Beacon. FRET NOT Psalm 37 Sunday, July 13 6:15 pm. First Baptist Church Montgomery. bring them in...build them up...send them out

Transcription

1 First Baptist Church Montgomery Beacon bring them in...build them up...send them out Volume 67 Week of July 13, 2014 Number 28 FRET NOT Psalm 37 Sunday, July 13 6:15 pm On Sunday evening, July 13, we are asking everyone who plays the acoustic guitar, banjo, mandolin, or ukulele to join us in the choir loft to lead in the music portion of our worship service. We will have a brief rehearsal in the main sanctuary at 4:30 pm. Please join us for this unique opportunity to use your God-given abilities for the Lord. Office: Prayer Line:

2 CONNEC IONS from your Pastor s Heart Finding God s New Hope by extending FORGIVENESS How do you deal with people who hurt you and do you wrong? Some flee. Others fuss. Feisty folks fight. But, faithful followers of Christ FORGIVE. Superior to the world s toxic way of allowing a hurt to fester into hate is the Jesus way. God s prescribed response to being wronged is to respond with Jesus-like mercy: Be kind to one another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another as Christ has forgiven you. (Ephesians 4:32) Several years ago, a man joined our church and made an appointment to tell me his story. In painful detail he chronicled a bitter divorce that terminated a malignant marriage. Through his story, he verbally torched his sorry ex-spouse. After 30 minutes of listening, I asked for the time-line of these events. To my shock, he explained, We were divorced 12 years and 3 months ago. His description sounded as current as yesterday s newspaper. This poor person languished as a prisoner of his past. He was bound by invisible chains of hurt and hate. I gently explained that, Christ-emulating forgiveness could be the key to set him free. Maybe you protest by saying, Jay, you don t know the terrible things that were done to me! That is true, but I do know what they did to Jesus. For the crime of loving and serving, Roman soldiers drove railroad spikes through His quivering flesh. Jesus did not curse them, but prayed for the vicious soldiers, Father, forgive them because they do not know what they are doing. The extreme love and forgiveness of Christ reminds me of what happened in Lancaster County, Pennsylvania, among the Amish in October A deranged gunman named Charles Roberts went to the West Mine Amish School for young girls. He carried two pistols, two shotguns, a rifle and hundreds of rounds of ammunition. He entered the school and barricaded the door. Roberts proceeded to shoot the little girls, ranging in ages from 6 to 13 years. Six of them died, but four of the wounded girls survived. Roberts committed suicide after attacking the precious children. How did the Amish Christ-followers respond? The grandfather of one of the murdered children sought out Roberts father and comforted the grieving man as he wept into his friend s shoulder for over an hour. Half of the people at Roberts funeral had lost children to the dead man s murderous rampage. The Amish elders set up a charitable fund to receive money to assist Roberts wife and three children. The Amish refused to become prisoners of hurt and hate. In the name of Jesus, they extended extreme forgiveness. Roberts widow Marie wrote a note that became famous: Your love for our family helped provide the healing we so desperately need. The gifts that you have given touched our heart in a way that no words can describe. Your compassionate and Christlike forgiveness have reached beyond our community and touched the world. The Amish tore down the bloody West Mine School and built a new one called New Hope School. And that is what happens when you find freedom by extending Christ-like forgiveness you cut the chains of hurt and hate and step into a season of New Hope! FBC Faithfulness Sunday, July 6, 2014 ATTENDANCE Bible Fellowship Enrollment 4840 Bible Fellowship Attendance 1371 Weekly Attendance 1828 Discipleship Attendance 492 OFFERING Required Weekly $121, Received Sunday $115, Required To Date $3,276, Received To Date $2,923, Building Fund Sunday $1, Building Fund to Date $40, Under Budget $352,928.09

3 Ministry Announcements Children s Ministry Don t miss the Fast Track Bible Study on Sunday, July 13 at 5:00 pm. We will be studying How to Be a Jesus Disciple followed by How to Follow God s Plan. For more information, contact Glen Leathers at or gleathers@montgomeryfbc.org. Student Ministry All students who have just finished the 6th, 7th or 8th grade are invited to a Crossover Beach Retreat on Friday, August 1 and Saturday, August 2. We will spend the night at the Laguna Beach Christian Resort in Panama City. You can register and pay online at Cost is $30. For more information, contact Caleb Farrow at College Ministry College Summer GROW Bible Study continues this Tuesday at 6:00 pm. Visit fbmcm.com for all the details. Senior Adult Ministry There will be a Senior Adult Trip to Atlanta commemorating the 150th Anniversary of the Civil War on Thursday, July 31 & Friday, August 1. The tour will consist of Stone Mountain Park, Cyclorama, and Carter Presidential Library. Lodging at the Stone Mountain Inn includes breakfast buffet. The cost is $125/ person for double occupancy. A few slots remain. Call Mary Virginia Crum at today to sign up. Balance is due Monday, July 21. First Family Dinner Wednesday, July 16 No reservations required! (This applies to all Wednesday night meals until further notice.) Adult & Children s Meal: Catfish, Hushpuppies, Potatoes, Dessert Adult Family Meal $5; Child s Meal (12 & under) $3 Maximum Family Amount $20 (immediate family only)

4 Join us for a trip to the Celebrator s Conference on Monday, October 20 through Thursday, October 23 in Pigeon Forge, Tennessee. The conference will feature Max Lucado, David Jeremiah, Mark Lowry, Ivan Parker, Charles Billingsley, Gaither Vocal Band and Voices of Mobile. Cost is $219 per person (3 per room); $249 per person (2 per room) or $349 per person (1 per room). The package includes transportation, conference and lodging. Call Mary Virginia Crum at to make your reservation. A nonrefundable deposit of $25 is due at sign up. Deadline to sign up is Wednesday, July 16. Payment balance will be due Friday, August 15. Missions Ministry Are you going or do you know someone going out as a Summer Missionary? We want to join you in prayer as you take God s Message to the nations. Please let us know by contacting Brian Gay at or briang@montgomeryfbc.org. Are you interested in helping with Disaster Relief? Join us on Wednesday, July 16 at 5:00 pm in the left side of the fellowship hall for a Disaster Relief Team Meeting. We will be working to continue to organize our future Disaster Relief efforts while praying that we will not have any disasters that require a response. For more information contact Brian Gay or briang@montgomeryfbc.org. Don t miss your opportunity to be a part of the incredible miracle happening among the Ejamat people in Senegal. For information about joining the Ejamat October Team, contact Viki Brant at or vbrant@knology.net. For general information about reaching the Ejamat people, contact Brian Gay at or briang@montgomeryfbc.org. Community Ministries The Caring Center Food Pantry is in need of some strong men to help unload food on Mondays from 8:30 to 10:30 am and on Wednesdays from 9:00 to 11:30 am to assist our clients with taking their food to their vehicles, etc. If you can help, contact Judy Nuss at The Caring Center needs seasonal clothing for men. For more information, contact Judy Nuss at Volunteers are needed for Friday Night Basketball at the Nehemiah Center on Friday, July 18 from 5:00 to 9:00 pm. For more information or to sign up, contact Jane Ferguson at or jferguson@montgomeryfbc.org. Churchwide News & Events New Members By Letter Mr. Kenneth Lee Greene Mrs. Kenneth Greene (Mary Joan) 4436 Clemice Lane Montgomery, AL Our Church Family If you would like to add someone to the prayer list, contact Carolyn Bryan at Sympathy Extended to Mr. & Mrs. Rodney Martin (Pam) in the death of his mother Baptist South Ricky Honeycutt Ann Hall Jackson Mary Montgomery Hillview Terrace Melissa Wallace St. Vincent s East Trussville Harold Anderson Children s Hospital Camp Hughes UAB Medical Center Vaughan Johnson Congratulations Extended to Mr. & Mrs. Britton Henig (Lindsey) in the birth of a daughter; Mr. & Mrs. John Henig (Diane) in the birth of a granddaughter Mr. & Mrs. Cory Rambo (Leanna) in the birth of a son; Mr. & Mrs. Hal Leary (Jennifer) in the birth of a grandson Save the date for the Back-to-School Block Party and Medical/Dental Clinic at the Nehemiah Center on Saturday, August 9 from 9:30 am to 12:00 pm. School supplies needed at this time are: #2 pencils, pens, pencil sharpeners, first grade writing notebooks, children s scissors, notebook paper (wide-rule and college-

5 Volunteer Opportunity: Broadcast Ministry The Broadcast Ministry is looking for individuals interested in volunteering their time in this exciting ministry. Training is provided, so experience is not a requirement. Broadcast volunteers work 1 to 2 Sundays per month in the worship services (am & pm) and for special events. For more information, contact Amanda Smith at or asmith@montgomeryfbc.org. rule), spiral one-subject notebooks, crayons, rulers, glue, glue sticks, tape, report covers, paper towels, kleenex, Clorox wipes, hand sanitizer, copy paper, and nap pads. Supplies can be dropped in the bins in the main sanctuary foyer or in the Scott Street entrance. For more information on how you can help, contact Kathy Cooper at or kcooper@montgomeryfbc.org. Families are invited to participate in this home mission project. First Baptist Montgomery is building a Member-to-Member Online Business Directory, to create a friendly, community-building tool, linking FBC members looking for goods and services with other members providing those goods and services. If you would like to be listed in this directory, please visit www. montgomeryfbc.org/business-directory and register your business. Please visit the Christ-Like Institute Website at to help you grow in Christian discipleship and maturity.

6 This week at FBC Montgomery For the complete calendar, visit Sunday, July 13 8:30 Worship Service 9:45 Bible Fellowship Classes 11:00 Worship Service 12:00 Single Adult Leadership Meeting 3:30 Deacon Training 4:00 Mission Committe Meeting 5:00 Children s Ministry: Fast Track Touched By Angels Visitation 6:15 Worship Service Monday, July 14 6:00 Men s Bible Study 6:30 FREEDOMfest Women s Bible Study Tuesday, July 15 11:00 GriefShare 4:30 Children s Learning Center Board 6:00 Narcotics Anonymous GROW College Bible Study Wednesday, July 16 5:00 First Family Dinner Disaster Relief Team Meeting 5:30 Sanctuary Orchestra Rehearsal 6:00 First Family Prayer Time 6:30 Student Ministry: Powerhouse 6:35 Sanctuary Choir Rehearsal 6:40 Finance Committee 6:45 Ejamat Prayer Time Thursday, July 17 10:00 Caregivers Support Group Friday, July 18 6:45 Friday Morning Men s Group 5:00 Friday Night Basketball 5:30 Celebrate Recovery Saturday, July 19 Mission Project: Thailand & Brazil Race for Hope 6:00 Narcotics Anonymous In Home Ministry Member :: Anne Smart 1555 Taylor Road, Apt B9 Montgomery, Alabama Morning Worship (8:30 & 11:00 am) Call to Worship Sanctuary Orchestra I Can Pray Sanctuary Choir O Lord Most Holy Sandy Draper & Delyana Lazarova Message Russell McCrory Evening Worship (6:15 pm) Fret Not Fretted Instrument Night Lead Me to the Cross Logan Pinkham Message Jared McCrory CrossRoads Broadcast Schedule 305 South Perry Street Montgomery, AL Watch the sermon at the time below or online at Frazer Channel 13 (Montgomery & Prattville) Brighthouse Channel 122 (Elmore County) Sunday, 1:30 pm (full hour) & 6:00 pm Tuesday, 7:30 pm Thursday, 9:30 am & 6:00 pm WSFA-TV Channel 12 Sunday, 10:30 am The Beacon (USPS # ) is published and printed weekly by First Baptist Church, 305 South Perry Street, Montgomery, Alabama Periodical postage paid at Montgomery, Alabama. POSTMASTER: Send address changes to The Beacon, 305 South Perry Street, Montgomery, Alabama FIRST BAPTIST CHURCH montgomery