august 2019 the challenge - calvert first baptist church
TRANSCRIPT
Pastor Dr. Jim Ewing Music Minister Danny Granstaff Children’s Ministry Director Janet Dietsch Youth Leaders Lance & Trena Gregory Ministry Assistant Jan Moore Church Organist/Pianist Vicki Madison Custodians Marshall & Gail Agent
The Challenge Our Mission: Encounter … Grow … Serve … Share
Our Vision: Becoming Fully Committed Followers of Jesus Christ … making a Kingdom Impact on Calvert City
Sunday Schedule Wednesday Schedule 9:00 am Sunday School 6:00 pm Prayer Meeting
10:15 am Worship Service Youth Ministry 5:30 pm AWANA J.U.M.P. (K-5th Grade) (Kid’s Choir First Wed)
7:00 pm Choir Practice
First Baptist Church
PO Box 366
Calvert City KY 42029-0366
270-395-4600
Return Service Requested
August 2019
Prayer Concerns for Our Church Family Prayer Concerns for Friends & Loved Ones
Lowell O’Daniel – rehab at home Chelsea Tucker – continuing tests and treatment;
weekly infusions Sandra Sewell – health issues
Alison Risher – Job opportunities
Doris Coursey Family – passing of Doris’ brother, Ralph DeWeese
Lora (niece of Phil & Nigel Broyles) – upcoming back procedure in July – pain improving.
Marsha Berer (Paula Musgrove’s sister) – broken ankle Larnie Driver (Edna Pierce’s Brother) – radiation
therapy underway
Convalescent Centers/Assisted Living Lillian Dees – Stilley House
Homebound – Carolyn Burt, Jackie Prater Military Members
Corey Joiner Ben Sewell Trent Low Hunter Peck
College Students Shelton Owen – University of Alabama
Kayla Travis – Murray State University Kelsey Littrell – WKU Gatton Academy
Taylor Young – University of Louisville
$ JULY TITHES & OFFERINGS $
GENERAL BUDGET FUNDS BUILDING & SIGN FUNDS
YTD Budget Needs (thru 7/29/19): $ 163,333 Building Fund Total: $ 26,585 YTD Budget Receipts (thru 7/29/19): $ 161,611 Sign Fund Total: $ 2,208
Aug 1 – Dale Smith Aug 3 – Sam Jones Aug 5 – Winnie Futrell Aug 9 – Sharon Lanier Aug 17 – Maury Dodson Aug 18 – Jean Smith Aug 20 – Phil Broyles Aug 20 – Sheri Tucker Aug 21 – Gene Low Aug 22 – Jackie Prater Aug 25 – Peyton Latta Aug 29 – Ben Noles
Aug 7- Clint & Kristin Poague
Aug 13 – Aaron & Crystal Smith Aug 14 – Alan & Janet Dietsch Aug 14 – Maury & Karen Dodson
Building Supervisor: Ray Tucker
Recently several smaller issues have been repaired on the
air conditioning units. Fortunately, these were easily and
quickly resolved but it did cause a delay in the installation
of our lights for the exterior sign.
Wiring for Wi-fi throughout the campus continues.
Everything except the far end of our education wing has
been completed so you should have a strong signal
throughout the buildings. And, what we think is the final
tv/dvd player has been installed in in the Celebrations
classroom so the AV upgrades are nearly complete.
Yours in Christ, Ray Tucker
Ministry Assistant: Jan Moore
Just a reminder that I can provide offering envelopes labeled with your name and account number. Just call the office or send me an email. Also, we still have a few church directories available for anyone who has not picked one up yet. Continued Blessings, Jan Moore
From Your Pastor: Dr Jim Ewing
Finally, brethren, whatever is true, whatever is
honorable, whatever is right, whatever is pure,
whatever is lovely, whatever is of good repute, if
there is any excellence and if anything worthy of
praise, dwell on these things. (Phil 4:8, NASU)
Paul wrote these words near the end of his letter to the
young church at Philippi. They were struggling to
follow God in the midst of a culture that actively
persecuted them for their faith. While we aren’t
suffering persecution like they did, we’re increasingly
finding ourselves in a culture that is openly rejecting
and even vilifying those who hold to the Christian
faith. For that reason, Paul’s words offer us wise
advice as we pursue or own walk with God.
It’s clear that the standards of behavior and values that
were common in our culture are being discarded at a
record pace and being replaced with what seems like
utter nonsense. We’re seeing what Paul wrote about
in Rom 1:22 – “Professing to be wise, they became
fools ....” We’re exposed to a constant drumbeat of
secular ideas and values in what we see on TV, in the
movies, in print media, and even in the day-to-day
conversations we’re exposed to. Businesses that used
to just sell products and services are rushing to tell us
that our Christian values are antiquated and even
harmful.
There is a subtle danger in all of this ... one that we
can easily assume that we’re too wise or discerning to
be caught up in. The danger is that we can begin to
think like the world thinks, slowly accepting and then
adopting the values and standards the world is
promoting. The sad reality is that most professing
Christians don’t look and act much different than
unbelievers. Paul urges us in Rom 12:2 - And do not
be conformed to this world, but be transformed by
the renewing of your mind, so that you may prove
what the will of God is, that which is good and
acceptable and perfect. If we’re to be distinct from
the world and conformed to the image of Jesus ... we
must be careful about what we expose ourselves to.
Paul’s words to the Philippian church give us an
important clue about how to do this: Make an
intentional effort to limit our exposure to things that
run counter to our faith. Think about what you watch
on TV and in the movies, about what you read, about
the relationships you’re pursuing. Do they call you on
to a greater commitment to God? I’m not suggesting
that everything we do must be about Christianity ... or
that we must limit ourselves to church activities. But
if we don’t make an intentional effort to allow good
and godly things to influence our lives, we shouldn’t
be surprised that we don’t look much different than
unbelievers, and that we have so little influence in our
world. Paul told the Corinthian church: 1 Cor 10:23
- All things are lawful, but not all things are
profitable. All things are lawful, but not all things
edify. I’m convinced that the reason we miss God’s
activity in our lives isn’t because we don’t believe the
right things; it’s because we aren’t very discerning
about what we allow to influence us.
So what should we do? Let me offer two things:
First, make it a priority to read your Bible daily. It’s
not about checking a block on your reading plan
(although those are helpful tools). It’s about making
time to let God to speak into your life. As the writer
of Hebrews put it: “For the word of God is living and
active and sharper than any two-edged sword, and
piercing as far as the division of soul and spirit, of
both joints and marrow, and able to judge the
thoughts and intentions of the heart.” (Heb 4:12)
Second, consider your sources of entertainment.
What do you what you read, listen to, and watch?
Consider adding a Christian music station to your car
radio or to your Spotify/Pandora music stations. A
company called Pureflix, focused on Christian-based
films, recently opened up a subscription service much
like Netflix. For you readers, I’ve listed some great
Christian books on our website under the Teaching
Tab (CLICK on Continuing the Journey). On that
same page you’ll find a link to Plugged In On Line ...
a service from Focus on the Family that will give you
information about movies, books, and music. Church family, I’m convinced that Paul realized that
the pressure of the unbelieving world could take a
heavy toll on our faith. He knew that by making an
intentional effort to focus on the good things we could
overcome the constant influence of the world. We
just have to decide to take those steps. As my old
saying goes: Knowing something isn’t the same as
doing something. Doing something actually requires
doing something. What do you need to do?
Together in Him, Bro Jim
Children’s Ministry: Janet Dietsch
The month of July has been very quiet. I’m thankful for that after finishing VBS. What a week we had during VBS. It was a terrific week with all the children. We averaged 48 children each night and 39 awesome workers. We all had fun, fellowship, and the love of God. A thank you to all the VBS workers. You were the “BEST.” Thanks for all you did. Also a thank you to everyone who helped cut out, wrap, put together all the decorations. Couldn’t have done it without you. AWANA starts Aug. 4th for the leaders with our leadership meeting and Aug. 11th with our registration. We are excited about “bouncing” our way into a new year. A BIG THANK YOU to all of you who donate your time and resources. We couldn’t do it without you. School starts back on Thursday, Aug. 8th. We will have our “Back to School” party on Wednesday, Aug. 7th. We’ll go to Mark and Julie Noles for a swim party. We’re looking forward to another great year! Children in Christ, Janet Dietsch
Music Ministry: Danny Granstaff
Throughout my times of reading, I enjoy coming across the topic of music. Especially in the realm of my walk with Christ. The following is a small part from a lengthier article by Keith E. Johnson titled “Hearing the Music of the Gospel”. “Imagine yourself in a large house in which those who are deaf and those who can hear are living together. In one of the rooms, you see a guy sitting in a chair and listening to music on his iPod. Rhythmically, he’s tapping his foot, drumming his thighs, jutting his chin out, swaying to the beat, and pursing his lips like Mick Jagger or someone. His entire body moves in response to what his ears are hearing. It’s obvious that he’s enjoying himself and listening to a pretty good song. A few minutes later, one of the deaf persons enters the room. Seeing the guy listening to the music and impersonating Mick Jagger, he thinks, ‘That looks like fun. I think I’ll try that.’ So he sits down next to him and begins to
imitate him. Awkwardly at first, he tries drumming his thighs, jutting his chin out, and swaying to the music just like the guy with the iPod. With a little practice, he begins to catch onto it. By watching and trying, he begins to mirror the other guy’s actions pretty closely. But although he eventually gets better at keeping time, he concludes that it’s not as much fun or as easy as it initially seemed (especially the chin jut—very difficult to do when you’re not actually hearing the music). After a while, a third person enters the room and watches this scene. What does he see? Two people apparently doing the same thing, apparently listening to the same thing. Is there a difference? Absolutely. The first guy hears the music and his actions are a natural response to the music’s rhythm and melody. The second guy is merely imitating the outward actions. Being deaf, he’s not listening to anything. There’s an important spiritual parallel here. The dance (outward actions) represents the Christian life, while the music represents the grace of the gospel. Though we have come to know Christ through grace, we are often like the deaf man in the story who tries to perform the dance without hearing the music. Our spiritual life is reduced to a series of dance steps— external behaviors and activities—devoid of God’s animating and transforming power. God’s desire is not to get us to do the dance but to get us to hear the music of the gospel, with the dance (godly actions, character, and activities) flowing naturally from it.“ Something to think about. Blessing to you all, Danny
The Youth group is growing!! We welcomed our newest members this month. Connor Prince, Clara Gregory, Jayden Littrell, and Lucas Poague have joined us and we couldn’t be more excited. We had a cookout for them on their first night with us and it was a great time of fellowship and games. We are starting a multi week series on “Following Jesus” on Wednesday nights and we feel that all of us will really enjoy the material. Also, we’re looking forward to our Youth Group Lake Day on July 23rd for an afternoon of boat rides, jet skis and tubing!! Thank you all for your prayers and support!
In CHRIST, Lance & Trena Gregory
Children’s Church Marcella’s Drivers Counters Teller Team
Aug Cyrstal Smith
Tue Jul 30: Jerry Devine Fri Aug 2: Nancy Whitler Mon Aug 5: Nigel & Becky August: Randy & Hazel Jean Faulkner September: Billy & Anna Hodge
Tue Aug 6: Dale Smith Fri Aug 9: Ray Tucker Mon Aug 12: Betty Thompson
Sep Cyrstal Smith
Tue Aug 13: Jerry Devine Fri Aug 16: David Madison Mon Aug 19: Mildred Oliver Tue Aug 20: Sam Jones Fri Aug 23: Nancy Whitler Mon Aug 26: Rebecca Wilson
Tue Aug 27: David Madison Fri Aug 30: Jerry Devine
SUN MON TUE WED THU FRI SAT
1 2 3
Prayer Mtg JUMP Youth
6:00 pm Kids Choir
4 5 6 7 8 9 10
Awana Leaders Meeting 5:30 pm
Prayer Mtg JUMP Youth
6:00 pm Kids Choir
11 12 13 14 15 16 17
Awana Registration
Prayer Mtg
JUMP Youth
6:00 pm Adult Choir 7:00
Community
Ministry Project: Car Wash at Minit Mart
10 am to noon. Bring a sponge.
18 19 20 21 22 23 24
Deacon’s Mtg
Turn in cookies for MSU BCM
Members Mtg JUMP Youth
6:00 pm Adult Choir 7:00
25 26 27 28 29 30 31
Prayer Mtg
JUMP Youth Mtg.
6:00 pm Adult Choir 7:00
NURSERY ASSISTANTS USHERS PRAYER ROOM DEACON OF THE WEEK Aug 4 Alison Risher & Kristin Poague Les Evans Kathy Poague & Carolyn Outland Brandon Cayton 270-994-8878 Aug 11 Alison Risher & Jenny Travis Larry Coursey Jean Smith & Karen Howard Dale Smith 270-564-8457 Aug 18 Alison Risher & Jo Beth Jones Phil Broyles Jason Young & Oral Sickling Andy Pagel 270-210-7589 Aug 25 Alison Risher & Janie Pagel Clint Poague Gene Low & Sandra Wiles Lance Gregory 270-703-4881