Dear Brothers and Sisters in Christ,
Along with “love” and “faith,” Jesus used the characteristic of “service” as the best evidence of being a true disciple. He continuously reminded His disciples, and us today, that He came not to be served but to serve. We are to do likewise. After exhibiting this truth powerfully by washing His disciples’ feet, Jesus says, "You call me 'Teacher' and 'Lord,' and rightly so, for that is what I am. Now that I, your Lord and Teacher, have washed your feet, you also should wash one another's feet. I have set you an example that you should do as I have done for you. I tell you the truth, no servant is greater than his master, nor is a messenger greater than the One who sent him. Now that you know these things, you will be blessed if you do them.” (John 13:13-17). Our lives do not belong solely to us but to the One who made us, loves us, redeems us, and gives us life. He explicitly tells us that His purpose for our lives is to love and serve others. The Bible is clear, “If you have any encouragement from being united with Christ, if any comfort from His love, if any fellowship with the Spirit, if any tenderness and compassion, then make my joy complete by being like-minded, having the same love, being one in spirit and purpose. Do nothing out of selfish ambition or vain conceit, but in humility consider others better than yourselves. Each of you should look not only to your own interests, but also to the interests of others. Your attitude should be the same as that of Christ Jesus . . ” (Philippians 2:1-5). This Sunday, each of you will have a great opportunity to see where you can be of service to the LORD and to other people through the ministries in our Church – the “Simply Serve” celebration. We are having an event set up in the Family Life Center after each worship service that will allow you to know what ministry opportunities exist for you in the Church and give you an opportunity to join with others in service to the LORD and others. The promise of the LORD is that you will be blessed if you serve, and I can testify to the truth of that promise in my life. Have the same attitude as Christ Jesus. Selah.
In Christ,
Steve
Wednesday, August 22, 2007
Newsletter Article August 8, 2007
Dear Brothers and Sisters in Christ,
I am very excited about the big worship event this Thursday at 7 p.m. in our Family Life Center. We are having a District Transformation Conference at our church; we were selected because of our excellence in Contemporary Worship at our 9:39 service. Our District Superintendent, Rev. Jackie Rose-Tucker, selected us and invited many in the Rome-Carrollton District to come and worship at Dallas First on Thursday evening. The worship will be led by our own 9:39 Praise Team and the sermon will be given by Dr. George Morris on the topic of evangelism. The Foundation for Evangelism describes the ministry of Dr. Morris thusly, “Dr. George Morris is a native of Virginia, and was selected as the 2005 Distinguished Evangelist of the United Methodist Church by The Foundation for Evangelism. He is currently the Dan and Lil Hankey Senior Professor of World Evangelism of the World Methodist Council and is considered one of the most respected scholars on evangelism in the world. Morris received his B.A. Degree at Asbury College and M.Div. and D.Div. Degrees at Vanderbilt University. He was ordained Elder in the United Methodist Church in 1964 and has ministered in the United States and in sixty-seven countries around the world. He has served rural circuit-churches, small town churches, suburban churches and two large inner-city churches. His last pastoral appointment was the First United Methodist Church of Peoria, Illinois, where he served as directing pastor for five years. In addition, he served on the General Board of Evangelism and the General Board of Discipleship of the United Methodist Church, as well as the executive committee of the World Methodist Council. For sixteen years, Morris was the Arthur J. Moore Professor of Evangelism at Candler School of Theology, Emory University, Atlanta, Georgia. While there, he became the founding director of the World Methodist Evangelism Institute, a cooperative ministry of the World Methodist Council and Emory University. Currently, he is a member of the Academy for Evangelism in Theological Education, the International Association for Mission Studies, the Advisory Committee of the World Methodist Evangelism Institute and the World Methodist Evangelism Foundation board of trustees.” I invite you to come and worship the LORD together with us this Thursday at 7 p.m. Selah.
In Christ,
Steve
I am very excited about the big worship event this Thursday at 7 p.m. in our Family Life Center. We are having a District Transformation Conference at our church; we were selected because of our excellence in Contemporary Worship at our 9:39 service. Our District Superintendent, Rev. Jackie Rose-Tucker, selected us and invited many in the Rome-Carrollton District to come and worship at Dallas First on Thursday evening. The worship will be led by our own 9:39 Praise Team and the sermon will be given by Dr. George Morris on the topic of evangelism. The Foundation for Evangelism describes the ministry of Dr. Morris thusly, “Dr. George Morris is a native of Virginia, and was selected as the 2005 Distinguished Evangelist of the United Methodist Church by The Foundation for Evangelism. He is currently the Dan and Lil Hankey Senior Professor of World Evangelism of the World Methodist Council and is considered one of the most respected scholars on evangelism in the world. Morris received his B.A. Degree at Asbury College and M.Div. and D.Div. Degrees at Vanderbilt University. He was ordained Elder in the United Methodist Church in 1964 and has ministered in the United States and in sixty-seven countries around the world. He has served rural circuit-churches, small town churches, suburban churches and two large inner-city churches. His last pastoral appointment was the First United Methodist Church of Peoria, Illinois, where he served as directing pastor for five years. In addition, he served on the General Board of Evangelism and the General Board of Discipleship of the United Methodist Church, as well as the executive committee of the World Methodist Council. For sixteen years, Morris was the Arthur J. Moore Professor of Evangelism at Candler School of Theology, Emory University, Atlanta, Georgia. While there, he became the founding director of the World Methodist Evangelism Institute, a cooperative ministry of the World Methodist Council and Emory University. Currently, he is a member of the Academy for Evangelism in Theological Education, the International Association for Mission Studies, the Advisory Committee of the World Methodist Evangelism Institute and the World Methodist Evangelism Foundation board of trustees.” I invite you to come and worship the LORD together with us this Thursday at 7 p.m. Selah.
In Christ,
Steve
Dear Brothers and Sisters in Christ,
At the close of many of his letters, the Apostle Paul would thank and greet many of the saints that were providing the ministry that was allowing God to work through the individual churches. In this way, he illustrated that the work of the Kingdom of God requires many persons working in tandem to accomplish great things for the LORD. In just the same way, I wish to thank all of you who worked so diligently and graciously during our River of Life ministry. The Holy Spirit moved very powerfully during that week and those who attended the service on Sunday are well aware how many lives were touched in the name and by the power of Jesus Christ. That Sunday service was the culmination of many months of planning and praying. Our theme was “Amazing Grace” and it was beautiful to see the grace of God on display in all its myriad forms throughout River of Life. Some examples that moved me:
- working on the roof of a horse ranch that helps disabled children to heal . . .
- building wheelchair ramps to help free people to have better access out of their homes . .
- comforting a family who had recently lost a child . . .
- working on the home of a woman who has given much of her life to helping the less fortunate
- reaching out to Jennifer McRaney whose husband David is serving our country in Iraq . .
- helping one of our clients commit her life to Jesus Christ . . .
- worshipping the LORD together with passion . . .
. . . and there were so many more. So thank you all and may God bless you.
In Christ,
Steve
Dear Brothers and Sisters in Christ,
After this I saw a vast crowd, too great to count, from every nation and tribe and people and language, standing in front of the throne and before the Lamb. They were clothed in white robes and held palm branches in their hands. And they were shouting with a mighty shout, “Salvation comes from our God who sits on the throne and from the Lamb!” (Revelation 7:9-10)
This has always been one of my favorite passages in the Bible, because it is the description of John’s glimpse into Heaven. It reminds me that not only is Heaven a place of celebration and worship, but it is grander, wider, and more diverse than I can imagine. Sometimes I can become too focused on the Church here in America, and I forget that we are but a small part of a vast worldwide Body of Christ. This passage of scripture reminds me that God is at work around the world in ways that I cannot fathom and that knowledge inspires me.
This Sunday we have the opportunity to be inspired by a fellow brother and sister in Christ from Africa and Europe – our special guests will be Bishop Muruiki from the Methodist Church in Kenya and Rev. Susan Johnson from England. They are participating in the 8th International Evangelism Seminar being sponsored by the World Methodist Evangelism Institute at the Simpsonwood Conference and Retreat Center in Atlanta, Georgia, from June 19-27, 2007. The theme of this seminar is: "THAT THE WORLD MAY KNOW JESUS CHRIST: DEVELOPING MISSIONARY CONGREGATIONS." There will be several hundred Evangelists coming to Atlanta from over 70 countries for the conference, and they will be preaching in churches in the Atlanta area this Sunday. We are excited that God has sent the Bishop and Rev. Johnson to share with us what God is doing in their respective countries. The Evangelism Institute is a ministry of World Evangelism, the World Methodist Council, and Candler School of Theology, Emory University, Atlanta, Georgia, USA. The World Methodist Evangelism Institute is unique in world Christianity because no other world communion has an educational institution connected to a major university that is solely committed to the vision and task of world evangelization. I hope that you will come and celebrate with us this Sunday. Selah.
In Christ,
Steve
After this I saw a vast crowd, too great to count, from every nation and tribe and people and language, standing in front of the throne and before the Lamb. They were clothed in white robes and held palm branches in their hands. And they were shouting with a mighty shout, “Salvation comes from our God who sits on the throne and from the Lamb!” (Revelation 7:9-10)
This has always been one of my favorite passages in the Bible, because it is the description of John’s glimpse into Heaven. It reminds me that not only is Heaven a place of celebration and worship, but it is grander, wider, and more diverse than I can imagine. Sometimes I can become too focused on the Church here in America, and I forget that we are but a small part of a vast worldwide Body of Christ. This passage of scripture reminds me that God is at work around the world in ways that I cannot fathom and that knowledge inspires me.
This Sunday we have the opportunity to be inspired by a fellow brother and sister in Christ from Africa and Europe – our special guests will be Bishop Muruiki from the Methodist Church in Kenya and Rev. Susan Johnson from England. They are participating in the 8th International Evangelism Seminar being sponsored by the World Methodist Evangelism Institute at the Simpsonwood Conference and Retreat Center in Atlanta, Georgia, from June 19-27, 2007. The theme of this seminar is: "THAT THE WORLD MAY KNOW JESUS CHRIST: DEVELOPING MISSIONARY CONGREGATIONS." There will be several hundred Evangelists coming to Atlanta from over 70 countries for the conference, and they will be preaching in churches in the Atlanta area this Sunday. We are excited that God has sent the Bishop and Rev. Johnson to share with us what God is doing in their respective countries. The Evangelism Institute is a ministry of World Evangelism, the World Methodist Council, and Candler School of Theology, Emory University, Atlanta, Georgia, USA. The World Methodist Evangelism Institute is unique in world Christianity because no other world communion has an educational institution connected to a major university that is solely committed to the vision and task of world evangelization. I hope that you will come and celebrate with us this Sunday. Selah.
In Christ,
Steve
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