More than just our jump in reach more people there is so much I am encouraged about:
* Our volunteers and leaders have been amazing in stepping up to the plate and sacrificing in order to make the move to three services. In fact there are dozens of people who are at South Bay from 7:00am-2pm every Sunday so that we can make an impact.
* Last week we had 38 first time guests, this past Sunday we had 23 first time guests. This is a ton of people, and this is just those who filled out cards. I've been amazed at how much South Bay people are taking the initiative to invite friends and get the word out.
* We've had people make decisions to follow Christ for the first time every week for the last 6 weeks. This is so huge that God is helping South Bay impact the lives of people who are exploring faith and new to the message of Christ.
* The Romance, Intimacy and Sex series has been a huge hit. We've had a ton of great comments. I think more than the preaching is just the fact that so many people have huge needs in this area of their lives. At the same time, the bible is so clear, so practical and so helpful in this area.
*Currently, we have 270 people signed up for one of our small groups. This is close to 75% of our September adult worship attendance. I still have yet to receive the numbers on how many people took that step. Hoping we had a great response this Sunday and we are closer to 100% of our people plugged into a group.
Overall, we as a staff are very overwhelmed by the things God is doing at South Bay. We are so encouraged by His faithfulness and really are trying to stay faithful and focused. We don't want to lose heart or miss His best for our church.
Thanks to all of you who make such tremendous sacrifices to make a difference in our community. I'm excited that we have three services left this series. God is really up to something huge in our midst. Let's keep pressing forward knowing that the best is ahead.
PS, This Sunday over 30 of our people will go up to SF to help out Epic Church with their first public service. We are getting to be a part of launching this brand new church. We are so stoked about what God is going to do through Ben Pilgreen and his team up there! Please keep them in your prayers this week.
