Molter Family - 2020 CCFF Update

“The steadfast love of the Lord never ceases; His mercies never come to an end; they are new every morning; great is your faithfulness.”
—Lamentations 3:22-23

Dear Family and Friends,

Here we find ourselves in 2020, living during a pandemic and realizing it's been more than half a year since we last sent out an email update to our prayer partners. Wow, where did the time go? It’s undoubtedly been an interesting and challenging time for most of us, and we want to thank you for your prayers, support, and positive outlook as we all work through this challenging time filled with unknowns.

The great news is that God is still in control, and He is gently leading us through this uncertain time. We pray that you are resolving to trust Him now more than ever so that you may rest in His comfort and care. During this time Jesus’ charge to us is still the same — BE DISCIPLES WHO MAKE DISCIPLES — and we are confident that we will all be found faithful to this mission.

Below are a few pictures we pray encourage you and remind you of God's goodness!

We were blessed to be with our family and friends in Chico, CA for Christmas and share in person all that the Lord is doing here in the Midwest.

   

Back in MN, our middle son Caleb took a dance class and stole the show! 

We were able to chat with the instructors and other parents and are slowing building relationships with this new community.  

We also found Caleb was starting to have some ear pain but he was able to have a procedure which helped. He's a joyful kid and always with a smile.

   

I (Tim) was able to go to a men's conference with my dad and also teach at a Calvary Chapel men's retreat.

It was a great time of catching up with friends and making some new friends who are ministering at an Indian College. 

  

Anna's been working with Samuel, and he's very close now to walking. She also finished the home-school year with Caleb and Joshua.

   

I graduated from a leadership training course at work. It was a great time of learning and training to think like a coach to encourage others.  

The group of guys for our Wednesday men's Bible study are continuing to meet during lunch break and I've been meeting with our chaplain to encourage one another in ministry.

 

It has also been a challenging time as I found out I had some benign nodules on my throat in February but thankfully one of the medications prescribed helped the swelling go down after a few weeks and God has allowed me to keep teaching His Word despite being uncomfortable. Some days it was painful but thankfully I never had to bear it alone. God has been with me always, faithfully walking with me through it, and He is still helping me day by day. All the more reason to look forward to Heaven. 

And then the world went on lockdown with Covid-19, and our outreach plans, discipleship meetings, and church services all got put on hold. 

We had to get creative and learn quickly how to do an online service from home to keep ministering to our church family via digital technology and online tools.

   

We are still working with our local YMCA that we rent from regarding when and how to come back for Sunday services (we would appreciate prayers for that). Just this past weekend we had an outside service (even during a rain storm). In the midst of the pandemic (or rain storm), God is there, and we don’t need to let the headlines (or weather) frighten us. We need to trust God, even when we don’t understand the world around us, or know what will come next. It's a time of learning to discern what God is speaking to us and to take on the glorious task of sharing the hope we have through Jesus with others. Perhaps this pandemic will cause people to look up and listen to what God has to say? Maybe it will even spark a worldwide spiritual revival? Our hearts say, "May it be so!"

Before this pandemic started we received a check in the mail for $5,000 which has covered all of our church expenses and helped us launch into doing online ministry during this time. We have experienced God’s faithfulness to meet our needs in unexpected ways, His grace and blessings through family and friends, His strength and His goodness to bring us through one day at a time. We've never been busier in ministry than right now, yet throughout this season we have never once lost our joy, inner peace, or the steadfast hope that God was is in control and is working out all things for our good (Romans 8:28). So, let's continue to put our trust in the Lord Jesus Christ, and when the world around us fails, crumbles, and shatters, He’ll be there, and we can know that we have a future with Christ that’s brighter than tomorrow.

The Lord's return is soon, Hallauliah! We are so thankful for your prayers and support! 

- Pastor Tim, Anna, Joshua, Caleb and Samuel Molter

  *   To support the work of Calvary Chapel Fergus Falls please donate at: http://ccfergusfalls.com/giving/   or text CCFF to 555-888

  *   To Subscribe or Unsubscribe to updates please send an email to ccfergusfalls@gmail.com

“Now may the Lord of peace Himself give
you peace always in every way.
The Lord be with you all.”
—2 Thessalonians 3:16

  

Molter Family - 2019 CCFF Update

And suddenly there was with the angel a multitude of the heavenly host, praising God... —Luke 2:13

Dear Family and Friends,

It's the time of the year we wish you all a “Merry Christmas,” and our hope is that this Christmas many more hearts will be merry by knowing our dear Lord and Savior. And the joy of Christmas is not limited to His birth. It is built even more on the triumph of His death and resurrection—that gave meaning to His birth. We don’t usually think of a person as a gift, but actually interpersonal relationships are the most valued and cherished gifts of all. And the Bible teaches that God gave a Person as a gift to every one of us, and that Person is Jesus Christ. Let us rejoice with the angels and praise His holy name!

One of the growing psychological problems facing people today is loneliness, and one of the greatest ministries that a person can have today is just being a good listener. That's what we have been focusing on and have found many people are longing not only to be loved but to have someone who will listen to them. The promises of God’s love and forgiveness are real, sure, and available to all. When we love God with all our hearts, then we have the capacity to love our neighbor, and we have seen God work in wonderful ways for His glory.

As a simple church in the Upper Midwest we are committed to loving everyone, always and extending the hope and grace of Jesus. We had a wonderful Thanksgiving and a full house with those from our fellowship that had no other family to be with. What a joy that we can be the family of God together and show God's love to the widows and orphans. It's also great to be with the people of God no matter where you are. And we are excited to be coming to Chico, California in a few weeks for a Christmas Vacation. We travel from MN to CA on December 23, 2019 and then from CA back to MN on January 3, 2020. We are looking forward to seeing many of you again!

Below are a few pictures we pray bring a smile to you and remind you of the grace of God!

Joshua's B-Day with a few friends                                   Gathering of Calvary Chapel Pastors and Wives

              

 

Tim's mother Lisa visited in September                          Visiting the Mississippi Headwaters in MN

         

   

What a joy to participate and baptize our son Joshua in front of all of his friends and our church fellowship

       

Our son Caleb is turning into quite a dancer for the Lord, and even got to perform recently

  

Anna enjoyed a Mother and Sons day and caught up with our old neighbor

Tim has been volunteering with the YMCA as a head coach for both kids baseball and flag-football

  

Our School of Choice group (a Christian Homeschool Co-op) saw the play "Charlotte's Web"

    

Not even the winter snow can stop us or our kids from expressing the overflowing joy God gives us

   

Again we look forward to seeing many of you for Christmas and we "thank you" for your prayers and support! 

- Pastor Tim, Anna, Joshua, Caleb and Samuel Molter

  *   To support the work of Calvary Chapel Fergus Falls please donate at: http://ccfergusfalls.com/giving/   or text CCFF to 555-888

  *   To Subscribe or Unsubscribe to updates please send an email to ccfergusfalls@gmail.com

Blessed is the man who trusteth in the Lord, and whose hope the Lord is. —Jeremiah 17:7

  

Molter Family - 2019 CCFF Update

“May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace in believing, so that by the power of the Holy Spirit you may abound in hope.”  Romans 15:13

Dear Family and Friends,

We hope you are doing well and wanted to give you an update with how the Lord is using us here in the Upper Midwest.

We were able to join our community for a time of prayer specifically for our nation, state, and local community. It was great to gather at our city hall as one in Christ. As we see more and more tragedies across our nation due to sin, it's a reminder of how much we need Jesus and the work He can do to forgive and heal hearts. Let's keep praying for the lost to come to Christ and then for the boldness to talk to people about Jesus and invite them to get to know Him.

A few of those who have recently come to our church fellowship and are now growing in Christ are Jason (pictured on the left) and Paul (on the right). Both were in need of a loving church family and of good Christian friends. Jason had been dealing with years of struggles and felt that a lot of people viewed him as an outcast and outsider, but after meeting for a few times he began to see that we were different in a good way. He said "Just by listening to you and seeing how you interact with others, I feel that you have a lot of love and care in your heart for people and that you want God to work in their lives in a big way." God is doing a great transformation in Jason as he grows in Christ. Then there is Paul who also was told by churches in our community that he was not welcome, and he felt  alone and forgotten about. He too has been able to see God's love through our church fellowship and has been really enjoying our time in God's Word together. God is restoring lost time in Paul's life with his family and we are thankful for the way God is changing his life as well.

 

The ladies in our church fellowship are some our prayer warriors who monthly gather to intercede for us and the work we are doing. We believe we are seeing the fruit of their prayers. Recently the ladies from our church fellowship, Maureen, Anna (with our newborn Samuel in arms), Cindy Lou, and Sandy (pictured on the left) all had a great time at a Calvary Chapel Woman's Retreat as the ladies learned about the power of the Holy Spirit in the life of a Christian. It was also a great time of being refreshed with other Pastor's wives (Kimberly, June, and Tanya -- pictured on the right) who have been an encouragement to Anna and have helped us along the way. June Hesterly was the main speaker and has co-authored three study guides with her husband Jim Hesterly for Pastor Chuck Smith's books, along with a short-book on the power of the Holy Spirit. 

   

 

And then there are devotions in the workplace. I (Tim) was able to share Jesus with my co-workers and fellow employees at Douglas Machine which is a manufacturing company. Guess what I talked about that our Tuesday AM/PM and Thursday devotions? JESUS! The man in the first picture in the left in the back row asked a great question about God which was a perfect transition into presenting the Gospel message. There is something wonderful about being able to personally share the Gospel on-the-clock at work, and to encourage others in their walk with Christ.

       

But we can't stop there. We had a group of guys hungry for more of the Word, so we now have a weekly men's Bible study group on Wednesdays going through the Gospel of John. Each of the guys (pictured behind me to the right -- Brad, Devon, Tim, Jim, and Bob) contribute and ask great Bible questions and are such a blessing to me personally as we get into the Word of God together. I'm very thankful for the opportunity to gather on our lunch break and use a company meeting room to talk about Jesus and to pray for one another. One of those prayers was for Brad, whose wife had cancer but is now in remission and doing great. What a mighty God we serve!

Then we also had our annual community worship service with around 1000 in attendance from over 12 churches in the area. I was told by one of the two baptist preachers in town to share a message after the others specifically because he wanted me to give an invitation for people to accept Jesus Christ, like I gave a couple of years ago. The three of us speakers agreed on using Romans 6:23 (For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord) as our text to preach from and talked about salvation. Wow, was a privilege it was to share the Gospel and invite people to receive Christ as Savior and Lord. Dozens prayed and were added to the Church!

 

Our family has been wanting to have an ice-cream social to get to know our neighbors better so when the city announced they would be supporting crime deterrent block parties through "National Night Out" we decided that was an open door. So we had an ice-cream social with a kids slip-n-slide and even had a visit by our local firefighters. What a "sweet" time together and we are so thankful for our conversations about faith, church, life/death and the opportunity to point them to Jesus!

   

Well, who likes to run? Not me really, but when you look for doors of opportunity sometimes you have to run to them before they come to you. It's actually a sport that I've been learning to enjoy as I pray and meditate on Scripture. What I found is that there is a running community that is similar to a circle of friends. They are open to learning more about Jesus and are in need of encouragement. One of those runners is Arne who over this last year has found less stress in his life as he draws closer to God and lives out his faith. We have had some great discussions about Jesus and our constant need for Him in our lives. We also were able to run a 7k trail run in June, and then recently a 10k race together in August. Glory to God for the strength He alone provides!

  

After the 10k last Saturday my left knee was hurting pretty bad; so much that I had a sharp pain and much difficulty going up and down the stairs. But after our Sunday service I sensed God was wanting me to have faith that He would heal me. Now, I'm not one of those who trust in "faith healers" but I know God can heal so I trust in Him. I called my two older boys, Joshua and Caleb, to come and pray for daddy and then I prayed too. Moments after their prayers I sensed my knee getting very hot, but then within just a minute the heat went away, and I noticed the pain did as well. I was able to take my knee brace off, walk and even take the stairs without issue. Praise God for His healing touch and for the prayers of our precious young boys!  About 5 days later I was able to also run a 5k without any pain. Praise the Lord!

Lastly, at the end of this summer it will be a full six years since we left California and traveled all the way to Fergus Falls, Minnesota with the sole purpose of planting a Calvary Chapel fellowship. Time is short but our God is Big and we are so thankful for the Lord's calling upon our lives and for your support. We have been able to see God work in wonderful ways in the Upper Midwest and work through us to reach people every week for His glory. Lastly (no really) we have some exciting news we wanted share with you all! We will be coming to Chico, California at the end of this year for a Christmas Vacation. We are looking forward to seeing many of you again!.

Again "thank you" for your prayers and emails of encouragement! We love you all!

- Pastor Tim, Anna, Joshua, Caleb and Samuel Molter

  *   To support the work of Calvary Chapel Fergus Falls please donate at: http://ccfergusfalls.com/giving/   or text CCFF to 555-888

  *   To Subscribe or Unsubscribe to updates please send an email to ccfergusfalls@gmail.com

"But you be watchful in all things, endure afflictions, do the work of an evangelist, fulfill your ministry." -- 2 Timothy 4:5