Tory Farina

Toys Toys Wonderful Toys...

I am so excited for our Church to be so generous!!! You gave a Ford Taurus Station wagon full of Toys to"The Life Center" in Minneapolis.
You guys ROCK!

I heard one person say... "We just started shopping and before you now it we dropped $200 on these kids" "I got a great bonus this year and wanted to give out of my abundance." "Every kids needs one of these." "I hope I can be downtown one of these days and see a person wearing the scarf I made them and know I am keeping them warm." 

If you want more information or are looking for ways to help check out the Life center at www.changeourcity.org.

Spreading the 30% off love...

The GAP stores are sharing their 30% friends and family discount love. So I am sharing it with you.

                                                              

*bar code to print out and use at register

Caffeinate Your Life Invitaion...

Here is a sneak peak at the "Caffeinate Your Life" fall invitation at High Point Church... Come Sunday and get your own... More info coming soon. Trust me you will want to give one of these out!

I Am A Huge Fan...

I received an email and a phone call from two different people that made me smile. they were both people who wanted to share what God was doing in their life and thank me for being apart of it. Their words encouraged me so much that I thought hey... We don't encourage people enough. Lets take today and call if FAN Thursday. (Fan Friday might be better but I am a nonconformist)

Today take the time to send a letter, email, Twitter, Facebook, Text Message, call or carrier pigeon someone you know or don't a message that basically says you are a fan of theirs. If you are using Twitter use #fan in it so we can see all the great people we should be fans of as well.

Who are you a Fan of? Here are a few of mine...

I am a Fan of Peter Haas at Substance church... He is leading the church to three locations this weekend and is a great friend.

I am a Fan of Brett Geselle... He is Mature in so many ways beyond his years and does everything he puts his hands to with excellence.

I am a Fan of Matt Keller... He takes the time to mentor and help so many other younger pastors and wants nothing from them in return... Truly the reproducers heart! - (He i also like a big brother to me)

Who are you a Fan of? Tell them today...

End Of Year Giving Opportunities...

I love being apart of High Point. God has given us a great work to do and it is so much fun to be apart of a team and church that goes after the vision God has given with such gusto. Thank you for your financial partnership this year in reaching the South East Twin Cities and the world for Christ! Just a reminder that 10%, of our general offering, goes to missions outside of High Point. I love that we live in ca country that gives us tax credit for being generous. Many other countries in this world do not. I Hope this is helpful to you as you prepare for the end of 2008.

As you prepare for the Christmas season and holiday travel, here are a few ways you can make the most of your year-end giving opportunities in 2008:

What’s the deadline for 2008 contributions? December 31, 2008. 
Gifts must be received (if given in person), postmarked (if mailed), or posted (if credit card) by midnight on 12/31 to be considered a 2008 charitable contribution.

How can I give? On-line, in person, or through the mail.

•     Give on-line anytime before midnight on December 31st using your debit or credit card using PayPal or on our main page www.myhighpointchurch.com.
•     Drop your personal checks and cash in the offering baskets during a weekend experience–this weekend is your last chance to give in person!
•     Mail a personal check (postmarked on or before December 31) to the High Point Church at 5838 Blackshire path suite 100, IGH, MN. 55076

What if I’m on the road? Give on-line. 
No matter where your holiday travels take you, you can give online at www.myhighpointchurch.com.

When Will I Receive My 2008 Giving Statement? By January 31. 
Contribution statements should arrive in the mail by January 31. If your address has changed, be sure to email your new mailing address to Elizabeth@myhighpointchurch.com.

Thanks again for your generosity.  Look for new ad exciting opportunities to get involved and take your next step this new year. I pray you and your family have a wonderful Christmas and blessed 2009!

The Ikea Experience

I have a love/Hate relationship with Ikea.

We are moving offices next week. Praise the Lord I get windows! I am kinda tired of having an office in a basement with no windows. Tory needs creative nature to stimulate his mind. The new place has that. We are getting a good deal it will actually save us a few bucks a month to move... the church also received a donation for office expenses! Thus the Trip to Ikea.

High Point believes in using money wisely. We are a pretty lean operation that makes a point to live within our means. I do not believe that the church should operate out of a debt first principle. God gives resource for the challenge at hand. I don't read the bible and see the Israelites traveling through the desert with a ton of stuff they had what they needed and God supplied them when it mattered.

God will supply you based on where you are at on the journey. He rarely gives churches millions of dolor's to work with unless they are ready for millions. I remember the first $100 check, then the first $1,000 gift to the church, Elizabeth and I took a picture of our first over $10,000 gift and we have yet to receive a $100,000 gift but I know one is coming. It is our next barrier. AS WE ARE FAITHFUL IN THE LITTLE GOD TRUSTS US WITH MORE!

Every Dolor God gives us he expects us to double in the weight of souls. Think about the story of the talents. The good servants were those that when God left them with money doubled them. How are you working on doubling the few talents God has given you? If you are not working on doubling your talents it is clear that God is not pleased. So we want to use every dolor to advance the ball down the field. I am excited as we grow in our operations this summer. Hire an admin and expand our effectiveness. Now The admin and I can be in the office together without Elizabeth or another person because there are two offices and there are always people around in the building. We are sharing the building with three other lawyers. More opportunity for ministry. More opportunity for multiplying talents.


So when I got the donation for furniture and other equipment I know we had to shop around. I did my home work... looked on-line and found that the nice looking and least expensive option was at Ikea.

This is Why I love Ikea:

• We had a huge breakfast for a grand total of $5.00. It wasn't the best food but it was cheap and had funny names so that made it fun.  I kept looking for the Swedish chef but couldn't find him :(
• The place was totally family friendly! High Chairs, bottle warmers, and more! I love when places think about Olive.
• I carried a coffee cup around the store and every few desks there was a nice Swedish cookie.
• The furniture is cool! Everything says I was designed by an artist not a widget maker.
• It is inexpensive.
• WOW are the Organized! they can tell you day of arrival of merchandise and they know exactly where things are and if they have it in stock. Nice Job. That is a mad house and massive and some one knows how to keep it all running well.

Why I Hate Ikea:

• I get lost every time I go in there. It is like the coat closet in Marnia you time warp and everything. It feels like minuets and on the outside it is really hours you are in there... very tripy
• I get disorientated... there are short cuts sand you can double back and they put some stuff in home storage and some in office and some in bedroom and if you don't have the GPS tracker out you wind up circling the same yellow shirted Ikea rep. I sat down and wondered why there is no window or light to chart your course with.
• You have to pick up and load your own 400lb desk into your own cart and hall it around. I think I took a lady out with my cart but couldn't tell if it was me our her own cart that had backed over her.
• Not enough help... When you do finally find someone they are helpful but it could be days between sections to get to a person. and don't forget to write down the isle and row or your screwed.
• People in Sweden must be elfin sized... Everything is smaller... I don't know why but the tables and chairs and couches and beds are all lower to the ground and smaller. I am 6'2" and I feel like the Jolly Green Giant.

We found the stuff we needed and hauled 3 heavy carts out the door and will now begin the assembly process. Pray for ME! Pictures to fallow over the next week!

Elizabeths Big Give

Elizabeth gave a huge gift this at Sunday as she cut 11 inches of her lushes brown hair off and gave it to those who were without hair due to sickness. She talked about how we can be creative in our giving and give out of the normal everyday things we have. Enjoy the video...