CHURCH OF THE REDEEMER HOPE TO YOU COMMUNITY CHURCH

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CHURCH OF THE REDEEMER Church of the Redeemer Phone: 301-262-7888 email: bowiecov@erols.com Web: redeemerbowie.com Pastor: Rev. James Choi Chair: Barbara A.

1 CHURCH OF THE REDEEMER Church of the Redeemer Phone: Web: redeemerbowie.com Pastor: Rev. James Choi Chair: Barbara A. Barnes Volume 16 Issue 9 From the Pastor s Desk National Back to Church Sunday HOPE TO YOU COMMUNITY CHURCH 7300 Race Track Rd. Bowie, MD The Messenger September, 2016 Pastor James Choi Church of the Redeemer The first National Back to Church Sunday which started in 2008 is a coordinated effort of various Christian denominations to reach out to people who rarely attend worship services. In 2013, the 5 th year of the effort, more than 20,000 churches participated in the effort. This year, more than 28,500 churches in the US and 1,550 churches outside of the US signed up for the event. Office Manager: Emily Montfort Hope to You Community Church Phone: pastor@htychurch.org Web: Pastor: Rev. Leo Genota Director of Music: Leanne Genota Chair: Brent Heckart National Back to School 1-2 Sunday ~Pastor James Choi Some Quotes Worth 2 Musing On Hold the Line and Stay 3-4 True to Christ ~ Brent Heckart How We Got the Bible 5-6 Jim Babcock If I Had Lived in Jesus 7 Day ~Emily Montfort Miscellaneous 8 This year our churches, Church of the Redeemer and Hope To You Community Church, plan to participate in the event. Even though the national day is set for September 18, our Back to Church Sunday is set for October 16. I pray that all of us can join together and make efforts to invite people we love and care for. Roughly three-in-ten U.S. adults (29%) in 2013 say they seldom or never attend worship services, up from 25% in 2003, according to aggregated data from Pew Research Center surveys. It is not an encouraging fact that only 2 percent of church attendees invite someone to church but 82% of the unchurched are at least somewhat likely to attend church if invited (Dr. Thom Rainer) Here are additional statistics provided by the National Back to Church Sunday website. A study including more than 15,000 adults revealed that about two-thirds are willing to receive information about a local church from a family

2 The Messenger Page 2 member and 56 percent from a friend or neighbor. The message is clear that the unchurched are open to conversations about church. Philip Nation, LifeWay Research Four percent of formerly churched adults are actively looking for a church to attend regularly (other than their previous church). Six percent would prefer to resume attending regularly in the same church they had attended. The largest group, 62 percent, is not actively looking but is open to the idea of attending church regularly again. Scott McConnell, LifeWay Research Clearly we can encourage Christians to pray that the unchurched would sense God calling them back, but God works through His people." "The survey showed that many would respond to an invitation from a friend or acquaintance (41 percent), their children (25 percent) or an adult family member (25 percent). Scott McConnell, LifeWay Research The issue of affinity also surfaced in the responses. Thirty five percent indicated that they would be inspired to attend church 'if I knew there were people like me there.' Scott McConnell, LifeWay Research Much to the surprise of the Chicken Little' crowd, people are still going to church. And more people would attend if given one simple thing an invitation. Philip Nation, LifeWay Research In his book, The Unchurched Next Door, Thom Rainier shared that most people come to church because of a personal invitation and 7 out of 10 unchurched people have never been invited to church in their whole lives. That is why we are having a special service on Sunday, October 16 in honor of National Back to Church Sunday. Don t be shy to send an invitation to your friends. Statistically, slightly more than half will decline your invitation, but that means close to 50% of them will say yes. Let s plan to invite more than one since it is observed that 90% of first time visitors never come back after that first visit. Let s help our friends start a personal and meaningful relationship with God who is abundant in love. Some Quotes Worth Musing On Don t wait for a feeling or love in order to share Christ with a stranger. You already love your heavenly Father, and you know that this stranger is created by Him, but separated from Him, so take those first steps in evangelism because you love God. It is not primarily out of compassion for humanity that we share our faith or pray for the lost; it is first of all, love for God. John Piper I remember Christian teachers telling me long ago that I must hate a bad man's actions but not hate the bad man: or, as they would say, hate the sin but not the sinner....i used to think this a silly, straw-splitting distinction: how could you hate what a man did and not hate the man? But years later it occurred to me that there was one man to whom I had been doing this all my life -- namely myself. However much I might dislike my own cowardice or conceit or greed, I went on loving myself. There had never been the slightest difficulty about it. In fact the very reason why I hated the things was that I loved the man. Just because I loved myself, I was sorry to find that I was the sort of man who did those things. C. S. Lewis, Mere Christianity Fretting rises from our determination to have our own way. Our Lord never worried and was never anxious, because His purpose was never to accomplish His own plans but to fulfill God s plans. Fretting is wickedness for a child of God. Oswald Chambers, My Utmost for His Highest

3 Volume 16 Issue 9 Page 3 Brent Heckart Hold The Line And Stay True To Christ Philippians 3:15-4:1 Hope to You Community Church 1. Hold The Line Do you know Christ, I mean really know Him personally. So you moved in the right direction, but do not stop there. Grow in your spiritual life. Attend church and fellowship with Children of God. Attend Bible studies and study the Bible on your own. Attend Sunday School, then study the Bible to ensure you are being taught what the Bible says. But do not stop there, walk the walk of a Child of God. Turn away from the desires and pleasures of the world. Serve your God. Remember what we have learned; let us apply that to our Christian life. Let the Holy Spirit fill you so that your focus is on God. Listen and hear the sermons, then apply those sermons to your life. Learn from Sunday School, then apply those lessons to your life. Learn Bible Studies and let those studies guide you in your life. Open your heart to the Holy Spirit and let your mind grasp what the Spirit teaches you. As you do this you will grow in the spirit. But as you grow pray to God for the Holy Spirit to give you the strength to hold onto the progress you have made. The last thing you want is to slide back in to sin. You see, if you are sliding backwards, you will have to work double hard to get back where you were. And if you are always sliding backwards you cannot move forward. If you are not moving forward, how can you help in advancing the Kingdom of God? Look at this way; in a war zone before the troops can move forward they have to hold onto the progress they have already made. If they give up the ground they gained, they cannot move forward. As Children of God we are in a spiritual war. We do not hold and take physical ground but spiritual ground, although the physical land might be part of the battle. We battle in a spiritual realm, but do not be deceived, it is a battle. So as you make progress in your spiritual life hold on to the growth you have made. Do not slide backwards into spiritual immaturity. This requires work! You need to spend time in prayer; this gives you the strength and support to hold the line. You need to read the Bible; this gives you the information and ammunition to hold the line. You need to fellowship with fellow Children of God; this gives you encouragement to hold the line. You need to live a life that says to the World, "I am a Child of God!"; this prevents the enemy from flanking you so you can hold the line. Why do we want to hold the line? Not so we can stay where we are but to prevent us from sliding back so we CAN move forward. Have you ever driven up hill on a snow packed road with some ice? If you are able keep traction while you are going up hill, you will be able to continue up the hill. But once you lose traction and start to slide backwards you cannot move forward. You have to go backwards till you reach solid ground so you can try again. This is how it is in our spiritual life. If we hold the line, we can continue to move forward. But once we lose traction we have to go backwards till we reach solid ground with Christ and then try again. Do not lose what you have worked for, do not lose what you have gained. Hold the line! Hold the Line and stay true to Christ so you can help advance the Kingdom of God. 2. Beware of the Enemies of Christ We are aware from scriptures and some of us form practical experience that there are some out there that falsely claim to be Christians and want you to follow them. Remember the scriptures tells us to watch for the wolf in sheep's clothing. But if you listen to what they say and compare what they say to the scriptures you will discover their deception. If you really listen to those enemies of Christ you will hear them brag about what they do and not what Christ has done through them. You will hear them talk about their love of the flesh and not their love of God. They will try to isolate and split a congregation. Do not follow them! They have their happiness in the flesh and joy in misleading others into their quick-mire. But they are headed towards eternal destruction, and eternally absent from God.

4 The Messenger Page 4 We have all heard that if something just does not sound right it probably is not true or safe. The same applies to what others tell you about following Christ. If it just does not sound right then it probably is not right. When it does not sound right, check it out in the right place - the Bible. In fact the Bible tells to always confirm what you are taught by comparing it to scriptures all the time, not just when you are in doubt. Remember those who are enemies of God will try to mislead what the scriptures say; they will use half true scriptures or complete lies saying this is what the Bible says. Here are a few examples, "Every person is a child of God" and "Every road leads to heaven as long as you are devoted to it". They live for the pleasures of this world. We should live our lives for the joy of the Lord not for the pleasures of this world. When the enemies of Christ come and try to draw your attention away from Christ to the things of this world remember to hold the line. Do not let your self be pulled back into sin. When the enemies of Christ try to influence you with the pleasures of this world, cry out to God for strength and hold the line staying true to Christ.. 3. Live Your Life As A Citizen of Heaven At the moment of our salvation we became a Child of God, and as a Child of God we became a citizen of heaven. We are no longer citizens of this world or a prisoner of sin. Since we are citizens of heaven, we need to live our lives so that those of the world will see Christ through our lives. But you know what; when we became citizens of heaven God did not tell us to run and hide from the world. No; He gave us an assignment. God appointed each of us to be His personal representative to the world. So as we walk in our daily lives we need to be an example to the world; we need to be a representative of Christ. Think about it like this; each country sends ambassadors to other countries so the desires of the ambassador's government are properly represented. Now what happens if an ambassadors for a country fails to properly represent their country and government in either their public or private life? Their government brings them home in embarrassment. You should want to represent God to the world both in church and in your daily life. Remember if you are ashamed of Jesus here on earth, Christ will be ashamed of you when stand before Him and the Father. Remember what the Bible tells you about how you should live your life and do it. Remember what you learn in Bible Study, in Sunday School, and in the Sermon and do it. To learn from the Bible and then ignore it is a terrible thing. So when your friends at work start telling off-color jokes, cry out to God for strength and Hold The Line, living your life for Christ; do not be pulled down into sin, but live your life as a citizen of heaven. When you are tempted with the pleasures of this world; do not be pulled down into the quick-mire of sin but trust in God and hold the line, living your life for Christ. When everything goes wrong and you feel like throwing your hands up and curse the world, hold the line for Christ and remember you are Christ's representative to the world. In every step of your life remember you are a citizen of heaven and a personally appointed representative for Christ in this world. Do not fall back into sin but Hold The Line so you can be an example of the Kingdom of God to others! Remember Christ will come again so Hold The Line and be strong in your faith. Do not be embarrassed at the coming of Christ but Hold the Line staying true to Christ and look forward to the coming of our Lord and Savior.

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7 Volume 16 Issue 9 Page 7 If I Had Lived in Jesus Day Emily Montfort If I had lived in Jesus day Would I have followed Him, too? Or would I have mocked Him and cast a stone As the others were so wont to do? Would I have listened to all that He taught? When I heard Him, would I have believed? When others scoffed, would I scoff, too? When He died, would I have grieved? I didn t live then, but the questions still hold Do I doubt? Do I know that He s real? When others make fun, do I join in their jokes? Do I witness, expressing my zeal? Do I live my life as He taught that I should? Do I trust Him to show me the way? When life s going smoothly and problems are few Do I still remember to pray? Do I reflect His love to all that I meet? Are my words uplifting and kind? When others are hurting, do I reach out to help, Or am I selectively blind? Do I turn to him before I act, Or do I charge ahead on a whim? Do I fight to control my life on my own, Or am I willing to be led by him? Lord, I know I often fall short of the mark And my faults are more than a few, I know there s a lot I still don t understand And so much good that I fail to do. But Lord, I really do want to improve And I know as I follow I ll grow, So continue to help me, oh Lord, be my guide Keep me heading where you d have me go.

Volume 16 Issue 9 Happy Birthday to: Fran Anderson Sam Choi Mark Mugler John Shumlansky Bill Riley Asher Ndoga Loretta

September: Hope to You Ellen Layman The Veaseys Patty Swartz Bill Riley Page 8 Special Offerings - 2016 Last Sunday

$ 157 March: Covenant World Missions $ 695 April: Every Nation Ministries $ 415 May: Women Ministries $ 198 June : Mission

(So Others May Eat) $ November; World Relief $ 50 December; Supported Missionaries $ 17 Special Offerings $ $

$ 735 Sanders $ Covenant Support Missionaries $ Heart-to-Heart Lunch 1 pm, Wednesday, September 7, at Applebee s, Waugh

8 Volume 16 Issue 9 Happy Birthday to: Fran Anderson Sam Choi Mark Mugler John Shumlansky Bill Riley Asher Ndoga Loretta Chiu Abednigo Ndoga 1st 4th 9th 10th 17th 21st 24th 26th Happy Anniversary to: Michael & Frances Veasey Todd & Carol Woolford Mark & Cathy Slepitza Volunteers: Usher: Fhen Bruce Scripture Readers: Please sign up to read September 4 Liza Genota September 11 Jessica Heckart September 18 Imelda Heckart September 25 Bill Riley 3rd 18th 25th Treat Providers for September: Hope to You Ellen Layman The Veaseys Patty Swartz Bill Riley Page 8 Special Offerings Last Sunday Offerings: January: Bowie/Crofton Pregnancy Center $ 422 February: Kisoboka Uganda, Inc. $ 157 March: Covenant World Missions $ 695 April: Every Nation Ministries $ 415 May: Women Ministries $ 198 June : Mission in Kenya $ 251 July: Backpack Project $ 164 August: World Vision $ September: Bindura Zimbabwe churches $ October; S.O.M.E. (So Others May Eat) $ November; World Relief $ 50 December; Supported Missionaries $ 17 Special Offerings $ $ Other/Ongoing Samaritan s Purse $ 157 Ndoga Support $ 4,902 Bowie Food Pantry $ 40 Ndoga Medical $ 1,010 Benevolence Fund $ 735 Sanders $ Covenant Support Missionaries $ Heart-to-Heart Lunch 1 pm, Wednesday, September 7, at Applebee s, Waugh Chapel Dinner 5:30 pm, Wednesday, September 21, at Red Lobster, Annapolis The Last Sunday Offering in September will be for the churches Abednigo Ndoga works with in Bindura, Zimbabwe

CHURCH OF THE REDEEMER HOPE TO YOU COMMUNITY CHURCH

CHURCH OF THE REDEEMER HOPE TO YOU COMMUNITY CHURCH CHURCH OF THE REDEEMER Church of the Redeemer Phone: 301-262-7888 email: bowiecov@erols.com Web: redeemerbowie.com Pastor: Rev. James Choi Chair: Barbara A. Barnes Office Manager: Emily Montfort Hope to