June/July 2015 The Heartbeat A publication of Heartland Baptist Church What s INSIDE 2 Pastor Jim s Gems 3 Discipleship/Family Ministry 4 Music Ministry Insert Calendar 5 Heartland KIDS 6 Nursery/Announcements 7 Volunteer Schedule
The Heartbeat We are quickly moving through 2015. It is already May, and I am writing about June and July ministry topics. Before I get too involved with the summer line-up, I want to share my joy for the turn-out for the National Day of Prayer. There were over 40 of you that came to dedicate more than an hour praying for our country and churches. The theme of Lord hear our cry! tells it all. America is at the crossroads of existence. I am not going to paint a the sky is falling picture; but do need to emphasis that America has lost much of it luster. There are deep seated issues within our society and culture. We are the ones to blame for the condition our homes, families and churches are in. I recently read an article that estimates Evangelical Christians to be no more than 22 million people. This is a great stretch from the 150-160 million Gallup Poll reports. If we look at the 22 million figure, it represents 7% of America s total population. To get a better perspective, New York State has 21 million in population. If we were to put all the Evangelical Christians in the state of New York, the rest of the Nation would be filled with lost people going to Hell. We have a lot of work to do concerning the Great Commission. I have wanted to ask the church as a whole Who are you praying for, to be saved? The question carries with it the idea that we are telling others about Jesus. One of the thrust I believe our church must get right in the Strategic Plan is the outreach and evangelism of our church. We all enjoy when others receive Jesus as Savior and join our Heartland family. But for me it doesn t happen anywhere near enough. If we believe in God s Commission to go and make disciples, it stands to reason we must be sharing the Gospel with people for that to happen. One thing I have noticed about churches that have new people becoming active in a church, it brings an excitement that cannot be produce in any other way. We [I] cannot fix everything, but we can make a difference in some things. The fiveyear strategic Plan will only become effective when it becomes implemented. Again one of the things we determined was NOT to have more church, but more of Jesus. Ministries of our church can only get done when the church body has a desire to work. There are still many aspects of ministry we had hoped to be started and flourishing by this time. Pastor Jim s Gems The reason they are not is because people in the congregation haven t stepped up. Two specific areas that are of utmost importance are the Men s Ministry and the Senior Adult Ministry. If you are willing to find out more about these ministries, please contact me. Now things that are going to happen in the next couple of months: Summer is around the corner, which means VBS isn t far behind. But even before that, June 7 th is our own Ministry Fair. Tim is organizing and asking people who are in ministry areas to promote their areas with a table set-up that day. It is your opportunity to tell the church what you are doing and how they can fit/support your ministry area. Also on that date we will have the Gibson Girls from Jerseyville here for a concert. They sing a mixture of Country Gospel/Southern Gospel. The next two months will be filled with Camps and conferences that have been in the planning for most of the year. It is also the time of year when many families will take much needed vacations. All of us do not take vacations at the same times, so plenty of ministries will still be going on here. Let s continue to be faithful to our places of service through these summer months. I mentioned VBS coming, [June 14-18] it s not just for kids. Like the last two years, there will be an Adult VBS. It is called Ultimate Survivor. This study will be looking at the I am s of Jesus. I will be teaching this, so if you are not in VBS somewhere, think about joining me. This fall we have both the Royal Ambassadors and Girls in Action missions group starting. They will be a bit different from AWANA. Their focus is to teach the bible to children [6-18], model the principles of Christian living, with an active involvement if local missions. We have been thinking about a couple of outings for the Men and Boys to kick off their respective areas. If you are a man or boy interested in making the outings happen, contact Tim our Family & Discipleship minister. I am sure you will find many other ministries opportunities within this newsletter. Come be part of a changing Church that impacts the community we live in! Lovingly, Pastor Jim 2
The Heartbeat FAMILY MINISTRY D6 is a movement intentional about empowering parents, homes, marriages, leaders, and churches to live out the story of Deuteronomy 6. This Scripture paints a beautiful picture for the family and of God s heart for discipleship at home. The family is God s original small group. D6 provides resources to align the church and home to accomplish God s design of generational discipleship. Resource found at: http://d6family.com/what-is-d6/ We will be starting our D6 Groups on September 13 th. While we are using the D6 curriculum during our Sunday Morning Bible Study time, D6 is much more than a Sunday school curriculum. It really is a mindset that families need to grasp within God s Word. It is parents and grandparents taking ownership of discipling their families, neighbors, and friends. Having a D6 mindset is making sure that every person s mission field begins in their own home. If it doesn t start in their house, it will never effectively translate to places outside of the home. Notice the training dates at the bottom of the page. We want our Sunday school teachers to be fully equipped with the new curriculum before we begin. Each teacher will only need to attend one of the training dates. The same information will be covered at both. The training is required, and we provided two dates to make sure that everyone can make it. This is the place to be to find out how to effectively use the curriculum. This curriculum allows the Sunday school teacher to become the secondary disciple maker of the children. In God s eyes, the primary disciple maker will always be the parents. This curriculum is very specific in equipping the parents to carry the conversation that was started on Sunday morning back home with them. There shouldn t be parents who have to ask their children, What did you learn today in class? The parents will already know. This will allow them to ask more specific questions that can relate directly to their children. Key Dates for D6 Groups (Sunday School): Training Dates Friday, August 7 th from 6:30pm to 8:30pm, OR Saturday, August 22 nd from 9am to 11am. FAMILY MINISTRY continued on page 4 3
The Heartbeat MUSIC MINISTRY With the Ministry Fair quickly approaching I ask that you pray where God would have you to serve. We are in the process of expanding our Multimedia Team and are always open to having willing people to join with us. I am excited to see where God takes us in this department to better serve our church. The Gibson Girls will be putting on a concert as a part of our Ministry Fair June 7. The concert will go from 6:30pm- 7:30pm, with the Ministry Fair beginning 30 minutes before, and continuing for 30 minutes after. They are a group of four sisters who sing as a quartet with a very blended style of music. More information on the group, and samples of their music can be found on their website at http://thegibsongirlsmusic.com/. FAMILY MINISTRY continued from page 3 What is a Ministry Fair? MINISTRY FAIR June 7 6:00pm to 8:00pm A ministry fair is an opportunity for the church s ministries to communicate what they have done, are doing, and hope to do in the coming year. It also gives these ministry leaders an opportunity to communicate where different congregation members can plug in as a ministry partner. We will have the Gibson Girls in for a concert on this night. This gives us an opportunity to sit back and enjoy some great music while also finding out where we connect within our church. There will be thirty minutes before (6:00-6:30pm) and after the concert (7:30-8:00pm) to walk around and engage in conversation about the different ministries. 4
HEARTLAND Mark Denby, Children s Ministry Director This summer: Don t take a vacation from God Summertime is the perfect time for rest, relaxation, recreation, and recharging your spiritual batteries? Most kids think of the pool, riding bikes, camping, going to Six Flags with friends or maybe a family vacation during the summer, at least that s what my three girls are thinking about. But the spiritual side of summer is sometimes overlooked don t miss the opportunities that are out there Here are some ideas on how you can use the summer months to renew your relationship with the Lord! Start your day in prayer! Every day during the summer! It s a great way to start your day. It is also a great way to start a great practice for the rest of your life! Scripture. Or maybe there are some Christian adventure books that you ve wanted to read. You can t be in the pool 24/7 and besides no one likes fingers that look like raisins from being in the water so long. Keep a journal for the summer. Whether you write in the journal every morning or every evening, it gives you a chance to reflect on your thoughts, inspirations and ways that you experience God s presence during day. The Heartbeat Talk to your friends about God. Invite them to VBS, the summer is a great time to make new friends and branch out! Take a prayer walk. Whether you walk in the woods, on the beach, or in the neighborhood, the beauty of God s creation is another way to connect with God and see His wonders. Set aside time several days a week for reading God s word. Maybe you ve wanted to start reading The time you spend this summer restoring and exploring your spirit will have great rewards in the fall when life begins to rev up again and school ramps up! You may even find that you want to continue some of your summer spiritual exercises throughout the year! We look forward to seeing all of you back this fall for the kick-off of RA s and GA s I cant wait to hear all about the adventures that you had this summer with God and your friends! In His Mighty Grip, Mark Denby Join Heartland Kids (and adults) as we Journey Off the Map learning how to let Jesus be our guide. VBS 2015 will take us through uncharted territory where we will begin to understand that obedience to God can lead us beyond the expected. So, toss the map, stick close to your guide, and prepare to listen for God s direction in this journey that is unknown to us, but known by Him. Isaiah 30:21 And whenever you turn to the right or to the left, your ears will hear this command behind you: This is the way. Walk in it. 5
The Heartbeat NURSERY MINISTRY I must have nodded off for I looked at my email and realized it was time to write the June newsletter! Can 2015 really be almost half over? I m not sure about all of you, but I really cannot believe how time truly does fly by. It s odd to me that even young people think time passes all too quickly! It surely gives thought to how fast the pace is in society today. I prefer the days of my youth sitting on the front porch sipping lemonade, visiting with the neighbors and just chilling out as the young people say today. But, here we are and with so many things that are so different there are some things that remain the same, for instance God s love for us. He is the same yesterday, today and tomorrow. How many times do we slow down each day to thank him for all he has done for us? Time passes quickly in the nursery too, our little Finnley isn t so little anymore. He has begun spending quite of bit of time with Miss Karol and Miss Carla. Little Payson is crawling all over the place and always has a smile on her face! The Toddlers next door are doing the same thing moving out of their class on to the older children s classes. And so on and so on! We have many special days coming up to give thought to June 14 th Flag Day, June 21 st Fathers Day, and July 4 th Independence Day! They are all days to be celebrated with family and friends. I challenge everyone to walk a little closer to God in the coming weeks, slow down and as is written in Psalm 55:22, Cast your cares on the Lord and he will sustain you; he will never let the righteous fall. Hazel Morgan & Mary Burger MONTHLY DEACON S MEETING June 28 at 5:00pm July 26 at 5:00pm If you have a need or know of someone who needs assistance, has become ill or hospitalized, please contact the church office or Mike Harris at 972-9145. CHURCH PATRIOTIC PICNIC Please join us for the Church Patriotic Picnic on Sunday, July 5 from 1pm until dark at the Homer Adams Park (@ the Godfrey Y), Pavilion #1. Meat and drinks will be supplied by the church. Sign up sheets can be found at the Welcome Center. 6
Volunteer Schedule for June/July 2015 The Heartbeat Nursery June 7 Babies: Linda Witcher & Amy Vatole Toddlers: Sheri Marshall & Bridget Perkins June 14 Babies: Leona Barnett & Lisa Pimentel Toddlers: Sara Lingow & Brandon Cox June 21 Babies: Missy Denby & Amy Vatole Toddlers: Linda Chapman & Linda McRoy June 28 Babies: Karen Harris & Carole Fredrick Toddlers: Susie Kreitner & Linda Moore July 5 Babies: Linda Witcher & Amy Vatole Toddlers: Sheri Marshall & Bridget Perkins July 12 Babies: Leona Barnett & Lisa Pimentel Toddlers: Sara Lingow & Brandon Cox July 19 Babies: Missy Denby & Amy Vatole Toddlers: Linda McRoy & Linda Chapman July 26 Babies: Karen Harris & Carole Fredrick Toddlers: Susie Kreitner & Linda Moore Greeters June 7 Lowell & Betty Porter June 14 Dallas & Janet Moore June 21 Pat Bennett & Charlene Dennis June 28 Jim & JoAnn Cassidy July 5 Phil & Kathy Sandberg July 12 Shirley Wheatley & Chris Bramstedt July 19 David & Linda Chapman July 26 Gary & LeAnn Parish For more information or to volunteer contact: Greeters: Linda Witcher at 466-1844 Nursery: Mary Burger at 462-5634 Hazel Morgan at 466-2306 Heartland KIDS : Mark Denby at 467-1063 7
Bus - Driver s Schedule If you would like to set a pick up time, please call the scheduled driver. To volunteer as a bus driver please contact Ed Kreitner at 466-9047. Church Staff Senior Pastor Dr. Jim Grant pastor@hbcalton.com June 7: Karen Harris June 14: Ed Kreitner June 21: Karen Harris June 28: Ed Kreitner July 5: Karen Harris July 12: Ed Kreitner July 19: Karen Harris July 26: Ed Kreitner Ed Kreitner (618) 466-9047 Karen Harris (618) 466-8950 Discipleship & Family Minister Tim Weihrauch family@hbcalton.com Music Minister Steven Trask music@hbcalton.com Financial Secretary Jeanie Farrow financial@hbcalton.com Church Office Sarah Neuhaus office@hbcalton.com Heartland Baptist Church 4500 Humbert Rd Alton, IL 62002 www.hbcalton.com DATED MATERIAL If your address has changed, Please notify the church office.