Volume 21, Number 9 March 1st, 2015 Necessities, For Growing Churches by A growing church is a needy church; when a congregation is genuinely growing, it always needs something. Think about some conditions common to growing churches: There will be Christians at every stage of growth, in both grace and in (bible) knowledge, 2 Peter 3:18. Some will be very knowledgeable (especially of bible facts), while others won t know very much (yet). Some may also possess great grace with (relatively) little knowledge, while others may have great knowledge but little grace! Thankfully, there are also folks present who are mature in both knowledge and grace! There is always a pressing need for things in growing churches; things for the classrooms, and things for teaching; there are all kinds of things that need to be done, and there are usually some things which shouldn t have been done. There is lots of zeal in growing churches, and it s often accompanied by impatience! Some things take longer than we want, whether it is building a building, getting a program off the ground, or simply growing a person s bible knowledge. Now think about the necessities of a growing church: A growing congregation NEEDS vision, a clear sense of who they are, why they exist, where they are going, and how they will get there. A growing congregation NEEDS both leadership and discipleship. This means the elders must give attention and energy to shepherding the church. They must truly tend (know, pay attention to, serve, instruct, correct, comfort and heal) their flock; they must invest time with each member and family, so as to better guard and guide their souls; they must assess the needs of the flock and the individual sheep, and act to supply those needs, biblically. This also means that the members of the congregation must be willing followers (disciples). When Christians carp and kibitz, fuss and find fault, and sit and sulk instead of working with and submitting to their elders, they hinder the church s growth, make their elders responsibilities much harder to fulfill, and place themselves in opposition to God by thwarting His design for the body. In a growing church, there is always a great NEED for encouragement. Because there are saints at every stage of spiritual growth, some are challenged (discouraged) by recognizing how far I have to go or how little I know, while others are challenged when they realize how little they have grown. Some need encouragement to develop God-given talents or abilities, while others simply need to become encouragers! Members of growing churches NEED forbearance. With members at every point along the maturity spectrum, it is easy for mature Christians to become impatient or even unkind toward those who are new in the faith. We need to remember that strong meat is not for babes, and that the strong have a responsibility to the weak (Romans 15:1). It says a lot about us when spiritual babes understand this better than grownups! A growing congregation NEEDS focused, dedicated, sacrificing members. When we look at the original Christians, their standout characteristic was that the church was the centerpiece of their lives. Is it really asking too much for the church to come before family, work, school, sports, etc.? A growing church needs all these things, and many more, to thrive and prosper. These qualities are not automatically present, and even when they are, they often need to be cultivated and propagated, so the whole church can benefit. For the next several weeks in this space, we will look at what the Bible says about these and other qualities, so that the church here can continue to grow, both numerically and spiritually.
Fayetteville Church of Christ Ladies Day A Taste of Heaven March 14, 2015 Speaker: Chere Slocumb Spring Gospel Meeting Speaker: Rob Whitacre BACK TO THE BIBLE March 15-18, 2015 (Luncheon on Sunday and sign up sheet is on the bulletin)
Family matters Coney Johnson Has been referred to a lung specialist for a biopsy. Butch Trawick Is in Piedmont Fayette Hospital with pneumonia. Missy Campbell Is waiting on CT scan results. Jo Ruffer Is having problems with her shoulder. Lewis Armstrong Will have knee replacement March 9th. Linda Howell Is having problems with her knee. Joann Beasley Stan & Brenda Mitchell s niece will have surgery March 3rd. Bernice Gillespie Is not feeling well. Annette Benefield Is having severe pain in her back. Cathy Whitacre Will have a CT scan the end of March. Ed & Doris Buckner Ed is in Piedmont Fayette Hospital with pneumonia. Members With Health Problems: Luann Rogers, Becky Higginbotham, Marlene Etheridge, Janis Libby, Lillian Gray, Equillar Butler, Becky Brown, Maylon Swann, Jane Lankford, Hick & Estell Higginbotham, Mattie Williams, RuPearl Sharpe, Una Fortson, Dave & Joan Poskevich, David & Shirley Lee Shut-ins: David & Jill Nash, Audrey Shaw, Lucille Amon & Frances Elder Others With Health Problems: Chester Walding (Debbie s husband), Xernonia Fortson (Una s daughter), Bob Neel (friend of Dave Rogers), Lorraine Welsh (Lynn Manning s mother), Joyce Greene (Denise Greene s mother), Eddie & Lil Cauthen (Joan Poskevich s brother and sister-in-law), Ruth King (Linda Howell s sister), Dick & Mayes Howard (Barbara Cozart s brothers), Virginia Poskevich (David s mother), Bill Croix (Mattie s husband), Joe Hand (Jim Scoma s brother-in-law) and Marvin Cook (Jean Johnson s brother) Calendar Mar 2-June 1 GA School of Preaching/Biblical Studies - Buford Campus Life of Christ, Instructor Michael Gifford Mar 6 Fellowship Game Night at 6pm Mar 7 Cancelled Men s Breakfast Mar 8 at 2pm Singing at Dogwood Forest See Paul Lyons for details. Mar 14 Fayetteville s Ladies Day A Taste of Heaven Speaker: Cheré Slocumb Developing our Appetites for Spiritual Things Sharing That Appetite With Others McDonough COC Men s Leadership Conference Mar 15-18 Spring Gospel Meeting Speaker: Rob Whitacre (Luncheon on Sunday; and a Sign up sheet for meals during the week is on the bulletin board) Mar 21 Hartley Bridge Rd COC (Macon) Ladies Day Women under Construction Speaker: Renita Archey Mar 22 Tiffany Durden Bridal Shower at 3pm (She is registered at Wal Mart). Mar 28 McDonough COC Ladies Day My cup Overflows! And I m Drinking from the Saucer Speakers: Cynthia Guy & Consuela Jack Youth Calendar Bible Bowl Mar 1 Mar 8 Snacks Mar 13 - Extra Bible Bowl Session- Home of Sally Wallace Mar 15 Allene Scoma Mar 22 Susie Graham Mar 27 Extra Bible Bowl Session Home of Joan Poskevich Dinner will be provided RSVP. We can help with transportation back home, if desired. Mar 6-8 SAY Weekend at Peachtree City COC Youth Rally for 6th-12th Grade (Information is on the bulletin board) Mar 14 Paul Bunyan Breakfast & Workday at Camp Inagehi Mar 15 Area Wide Youth Devotional - East Point COC (the bus will leave the building at 6:30pm) Mar 29 Young People s Reception (LTL) Apr 3-5 Lads/Leaderettes Convention Weekend Apr 6-10 Spring Break for Fayette County Schools
Call To Worship Scripture Reading Prayer Song Leader Preside Lord s Supper Sermon Response Elder Announcements Song Closing Prayer Evening Service Prayer Song Leader Sermon Closing Prayer Mar 1 Harry Williams Andrew Williams Curtis Hurt Gayle Pelfrey WORSHIP ASSIGNMENTS Mar 8 Jordan Madison. Gayle Pelfrey Harry Williams Dave Poskevich Paul Lyons Mar 15 Thomas Quinn Rob Whitacre Rob Whitacre Randall Bell Jack Garner Mar 22 Jordan Madison. Rick Sharpe Hugh Kelly Song Service Rick Sharpe Mar 29 Curtis Hurt Jim Obrien Prayer Service Ron BIles Bob Howell Anthony Ravenell S A Youth RallY South-Side AreA-Wide Colossians 4:2-6 March 6-8 Peachtree City Church of Christ 6th-12th Grade Information is on the bulletin board. Fayetteville Church of Christ 2015 Goals Growing the Church Address: 870 Redwine Road Fayetteville, Georgia 30215 Monday Friday, 9-4 Office Telephone (770) 461-3617, (770) 461-8231 Fax Email: mail@fcoc.com Web Page: http://www.fcoc.com www.facebook.com/fayettevillecoc Ministers: (361) 649-6638 Dave.rogers@fcoc.com, (404) 455-1546 (cell) gnash999@gmail.com Office Secretary: Susie Graham celiagraham@bellsouth.net Elders: (770 652-7389 (770) 461-3197 (404) 455-1546 (770) 629-2061 Deacons: Dennis Graham David Hopkins Hugh Kelly Jerry Kendrix Andy Johnson Paul Lyons David Poskevich Anthony Ravenell Assembly Schedule: Sunday 9:00 am Bible Classes 10:00 am Worship Service 6:00 pm Worship Service 10:00 am Tuesday Morning Bible Class (September 11 May 14) 7:00 pm Wednesday Night Bible Study 7:00 pm Thursday Night Ladies Class (September-May) Communion Preparation Terri Durden Nursery 1-Susan Pelfrey 8-Decieta Lyons 15-Staci Nash 22-Sally Wallace/Morgan Boelsterli 29-Chelsea Russell Care of Building 3/1-15 David Hopkins/Ray Cozart 16-31 /Curtis Hurt Ushers 1 Steve Burdette/ 8 Ray Cozart/Rick Sharpe 15 Jimmy Garner/ 22 David Hopkins/Harry Williams 19 David Poskevich/Rory Bell Open Arms 3/1 Estell Higginbotham, Rose Durden, Linda Johnson, Jo Hurt, Theresa Green, Tom & Terri Durden Wednesday Evening Devotional 3/4-11 - 18 -Anthony Ravenell Our Missionaries Graham, Elizabeth, Joshua, Megan, Bethany & Elijah McDonald Scotland,11 Woodhead Ct, Westfield, Cumbernauld, North Lanarkshire, G68 9DB Email: graham@gmcd.net Skype: gmcd105 or www.gmcd.net Scott, Rebecca & Violet Shananhan Pohnpel scottshanahan@hotmail.com Kenloy & Ivell Walker Jamaica Brown s Town Church of Christ, 876-569-2039 Forrest & Burma Chapman, Georgia Hiawassee, Ga. email: ftc1952@alltel.com