The Testament. Finding A Voice - by Deacon Dean Jernigan. Congratulations Graduates!! Bro. J son Hodge and Bro. Bryce Davenport. Sis.

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1 The Testament July 2018 In May of 2010, I had the pleasure of attending the graduation ceremony for my one of my nieces at UNC. My sister-in-law and other in-laws beamed with pride as Kevonda entered the stadium along with the other graduates in a sea of Carolina blue. To top it off, it was also Mother s Day and the graduation was viewed as a gift of love from Kevonda to her mom for the many sacrifices that she made to support her during her college years. Once we were seated, I was pleasantly surprised to learn that the speaker for the occasion was John Grisham, the successful author whose books frequently topped the New York Times list of best-selling books in the country. Having read several of his books, with The Firm being my favorite, I was eager to hear what words of wisdom he would share with the graduates. As it turned out, his words reached far beyond the listening ears of the graduates eager to receive their diplomas. They struck a chord with many of us in stands and provided food for thought for success in our lives as well. The theme of Mr. Grisham s speech revolved around the idea of finding a voice for their life s work. He noted that just as in written works of literature, a voice in life has three key elements. Those elements are clarity, authenticity and veracity. Clarity is defined as clearness as to perception or understanding and the lack of ambiguity. As Christians, clarity plays an essential role in our lives. It has to be crystal clear to us that there is only one God and that His Word is supreme. And even though His Word as presented in the bible may not always be clear upon our first reading of a passage of scripture, we know that through regular and diligent bible study and teaching, that we will come to understand His Word by and Lincoln Memorial Baptist Church Finding A Voice - by Deacon Dean Jernigan by. Now we see things imperfectly, like puzzling reflections in a mirror, but then we will see everything with perfect clarity. (1 Corinthians 13:12 NLT) Authenticity speaks to how genuine and real we are when presenting ourselves and our values to others. It means saying what we mean and not simply offering up empty words just to please the ears of someone else. To this end, I m reminded of the meaningful quote from William Shakespeare s play Hamlet: This above all: to thine own self be true. Essentially, in finding your voice, say what you mean and mean what you say. Veracity walks hand in hand with clarity and authenticity. It is a measure of our truthfulness and accuracy. It reflects on our character and is an essential quality for gaining the trust of others as we take our daily walk of faith along life s highway. Veracity is all about the truth and from our study of the Word, we know that truth and our Savior also walk hand in hand. Jesus saith unto him, I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by me. (John 14:6) How s your voice? Is it clear and true? Does it line up with the principles in God s Word. Does it reflect your values and the qualities of the direction that you are moving toward in life? In today s world, full of noise from the enemy and amplified by his henchmen named fear, doubt and despair, it is imperative that we find our voice from within the confines of God s Word. Everything that we need to develop and strengthen our character can be found in His Word. The directions that we need to guide our youth to a better and brighter future can be found in His Word. Sustaining our church and instructions on working the works of God to grow His Durham, NC Congratulations Graduates!! We pray for God s continuous blessings on our recent high school graduates as they enter a new and exciting chapter of their lives. Congratulations and always hold on to God s unchanging hand. Bro. J son Hodge and Bro. Bryce Davenport Sis. Mikala Smith Bro. Amire Brodie Kingdom can be found in His Word. Finding a voice to glorify God can be found there as well. Open my eyes to see the wonderful truths in your instructions. (Psalm 119:18 NLT) Beloved if you haven t done so already, find your voice in God s Kingdom. Seek guidance and directions from those you trust while you re discovering that voice. Once you find it, don t be afraid to use your voice. As in all things with God, your voice was meant to be!

2 Around Lincoln... Above and below: Members of our Zero Gravity Teen Ministry gathered recently for a Vision Board Party. Vision boards allow individuals an opportunity to articulate their goals in a visual representation. This event was well attended and enjoyed by all. Minister s Corner - by Rev. Patricia Lee The Importance of Guarding and Fortifying the Spiritual Heart One evening while looking at an old movie starring Myrna Loy and William Powell, I saw something very interesting. I believe the movie was entitled After the Thin Man. It was a black and white picture so it was truly old. The story begins with these two stars who are acting as freelance detectives. They have a pretty little dog who accompanies them on most of their adventures. Upon returning home from a very long journey the little dog runs around the house to check on the family he left behind. He sees his companion and all his small white puppies looking well. But suddenly out from the dog house comes a chubby hairy black pup! The father s ears stand up as he looks in wonder and amazement. He didn t have to wonder long because the father of the black dog weaseled himself through an unsuspected self dug hole. When the black dog lays eyes on the returned father he backs out of the hole and runs. Then the chase begins. You know I thought that is just what Satan does when we take long journeys from the Lord and leave our spiritual homes unprotected and with weak unfortified holes. Our homes are our hearts. This is where the Holy Spirit dwells. When we stop studying the Word, cease praying and spending time with God, when we no longer desire to attend church or serve God s people then we go on a journey. Deacon Eugene Lofton showcases his skills on the grill during the end of school cookout for our youth. The Jernigans enjoy the moment and relive a few memories while attending an Anita Baker concert at the Durham Performing Arts Center. When this happens our hearts become so weak Satan easily builds holes and gaps in our heart. Physically speaking, a hole in a person s heart can create major problems. One such problem is leakage of blood from the heart. The enemy infiltrates our weakened heart and fills it up with sinful behavior that leaks out into our lives. These behaviors present themselves in all manner of sinful ways. When that happens we must do as the white dog did. WE must hurriedly chase the enemy away. We then must close up the hole and keep it closed. Remember Proverbs 4:23 ESV says Keep your heart with all vigilance, for from it flows the springs of life. Amen!

3 Black History Spotlight Douglas Wilder First Black Governor Lawrence Douglas Wilder was born on January 17, 1931, in the former Confederate capital, Richmond, Virginia. The grandson of a former slave, Wilder was named after abolitionist Frederick Douglass and poet Paul Laurence Dunbar. He had six sisters and one brother, and was raised by parents Robert and Beulah Wilder. Growing up during the Great Depression, Wilder has characterized his childhood as one of gentle poverty. Education would provide a pathway to a better world, with Wilder working his way through Virginia Union University by waiting tables at hotels. In 1951, he graduated with a Bachelor of Science degree in chemistry, and shortly after was drafted into the United States Army to fight in the Korean War. After returning to the U.S., Wilder at first worked in the Virginia State Medical Examiner s office but soon set off to pursue a career as an attorney. Despite an outstanding war record, he was prohibited from enrolling in law school in Virginia because the state barred Blacks from attending its law schools. Undeterred, he pursued his law degree at Howard University in D.C., graduating in 1959 and passing the Virginia Bar that same year. Wilder then returned to Richmond and helped establish one of the city s few minority-owned law firms, Wilder, Gregory & Associates. In 1969, Wilder successfully ran for the Virginia State Senate, becoming the first African American to do so since Reconstruction. In 1985, he was elected the state s first African-American lieutenant governor. And only five years later, he became the nation's first African-American governor. During his four years as governor, he had a reputation for being a moderate and made great strides in balancing the state s budget. He left office in 1994 and pursued a number of different initiatives, including hosting a radio talk show, founding the project to build the National Slavery Museum and teaching at Virginia Commonwealth University. Ten years after leaving politics, however, he returned to elected office, this time as mayor of Richmond. In 2008, he announced he would not be seeking another term. He left office when his term expired in The Testament is produced monthly by our Newsletter Committee. Please send articles, photos or other items for publication to newsletter@mylmbc.org by the 3rd Sunday of each month. Newsletter Committee Reginald Davis Willee Murphy Joan Lofton Marva Atkins William Mayfield Earleen Sharrock, Editor Dean Jernigan, Chair God Designed Us for More Than This Earth We fix our eyes not on what is seen, but on what is unseen. For what is seen is temporary, but what is unseen is eternal. (2 Corinthians 4:18 NIV) God created us to live in heaven with him for eternity. Heaven is our home, not Earth. That s why we sometimes experience discontentment and dissatisfaction in life. We re not completely happy here because we re not supposed to be! Otherwise, we might think we can live without God. He created us to long for something much better a home in heaven with him. A fish would never be happy living on land, because it was made for water. An eagle could never feel satisfied if it wasn t allowed to fly. You will never feel completely satisfied on Earth, because you were made for more. You will have happy moments here, but nothing compared with what God has planned for you. This is also why some of God s promises seem unfulfilled, some prayers seem unanswered, and some circumstances seem unfair. But this is not the end of the story. Realizing that life on Earth is just temporary should radically alter your values. Eternal values, not temporal ones, should be the deciding factor for your decisions. As C. S. Lewis observed, All that is not eternal is eternally useless. The Bible tells us to fix our eyes not on what is seen, but on what is unseen. For what is seen is temporary, but what is unseen is eternal (2 Corinthians 4:18 NIV). Pastor Rick Warren Happy Birthday to our June Birthday Celebrities! Betty Jay Preston Norman Joel Baptiste Mamie Brodie Tanga Best Jasper Earl Jonathan Poole Tiffany Long Darnell Boone Dylan Carlisle Barbara Cromartie Dean Jernigan Tamecia Daye Adrienne Jernigan Stephen Smith Montesia Garrett Caleb Crawley LaTacha Evans Best Wishes For Many More!!

4 Ministry to Youth in the New Millennium To what, in the name of faith do we raise our youth to aspire? Perhaps it s time to challenge our youth to a higher standard of conviction within the church. Maybe God is drawing a line in the sand today. It would not be the first time, He drew a line for Noah s generation, and He drew a line outside the Promised Land. That generation failed in their belief, and failed to cross the line into their inheritance. And, God provided a new generation of leaders to start afresh in a foreign land, He started with youth: Daniel, Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego. It is during the impressionable years that most people determine how they will decide upon the most important matters in their future. We must challenge our youth and remind them that a surrender to the lordship of Jesus is to involve Him in the decisions they make about dating, their view about material possessions, who they marry and the career they choose. Today s New Generation In order to minister effectively to today s youth, we have to understand a few things about them. Below are a few observations I ve garnered about the cultural environment in which the Millennials were born: They have no meaningful recollection of the Reagan era and do not know the president was shot. They don t remember the Cold War. They re too young to remember Tiananmen Square. The expression you sound like a broken record means nothing to them, because vinyl records predate them. They ve always had an answering machine and a DVD player. They cannot fathom not having a remote control. The Vietnam War is as ancient to them as World War I, World War II, or even the Civil War. There s always been MTV. The above list offers a cultural orientation of today s students, but of importance, too, are events that influence this generation. Every person of any culture and any generation has many things in common with other humans. Physically, spiritually, and emotionally, the similarities across the centuries are striking. All are created in the image of God, and all have sinned, all need a Savior whose name is Jesus. - submitted by Sis. Janice Campbell A Culture Shift Meet the Millennials, born on or after 1982, (ages 22 to 37 in 2018). As a group Millennials are unlike any other youth generation in living memory. They are more numerous, more affluent, better educated, and more ethnically diverse. Millennials focus on teamwork, achievement, modesty, and good conduct, they are the most racially and ethnically diverse adult generation in the nation s history. Over the next decade, the millennial generation will entirely recast the image of youth in America. Behind the millennials are the post-millennials, born on or after When the iphone was launched in 2007, the oldest postmillennial was 10. Post-millennials are connected to the web through mobile devices, Wi-Fi, social media and on-demand entertainment. There is a shift in youth behaviors, attitudes and lifestyles both positive and concerning. Raising the Bar The teen years are in many ways the most important years of a person s life, more seeds of ministry are sown in youth between twelve and eighteen, more relationships forged that affect their future, more choices made with long-term implications, these are the years when young adults begin to think about issues that will influence the rest of their lives. So how are we doing in preparing them? Has the church considered what kind of standard we re setting in preparing a generation of young adults? We can raise the bar for this generation, but we can t do it unless we admit that the bar has been set too low, for too long. Moses challenged the people with these words: I have set before you life and death, blessing and cursing; therefore choose life. The people of God stood at a crossroads, and so do we. We stand at the brink of the world of postmodernism, we are not leaving the wilderness; we are entering it, as you stand before a new generation, challenge them to choose life-the life found in Jesus. Challenge them to follow His way and embrace His truth. Start today, and raise the bar! End of School Year Cookout! Celebrating the end of the school year is always a joyous and fun-filled event. Smiles were plentiful at this year s outing as our youth enjoyed an afternoon of fun and fellowship at a cookout hosted by the Youth Activities Committee. Nestled in the shade of a tree-filled local park, the youth played table games, enjoyed the park s playground area, took in the scenery along the walking trail, and were blessed by Deacon Lofton s skills on the grill. Congratulations to all our youth for a wonderful year and we pray for God s continued blessings upon them.

5 Vacation Bible School Our annual Vacation Bible School session provides a wonderful setting for a concentrated study of God s Word. The week long event allows ample time for discussion and incorporates sessions in music and arts & crafts for our youth. Each night includes a delicious meal prepared by our Kitchen Ministry. Thanks to our Sunday School Ministry for presenting this valuable experience to our members and friends. Youth Day Celebration Encouraging our youth is integrated into the mindset of the Lincoln family. Our Youth Day program recognizes their efforts during the past school year and offers nuggets of valuable information to help them plot a course forward. This year s speaker, Elder Ronald Rice, Youth Pastor at Mt. Zion Christian Church, sowed seeds of encouragement and tips for success for our youth and graduating high school seniors. Firmly rooted in God s Word, Elder Rice s message was timely and well received. Lincoln students are recognized for their achievements during the past school year. The Sounds of Joy, our youth choir, did an outstanding job of glorifying God through song. Above, Bro. Ronald Trey Lee, III, leads the choir in a powerful rendition of Travis Green s You Made A Way. Graves Scholarship Recipients: Lincoln proudly presents the 2018 recipients of the LMBC Jimmy and Torian Graves Memorial Scholarship during Youth Day. Ten scholarships were awarded to graduating high school seniors from throughout the Durham Community. This year marks the 31st year of the Graves Scholarship Fund and to date over 250 scholarships have been awarded. To God Be The Glory!

6 -submitted by Sis. Earleen Sharrock Freedom Isn't Free Object: Scripture: The price for our freedom has been paid. For this reason Christ is the mediator of a new covenant, that those who are called may receive the promised eternal inheritance--now that he has died as a ransom to set them free from the sins committed under the first covenant. The flag reminds me that this week we will celebrate a very important holiday. How many of you know what holiday we will celebrate? That's right, the 4th of July. July 4th is also known as Independence Day. Do you know what independence means? It means freedom, doesn't it? In our country we enjoy a lot of freedom. We are free to come to church and worship, we are free to choose what we want to be when we grow up, we are free to choose where we want to live, we are free to choose most of the things that affect our daily lives. Now, this might come as a surprise to some of you, but did you know that freedom isn't free? That's right, someone had to pay the price for us to have the freedom that we enjoy. There are men and women who have helped to pay that price. Some have served in the Army, Navy, Marines, or Air Force. Many of them have fought in wars and some may have been wounded. There are some people who had loved ones who paid the ultimate price for freedom. They gave their lives fighting for our freedom. Yes, we have a lot of freedom, but the greatest freedom that we have is the freedom that we have in Christ Jesus. The Bible teaches that the penalty for sin is death, but you and I have been set free from this penalty. We have been set free because Jesus paid the penalty. The Bible tells us that Jesus died to set us free from the penalty of sin. Instead of death, we have been given eternal life. This freedom wasn't free, Jesus paid the price. Dear God, Thank you for the freedom that we enjoy in our country. We are thankful for those who paid the price for that freedom, but even more important, we thank you for the freedom we have because Jesus was willing to pay the penalty for our sin. Amen. Copyright Sermons4Kids, Inc.

7 -submitted by Sis. Earleen Sharrock

8 July 2018 Building the Church in the Community and the Community in the Church Sun Mon Tue Wed Thu Fri Sat :00am Deacons 3:00pm Youth Missionaries Lofton s Anniversary Celebration (After Church) Ushers Meeting 29 9:00am Worship Service 3:00pm Male Chorus Anniversary 9 Music Ministry Rev. Mt. Moriah MBC (Mebane, NC) Pastor s Aide Sounds of Joy Voices of Praise Male Chorus Sounds of Joy Computing & Technology Mass Choir 4 Noon Day Prayer & Bible Study Intercessory Prayer Bible Study 11 Noon Day Prayer & Bible Study Intercessory Prayer Bible Study 18 Noon Day Prayer & Bible Study Intercessory Prayer Bible Study 25 Noon Day Prayer & Bible Study Intercessory Prayer Sunday School (5th Sunday Lesson) 5 RTTC Community Group Sounds of Joy 12 RTTC Community Group 6:00pm Christian Education Voices of Praise 19 RTTC Community Group 26 Church Conference RTTC Community Group Sounds of Joy To add an event to the church calendar, please contact Sis. Janice Campbell by calling the church at You may also reach her at churchcalendar@mylmbc.org. Please send articles, photos or information for The Testament to newsletter@mylmbc.org by the 3rd Sunday of each month. 7 (All Day) 10:00am Trustees Women of Faith Missionary Min. 14 (All Day) 10:00am Deaconess 6:00pm Couples Ministry 21 (All Day) 9:00am Laymen s League 28 (All Day) Health Fair 4:00pm Back to School Bash Newsletter Photos by Deacon William Mayfield, Bro. Reginald Davis and Deacon Dean Jernigan