May 09th, 2023

Greetings, Church Family and Friends!

Thanks to all who came out for the National Day of Prayer gathering at the courthouse on Thursday. Around thirty of our community members were in attendance, and approximately one-third of them were representing First Baptist. 
I love you all so much, and I really appreciate seeing you all come out in support of community prayer events. 

As you prepare for the Lord's Day tomorrow, please take a few minutes as you read this email to pray for the services tomorrow, to pray for our graduates as we honor them, and to pray for those who have lost loved ones this week. We especially want to express Christian sympathy to Trina and Aaron Reeder on the death of their son, Trevor Dawson. Trevor's services were yesterday afternoon; thank you to all who were in attendance, who brought food, or in other ways supported the family during this difficult time.

THE LORD'S DAY (5/7):

• Graduate Breakfast, 8:30 am. All are invited to join with us in honoring and celebrating our graduates, high school and beyond. Come on out and enjoy this delicious breakfast! We recognize Alexia Allen-Jones, Wesley Poston, and Hunter Hulett as graduates of Maysville High School (Commencement May 21 at 1:30 pm); Alyssa Allie as a graduate of St. Joseph Christian School (Commencement May 14 at 3 pm); and Laura Phillips, Physician Associate, University of Oklahoma College of Medicine, graduated October 2022.
• Bible Study for All Ages, 9:30 am. Nursery through Senior Adult, we have a group for you.
• Worship Together at 10:40 in the Sanctuary. We will be in Luke 21:20-38 with the sermon entitled "Prepare to Persevere." Here is a summary along with the basic outline. The Christian life has been compared to a marathon. Those who endure to the end prove themselves to be the true believers in Christ. Christians are people who persevere in the faith. This passage continues the theme of being prepared for Christ’s return that we began looking at in Luke 21 last week. This is effectively “part two” of that message. As disciples of Jesus, we must prepare actively to persevere in the midst of trials with these three words of encouragement (find out what the blanks are tomorrow morning!):
  1. Learn ______from the past (vss. 20-24) cf. Mt. 24:9-14
     
  2. Look _______to the future (vss. 25-33) cf. Is. 34:4-5; Acts 1:9-11; 
     
  3. Live _____________in the present (vss. 34-38) cf. 2 Peter 3:3-4, 9-13
     

Scriptures for Sunday.  Here are the Scriptures we will be reading that will shape our corporate worship. Take a few moments to read and meditate on them as you prepare for worship tomorrow. Click anywhere on the link to see a printable version of these passages on biblegateway.com

• Call to Worship: Psalm 31:1-5, 15-16
  
• Assurance of Pardon: 1 Peter 2:9-10
  
• Scripture Reading: Exodus 21:33 - 22:15
  
• Sermon Text: Luke 21:20-38
  
• Benediction: Numbers 6:24-26
  

Baptist Catechism Questions are Questions 117-118 "On the Lord's Prayer." For the entire catechism, follow this link.

• Question 117: What do we pray for in the sixth petition?
  • Answer: In the sixth petition, which is, "And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil," we pray that God would either keep us from being tempted to sin, or support and deliver us when we are tempted.
    • Scripture: Matthew 6:13; 26:41; Psalm 19:13; 1 Corinthians 10:13; John 17:15.

• Question 118: What does the conclusion of the Lord's Prayer teach us?
  • Answer: The conclusion of the Lord's Prayer, which is, "For Thine is the kingdom, and the power, and the glory, forever, Amen," teaches us to take our encouragement in prayer from God only, and in our prayers to praise him, ascribing kingdom, power, and glory to him; and in testimony of our desire, and assurance to be heard, we say AMEN.
    • Scripture: Matthew 6:13; Daniel 9:18, 19; 1 Chronicles 29:11-13; 1 Corinthians 14:16; Philippians 4:6; Revelation 22:20.

• BACCALAUREATE will be held at 7 pm (right after the scholarship and awards recognition in the commons area) in the Old Gym at Maysville High School. Come out and support the 44 graduating seniors at this service. Each church is to supply three dozen cookies for the reception. Please let me know if you can help in this way, and have the cookies at the old gym by 6:30 pm. If you would rather, cookies can be brought to the church in the afternoon, and we can deliver them to the school. Kathy Kagay coordinates the reception, so you may contact her directly if you like.

MONDAY (5/8)

• Men's Discipleship Group, 1 pm, using both Words and Deeds book and Walking With Ephesians.
• Sewing Circle, 5 pm. All ladies are invited to attend this group whether you sew or not. Enjoy the fellowship, discipleship, and prayer.
• Monday "Sunday School" online via ZOOM at 7 pm. See Pastor Kyle to join this virtual Bible study group.  To join Zoom Meeting, follow this link: https://us02web.zoom.us/j/87573789453?pwd=Zjg5ZWZ2N1h5WklxOEFjM3IrVUt1QT09      Meeting ID: 875 7378 9453       Passcode: 478672 

WEDNESDAY (5/10)

• Women's Wednesday morning ZOOM Bible Study.  The group is studying W. Phillip Keller's modern classic, A Shepherd Looks at Psalm 23. Contact Jan McElwain for details at 816-449-0424. To join Zoom Meeting, use this link (different from the one above):  https://us02web.zoom.us/j/3665081666?pwd=N21LSEJaYURhUzZVSmRLcFhPdW8zZz09 Meeting ID: 366 508 1666   Passcode: 844160

• Men's Wednesday Morning Discipleship Group (Russ Wright, 816-724-0925). The "Master's Men" is on hiatus for the summer
• Kids' Club, 3:30 - 5:15 pm. This after-school ministry is for children, K-6. This will be the final night of the school year, and will be followed by a brief program from 5:15 to 5:45 pm in the sanctuary. Come out and see what the children have been learning through the year.
• Men's Discipleship Group, 6 pm (Robert Kendall, group leader, 816-724-4155).  Studying Words and Deeds.
• Youth Bible Study, 6:30 - 8 pm, in the youth room. Fellowship and hangout time, snacks, followed by time in the Word of God. We are "storying" our way through the Gospel of Mark. If you are in grades 7-12, come out and join us. 
• Bible Study and Prayer, 6:30 pm in the Great Room, live and via ZOOM.  Join us for a time of prayer and time in God's Word as we study the book of Exodus. We will be in Exodus 15:22-27, the bitter water made sweet.  To join Zoom Meeting, follow this link: https://us02web.zoom.us/j/87573789453?pwd=Zjg5ZWZ2N1h5WklxOEFjM3IrVUt1QT09    Meeting ID: 875 7378 9453    Passcode: 478672 

THURSDAY (5/11)

• MEN'S DISCIPLESHIP GROUP, 7 pm. We are on Week 5 of Words and Deeds book.

SATURDAY (5/13)

• DEACON MEETING, 7:30 am, in the library
• MEN'S MINISTRY BREAKFAST, 8:30 am. All men and boys are invited to join us in the Fellowship Hall for breakfast. We will enjoy a meal, reflect on what we have studied this spring, and look forward to the future. (We will need a crew to help prepare the meal. If you would like to coordinate this effort, please let me know ASAP).
• MACH 4 Men's Ministry, 6 pm at Fairport Baptist. All men and boys are invited to participate in this ministry. We will share supper together, followed by a devotional time and ministry opportunities.

SUNDAY (5/14)

• Mother's Day. We will honor our mothers with a potted flower following the service. Thank you Ron and Jan McElwain for supplying these for us.

ICYMI: Last Sunday's sermon audio from Luke 21:5-19 "The Destruction of the Temple"

Other previous messages are archived here .   Please visit our YouTube Channel to see the edited service video. 

COMING UP:

• GRAND OAKS CAMPS SAVE THE DATE https://sjbamo.org/2023-sjba-grand-oaks-camp/
  • Youth Camp, completed grades 7-12, June 19-23. Cost: $160, church funds 1/2 of the cost.
  • Children's Camp, completed grades 4-6, July 24-28 (EARLY BIRD REGISTRATION FOR $150 IS AVAILABLE NOW). Church funds 1/2 of the cost.
  • Introduction to Camping at Grand Oaks, June 23-24, for children who have completed grades 1-3. Cost is $25 per camper. Parents are encouraged to attend with their children for this overnight event. Pastor Kyle and myself will be on staff at Intro to Camping. For more info on Intro to Camping, follow this link. If you would like to attend with your child, please let me know. If you need financial assistance, please let me know.
  • Also, we are in need of volunteer staff to serve as cabin coaches and cooks for youth and children's camp, and ACITS (assistant coaches in training) for children's camp. The ACITS typically need to have completed their sophomore year in high school, but occasionally we will accept an ACIT who has only completed his or her freshman year. See me about either of these opportunities.

• VACATION BIBLE SCHOOL, July 10-14, in the evenings. This event is fast approaching in just a little over two months! Contact Dava Hackett for more info.

FIGHTER VERSE: Our Fighter Verse this week is Romans 12:14-16
"Bless those who persecute you; bless and do not curse them. Rejoice with those who rejoice, weep with those who weep. Live in harmony with one another. Do not be haughty, but associate with the lowly. Never be wise in your own sight."


READ THROUGH THE BIBLE The Five-Day Bible Reading Plan is attached to this e-mail for your convenience. You may want to access additional resources to support your reading available at this website. Daily Bible reading is one of the leading indicators of spiritual growth and vitality in the Christian's life.

BONUS: I recommend podcasts from time to time. Here is one I have recommended in the past (I think), but a new season has just launched. It is called Open Book with Stephen Nichols. Dr. Nichols is a church history professor who is president of Reformation Bible College, Sanford, FL. This season he is interviewing Derek Thomas about books that have made an impact on him. Take a listen to these brief episodes, around 10 minutes each.

See you in church!


Grace and peace,

Pastor Greg