Grace Chapel - 12 New Churches

I’m so excited I just had to share!


If you remember last year when we went to the Philippines it was to minister to Grace Chapel Ministries. But Pastor Kelly had also said “While you are there listen to what the next step would be for Grace Chapel… hear what God says.


Well, it was very clear we were to start 12 churches in three years and most the plan to accomplish this was laid out clear.
A year has come and gone with not much progress with the exception of generous donations building up in the Grace Chapel funds… thanks to all of you.
So now, I just received confirmation that God has been working on the hearts and minds of those in the Philippines who can accomplish the vision that they too have the same vision for starting the churches.

God has been working around the world setting into motion this vision (plan). Pastor Alagos and others in the Philippines have also been fasting and praying to start these churches.

My friends we need fasting and praying. That is what I’m asking all of you to do. Please fast and pray for these new churches.

We are working out details now and as the details come about I will be sharing it all with you.

WE ARE PRAYING AND FASTING TO START TWO OF THESE CHURCHES THIS YEAR!!!

Hallelujah, The Lord is good!

Grace Chapel Extended & Our FourthYear Anniversary

Grace Chapel Partners,

Check out the pictures of the new Grace Chapel extension finished just in time for our 4th Year Anniversary Service July 31st 2010

Hard to believe but it has been 4 years since the Grace Chapel's dedication and 5 years since Pastor Kelly Backstrom of River Rock Church, Camas, WA issued the $100 Challenge based on the Parable of the Talents Matthew 25:14-30. Pastor Kelly said, "Take this $100 and invest it in the Kingdom and see what God does with it."

The Lord's increase of $100 over the last four years:
A local Chapel of Worship for the Patnongon residents - Feeding the less fortunate - Helping with medical emergencies - Helping Pastors start home businesses to feed their families - Student Scholarships - Supporting Christian Radio Program - Starting more Churches - Fertilizers and Insecticides for the struggling farmers - Guitar for a blind man that sings for his food - Sending students to a Christian Leadership training camp - Evangelism Rally's - Vacation Bible School - Encouraging Pastor's - Saving the lost and encouraging the saints - and the pleasure of us all being able to help and the privilege of service in The Lord's Kingdom, His Church

Thank You Lord Jesus,

Extending Grace Chapel

More good news!

Praise God we are extending Grace Chapel. Thank you all for your generous donations.

The attached pictures show the current extension is a tarp. The new extension will be permanent.

We'll send more pictures when completed.

Please help me thank our dear Lord for His goodness and pray for those who are working hard to complete the extension.

By the Lord's grace,

Steve Bragg
Home Office 360-254-0055
Cell 360-601-5287
Fax 360-216-4477
steve.bragg123@gmail.com

Grace Chapel's First Vacation Bible School

What a wonderful blessing from the Lord.

Here is the report Alberta Baculna at the end of VBS
"Last May 17 - 21, 2010 the Grace Community Church hold a VBS. The class was composed by 15 primary and 20 beginners. The 2 volunteer teachers was Sis. Lucia Mandeoya handling the beginners and Sis. Alberta Baculna handling the primary. The snacks was sponsored by Sis. Josefina Murias. During graduation the parents on the children attended and they're very happy for they witnessed the presentation of their children. The 2 classes rendered a song that they had learned in the VBS. The children enjoyed in their different activities."

Steve Bragg
Home Office 360-254-0055
Cell 360-601-5287
Fax 360-216-4477
steve.bragg123@gmail.com

Not My Life but Yours

I have been praying a whole new way.

I continue to pray for River Rock Church & Grace Chapel and their ministries, friends; supporters of Grace Chapel, family and Lord please in Your time send us and establish us in fulltime service at Grace Chapel.

But my new daily prayer is simple. Lord this day and my life are Yours not mine. May this day and my life be a blessing to You. I will do my best today to live my life without sin by Your power and grace and I want nothing of my life today except to live it in Your will Your way. I have no agenda… Let this day unfold as You will.

I no longer care about if I live in this house or my car nor do I pray about such specifics in my life. As many of you know I can say that boldly as I came very close to living out of my car last year. The Lord will sustain me and my family wherever we live. But I praise Him each day for this nice home and we are warm and have good food, etc. Whatever life the Lord unveils for me it is the life and purpose He desires for me. My goal is to be ready to live it. My trust in Him has been confirmed. Thank You for Your goodness, Lord. I hope this life is pleasing to Him because I love this life He has giving me. What better joy than to live in your created purpose and in the blessing of the One who created you.

I have some schedule of course but even at work the result of what must be done I no longer worry about but just do my best all day and live with blessed expectancy.

IT IS WORKING! I feel the power and presence of the Lord in my life to a greater degree. And I feel a greater purpose and see greater results, Kingdom results, in and through my life. I can see God working in and around me. I feel a deeper sense of awe about the Lord and a growing humility in me. I no longer wish to do anything in my own strength or accomplish my own agenda. I only want to live in His strength, grace, love and His purpose for this day and this life He has given me. And I have exciting expectancy and joyful praise all day.

I’m exploring with enthusiasm the reality that this is not my life it is God’s. He gave it to me, He gives me each breath, He died to make it eternal, He is preparing a place for me in heaven and He offers me abundant life right now today Ephesians 3:20. He expects me to live my life for Him. Philippians 1:21 For to me, to live is Christ and to die is gain. The Apostle Paul’s life, after he met Jesus, was lived in the presence and purpose of Christ continuously. Paul is our example of a mature Christ follower. 1 Corinthians 4:16 & Hebrews 13:7

Jesus said He did nothing on His own but only what His Father had given Him to do. Our goal is to mature in Christ and to become “Christ like”. 1 Peter 2:21

I love You Lord! Help us all to become more like You. Amen

Steve Bragg

Thank you 2009

To all the members and friends of River Rock Church

Greetings of peace to everyone

We would like to express our heartfelt thanks and appreciation for your unending love and support to Grace Chapel.

May the Lord showers His bountiful blessings to everyone

Merry Christmas and advance Happy New Year.

Helen Baculna,
Volunteer Coordinator,
Grace Chapel, Patnongon, Antique, Philippines

I would like to add Grace Chapel is now at two weekly services. The second was added because we have many children that are now coming so we have a teaching service for them.

Thanks to your generosity we are continuing to support four students through school.

We also support a Christian radio broadcast that reaches about 175,000 Filipinos weekly with the Gospel of Christ. Thank you Lord! You are so good!!!

The gift we sent for the Christmas celebration was decided by Grace Chapel to be spent feeding those in need.

Thank you for your prayers and support. May the Lord bless your generosity and love for His children and our brothers and sisters in Patnongon, Philippines.

If you would like to support or gift the ministries at Grace Chapel you my give through River Rock Church.

http://www.river-rock.org/index.shtml

In Christ,

Steve Bragg

Encouragement - Praising God on Dry Land

Praising God on Dry Land
Encouragement Volume A-29
10/23/2009

Exodus 14:29 But the sons of Israel walked on dry land through the midst of the sea, and the waters were like a wall to them on their right hand and on their left.

I was looking for a good way to illustrate what is on my heart and how to communicate this Encouragement to you. Then last week Fox News illustrated a segment with a scene from Cecil B. DeMille’s movie the Ten Commandments. The scene is Moses, played by Charlton Heston, standing on the rock overlooking the Red Sea. The Israelites have been freed from the slavery and cruelty of Egypt and are on their way with all the spoil of Egypt to the “Promised Land” “full of milk and honey”. Little did they know that the Lord would lead them to the Promised Land through the Red Sea.

God had used many great miracles including saving them from the angel of death to free them. This last great miracle of saving them from death led to convince Pharaoh to let God’s people go and they were finally freed not only from death but also the horrible condition of Pharaoh’s brutal slavery. So now having been saved from death by lamb’s blood and the terrible condition of slavery the Hebrew are joyfully on their way to the Promised Land. In like manor we are freed from death by the blood of our Lamb, Jesus, and the horrible condition of our slavery to sin and now on our way to our “Promised Land”, heaven.

With that back ground said, here is my encouragement.

The Hebrews knew the Lord well and were saved from Egypt but their faith had not yet been perfected, matured or realized. Now the Lord began His work of becoming their God. As you read through Exodus the “becoming their God”, as I call it, happened through many test and trials. But the first test was the Red Sea.

Now camped with their back to the Red Sea and no way of escape Pharaoh realizes the military advantage and leads his army against the seemingly helpless Hebrew. When the Egyptian army approached it scared the Hebrews so badly they begged Moses to release them back to Egyptian slavery in hopes Pharaoh would not kill them.

They even declared “Why have you dealt with us in this way, bringing us out of Egypt?” Exodus 14:11

'Leave us alone that we may serve the Egyptians'? For it would have been better for us to serve the Egyptians than to die in the wilderness." Exodus 14:12

But the Moses said "The LORD will fight for you while you keep silent." Exodus 14:14

Moses opens the Red Sea and the Hebrews walked on dry land with the waters piled high on both sides. When they reach the shore on the other side the Lord drowned the entire Egyptian army, their enemy and trail, when He closed up the Red Sea behind them.

When Israel saw the great power which the LORD had used against the Egyptians, the people feared the LORD, and they believed in the LORD and in His servant Moses. Exodus 14:30.

My friends, sometimes trials or circumstances come upon us that cause great fear and the test or trial is so great that we even question our faith or the reality of our God. We may even become angry towards God.

But now I look back as one who is coming out of what I think was my scariest trial of the last two years unemployed. I see the dry ground on which I walked. Sometimes I even feared the way out by which the Lord took me and my family and sometimes trembled even at the high walls of the sea that surrounded us.

But for the most part of this trail our faith based upon our past experiences with our Lord sustained us. Although, sometimes, our older brothers and sisters had to come to our rescue and remind us “the Lord will fight for you today.”

And I have to say with all humility that the Lord’s dry ground which we walk on are your prayers for us and the many kind and loving things you all provide for us. Thank you my dear friends and family. Nothing was I able to do on my own power but only through the Lord’s strength and His provisions and through His loving servants are we able to survive.

I know that this trial is not over yet and more trials will come that test, strengthen and mature our faith. But these two things I know today:

My faith and my family’s faith in our Lord God are more real today than ever. Also our faith and love for each other, Juliana, Steven and I are greater and more intimate. Our intimacy with the Lord God Almighty and Creator of all is closer and more loving than we have ever known. It’s is hard to understand why the Lord God would care so intimately for me and my family but He does and I am basking in the reality and intimacy of Him and His love.

And secondly, although, I don’t invite more trails and the end of this one is not complete, I know the Lord is my provider and fear is only temporal but the Lords care and love are true and eternal.

And one more closing note. The Lord not only works through our trails for good for us but also as a witness to those who watch. The Lord works through our faith as a witness to the world.

"Then the Egyptians will know that I am the LORD” Exodus 14:18

May the Lord continue to bless us all,

Steve Bragg