Greetings in the Name of Our Lord and Savior
Well, summer has come to an end and on September 23rd we began the first full day of the fall season. The warm summer days come to an end as the bright cool days of fall begin to settle in upon us with the leaves changing to all the bright colors of oranges, yellows, reds and browns. It’s time now for us to check our furnaces and woodstoves to make sure they’re prepared for the winter months, along with checking our windows and doors for proper sealing. For those that have a garden it’s time to harvest what’s left, the kale, the greens, the winter squash and maybe a few lingering tomatoes. It won’t be long and we’ll have to store away the lawn furniture, but we’ll put that off as long as we can. Pumpkins, corn mazes, mums, and scarecrows will be coming. We also begin to think about the Holidays, Thanksgiving and Christmas. Time will go by fast, but take time to enjoy the progression. The Bible says in Ecclesiastes 3:1-5 that there is a time for everything so as the seasons change, what is going to change for you? An Improved Prayer Life? Growing more spiritually by studying God’s Word? Inviting someone to attend church with you? Being more faithful on attending church? Finding God’s Will for your life? Having fellowship one with another? Accepting Jesus as your Lord and Savior? There are many opportunities to serve within the church. Pray and seek God’s will for your life. Ask Him to show you the gift or talent He has given you, then step forward and use that gift or talent. Trust in the Lord with all your heart, soul and mind and He WILL direct your path. (Proverbs 3-6). He gives us our own free will, so we have a choice which way we want to go.
I’m excited about our fall season here at Weedsport First Baptist Church. It’s going to be busy. Through your faithful donations we have purchased the New NIV Large Print NIV Pew and Worship Bibles. Our Annual Fall Rummage Sale will be held October 3rd, 4th, and 5th, the Outreach Ministry Team is holding a FREE Spaghetti Dinner in our Fellowship Hall on Saturday, October 12th from 4:30pm – 7:00 pm, Tara Sheehan, Tammy Blowers and Amy Chirco will be sharing the responsibilities of holding a junior church program during our Sunday morning worship service, Jenn Cerio has the choir back in full swing after the summer vacation and retired Pastor Larry Wolfanger will be holding a fall bible study for everyone in the near future, more information to follow. Jenn Cerio has been upgrading our Church Website and working with me on creating a visitation packet to hand out to our visitors. I’ve received some new pamphlets that will also be included in the visitor packet along with a Dunkin Donut Gift Card. Once again, we will be hosting The Old Brutus Historical Society Roast Beef Dinner on Monday, October 21st at 6:30 pm in the Fellowship Hall. What a great blessing to see our church opening up its doors to show the love we have for our community, the people and to move forward with the message of the gospel for the Glory of God.
I have said many times that we’re living in the end times. No one knows the day or hour Jesus will return. There are some things we as the Body of Christ need to do but we can’t sit back passively in our church thinking about Jesus one day will come back for his bride that has been complacent and stagnant. Now that it’s Fall, we see the farmers preparing for the harvest season and there are things we too must do to prepare for the harvest as well. In Matthew 9:35-38 The Bible says: 35 Jesus went through all the towns and villages, teaching in their synagogues, proclaiming the good news of the kingdom and healing every disease and sickness. 36 When he saw the crowds, he had compassion on them, because they were harassed and helpless, like sheep without a shepherd. 37 Then he said to his disciples, “The harvest is plentiful, but the workers are few. 38 Ask the Lord of the harvest, therefore, to send out workers into his harvest field.” Jesus is saying the workers are few and there are few people to reap the harvest to reach souls. Jesus needs workers who know how to deal with people’s problems. We can comfort others and show them the way to live because we have been helped with our problems by God and his laborers. 2 Corinthians 1:3-7 The Apostle Paul tells says “3 Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of compassion and the God of all comfort, 4 who comforts us in all our troubles, so that we can comfort those in any trouble with the comfort we ourselves receive from God. 5 For just as we share abundantly in the sufferings of Christ, so also our comfort abounds through Christ. 6 If we are distressed, it is for your comfort and salvation; if we are comforted, it is for your comfort, which produces in you patient endurance of the same sufferings we suffer. 7 And our hope for you is firm, because we know that just as you share in our sufferings, so also you share in our comfort.”
Yes, we need people to go out into the mission fields outside of our church doors to evangelize and win souls for Jesus Christ, but I believe Jesus is also saying we must honor God because He wants to restore His honor to all the earth. He wants to have a relationship with everyone and doesn’t want anyone left out. If everyone would give God honor think how the atmosphere of the world would change.
What would happen if every church in the world reached outside their four walls of their Sanctuary and brought 100 people into the church and they accepted Jesus Christ as their Lord and Savior. Would that be enough?
When visitors come into our church, do we great them in warm and friendly way, do they find Jesus being a priority during our worship service, is there an atmosphere of honor to the Lord that’s been created, did we have fellowship with them before they left? Did you plant a good seed for the harvest so they too will turn the hearts to God and honor him?
Most people after they’ve accepted Jesus as their Lord and Savior will be satisfied, and that’s where it stops. They’ll say “I’ll be in church every Sunday, I’m good now, I know I’m going to heaven, I won’t forget to put a little money in the collection plate, and if I have time, I’ll come work some of the events and will be there for the holidays to ease my mind. That’s all I have to do because I know I’m going to heaven.”
The bible tells us how to prepare ourselves as the “bride of Christ.” It’s not simply about going and reaching heaven, but preparing ourselves for heaven so we’ll be ready when Jesus returns to take us there. In Revelation 19:7-8 The Bible says “7Let us rejoice and be glad and give him glory! For the wedding of the Lamb has come, and his bride has made herself ready. 8Fine linen, bright and clean, was given her to wear.” (Fine linen stands for the righteous acts of God’s holy people). This is the culmination of human history, the judgement of the wicked and the wedding of the Lamb and his bride, the church. The church consists of all faithful believers from all time.
As believers and followers of Jesus Christ our righteous acts are to walk worthily and in unity as a body, putting God first, keeping the faith, believing, worshiping, praising, serving, tithing, understanding and living by the word of God. We won’t be a perfect church, but we will believe, have faith, and give God the honor and glory for what He has done for us. He’s not through working on each one of us, and He will continue to change us and bring in the harvest. We need to make God a Priority in our lives. To God Be The Glory!
Keep Praying, Studying God’s Word and Inviting others to attend church with you.
Pastor Doug
We say “Good Morning” to others. Do You Know What Good Morning Means?
Get up
Open your heart
Open your mind
Dedicate your day to God
Meditate on God’s Word
Optimize your faith and hope
Rebuke all evil
Never doubt God’s love
Inspire someone
Never let anything scare you
Go out with joy