The Lamplighter - Fredericktown First Baptist Church
Transcription
The Lamplighter - Fredericktown First Baptist Church
The Lamplighter The Newsletter of Fredericktown First Baptist Church ~ April 2014 ~ ________________________________________________________________________________________________________ From the Desk of Pastor Martin… At the parsonage, one day in the week of March 10, I noticed the first spring flowers pushing up through the light layer of snow still on the ground. The calendar says that Spring began on Thursday, March 20, though you probably could not convince many people of that! However, Spring follows Winter, and it won’t be too long before you will hear your neighbor say, “My, isn’t it hot?” I like this time of the year. True, you have to clean up after a harsh winter. I like getting out in the yard, raking up the debris, fertilizing the lawn, spading up the flower gardens, deciding what new flowers you might like to plant, getting the mowers tuned up for another season, etc. In fact, last week I traded in my 14 year old riding mower for a new zero turn mower. Just as summer brings about a new era, so does the Lenten season. This is the time when we are invited to walk with Jesus to Jerusalem where He will live out the last week of His life. Lent is when we are not asked to “give up” things necessarily, but rather, to “add to” in our spiritual walk, such as, reading a spiritual book, viewing a Biblical DVD, listening to gospel CD’s, attending a Lenten Bible Study, participating in the activities of the church, praying regularly, or reading the Bible more than usual. Lent is also helpful to understand the time-line of the last week in the life of Jesus. According to the Gospel of Mark, it unfolds like this: Sunday – Jesus rides into Jerusalem on the back of a donkey, what we know as Palm Sunday. Monday – Jesus returns to Jerusalem and throws out the moneychangers from the Temple and proclaims, “My house shall be called a house of prayer!” Tuesday – Jesus spends the day in teaching and discussing a variety of topics with His disciples, the people, and the Temple Priests. Wednesday – Jesus stays away from the city. Most scholars say this is the day Judas slips away and makes plans with the Priests to betray Jesus. Thursday – Jesus makes plans to have the disciples meet in the Upper Room for their last meal and time together, a day we call “Maundy Thursday.” Friday – After the Thursday meal, Jesus prays in the Garden. Then comes the arrest, an appearance before Annas, Caiaphas, Pilate, Herod, back to Pilate, and the condemnation to death. By 9:00 a,m., Jesus is on the cross. He dies at 3:00 p.m., and is placed in the tomb. Saturday – Jewish Sabbath is from sundown Friday to sundown Saturday. Sunday – The women arrive at the tomb only to find that Jesus is not there; He has risen! Read about the Holy week activities in the newsletter. Join in as many as possible. May this Easter be memorable and spiritually fulfilling! WHAT’S INSIDE Message from Pastor Martin Birthdays & Anniversaries Quarterly Business Meeting Mission Trip Update (Marissa Dowalter) Holy Week Activities …and much more! Sunday, April 27 Join us after Worship for this important quarterly business meeting. 4/1 4/3 4/5 4/12 4/13 4/16 4/17 4/18 4/18 4/24 4/2 4/8 HAPPY BIRTHDAY!! Kathryn Williams Sally Fox Joan Losey Matt Sharp Ashley Rule Heidi Henwood Hadassah Lux More details to be announced. Congratulations to Jacob Haip Joyce Henwood Christa Thomas HAPPY ANNIVERSARY!! Don & Barb Spearman Jim & Anna Ronk Matthew & Stephanie Hill March 22, 2014 A kindergarten teacher gave her class a “show and tell” assignment of bringing something to represent their religion. The first boy got in front of the class and said, “My name is Benjamin, and I am Jewish. This is the Star of David.” The second boy got in front of the class and said, “My name is Mark. I’m Catholic, and this is a Crucifix.” The third boy got in front of the class and said, “My name is Tommy, I am Baptist and this is a casserole.” Thanks, Catherine Klever for submitting this cute joke for the newsletter! If you have something you would like to submit, please contact Anita in the office! Pastor Martin will be on vacation from April 27 – May 4. If you need assistance during this time, please contact the Deacon of the month. Guest Speakers: April 27 – Dr. Larry Swain May 4 – Pastor Carolyn Fergus Monthly Mission Moment Kim Brown Thailand Kim’s work includes overseeing three Christ-like ministries for tribal people who are coping with the problems caused by AIDS, disabilities, and migration from their traditional villages to urban slums through the ministry of Integrated Ministries for Ethnic Minorities Foundation (IMEMF). The Thailand Karen Baptist Convention sponsors these ministries: SERVING OUR LORD IN APRIL Worship Leaders 4/6 4/13 4/20 4/27 Greeters Pastor Martin Casper Schmidt Carolyn Fergus Jim Ronk Kathy Williams Dean & Linda Shira Tom & Carolyn Craze Marvin & Pat McQuigg April Ministry Team Trustees Andy Fox: 694-1586 Dave Hatton: 397-7058 Dean Shira: 694-3696 Kathy Williams: 694-1203 Deacons Casper Schmidt: 694-0902 Carolyn Fergus: 501-0284 The House of Love is a home for women and children. This includes women who had been sold into prostitution, AIDS orphans, and children taken out of their homes by the Social Welfare Department because of abuse. Many of the residents do not have Thai citizenship and have few rights in Thailand. The Christian Center for the Development of People with Disabilities reaches out to families who are caring for disabled in tribal villages. The disabled are often hidden away. This project is designed to help the disabled reach their full potential and be accepted within their families and communities. The House of Blessing Day Care Center provides a safe place for children who live in the slums to come during the day. It prepares children to enter Thai schools, and also works to strengthen their families. Thank you for bringing in your empty printer ink cartridges. I recently had to order a new printer for the church office, and I am pleased to say that we received $40 off because of all the ink cartridges I have been turning into Staples for $2 credit each! Please keep bringing them in for me. . . just leave them at the back of the sanctuary or in the Annex! Thanks Again! Anita Mission Trip – Johnson City, TN SUBMITTED BY MARISSA DOWALTER Hello, Church Family! As promised, here's a summary of my mission trip to Johnson City, TN. Saturday - We arrived at Grandview Christian Church around 2 pm and met the pastor and our host families. We then went to our host families houses and settled in. Two other girls and I stayed with Lee Fierbaugh. She works at Milligan College. After we got unpacked, we went to a local restaurant called Cootie Brown's for dinner and a time of fellowship. We spent the evening after Cootie Brown's at Dr. Paul Blowers' home. He is a professor at Emmanuel Christian Seminary. It was a lot of fun getting to know him and his wife Sandy. Sunday - We went to Grandview Christian Church for their 9:30 service. The congregation was so welcoming and really made us feel at home. They had the orchestra from Milligan College there that Sunday and they sounded beautiful. Pastor Aaron Wymer did his sermon on how our relationships should be compatible with God's agenda. After church, we went to Crazy Tomato for some delicious Italian food. That afternoon we worked at Family Promise, a Christian organization that works with homeless families. We washed and cleaned out their vans that they use for transportation of the families, we spread fertilizer on their garden, and we also organized donations in their storage unit. After we were done, we got to meet some of the families in their program and hear about how it has helped them. It was a great experience! Monday - We worked at Second Harvest Food Bank from 9 am-4 pm. It was a huge warehouse, and it was crazy how much food they had there. I was on a team of 4 people that painted a line along the exterior walls of the building, while the rest of our team helped throw out expired yogurt. They got through 12 of the 16 pallets before they ran out of dumpster space. After we were finished at Second Harvest, we went to the Blowers' for dinner, and then we watched a movie before returning to our respective host families. Tuesday - In the morning, we went to the Campus House (home of an organization similar to our campus ministry at OU) at ETSU for a devotion and then ate lunch with the students there. It was a really fun time of fellowship and it was cool to meet so many new people. After that, we helped with the after school program at Coalition For Kids. We played games with the children, ate snacks with them, helped them with their homework, and sat with them during their Bible Time. It was a lot of fun, especially getting to help them with their homework. We finished at 7, went to eat a late dinner at Jack's City Grill, and then returned to our host families. Wednesday - For our last day in Tennessee, we went to Emmanuel Christian Seminary and sat in on one of the New Testament classes. It was really interesting; it went very in-depth about the cultural and contextual aspects of Paul's letters. We sat in on their chapel service, then ate lunch with some of the students and professors and it was really cool getting to talk to them. After that, we went on a hike to the Balds near Roan Mountain. It was really beautiful and the weather was really nice. Then we brought dinner (barbecue, yum!) to the Campus House to share with the students before we participated in their Wednesday Night service. ETSU offers a major in Bluegrass, so we got to sing along with a bluegrass praise band, which was really cool. Mike (the Campus House youth minister) then facilitated a discussion about what kinds of things get in the way of worship and how we can get past them in order to glorify God without barriers. After the service, we hung out for awhile and played games with the ETSU students before going home. Thursday - We left a little after 8 am and made it to Myrtle, WV before we were slowed up by a flat tire due to a bad pothole. Luckily we weren't very far from a Wal-Mart and we were able to get the tire changed relatively quickly. Prayers were answered! Thank you all for supporting my trip! I really had a great experience and it was fantastic to be able to take a few days and just be a servant to others in the name of the Lord. I hope everything is going well at home, and again, thank you so much! Much love! Marissa Dowalter EASTER FLOWERS First Baptist Church of Fredericktown Easter Flowers to decorate the sanctuary are available for purchase until Sunday, April 6. Palm Sunday is April 13. Join us for a special time of morning worship at 10:15 AM. We will share in this time of remembering Jesus’ triumphal entry into Jerusalem and the beginning of Holy Week, the last week of our Lord’s earthly life. Please remember that Palm Sunday is the day to bring your “Thirty Pieces of Silver” Offering. You can choose from: Lily - $10 Tulip - $10 Hyacinth - $10 Look for an insert in your bulletin for the next two weeks. If you would like more information, please contact the church office at 694-2856. On Maundy Thursday (April 17) we remember Jesus’ last evening with His disciples, when he instituted the Lord’s Supper. We will share in a special service ending with communion. FAMILY FUN NIGHT Friday, April 11, at 7:00 PM Join us for a fun night of games! MOHICAN ASSOCIATION Good Friday is our solemn Spring Rally on April 6 has been canceled. ---------- remembrance of the crucifixion of our Lord and His sacrifice for our sins. Join us for our community Good Friday Service at 7 PM at The First Church of God, 19535 Zolman Road (St. Rt. 13). A Fall Rally is being planned. Sunday morning, April 20, at 7 AM, the Deacons will be leading us in our Easter Sunrise Service on the front porch of the church building. Immediately following this service, please plan to attend the Annual Pancake Breakfast served by the Deacons and men of the church. Join us in Easter Worship at 10:15 AM Celebrate with us - Jesus is Risen! H e is not here, but is risen! Luke 24:6 THIS NEWSLETTER IS A PUBLICATION OF THE FIRST BAPTIST CHURCH 22 East Sandusky Street P.O. Box 125 Fredericktown, OH 43019 ----Interim Pastor – Rev. Reginald Martin Sunday School - 9:15 AM Worship Service - 10:15 AM Parsonage: 740-848-4214 Pastor’s Cell: 740-221-5247 Church Office: 740-694-2856 Office Hours: Tuesday - Friday 9:30 AM - 12:30 PM email us: Anita - office@fredfbc.org Pastor – pastor@fredfbc.org Visit us on the web…. www.fredfbc.org