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September 25, 2026 • 4 Minute Read
Celebrate Recovery September Newsletter
September 2026 | Volume 13 As we close out September and officially move into fall, we are wrapping up the month with Lesson 19: Crossroads. This lesson is such an important reminder that recovery is not only about finding freedom. It is also about learning how to continue walking in that freedom one day at a time. Lesson 19: Crossroads Principle 7
Reserve a daily time with God for self-examination, Bible reading, and prayer in order to know God and His will for my life and to gain the power to follow His will. Step 10:
We continued to take personal inventory and when we were wrong, promptly admitted it. “So, if you think you are standing firm, be careful that you don’t fall!”
1 Corinthians 10:12 Crossroads reminds us that maintaining recovery requires us to continue paying attention to what is happening in our hearts, our choices, and our relationships. Whether our recovery is from substances or from processes and behaviors that have controlled our lives, long-term sobriety and freedom require continued honesty and daily surrender. We cannot simply rely on the work we did yesterday. We need to continue taking inventory, recognizing when we are heading in the wrong direction, admitting when we are wrong, and bringing everything back before God. Principle 7 gives us a practical way to do that by intentionally spending time with God through prayer, Scripture, and self-examination. It is in that daily relationship with Him that we begin to recognize the crossroads before us and gain the strength to choose the path that keeps leading toward healing and freedom. God Is Moving in Our Community As we move into fall, one of the most encouraging things we have seen is the number of new faces coming through the doors of Celebrate Recovery. We pray that God continues to bring people who are looking for hope, healing, freedom, and a safe place to walk honestly through life. Recovery was never meant to happen alone. We need community. We need people around us who will encourage us, challenge us, pray with us, celebrate with us, and walk beside us when life gets difficult. But above everything else, we need God. We cannot do this in our own strength. Lasting transformation happens in and through Him as we continue surrendering our lives to Him each day. Celebrating Recovery September also gave us so much to celebrate! This month, members of our Celebrate Recovery family celebrated: 17 years of sobriety
4 years of sobriety
2½ years of sobriety
8 months of sobriety
60 days of sobriety x2 God is so good! Every one of these milestones represents so much more than a number. Behind them are difficult days, courageous decisions, prayers, accountability, surrender, perseverance, and countless moments of choosing recovery one day at a time. They are also reminders of just how much God can do in and through us when we fully surrender ourselves to Him daily. Whether someone is celebrating 17 years, 60 days, or simply finding the courage to walk through the doors for the very first time, every step toward freedom matters. As we head into October, may we continue to live out Principle 7 by making time for God, examining our hearts honestly, staying connected to community, and remembering that recovery is a daily journey. At every crossroads, we have another opportunity to surrender. And when we surrender, God can do far more in and through our lives than we could ever accomplish on our own. Pray with us that God continues to bring new faces to Celebrate Recovery, so that together we can share in His freedom, grace, compassion, and never-ending love. We are so grateful for what He is already doing, and we cannot wait to see who He brings through the doors next.
September 17, 2026 • 2 Minute Read
Weekly Letter from Pastor Dan - September 17
“Together we pursue Jesus, love our community, and live out His mission to reach the world.” Dear Mercer Creek Family, As I write to you at the end of this week, my heart is filled with all kinds of emotion. It has been a full week! We kicked off our 11:30 service, launched our women’s ministry, restarted middle school and high school ministries, and helped college students move in this morning. Next week, we launch Salt and MomCo. On a personal note, I’m chasing kids around each night to different activities while cheering on other kids in our community from whatever sideline I find myself on. These are fun, wild, and crazy days! But in the middle of it all, I am keenly aware that while we are going strong, we also must heed our Savior’s invitation to withdraw, be quiet, and get alone with Him. We are going to have some exciting days of ministry and outreach this fall, but we must never forget that you are deeply loved by the Father, and He longs for slow, unhurried time with His beloved. I pray that this Sunday will be a time for you to slow down, reflect, and reconnect with Jesus. I’ll be completing our Faithful series, continuing where we left off last week as we explore 1 Timothy 6:17–19 in a message I’m calling “Live Rich.” Then, on Wildcat Welcome Weekend, I’ll kick off our next series through 1, 2, and 3 John, which we’re calling The Real Thing: Finding Authentic Faith in an Artificial World. I’m looking forward to being together Sunday! Dan Arnold
September 14, 2026 • 4 Minute Read
My Journey Into MomCo & Volunteer Requests for the Fall
I hope you are okay with me telling you a short story about my journey into MomCo. Being a stay-at-home-mom with my five and three year old boys was a fun, hard, & beautiful season. Yet with the 3rd on the way–that pregnancy was my hardest and I had reached a low point. At the end of my third pregnancy I was sick for about 6 weeks, and it felt hard to get out of bed. My kids were watching PBS Kids and WALL-E on repeat. I felt physically and emotionally sick, guilty for not being able to show up for the kids sitting in my living room, alone (even though I had some amazing friends and husband caring for me), and a lot of sadness about everything. Life felt very overwhelming, and I wasn’t sure if I felt up to the task of doing much of anything. And yet, I was so grateful for the big and small ways God supported me through that time and one of those ways was by getting plugged into MomCo (formerly MOPs). Walking into MOPs was a huge risk for me at the time tbecause showing up felt hard. This is what I knew though, I needed a few more people in my life that knew exactly what I was going through. I needed a meal that was made for me most weeks, I needed a few hours where I felt my kids could be cared for and have fun while I had a grown up conversation. Two hours, two times a month. The most amazing thing was that I was not alone on this journey! Fast forward ten years and now I’m leading MomCo! I remain very passionate about supporting moms from pregnancy into motherhood. This is my personal invitation for you to become a part of our MomCo community. There are four ways you can be involved in this year’s ministry to moms in our county: One: If you know a mom that has Wednesday mornings free, we would love to meet her! MomCo represents moms of all churches and spiritual backgrounds. We gather on the unifying fact that we need each other and we all bring our beautiful, messy selves to be seen and loved. We talk about growing in our faith and real life issues; like body changes, parenting, friendships, grief, and joys. Two: We have volunteer positions to provide care for these little ones while their moms get a well deserved chance to learn and connect. There are 14 MomCo meetings throughout the school year on the first and third Wednesday of the month from 8:45 to 11:15. Are you someone who would see the value and would be excited and willing to pour into the kids and make MomCo an amazing time for them? I can assure you that these moms are so grateful for the time invested hanging out with their little ones. Three: If you have a few years of being a mom behind you, we would love to have you on our team to connect and share with younger, new moms. It really does take a village to raise our little ones and we love the wisdom passed down. Four: Pray for the lonely, weary, stressed mom to find these ministries and be blessed by them! Here I have identified some specific details about our kid care volunteer opportunities: Tuesday Morning Bible Study Two people & two back ups for a school year commitment. Every Tuesday 8:45 to 11:15 am. Four weeks off for Christmas break in December off and we end in the middle of May. Wednesday Morning MomCo and MomCo Leadership Big Group MomCo We have 14 group meetings in the school year. The time commitment is 8:45 to 11:15am. We would really appreciate a year commitment, but open to a quarterly serving or signing up to be on our back up list. MomCo Leadership Meetings Second Wednesday of each month from 9:15 to 11 ish. We need two people for about 12 amazing kiddos! Thank you for reading and prayerfully considering joining us this year, Kristy & The MomCo Leadership Team
September 10, 2026 • 2 Minute Read
Mercer Weekly | September 13 - 19
Welcome to the Mercer Weekly 👋 This is your one-stop spot for everything happening in our church family. From kids to adults, small groups to special events, here's how you can get connected over the next seven days. Sunday, September 13th 8:30, 10:00, & 11:30am Worship Services - Join us for Sunday
service in person or online. Kids Ministry - Age-specific programming during all three services. Middle School Small Groups - Meeting during the 10:00am service in the Mt. Stuart Room Tuesday, September 15th Women’s Ministry - 9:00am in the Commons Family Prayer & Worship Night - 6:00pm in the Worship Center Wednesday, September 16th Mercer Creek Men - 6:30am in the Commons. Summit (Middle School Ministry) - 6:30pm in the Mt. Stuart Room Journey (High School Ministry) - 6:30pm in the Commons Thursday, September 17th Movers & Shakers - 7:30am, meet in the South Lobby Celebrate Recovery - 6:00pm Potluck, 6:45-8:30pm Program. Upcoming Events Inner-Healing Prayer Study - Starts September 21st at 6:00pm in the Mt. Stuart Room Wildcat Welcome Weekend - All services on September 27th Men’s Breakfast - October 3rd Baptism Class - October 4th Married Life - October 5thNew here? We'd love to connect. This Week's Message "Contentment Vs. Consumerism"
Pastor Dan Arnold Watch last week’s sermon 👇Watch OnlineSubscribe To Our Podcast Giving Your generosity makes our work in this city possible. We’re so grateful for you. New to our community? No pressure. Today, just be our guest.Give Now Here Stay Connected 📩 Subscribe to this Collection to get these updates delivered directly to your inbox. 📸 Follow us on Facebook, Instagram, TikTok, YouTube. 💬 Pastoral care or questions? Connect with us here. Services: Sundays at 8:30, 10:00, & 11:30am
1410 N Main Street, Ellensburg WA, 98926 Next Week: "Live Rich"
See you soon ☀️
September 10, 2026 • 3 Minute Read
Weekly Letter from Pastor Dan - September 10
“Together we pursue Jesus, love our community, and live out His mission to reach the world.” Dear Mercer Creek Family, It’s hard to believe we’re already here, but this weekend we are relaunching our 11:30am service! After a long summer, it’s exciting to see all three of our Sunday services back up and running. Over the past year, we’ve continued to see God grow Mercer Creek, and our heart remains the same: to pursue Jesus, love our community, and live out His mission to reach the world. Adding the 11:30 service gives us more room to make room for more people—and we’re excited about what God is going to do this fall. You’ve heard me say this for a while now, but I want to encourage you to consider making 11:30 your regular service this season and, even better, invite someone to come with you! We also have some great opportunities to serve during this service. If you’ve been looking for a place to jump in, you can find those opportunities at mercercreek.org/serve. This Sunday I’ll also be continuing our Faithful series as we talk about a subject that touches every one of us: contentment. I’ll be preaching primarily from Philippians 4:10–13, 1 Timothy 6:6–10, and Hebrews 13:5. I’m looking forward to what God has for us as we consider what it means to trust Him and find contentment in Him, regardless of our circumstances. And as we head into fall, so many great things are getting started! Our women’s ministry is launching weekly small-group Bible studies and MomCo, and middle and high school students begin gathering again this Wednesday from 6:30–8:00pm. If you have students in your life, this is a great time to help them get connected and plugged in for the year ahead. Our prayer ministry is also launching an exciting new five-week seminar called Listening and Healing Prayer, beginning Monday, September 21, from 6:00–7:30pm. The seminar will be taught by trusted local professional Jackie Moore. This course introduces Listening Prayer as a discipline for cultivating spiritual attentiveness and discerning God’s guidance through intentional reflection and quiet contemplation. Building on that foundation, Healing Prayer provides a structured framework of reflective questions to help participants seek God’s restoration and freedom. The course addresses areas such as unhealthy behavioral patterns, dependencies, anxiety, fear, guilt, grief, anger, shame, and depression. You’re encouraged to go through it with a partner, but that is not required. I really cannot recommend this seminar enough. There is a lot happening, and I’m genuinely excited about this next season at Mercer Creek. God has been so faithful, and I believe He has more for us as we continue to pursue Jesus, love our community, and live out His mission together. It’s going to be a great Sunday. I hope to see you here! Dan Arnold
September 3, 2026 • 1 Minute Read
Weekly Letter from Pastor Dan - September 3
“Together we pursue Jesus, love our community, and live out His mission to reach the world.” Dear Mercer Creek Family, Today we are celebrating some great progress in Nicole’s healing! This afternoon (Thursday), we received word that they are starting the discharge process today! Thank you for your prayers, and please continue to pray for Nicole’s full and complete healing. As we head into this weekend, I’m reminded that, in so many ways, Labor Day weekend represents the pinnacle of community life here in Ellensburg. Throughout the weekend, Mercer Creekers will be serving and participating in activities across the spectrum of our community. We are praying for you as you do! You are called to be the light of Jesus in every one of those “arenas” where you engage. May you represent Jesus well as you function as His hands and feet wherever you go. Well, we only have one more week with just two services! Join us this Sunday as Paul continues our Faithful series with the message, “Money Reveals the Heart,” from Matthew 6:19–24. We will also celebrate communion together. See you Sunday (and probably throughout the weekend)! Dan Arnold
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