As most of you know, Carl and Laura Anderson have come back home to SoulRio.  We’re SO glad to have them here!  In celebration of this, we’ll be having a potluck celebration party following 2^nd service this Sunday, July 18.  Please bring a main dish and a side or dessert to share.  We will have paper goods and drinks.  We’re so glad that God has allowed them to come home to us and want to celebrate what He’s doing in their lives!  See you there!

Baptism & BBQ July 25

Make plans now to attend our annual baptism and BBQ on July 25 at Haynes Park and Pool.  We’ll begin the celebration with a cookout at the park at 5 p.m. and move over to the pool for our baptism.  Burgers and hotdogs will be provided.   Please sign up to bring a side dish or dessert to share. If you have questions about being baptized, please see a pastor or contact the office at 792-8737 or info@soulrio.com.   Here’s the link to the video from last year’s baptism:  http://il.youtube.com/watch?v=hXQ2hvWJolQ&feature=related

Fall Retreat  September 24-26

Mark your calendars for September 24-26 and plan to attend our annual fall family retreat at beautiful Glorieta Conference Center.  Registration is a 2-part process:  Step 1:  Contact Glorieta at 800.797.4222 to reserve your room.  Rooms are $79 per night for a deluxe with 2 queen beds.  Deposit of one night’s rental is required. Step 2: Fill out your Soul Rio Registration including attendees and extra activities desired.  YOU DON”T WANT TO MISS THIS!   If you have questions, contact the office at 792-8737 or info@soulrio.com. 

Summertime Giving

Did you know that Soul Rio offers electronic giving from your checking or savings account?  Even if you are traveling or unable to attend on a particular Sunday, you will be able to stay current with your tithe and Soul Rio will be able to meet our ministerial and financial obligations.  If you’d like to sign up for electronic fund transfer giving (EFT), contact Pam at info@soulrio.com or 792-8737 for more information.

Just a quick reminder that this Sunday, November 1, we will be having worship service at Glorieta Conference Center.  Meet us at 9:30 a.m. at the NM Hall for our last retreat worship session beginning at 10 a.m.  THERE WILL BE NO SERVICES AT THE SOUTHERN PLAZA LOCATION THIS SUNDAY ONLY!  If you aren’t able to be at Glorieta and would like to remain up-to-date with your tithe, you may mail it to:

PO Box 68006

Albuquerque, NM  87193.

To get to Glorieta, take I-25 18 miles past Santa Fe and you will see the Glorieta Conference Center exit. 

It’s not to late to sign up for the retreat—call me right away for details!

We’ll see you Sunday in Glorieta.  Don’t forget to set your clocks back one hour before you go to bed Saturday night!

Pam Hoyle

Administrative Assistant

SoulRio Church

www.soulrio.com

(505) 792-8737

(505) 792-2311 Fax

 As a general rule of thumb, church planners use an “80% rule.”  Simply stated, most church planners believe that once a church service reaches 80% of capacity, growth becomes limited.  Once that capacity has been exceeded (on a regular basis), visitors see the building as “full” and that there will be “not enough room” for them or their children.  Granted, even though there are seats available, they are not welcoming to someone who has never visited Soul Rio, and perhaps even less so to someone who is just “kicking the tires” and trying to find out exactly where they are in relationship to God and faith.  Imagine if you will arriving at a church for the first time.  You don’t know anyone.  You are warmly greeted, your children are shown to a class, you are offered a bagel and a cup of coffee and escorted to a comfortable seat.  People introduce themselves to you and are genuinely interested in YOU.  Even if you are shy beyond measure, you would feel welcomed and valued.  You would want to get to know this body of believers and find out more about them and why they are like they are.  Now, turn that around.  Maybe you slipped by the greeter in the parking lot.  The Children’s Church check-in was backed up and there were people who made eye contact with you and smiled, but didn’t get a chance say hello.  You walk into a church, hear joyous worship in a room full of people who are obviously in love with Jesus, but the only available chairs for you and your family are way up in the front row.  Or not together.  Or you might have to step around someone already sitting on the aisle.  Or you had to drive around the parking lot a couple of times to find a space.  You might just feel like there wasn’t any room at the inn for you.  That everyone in this place was so well established, so connected with everyone else, that you just couldn’t be a part of that—that you wouldn’t be welcome.  We want everyone to feel welcome, at home, wanted and valued when they walk in the doors of SoulRio.  We believe that by going to two services, this may be a way to make that more possible all the way around.  Studies have shown that when church attendance is at about 57% capacity level, (no matter what the fire marshal says), growth levels off.  However, once that space is opened up, and that barrier is broken, there is a dramatic increase in membership.  SoulRio has never been about the building or the numbers.  But we want to reach as many people as we can for Jesus!  We believe that by opening up a second service, we are being good stewards of all God has given us!

 There will definitely be challenges associated with two services.  One of the hardest things will be that, depending on the service you attend, you won’t be able to see and worship with everyone.  We plan to offset that by setting aside time in between services for fellowship, and offering more Worship Night services such as the one we held in August, where we ‘packed out the house.’  In Matthew 9:37, Jesus says “The harvest is plentiful, but the workers are few.”  By offering two services, we believe that we will grow up more “workers.”  Knowing that you will be able to attend one service with your family, and then serve in the other, will free up more people to work in areas such as children’s, café, usher/greeter and the like.  We are taking steps to make sure that we have adequate and willing servants in place before we make this move.  One of these steps has been to take a poll of everyone who comes, to see what service they intend to attend and when and where they will serve.  Overwhelmingly, the response to this has been positive.  Since moving into this building last November, our intention has been to grow and reach out to more and more people.  We’ve spoken about expanding to two services numerous times, most recently at the Family Meeting that we held in August where all were invited to attend.  All in all, as we went before the Lord in prayer, we found that there are many more advantages to disadvantages, and we are choosing to look upon those as opportunities for God to shine.  The Great Commission should set our hearts afire with a passion to reach more and more unchurched and unsaved people.  We are a body of people passionately in love with God.  He asks us to share Him with everyone we meet.  You have never met the eyes of someone that Jesus didn’t die for.  Let’s allow God’s glory to shine!  Let’s open up the gates!

REF:

http://www.crosscreekchurch.org/PDFs/80PercentRule.PDF

5-8 p.m.

Join us for a campout style night of fun, food and prizes.  FREE!

Wushu Kung-fu

Martial Arts Ministry

   Back to School 2009

Hey Kung-fu’ers! 

We pray you had a very blessed Summer!  We hope you are ready to kick-off our 10th season of Wushu Kung-fu!  WOO !  HOO!  GO GOD!!!!  WAY  TO  GO  TEACHERS  &  LEADERS!!!!

We can’t wait to see what God has for our ministry this next year and how He will bless us with so many with new BLACK BELT INSTRUCTORS!  CONGRATS AGAIN GUYS!  Let’s be sure we remember to stop, bow and use, “Mr….” with every black belt instructor.

Also, as we begin a new season, we will begin on brand new carpet.  Another WOO HOO!  GO GOD!!!! It goes without saying… we will keep God’s place and HIS new carpet nice and very clean! J  Please try to keep all beverages and snacks near the café (tiled area). J  Water in non-spill bottles or use the water fountain near the kitchen.  Please refrain from entering the stage, sound booth, education, baby and toddler rooms too –to keep them nice and ready for church on Sunday J.

Our Back to School/Fall Schedule mostly follows our traditional schedule.                                                                                (1^st  three Saturdays of All Months, except June, July & December).                                                                                               If you ever get confused about our schedule, uniforms or other questions, just visit:  www.soulrio.com  Look under ministries, click Wushu Kung-fu and you’ll find nearly every answer or  call the Simons at 771-8653 J  

Thanks for your prayers, time, talents and resources offered to keep this ministry glorifying God!!!!

Love in Christ,

Joe & Bonnie Simons 

2009  BACK TO SHOOL Class Dates & Times

                                                     AUG     8, 15                SEPT    5, 12, 19          OCT  3, 10, 17                                                         

Advanced Class                    8:00 to 8:55 AM                      2^nd degree Blueyears        9:00  to 9:30 AM                     All Belts

Class ages:  7-12 years      9:35  to 10:20 AM                   All Belts

Class ages:  13 yrs to adult 10:25 to 11:10 AM                 All Belts

 To learn more about our church, our beliefs & wushu, visit with us at   www.soulrio.com wushu@cableone.net   or   505.771.8653

Contact the office at 792-8737 for more information.