Pray Then Play

Our Pray Then Play basketball season is nearing its end! The end of the season banquet will be Tuesday night, November 1.

This Saturday morning at 9 a.m. Fellowship's orange team & blue team will meet to play in the championship game for the 5-8 year old division at 9 a.m. at Fellowship's MMB- we would love to have you here to support our kids! The blue team in the 9-12 year old division will also be playing in the 9 a.m. championship game at First Baptist High Springs. Our 13-18 year old team will be playing Thursday night in the play offs.

Prayer...

God is calling people everywhere to prayer. (1 Timothy 2: 1,8) He is calling all of us to life changing communion with the Life-giving God. This imperative and essential privilege (Luke 10:38-42) is so easily neglected or abandoned by us for other options. Our Father's word to us all is that we might continue and persevere in prayer and not give up. (Luke 18:1)

Oswald Chambers declares that prayer does not "fit" us for greater works but that it IS the greater work.

E. M. Bounds says that "prayer is a direct address to God...prayer moves the Hand that moves the world."

The possibilities of prayer have rarely been realized. There is so much, that is so great toward us through prayer that it would cause us to stagger in our faith, Bounds says. But His faithfulness and "veracity" are at stake. He is Awesome. His words are true. His promises are eternal. And all of this is for simple plain people, like you and me. He will do for all of us just what He says He will do. "For He is faithful that hath promised."

Join me in praying for all things, in all places, in partnership with God, for His purposes, for our blessing and for His Glory!

See You Sunday!

Mitch

Bethlehem Live

Sign up to participate in Bethlehem Live beginning this Sunday!

Upcoming Weekend

This weekend is going to be a bit busy at Fellowship. Here is what you will find taking place this weekend:

Friday - Saturday: College Retreat
(using the student ministry room as well as the gym Saturday after pray then play)

Saturday: Pray Then Play Basketball

Sunday Morning: Bible Study and Worship (voting for Administrative Team)

Sunday Evening: Youth Group (6:00 - 7:30pm) & LIFE Groups

Can't wait to see you Sunday! Have a great weekend!

Praise The Lord...

Sunday was a great day. I trust that you were there to enjoy it with us all. I'm so thankful for what God is doing at Fellowship.

Just wanted you to know that the Winter Bible Study Quarter begins Sunday, December 4th through February 26, 2006. It will be a shorter quarter in that we'll miss two Sundays for Bethlehem, Live (12/11) and Sunday, December 25th. Bible Study will be cancelled for those days. On Christmas Day we'll worship at 10:00 A.M. and share Lord's Supper together. A decision has not been made about Sunday, January 1, 2006. We'll let you know as soon as we do.

If you have a suggestion for a class to offer for the Winter Quarter coming up please let us know. If you'd like to teach, I'd love to help you get connected there.

Anticipating good things! Love you all.

Mitch

This Sunday...

Dr. Bob Mounts will be with us again as our guest speaker. He is also the man that is being recommended by the leadership teams to be our Interim Pastor.

Life Groups are tonight and there are an assortment of groups to choose from if you're not attending one.

Bible Study offers several choices for all adults. Make sure and check out the Bible Study Line-Up on this web site for more information.

There are a number of ministry needs that you may be interested in: Men's Ministry (see Randy Highsmith), Food Ministry (see Howard Zablo or Sparks Giebeig) AND Bethlehem Live scheduled for December 10 and 11th. There is something for everyone to do there. See Windy Bridges or Kay Green for more information.

New Members Orientation Luncheon is today immediately following Worship in the M.M.B.

Please be in prayer about the services and bible study hour that the Spirit of God will be free to speak and we all will have ears to hear.

Blessings!

Preparation...

I always look forward to worship on Sundays. Getting ready for such an important time can be valuable. Worshiping personally and privately throughout the week cannot be overemphasized. I find that as I meet God through the week, that Sunday worship becomes a climax to an already vibrant connection with Him. Anticipating being with others in the corporate setting excites and encourages me.

I've also found that the activities immediately leading up to a Sunday can have a profound affect on my state of mind and spirit. That is why Saturdays, for me, are so important. I love to plan them so that there is a winding down as the day goes on and a focusing on what is to come Sunday.

Preparation for worship is so important. When you think of it we prepare for other events, family outings, hunting, fishing and more, in similar ways. Certainly we would want to prepare ourselves for one of the most important activities of any believer.

I'm looking forward to seeing you Sunday. Don't miss the opportunity to study the Bible at 9:15.
Join a class of your choice, then join us in worship. What you bring to that time together will be special and add so much.

See YOU then,

Mitch

Church Voting

I would ask that you being now praying about who God would have you vote for to be on the Administrative Team. Below you will find a list of six people who have been nominated for this team. Please pray and choose four of them to represent Fellowship on the Administrative Team.

Boo Becker
Jerry Graybeal
Stan Griffis
Kellie Harris
Nancy Meyer
Pat Watson

Also, please be in prayer about the vote for our interim pastor as well as the man that God will lead to us in the future for a full time senior pastor.

On Relationships...

Crush marbles and your get fragmentation - disintegration - hard, sharp pieces. And, if you're not careful, you can get hurt.

Crush grapes and you get fragrant, refreshing wine.

Some people relate like marbles. Fear of being vulnerable hardens them, their only contact with others is to bump up against them and ricochet around. They never enjoy a vital relationship with anyone.

To protect themselves, they box themselves in - allowing no one to penetrate. Pressure in their relationships creates fragmentation - disintegration - edginess...and others usually get hurt.

Being vulnerable is high-risk business and most of us are low-risk persons.

We talk of good faith, but are unwilling to lay ourselves open, which can bring us together to produce fragrant, refreshing wine for humanity. We neglect the love which is the heart and soul of the faith we profess.

Others relate like grapes. They yield to pressure - accept weakness as essential to intimacy - give love knowing that love is always vulnerable. When crushed, they bring blessings - fragrant, refreshing blessings.

Whoever tries to keep his life will lose it, and whoever loses his life will preserve it. (Luke 17:33)

Copied

I thought this would be a challenge to us! Blessings on you all.

Mitch

Wanted to Pass This Along...

"Moses my servant is dead; now therefore arise and go..." (Joshua1:2).

Imagine the trauma! The great deliverer, lawgiver, prophet of God - he who had led the people out of bondage and through the wilderness for fourty years - Moses dead! "Now...go"!

To paraphrase: The past is gone, irretrievable. The future is irresistable...Go with it!

God's command to Joshua was full of promise: "I will give you every place where you set your foot; no one will be able to stand up against you all the days of your life. As I was with Moses, so I will be with you; I will never leave you nor forsake you." (Joshua 1:3, 5)

Fantastic promises. And one clear condition: "Do not let this Book of the Law depart from your mouth; meditate on it day and night, so that you may be careful to do everything written in it. Then you will be prosperous and successful." (1:8)

What a word for a new day!

Believe God...

Obey Him...

Go secure and confident into the days ahead!!!

(reprinted from No Greater Power, by Richard Halverson)

May the Lord mightily and profoundly bless YOU!

Mitch

For Your Information...

The church voted back in September to seek an Interim Pastor and empowered the leadership teams (Deacons, Admin Team and Staff) to bring a recommendation. In an effort to quickly carry out the church's desire, the teams met last Sunday after worship to discuss and come to a consensus as to who this person should be. After prayer and deliberation the teams are strongly recommending Dr. Bob Mounts. He has expressed an interest and is quite qualified to guide us through this time in the life of Fellowship. There will be more information to come.

This will be announced this coming Sunday morning. The church will then vote Sunday, October 23rd during worship to confirm the teams recommendation. Please be in prayer about this strategic decision and make sure and be here the 23rd to participate.

We love you all and are committed to finding and doing His best. Thanks for all your support and encourgement.

Blessings,

The Leadership

Comfort Plus...

The more I thought about yesterdays blog on comfort, I remembered Genesis 12:2. God told Abram, "I'm gonna bless you...so you can be a blessing." A principle is set forth here and we see it throughout scripture. I thought of many other places in the bible where it goes something like this: you've been forgiven, now go and forgive; you've been reconciled, now you have the ministry of reconciliation; I'll comfort you, now comfort others; Jesus gave his life for you, now you should present your bodies a living sacrifice...the reasonable thing to do; and in sending his disciples out to minister Jesus says to them: freely you have received, now freely give!

He blesses so we can bless, gives so we can give. They tell me that any body of water that constantly has inflow but no outflow becomes stagnant. The Dead Sea is a good example of this and is rightfully named. We've all known people like this. But there's more. Jesus says to give and it will be given unto you; good measure, pressed down, shaken together and running over.... So it seems that there is another principle at work as well: He gives and blesses so that we can give and bless and the more we give, the more we'll be given.

Wow! This is huge. The things that we can give and ministries we can have are as endless as his supply. Paul exhorts Timothy in 2 Timothy 2:21 that if a man cleanses himself...he will be a vessel for honor...useful to the Master, prepared for every good work. Vessels to receive and dispense according to His glorious provision.

We have a choice; we can be containers or conduits; rivers or ponds; givers or takers. Father, I want to be a conduit channeling your flow wherever You wish. Sir, "Let the River flow."

Just wanted you to know,

Mitch

Comfort

Comfort comes when it is needed. Our Father sees to that! In 2 Corinthians 1:1-11 Paul states that Our Father is the God of all comfort and that He comforts us in all of our affliction. (vs 3,4) He has all the comfort we need for all afflictions.

It occurred to me that we would never experience the comfort of God apart from afflictions that He allows to come. The scripture seems to suggest that flowing parallel with the hard things we face, there is also a river of comfort that is unending and readily available. That is so good to know. All of life will have its difficulties and parallel with it is an abundance or grace to carry us through. But that's not all....

Paul goes on to say that the affliction that he went through and the cooresponding comfort that he received in it, is what equipped him to be able to minister effectively to others. Verse 4 states: "...Who comforts us in all our affliction so that we may be able to comfort those in any affliction with the comfort with which we ourselves have been comforted by God." As always God blesses us so that we can bless. Apart from His ministry to us we have no effective ministry to others.

So, as you are walking though the things that your sphere of influence brings, there is two bits of good news; comfort is readily available to you from Him for all things and His ministry to you in them is broadening and deepening your ability and scope of ministry to others.

Let me encourage you to drink deeply of His river of comfort. You never know when you'll find yourself with someone who'll need just exactly what you are receiving right now.

I just wanted you to know and to remind myself. I need that.

Bless You Dear Ones,

Mitch

A New Life in Bethlehem!

The time has come for us to begin planning and preparing for A New Life In Bethlehem. This year's dates are Saturday and Sunday, December 10 & 11, 6:00-8:30. We are looking forward to being a part of this outreach to our community and pray that you are too.

Monday, October 10 at 6:30 we will be having our first planning meeting in the Office Conference Room. It is our desire to have all those interested attend this meeting to share ideas and help us plan.

Blessings,

Kay Crawford & Windy Bridges

Revival

The American Heritage Dictionary defines revival as the act of reviving or the condition of being revived. It also defines revive as the act of bringing back to life or consciousness; to impart new health, vigor or spirit to.

There are many points in our personal and corporate lives that we sense the desperate need to be renewed, brought back to a fresh consciousness of God, gain new Life, be restored to spiritual health, vigor and spirit or enthusiasm. We hear the psalmist express this when he describes his own hunger and thirst for God and righteousness. We hear his desperation and pain, his weakness, brokeness, contriteness and humility of heart. These quailies and virtues are essential elements that God looks for in His children that compel Him to move in their behalf to satisfy the expressed longing of their hearts.

The scriptures declare to us:

God will revive the spirit of the humble - Is. 57:15a
God will revive the heart of the contrite ones - Is. 57:15b
Though we walk in the midst of trouble, He will revive me - Ps. 138:7
Wilt Thou not restore, forgive, cover, show favor and revive us again that Thy people may rejoice in Thee? Ps. 85:1-7

As Paul Billheimer states in his book "Don't Waste Your Sorrows", allow times of difficulty to become the platform from which we cry out to God and appeal to His mercy and unfailing love to display His Glory and provide once again opportunity for His children to rejoice in Him and proclaim His mighty acts. Join me in crying out to Him for revival. I just wanted you to know.

Father God, Revive Us Again!

Mitch

Divine Guidance

Richard Halverson, former chaplain to the U.S. Senate reminds us:

Nothing is clearer in the Bible than the fact that God wants to give personal guidance to all who seek it. Every day our lives can be God-planned and directed - every moment, every step.

God delights in directing us! History's testimony declares that God has led. Looking back over our personal lives we can see how He has done it!

God is leading! Where the rubber meets the road, God has promised to lead right now, where we are, and who we are with, regardless of the circumstances.

God will lead! Looking ahead - before the need, before the crunch - we know that God will give direction.

Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding; in all of your ways acknowledge Him, and He will make your paths straight. (Proverbs 3:5-6)

A man's heart deviseth his way: but the Lord directeth his steps. (Proverbs 16:9)

Just wanted you to know...

Mitch

God Confidence

Getting past self-confidence to God-confidence many times is not as easy as it would appear. Our natural inclination is to rely on our strengths and intuitive abilities to respond to life as it comes. When we are suddenly dumped into a situation or set of circumstances, we are quickly reminded that self-confidence / reliance takes us where we don't want to go and the results are far inferior to God's intended plan.

For me, it is breaking the habit, knowing my propensity to rely on my best and choosing, at the beginning, to place my confidence in Him for a positive outcome. Paul declared late in his ministry that he was able to do "all things through Christ who strengthens...." "All" is inclusive of small and great things, menial and strategic. His resources are readily available to anyone who will "write checks" on that account.

It is a defining moment in any life when the discovery is made and we make up our minds that the best we have will never be adequate and that what He offers is always enough! Major Ian Thomas said it this way: "O God, I cannot, You never said I could. You can, and always said You would." May He break through today in ways that will once again eternally convince us to abandon any other and make Him our first choice, not our last chance.

Pursuing His Ultimate Intention,

Mitch

Come Let Us Worship And Bow Down

Worship is the reciprocal relationship we enjoy with God the Father where we give Him what He wants and we receive from Him what we desperately need . Since He is the fountainhead of life and sustenance vital to our survival and ongoing growth, we need to consistently, regularly and passionately nurture this relationship with a zeal that is comensurate with its importance.

This Sunday, as you love Him and He loves you, may you find Him real, true and present in ways that you can see, hear and feel. We serve a living God who will break through into the physical realm in such magnificent ways that we, like the psalmist will say: "O taste and see that the Lord is good. How blessed is the man that takes refuge in Him!"

Let's magnify Him, together!

Mitch

I Was Thinking...

They tell me that perspective is everything...well almost everything. Charles Swindoll states that life is 10% of what happens to us and 90% of how we view it. We've all heard the illustration of how we can view a glass, either half full or half empty and the value, over the long haul, of having the positive view over the negative.

If you struggle having the right perspective on life, consider yourself normal. The Psalmist was facing this when he wrote Psalm 73. Life can bring many puzzling concerns and he discovers that God is the only one who can give us a perspective that will help us escape all of life's traps and give us the endurance we need to keep on keeping on.

The psalmist declared that in attemping to understand life "...it was troublesome in his sight, UNTIL he came into the sanctuary (presence) of God...." Then he understood and in the end proclaims "...the nearness of God is my good." Wow! How vital it is to know Him and remain close to Him to not only see, but receive all the goodness in this Life that He is intending, especially in the puzzling, difficult and dark times.

So don't miss His invitation to all: "Draw near to me and I'll draw near to you." His nearness will prove to offer the best perspective and the greatest hope for your future. You'd probably say with me, "I really need that."

Blessings,

Mitch