Said the preacher:
"When you walk down the aisle don't look grim."
"We'll then sing a hymn.
"When I stand by the altar, the groom must not falter."
"Ahh, yes," said the bride, "Aisle, alter, hymn." (- copied from Gill Krebs)
This poem must be some kind of haiku or hai karate or something like that with its strange wording.
This week has just FLOWN BY for me, I can't believe Sunday is only two days away. I had to do a lot of yardwork on Monday while the weather was decent. Then I traveled to Skyview Ranch (90 miles one way) on Tuesday for the OARBC fall conference. It was a long day for me, leaving at 7:30 AM and returning home at 10:30 PM, but it was a real blessing. Seeing many friends and hearing some helpful speakers along with other fellowship acitivities was a blessing. And seeing our own Nikki and Bobby Childs was a huge plus - they are doing GREAT in marriage and ministry at Skyview where they live and work. On Wednesday I had to try to work from home as I had several repairmen here to fix our furnace, install Time Warner phone, internet, and TV (which is part of the restructuring of our personal finances in order to give more to our church to help with the budget shortfall), and run various errands, all the while preparing for Prayer Meeting at 7:10 PM. This meeting was also a great blessing as we share and pray together, and we had a guest visit our time while he is in the area on business. A great guy, and we were able to provide a spiritual "oasis" for him. Thursday was full as the regular work of bulletin prep, visitor letters, various emails, calls, etc. occupied the day. Then I left to take Beth downtown to her voice lesson - which is going very well by the way. Continue to pray for her progress, she is at about 7/8's strength now (though she may disagree.) She loves her teacher, a 76 year old lady who is helping her tremendously. We are still praying and looking for ministry opportunities with her and her husband, a former college administrator. Then we made a visit on the west side of Cleveland, and arrived home at 10:30 PM once again! That brings me to Friday, and preparing this note to you this morning. Whew! Tell me about YOUR week sometime, this is therapeutic.
Before Sunday comes, we have a church membership class on Saturday that begins at 9:30 AM and continues until around 1:00 PM. Yes, it really does take this long to cram a 6 to 8 week class into one day. Bring your completed membership applications with you if you haven't already turned them in to me. Rehearse your Christian testimony down to about a 3 minute presentation, bring your water, etc. with you, and you will be set to go. Dress is very Saturday casual - Ohio State Buckeye gear is welcome. And yes, we will be done well before the OSU - Penn State game (Homecoming) at 8:00 PM. Go Bucks!! 
(for Nicholas, from Papa)
(for Nicholas, from Papa)Sunday will be full again with all our regular ministries in action. Beginning at 9:30 AM (try to be early) we will learn and grow through Sunday School and Adult Bible Fellowships. In a week we will start a six week deeper discipleship ABF taught by Lila Erb. It is open to anyone who wants to know "what it takes" to be a TRUE follower of Jesus Christ. All our other ABF's will function as usual.
At 10:45 AM this week I will continue our study, "How God Has and Does Deal With Us" (dispensational) by looking at what the Bible says about this age in which we live, the "Age of Grace" or as some may call it, the dispensation of the Church. We may also look at the following ages, that of the time of the Tribulation and the Kingdom. If we can do this, that will pretty much wrap up this study which I hope you have found helpful. As always, I would appreciate your prayers for me as I strive to "sermonize" a study which lends itself better to a classroom setting. Pray that God will make clear the distinction between the Church and the nation Israel in this time in which we live; and that as we forecast the end time events, that we will see how God continues to care for His special people, Israel as well as working us Gentiles into His Kingdom - all based on His grace through Jesus Christ for us.
Please note that this Sunday we will NOT be holding our regular 6:00 PM service or other kids and youth programming due to our Fourth Annual "Trunk or Treat" outreach to our community. This will begin for them at 3:00 PM and continue through until 6:00 PM. For those of us involved in it, we will need to be here about 2:00 PM to set it all up and prepare, and we may need to be around for a bit afterward to clean up. Please bring in more candy to give away and place it in the bin in the lobby. If you would like to host a "trunk" or help in any other way, please let Bill Mace know.
For our Choir, please remember that we are in the season to practice our Christmas presentation, so this Sunday at 6:00 PM (following Trunk or Treat) we will have practice for a little while. I don't think it will be too late. Continue to listen to your CD during the week to maximize the rehearsal times on Sundays.
Remember that at the beginning of our service this Sunday morning we will hold a BRIEF business meeting to vote on the proposal of a few weeks ago, that giving our treasurer the "OK" to transfer any funds needed to pay bills from our building fund IF NECESSARY. This doesn't mean we will, and we hope we do not have to do this. Our giving over the past three weeks has met and exceeded our budget a little bit. But we need it to exceed by more so that we can make up for our current shortfall and end the year in the black. Pray, give, and prepare to vote on this issue this Sunday.
Other important items: church officer nomination forms are on the missions table in the lobby for you to suggest names to our nomination committee - do it soon. There will be sign up sheets for you to help with giving out bread and other items on election day, which is a week from Tuesday. Sign up for various time slots where you can help. We will need your help with the Upward Basketball program we will take part in with First Baptist in Aurora this winter. Both churches will utilize their gyms and personnel to run this quality program for kids and families, but we really need your help as coaches, referees, concessions, scorekeepers, etc. Please help.
I just ordered the Prayer Journal / 2009 Calendar from ABWE for just under $15 (donation) which looks to be a great help in the spiritual walk of any Christian. Way more than just a calendar, it has Bible reading and prayer helps, your own ongoing and weekly prayer/praise lists, and missionary info to assist as you pray for worldwide outreach. You can view and order one (or more) by clicking here Prayer Journal. I highly recommend it to you.
As you prepare for Sunday, consider inviting someone to come with you - you know that word of mouth is best! And I hope that in all our churches that God will work in lives and His victory as we cooperate with His Spirit.
With blessings,
Pastor Don Workman
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