Sunday, February 1, 2009

I apologize these notes have been a little sporadic since the holidays, my schedule (and sometimes my energy) has not cooperated lately. As many of you in our church know, last Friday I officiated at my older cousin's funeral - thanks for your prayers, it all went as well as it could. She knew the Lord as Savior, which is encouraging to us. Many in our family are still rejecting, some are considering, and some are close to coming to Christ, so this was another opportunity for them to hear. I pray the Word of God and testimony of some will have good effect.

As most know by now, we had another "snow day" this past week, our second of the year. Beth and I shoveled our driveway for the second time this winter - about 15" of new snow. (not us, but it looked like this!) It has been a long time since I have seen the snow piled so high at the end of our church parking lot - every time I drive out I wonder to myself, "how long will all this take to melt? Hopefully by July!"

But don't let the snow piles keep you from worshipping God together this Sunday! And don't let the Super Bowl keep you away in the evening either. Kick off is scheduled for about 6:20 pm, and our Communion Service and kids AWANA program begins at 6:00 PM - kids, don't forget to wear your favorite team colors and bring your offering for our AWANA missionary. So, you can attend here and not miss much of the game if you get right home. It just crossed my mind that if everyone attended the Communion service this Sunday evening (at least 110 of you) that the next Sunday evening I would wear a Steelers jersey for the service (win or lose) - wait, I think I went delirous for a minute, but maybe not . . . :-) If you are godly enough to not need such incentive to attend, I hope you will come with your heart prepared to testify of God's goodness in your life and to participate in remembering all that Christ has done for us in His life and sacrifice on our behalf.

In the morning time, remember that we have learning and fellowship times for all ages at 9:30 AM. Age appropriate Sunday School classes for kids and teens, and three Adult Bible Fellowships from which to choose studying the Bible books of Daniel, Luke, and James.

At 10:45 AM we Worship God together in our singing, giving, and hearing from His Word - come prepared to participate in worship! This Sunday we continue our study in the book of Ezra by looking at chapter 2 and seeing that "With Great Privilege and Blessing Comes Great Responsibility." In this book we noted that Israel was brought out of exile from Babylon via God's movement in the heart of King Cyrus of Persia. They were allowed to return to their land and the book of Ezra tells how the Worship system of Israel was restored as a precursor to the Walls being rebuilt as recorded in the following book of Nehemiah. Ezra 2 can look "boring" at first glance with its many lists; but upon closer evaluation we will see the great privilege afforded these people which came with a cost. Likewise, as we are blest by God in many ways there is responsibility attached. By coming this Sunday you will consider this important arrangement in your own life. How exciting - I can hardly wait to see what God says through His Word and His servant (which is me!)

Last week we had a wonderful all church supper after our morning service, thanks for attending. And special thanks to our Social/Hospitality Team for putting it together. We will be having another time like this soon, probably featuring your various soups, chili, and breads so stay tuned and plan to attend.

Our Wednesday (7:00 pm) and Thursday (11:00 am) Prayer and Bible study groups are always a blessing and the fellowship is encouraging - give one a try if you haven't lately.

Our Upward basketball program is in its third week and it is going extremely well. Kids are learning and having fun, the adults who help make it happen are great, and new relationships are being formed. Pray that God will continue to use this ministry. Remember that games this week will be held at First Baptist, Aurora (we alternate locations with them weekly) and begin on Saturday at 8:00 AM.

Ladies, be sure to sign up for and put on your calendar the annual "Heart Sisters Banquet" at 6:30 PM on Monday, February 9. This is always an annual highlight for the ladies, and sets the basis for any who wish to be involved in the Heart Sisters program of mutual encouragement through the year.

As we together "Look Toward Sunday" and our evening Communion service, let me close with this Puritan prayer from "The Valley of Vision" page 77 which will set our hearts and minds aright for this time together:

"Holy Lord,
I have sinned times without number and been guilty of pride and unbelief,
of failure to find Thy mind in Thy Word,

of neglect to seek Thee in my daily life.

My transgressions and short - comings

present me with a list of accusations,

But I bess Thee that they will not stand against me,

for all have been laid on Christ;

Go on to subdue my corruptions,

and grant me the peace to live above them."

With this prayer and attitude in mind I look forward to seeing many of you this Sunday!

Pastor Don Workman

http://www.faithbaptiststreetsboro.org/

Sunday, January 18, 2009

I don't have to tell you how cold it has been here in Northeast Ohio the past few days. Here are a couple of pictures I found that tell the story: One of the good things about these past few days is that it has been sunny most of the day which is nice. On Sunday it is suppose to be around 30 degrees - who would think that below freezing weather sounds "warm."??

With that in mind I hope that you will be encouraged to be here at Faith for our services all day. Our classes for all ages will continue at 9:30 AM and are a great way to learn from God's Word while finding a place to "belong" at the same time - give them a try!

We will be blest by the music ministry of our friend, Geoff Ellsworth from BBC this Sunday in our 10:45 AM worship service (not a concert, but a special.) He plans to stay with Beth and me on Saturday evening on his way to a Christian college fair near Columbus on Sunday. I am thankful that friends like Geoff (and Jim last Sunday) are blest so much by worshipping with us that they include our services in their trips to Ohio if possible. I will be continuing our new study in the book of Ezra by considering how, like Ezra, we can be "A Person That God Can Use." This will be part 2 of our introduction, but you can prepare by skimming over the book quickly.

In our 6:00 PM ministries, our AWANA clubbers parents are invited to attend and see what their kids do in this ministry. It is a special time and I am sure the kids are excited. For other adults not involved in this way, we will meet in the auditorium to sing and begin a study about "God Our Father" based on a book of the same name by Moody Bible Institute professor John Koessler. I was blest by looking over the content of this book and felt it would be a good study for us all for the next few months in our evening services. Our Teens will meet for a time of fun and learning from John 13:1 - 11, and remember that the next training meeting for your Missions trip to Japan this summer is on Friday, January 30.

Upward basketball games officially begin tomorrow, Saturday, Jan. 17 at 8:00 AM at First Baptist in Aurora. If you are involved you probably already have a schedule and information. Games will be held here at Faith the following Saturday and will alternate between both churches each week.

Our social team is planning an all church "Fellowship Feast" after the morning service on Sunday, January 25th - please plan to stay, details for this special time are in the bulletin this Sunday.

As many of us have been praying regularly the past several months for Jeff Sheldon's nephew, Philip (pancreatic cancer) in the Erie, PA area, we wanted you to know that Jeff notified us that Philip died yesterday. Please pray for the family and for Jeff, Robin, Laura, Brad, and Sophia as they travel after services here on Sunday for his funeral on Sunday afternoon.

Please remember that we publish a weekly prayer guide for our midweek gatherings for prayer and Bible study. Many individual requests are in this guide, which serves as an extension of your weekly ABF prayer requests. Prayer is important, as expressed in the following statement by Derek Prime (the British pastor to whom Alistair Begg was once an assistant) in his book, "Practical Prayer":

"We are dependent upon God for everything, and God delights to meet our needs. Some He supplies on a daily basis without our ever asking Him. Others He provides as we deliberately lay them before Him. We find the primary answer to the question, 'Why Pray?' in man's fundamental relationship as a creature to God the Creator - it is one of dependence. And it is a dependence which reflects an essential part of man's unique creation by God - man was created to have fellowship with God."

Your fellowship with God will be enhanced and fulfilled as you meet this Sunday to worship Him with His people. Until then, PRAY that God will prepare your heart and work in others to achieve His glory. I look forward to seeing you!

Pastor Don Workman

http://www.faithbaptiststreetsboro.org/

PS - thank you for maintaining your commitments to our Faith Promise for Missions giving. As we continue to give to supply our whole missions program through this fund, it frees up other money for our general fund. So far this year you have been doing great! Please keep it up!

Sunday, January 11, 2009

After a couple of weeks off from writing, it is time to get back on track with this note to you. I hope you had great Christmas and New Year celebrations. Our whole month of December here at Faith was a complete blessing. On Dec. 21 our kids ministries presented their program in which they all did a great job. This followed with an adjusted service which was a blessing. That same evening our adult Festival Choir presented the cantata, "Tonight, Heaven Touches Earth" complete with a multi-screen video display. We as a choir sang behind the screens, but those out front were truly impressed and said the video enhanced the following of the words of the songs and theme of the program. The fellowship continued for over an hour after the cantata, which is a good indication of guest welcome and positive church health. You can see in part why it was such a great month.

As for our family, we were grateful that all of us could be together for at least several days during the Christmas week. Jon and Hannah had some challenges getting here from Oregon, and after a long stay in Chicago, they did manage to get here on Christmas Eve afternoon when many others were stranded in Chicago until after Christmas day. We thank the Lord for safety and getting them here, though we felt bad for the others. Joshua and Emily were here, then in Buffalo, then back here. They brought Leah with them from BBC, and she stayed until this past mid week. Sarah, Sam, and Nicholas arrived to make it all complete, and there is NOTHING like Christmas with a two year old - what FUN! I hope your Christmas season was as much fun and blessing.

We will be back on track with all our regular services and ministries this Sunday. Our Sunday School and ABF's meet at 9:30 AM, with studies in the Bible books of either Daniel, Luke, or James for adults. At 10:45 AM our Worship service will begin with our choir singing a piece from the Christmas cantata, "Why?" Don't forget to review our all church memory verse this month from Psalm 118:24 (not too hard!) Some good and familiar songs and hymns of worship follow before we begin a study in the book of Ezra in the Old Testament (find it now.) This will be an introductory message, but you can prepare by reading through chapters 1 and 2. We will see how God used Ezra to rebuild the personal and corporate worship of Israel as they came out of captivity. This precluded the time of Nehemiah whom God used to rebuild the temple for worship. Since these books were originally one book in the Hebrew Bible, we will most likely continue this study into Nehemiah at a later time.

Our 6:00 PM service and ministries are back in action this Sunday. Adults will meet to sing, share, and study from Ephesians 4 about quitting any sinful or negative habits. This new time of year lends itself to "getting in shape" which includes habits. At this time our teens will also meet to interact with one another and to study from Mark 9:2 - 10 which deals with overcoming fears. Also our AWANA program continues, featuring their "Winter Sports Night" - wear your favorite team / car colors.

Our Upward basketball practices began this past week and will continue for the next nine weeks or so, with games beginning on Saturday, January 17. We are partnering in this ministry with First Baptist in Aurora and will be alternating sites weekly for games. Please keep this ministry in prayer as the coaches not only instruct in basketball, but also have a time of sharing from God's Word in each practice. Every game will also have a short devotional at half time where kids and parents are both exposed to God's Word. And keep this schedule in mind before planning an activity at church since our facilities will be used much more regularly for the next few months.

If you are responsible for a ministry team or area in our church, please remember that we need your 2008 Annual Report to our office by this Sunday. We prefer that you email it to us as it is easier to format and print - you may find that email address elsewhere on this page. Thank you for helping us prepare for this important report (distributed at the meeting on Weds. Jan. 21 at 7:00 pm)

We also need to know if you are interested in attending a workshop on Saturday morning ( 9:00 am - 1:00 pm) in Tallmadge which will give an introduction to the Stephen Series Caregiving Ministry. This is a ministry that teaches laymen and women how to care for and nurture church members in times of need, grief, etc. We have desired to step up in our overall church care ministry and we feel this is an area we would like to investigate. There is a nominal fee of $15 per person, but if we have four or more from our church it is a flat $50 fee for the group. Please consider attending with us, and be sure to jot your intention on a registration card in the bulletin or pew and give it to us this Sunday.

Well, it is late Friday afternoon and I better wrap this up so that I can finish my other work and get home to see the big game - the CAVS vs. the Boston Celtics (boo!) This should be a GREAT game since it is here in Cleveland, the Cavs have not lost a home game yet this year (17 - 0 at home), and the Cavs currently own the BEST RECORD IN THE NBA!!! GO CAVS! (see it on ESPN at 8:00 PM Friday.)

Be safe this weekend on the roads during the winter storm we are getting. Please don't let that keep you from this place and time of worship on Sunday, it will be a blessing for sure. Pray that God will work in all our hearts.

Pastor Don Workman

http://www.faithbaptiststreetsboro.org/

PS - some of you may be interested in reading of the retirement of our good friend, Pastor Knute Larson from the Chapel in Akron and Green. Click this link to read the story. I say "amen" many times to the nice things said about him, he is an amazing pastor and an even better human being. Pray for him and Jeanine in the days ahead.