The. Messenger MAY 2016

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1 The Messenger MAY 2016

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3 Reverent Honesty by Pat Kelly, Lead Pastor When someone asks you the question How are you doing?, it seems like you are faced with three options in how you must answer: 1. Fine or great, is probably not the truth (most of the time). 2. OK, how are you? This answer is just avoidance and a change of subject. 3. Not so good, leaves you vulnerable and possibly rejected. In my experience, most of the time people are simply asking the How are you doing? question out of courtesy with no true intention of you being vulnerable. Not necessarily that the do not care, but they may not have time for an honest answer. How would you answer God if He asked that question? The challenge is, that God already knows exactly how you feel, so there is no faking it. By the Lord asking us how we feel, yet knowing already how we already feel, reveals His compassion and mercy. The Psalms reveals many things about God and us, as His creation: God cares and we are encouraged to be raw and vulnerable before Him. Psalm 145:8 9 says that The LORD is gracious and merciful, slow to anger and abounding in steadfast love. The LORD is good to all, and his mercy is over all that he has made. There is never a time when God does not care for His children. He is consistently compassionate and always the pursuer. Unlike most people, we see David responding to God in a very raw and vulnerable way. David is not irreverent, but reverently honest. There is a difference between irreverence and reverently honest. One takes a shot at the questioner and projects disrespect, the other answers in truth but in respect, looking for compassion. David seems to model this well for us. In fact, you do not have to venture too far in the Psalms (chapters 3-7) to see David s reverent honesty. A true test of a believer is in how they approach God and how they handle adversity. Often times, everything is not fine, but God is still the refiner and ever present Father. When we grow in grace with the Lord, we grasp the Psalms in a new and personal way. Our reverent honesty with the Lord makes Psalms 23, 51 and 139 seem like pages out of our own personal prayer journal. There is no value in faking it before the Lord, in fact when we fake it, we are the ones that miss out on the Lord s compassion and grace. So when the Lord asks (not if the Lord asks) you how are you doing?, may you respond with reverent honesty to the Father of great compassion. As you press into the Father today, be vulnerable and come expectant to find hope, healing, growth and the awareness of His presence. Live reverently honest in your walk with God, He cares. Agape, Pastor Pat Pat Kelly Lead Pastor CONNECT WITH US: iconnect at Fredonia Hill fredoniahill.ccbchurch.com Follow us on Find us on Facebook. Fredonia Hill

4 Armor Bearer Focus Recently, John James sat down with one of our Armor Bearers, Chelsea White, and asked her a few questions about her Armor Bearer Journey. Here is what she had to say: JJ: For the normal church goer, define what an Armor Bearer is: C: "An Armor Bearer is someone who is prayerfully chosen to serve in a specific ministry at the church. The term Armor Bearer comes from 1 Samuel 14. The role of the Armor Bearer in the passage is to be behind the leader of the ministry heart and soul. Armor Bearer s at Fredonia Hill support the ministers by sharing and participating in their vision in a practical way." JJ: What does a regular week look like for you as a Children's Armor Bearer? C: I have been serving as a Children s Ministry Armor Bearer for two years now and every week is qquite the adventure! A regular week for a Children s Armor Bearer looks mainly like prepping for Wednesday nights and Sunday mornings. Heather and I have a weekly meeting with Becky to address upcoming events and take time to discuss lesson plans. Heather and I study the bible lessons and then teach on Wednesday nights. We also teach sunday school classes based on a rotation. JJ: Are you in school right now? What are you studying? When will you graduate? C: Yes I am. I will be graduating this month! I majored in Dance Performance and Interpersonal Communication Studies. JJ: That's so soon! Congratulations! What are your plans after you graduate? C: I am staying here in Nacogdoches for part of the summer to serve in the Children s Ministry. I am currently in the process of applying for a visa to live in England. I will be serving as an intern at a church called Whitley Bay Baptist Church for the next two years. Eventually, I hope to go into full time ministry as I serve and love children in England. JJ: WOW! England! That's awesome. If you were to look back on your time here at Fredonia as an Armor Bearer, what would you say has stood out the most to you? C: If I had to pick one thing I have learned, it would have to be the importance of fostering God s Truth into children s lives. I have grown a huge heart to share The Gospel with kids over these past two years because I have learned how crucial it is to build that foundation. When children know who they are in The Lord it overflows in their actions and it makes me excited to see how they are going to continue to bring the Kingdom here as they get older. JJ: How can Fredonia Hill be praying for you and for your future? C: Pray for me to continue to be obedient in all things and to trust The Lord s provision as I transition into this new season of life.

5 Steadfast Love by Blake Russell, Worship Pastor Psalm 57:1-4 Be merciful to me, O God, be merciful to me, for in you my soul takes refuge; in the shadow of your wings I will take refuge, till the storms of destruction pass by. I cry out to God Most High, to God who fulfills his purpose for me. He will send from heaven and save me; he will put to shame him who tramples on me. Selah. God will send out his steadfast love and his faithfulness! How often do we forget God s faithfulness? Too many times we get our blinders on and only see what is right in front of us. I know for me personally, its easy for me to declare His faithfulness when things are good, but when things get dirty and hard - am I remembering that His steadfast love endures through all situations and all generations? Recently I ve been co-writing a new song with a friend of mine who is a worship pastor in Tyler, TX. As we were writing, we ended up in Psalm 57. One of the verses we wrote (you ll hopefully hear the whole song soon) was an adaption of this truth. Remember now His steadfast love, all who are redeemed. Forgiven, rescued, made alive. Awake my heart to sing! My hope is that we declare, sing, and walk in confidence, knowing that our God will send out his steadfast love and faithfulness, regardless of our season in life. I think David is a great example of someone who understood the steadfast love and faithfulness of God. When he wrote Psalm 57, David was most likely on the run from Saul, hiding out in a cave. We know that David had been anointed to be the next King, yet Saul was intent on making sure that didn't happen and planned on killing David. But David knew that God s plan and providence was bigger than any earthly king. Because of that truth, David could cry out and declare in confidence that God would send out his steadfast love and faithfulness. Blake Russell Worship Pastor

6 Fullness of Joy By Kendall McDonald, College Pastor Greeting Fredonia Hill Family, We are nearing the end of yet another wonderful semester in Nacogdoches and I pray you are well and experiencing the daily goodness of our great God. For this months article I want to share with you on the topic of joy. This past Tuesday night I spoke to a group of college students at our weekly worship night called 24:7. Joy has been heavy on my mind recently and I wanted to share a few of those thoughts with you. The first difficulty in understanding joy is in understanding exactly what joy is. In Galatians 5 Paul gives us an extensive list of the things which are the evidence of us living according to the flesh. He calls these the deeds of the flesh and tells us that those who do these things will not in inherit the kingdom of God. The deeds of the flesh are things which we do which can easily be perceived on the exterior. He contrasts the deeds of the flesh with the fruit of the Spirit which is quite a different list altogether. His joy is full and complete at all times and if it s His joy which we are participating in, then we have the opportunity to experience joy in all things. There is literally no circumstance which can rob us of joy because there is no circumstance which can rob us of our relationship with God. So I pray we would, together, experience the fullest of joy as we walk with God in and through whatever life throws our way. I pray God would multiply the shouts of joy within the walls of this church as we celebrate the great gift of grace God has given, which has allowed us such nearness with Him. Shalom, Kendall McDonald The fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and selfcontrol. Do you see the difference? These are not things you do, these are personality traits. These fruits of the Spirit describe the personality of the Spirit of God. So why is this important as we discover what living in joy really looks like? For most of us, we believe joy is something which we choose to be or choose to do. The reality is, joy is not something which we can produce but only something in which we can participate and live in as the result of our relationship with the indwelling Holy Spirit. Being joyful is not an action which we take, being joyful is part of us as we allow the Holy Spirit to fill us in our hearts and our minds on a daily basis. The good news is that God NEVER changes. So, that means He is always full of joy! The joy of God is not mindful of circumstances. Kendall McDonald College Pastor

7 The Stages of Addiction by Matt Murray, Youth PAstor Teens who abuse drugs and alcohol on a regular basis risk becoming one of the millions of kids who have serious problems with addiction. In their book Adolescents, Alcohol and Drugs, Judith Jaynes and Cheryl Rugg describe the stages of drug and alcohol addiction among teens. Stage 1: Experimentation This is the time when the teen s occasional use leads to mood changes that are generally positive and enjoyable with few or no side effects. The change is reliable, predictable, and enjoyable. They feel the same sensation each time they use the drug. Not all adolescents stay in the experimentation stage. Some, their curiosity satisfied, quit. Others move on to stage 2. Stage 2: Social use Adolescents remain in control of how much they use, when they use, and the effects of use. The use is moderate and for the purpose of fitting in. Kids in this stage will limit alcohol and drug use to weekend parties and social gatherings. Stage 3: Misuse The focus shifts from socializing to a personal desire to get high. The euphoric effect becomes more important than having a good time with friends. Use becomes more frequent and is not limited to weekends and parties. Stage 4: Abuse When an adolescent enters this stage, there is a preoccupation with being high. It is during this stage that parents, friends, and family members begin to see the obvious and ugly effects of substance abuse in the life of the adolescent. Many kids in this stage will steal to support their daily habit. The goal of the teen is to stay high since a letdown leads to depression and aggressive behavior. Stage 5: Chemical Dependency When teens are depending on drugs and alcohol to feel normal, they have entered this stage. No longer does the teen find alcohol and drugs to be fun. The sense of euphoria is gone. Getting and taking drugs become a matter of survival. If daily, twenty-four-hour use is interrupted, the adolescent feels powerless to function physically or mentally. Drug and alcohol addiction is the ugly end to what begins as curious experimentation. Drugs and alcohol become the objects of worship in a life of physical and psychological dependency. Adapted from Walt Mueller s book, Youth Culture 101. Published by Center for Parent/Youth Understanding ( CPYU has granted permission to share this article. Matt Murray Student Pastor

8 Senior Adult Game Day Each month our seniors get together for lunch and games. Join us for fellowship. All ages welcome! MAY 19th, 11:30am FLC Gym Secretary's Reports MEMORIAL Leonard and Mary Hornbuckle. HONORARIUM Gideons, Grief Ministry SYMPATHY Mary HornBuckle Family FINANCIAL REPORT Financials are available in the church office upon membership request 1711 South Street Nacogdoches, TX 75964