Tuesday On the Run - October 27, 2009 10/27/2009
Good Morning Friends, I trust you’re having a great week! At least you made it past Monday, so that’s a start. Just remember, you’re a servant of the great “I AM”. There is nothing our God cannot do! (Jeremiah 32:17) I hope you believe that as you face the trials and tribulations of another week. Our primary focus this week is on getting ready for FRIEND DAY this coming Sunday. We are working hard to get the word out and remind everyone that it is this coming Sunday. (Where did the month of October go?) Anyway, that is the focus of my devotional thought for this week. I would encourage you to take time to read Mark 2: 1-12. In this passage we find a wonderful story of four men who go to extraordinary lengths to bring their friend to Jesus. He is paralyzed and so they put him on a stretcher and carry him for miles to the place where Jesus is teaching. When they get there the crowd is so large they can’t even get close to the door. Yet, they refuse to give up. They climb to the roof, break out their chain saw [Barry’s revised version], cut a hole and lower the man in front of Jesus. It says, “when Jesus saw their faith, he said to the paralytic, ‘Son, your sins are forgiven’”. The Lord not only heals this man physically, he forgives his sin and heals him spiritually as well. Verse twelve reads, “He got up, took his mat, and walked out in full view of them all.” My point is this miracle occurred because four friends cared enough to bring their friend to Jesus. This coming Sunday is an opportunity for us to be that kind of friend. I’m sure there is someone we know who has a need. The solution to their problem, whatever it might be, is to bring them to Jesus. He is the only one who can really help them. Take the time to make a phone call or send a note to personally invite your friend to come. It could be a day that will change their life for eternity! We have planned a very special day that we believe could impact the life of your friend forever. Rev. Sharon Reed will be sharing an inspiring testimony of how Jesus brought healing and hope to a life ruined by sin and devastated by a shattered marriage. Pastor Dale is planning to pull out all the stops in leading our worship. He has some wonderful special music and several other surprises planned. The goal of my message will be to introduce people to the greatest friend they could ever know, Jesus! Following the service we are planning a great time of fellowship with a meal prepared by our Parkway ladies. Let’s be praying that this will be a day to remember! [I’ve been praying for an attendance of at least 160. This is easily within reach if all of our regular attendees show up.] Let’s believe God for a miracle! See you on Sunday, Pastor Barry P.S. Remember to set your clocks back one hour next Saturday night. [ on second thought, don’t remember. Then you’ll be here an hour early in case we need help!] Also, if you can, park in the grass to make sure we have plenty of spaces for our guests. Tuesday Morning On the Run 10/15/2009
Good Morning! I hope you are having a great week. We missed some of you this past Sunday who were away, but we went on and had a great service without you! I hope you are enjoying this “I Am” series as much as I am enjoying preaching it. My biggest problem is paring it down to 30 minutes or so. That is especially true for this coming week’s message on “I Am the Resurrection and the Life.” Pray for me and bring a pillow in case I go too long! (just kidding) I’m looking forward to our Family Fun Day on Saturday. We have lots of games planned (Pastor Dale’s been working on his bean bag toss!) and there will be lots of food. We hope you’ve been taking orders for lots of Pork Barbecue sandwiches. See you Saturday! DEVOTIONAL THOUGHT During these past two weekends I’ve had plenty of opportunity to do some “strolling down memory lane.” Two weeks ago I attended my 40th High School Class Reunion [wow, I’m getting old]. And then, this past weekend I met up with three of my best friends from Seminary. All of this led to a lot of story telling (some slightly exaggerated) and a lot of reminiscing about the good old days. This caused me to think about the value of remembering the past. I consulted my trusty concordance and discovered half a page of references devoted to remembering:
The older I get, the worse my memory seems to get. [I forgot the grocery list Rosemary gave me this morning—I know it had four items on it and so far I’ve remembered three out of the four. I guess 75% is not too bad. Anyway, I take comfort in the fact that God never forgets us. (Isaiah 49:15). It tells us in Isaiah 49:16 that he “has written our name on his hand.” As you go through this week take comfort in the fact that everyday, every hour, every minute you are remembered by God and you are constantly in His thoughts (Psalm 1 39: 17-18)! FRIEND DAY coming—November 1st — Begin thinking about who you can invite! Post Title. 10/07/2009
 WOW! What a weekend! After the great day of servant evangelism on Saturday, what a wonderful day of worship and celebration we had on Sunday. Pastor Dale and the praise team did a terrific job in leading us into God’s presence in worship. A special thanks to Ethelyn Kilmer and the missions team for putting this whole weekend together. Since our focus this year was on local or home missions it was great to have representatives and displays from ministries like SACRA, Valley Mission, Comfort Care Women’s Center, Helping Hands and Equipping the Saints. Dr. Freels from Hephzibah Ministries challenged us to get out of the boat and trust God for some big things. This was a message I obviously needed to hear, for I confess, I had my doubts about the increased missions budget of $15,000 we adopted. Thus, I was “blown away” when our faith promise commitments totaled over $22,000. It is going to be exciting to see how God provides these funds. I am convinced that as long as we keep missions and outreach as the major focus, God will continue to bless our church and meet our other financial needs. We just can’t out give God! WHAT’S NEXT? Missions Fund Raiser—I hope you are selling lots of Barbecue Sandwiches this week. [$3.50 per sandwich] This is our annual fundraiser to support Missions Trips. All orders need to be turned in next Sunday. The Barbecue will be picked up on October 17th. [Remember Don’s special offer—If you sell 20 sandwiches you get a free order of his homemade hush puppies] Family Fun Day-October 17th-11AM to 5PM –Pork Barbecue, Bake Sale, Face Painting, Games for all ages, Live music. Invite your neighbors and come on out for a great time. Scripture For the Week — Joshua 3:3-5 God basically says in this passage, Follow me and I will show you the way. “Consecrate yourselves,” commit yourself fully to me, says the Lord, (and this is the part I like) “for tomorrow the Lord will do amazing things among you.” May God do some “amazing things” in you life this week as you follow Him. Have a great week! Pastor Barry |
RSS Feed