We're starting production for our brand new Easter series titled The Chase and we'd love for you to be a part of it. There's no better way to find new talent than a casting call - so we're doing just that. We're looking to tell a powerful story of redemption and grace through an original story written just for this Easter at NLC and we'll need some actors and actresses to show us their chops (I've never known what that really means)!

We'll be having rehearsals, filming dates and martial arts training over the next few weeks (kidding about the martial arts - but all the rehearsals will be intense) and we'll give you all the details through a couple documents that are available right here in this blog post. Just download the Tryout Dialogue and Casting Call Sheet and let us know if you're interested. We've also included our Production Schedule so you can check your calendar for availability. Our Creative Arts Coordinator, Jenna Wilson will give you all the schedule details and some other helpful info about this process.

We're so excited about this upcoming Easter production - and we've even added 2 extra services on Good Friday so that you can bring your friends & family to church! We'd love to have you be a part of this amazing weekend celebrating Jesus together!

Email Jenna Wilson

Casting Call

Tryout Dialogue

Production Schedule

After much prayer and discussion with our partners in ministry around the world, New Life Church now has a plan of action for our response to the crisis in Haiti caused by the recent earthquake. It is reportedly the worst natural disaster in the western hemisphere in the last 200 years. The magnitude of destruction is still unfolding but we can be sure of this - this is a time when the body of Christ has an opportunity to stand up and engage a need by shining the light of hope and the love of Jesus in Haiti.

Here's what we'd like to invite you to do with us:

1. Join Churches Across the World in Prayer For Haiti

We will be having prayer at our campuses (Conway, Greater Little Rock, Heber Springs and Ft Smith) this week from Noon to 12:30 PM Monday through Friday in conjunction with our prayer and fasting. Use this prayer time to pray for Haiti.

2. Engage the Immediate Needs by Giving

Give financially.

You can give online here at newlifechurch.tv or by giving directly to our partners, like Samaritan's Purse, Love a Child and many others.

· For $45, we can provide a family with a survival kit that includes a small stove and utensils for cooking, as well as blankets, hygiene items, and other essentials.

- For $100, we can provide a homeless family with the plastic and framework to build a temporary shelter

Give relief supplies.
You can mail your donated items to:
Love A Child
Attn: Mike Essman- Haiti Earthquake Medical Donation
9304 Camden Field Parkway
Riverview, FL 33578-0520

IMPORTANT: If you're sending large quantities of supplies, they need to be palletized and shrink-wrapped for shipping, with an inventory of items included. Personal donations of smaller quantities can be dropped off in person or mailed directly to Love A Child.

3. Prepare for Future Recovery and Rebuilding

The problems Haiti is facing will not go away in just a couple weeks, so we are committed to serving Haiti long-term. We are already beginning to adjust our missions plans for 2010; working in plans to send teams to Haiti to help with the recovery effort. The immediate emergency situation in Haiti doesn't present an opportunity for us to put teams on the ground to serve. But in 60-90 days, there will be tremendous opportunity for teams to serve in Haiti. Please begin praying, and if you feel it is something God wants you to do, begin preparing to serve on a missions team in Haiti sometime in the next few months. Here's a look at some of projects we intend to send teams for:

Construction and clean-up
Children's ministry
Pastoral counseling
Medical care
Cooking and feeding

Thank you for caring, and for putting that care into action. If you would like further information, please feel free to email Dr. Quentin Washispack at quentinw@newlifechurch.tv

For those of you who are tech savvy (and you know who you are) - then you're going to love what the guys over at Lifechurch.tv have done.

I'm pretty sure you're familiar with the Bible software, YouVersion. It's available for smartphones, online and just about anywhere you can imagine.

As we get started in 2010...a lot of us are hitting God's word with some excitement and prayer. There are a lot of different Reading Plans over at YouVersion now and I really encourage you to take a look at some of them.

They'll allow you to go at your own pace and create your own plan that works best for your lifestyle. Let us know how it's going this year with your Reading Plan!

Has anybody noticed that Football season is here?

This is my favorite season of every year. I love the fact that each team starts off the year with a common goal... to win a championship. There are so many lessons we can learn from the great game of football: the importance of fundamentals, how to take on new challenges, overcoming the impossible, learning from previous mistakes, playing as a team, and the importance of commitment. When these lessons are learned and applied, champions are made.

One great lesson that I have learned is that every week, Monday morning comes. Sounds profound doesn't it? To me, this simply means that whether coming off a loss, a win, or a tie, from the previous week, a new opportunity is provided. Each Monday represents a new day, a new week, for a team. Every team has a choice on Monday morning. That choice is to go forward.

Paul wrote in Phil 3:13-14 "...Forgetting the past and looking forward to what lies ahead, I press on to reach the end of the race and receive the heavenly prize for which God, through Christ Jesus, is calling us."

It is Monday morning! A new day, a new week to go forward after the things God has purposed for us. Learn from your mistakes, but put them behind you. The past is the past once we have encountered God's grace and forgiveness. Go after the prize God has placed in front of you.

Over the Labor Day weekend, my Blackberry got wet and the keypad completely stopped functioning...it was fried! To say this was very frustrating for me was an understatement, as my Blackberry is the primary medium that I use to communicate to people. Thus, I felt like I had almost been rendered powerless. It was the strangest feeling to not be able to call people when I was out and about and friends were also unable to reach me via text, email or phone. Since the stores that sell Blackberry's, I phone's, etc. were closed on Sunday and Monday for the holiday, this meant I would go almost 72 hours without a Blackberry.

At the end of the second day without my Blackberry, I noticed several things that seemed very different than normal: I felt more relaxed, I had more fun with my friends, I seemed to be more attentive to my friends and family, and my mind was generally much clearer. Now, as I reflect back on these couple of days, I believe God was trying to teach me something. And since I'm a slow learner, he needed a three day weekend to do it versus a normal weekend!

The primary lesson I believe He wanted me to learn was that on a daily basis I need to find time to "unplug". Sometimes during the hustle and bustle of our fast paced world I can hardly hear myself think much less hear from God. However, when I'm unplugged, I will be much more aware of God and the things that he is trying to teach me, I'm more attentive to what is going on with the people that mean the most to me, and I'm more at peace.

Of course, we have several examples in the Word of when Christ unplugged. The first one that came to mind was one of the most eventful days of Christ's life outside of his death, burial and resurrection. On this day, His friend John the Baptist was beheaded, He fed the five thousand with five loaves and two fishes and He walked on the water. But after feeding the five thousand and prior to walking on the water he got away and prayed.

Matthew 14:23 - "After he had dismissed the crowd, he went up on a mountainside by himself to pray. When evening came, he was alone there...".

Just like Christ, there are times when we need to get away from the stress and pressure of this world to be alone and pray. However, we can only do this when we are completely unplugged. I hope you will try it and my prayer is that it will be as good for you as it was for me.