On Sunday morning we closed off a busy summer with worship. We had nearly eighty people on hand as our Praise team sang and I spoke about withholding judgment and letting God be God. I encouraged each of us focus on our own walk and to try and honor God with all we do.
Attendance his summer has been very good. Although some have been traveling and others have taken a break from the hectic pace of life and slept in on the weekends, many have made it a point to worship regularly.
I preached a series of sermons on the book of Romans this summer and I hope to have them available this week for those who are interested in reading them. Meanwhile we will be gearing up for a great Fall at church.
Sunday School opens on September 7th and we are expecting a good crowd on opening day. We have classes for all ages, including an adult Bible Study. The adults will be looking at what it means to be church as they study the book of Acts.
Rosie Main, Sandra Lucien Rachelle Weimer, Janet LaFlamme, Doris Calkins, Laura Kreger, Kristen Deptulski, Curt Brockway and I will be serving as Sunday School teachers. George Rezendes, Lori Lord, Cynthia Strouse and Zelda Earle will be helping out.
On September 21 we will have Doris and Ricardo Mayol with us for worship. They serve as American Baptist missionaries in southern Mexico. Our folks have been to the northern border area to work in churches. The Mayols will share their experiences working in the hills and villages near the southern tip of the nation. It should be a great day.
On September 28 we will launch our 40 days of purpose and walk together through Rick Warren's book, The Purpose Driven Life. On that Sunday we will witness the baptism of two of our newest members, Luis Pabon and Ashley Stewart. Then I will preach a message entitled, "You Are Not An Accident!" This will be the first of six weeks of pointed messages that deal with topics in Warren's book. During the week we will have several Bible study opportunities to discuss the book, the sermons and corresponding scripture passages.
On October 19 we will invite old friends back for a special day. We will look back at our church's history and also mark my becoming the longest standing pastor of First Baptist Church. We will talk about the ministries of folks like Rev. Walter Schoepfer who came in 1957 and saw a great resurgence in the ministry. Our Sunday School and youth ministry programs were bursting at the seems. Some of our leaders today grew up under his watch.
We will remember Rev. George H. Strouse Sr., a missionary at heart, who came and made our city the focus of his evangelistic messages beginning in 1913. We will celebrate the ministry of Rev. Percy Kilmister who inspired a generation of leaders in the 1930's and walked with us in a time of great stress in our nation. We will reflect back on the ministries of Rev. Vernon Price in the late 60's and early seventies, Rev. A.S. Brown at the end of the 19th century, Rev. Herbert Wise in the early years of the 20th century and those pioneers and founders of our ministry, Rev. John Sterry and Rev. William Palmer. It will be a great day and I hope you mark your calendar.
So stay tuned. The clock is running and I hope to see you all this Fall.
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