Switch Youth Group 2

Royal Rangers

Faith Factory &

Kingdom Kids

3

Mpact Girls

Women’s Ministry

Bible Connections

4

nor did he have the inner angst that coldly takes someone’s life even in this intense setting, he was just trying his best to defend his close friend. He knew Jesus didn’t carry a weapon and was defenseless, so he risked his own life to try to defend him. If only he would have kept that mindset when he followed Jesus into the courtyard where he betrayed him by denying his relationship with him to two servant girls. So, he stands up to the High Priest’s “servant” but shrinks before some servant girls - because that makes sense? That tells us what a spiritually charged night it was, “when darkness reigns.” Two guys, two failures, but there was a big

difference between the two. Judas’ response to his own failure was suicide. In my experience, darkness is always reigning when there’s a suicide. When our minds cannot see any better choices, any alterna-tives to taking our own lives, darkness is indeed reigning, whispering, de-ceiving! Peter’s response was grief, deep inner regret that later led to repen-tance. That response brought about forgiveness and restoration by Jesus himself, a very different

choice with a much better result. This time the light won out over the dark. The darkness was reigning in both cases, but it was their response that destroyed one life and redeemed the other. We have all made bad choices. We’ve all

failed Jesus. But we can all follow in Peter’s

footsteps to the cross to find forgiveness and

restoration. The darkness can still be defeated!

That’s the message of Easter and the resurrec-

tion, because He lives, we can live a new

life.

“…when darkness reigns.” What omi-nous words! It’s part of a verse in the Bible spoken by Jesus during a dark night in a garden that eventually led to Christ’s bru-tal crucifixion. For just three words, they paint a scary picture of the dark conspiracy against Jesus, or as my grandson likes to say, “It’s huuugggge!” The setting takes place in the midst of two men’s well known failures, Judas Iscariot and Simon Peter. Judas has just sold Jesus out for thirty silver coins, or about $15. It was the price of a slave, which certainly was arrived at so that it would communi-cate their disgust for Jesus. I think it tells us of how little Judas was valuing Jesus at the time also. Certainly even today people reject him for even less. If you think this is bad, wait until I remind you that Judas’ sign for who he had just sold out was a kiss! What a guy! Peter’s response was to take out his concealed weapon, a sword that he must have carried with him when traveling through crime infested areas as a means of self-protection. When we think of a concealed weapon, we think small. My guess is that Peter’s sword was-n’t a heavy three foot model, but more of a compact length and weight like a dagger, but lethal all the same. Some think Peter was aiming for the guy’s neck, but missed because of the excitement and darkness, and took off his ear instead. My guess again is that he was not a trained fighter,

Volume 23, Issue 2

March & April 2020

Hillside Highlights

H I L L S I D E A S S E M B L Y O F G O D

Pastor’s Pen: by: Pastor Paul Carlson

Our Mission Statement: “Reaching out

to connect people to God and to others.”

Check it Out!

March 15th:

Missions Breakfast at

Pound @ 8 a.m.

Missions Banquet at

Gillett @ 11:30 a.m.

Gillett Egg Hunt @

Gillett Elementary School

April 4th - 10 a.m.

Pound Egg Hunt @

Coleman School

April 11th - 10 a.m.

Water Baptisms

April 15th @ 6:45 p.m.

Youth Group by: Pastor Jon

Matthew Henry said, “No man will say, ‘There is no God’

till he is so hardened in sin that it has become his interest that

there should be none to call him to account.”

At Switch Youth Group, we will be exploring the delusion

of atheism and why people ignore the mountains of evidence

supporting the God of the Bible, so that students will grow

confident in their faith and ready to share it boldly with others

in love.

Upcoming Events: (grades 6-12)

Sun, Mar 1: Pizza Ranch & Tundra Lodge Trip, 12-7:30 p.m.

Fri, Mar 13: Night Skiing Trip, 2-10:30 p.m.

Wed, Mar 18: Special Guest, Thimber Bugtong

Wed, Mar 25: Fine Arts Registration Due

Wed, Apr 8: Youth Gym Night

Wed, Apr 15: Baptism Night

Instagram @Hillside.Switch

Facebook.com/Hillside.Switch

“The fool has said in his heart, ‘There is no God’” (Psalm 14:1).

The evidence for God is all around us, and actually, it’s

IN us. Inside each of your cells is Deoxyribonucleic acid (or

DNA), which some scientists have called “the instruction

book for life.” The amount of information in the

3,000,000,000 base pairs that make up DNA is equivalent to

that of 1,000 encyclopedia sized books! And all that infor-

mation is replicated in each of your cells! Bill Gates once

said that DNA is more complex than any software ever writ-

ten.

Physical chemist Charles Thaxton explains that the bases

of our DNA “serve as the ‘letters’ of a genetic alpha-

bet. They combine in various sequences to form words, sen-

tences, and paragraphs… Just as in a book, these letters are

grouped in a specific order to communicate a particular idea

or task…. Just like an instructional or ‘how -to’ book found

at your local library, the information held within a DNA

molecule is organized into sections and can be broken down

to letters that code for different commands depending on

their sequence.”

No reasonable person believes that the books at the

library were created out of some random process that magi-

cally put all the letters and pictures in an order that makes

sense. We know that books are designed and created by

someone. Yet, atheists believe that our DNA, the most com-

plex “book” ever known, was made by random chance—and

not just our DNA, but the DNA of every animal and plant

as well. How can reasonable people fervently believe some-

thing so impossible?

Upcoming Events:

March 7th Pinewood Derby - 10 a.m.

May 16th Camp Work Day

May 22-25th FCF Family Camp

June 25-28th Ranger Camp

Hillside Highlights Page 2

Royal Rangers by: Lewis Shallow “But those who hope in the Lord will renew their

strength. They will soar on wings like eagles, they

will run and not grow weary, they will walk and

not grow faint.” Isaiah 40:31

February is behind us! For the last

couple of weeks the boys in Rangers have

been working on their Pinewood Derby cars,

prepping them for the big race March 7th.

Several Mpact girls have also been joining

them in the sanding and painting of the cars,

as they all turn a simple piece of wood into a hotrod! It’s a

fun competition, but at its core, the race presents a great

opportunity to reaching kids and their families. The event

starts at 10:00 a.m., and a lunch will be served after all the

heats. Trophies will be handed out following the lunch!

A special trophy made by Chuck McDermid will also be

presented to a special recipient. Come support our boys at

this special event!

Volume 23, Issue 2 Page 3

In Gillett we are coming to a close with High

Point: Attitude Check. The students have been

learning the verse, “Create in me a pure heart,

O God, and renew a steadfast spirit within

me.” (Psalm 51:10). During this entire lesson, we

have been looking at how having a good attitude

can not only impact those around us but it

can also impact our lives. This whole series

is centered on Jonah and how he had an

attitude check from God because he didn’t

want to go to Nineveh. The next series that

we are looking into is Changed Inside Out.

The Bible verse is, “If anyone is in Christ, he is a new crea-

tion; the old has gone, the new has come!” (2 Corinthians

5:17). This will center on the Bible story of Paul and how

he was changed from the inside out.

Easter Eggstravaganza is coming up! This is the 6th year

for Gillett and it’s going to be legit! Join us at the Gillett

Elementary gym on April 4th from 10 a.m.- noon. We

need candy and a lot of help with this event! There will be

games, face painting, candy, a gospel message and an egg

hunt! I am so excited for this year and what will come of us

stepping out in faith and seeing what can happen in our

community! There will be a sign up sheet in the foyer and

buckets for you to drop off candy by the doors! If you

would like to help, please let Amber Carlson know or sign

up on the sheet.

I know that this is way far ahead but we are already

gearing up for VBS coming July 27th-31st! This year’s theme

is Rocky Railway, and we are looking for some Christmas

trees (just the tree) to use as decorations throughout the

church to make it look like the Rocky Mountains. We are

also looking for boxes and old suitcases to help set the

scene. Please pray for this event and pray about helping out

as it gets closer. We always need willing hands to make

this event the best it can be!

Faith Factory (Gillett) by Amber Carlson Kingdom Kids (Pound) by: Skhyler Shallow In Pound we have wrapped up our unit on Elisha,

God’s Powerful Prophet. The kids loved the interactive

lessons and fun characters they met along the way to

teach them how to be a powerful follower of God.

Following the life of Elisha, the kids learned that when

we trust and obey God, He is faithful to take care of us

and bless us. Up next we are moving on to Faith

Case: Fruits of the Spirit. The kids will get to be-

come Bible Investigators to seek out the truth of

God’s Word as they uncover the fruits of the Sprit

in Galatians 5:22-23.

Big, Big News! Kidz Klub is a new after school

program for grades first through fifth, meeting Wednesday

afternoons from 3:30 p.m. to 4:45 p.m. starting March 25th

with an Open House on March 18th. Kids will experience

exciting, interactive activities like amazing science experi-

ments, delicious cooking activities, and high energy games.

These activities help kids learn the Bible story and big idea.

At the Open House, kids can meet the teachers and sample

some of the activities that will take place at Kidz Klub, such

as playing crazy games, trying a wild science experiment, and

decorating a yummy cookie. There will be door prizes, hot

dogs and ice cream. Families can come anytime between

5:30 p.m. & 7:00 p.m. with door prizes being drawn at

6:45 p.m. We need people to help make Kidz Klub and the

Open House a success. People to make a snack, teach a

lesson, check in kids and assist as they participate in the

activities. If you would like to help or want more informa-

tion, please see Skhyler with any questions.

Easter will be here before we know it and the Easter

Eggstravaganza will be held on April 11th at the Coleman

High School Gym. This will be our second year holding this

community event. We need candy and volunteers. There will

also be multiple games for kids to participate in and of course

an Easter egg hunt.

Grab your ticket for Rocky Mountain Railway VBS to

discover Jesus’ Power Pulls Us Through! This year Pound’s

VBS will be July 13th-17th.

Mpact Girls by: Ruth Carlson

In February, the church basement became a

construction zone for our Father and Daugh-

ter’s to construct a graham cracker

house. Every building this year was exception-

ally creative. We saw Fairy Buildings, Duck

Oasis, Tractors, 4 Wheelers and amazing

houses! Not only did our construction teams have a great

time, but we are raising money for missions! Please support

our Missionaries by stuffing the jars to vote for your favorite!

On March 7th, some of our girls will be participating in

the Pinewood Derby hosted by the Royal Rangers

(boy’s ministry group). Come out at 10 am to have

your car weighed and enjoy the fun!

April 8th, we will be having our annual Rainbow

Tea. The Rainbow class cordially invites all their

family and friends to tea and treats made and served

by our Rainbows! Thank you, also, to our Friends group

who helps each year with this event. Mark your calendars –

you don’t want to miss their excited faces when they host

this event!

Hillside Assembly of God

5890 Hwy. 22 W

Gillett, WI 54124

Phone: 920.855.2962

Web: www.hillsideassembly.com

Return Service Requested

Mailing Address

Label Goes Here

NON-PROFIT ORG.

U.S. POSTAGE

PAID GILLETT, WI

PERMIT NO. 7

Hillside Highlights H I L L S I D E A S S E M B L Y O F G O D

Listen to sermons online at hillsideassembly.com/messages

hillsidenorth.org/messages

www.hillsideassembly.com

www.hillsidenorth.org

Bible Connections by: Bob Lee And let us consider how we may spur one another on toward love

and good deeds, not giving up meeting together, as some are in the

habit of doing, but encouraging one another—and all the more as

you see the Day approaching. Hebrews 10:24-25

We welcome and invite everyone of all ages to join us

here at Hillside to attend a Bible Connections class. We not

only work very diligently at offering biblical, life-changing

subjects, but we also emphasize developing a scriptural and

personal connection between participants of the class. In the

times we live, both Bible-centered truth and personal fellow-

ship with other believers is critical to our spiritual health for

both adults and our children.

Current Classes:

Adult: Jeanette Froelich- Parables

Mike Clark and Bob Lee- “The Likeable Christian: A

Journey Toward the Radical Love Jesus Taught Us to Live”

Children: Rebekah, The Empty Tomb and Timothy, Eunice

& Lois

High School: Marcy McCarthy - Unsung Heroes, Miracles Of

Christ and Countering The Culture

Women’s Ministry by: Teri von Brevern “Finally, brothers and sisters, whatever is true, what-

ever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure,

whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable—if anything

is excellent or praiseworthy—think about such things.”

Philippians 4:8

This is the Bible verse that our Mpact girls recite each week

before class. We want to instill in them that they are to be these

things, as well as thinking about these things. If we focus on

these things specified in the verse, then it will make our days

much easier.

Ever go to a scary or sad movie? What does it do? Makes

you scared or sad for a while afterward. If you focus on bad or

sad things, you will think about bad or sad things. Simply put:

Garbage in - Garbage out. We want our girls to think and do

whatever is admirable and praiseworthy, after all they

are daughters of the King. That is also what we are

calling our Mother/Daughter Banquet this year

“Daughters Of The King Celebration”. It is Friday, May 1st this

year and at the celebration we will be having a light meal along

with a style show and special songs put on by our Mpact Girls

Club. It is sure to be an evening to remember.

Upcoming Events:

March 15th: Missions Breakfast (Pound) 8:00 a.m.

Missions Banquet (Gillett) 11:30 a.m.

March 22nd: Pound WM Meeting 10:30 a.m.

May 1st: Daughters Of The King Celebration 6:30 p.m. in the

Gillett Gym.