Author:

Just My Reminder to You: You are Loved!

by Pastor Doc Adkins

I enjoy reminding folk of this truth:  You are loved!

This month is Valentine’s Day month.  SUNDAY, FEBRUARY 14TH.   (Just a reminder to all the guys who might read this.)   It’s a day that creates different feelings for different reasons.

I want to remind you that you are loved today and every day.

A day like Valentine’s Day can bring up feelings of lovelessness.  Perhaps others in your life forgot to remember you today.  Maybe you feel left out because this is a Valentine’s without your spouse, or you have no romantic interest in your life.

The One Who Is Love has a special message for you today.

This is what God says about you!
You are My possession.
You are chosen by Me.
You were wonderfully made.
I chose you long ago.
I created you to do good works.
You are made in My image.
You can call Me Daddy.
You have been bought with My Son’s blood.
My Son Jesus loves you so much He died for you.
You are without fault through Christ.
You are sealed by My Holy Spirit.
I want to lavish My grace on you.
You are forgiven.
You are accepted.
There is no condemnation toward you.
I will never leave you.
I love you!

Sound too good to be true?  I’m not making it up.  Everything I just wrote is told you in God’s Word.  Look for yourself in 1 Peter 2:9; Psalms 139:14; Ephesians 1:5 and 2:10; Genesis 1:27; Galatians 4:6; Ephesians 2:13; Philippians 2:8; Colossians 1:22; Ephesians 1:13; 1:7-8; Colossians 3:13; Romans 15:7 and 8:1; Joshua 1:5; and Revelation 1:5.

If we can only let the reality of God’s love for us flow deeply to the core of our being we would be much better suited to handle anything that comes our way on Valentine’s Day and every day.  It’s only when you fully receive God’s love for you that you become free to love others.

Make it a great Valentine’s Day by looking for all the ways God shows His love for you.  You may start by reading the passages above and underlining them in your Bible.

Remember…there’s no question about it: You are loved!

Here’s an extra thought not original with me!
“For God so loVed the world,
That He gAve
His onLy
BegottEn
SoN
That whosoever
Believeth In Him
Should Not perish,
But have Everlasting life.”
John 3:16

Operation Christmas Child 2016

First of all let me thank you for your support of our shoebox ministry during the month of January.  It’s a great start but we need to keep the ball rolling.

For the month of February we will be collecting pens, pencils, crayons, coloring books & small note pads (emphasis on the word small).

Collection boxes are in the Welcome Center and also in Fellowship Hall.  Also if you have any empty shoeboxes, I can always use them and they can be left in the church office.  Last but certainly not least, please keep this program in your prayers through this year as shoeboxes are distributed around the world and the name of Jesus is brought to towns and villages around the world.

ABW January Update

by Norma Gunter

Today, January 18, as I was writing this article, watching a flock of robins eating  berries from my holly trees, I received a phone call that my friend and fellow ABW lady, Linda Lowe Buckley, had passed away.  On Friday I went to the Hospice House to tell her goodbye.  She had fought a good fight and it was time for her to go on to her reward in heaven.  She will be greatly missed by her family, friends and the ladies of the Lizzie Lewis Mission Circle.  Good bye Linda, we will see you in heaven.

This month’s February circle program from the ABW Ministries Ministry Focus Resource is  See…The Wilderness.  The scripture is Exodus l6.  Have you ever felt alone, as if you were living in the wilderness trying to figure everything out and get through it on your own, but it just wasn’t working?  We sometimes forget that God is in control.  Instead of seeing God’s hand in a situation, we see only the wilderness around us.  Hardships are part of a larger process that will make us who we are ultimately supposed to be.  We are put through trials we don’t like, but God knows the outcome and God is beside us during the entire experience.”

God provided for the Israelites during their wanderings in the wilderness.  He protected them and brought them through.  Our wilderness times can be caused by many things like;  loss of a loved one, the loss of a job, depression or our own feelings of separation from God.

My own wilderness now is a possible total hip replacement after recovering from the hip pinning back in May.  As from the Ministry Focus Resource, “We are put through trials we don’t like, but God knows the outcome, and God is beside us during the entire experience.”  God will provide for us in the wilderness.

Prayer is the most powerful thing we have to get us through our wilderness time.  Pray for me and all the women going through wilderness times.

The Beckley First Baptist American Baptist Women met the challenge to raise $100 for the February Philippines Mission Trip.  The money will go to buy ministry supplies for the ten American Baptist  women from West Virginia who will be working  with Filipino women caught in prostitution.  Pray for them while they are away.  A special thank you to the women who gave to this project.

Force for Good

by Joyce Mills

Giving a friend, neighbor or even a stranger a reminder that the universe can be a happy place may make you happy!  Eighteen individuals chose to be a blessing to 21 children who receive backpacks each Friday at Beckley Elementary.

These 18 people were asked to be shoppers for the kids who were not facing a happy Christmas. Yes, we give them food each week but what about something for Christmas?  As calls were made and individuals kept saying “YES” in spite of busy schedules, to shopping for the backpack kids, I knew that a sense of ‘life is good’ was going to prevail both with shoppers and the kids who received.

It was a wonderful sight to walk into the Welcome Center and see the beautiful Christmas tree surrounded with the many gifts purchased by the 18 shoppers, who chose to be a force for good. The gifts were wrapped and placed carefully around the tree ready to be delivered to the school the next day. I never saw any of the gifts delivered to the Welcome Center. I did answer a few questions from phone calls. I did know the shoppers were out there working hard but it was almost like angels had delivered and transformed the Welcome Center into a very special place.  As a reader you know that angels give us comfort, confidence, and guidance according to God’s direction. Even though I never saw any gifts brought in, I knew in my heart what my eyes had not seen, there was love and joy filling that Welcome Center and Christmas would be real for 21 kids all because we are a church filled with caring, loving people and 18 special people who chose to be a FORCE FOR GOOD.

Special thanks to FBC for understanding the needs of hungry children, to those who give money on a monthly basis to purchase the food, to those who give time week after week to make the program work, and to the 18 special shoppers who became a force for good at Christmas time. Thanks!  And more Thanks!   HAPPY NEW YEAR!

We are asking for canned pasta with meat for the month of February.  Just place donations on the back counter in the kitchen.

Fruits of Labor Outreach Program Needs Your Support

by Tammy Jordan, Director

Beckley First Baptist has been so kind supporting our Seeds of Recovery Program.  I wanted to let you know about a new opportunity.  We are going to start doing monthly bread boxes that are $35 and filled with our various baked goods and different breads that can go in the freezer and last for the customer.  We are trying to find 4 churches/organizations that would have at least 25 people in each organization to commit to purchasing a total of 12 monthly bread boxes per person that comes packaged and ready to pick up at the church.    This order can also be split in half  but that has to be done within the church after you place your order.  Basically this is a way for individuals to support our educational program “Seeds of Recovery” and youth program “Seeds of Hope” at the rate of $1.00 per day throughout the year and give students real product to practice their skill set.  Plus in supporting the program customers get yummy baked goods instead of just making a $1 per day donation.   Your orders will be dropped off at the church on a designated day and it will have to be paid for at that time.

Each month the bread box will include:
4 Loaves of Fruits of Labor’s bread (2 white, 1 wheat, and 1 multigrain)
2 Giant Cinnamon Rolls
6 Hamburger buns
4 Hoagie Buns
4 Croissants
1 Special:  The first order will include 1/2 dozen pepperoni rolls as the special.

If you would be interested in participating in this project, please contact either Joyce Mills or the church office and we can provide you with some additional information.

Just a Closer Walk with Thee

by Pastor Doc Adkins

Blessed be the Lord, who daily loadeth us with benefits, even the God of our salvation. Selah.  Psalm 68:19

It’s the start of a New Year so we all begin thinking towards those resolutions. Actually I am not a big fan of them. I think that we generally don’t follow them anyway. When we really resolve to do something to change our lives, it is usually at a time in our life when we are to the point that we see the need for change. Of course if a resolution works for you, then great!

A resolution usually means that we want to resolve to improve or better ourselves and that’s always good, especially in the spiritual areas of our lives. I’m always for anything to improve our lives and relationships with our Lord. When it boils down to it, bettering ourselves as Christians involves bettering our relationships with God. We have to draw closer to Him before we can improve our Christian lives. Sure we can make a New Year’s resolution to do that but I think just resolving, day by day, gets the job done in a better way.

Do you remember the old hymn? “Just a Closer Walk With Thee.” I can remember that playing off a record when I was little. Okay, some of you don’t know what those are? Round things us ancient people used to play on machines that went round and round called record players. An old form of a cd:) We had a record in our family, I think by Tennessee Ernie Ford with that old song on it and I can remember learning the words when I was younger.

I am weak but Thou art strong, Jesus keep me from all wrong;
I’ll be satisfied as long, As I walk let me walk close to Thee !
Just a closer walk with Thee, Grant it Jesus, is my plea,
Daily walking close to Thee, Let it be dear Lord, Let it be.

Whenever I think of that song it always turns my thoughts toward David. There are several passages in Scripture where we can see that David lived the day-by-day way to be closer to God. Yes, he was human and had his faults but he had some good practices in his life.

First of all David prayed daily.
Evening, and morning, and at noon, will I pray, and cry aloud: and he shall hear my voice.” Psalm 55:17

Secondly, David realized the benefit of God’s daily blessings. 

“Blessed be the Lord, who daily loadeth us with benefits, even the God of our salvation. Selah.”  Psalm 68:19

Thirdly, He praised God daily.
“And he shall live, and to him shall be given of the gold of Sheba: prayer also shall be made for him continually; and daily shall he be praised.” Psalm 72:15

The second verse of “Just a Closer Walk” is as follows:
Thru this world of toil and snares, If I falter, Lord, who cares?
Who with me my burden shares? None but Thee, dear Lord, none but Thee.
Just a closer walk with Thee, Grant it Jesus is my plea,
Daily walking close to Thee, Let it be, dear Lord, let it be.

Fourthly, David learned that he needed to rely on God daily.
David sure went through some “snares” in his life and he too knew that when all else went out the window the only one left who cared was God. “None but Thee“ as in the song.

“Mine enemies would daily swallow me up: for they be many that fight against me, O thou most High. What time I am afraid, I will trust in thee. In God I will praise his word, in God I have put my trust; I will not fear what flesh can do unto me.” Psalm 56:1-4

In conclusion, the last verse of the song talks about when this day by day life is over.

When my feeble life is o’er, Time for me will be no more; Guide me gently, safely o’er, To Thy kingdom shore, to Thy shore.  Just a closer walk with Thee, Grant it Jesus is my plea, Daily walking close to Thee, Let it be, dear Lord, let it be.

Conclusion:
We’ve all got to live the Christian life just one day at a time. That in turn will cause us to have that improvement in our Christian life that we all so greatly need. Just resolve to live better for God, day by day, hour by hour, moment by moment and that will add up to our best for Him not only for this new year but for our entire lives as well.

So, how close have you walked with the Lord today?

 

Operation Christmas Child 2016

by Debbie Vanaman

No, you’re not seeing things.   It’s a new year and I’ve decided to change things up a bit this year for Operation Christmas Child.    We’re going to start this month and each month until October we will be collecting different items for our shoebox program.  Then in November the youth will separate what we’ve collected and start filling our shoeboxes.  This way it kind of spreads things out a bit and I hope it will increase our number of shoeboxes with the end result will be blessings for even more children.

For the month of January we will be collecting combs, bars of soap and washcloths.

Collection boxes are in the sanctuary and also in Fellowship Hall.  Also if you have any empty shoeboxes, I can always use them and they can be left in the church office.  Last but certainly not least, please keep this program in your prayers through this year as shoeboxes are distributed around the world and the name of Jesus is brought to villages, towns and cities through the power of a simple shoebox.

FYI – We received an email that some of the shoeboxes from FBC will be going to India, Ghana and Burundi.

Happy New Year from the Youth Department!

This is such a great time of year.  We’ve just enjoyed a wonderful Christmas Season, and now we start a brand new year.  It’s a great time to reflect, assess, reprioritize and plan.

Do you have a New Year’s resolution?  If so, we’d love for you to include us in your plans.  Do you have children in your life that could use some encouragement?  Friends?  Family?  Neighbors?  Please make it part of your New Year’s plans to help build the youth ministry by reaching out to those who would benefit from a community of kids focused on spiritual growth.

We are planning a winter party on January 17th from 6 pm to 10 pm (there’s no school the next day).  The purpose of the party is to celebrate the New Year with our kids, but to also introduce our ministry to those who may not know about us.  There will be food, games, devotionals and movies.  Please invite any kids who might benefit from the fellowship.

Do you have a heart for kids?  Join us!  We have lots of opportunities for you to get “plugged in” and serve this crucial ministry.

Plotting the Next Course

by Rev Robert A Wendel

Do you see yourself taking life’s challenges and difficulties in stride or are you beaten the moment you flip a page in your day planner or with each new dawn?  You can’t pick up a road map to Utopia at the local AAA office or in the Go-Mart around the corner.  So often we’re simply afraid to risk a move or take a chance because the shift in a new direction may “take us off course.”

If Saint Paul had such timid thoughts, what would have ever become of the many fledgling Christian fellowships he touched and inspired in his three missionary journeys or through the 13 letters he composed for them or younger disciples?  Paul, surely, learned the art of prudent changes in direction all during the second half of his life.

And remember, Saul’s faith walk began with him being the most loyal of properly educated Jews.  Jesus stopped him in his tracks, changed his name and lit in him a new flame to burn and light the way for new believers, even into our 21st century.  Along the way it was not all ‘smooth sailing’.  There were put-downs, theological arguments, personal physical pain, imprisonments and ship wrecks.   Still Paul faithfully  “walked through every open door.”?  (I Corinthians 16:9).

As Paul did so very well, are you willing to spend the time and energy to help build the spiritual foundations of others?  Willing to become what Charles Swindoll calls “the brick and mortar of their lives?”  The relationship between an experienced Christian and a young person or a new believer is always marked by encouragement.  If you’re a new disciple, will you listen and learn?

Long time pew-sitters encourage most effectively by showing others, close up, that Jesus has been in their life, ever-ready to help them ‘stay the course!’  In the New Year “Make your light shine so that others will see the good you do and will praise your Father in heaven.”  (Matthew 5:16 CEV).

Our January ABC Men’s monthly prayer breakfast will happen on Saturday, January 9th at 8:00 am.  Church moderator Earl Whitener will offer the morning devotion.   Please plan to join us.

At a community worship service in December conducted by area clergy, $281.00 was collected  as an offering and given to Helping Hands Ministry.   Thank you to everyone who helped meet holiday needs.

A DATE TO REMEMBER – Sat. Feb. 27th at 8:00 AM – National American Baptist Men’s Breakfast at Crab Orchard Baptist Church

ABW Mission and Service Ministries

by Norma Gunter

American Baptist Women’s  Ministries has a new program for 2015-2017.   See… Psalm  34:18 “Oh taste and see that the Lord is good.”  God who saw us in our  mother’s womb (Psalm 139) still sees us today.  We are familiar with the parable about the good Samaritan where the priest and the Levite see  the  wounded man but move to the other side of the road and keep on  going.   They see, but chose not to see.  The Samaritan truly sees the man and his needs and chooses to care for his neighbor. For two years the American Baptist Women’s Ministries will focus on See…  “How we see God and how we are called to see the world through God’s eyes.”  Women will be encouraged  “to grow their relationship with God through Bible study, prayer and fellowship.” You will hear more about this program in the future. (Seasons Magazine)  This appeared in the October 2015 BEAM.

This month I want to share the January Circle program from the American Baptist  Women’s Ministries Ministry Focus Resource.  The name of the program is:  See…People in Bondage.  The scripture is Isaiah 61:1-3 and Galatians 5:1.   “In America we are given constitutional freedoms that allow us to speak up and live free from fear and oppression.  This is not the case everywhere in the world.  More people are in bondage in the world today than ever in history.  With over twenty-one million slaves in the world today, (United Nations,  www.unmultimedia.org, accessed January 6, 2015), it is apparent that our world needs a wake-up call.  Those of us who sit contentedly listening to preachers tell us to feed the hungry and clothe the poor need to wake up!  January is Poverty in America Awareness Month and January 11 is Human Trafficking Awareness Day.  We shouldn’t wait until January to open our eyes and to see the needs in front of us.  This month will look at not only how to see those in bondage, but how to use the freedoms we’ve been given by our Lord to advocate for those who’d have no freedom.”

We at Beckley First Baptist are supporting each month our American Baptist Missionary, Lauren Bethel, who is our Global Consultant on Anti-human Trafficking.  She has shared her ministry with us several times.  We are aware and by partnering with her we are helping.  We can do more by praying for her and for everyone working in the human trafficking ministry on January 11.  Through Helping Hands Ministry we are also aware of Poverty in America.  Perhaps during January we can give more to Helping Hands.

Don’t forget the challenge to give to the Philippines Mission Trip for the 10 ladies traveling to the Philippines in February to work with Debbie Mulneix, our missionary working with women caught in prostitution.