Worship God Equip Believers Build Community Share Christ Volume 122 Number 3 March 2016 Scholarship Notice 2016 17 College Scholarship Applications If you would like to apply for the 2016-17 FBC college scholarship, applications are due Friday, 4/15. You must apply if you are either a first-time applicant graduating from high school or a previous scholarship recipient continuing in college. Qualifications for scholarships are included on forms. Spring Forward! Daylight Saving Time day, 3/13 Don t forget to set your clocks ahead on Saturday night so you can be on time day morning! In This Issue Some Thoughts on Prayer From Our Pastor How to Talk to Others About Important Issues You Care About Eventually, the Focus Team is going to engage the congregation with their thoughts, their findings, their ideas, their concerns, and their recommendations. We need to be able to discuss those things together, whether in an official meeting or a casual conversation. As you heard me say last day, I will be doing all I can to avoid the situation where the Focus Team, which has been heartily engaged in a meaningful process, fails to communicate and connect with the rest of congregation. So, one of the ways to prepare ourselves for a meaningful process is to know how to do so. Have you ever noticed how a discussion with someone over something you care deeply about can become so heated that you cannot continue the conversation? Typically that happens when you discover the other person has a different view. Why does this happen? Perhaps we are not emotionally ready to discover differences of opinion. Perhaps we have never come to terms with the fact that people we care about can hold positions that are actually different from our own. I could go on. What I want to recommend is that you begin to prepare yourself for conversations about very, very important matters with people you are connected to as members of the body of Christ. The place to start is to consider these questions: 1. Have you noticed that you have to be right when there are differing opinions? 2. Do you believe it is possible to discover new insight on a topic you feel strongly about? 3. Are you able to distinguish between topics on which you should not consider changing your mind and topics on which you might possibly should change your mind? 4. Have you learned how to monitor and control your emotions when talking about really, really important matters? 5. Finally, do you need some coaching on these questions? I am looking forward to our church asking and answering some really good questions. See you day. Prayer Gatherings Note of Appreciation The Radical Challenge New Babies! Men s Breakfast March Calendar Ryan & Susan Dawson Testimony 3/16 at 6 pm Pearl Morton Hall Come and hear what the Father has been doing in and through this special couple. Important Dates in March 3/24 at 7 pm in the Sanctuary First Baptist Church, 2321 Avenue F, Bay City, TX 77414 Website: www.fbc-baycity.org
Worship Ministry Love so amazing, so divine, demands my soul, my life, my all! Isaac Watts Consider what it was like that day...three men being led to the excruciating death of crucifixion. Yet one of the men had done nothing to deserve this punishment. Truly, all of humankind past, present, and future merited the punishment given to Him, to Jesus Christ, that day. In His infinite love, He willingly took our deserved place on the cross, taking on Himself the iniquity of us all. What will we do in response to what He did for us? All we like sheep have gone astray; We have turned, every one, to his own way; And the Lord has laid on Him the iniquity of us all. Isaiah 53:6 (NKJV) We have a variety of opportunities to serve God through music. Will you consider joining with one of our choirs or ensembles? Here is our weekly schedule: Youth Praise Band JwC Youth Choir Children s Choirs Praise Band Mon First Kids Children's Ministry Tue Tue Wed Thu 530p 645p 930a Vacation Bible School June 19 23 Plan to join us on the journey to find the TRUTH below the surface! CentriKid Camp Ladies Ensemble King s Ringers Celebration Choir Jubilaires Mark your calendars! Keep a lookout for VBS project needs. We are looking for: Old fish nets, PVC pieces and old pool floats! Call the office if you have any of these lying around the house or garage! We need your stuff! 400p 600p Meet Me at the Fair Thursday, March 3 11:00 am Meet at the Matagorda County Fairgrounds; we ll have a wonderful day together! Breakfast at Diamond S Tuesday, March 8 9:00 am July 18-22 For all Kids who have completed 2nd 6th Grade Breakfast at Esperanza s AWANA Update No AWANA or Family Supper on Wednesday, 3/16 because of spring break. Tuesday, March 22 9:00 am Mark your calendars for great fun and great fellowship! For more information, call Carolyn Hale at 245-5109. Deep & Wide Student Ministry Youth Footgolf Trip - Humble Golf Center Saturday, March 19-10:00am 5:00pm Super Summer @HBU July 11-15 (7th-12th grade student leadership camp) $240 payment & forms due Monday, March 21 for early registration cost. Bring $20 for lunch & footgolf. Sign up NOW in the Youth Room, call the FBC Office, or message Chris. You will need a soccer ball and appropriate apparel. days Invite a friend to join us as we all try something new! Spring Fundraiser GARAGE SALE - Fri, 4/15 & Sat, 4/16 FBC family: you may now bring donation items during office hours or before/after service times (no clothing items, please). Contact the office for more info about dropping off items. 9:30am day School 4pm Praise Band, 5pm Choir 6pm Guys/Girls Groups Wednesdays Wed, Mar 2 7:30pm HS Leaders Mar 13 & 27 No evening activities, Mar 20 4pm YM Committee Sat, April 2 Lunch & God s Not Dead 2 movie
Some Thoughts on Prayer Some thoughts on prayer from The Battle Plan for Prayer inspired from War Room... Ps. 65:2 O You who hear prayer, to You all men come. Prayer can accomplish what a willing God can accomplish. It is a beautiful, mysterious, and awe-inspiring gift. There is no greater privilege for anyone than being able to personally talk with and speak into the ears of Almighty God. There s not an issue we re facing that prayer cannot address because nothing is too difficult or impossible for God to handle. And there is no greater legacy we could embrace or leave behind us than one of faithfulness in prayer Andrew Murray wrote, Christ s life and work, His suffering and death, were founded on prayer total dependence upon God the Father, trust in God, receiving from God, and surrendering to God. Your redemption is brought into being by prayer and intercession. The life He lived for you and the life He lives in you is a life that delights to wait on God and receive from Him. To pray in His name is to pray as He prayed. Christ is our example because He is our Head, our Savior, and our Life. In virtue of His deity and of His Spirit, He can live in us. We can pray in His name because we abide in Him and He abides in us. Thousands gathered each week to hear the powerful, expository messages of this Prince of Preachers (Charles Spurgeon), who taught and wrote extensively on the power of prayer. When visitors came through his New Park Street Church, he would often walk them to the basement prayer room where people were faithfully on their knees interceding to God for Spurgeon and their community. Spurgeon would declare, Here is the powerhouse of this church. No church program, religious event, political effort, or humanitarian cause can trump the awesome power of what God can do in response to the prayers of His people. What would happen if believers and churches today followed the great people of the Bible and in Christian history and began to pray powerfully and effectively? What if we decided to get right with God and begin humbly seeking His face in faith for revival and spiritual awakenings? What might God do through us? Through you? Father, I come before You and thank You for the great legacy of prayer that has come before us. I ask you to pour out Your Holy Spirit on me and Your church. Draw me into a daily, more intimate walk with You. May prayer become as natural to me as breathing, and may You work through my prayers to help bring about Your kingdom and Your will in my heart, my home, and my generation. In Jesus name, I pray, amen. The Battle Plan for Prayer; Stephen & Alex Kendrick; copyright 2015 by Kendrick brothers, LLC; Published by B & H Publishing Group, Nashville, Tennessee; pp 9, 11-13, 14. Prayer Gatherings in March Prayer for the Nations Tuesday, March 1 Prayer Gathering Tuesday, March 15 7 pm in Pearl Morton Hall With Heartfelt Sympathy The FBC Family extends sympathy to the following members and their families in the loss of their loved ones: Dear FBC Family, Fara Ashcraft loss of grandmother Daren Butler loss of father Gwen Kirkpatrick loss of mother Thinking of You and Sharing in Your Sorrow Note of Appreciation My family and I thank you so much for all of your support, and especially your prayers, during my dad's recent illness and since his going home to be with our Lord. It was also a blessing to see you among those who came to his service to celebrate his life with us. Your many shows of kindness and love have been and continue to be a great encouragement to us. In Christ, Daren March Mission Focus: North American Missions Annie Armstrong Easter Offering Week of Prayer: March 6-13 FBC Offering $6,000 What is the Annie Armstrong Easter Offering? In 1895, the first missions offering to benefit the work of home missions (now known as North American missions) was promoted and taken up by Woman s Missionary Union (WMU). The Home Mission Board (now known as North American Mission Board) asked for $5,000 toward its work. WMU efforts exceeded that goal. From that start to today, more than $1 billion has been raised for North American mission efforts. Every dollar of the offering (named after missions advocate/wmu leader, Annie Armstrong, in 1936) goes to missionaries and their work of sharing the life-transforming gospel of Jesus Christ throughout the United States, Canada, and their territories. To learn more, go to www.anniearmstrong.com.
Wednesday Night Supper Each Week Extreme Salad Bar, Fresh Fruit, Dessert & Drinks March 2 Meatloaf, Fried Cabbage & Buttered Potatoes Serving: Frances Duey Sharon Lindberg Cleaning: Mattie & Gayle Watkins David & Kelly Winters March 9 Pinto Beans with Meat, Rice & Cornbread Serving: Carolyn Bartlett Chelette Payne Cleaning: Bob King & Buddy Kelley March 16 No Family Supper Spring Break March 23 Cheeseburger Soup & Cornbread Serving: Paul & Sheila Hanna Cleaning: Carolyn Hale, Carol Wedgeworth, Wayne Witte March 30 Lasagna, Green Beans & Rolls Serving: Carl & Addie Townsend Cleaning: Jo Ann Culbreth, Sandra Watson, Betty Matthes, Pat Matthes New Babies! To Andy & Carolyn Anderson on the birth of their greatgranddaughter! Caroline Essie Steinman was born to Phillip & Erron Steinman on February 5 and weighed 7 lbs. and 1 oz. To Arthur & Susie Riggs on the birth of their grandson! Parker Jameson Riggs was born to John & Cheryl Riggs on January 20 and weighed 7 lbs. and 3 oz. Men s Breakfast Bring a friend and your appetite and come enjoy the fellowship! Information Center day School Report Date Enroll Attend Jan 31 525 229 Feb 7 522 249 Feb 14 521 205 Average day School Att. YTD = 217 (through Week 24) Tithes & Offerings Report Date Given Jan 31 $16,090.23 Feb 7 $14,904.10 Feb 14 $14,840.92 YTD 2016 Needed: $123,859.33 YTD 2016 Given: $123,538.41 Designated Gifts Benevolence Music Special Texas Baptist Men Memorials Faye Brown Benevolence Dee Nelson Memorial, Benevolence Margie Quinn Memorial, Benevolence The Radical Challenge ipray for the entire world. Pray together for the entire world over the course of a year, using the resources provided by Operation World. iread through the entire Word. Read through the entire Bible using the chronological Bible reading plan provided by the Radical Experiment ministry. icommit your total family budget for the purpose of glorifying God. For the next year make specific decisions that result in gaining financial freedom to give more for the sake of the glory of Christ in His church, among the lost and among the poor. ispend time serving the Lord outside your established routine and familiar surroundings. Commit to give of your time in Gospel ministry outside of your routine; your comfort zone. This might be a local ministry project, a church ministry with which you have never served, or it could be a mission trip away. icommit yourself wholeheartedly to the church. Take a really close look at your church involvement to see if there is room to deepen or strengthen your connection with the church. See if God is calling you to participate in a day school class, a small group, or to begin to serve in a particular ministry. The church is the body of Christ. What you do individually, will affect and enhance the body as a whole. What will be your part this year in the radical challenge as we move forward together with the Lord?
March 2016 Mon Tue Wed Thu Fri Sat 6 4pm Yth Praise Band 5pm Children s Drama Reh (CB201) 5pm JwC Choir 6pm Girls/Guys Bible Study 13 Week of Prayer Spring Forward Daylight Saving Time Begins Today 7 6pm Ladies Bible 7pm Deacon Council 14 20 21 4pm Yth Praise Band 4pm Youth Cmte 6pm Ladies Bible 5pm Children s Drama Reh (CB201) 5pm JwC Choir 5pm Finance Cmte 6pm Girls/Guys Bible Study 6pm Children s Choirs (CB) 27 EASTER 28 6pm Ladies Bible 1 7pm Prayer for the Nations (PMH) 8 9am Breakfast (Diamond S) 15 10 am Jubilaires Ministry (Mat. House) 7pm Prayer Gathering (PMH) 22 9am Breakfast (Esperanza s) 29 2 Choir 7:30pm HS Student Leaders (Conf. Rm) 9 Choir 16 6pm Ryan & Susan Dawson Testimony (PMH) 7pm Celebration Choir 23 Choir 30 Choir 3 4 10:30am Jubilaires Ministry (Bay Villa) 11am Fair Day (Matagorda County Fairgrounds) 10 17 10:30am Jubilaires Ministry (Mat. Rehab) 24 7pm Maundy Thursday Service (Lord s Supper) 31 5 7:30am Men s Breakfast(Gym) 11 12 18 19 10am Youth Footgolf (Humble Golf Center) 25 GOOD FRIDAY FBC Office & CDC Closed 26