First Family News February & March 2017 From the Pastor s Desk February/ March 2017 Volume 5, Issue 1 The year of our Lord, 2017 has begun at a sprint and we have many miles to go before the year end comes around. There are places to go and share the Gospel and souls to touch with the love of our Lord as we live out our theme for the year, Let s Go On Mission to our town, their town and every town. In addition to our weekly schedule of services and activities we will be looking for volunteers for our third annual Spring Break Sports Camp and Bible Club, April 10 14. There is a sign-up sheet for volunteers in the hallway outside the sanctuary now. We are also still wanting to send some short term missionaries to our Partner Church Peace Memorial. The church is making some progress but could still use help to reach a critical mass of sustainability. Looking further into the year I will be taking another teaching trip to Kenya the end of April. The plan is to take four pastors, two of which will teach at the seminary in Kisumu and two will lead a seminar for around 100 pastors and house church leaders. For this trip we will need some financial assistance to be able to provide lunch each day for about 40 seminary students and 100 pastors coming to the Seminar. This will cost around $1,500.00. Another exciting On Mission opportunity will be a trip to the Boston area to work with Church Planter Kody Aten. We are planning a combines adult and youth trip and the plan of action at this time is to provide a sports camp for the community. The tentative dates are July 28 th August 6 th. We will be finalizing the details in the next few weeks so please be praying to see if this might be a trip you could be involved in. You will read about other opportunities in this newsletter that will help our congregation be On Mission. I hope you will take the opportunity to get involved in reaching our town, their town and every town with the Gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ. As always remember that the Lord love you and so does your pastor. Pastor Charlie
Baptist Men The Baptist Men Ministry is going forward in 2017 with hopes of leading the men of our church in Christ s ministry. We want to Exalt, Equip, and Evangelize in the coming year. We can exalt Christ through our worship and Bible study. Part of worship is being involved in his ministries. We are ending our Men s Kingdom Man and it has been a very uplifting study. Thank you to Mike Inabinett for leading this study. We will plan other studies in future. We are exalting the Savior and equipping the saints by prayer in our Men s Prayer Group. We currently meet on the 4 th Thursday of each month at 7:00 PM. This is a time devoted to prayer for each other and our church. We hope more men will respond to this opportunity to enrich their lives by prayer time with fellow brothers in Christ. We are revamping the Handymen s Ministry and starting to look for small projects as well as larger ones. As small as changing a battery in a smoke detector to building handicap ramps. Men and women are invited to help with these projects. We are going to try having a form available for people to make recommendations for handyman projects. Be on the lookout for these. We had Baptist Men s Weekend January 28 & 29 th with breakfast and a work party to work on the tool trailer on Saturday. Then Sunday men lead the morning worship service with guest speaker Mark Abernathy from the NC Baptist Men. Sunday evening service we had testimonies from some of our men. Also continue to watch for opportunities to participate in Disaster Recovery trips. We hope to go at least once a month on these recovery trips. Currently we have been working in the Lumberton area. In Christ s Service Ken Palmeter Director Baptist Men FBCOI Church Chuckles A minister waited in line to have his car filled with gas just before a long holiday weekend. The attendant worked quickly, but there were many cars ahead of him in front of the service station. Finally, the attendant motioned him toward a vacant pump. "Preacher," said the young man, "I'm sorry about the delay. It seems as if everyone waits until the last minute to get ready for a long trip." The minister chuckled, "I know what you mean. It's the same in my business."
Evangelism Committee This year we have adopted evangelist, Brent Sloss phrase Have a Heart to Impart. Our desire is for every member of FBCOI to have an outward missional mindset. To that end we have a lot of activities planned for this year and we have already, hit the ground running, as the saying goes. In October we placed a bookmark, of 40 evangelistic Bible verses, in your bulletin. Thank you to those who have told us that these verses spoke to you as they did to us. Also in October we set up a tent during Trunks of Treats, in order to provide prayer for those attending the event. We also made available Bibles, tracts and informational brochures about FBCOI. We have purchased several DVDs that highlight the persecution of Christians in various cultures around the world. Behind the Sun, the first DVD, shared the story of Samir who was raised a Muslim. If you missed seeing this DVD be sure to attend the showing of, A Cry From Iran, in February. Also in February there will be a new bookmark in your bulletin with a focus on prayer and witnessing. We have purchased several books that present a fresh perspective on Evangelism. Adults will find these books refreshing, enlightening and motivating, regardless of your stage of life, place in your Christian walk or previous comfort level with Gospel sharing. These books are being placed in the library for you to check out. Look for these titles: Just Walk Across the Room: Simple Steps Pointing People to Faith by Bill Hybels. According to this book, evangelism has nothing to do with methods and everything to do with genuine interest in others. We need a heart in tune with the Holy Spirit and a willingness to step out of our comfort zone. Just start by walking over and saying Hello. Questioning Evangelism by Randy Newman. Trying to use a particular method can be difficult when someone s defensive questions derail the path of the method you re using. This book tells how to share Christ by doing what Christ Himself did, questioning, which causes people to evaluate the validity of their original question. On January 21 we had the opportunity to cover Oak Island in prayer by participating in Our Town Prayer Stations. Station areas for Adults, Youth, and Families with young children, offered directed prayer activities at various levels. What a blessing to be able to commune with God about Oak Island. In March we will need all hands on deck in order to cover as much of our town as possible in house to house visitation and tract/information bag distribution. Look forward to more information on the Tri-fold service we will hold on Good Friday. (That is, the Love Feast, foot washing and communion.) Followed by The Service of Darkness (Tenebrae service). Please be in prayer about joining us for this humbling and meaningful evening. Remember: Always have a Heart to Impart. Respectfully, Your Sister in Christ- Jacky Stauffer
2017 continues to provide opportunities for all of our mission groups to find ways to be God s hands and feet in our community and around the world. Thank you for joining us by your overwhelming gifts of the Offering for International Missions in December, exceeding our goal by nearly $2,800! Sunday, February 12 we look forward to celebrating Focus on WMU/Women s Sunday with our church as our ladies lead the 11 am service. The Mission Friends, GA s and ladies mission groups will be letting us know how they share God s love and the good news of Christ By All Means. All of our ladies are invited to join our choir that morning. During our service we will be receiving the Heck-Jones offering. This offering helps to support the work of WMU of North Carolina. Ladies, make plans to attend Repurpose, the 2017 Coastal Women s Retreat at Fort Caswell February 24-26. Beth Greer of Life and Godliness Ministries will be the speaker for the large group sessions. There will also be a variety of breakout sessions. The commuter cost is $63 per person and includes the program and Saturday lunch and dinner. Please see Joan Carter to sign up. On Saturday, March 4, we will be hosting a Ladies Morning Out - Pinterest with a Purpose Party with Amy Pardue Boone, the new Executive-Director/Treasurer of the WMU of NC. Join us for this time of fellowship and learning about how to creatively share God s love with others. This associational training event will begin at 10:00 am and concludes with lunch. All the ladies in our church are invited. You may register by signing up on the hall bulletin board or by calling Joan Carter (910-471-7826). Please watch the announcements for additional details as we get closer to the date. Joan Carter WMU Director
It s an exciting time to be child of God at First Baptist Church of Oak Island! What a wonderful Advent season!! The Ministry Council is so thankful to have had the opportunity to place a Bible in the hands of every child affiliated with First Baptist Church of Oak Island at our Happy Birthday Jesus party on December 14, 2016. We are even more thankful for missions leaders in GA s and RA s who helped our children dive right into God s word and begin using their new Bibles right away. On January 15, we had a wonderful time fellowshipping with all of God s children at our family game night. Thank you so much to everyone who shared in fellowship at these events! Looking ahead, we have many events coming up for children and families. On February 11 from 4:00-8:00 PM, we will host a Kids Night In. On March 11 at 10:00 AM, we will meet at the church for our bowling outing to Planet Fun. On March 25, we will gather for a nature walk at Brunswick Nature Park. All of God s children are encouraged to attend. While it seems far away, Vacation Bible School is truly just around the corner. This year we will become Galactic Starveyors who search the visible to discover the invisible and learn how the God who created the universe created and loves each of us. Our VBS is scheduled for June 25-29 from 6:00-8:30 each evening. Classes are available for ages 3-18. Please begin praying for this year s event. There are stars on the Ministry bulletin board with the names of children who have attended past church events with FBCOI. Please take a star (or more) and pray for the child listed on each of them. Please pray that those children would join us, that their hearts would be prepared to hear the word of God, that the Holy Spirit prompts VBS leaders to share God s word and God s love in a way that is meaningful to that child and that we would spark a revival in that child s heart that leads to a revival in our community. Prayer is our most important preparation. The following training sessions are scheduled to help equip us to serve in this outreach ministry of our church: Let s Taco About VBS February 12 from 12:30-4:00 Leading a Child to Christ March 5 from 4:00-5:30 Brunswick Baptist Association VBS Clinic March 18 from 9:00-12:00 Please see Beth Key if you would like to assist in any way. Many hands make light work and your time and talents are appreciated. There is a way for everyone to serve. As always, thank you for your continued support of the children and children s ministries of FBCOI. We are growing- in size, in number, in faith, in our connection to one another and in our knowledge of our Lord and Savior.
February 02 Sue Dotson 05 Rosalie Wilson 11 Faye Cashwell 12 John Overpeck 12 Jeff Gibby 14 Patricia Clark 14 Lisa Anderson 14 Charles Roberts 15 Gracie Duncan 15 Don Yeoman 17 Adele Poston 20 Hugh Nobles Birthdays March 01 Kathleen Adams 01 Doris Windham 01 David Justice 03 Ken Kiser 04 Janis Whitley 06 Jane Todd 07 Justin Hyer 09 Susan Heafner 11 Chris Benjamin 17 Rebekah Gibby 17 Ken Palmeter 17 Helen Robinson 17 Sean Basilio 21 Jessica Faircloth 23 Onie Dennis 23 Gene Dingwall 25 Steve Clark 31 Justin Page 31 Andrew King
February 2017 Sunday Monday Tuesday Wednesday Thursday Friday Saturday 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 Property & Space- 7pm 8 Mission Action- 11am 9 Lena Early- 7pm Mary Greene 6pm Men s Bible Study- 7pm 10 11 Kid s Night In 4pm-8pm 12 WMU Sunday 12pm- Let s Taco About VBS 19 Men s Choir Lunch & Rehearsal 13 Deacons- 7pm 14 15 20 21 22 16 Piecemakers- 10am 17 18 23 24 25 Flood Rebuild Trip- 6:30am- 8pm RA/GA Car Race Sabbath Home BC- 3pm- 5pm 26 A Cry From Iran- Movie- 6pm 27 28 Stewardship- 7pm
March 2017 Sunday Monday Tuesday Wednesday Thursday Friday Saturday Dosher Worship Center each Sunday Youth Month 5 Leading a Child to Christ- 4pm 12 April/ May Newsletter Info Due 6 Church Council- 7pm 13 Deacons- 7pm 7 Property & Space- 7pm 1 14 15 8 Mission Action- 11am 2 9 Lena Early- 7pm Mary Greene- 6 pm 16 Piecemakers- 10am Men s Ministry- 7pm 3 4 10 Flood Rebuild Trip 6:30am- 8pm 11 17 18 WMU Rally- 10am Ministry- Bowling- 10am VBS Clinic- 9am- 12pm 19 20 26 Youth Sunday 27 21 22 28 Stewardship- 7pm 29 23 Men s Prayer Group- 7pm 30 31 24 25