Immanuel Baptist Church
Although we have had many out due to illness (me included), it is great that others step up and take such good notes.
Lisa Rust, our church secretary, fills in and does so much for so many in our church. I want to thank her for all she does behind the scenes; even graciously doing my job while I was out ill. We are blessed with such a caring and loving church family at Immanuel Baptist Church. I'm reminded each week that "Immanuel" means "God with us" and I see it each time I'm with my church family.
This past Sunday ended our 50 Days of Prayer and Giving with World Missions Day. There were two specials in honor of World Missions Day. The Preschool choir and Children's choir sang a medley of Jesus Loves the Little Children and Jesus Loves Me in six different languages with narrator Jayden Glover expressing God's love for the children all over the world. Tasha Foshee and Devin Rust sang "Go Light Your World." It reminded us of our responsibility to reach out to others with the word of God. However, before you can light the world, your candle must be lit.
Brother King shared with us the desire that we have to have to be obedient to the word of God. We are all called to be His witnesses. We need to lift up to our Heavenly Father the names of our family members, friends, co-workers, etc. who need salvation in their lives. Even though God knows our thoughts, that should not cause us to forget to pray specifically to God and speak those names aloud that are on our heart.
Before you go to witness to someone, you need to pray for the Holy Spirit to bring conviction upon their heart. Also, pray that the Holy Spirit will be with you and guide you when He opens that door for you to witness. Sometimes, people will put up a smokescreen when you are trying to witness to them. Continue to pray that another door will be open. It is only our job to plant the seed; God will carry out the rest.
As Brother King shared scripture from Luke 19:1-10, we were reminded about the love that Jesus has for a lost and dying world. But, imagine the volume of understanding if we could actually hear the words coming from Jesus. If every saved person truly understood how much Jesus loves the lost, we could not rest and find peace of mind until we humbled ourselves and prayed. Prayer is the key. We are to pray for someone first; then, we can go and witness to them. We must pray for the Holy Spirits guidance first. We have an awesome task before us with very little time. Now is the timewe may plan for the future but who really knows if they will be here when tomorrow comes? Now is the time. Jesus has offered each of us a free gift. Is this a gift you are willing to turn down?
Come visit us at Immanuel Baptist Church as we prepare to move into our new church facilities this spring. Transition with us as we continue to serve God and reach out to others in our community who need the loving care of a church family and the message of Salvation through our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ.