Our July partnership class included 18 new adult members, and we praise God for the four partners who made their faith public through baptism at our Paris Mountain State Park gathering.

Renewal Church Prayer Needs:

Continue to pray for our elders, that God would guard and protect them as they shepherd well. Pray for our local schools, teachers, and students as they prepare for the new school year. Pray that God would continue to grow our people and families daily, and that our Small Groups and Clusters would serve well in this process. Pray for our church and missions partnerships, both locally and abroad, as we seek to multiply disciples to the glory of God. Pray that God would continue to give us opportunities to share the gospel and hearts for the lost, and that He would raise up more missionaries among us.

After the service, we celebrated with four individuals who pictured their unity with Christ's death and resurrection through baptism as they 1 I appeal to you therefore, brothers, by the mercies of made public displays of their faith through God, to present your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and baptism! We concluded our gathering with acceptable to God, which is your spiritual worship.2 Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the cookout at the adjacent picnic shelter and spent a renewal of your mind, that by testing you may discern what couple of hours hanging out with one another and is the will of God, what is good and acceptable and perfect. getting to know some new faces.

Renewed Love for God

challenged to examine what our use of money and possessions says about our hearts. Stephen Rutland, another pastoral intern, continued the Proverbs series by focusing on the theme of the Heart in Proverbs. Proverbs exhorts us to the importance of our heart, describing it as the wellspring of our lives, a deep well, the core of who we are, and our internal character. Stephen challenged us to guard our hearts by watching what we say, what we view, and how we walk. Trevor Hoffman, our third pastoral intern, finished off the month by directing us to the Proverbs on Authority. Trevor encouraged and challenged us to honor Jesus as our ultimate authority, to submit to Him, and then submit to other authorities (government, the church, wives to husbands, children to parents) knowing that God has given them authority. We submit to those authorities as we submit to Christ because our citizenship is in heaven and our hope is in Jesus, who alone is worthy of our submission and worship.

(Romans 12:1-2)

The Proverbs exhort God's people to living in fear of Him and wisdom with others, and throughout the month of July we've examined these exhortations in our sermon series, "Walking Wisely." We began the month at Paris Mountain State Park with an outdoor service where Brandon Simpson, one of our pastoral interns, preached on the theme of "Righteousness" in Proverbs. He exhorted us that righteousness is something to be strived for, but can never be attained apart from the saving grace of Toby continued through Proverbs the following Jesus' death in our place. week, addressing the theme of laziness versus diligence. He encouraged us to do things today that will grow our faith, knowledge of the Word, and fruitfulness in Christ so that we can be ready for whatever the Lord would bring our way. Matt addressed the theme of Money in Proverbs showing that this book does not speak of money legalistically, but speaks of money as a reflection of our hearts. The way we view money shows whether or not our hearts are wise, trust the Lord, are content, and are generous. We were

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Renewed in Relationships

Everyday they continued to meet together in the temple courts. They broke bread in their homes and ate together with glad and sincere hearts. (Acts 2:46)

We are so thankful for Covenant Life Church, and we are encouraged that Renewal is able to be a part of the kingdom work going on there!

will use this group in the coming school year. We are very thankful for the faithful example of these students in their willingness to obediently serve on mission for the sake of the gospel over the summer.

Renewal Youth and Students Community and Mission

Last month we told you about our upcoming summer fellowships, and we had a great time together at one of those this month. We gathered at Simpsonville City Park for some outdoor water games and a lot of watermelon eating. God continues to use such events to build unity and relationships within the body at Renewal. July was a great month of seeing new faces each week on Sunday mornings. We are thankful to the Lord for entrusting visitors to our body each week. We held a membership class for folks desiring to take next steps with the church, and we had 18 adults in this month's class! Praise the Lord for how He is growing His church. Our interns concluded their service this summer by heading to Tampa, FL to work with one of our partner churches, Covenant Life Church. CLC is doing a great work in Tampa by adopting local schools, serving on campus at the University of Tampa, and conducting neighborhood outreach events. Our Renewal youth and students had a big month as well with several get-togethers and a trip to summer camp. Toby, Julieann, Dan, and a host of parent volunteers took our students to Look Up Lodge, July 24th-27th. We had great time together studying the Word, and we even managed to sneak in some fun while we were there. This month the Renewal men met on Tuesday mornings to go through the book Humility by C.J. Mahaney. The working definition of humility for the study was "honestly assessing ourselves in light of God's holiness and our sinfulness." Each week we were confronted with the ugliness and foolishness of our pride in light of the gospel of Christ. What have we to boast in for ourselves? Our men also got together for a night of fun and fellowship at a recent Greenville Drive game. Our ladies have been meeting on Tuesday nights to go through a study on the book of Ruth. This has been a sweet time of study, prayer, and fellowship, and were grateful for the work God is doing in and through our Renewal women.

Renewal Men and Women

Our students also got together for a pool party and service activity in one of our local neighborhoods this month. In addition to enjoying lots of food and fun in the pool, we scoured the neighborhood, talking with residents and collecting canned goods for Miracle Hill. We continue to give thanks to God for all he is doing in our youth and students at Renewal.

How You Can Give to Support What God's Doing at Renewal

Selling their possessions and goods, they gave to anyone as he had need. (Acts 2:45)

Thank you again for your commitment to give to Renewal Church! Your faithfulness has been a blessing to our church and our efforts in the city. See the following information on how to give: By check Place a check in the pre-labeled envelope along with a stamp, and mail to Renewal Church 4 Davis Keats Drive, Greenville, SC 29607 Online Go to www.renewalchurch.cc and click on Online Giving at the bottom of the home page. Click Register to give a one time gift. Automatic Draft Go to www.renewalchurch.cc and click on Online Giving at the bottom of the home page. Click Register to complete your automatic draft. A few reminders: All gifts are tax deductible Please make us aware of any address changes or changes to your giving so we can make the necessary adjustments. Send an email to church@renewalchurch.cc to update your information!

Our interns got to serve a local school by doing some work on their campus, make door-to-door visits to pray with people in their homes, and help host a block party in a local park. The time was also encouraging as they got to witness a baptism service on Saturday evening and worship with CLC on Sunday.

Renewal College Ministry

Our college crew has been busy all summer as well. In addition to our local interns, many of our students are serving on mission in other locations around the U.S. and the world. Locally, Dan and the crew began a new collegiate small group that meets on Thursday nights, and the group has continued to grow in number each week. With all of our college students moving back in over the next two weeks, we are excited about how God

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