Our mission is to KNOW Jesus, SERVE Jesus, SHARE Jesus

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1 September 2018 A man, down on his luck, went into a church which catered to the "uppity". Spotting the man's dirty clothes a deacon, worried about the churches image, went to the man and asked him if he needed help. The man said, "I was praying and the Lord told me to come to this church."the deacon suggested that the man go pray some more and possibly he might get a different answer. The next Sunday the man returned. The deacon asked, "Did you get a different answer?"the man replied, "Yes I did. I told the Lord that they don't want me in that church and the Lord said, 'Don't worry about it son; I've been trying to get into that church for years and haven't made it yet." Well, how about that one?, as our St. Lucian pastor Sammy Philbert would say. Did you know that most members do not see their churches as they really are? Most congregations would confess that they are friendly and inviting to guests when in reality they are only friendly and inviting to insiders. I want us to ask ourselves, How friendly are we really? I want to challenge you to look through the eyes of first-time guests at Oakdale. Put yourself in their shoes. If this was your first experience here what would you see, hear, and be confronted with as you attended worship? Would you understand what was going on? Would you want to return again? Look through the eyes of first time guests! Our current renovation projects, the new sign, messages from the pulpit, the church s website, our welcome center, our ushers and YOU play a huge part in welcoming guests into our services and activities. In the next few weeks there will be copies of the book Becoming a Welcoming Church by Thomas Rainer circulating throughout our church family. Take time to read this little book and think about what we can do better! Let s go out of our way to encourage people to return so that they can have a strong and growing relationship with our Father. How will we be able to minister to them if they don t return? SEPTEMBER 3RD Church office closed for Labor Day SEPTEMBER 16TH Homecoming 75th Anniversary SEPTEMBER 2ND Also, no other activities SEPTEMBER 9TH 4:00 PM West Edgecombe Baptist Church (No Evening Service) SEPTEMBER 23RD 6:00 PM Discipleship Classes Begin (9 weeks) Pastor Mike Our mission is to KNOW Jesus, SERVE Jesus, SHARE Jesus

2 Tithing is a response to God s blessing. To our Church Family, Thank you so much for all the cards and prayers during both our surgeries. We certainly felt the prayers in the hospital and during the healing. The love and support you have shown has blessed us so much. Love in Christ Wayne & Sue Lassiter JULY 2018 Income & Expenses General Fund Income $29, July Expenses $22, Difference $ 6, Designated Fund Receipts* July Only *Not account balances Building/Harvest Fund $ 3, Children s Fund Income $ Mission Trips Income $ 6, SEARCHING FOR PICTURES Check the literature racks for monthly financial reports. Direct any questions to or call the church office. During the Homecoming Celebration Sunday, we would like to have a Power Point playing during our meal for remembrance of the past 75 years. It can be viewed at your convenience as you eat and fellowship. If you have pictures of any historical event of Oakdale, or if you were married here and would like to have one photo of your wedding or a baby dedication, please bring it to the church office as soon as possible. Please put your name on the picture so it can be returned to you as soon as it is scanned. Thank you for being a part of the past 75 years at Oakdale Baptist Church. Linda Ruffin Sanctuary renovations are scheduled to be completed by Homecoming Sunday-what a way to celebrate Oakdale s 75th Anniversary! Harvest offerings are being deposited weekly. Cost of renovation project estimated at $50,000 ($22, given Jan.-July 2018). Challenge for Harvest Sunday is to collect enough funds to complete the renovation project.

3 JOY GROUP NEWS SEPTEMBER 7TH Lunch at Mayflower Restaurant Church van will leave at 11:30 AM SEPTEMBER 18TH Fire & Fall Safety Class Teacher-Blaise Harris, Rocky Mount Fire Dept. Rocky Mount Senior Center 11 AM-12 PM OBC van will leave church at 10:30 AM Lunch will be at Smith s Restaurant after our class at the Rocky Mount Senior Center. SEPTEMBER 20TH JOY Group Meeting 2:00 PM-4:00 PM OBC Fellowship Hall Guest-Bill Jenkins & his guitar- - - MUSIC- - -MUSIC- - -MUSIC Devotion-Snacks Everyone is Welcome! THE ONLY NAME (Yours Will Be) Meeting the first, third & fifth Tuesdays of each month at Oakdale Baptist Church and the second and fourth Tuesdays at Peace Makers from 6:30-8:15. Come one and all! Sunday, September 9th at 4:00 the combined choirs of Oakdale, West Edgecombe, and Proctors Chapel church will lead a worship service at West Edgecombe Baptist Church on Hwy. 43. This will serve as our evening service that day. Come on out and receive a blessing. L.I.F.E. DINNER SCHEDULE FOR SEPTEMBER September 4th Kim & David Wells September 18th Trina & Aaron Rhodes

4 3:30 Student Ministries Pastor Aaron Laskey The summer activities have come to an end and the school year has begun. We served at InJoy earlier in August, and the students did good work. The staff was glad to have us and appreciated our service. The weather forecast for the day of the pool party was not particularly good, but thankfully the rain didn t come until later that night. The youth were able to have a good time doing flips and belly flops off the diving boards. After months of begging and pleading from the students, we re finally going to play paintball at the end of September. This month I m also going to be introducing myself to several of the schools in the area and see how much they re willing to let me be involved in reaching students. I hope that my years of experience tutoring will open a door for meeting a number of unchurched youth and serve as a way to introduce them to OBC. Sunday night, Sept 23 rd begins our fall discipleship classes. There will be 2 youth classes. Aaron and Trina will lead the students in 6-10 th grade in a series entitled The Foundations. I will be leading the students in 11 th grade-college in a series entitled Is The Bible Reliable? Please be in prayer for the Lord to provide opportunities for me to share the Gospel and minister to unchurched students in the community. September Schedule: Sept 16 th Homecoming! Sept 23 rd 6:00-7:30 PM Sept 29 th Time TBD Discipleship classes begin Paintball Youth will continue to meet every Wednesday night at 7:00 PM. There will be no Sunday evening service until the discipleship classes start on the 23 rd.. Another church year is beginning. My! How time flies when you re having fun! The children have had an active year. We are looking forward to another Christ-filled year in There will be a Family Game Night, Saturday, September 22nd from 6:30 PM-8:00 PM. Everyone will participate in one game, and then will separate to play others. If you have a favorite game, please bring it to share with others. Snacks and drinks will be provided. For our Fall activity on October 31st, we will have a carnival. We need volunteers to man games and help set up. We would also appreciate donations of candy, cakes, drinks and empty 2 liter bottles for different activities. If you would like to help, see Jessica Strickland, Lynn Eason or Jewel Calhoun. More details will be coming soon. Jessica Strickland will be leading Children s Church for the church year. The material for this is being ordered. If you would like to continue to help, please let her know. She will need an assistant each week. DIG IN LIFE OF JESUS SCHEDULE FOR SEPTEMBER (CHILDREN S CHURCH) 9/2 Jewel Calhoun 9/9 Kathy Calhoun 9/16 Jewel Calhoun 9/23 Brianna Lewis 9/30 Lynn Eason Please contact Jessica Strickland at if you cannot serve your Sunday so we can make alternate arrangements.

5 2018 Sun Mon Tue Wed Thu Fri Sat 1 2 No Evening Service 3 Labor Day Church Office Closed 4 6:30 PM-8:15 PM LIFE Addiction Recovery Program at Oakdale 5 7:00 PM Children s Choir Practice/Bible Skills 7:00 PM Regular Schedule :00 PM Combined Choir at WEBC 5:30 PM Deacon Meeting No Evening Service 10 10:00 AM Missions Prayer Group at OBC 11 6:30 PM Women s Fellowship 6:30 PM-8:15 PM LIFE Addiction Recovery Program at Peace Makers 12 7:00 PM Children s Choir Practice/Bible Skills 7:00 PM Regular Schedule :00 AM Set up for Homecoming 16 Homecoming-75th Anniversary Celebration Sunday No Evening Service :15 AM- 2:00PM JOY Group-Rky. Mt. Senior Center 6:30 PM-8:15 PM LIFE Addiction at Oakdale 19 7:00 PM Children s Choir Practice/Bible Skills 7:00 PM Regular Schedule 20 2:00 PM JOY Group :30 PM-8:00 PM Children s Family Game Night 23 6:00 PM Start of Discipleship Classes (9 weeks) :30 PM-8:15 PM LIFE Addiction Recovery Program at Peace Makers 26 7:00 PM Children s Choir Practice/Bible Skills 7:00 PM Regular Schedule :00 AM Communion 6:00 PM Discipleship Classes

6 SECURITY FOR SEPTEMBER 9/2 Aaron Rhodes & Justin Hipskey 9/9 Brent Griffin & Chris Webb 9/16 Shane Hodge & Danny Calhoun 9/23 Wayne Calhoun & Wayne Lassiter 9/30 Jett Webb & Dave Brinkley 9/2 Roger T. Hopkins 9/9 Catherine Arnold 9/3 Terin Chapman 9/9 Lillian Strange 9/3 Jeremy Holloman 9/17 Braxton Taylor USHER TEAM FOR SEPTEMBER NICK ANDREWS ALEX WELLS STEVEN HOWELL JOEY MOSELEY 9/4 Mary Beth Dilday 9/17 Callie-Ann Webb 9/6 Thomas Bulluck 9/17 Jimmy Woodall 9/6 Jeff Eatmon 9/22 Gwen Harvey 9/6 Nikki Mullins 9/23 Claudia Daughtridge 9/6 David Wells 9/23 Louanne Perry 9/8 Christine Daughtridge 9/24 Wayne Walston 9/8 Samantha Wells 9/27 Rose Ruffin 9/28 R. T. Hopkins SEPTEMBER 2018 September Nursery Coordinator Kathy Calhoun Please contact her if you are unable to serve on your Sunday so that she has plenty of time to find coverage. 9/2 Babies Lauren Holloman & Shelby Webb Toddlers-Meghan & Kendall Smith 9/9 Babies-Susan Cobb & Kenzi Cobb Toddlers-Rebecca & Cameron Warren 9/16 Babies-Terin Chapman & Justine Wells Toddlers-Amy & Chris Webb 9/23 Babies-Sue Lassiter & Katie Lassiter Toddlers-Debra Calhoun & Samantha Wells 9/30 Babies-Kaye Edmondson & Teresa Hopkins Toddlers-Felecia Webb & Elizabeth Strange

7 MISSIONS HAPPY NEW YEAR!! It s the beginning of a new church year and as of this article there is no one to facilitate the women s ministry. Please prayerfully consider taking this ministry and serving the Lord in this capacity. The September meeting will be held at the home of Dawn Rhodes and we will be enjoying the last of the summer time weather. Make plans now for the October Daughters of the King brunch on Saturday, October 13 th. We have 15 tables we would love to have sponsored and decorated in our theme. We have tickets for purchase at $12 each. For $72 you can sponsor a table and give the tickets to your friends and family to attend. It s going to be an event you DON T want to miss! Music will be provided by our sister church Proctor s Chapel and their women s praise team. And for the first time EVER at Oakdale Baptist Church, Ms. Angie Ruffin will be our entertainment and trust me YOU WILL BE SORRY IF YOU MISS THIS!! Mark your calendars now and see Joy Eatmon or Karen Murray to sponsor a table or purchase tickets. It s going to be THE event of the year! We look forward to seeing you there. On a side note I want to thank each and every lady who has ever attended, helped or prayed for the WMU/ Women s ministry in the time that I have served as your leader. It has been a pleasure to serve the Lord and you for the past 10 plus years. I feel that it s now time to rest so that I may be my best and serve the Lord in other areas. Please continue to support WMU/Women s Ministry at Oakdale Baptist Church through your prayers and attendance. In HIM, Karen Murray

8 Oakdale Baptist Church US 64 ALT WEST HWY Rocky Mount, NC Address Service Requested Oakdale Staff Pastor: Pastor Mike Dixon Associate, Pastor, Youth & Children Pastor: Aaron Laskey Music Director: Ms. Angie Ruffin Secretary: Mrs. Sharon Lynch Prayer Coordinators Kaye Bulluck (Primary) Melissa Dixon (Backup) DEACON BEACON News from Deacon Ministry Team A guiding light to the rock As I sit down and write this small segment in the newsletter, I have just returned from a mission trip to Saint Lucia. I also returned to the church to see all the wonderful things being done in our sanctuary. This is a great time to be serving the Lord at Oakdale Baptist Church. With that being said, let s change gears and talk about passion. Everybody is passionate about something; whether it is deer hunting, fishing, travel ball, reading, or shopping. Let's all be honest. We all have things we are more passionate about than GOD!!!! Why is that? Should we not get the same enjoyment out of serving God as we do our hobbies? We live in a materialistic world and the ways of the world have slowly come between us and our relationship with God. Colossians 3:23 says, Whatever you do, work heartily, as for the Lord and not for men. We need to be passionate about God!!!!!!! When we put God first and get fired up about God Romans 8:28 tells us, that for those who love God, all things work together for good, for those who are called according to his purpose. Our Church is moving in a great direction with God's plan and purpose. We, as God's people, need to become more passionate about serving and sharing God. It's time to do more than warm up that cushion on that pew. Get excited about what God has done in your life and what He is doing at Oakdale. Remember one thing, IT AINT ABOUT YOU!!!!!! Deacon Brad Summerlin