I am the light of the world; he who follows me will not walk in darkness, but will have the light of life.
John 8:12
The Lamplighter
April 2010
Come! Celebrate Easter!
Sun., March 28, 8:30 & 11am
The Last Supper Re-enactment—featuring men of
the church. Note:
A news article is scheduled to run in the Accent section of
The
Sun., March 28, 10am
Breakfast
(NO Sunday School)
Sat., April 3, 11am
Easter Egg Hunt
—donations of
candy/money are appreciated.
Easter, April 4, 6:30am
“SON”rise Service,
April 4
EASTER WORSHIP, 8:30 & 11 am (NO pm service)
Breakfast, 9am
=============================================================
Preparing to Meet the Master
by Pastor
For
everything, absolutely everything above and below, visible and invisible
. . . Everything got started in him and finds its purpose in him
(Colossians 1:15 The
Message).
“It is god who directs the lives of his creatures; everyone’s life is in his
power” Job 12:10.
Our life is not primarily about us, it is about him.
We find our purpose in him, not by looking within ourselves.
This is his world. He is the
creator and we find our significance in calling him “Father.”
History is his story.
Eternity belongs to him and our lives are in his hands.
He is the master.
Therefore, when he talks about the prize that
awaits us, we should take special notice and pay attention.
Second Timothy 4:8 says, “And now the prize awaits me, the crown
of righteousness that the Lord, the righteous judge, will give me on
that great day of his return.
And the prize is not just for
me, but for all who eagerly look forward to his glorious return.
” This crown is a
reward for faithfulness to Christ and for those who long for his
appearing.
It is time to start focusing on our eternity.
We believe the time is very short before his return; therefore,
our interests and planning for the future should take this into serious
consideration.
It will be worth the investment of your whole life
to hear the great master,
Christ, say to you, “Well done, good and faithful servant.”
Have you ever been honored by a great person?
Not many of us have,
but we will. Those words, I
believe, will ring in our ears and bring us overflowing joy for all
eternity because of who says those words to us.
And what is that worth?
So, are you anticipating and praying for his soon
return? He wants us to
eagerly anticipate this and long for it and allow it to impact our
decisions in this life. The
greatest moment of your eternal soul is about to occur!
=====================================================================
Step back into history
We’re all invited to step back into history to become an eye witness to
Jesus’ last days on earth.
You’ll see how he willingly humbled himself before his chosen twelve to
teach them one more lesson before his death in a few hours.
How would we spend our last few hours?
Would
it be in service to others? Or,
would it be like Judas—thinking only of how life affects one’s self?
Are we a stumbling block to God’s ministry or are we stepping
stones? I pray God uses this
moment in history to speak to your heart—to see what stands in the way
of complete surrender to Christ.
When we submit our life to Christ, he can shine through us.
Has your light dimmed?
Let us each be a bright light and shine for him.
We invite everyone to come and experience The Last
Supper Re-enactment on Palm Sunday, March 28, 8:30 & 11am.
In Christ’s love,
Patricia Culver,
Drama Director
P.S.
I wish to thank each man that faithfully stayed
each Sunday for practice.
And, a special thank you goes to the new actors who braved the stage.
And, a special thank you to Tim Glace and Dave Bibey for the
stage props. It took each of
us doing a part.
P.P.S.
Christ’s love is so great he has our names tattooed
on his hands and feet. “Oh
how he loves you and me.”
=====================================================================
Deacon Family Ministry
YOUR
family has a deacon
Church members’ deacons are as follows
(list is by 1st 2 or 3 letters of last name; some include 1st letter of
1st name ):
Ba—-Co:
Duke Grant
Cr—-J Ha:
Bobby Hudler
T Ha—-Ja:
Eric Jackson
Jo—-Lot:
Lov—-Na:
Ray Sommers
Ol—-Si:
Sp—-Yo:
Ralph Veasey
============================================================================
28 & still counting! May we
count YOU in?
Hello Ladies!
Mark your calendars for September 10-11, 2010.
It’s “gonna” be an “Over the Top” weekend!
And, it will be here before you know it!
So far, we have 28 women requesting tickets for this year’s Women
of Faith (WOF) event. If you
haven’t been to a WOF event I encourage you to go to their website,
womenoffaith.com. Click
on the map that says “find an event”.
Click on the dot over Philadelphia.
There you’ll find info about the scheduled speakers as well as be
able to watch a video clip of what WOF is all about.
My personal favorite speakers are Patsy Clairmont, Anita Renfroe
(She’s like Mark Lowry in a dress!), and Nicole Johnson.
You will be sure to have favorites of your own after you
experience the joy, laughter, tears and love these women will share.
The luxury suites at the
The hotel rooms have been reserved.
We were able to get the same hotel for the same price as last
year, $55 per person. This
is for two people in a room (with two queen size beds).
Everyone loved the hotel last year—very European, luxurious, and
modern! This year one person
from each room will pay for their own room at check in.
This should make check in much smoother.
This year
the church is asking that ALL money for tickets be given directly to me.
So many people attending this year will overwhelm the counters!
I’ll be available on Sundays to receive money and record all
money that is given to me.
You may still pay in small amounts over time.
You may also send checks through the mail or drop payments off at
the
I’m
putting an email list together so that all the women interested in going
will be able to get up-to-date information from me.
And, you may contact me as well by email (jlmcc28@verizon.net)
with any questions you may have.
If you’re planning on joining us this year, please contact me
with your email information so that you may be added to the list. I’m
also placing Monday morning updates using Facebook.
If you have a Facebook account you can use it to reach me, as
well.
In closing, I have a request and a challenge to our
church body. If you’re not
interested or unable to attend this year’s event, I ask that you pray
for the women who are. Pray
for them to experience God in a deeper, more personal way than they
could ever imagine. Maybe
God is leading you to help a woman attend this year’s event.
There may be a woman who would love to go but can’t afford the
cost of the ticket. Maybe
that’s what God is calling you to do.
That “Over the Top” sacrifice could be just what is needed
to help a
woman experience God in a way that could change her life forever.
Trying to
Bloom Where I’m Planted!
Event
Coordinator
============================================================
Subject: Beware of Terrorist
Groups in Church
Latest news reports are that seven terrorist cell groups
have been operating in many of our churches.
They’ve been identified as:
Bin Sleepin, Bin Arguin, Bin Fightin, Bin Complainin, Bin Hurtin,
Bin Offended and Bin Missin.
Their leader,
Lucifer Bin Workin, trained these groups to destroy the Body of Christ.
The plan is to come into the church disguised as Christians and
to work within the church to discourage, disrupt, and destroy.
However, there’ve
been reports of an eighth group.
A tiny cell known by the name Bin Prayin is actually the only
effective counter terrorism force in the church.
Unlike other terrorist cells, the Bin Prayin team doesn’t blend
in with whoever and whatever comes along.
Bin Prayin does whatever is needed to uplift and encourage the
Body of Christ. We’ve
noticed that the Bin Prayin cell group has different characteristics
than the others. They’ve Bin
Watchin, Bin Waitin, Bin Fastin, and Bin Longin for their Master, Jesus
Christ, to return.
NO CHURCH IS
EXEMPT!
(However, you can spot them if you bin lookin and
bin goin.)
=====================================================================
VACATION
July
12—16
Evenings
(exact times forthcoming)
===============================================================
Pastor Dan is one of the good guys
Hallelujah! I’m back to my home
church. Florida was nice;
but, just not home. You know
what I mean. Dr. Hokuf was
spending his vacation in Florida with Ray and Brenda Sommers and I
decided to hitch a ride with him back to Maryland.
He didn’t know it though.
It wasn’t much fun riding along with those smelly fish he’d
caught; but, romping through those palm leaves was exciting.
You see, he brought palm leaves from Florida for The Last Supper
drama on March 28. H-m-m-m!
Ray and Brenda said HELLO! And,
they’ll be home by Easter.
So, here I am and Brother Mouse has been bending my ear.
He’s been tattlin’ on Pastor Dan who has been up to some good
things. You know he does a
lot of helpin’ with the
ministry at First Baptist.
He’s sorta like an unsung hero.
Here’s Brother Mouse’s tale:
Pastor Dan has
gone to an Orioles’ baseball game, an Ironbirds’ baseball game, a Bass
Pro shop, and who knows what else. BUT, he hasn’t been alone.
He knows how to have fun especially when he takes some young guys
along for the ride. He took
C.J. Aremu to an Orioles’ baseball game.
He took C.J. and two of his cousins and L.J. Watson to an
Ironbirds vs. New York Mudhounds (or maybe Muddogs) game at the Ripken
Stadium. And, he took C.J.
and L.J. to a Bass Pro Shop.
At the Bass Pro shop he let C.J. and L.J. select something to purchase.
C.J. went home with a new fishing rod.
L.J. went home with a shirt and some candy.
During these trips they had hot dogs, lunch, and BIG ice cream
cones. Everything was Pastor Dan’s treat.
C.J. said he had
“a great time.” Pastor Dan
is “a very nice man and very godly.
He is there for us.
We can ask him anything.”
C.J. went on to say Pastor Dan wants to give the boys knowledge and
thirst and greatness for God’s glory.
“Amazing and very godly” are the words according to C.J. that
best describe Pastor Dan.
Fola
Johnson-Aremu, C.J.’s mother, is very “happy C.J. gets to go with a
really nice, godly man who instills morals and values into his life as
well as being a father-figure.”
She’s very “thankful” for Pastor Dan.
L.J. says Pastor
Dan is a “good person, generous, kind and he’s fun to be with.”
L.J.’s grandmother, Esther Watson, says, “It’s wonderful . . . he
(Pastor Dan) fills the father-gap really good.”
Now, this “band of brothers” is thinking about another outing; but,
they’re undecided where they’ll go next.
Well! Who knew?
Now you know! It’s my
understanding that this is just the tip of the iceberg as far as Pastor
Dan’s outreach ministry.
Kat, The
P.S. I can’t wait until the Easter Egg Hunt.
There should be plenty of nibbles lying around for mice.
===============================================================
Here’s the scoop on L.J. & C.J.:
L.J. Watson (age 11) is a 5th grader at
C.J. Aremu (age 14) is a 9th grader at
============================================================
EGG HUNT
Sat.,
April 3, 11am
(rain or shine)
Lunch provided.
Sponsored by the Youth.
=============================================================
Reminders
CHURCH FLORAL DECORATIONS
for the sanctuary, halls, and doors:
Please notify Kathy Gray @ the church office IF/WHEN you’d like
to place an arrangement/s wreath/s, etc.
Church ENTRANCES:
PLEASE remove any personal items or items that should go
elsewhere.
LOST/FOUND:
A pair of little girl’s brown shoes and a hair brush were found
after the photo sessions.
These items along with other lost/found items are in the education
wing/bottom shelf of literature rack.
COMMUNITY/INTERNATIONAL OUTREACH: We’re
collecting the following for various charities:
Aluminum can tabs, plastic bottle caps, lids, etc. & wheel
chairs, crutches, walkers, etc.
COMMUNITY OUTREACH:
Non-perishable FOOD DONATIONS and personal hygiene products are ALWAYS
appreciated by folk in our community.
THANK YOU FOR GIVING!
=====================================================================