Missions Monday

First Mission Trip to Bahamas

There were two van loads of us going and we were flying on Bahamas Air out of Orlando , FL.   I drove and told those that wanted to go with me that I would be leaving 3.5 hours before we had to check in, having traveled a great deal I thought we would allow a margin of error in our travel time.  The second van was going to leave in time to get there and immediately go to check in.

Upon arrival at the airport, I went to the Bahamas Air counter and stood before a Bahamian gate agent who was doing paperwork , he continued to do his paperwork for a few minutes then looked up at me and asked, Nassau Bahamas ?  I said yes sir, he said No and went back to his paperwork.  In another few minutes he looked up at me and asked again, Nassau , Bahamas ?  I said yes sir and he again said No.  After another minute he told me that the flight we were on to Nassau had been cancelled and that they were going to put us all on American Airlines flight that was leaving twenty minutes sooner than our original flight.  Uh oh!

The seven of us who left early proceeded to check our bags and check in, frantically trying to call the second van and let them know that we were now leaving sooner than we had planned.  It was going to be close either way.  The initial seven of us proceeded to the boarding gate, watching for the remaining 7, thinking we could spur them on a little faster once they got inside the terminal.  The boarding gate agent was sympathetic to our plight and literally held the plane to the very last minute waiting for the remaining folks.  Those of us who were already there had in one decided that we were all going or none.  It was none.

The remaining seven arrived as the plane was leaving the ramp.  We gathered in a group and Prayed for help in getting to our destination and for safety and for us all to go together.  After we had finished Praying the departure gate agent called me over and said I saw you folks Praying, give me about two minutes and I will have you all on the flight that leaves in fifteen minutes.  He said I am a part time pastor and I know what you are doing.  He said God Bless you, have a safe flight and a great trip.

John Hartley

Elder

Missions Committee Chairman

Devotion

Hebrews 10:15-18: “The Holy Spirit also testifies to us about this. First he says:  ¹⁶ "This is the covenant I will make with them after that time, says the Lord. I will put my laws in their hearts, and I will write them on their minds." ¹⁷ Then he adds: "Their sins and lawless acts I will remember no more." ¹⁸ And where these have been forgiven, there is no longer any sacrifice for sin.”

            Not only did Jesus Christ come, but when He left He left a Helper and Counselor with us.  This is the Holy Spirit.  In this passage, the Holy Spirit “testifies to us” that all this (verses 1-14) has happened and it has happened for us.  The key word in all this is “testify.”  The Greek word is “marture,w” which means to bear witness, testify, be a witness; attest, affirm, confirm; speak well of, or approve.  The Holy Spirit confirms in our hearts that everything about Jesus Christ is Truth.  You could call this assurance of faith (John Wesley did).  The Spirit lets us know that we are in a new / restored covenant relationship with God and that our lives (governed by Him) are a fulfillment of the Scriptures.  God’s Will and desire are in us and we know them.  The Christian should be governed by it.  If all this is true… and it is… then the Christian person, filled with the Holy Spirit, is a forgiven creature.  The forgiveness takes place and then the person moves back into a right relationship with God. 

            What does this mean for me and for you?  This means that Christians must let the Holy Spirit do the governing of our lives.  God has control.  We do not.  I must strive to live a spirit-filled life if I ever have any hope of being right with God.  I will sin… but if I have cultivated a life of holiness then the getting up and the getting back will be easier. 

            Some disciplines of the Spirit-filled life:       

            (1)  Prayer   

            (2)  submissive to God’s Will           

            (3)  service to neighbor in love

            (4)  Time with God otfen   

            (5)  Faith   

            (6)  attitude of worship

            (7)  Eyes open to share  

            (8)  Kind spirit towards others    

            (9)  continually giving thanks

Troy

Christian Education Minister

Sabbath

What is okay to do on the Sabbath?

According to www.crazylaws.com, old laws that are still on the books…

In Alabama , it is against the law to play dominoes on Sunday.

In Alabama and Massachusetts , hunting is not allowed on Sunday.

In Little Rock , Arkansas it is illegal to walk one’s cow down Main Street after 1pm on Sunday.

In Colorado , Indiana , Maine , New Jersey , Pennsylvania , & Wisconsin car dealers may not sell cars on Sunday.

In Denver , Colorado it is illegal to drive a black car on Sundays.

In Florida , it is against the law for unmarried women to parachute on Sundays.

In Georgia , it is illegal to cut off a chicken’s head on Sunday.

In Massachusetts , it is illegal to deliver diapers on Sunday regardless of emergencies

In Minnesota , hamburgers may not be eaten on Sundays.

In New Hampshire , on Sundays citizens may not relieve themselves while looking up.

In Rhode Island , it is illegal to sell a toothbrush and toothpaste to the same person on a Sunday.

So, what is acceptable to do on Sundays?  Is there a rule book about what one can do or not do?  Can I go out to eat?  Should I work?  Can I work on the car or wash it and wax it?  Can I mow the yard?  What about watching sports?  Can I do my hobby?  Doing laundry and cleaning… is that okay?  What about playing sports?

If we look at the Scriptures, it is certainly permissible to worship (Exodus 20:8).  It certainly is permissible to do good (Matthew 12:12).  What about the rest of it?  What do you think?

Troy Borst

Christian Education Minister

The Definition of “Worship”

Worship…what does it mean? Webster’s dictionary gives us a few ideas. It says to honor or respect, or an act of paying divine honors to God.  Wikipedia says it's an act of religious devotion usually directed towards a deity.  The term worship can also be used to mean idolize, as a woman worships her husband. The word is derived from an old English word worthscipe meaning worthiness, or to give “worth” to something.

Worship can be a lot of things to different people. I believe we need to look for our definition in God’s word.  God warned us about idolatry. In Exodus 23:24-25 we read, “Do not bow down before their gods or worship them or follow their practices. You must demolish them and break their sacred stones to pieces.  Worship the LORD your God, and his blessing will be on your food and water.”  We must put God first in our lives, and not allow anything or anyone else to come before Him.

If we love the Lord our God with all of our heart, soul, mind and strength, then we will LIVE a life of “WORSHIP.” Psalm 100:2 says, “Worship the LORD with gladness; come before him with joyful songs.” Now you can see why leading worship is my passion.

In His love & service,

David

Missions Memories

Some of my fondest memories from a short trim mission trip come from the several trips to Jamacia. One in particular occured about ten years ago. John, myself and several others, both adult and youth went to Jamaica Christain Mission in Downtown Kingston to assist with a summertime VBS program.

This was a true blessing to experience the open hunger for God's Word that the children displayed. The way they conducted themselves and the respect they had for not only thier elders but for each other was stunning.

There were about 50 or so children of varying ages. They would compete for who had the neatest room, memory verse, and assisting each other. But the most memorable thing of this whole experence would happen every evening right after supper. Everyone was assigned a table, after all had finished, each table would construct a verse from the Bible using any and all items on the table. The imagination and excitment generated within these young kids.....well, was at times overwhelming.

Yes, we strong, all knowing Americains were going to this second world country to teach them about Jesus because they needed to know something. OOPS!

Thank you Lord for teacing me that you are Greater! Amen. 

Dale Hammond

Great References for Bible Study:

Nelson's New Illustrated Bible Dictionary: Completely Revised and Updated Edition (Hardcover)

by Ronald F. Youngblood (Editor)

IVP Bible Background Commentary: Old Testament (Hardcover)

IVP Bible Background Commentary: New Testament (Hardcover)

New American Commentary Set

Published by Broadman & Holman

                                                           

NIV Application Commentary Set

Published by Zondervan

                                                                                   

How to Read the Bible for All Its Worth (Paperback)

by Fee & Stuart

Websites:

http://www.mystudybible.com/

http://www.blueletterbible.org/

http://www.biblegateway.com/

http://www.biblestudytools.com/

Come Thou Fount of Every Blessing

Come Thou Fount of Every Blessing
1. Come Thou Fount of every blessing
Tune my heart to sing Thy grace;
Streams of mercy, never ceasing,
Call for songs of loudest praise
Teach me some melodious sonnet,
Sung by flaming tongues above.
Praise the mount! I'm fixed upon it,
Mount of God's unchanging love.

2. Here I raise my Ebenezer;
Hither by Thy help I'm come;
And I hope, by Thy good pleasure,
Safely to arrive at home.
Jesus sought me when a stranger,
Wandering from the fold of God;
He, to rescue me from danger,
Interposed His precious blood.

3. O to grace how great a debtor
Daily I'm constrained to be!
Let that grace now like a fetter,
Bind my wandering heart to Thee.
Prone to wander, Lord, I feel it,
Prone to leave the God I love;
Here's my heart, O take and seal it,
Seal it for Thy courts above.

So I am a contemporary worship kind of girl. I like modern praise and worship, but you can't deny the power of the words of some hymns. Whoever wrote Great is Thy Faithfulness or Holy, Holy, Holy or Victory in Jesus...man, those guys knew how to praise! So, yesterday driving to church when I heard a beautiful version of Come Thou Fount I was mesmerized.

The line that I couldn't get out of my head was "Prone to wander, Lord, I feel it. Prone to leave the God I love" Wow. Isn't that how we feel so much of the time? What is interesting is the deeper you get with God the more you feel the tendency to wander. When we first meet Christ and begin the process of becoming more like him everyday, it is easy to make a list of the things that we need to stop doing (maybe not so easy to actually stop). When we rid ourselves of obvious sin, He doesn't stop expecting us to change. That is when He gets into our business and asks us to really commit to being completely Christ-like. Even nominal Christians will stop drinking or using foul language or whatever. It is hard to transform or renew our minds...our thoughts and feelings... The 'prone to wander' feelings become as much sin as the act. Jesus says that adultery is committed when we lust and murder when we hate. What sin my thoughts have gotten me into! UGH!
But this hymn is so obviously about victory. When I heard the song on the radio (SpiritFM), I was so struck but the one line that I didn't get that at first. I had decided to share my thoughts on that one line so I looked up the lyrics to the rest of the song. They are profound. What an amazing prayer. "Tune my heart to sing Your grace." Can you imagine a heart filled with the grace of God? "Streams of mercy never ceasing call for songs of loudest praise." When you truly examine the mercy freely given without end...if you aren't praising, you don't get it (the big picture, not the mercy. He freely offers that to all of us - just one reason to praise). "Jesus sought me when a stranger, Wandering from the fold of God; He, to rescue me from danger, Interposed His precious blood." The greatest display of our sweet Savior's love. "Let that grace now like a fetter, Bind my wandering heart to Thee." Grace is what allows us to be loved by a holy God. Isn't it amazing...truly awesome that He knows us intimately and still wants anything to do with us. He knows that we are prone to wander even though we love Him. What a God we serve!

My heart longs to be more faithful. My head knows I won't be. I love Him so much for loving me anyway.


Kelly