JANUARY 2019 Volume XXIX Issue 1 Published Since 1988 Ministries for Mankind Luke 4:18 The spirit of the Lord is upon me, because he hath anointed me to preach the gospel to the poor; he hath sent me to heal the broken hearted, to preach deliverance to the captives, and recovering of sight to the blind, to set at liberty them that are bruised. 1
From the Pen of Our Beloved Pastor, A.W. Anthony Mays Dear Members and Friends of the Mount, Thanks, be unto God for His unspeakable Gift! (2 Cor. 9:15). God s Gift to mankind is the person, Jesus Christ, the Savior. Our confession, as believers, is that Jesus Christ is both, our personal Savior, and He is LORD! How very rude and mean spirited it is, in polite society, to reject a gracious gift which was given from the heart. Well, let s move this deplorable act from a social fault to the realm of the spiritual sin which it is. Persons need to know that not only has God given the wonderful gift of His Son, Jesus Christ, but to reject God s gift is to bring a very dark and eternal doom upon one s soul. I believe there are far too many persons who are casually rejecting the Gift of Christ. Perhaps they believe it is but a small matter. We, as Christians, must be most diligent to make all persons aware to warn them that our eternal destinations hang in the balance of whether one receives the Gift of Jesus Christ, or one rejects the Gift of Jesus Christ. There is absolutely no other hope for eternal salvation outside of, and apart from Jesus the Christ. Happy New Year to all! Allow us to greet you in this new year 2019, and to pray for all of you the very best from the LORD, this year and beyond. Press it firmly and hold it into your reason of confidence that since the LORD brought us through all that happened in 2018, He is surely able to do it again in 2019. Glory to His name! Let us prepare to continue faithfully and steadfastly in our commitment as a church to read together through the entire Bible this year of 2019. It will require devotion and discipline and unwavering resolve. Keep also in mind that we desire to be a church, Learning and Living in the Word. Daily Bible readings a little each day will bring us from our beginning in Genesis on January 1, to the conclusion in Revelation on December 31. Let us not be weary in well doing as the Bible says. Encourage yourself in the LORD and encourage your reading partner(s) on a regular basis to see this through to the end. Let us also prepare to go out from our church campus on the fourth Saturday of this month and greet our new neighbors. Our thanks to Sister Andrea Williams for accepting the challenge to give leadership to this project. And to all of those who will assist to make this a great success, we say thanks. We are calling for all the members to come and spread the word that the Mount Sinai Baptist Church is now in this community, and that we have come to share Jesus, and to serve our present age, our calling to fulfill. Our permanent signage is not yet in place. Thanks for all those persons who are willing to donate to realize the best permanent signage we can develop. Yes, we need signage on this building, and on the street to make persons to know who we are and what we are about. We will be more able to complete these remaining phases when the property at 5900 Cameron Road is finally and completely sold. The funds generated from that sale will help us to finally develop the remaining building phases within 8500 Cameron Road. We ask the Lord to grant all of us the patience to wait through the inconveniences which are a part of our journey through these days. And so the Lord has brought us through 2018. 2018 will be remembered as the year that the Mount Sinai Church relocated to its larger and expanded campus and worship center. I trust that this will be our final relocation. We yet have much to do to fully develop and use this new property for ministry and for the glory of our Lord. Phase 2, the second floor build-out, is well underway, and we await its near completion for the relief of administrative offices, music ministry and classroom spaces it will provide. The beginning design ideas for Phase 3, the very large floor space which abuts this building on the northside, which will house our large dining area, our Christian Academy, Classrooms, and a full-size gym for recreation and other activities, are begun. The complete development of these phases is tied to the funds to be received from the eventual sale 2
of the property at 5900 Cameron Road. Please continue to pray for the current transaction between Mount Sinai and the Buyer to be successfully completed. Allow me in closing to pray for each of us a Blessed New Year! www.themount.net www.facebook.com/themountaustin www.instagram.com/themountaustin www.twitter.com/themountaustin 3
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Mt. Sinai Baptist Church The Mountaineer Newsletter We welcome those who are interested in using their gifts and talents for the Lord! Contact us!!! In Our Mailbox * PLEASE NOTE: Cards that appear in the In Our Mailbox section are typically cards that are addressed to Mt. Sinai Baptist Church. Cards addressed to specific ministries or staff members rarely appear in this section. Thank you for understanding. Christmas Greetings Sent - From the Board and Staff of MMBB Financial Services - Joyce Elam Cards Sent On behalf of the family of Willie Marie Roberts, I want to express our thanks and gratitude to Mt. Sinai. We appreciate your thoughtful cards and expressions of condolences during our time of sorrow. Words cannot adequately describe our gratitude for the outpouring of love and heartfelt concern received from my Mt. Sinai family and each of its ministries. Thank you and God bless you all. -Sylvia Small www.themount.net www.facebook.com/themountaustin www.instagram.com/themountaustin www.twitter.com/themountaustin 5
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Women s Ministry Birthday Celebration Saturday, January 19, 2019 2 4 pm Theme: Survival Stories --- How We Got Over Ephesians 6:13 All Women of the MOUNT are invited to attend and to bring a guest. You and your guest are encouraged bring your favorite dish! Maxine Alexander, Birthday Celebration Chairperson Robbie Overton, Women s Ministry Coordinator Rev. A.W.A. Mays, Senior Pastor For more information contact Maxine Alexander at (512) 699-6228 or the church office (512) 451-0808 7
Mt. Sinai Youth Ready for the Future Congratulations to Taylor Finley for earning All A's as a Freshman at Connally High School. Taylor was also awarded Most Valuable Player for her leadership and participation during the 2018 Connally Lady Cougar Freshman Volleyball season. Way to go Taylor! Keep up the great work! ********************************* Congratulations to Sydnei Shaw for being inducted into the National Junior Honor Society for Hutto ISD on December 5, 2018. Sydnei was also selected for Texas Music Educators Association (TMEA) Middle School Girls Regional Choir for 2018-2019 school year. Sydnei was the only student selected for the regional choir from Hutto Middle school in 12 years. Also, congratulations to Sydnei for maintaining A/B Honor roll for 1st and 2nd Six weeks at Hutto Middle School. Keep up the GOOD WORK and STAY FOCUSED!! ********************************** Congratulations to Averi Shaw for making A/B Honor Roll for the 1st nine weeks. Averi is a second grader at Veterans Hills Elementary School in Hutto ISD. Keep up the Good Work Averi! Teachable Money Moments Help kids learn to save and spend wisely. Too often, kids grow up with little interest in or understanding of financial matters. Just five states (Alabama, Missouri, Tennessee, Utah, and Virginia) require high school students to take a course in financial literacy. It may not surprise you that recently, when the FINRA Foundation offered a financial literacy test to consumers, only about a third of the test-takers passed. The good news is, life offers plenty of opportunities to communicate the value of money to your kids or grandkids. Take the beginning of a year: you and your child or grandchild can set a money goal; perhaps, to save or earn a certain amount. Before age ten, you can teach the importance of weighing choices when spending. You can hand a child several dollars in a supermarket and ask him or her to select what fruit or cereal the household should buy; this is a grown-up moment in which you can share lessons about value, the nature of saving, and why you make one buying decision over another. For preteens and teens, you can explain the value of saving versus spending and the concept of opportunity cost; you can also discuss expenses for college, and how higher education can be funded. All these opportunities link financial concepts to everyday life. 2 8
There is a song God is by James Cleveland that has a final line, God is my all in all. As I listened to the song, God is described as so many things. God is my light in darkness, God is the joy and strength of my life, God is my joy in time of sorrow, and God is my today and tomorrow. As I pondered the lyrics, I had to ask myself who is God to me? Maybe you have wondered the same thing after hearing people describing who God is to them. Maybe you heard songs describing who God is and wondered if He is that to you as well. I John 4:16 (KJV) states, And we have known and believed the love that God hath to us. God is love; and he that dwelleth in love dwelleth in God, and God in him. God is love!! I remember hearing songs growing up that talked about how God is the bright and morning star; how God is the lily in the valley. Back in my youth, I had no idea what these songs meant. They were just songs that seemed to drag on forever. However, as I have lived this life, I know who God is to me. God is a comforter. When at your lowest, God is right there to comfort you. God is a provider. When you don t know how you are going to make it, God is right there to provide what you need. God is peace. When chaos is all around you, God is the peace that passes all understanding. God is a friend. When feeling all alone, remember God is there to stick closer than a brother. As we welcome in 2019, never forget who God is. No matter what you go through, God is. As God was with you in 2018, He is right by your side in 2019. Joshua 1:9(KJV) states, Have not I commanded thee? Be strong and of a good courage; be not afraid, neither be thou dismayed: for the Lord thy God is with thee whithersoever thou goest. I can truly say who God is to me!! Can you? 9
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Laughter is good for the soul The events, characters, thoughts and ideas depicted in this section are fictitious, but have been inspired by church life. Any similarity to actual persons, living or dead is purely coincidental Thanks for understanding! Coming February 2019 From Milk to Meat: Seven Biblical Truths That Lead to Spiritual Growth Christians who are serious about their walk with God should also be serious about their spiritual growth. God calls all believers to be spiritually mature: Therefore leaving the elementary teaching about the Christ, let us press on to maturity. ~ Hebrews 6:1a (NASB) This book will help you grow spiritually such that you: by Joey A. Perry, Sr. Realize God loves you, despite your circumstances! Trust God s wisdom and power, even when you don't understand why you are going through what you are going through! Praise God, in spite of your problems! Face life's challenges with faith in God instead of fear. Worry less when you encounter trouble because you will understand God is in complete control of everything, including your situation! 11 And more! It's time that we all become the spiritually mature believers God commands and expects us to be!
Mt. Sinai Baptist Church The Mountaineer Newsletter Interested in being a Mountaineer Contributor? We welcome those who are interested in using their gifts and talents for the Lord! The Mountaineer welcomes your Monthly News!!! Whether it s news about Retirements, Birthdays, Scholastic Achievements, Promotions, Anniversaries & Community Recognitions! Submit all articles to: Dorothy Mays Clark at info@themount.net! Mount Sinai Baptist Church 8500 Cameron Road; 78754 Phone: 512-451-0808 Fax: 512-302-4575 Web: www.themount.net info@themount.net Weekly Services Sunday Worship 7:45 a.m. & 11:00 a.m. Sunday Church School 9:45 a.m. Wednesday Night Worship 7:00 p.m. Dorothy Mays Clark, 12 Mountaineer Editor