FIRST BAPTIST CHURCH OF COOLIDGE Cool Connection Volume 3 Issue 3 March 2014 Annie Armstrong Easter offering for North American Missions The Annie Armstrong Easter Offering is much more than an offering envelope and an annual missions-giving emphasis. When people give to the offering, 100 percent of their gift will be transformed into missionary salaries and ministry supplies. Those missionaries and supplies will help others hear the message of Christ and respond in faith to His offer of salvation. Time and again our missionaries relate how the offering is their lifeblood. They know that behind each penny given, there is a Southern Baptist who believes in what they do and are affirming the need to equip them to share the gospel with those who need a Savior. Your Southern Baptist Convention Ministry Assignments to NAMB include: Establishment of New Congregations Evangelism Appointment and Support of Missionaries Missions and Missions Education Leadership Development Disaster Relief Annie Armstrong Inside this issue: Note from Pastor 2 Children Update 2 Outreach Update 3 Meet FBC Coolidge 3 A Man in a Castle 4 What do Your AAEO-supported Baptist Press Update 5 missionaries do? GALS Report 6 Start new churches Engage in student Buildings/Ground 6 evangelism on college campuses Serve the physical and spiritual needs of people through ministry evangelism Serve as church planting catalysts VBS 2014 will be held June 9-13 from 9:00AM- 11:30AM. Applications are being accepted by the Leadership Team for Special Agents (Teachers and workers) to help staff this year s VBS. Student Registration will kick off the First of May and will be limited to those students having completed Pre- Kindergarten to those having completed 5th Grade. Encourage the children near you to attend!
P A G E 2 C OOL C O N N E C T I O N A Note from Pastor Chuck March is upon us and Easter is just around the corner. More people attend church at Easter than at any other time of the year. For that reason we as a church make every effort to prepare to share the love of Jesus with everyone who takes the time to share Easter with us. But why would they come to our church? What is the likelihood that someone from our region would randomly select our church to attend? Does location play a part? Does our Web Page help? Does our Facebook Page attract attention? In some ways all of these things help. But none of these are the primary reason people will choose to attend our church. People want to see a move of God in the hearts and lives of the people of God that is remarkable and can only be explained by the authentic power of God. Looking around our community and region, would you agree with me that we are in troubling times? Watching the news or browsing the internet, we along with everyone else see only troubling and frightening news. You don t have to look far to see that in the life of the people without Christ, there is very little hope for the future. But we have a hope and His Name is Jesus! We, as Christians, are not to be desperate about the times in which we are living because of our faith in God. But there is something for which we should be more than desperate, more than grieved, more than sorrowful. We should be desperate for the lives of those people we know who are without hope in a hopeless would because they do not have a relationship with the Lord Jesus Christ. Paul talked about this when he said in the book of Romans: 1 I speak the truth in Christ I am not lying; my conscience is testifying to me with the Holy Spirit 2 that I have intense sorrow and continual anguish in my heart. 3 For I could almost wish to be cursed and cut off from the Messiah for the benefit of my brothers, my own flesh and blood. Romans 9:1-3 (HCSB) Can you think of 5 people for which you have this same kind of desperation? Maybe someone in your family who is without Christ. Maybe a co-worker or a neighbor. Maybe a good friend. I encourage you to list 5 people in the front of your Bible to pray for every day and to invite them to church on Easter Sunday. They are likely going somewhere so why not as your guest here to hear the Gospel? Desperately Yours, Pastor Chuck Children s Ministry report Next time you go through the foyer next to the kitchen, check out what our Sunday school children and our Gospel Kids children have been up to. The large banner of the names of God was made by the Sunday school children, and the God s Covenant bulletin board was done by the Gospel Kids. All the children s workers agree that the joy and enthusiasm of these children each Wednesday night and Sunday morning is contagious. If you ever need a spiritual boost, just drop in on the excitement. Please pray that our children will be witnesses for Christ at school and at home during their childhoods and throughout their adult lives. Sincerely, Jo Lynn Holden
V O L U M E 3 I S S U E 3 Outreach P A G E 3 The first two months of 2014 have brought a lot of cold weather, but here at FBC Coolidge, we have a lot of warm hearts! I don t have to look very far to people sharing Jesus with their neighbors, community, and even beyond. I would call it building relationships, showing kindness, giving encouragement, helping those in need yes, sharing Jesus. It s not a religion, not a philosophy, not even a ministry, but a lifestyle. It s just what we do out of love for one another, but most of all out of love for the One who gave up His life so that we can have life, and have it to the fullest. How about joining us? How about tasting a little bit of this life in Christ? In the next few months, there will be many opportunities for you to reach out to those in and around Coolidge. Check the bulletin each week to see where you can join us in reaching people for Jesus. Some opportunities include: The Mesquite Tree Festival is right around the corner, and already excitement is building. The festival gives us numerous opportunities to visit with so many people. This year, we are planning on setting up tables and chairs under a tent in the main attraction area to give those who have purchased food from other vendors a place to sit and eat. We hope to have access to electricity in order to plug in a fan and perhaps a CD player to make it a little more enjoyable. We will also be registering kids for VBS. This not only helps on the opening days of VBS, but it gets the kids thinking about VBS. Believe it or not, we are already having kids asking when we are having VBS. This should be a fun day to get out and be around the excitement of the city. Won t you plan to be there? VBS is such a great opportunity to reach children and their families for Christ. It s a way to get to know the families, their needs, and their concerns. Isn t that what Christ did? If we are the body of Christ, let s use VBS outreach to reach out and let them know that God loves them by our actions. Outreach will begin June 23. We will be extending an invitation for them to attend our July 4 th celebration as well as telling them how much we enjoyed teaching their children about Jesus. Please make plans to join in on the outreach. I want to thank my sisters in Christ, the GALS, for coming alongside and always supporting any and all the outreach efforts. From singing at the nursing homes to making and delivering meals, along with mailing encouraging notes to hosting Bible studies, all have brought glory to God, and for that I am thankful for being able to be a part. A special thanks goes to Frances Carter for leading the GALS. She constantly is looking for ways to minister to our church family and beyond. We invite all ladies to come and join us. Deborah Meet first Baptist church, Coolidge We want you to meet Jean Burleson. She is an important member of FBC Coolidge and a very active member of our GALS ministry. She is very dedicated to the ministries of our church and a vital member of our Prayer Ministry. Jean is such a pleasure to be with as she is always coming up with something to make us laugh! Jean hosted a GALS meeting in February and everyone had a wonderful time. He dog even made us welcome! We love Jean Burleson! M.E.N. s prayer breakfast Saturday March 15th at 9:00 am All men age 18 and older are invited to attend our Saturday Prayer Breakfast. Good food and interactions with the men of Coolidge and surrounding area. Prayer and Bible Study included.
P A G E 4 A Man in a Castle Let me tell you a story. It is a story of a man who lived in a beautiful castle in the middle of the Black Forest of Germany. His name was Wolfgang. (Pronounced Vulfgahng) Wolfgang didn t own the castle but his family had been charged with the care of the castle for hundreds of years. Wolfgang s earliest memories included playing hide and seek with his father in the beautiful forest just outside the castle. All his life he had been in around every inch of the beautiful place. The family that owned the castle was an old German family who in days gone by had been nobility in the land that we call Germany today. A very kind and generous family that had for hundreds of years cared deeply for the people in their region who relied on the castle and that family for their safety and well- being. It was a very happy place with a very long history and Wolfgang loved to hear all the stories of the days gone by when the castle was filled with people and events that everyone came to and loved. But life goes on. The family that owned the castle had gotten involved in new and modern businesses in Stuttgart and didn t have the time to spend at the castle that earlier generations had done in the past. So that left Wolfgang with the job of keeping up the castle and at first he did a wonderful job. But as time went on, Wolfgang began to slow down. After all, the family almost never came and when they did he expected that they would let him know that they were coming so that he could have everything in readiness. So Wolfgang took the time to do other things that seemed more enjoyable, all the time knowing that he would have to work very hard and very swiftly when he knew the family was coming to the castle. Then it happened. Quite unexpectedly and suddenly one day, Wolfgang out for his morning stroll in the forest, saw the motorcade of black BMW s making their way up the road and to the castle. He ran with all his heart but the cars arrived at the castle before him and as he ran in through the gate and into the courtyard there before him was the owner of the castle with his family and his children. He noticed a tear in the eye of the owner as the owner saw trash on the grounds, cracks on the walls, and many other things for which Wolfgang was responsible to have taken care of long ago. Standing in front of the owner, Wolfgang was without excuse. Wolfgang knew the work should have been done, but he would rather have walked for hours in the forest. He had the materials but would rather have spent his time in other fun and personal pursuits instead of taking care of that for which he was responsible. Face to face with his owner, Wolfgang knew he had failed in his responsibilities. Failed his owner and failed the family of his owner. There was nothing he could say or do. Someday we will stand face to face with our owner. We have been given the responsibility by our owner to take care of His house. When He comes, and come He will, what will He find in His house as He inspects our care of His house? We have a responsibility to care for the house of the Lord. Will you not join me this coming April 5 th to spend a morning taking care of the Castle of the Lord Jesus Christ here in Coolidge? He is coming and when He does, what will He see in His house? Church Spring Clean April 5th 8AM-Noon.
Stories from Baptist Press Texas ruling sign of future, observers say By Bonnie Pritchett/Southern Baptist TEXAN Feb 28, 2014 SAN ANTONIO, Texas (BP) -- A federal judge's decision striking down a Texas marriage law could be a sign of the loss of religious liberties for all Americans, according to some legal and religious experts supportive of traditional marriage. United States District Judge Orlando Garcia's ruling on Wednesday (Feb. 26) against Texas' 2005 marriage amendment ignores fundamental gender distinctions and the constitutional right of the states to define marriage, said supporters of the law. "It starts on a false premise that the federal government has the right to regulate marriage," said Fort Worth attorney Shelby Sharpe in his analysis of the ruling. Sharpe defends religious liberty cases across the U.S. In just two months, federal judges have ruled unconstitutional the marriage laws in six states. Texas became the seventh. Supporters of the constitutional amendment codifying Texas' definition of marriage as the union of one man and one woman are confident the U.S. 5th Circuit Court of Appeals in New Orleans will overturn Garcia's ruling but are less optimistic about the Supreme Court's decision. The Texas law remains in effect pending appeals. Copyright (c) 2014 Southern Baptist Convention, Baptist Press 901 Commerce Street Nashville, TN 37203 Tel: 615.244.2355 Fax: 615.782.8736 email: bpress@sbc.net Reprinted by Permission (Are you planning to vote in the upcoming elections? Christian votes are vital to the well-being of our country. Please consider how important you vote will be in the outcomes of elections in our state.) CULTURE DIGEST: Huckabee weighs another presidential bid; By Erin Roach Jan 2, 2014 NASHVILLE (BP) -- Former Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee is considering another run for president in 2016, he said on Fox News during his latest round of defending biblical values. "When people ask me, 'Are you open to the possibilities?' the honest answer is yes. Does that mean I'm running? I don't honestly know," Huckabee, said on "Fox News Sunday" Dec. 22. "I think there is a lot of time between now and then and, frankly, the Republicans have a strong stable of possible candidates. "What I'm looking [to do] is to find out whether it's the right thing for me to do, and I'm not ready to make that decision," Huckabee told Chris Wallace. "But I just don't want to tell people, 'Oh, no, I wouldn't open my mind to it' because that would be, frankly, dishonest at this point." Huckabee, who was a candidate for the Republican nomination for president in 2008, went on to say there is a 50/50 chance he'll run, and while he has other projects to focus on in the meantime, he'll "just keep that option open and make a decision after the 2014 elections." Huckabee, currently hosting his weekend "Huckabee" show on the Fox network, is a former pastor and president of the Arkansas Baptist State Convention. Wallace noted that part of Huckabee's appeal is that he's a "populist who is concerned about reaching out to minorities, to working class folks who don't typically or certainly in the last election didn't vote Republican." Copyright (c) 2014 Southern Baptist Convention, Baptist Press 901 Commerce Street Nashville, TN 37203 Tel: 615.244.2355 Fax: 615.782.8736 email: bpress@sbc.net P A G E 5 Reprinted by Permission
FIRST BAPTIST CHURCH OF COOLIDGE PO Box 189/ 307 Bell St. Coolidge, TX 76635 Phone: 254-786-2232 E-mail: chuck@fbccool.com Web: www.fbccool.com He Came, We Go!! Web Address is: Www.fbccool.com First Baptist Church, Coolidge exists to connect people authentically in faith with the Lord Jesus Christ. His free offer of God s mercy, love, forgiveness, and restoration helps guide all we plan and do. The members of First Baptist Church, Coolidge are the ministers of our church and we serve the Lord in gratitude for all He has done, is doing, and will eternally do on our behalf. We invite you to consider the offer of God s forgiveness and love, and come learn with us more about God s love for you. Web Page Student Page Facebook G.A.L.S. report GALS have been quite busy the last few weeks. We made Valentine crosses for us to take and hand out individual in our nursing home visits. Special thanks to Betty Smith and Sissie Allen because without their help this would have been impossible. In all, around 150 crosses were made and given out in the Name of the love of Jesus. Valentine s Day eve we went to LTC Mexia and LTC Groesbeck to sing. Everyone enjoyed it very much. After singing and visiting with the patients and staff, we went out to eat together and had some wonderful fellowship together over our meal. We would love to have any of the ladies to come and attend one of our GALS meetings that we have most every week. We have a wonderful time of the study together on different subjects to help us to better live as Christians today. After that we have a great time of fellowship together wherever we are. We welcomed to our group last month Margie Lynch. We were very proud to have her come and be a part of our group. We pray that she and others of you will come and join with us as you can because it means so much to meet and share the love of Jesus together in this wonderful way. Frances Carter Building and Grounds News Don t forget the spring cleanup day, April 5 th. It s the first Saturday in April. We will begin with a light breakfast at 8:00 a.m. and then spruce up the church until around noon. Hope you can make it. Thanks, Glen