Newsletter for December 2011
From the Pastor’s Study
Several reminders:
Let me answer that question by sharing with you something that is found in the Bible. Most of us know about the Wise Men or the Magi, but do we ever really consider what they were doing? We often just think about them as some guys from the Far East chasing a star, but I see much more than that in them. We can read about them in Matthew 2:1-2 which tells us this about them: Now after Jesus was born in Bethlehem of Judea in the days of Herod the king, magi from the east arrived in Jerusalem, saying, "Where is He who has been born King of the Jews? For we saw His star in the east and have come to worship Him." These magi were not just chasing a star but they were trying to find the one who was born King of the Jews to worship him. The whole focus of the magi was to worship Jesus. The whole reason for their long journey was to worship Jesus. This is the start of the true meaning of Christmas; it starts with worshipping Jesus but it continues on from there.
Later then in Matthew 2:11 we read this about the magi: After coming into the house they saw the Child with Mary His mother; and they fell to the ground and worshiped Him. Then, opening their treasures, they presented to Him gifts of gold, frankincense, and myrrh. What we see here is that they do find Jesus and they do worship Him once they find Him. More than just worshipping him, when they find Him we see that they worship Him with their very best. They worship Him by presenting to Him gold, frankincense, and myrrh. They worshipped Him with Gold because He was a King and gold represented royalty. They worshipped Him by giving Frankincense, which was used in the temple in worship so He represented a Priest. They worshipped Him by giving Him Myrrh, which was used for embalming because He was born to die as Savior. We can see here the true meaning of Christmas, which is worshipping Jesus and not just worshipping Jesus but worshipping Him with our very best because He is our King, our Priest, and our Savior.
The best present you could ever receive was wrapped in swaddling clothes at His birth and was born of a virgin. That little baby grew to be a man and lived a sinless life. He died on a cross and rose the third day and satisfied the requirements of a Holy God with the sacrifice of His life. To place your faith and trust in Him is the best gift you could ever receive because that is the gift of eternal life and joy which will dawn in you when you accept this gift. If you have accepted this gift but you have not been living like it, then there is no greater gift you could give yourself and those you love than recommitting yourself to living for and worshipping Jesus and have your joy restored.
Let us all focus on the true meaning of Christmas, which is worshipping Jesus Christ, our Savior, and our Priest, and our King and have the Joy of Christmas restored!
As always we are Reaching, Moving, Building, and Serving for Christ!
Pastor Jim
*******
Children In Action
Motto: Send me! (Isaiah 6:8)
Verse: I can do all things through the power of Christ. He gives me strength. (Philippians 4:13)
Pledge: As a member of Children in Action, I will pray for missions, give to missions, learn about missions, and do missions through the power of Christ.
Our missionary for the month of November is Rick Hill. Mr. Hill works as a chaplain who ministers to prisoners, police officers, and the staff at the Jefferson County Jail in Mt. Vernon, Illinois. Every week, Mr. Hill and other volunteers lead a worship service at the jail. After talking about our missionary, we read Luke 4:16-21 and discussed the good news in the verses. We talked about what the words “hope” and “faith” mean and then decorated stickers with these two words written on them. We talked about the upcoming holiday, Thanksgiving, and the importance of thanking God for the good things He does for us. We played a game in which the first child said, “I thank God for _____,” and filled in the blank. The next child had to remember and repeat what the first child had said and add his/her own thing that he/she were thankful for. We continued this game until every child had a turn and they each wanted to take a turn saying the list the class had made. Then, all the children wanted to take turns trying to say everyone's items. The children earned two bags of homemade cookies to put their “hope” and “faith” stickers on by answering review questions about our missionary and other things discussed during our lesson. We talked about how sometimes Mr. Hill and other volunteers would take things like homemade cookies to the jail with them for the prisoners. The children were told they could eat the bag of cookies with the “faith” sticker on it for snack; but were asked to take the bag with the “hope” sticker on it home and think about what the word “hope” means as they eat their cookies and how they could give hope to another person.
Anita Felts, Travis & Vicki Felts
******
YOUTH
The Youth Group meets weekly on Wednesday nights, with approximately 10-12 youth attending each week. We are continuing the Bible Study, "Soar: Fly into God's Future for Your Life" by Kevin Johnson. Topics this month have included seeking advice from trusted sources and becoming people who give good advice, and how to hear God's voice and know when he is urging you to do something.
On Saturday, November 12th, the youth group had a Fall Bonfire Party at the Piferi's house. We had 7 adults and 15 youth in attendance. We had a great time of fun and fellowship listening to music by the fire and playing basketball & football, with some jumping on the trampoline!! The night was full of roasting marshmallows, hot dogs, making smores fireside, and just hanging out!
We are currently collecting deposits from the youth interested in attending Acquire the Fire in Richmond in January. All youth interested in attending must reserve their spot immediately by submitting a $25 deposit to Silvano or Rachel. The youth will also be hosting the Church Fellowship dinner in January 2012, where they will raise money for their trip to Acquire the Fire.
We are looking forward to December and many fun activities planned. In addition to our weekly meetings, the Youth will be participating in the Christmas Cantata. They are currently practicing a skit to perform that evening. We will also have a Youth Christmas Party at the Piferi's house on December 10th and will be caroling with other church members on Sunday, December 11th.
The Youth are also helping with the Christmas Card Exchange to raise money for the Lottie Moon Christmas Offering and are currently raising money with the kids programs to purchase items from the Samaritan's Purse Christmas Catalogue.
A lot of exciting things are happening among the youth of Sedley Baptist and we look forward to growing more in Him & serving more in 2012! Please feel free to follow us on Facebook and our church's website at: http://www.sedleybaptist.org/youth-group.html
**********
WMU
The Women on Missions met on November 8, 2011 with 5 members present. We opened with the reading of the Watchword Hebrews 12: 1-2.
The program was given by Rachel Piferi titled JESUS REVEALED THROUGH THE KORAN AND THE BIBLE. Darryl, (last name not given due to security) a Southern Baptist Missionary
formerly served in Bangladesh where he helped create strategies for sharing the gospel with Bengali Muslims where most of them are enslaved to the teaching of the Koran. They have been
misled by their religious leaders for generations. It seemed unlikely that a Muslim would listen to a Christian preacher, but gradually the Muslim background believers began to use passages from the Koran to teach Muslims the truth about Jesus. Within two years Darryl saw 4,500 Muslims baptized. Bengali Muslims are beginning to be very responsive to the gospel.
Lottie Moon Christmas Offering Goal was set for $1,750.00 beginning December 4, 2011. A donation will be given to Franklin Cooperative Ministry for our November project.
The prayer calendar was read by Wendy Foreman. Pastor Jim closed the meeting with prayer.
Joan Munford
WMU Director
Addendum: The area fall meeting was held in October at our church. There were 26 in attendance for the supper and 35 for the program. Our Sedley Baptist Church choir presented the special music. $610.00 was collected for goats to be sent to Rwanda.
*****
The Local Ministries Committee hosted a Fried Chicken Luncheon Sunday, November 20, directly following our Worship
Service. It was really nice to have food, fun, and
fellowship with our Church Family on the Sunday before
Thanksgiving. We hope we will be able to have similar
Sunday lunches together along the way in our future.
As the CHRISTmas Season approaches, please remember that ONLY JESUS IS REASON FOR THE SEASON. This is not just a
cliché' but a true statement. Without Christ there would be
no Christmas of any kind. For many, Christmas is a bleak time of year for various reasons. Surely the worst is to be without Christ in our lives. But it is hard to make those
without Christ even sometimes come to know him if they are in need physically, financially, spiritually, or emotionally sad or lonely. As we celebrate the birth of our Saviour, let us remember those who are hurting in these and other ways, and reach out to them as best we can, in whatever ways we can. We all are truly blessed beyond measure, and caring and sharing, and loving and giving, in Jesus' name, are
wonderful ways to celebrate this Season and His Birth.
The Local Ministries Committee would like to thank everyone for your generous support of our efforts in 2011 and to wish each of you a Merry Christmas and a wonderful New Year in
2012.
Luke 19:38: "Blessed be the King that cometh in the name of the Lord: peace in heaven, and glory in the highest."
Local Ministries Committee 2011 - Linda Simmons, Joey
Hewett, JoAnne Hewett, Joan Munford, Susan Robertson, Carol Simms
**********
Upcoming Events
December 18th-
11:00 am-Christmas Adult Cantata
7:00 pm- Children’s Christmas Program
December 24th- 5:30 pm Christmas Eve Service
December 25th- 11:00 am Christmas Morning Service
**********
Remember in Prayer!
Jane Bartlett, Janet Blanton, Anne Bryant, Juanita Burgess, Capps Family, Richard Copas, Armand & Naoko, Alisha & Tim Detrich, Roger Drake, Cilda Edwards, Hoyle Green, Jimmy & Mitzi Lusk, Catherine Parker, Sue Ann Raiford, Rhoten and Zeno family,Robertsons, Simmons Family, Cecil Tillery, Betty Whitley, Ronnie Whitley.
Pete & Dot Allen, Joe Anderson, Robert Bartlett, Lon Bickham, Lois Billings, Sylvia Bilby, David Blythe, Dwight Blythe, Junior Blythe, Lena Blankenship, D. J. Boone, Peggy Brady, Dale Bryant, Roy Bryant, Tom Bullock, Barbara Clapp, Bobby & Rhee Cumbey, Mary Cutchins, Rhonda Dean, Patsy Draper, Barbara Edwards, Brian Edwards, Jim & Maria Edwards, Peggy Edwards, Richard Edwards, Jeremy Everett, Skip Gambill, Patty Garcia, Martha Gibson, Lee and Joyce Green, Joe Griffin, Terry Harrell, Jimmy Harris, Eileen Isom, Jarvis Family, Nancy Jenkins, Juanita Johnson, Bill Jones, Joe Keller, Trent Kimbrell, Karen Kinney, John Langan, Ellen Lawson, Wilma Little, Davis Ludwick, Marriages that are struggling, Mary Mason, Dean McBurnery, James McClenny, Alan McDonald, Shelton Modlin, Cathy Morris, Eugenia Morris, Diane Norton, Donald Padgett, Elizabeth Parker, Russ Parrish, Dale Phipps, Darrell Preston, Marie Raiford, Virginia Reese, Shirley Richey, Connie Rowe, Angel Ricks, Connie Rowe, Katherine Rowland, Ramona Sadler, Billy Saunders, Ryan Sayers, Gus Simmons, Jacquelyn Snyder, Peyton Spencer, Andrew Stepp, Elizabeth Stickle, Gracie Story, Shelton Story, John Tadlock, Barbara Taylor, Kaitlin Travis, Tucker Swamp Baptist Church, Glenda Turner, Ann Vann, Ruth Vaughan, Keith Vickers, Jenny Ward, Mark Warren, Wanda Waters, Sheri Watson, Katherine Weaver, Bill Whitfield, Dennis Whitley, Ralph Williams, Sharon Williams, Marvin Wise, Mike Wolfe, Andrea Worth & Jane Womack. All those looking for employment.
Happy Anniversary!
1-M/M William Burgess
6 -M/M Tom Cogsdale
10-M/M Richard Copas
22-M/M Matt Belden
23-M/M John Wade
26-M/M “Cubie” Hewett
27-M/M Matthew Brantley
Happy Birthday!
1 Richard Copas
2 Elana Turner
4 Bruce Carr
7 Bobby Harrell
9 Jennifer Capps
15 Jay Felts
21 Christine Whitley
22 Elizabeth Barnes
Catherine Parker
24 Callie Bulls
26 Linda Simmons
27 Emma Irwin
Several reminders:
- Follow the happenings of the church at the new and improved church website www. Sedleybaptist.org.
- You can also look up Sedley Baptist on Facebook and join the Fan page and receive updates via Facebook. It is a great way to interact with others from the church and share prayer requests and news.
Let me answer that question by sharing with you something that is found in the Bible. Most of us know about the Wise Men or the Magi, but do we ever really consider what they were doing? We often just think about them as some guys from the Far East chasing a star, but I see much more than that in them. We can read about them in Matthew 2:1-2 which tells us this about them: Now after Jesus was born in Bethlehem of Judea in the days of Herod the king, magi from the east arrived in Jerusalem, saying, "Where is He who has been born King of the Jews? For we saw His star in the east and have come to worship Him." These magi were not just chasing a star but they were trying to find the one who was born King of the Jews to worship him. The whole focus of the magi was to worship Jesus. The whole reason for their long journey was to worship Jesus. This is the start of the true meaning of Christmas; it starts with worshipping Jesus but it continues on from there.
Later then in Matthew 2:11 we read this about the magi: After coming into the house they saw the Child with Mary His mother; and they fell to the ground and worshiped Him. Then, opening their treasures, they presented to Him gifts of gold, frankincense, and myrrh. What we see here is that they do find Jesus and they do worship Him once they find Him. More than just worshipping him, when they find Him we see that they worship Him with their very best. They worship Him by presenting to Him gold, frankincense, and myrrh. They worshipped Him with Gold because He was a King and gold represented royalty. They worshipped Him by giving Frankincense, which was used in the temple in worship so He represented a Priest. They worshipped Him by giving Him Myrrh, which was used for embalming because He was born to die as Savior. We can see here the true meaning of Christmas, which is worshipping Jesus and not just worshipping Jesus but worshipping Him with our very best because He is our King, our Priest, and our Savior.
The best present you could ever receive was wrapped in swaddling clothes at His birth and was born of a virgin. That little baby grew to be a man and lived a sinless life. He died on a cross and rose the third day and satisfied the requirements of a Holy God with the sacrifice of His life. To place your faith and trust in Him is the best gift you could ever receive because that is the gift of eternal life and joy which will dawn in you when you accept this gift. If you have accepted this gift but you have not been living like it, then there is no greater gift you could give yourself and those you love than recommitting yourself to living for and worshipping Jesus and have your joy restored.
Let us all focus on the true meaning of Christmas, which is worshipping Jesus Christ, our Savior, and our Priest, and our King and have the Joy of Christmas restored!
As always we are Reaching, Moving, Building, and Serving for Christ!
Pastor Jim
*******
Children In Action
Motto: Send me! (Isaiah 6:8)
Verse: I can do all things through the power of Christ. He gives me strength. (Philippians 4:13)
Pledge: As a member of Children in Action, I will pray for missions, give to missions, learn about missions, and do missions through the power of Christ.
Our missionary for the month of November is Rick Hill. Mr. Hill works as a chaplain who ministers to prisoners, police officers, and the staff at the Jefferson County Jail in Mt. Vernon, Illinois. Every week, Mr. Hill and other volunteers lead a worship service at the jail. After talking about our missionary, we read Luke 4:16-21 and discussed the good news in the verses. We talked about what the words “hope” and “faith” mean and then decorated stickers with these two words written on them. We talked about the upcoming holiday, Thanksgiving, and the importance of thanking God for the good things He does for us. We played a game in which the first child said, “I thank God for _____,” and filled in the blank. The next child had to remember and repeat what the first child had said and add his/her own thing that he/she were thankful for. We continued this game until every child had a turn and they each wanted to take a turn saying the list the class had made. Then, all the children wanted to take turns trying to say everyone's items. The children earned two bags of homemade cookies to put their “hope” and “faith” stickers on by answering review questions about our missionary and other things discussed during our lesson. We talked about how sometimes Mr. Hill and other volunteers would take things like homemade cookies to the jail with them for the prisoners. The children were told they could eat the bag of cookies with the “faith” sticker on it for snack; but were asked to take the bag with the “hope” sticker on it home and think about what the word “hope” means as they eat their cookies and how they could give hope to another person.
Anita Felts, Travis & Vicki Felts
******
YOUTH
The Youth Group meets weekly on Wednesday nights, with approximately 10-12 youth attending each week. We are continuing the Bible Study, "Soar: Fly into God's Future for Your Life" by Kevin Johnson. Topics this month have included seeking advice from trusted sources and becoming people who give good advice, and how to hear God's voice and know when he is urging you to do something.
On Saturday, November 12th, the youth group had a Fall Bonfire Party at the Piferi's house. We had 7 adults and 15 youth in attendance. We had a great time of fun and fellowship listening to music by the fire and playing basketball & football, with some jumping on the trampoline!! The night was full of roasting marshmallows, hot dogs, making smores fireside, and just hanging out!
We are currently collecting deposits from the youth interested in attending Acquire the Fire in Richmond in January. All youth interested in attending must reserve their spot immediately by submitting a $25 deposit to Silvano or Rachel. The youth will also be hosting the Church Fellowship dinner in January 2012, where they will raise money for their trip to Acquire the Fire.
We are looking forward to December and many fun activities planned. In addition to our weekly meetings, the Youth will be participating in the Christmas Cantata. They are currently practicing a skit to perform that evening. We will also have a Youth Christmas Party at the Piferi's house on December 10th and will be caroling with other church members on Sunday, December 11th.
The Youth are also helping with the Christmas Card Exchange to raise money for the Lottie Moon Christmas Offering and are currently raising money with the kids programs to purchase items from the Samaritan's Purse Christmas Catalogue.
A lot of exciting things are happening among the youth of Sedley Baptist and we look forward to growing more in Him & serving more in 2012! Please feel free to follow us on Facebook and our church's website at: http://www.sedleybaptist.org/youth-group.html
**********
WMU
The Women on Missions met on November 8, 2011 with 5 members present. We opened with the reading of the Watchword Hebrews 12: 1-2.
The program was given by Rachel Piferi titled JESUS REVEALED THROUGH THE KORAN AND THE BIBLE. Darryl, (last name not given due to security) a Southern Baptist Missionary
formerly served in Bangladesh where he helped create strategies for sharing the gospel with Bengali Muslims where most of them are enslaved to the teaching of the Koran. They have been
misled by their religious leaders for generations. It seemed unlikely that a Muslim would listen to a Christian preacher, but gradually the Muslim background believers began to use passages from the Koran to teach Muslims the truth about Jesus. Within two years Darryl saw 4,500 Muslims baptized. Bengali Muslims are beginning to be very responsive to the gospel.
Lottie Moon Christmas Offering Goal was set for $1,750.00 beginning December 4, 2011. A donation will be given to Franklin Cooperative Ministry for our November project.
The prayer calendar was read by Wendy Foreman. Pastor Jim closed the meeting with prayer.
Joan Munford
WMU Director
Addendum: The area fall meeting was held in October at our church. There were 26 in attendance for the supper and 35 for the program. Our Sedley Baptist Church choir presented the special music. $610.00 was collected for goats to be sent to Rwanda.
*****
The Local Ministries Committee hosted a Fried Chicken Luncheon Sunday, November 20, directly following our Worship
Service. It was really nice to have food, fun, and
fellowship with our Church Family on the Sunday before
Thanksgiving. We hope we will be able to have similar
Sunday lunches together along the way in our future.
As the CHRISTmas Season approaches, please remember that ONLY JESUS IS REASON FOR THE SEASON. This is not just a
cliché' but a true statement. Without Christ there would be
no Christmas of any kind. For many, Christmas is a bleak time of year for various reasons. Surely the worst is to be without Christ in our lives. But it is hard to make those
without Christ even sometimes come to know him if they are in need physically, financially, spiritually, or emotionally sad or lonely. As we celebrate the birth of our Saviour, let us remember those who are hurting in these and other ways, and reach out to them as best we can, in whatever ways we can. We all are truly blessed beyond measure, and caring and sharing, and loving and giving, in Jesus' name, are
wonderful ways to celebrate this Season and His Birth.
The Local Ministries Committee would like to thank everyone for your generous support of our efforts in 2011 and to wish each of you a Merry Christmas and a wonderful New Year in
2012.
Luke 19:38: "Blessed be the King that cometh in the name of the Lord: peace in heaven, and glory in the highest."
Local Ministries Committee 2011 - Linda Simmons, Joey
Hewett, JoAnne Hewett, Joan Munford, Susan Robertson, Carol Simms
**********
Upcoming Events
December 18th-
11:00 am-Christmas Adult Cantata
7:00 pm- Children’s Christmas Program
December 24th- 5:30 pm Christmas Eve Service
December 25th- 11:00 am Christmas Morning Service
**********
Remember in Prayer!
Jane Bartlett, Janet Blanton, Anne Bryant, Juanita Burgess, Capps Family, Richard Copas, Armand & Naoko, Alisha & Tim Detrich, Roger Drake, Cilda Edwards, Hoyle Green, Jimmy & Mitzi Lusk, Catherine Parker, Sue Ann Raiford, Rhoten and Zeno family,Robertsons, Simmons Family, Cecil Tillery, Betty Whitley, Ronnie Whitley.
Pete & Dot Allen, Joe Anderson, Robert Bartlett, Lon Bickham, Lois Billings, Sylvia Bilby, David Blythe, Dwight Blythe, Junior Blythe, Lena Blankenship, D. J. Boone, Peggy Brady, Dale Bryant, Roy Bryant, Tom Bullock, Barbara Clapp, Bobby & Rhee Cumbey, Mary Cutchins, Rhonda Dean, Patsy Draper, Barbara Edwards, Brian Edwards, Jim & Maria Edwards, Peggy Edwards, Richard Edwards, Jeremy Everett, Skip Gambill, Patty Garcia, Martha Gibson, Lee and Joyce Green, Joe Griffin, Terry Harrell, Jimmy Harris, Eileen Isom, Jarvis Family, Nancy Jenkins, Juanita Johnson, Bill Jones, Joe Keller, Trent Kimbrell, Karen Kinney, John Langan, Ellen Lawson, Wilma Little, Davis Ludwick, Marriages that are struggling, Mary Mason, Dean McBurnery, James McClenny, Alan McDonald, Shelton Modlin, Cathy Morris, Eugenia Morris, Diane Norton, Donald Padgett, Elizabeth Parker, Russ Parrish, Dale Phipps, Darrell Preston, Marie Raiford, Virginia Reese, Shirley Richey, Connie Rowe, Angel Ricks, Connie Rowe, Katherine Rowland, Ramona Sadler, Billy Saunders, Ryan Sayers, Gus Simmons, Jacquelyn Snyder, Peyton Spencer, Andrew Stepp, Elizabeth Stickle, Gracie Story, Shelton Story, John Tadlock, Barbara Taylor, Kaitlin Travis, Tucker Swamp Baptist Church, Glenda Turner, Ann Vann, Ruth Vaughan, Keith Vickers, Jenny Ward, Mark Warren, Wanda Waters, Sheri Watson, Katherine Weaver, Bill Whitfield, Dennis Whitley, Ralph Williams, Sharon Williams, Marvin Wise, Mike Wolfe, Andrea Worth & Jane Womack. All those looking for employment.
Happy Anniversary!
1-M/M William Burgess
6 -M/M Tom Cogsdale
10-M/M Richard Copas
22-M/M Matt Belden
23-M/M John Wade
26-M/M “Cubie” Hewett
27-M/M Matthew Brantley
Happy Birthday!
1 Richard Copas
2 Elana Turner
4 Bruce Carr
7 Bobby Harrell
9 Jennifer Capps
15 Jay Felts
21 Christine Whitley
22 Elizabeth Barnes
Catherine Parker
24 Callie Bulls
26 Linda Simmons
27 Emma Irwin
