Spiritual Hunger Around the World

Spiritual Hunger is what propels us on toward connecting with God. It's that motivation that makes us step into church if we have been gone...to open our Bibles, to get down on our knees and pray AND to search the Internet to find Bible Studies. Did that last one surprise you? Well, in the analytics provided by this blog we found that our Bible Studies on Hydesville Life Groups are being picked up by individuals in other countries. Specifically, Russia, Germany, Slovenia, France, China, Israel, Canada, the United Kingdom and Latvia.  In fact the interest from Russia was about one-third that of the United States!  That is a lot of spiritual hunger from way across the world.

How we rejoice that brothers and sisters of Christ  - from all nationalities can share in our common faith and we can grow together in Christ.  Hydesville may be a little place, but God's Word is enormous in spectrum and the study of it worth our time and effort to satisfy that "spiritual hunger" and changed lives can help feed many!

Grief Share in the New Year

Just an "FYI" when we consider what we would like to do in the New Year.  We would like to offer a new group (and updated curriculum) of Grief Share at Hydesville Church.  Grief Share is a special weekly seminar and support group for people who are grieving the death of someone close to them.  If you are interested in either attending, or being a part of the team to present this on a weekly basis, please let Penny know - 768-3767. 

Group Link Event!

Coming up after the New Year's celebration:  GroupLink!!  Our GroupLink event will take place January 13th after second service (around 12:15 PM).  We will enjoy lunch together and join this fun and unique way to join community Life Groups for the New Year!  If you are currently not connected into a Life Group, or you would like more people to join your Life Group, this is for you!  This is also for ALL Life Group leaders and facilitators!  Get your New Year's off to a great start! 

Save the Date for GroupLink!

On Sunday, January 13th after the second service (12:15 PM) at Hydesville Church, we are putting together a Life Group connection time called GroupLink.  As we gather together for lunch we will watch a short video from Andy Stanley, get to know others in a comforable and casual atmosphere and then and establish some community groups to meet for the next eight weeks, and maybe even beyond.  Please join us!

Coming in the New Year: GroupLink!

GROUPLINK: Early in the New Year we will be having an event called GroupLink to launch new Life Groups. Initially, after the GroupLink event, new groups will meet for eight weeks. Then the group members can decide to continue on with their group, or dissolve to find another group.

WHY: Why consider a Life Group? Here’s a quote from Andy Stanley’s church that is said very well: “We believe that significant life change best takes place in the context of intentional relationships. Life groups are the place where real life and real issues are discussed. This is the environment to celebrate the successes and good times of life, as well as comfort one another in the tough and disappoing times. It’s a place to be encouraged, equipped, and challenged to group in our relationship with Jesus Christ.”

WHAT DOES A LIFE GROUP LOOK LIKE? Life Groups are small groups of approximately six married couples or six to eight individuals of the same gender.

WHY “SAME GENDER?” We have seen these “same gender” groups work well in both the Men’s and Women’s Ministries and Celebrate Recovery. Why? “The relational dynamics created by a mixed environment limit the accountability that’s possible or appropriate.” We have found that these same gender groups have a higher level of community and accountability that is not possible, nor appropriate in a mixed-gender single group.

Be looking for more information on the new GROUPLINK through the month of December in the bulletin and other church communications.

HCC Life Group Finder

Do you want to join a Life Group at Hydesville Community Church?  Here is a link to our current groups and connection information to get you started!  For more information contact the church at (707)768-3767 or visit http://hydesvillechurch.org/

The Hydesville Church Life Group Finder:
http://lifegroupfinder.blogspot.com/

I Murdered My Grandmother This Morning (The Art of Listening)

Part of being president of the United States is having happy confident facial expressions at social gatherings and enduring tedious things such as long reception lines.  At one of these gatherings, it is said that Franklin Roosevelt decided to try a listening experiment.  To each person in line he murmured “I murdered my grandmother this morning.”  What was the response from guests?  They said things like:  “Marvelous!”  “Keep up the good work!”  “We are proud of you!”  “God bless you sir!”  Finally at the end of the line was a good listener – the ambassador from Bolivia.  Not skipping a beat the ambassador leaned over and said, “I’m sure she had it coming.”

Good listeners are in short supply.  Our busy schedules diminish our ability to take time to listen.  Sometimes, like the guests in the reception line, our minds are on other matters - we are not “in listening mode.”  Our basic human inclination to focus on ourselves rather than others causes a limited capacity to be a good listener.  If we are brutally honest we have to admit that most of us would rather talk and be listened to, rather than discipline ourselves listen patiently to someone else.  Being a good listener is not passive, it is active.  It is a concentrated unselfish effort to focus on the other person.   So, why is important to be an active listener? 

1. We are to become imitators of Christ, and He makes listening a priority.  God makes Himself available to us at any time, always ready to listen.  Jesus listened attentively to those who sought Him.  When people came to Him for healing or on behalf of another Jesus listened to their pleas.  Did Jesus know the information already?  Yes, of course.  But in listening to those who came to Him, He showed visible care and compassion.  He could have identified the person and said, “yes, I know what the problem is,” snap His fingers and perform the miracle.  But He didn’t…he chose to listen to each person’s story before responding.
2. If we really want to help other people, we’d better be alert when they speak.  James 1:19b says, “ But let everyone be quick to hear, slow to speak and slow to anger.”  If we want to show care and compassion for those around us, we need to comprehend their feelings and their mind set.  This is accomplished best through intently listening to what the person is saying.  Sometimes it involves a couple of thoughtful questions, but the majority of information gathering and understanding is done through really hearing the other person’s words and observing their body language.
3. Active Listening communicates to the other person that they are important.   Romans 15:2 says, “Let each of us please his neighbor for his good, to his edification.” Animated conversation is fun, and there are plenty of times for give and take. But if we want to grow in our listening skills, we need to make a conscious decision to refrain from our quick comebacks or saying things that draw attention right back to ourselves.  If we have a desire to communicate that the other person is important,  we focus exclusively on the other person!  We make a decision to not to top the other person’s story, not to have the last word, and not share everything we think we know about that particular subject.  We give up our notion that we are authoritative on that topic and we acknowledge the other person’s feelings for what they are without elaborate commentary.  Our eye contact, our posture, our facial expressions all contribute to expressing to that other person that what they are saying is important.  With our countenance we communicate whether we are interested in what the other person has to say.  We also communicate importance by respecting the other person’s time frame.  If it’s evident they are finished sharing, we don’t pry.  We take our cues from the other person and reflect their mood.  Obvious respect in the area of listening communicates that we value that other person.  

Our motivation for developing our listening skills comes from a desire to honor others as Christ commanded.   Philippians 2:3-4 in the Message gives us a great perspective.  “Don’t push your way to the front;  don’t sweet-talk your way to the top.  Put yourself aside, and help others get ahead.  Don’t be obsessed with getting your own advantage.  Forget yourselves long enough to lend a helping hand.”  (or an ear!)