April 2011
Dear friends,
We write to you today with great anticipation of the continued call God has placed on our family. We have been on the road traveling across the nation for the past 7 years and have seen such wonderful things! It is in that venue that we have preached to the lost, the broken and have seen thousands come to Jesus Christ as Savior.
This past fall, we began to sense a heavy desire in our heart to start a church to reach Lewisburg, PA. This project is FREEDOM LIFE CHURCH. A verse that spoke to us is Jeremiah 1:4-10. Allow us to share this passage with you.
4 The word of the LORD came to me, saying,
5 “Before I formed you in the womb I knew you, before you were born I set you apart; I appointed you as a prophet to the nations.” 6 “Alas, Sovereign LORD,” I said, “I do not know how to speak; I am too young.” 7 But the LORD said to me, “Do not say, ‘I am too young.’ You must go to everyone I send you to and say whatever I command you. 8 Do not be afraid of them, for I am with you and will rescue you,” declares the LORD.
9 Then the LORD reached out his hand and touched my mouth and said to me, “I have put my words in your mouth. 10 See, today I appoint you over nations and kingdoms to uproot and tear down, to destroy and overthrow, to build and to plant.”
Here are just a few facts about Lewisburg, PA:
o Population: Lewisburg Area (17837) - 20,157 people
o There are approximately 80,000 people and 39,000 homes within a 10 mile radius of the city.
o There is currently NO Assembly of God in Lewisburg, PA.
o Support and approval from both the Penn Del district office and North East sectional committee to assist in opening and planting this new church in Lewisburg.
o Unique opportunity to position a new church that can influence a nearby university (Bucknell University - 3,600 students)
One thing I realized is that many times people want to plant in densely populated cities, meanwhile many medium sized regions get left behind. Though all the church planting books may be right in most cases, God is the one that calls out to us the mission. While Lewisburg is not the biggest city, there are many needing to hear of His grace. Our goal is to birth a vibrant body of believers who will work to transform the community through love, service and discipleship. We are launching our services Sunday, October 2, 2011 with our monthly preview beginning in August.
This is a very exciting step of faith for us and our family but we know that our God has given us a vision to reach Lewisburg and the region. This is so much bigger than we are. There are many hurting lives to reach and we want to bring FREEDOM to those who need to know Jesus as Savior and Lord.
We hope you would join our family and our team in prayer as we look to change lives and families the Lewisburg area together. If you are interested in knowing how you can be a part in any way by coming and being physically a part or sowing into this vision, our contact info is below. We appreciate you!
Working the change the world,
Tony and Elisha Cruz
Founding Pastors of Freedom Life Church
*To find out more:
EMAIL directly - tonycruz2009@gmail.com
http://www.facebook.com/tony.cruz2#!/pages/Freedom-Life-Church-Lewisburg/161120203940196?v=wall
