October Recap

• God Gives Good Gifts: A Ladies' Retreat ~ The Women's Ministries of Faith Baptist sponsored a Ladies' Retreat October 14 and 15. Find out more about the retreat and specific workshops by reading the following articles by Jonita Barram
• Ladies' Retreat Couponing & Organization Workshops
• Ladies' Retreat Joy in Trials & Singing Workshops
       
• Michael & Mary Meehan are members of our church. Mary shared her testimony - an amazing story of the grace of God
• Testimony of Mary Meehan - Part 1
• Mary Meehan Testimony - Part 2
    
• Eight Analogies of Grace from 2 Samuel 9 (by Pastor Osborne) ~Recently, Pastor Osborne preached a message entitled Eight Analogies of Grace. In that message, from 2 Samuel 9, Pastor looked at the kindness David showed to the last member of Saul's family - Jonathan's son Mephibosheth. Pastor highlighted Eight Analogies of Grace that we can see from that story.
    
• What is Faith's 100? ~ You've heard about Faith's 100, but do you know what it really is? Read this article to find out the vision behind Faith's 100.
    
• Faith Baptist Mission & EBM ~ Learn how Faith Baptist Mission came to be.
    
• Broken & Spilled Out - Thoughts on the Ladies' Retreat (by Lee Dusing) ~ Lee Dusing, event coordinator, gives a glimpse of the time spent at Camp Gilead.
    
• God's Gifts to Me through the Ladies' Retreat (by Jill Osborne) ~ Jill Osborne shares some of what God did at the Ladies' Retreat.
    
• Free Shopping Day 2011 - It's Right Around the Corner ~ Lil Tolley, event coordinator shares the reasons we do the Free Shopping Day and what it is all about.
    
• A Rolex or a Diamond Ring? ~ Norm Hammond is a member of Faith Baptist with a unique story. This tale is of a Rolex watch and the trouble that it caused.
• A Rolex or a Diamond Ring? - part 1
• A Rolex or a Diamond Ring? - part 2
• A Rolex or a Diamond Ring? - conclusion

Previous Monthly Recaps:

• September
• August
• July
• June

A Rolex or a Diamond Ring? - conclusion (by Norm Hammond)

Norm Hammond is a member of FBC. Today, Norm finishes his tale about a Rolex. Make sure you read Part 1 and Part 2 before reading the conclusion.

I was very proud of my new watch. I could not wait to find out how much my watch was worth. I visited some jewelry stores and discovered that the price for an Oyster Day Date Rolex was $14,750.00. Not many people in my circles wore Rolex watches, so people notice the distinctive look and ask about your watch. Then I could say, yes, it was free. I won it by making a hole-in-one at a golf outing. Well August and the rest of the year went fine with many people wanting to hear about my new watch. A few accounting types asked if I had to pay taxes on it. I said it was a gift and gifts under $10,000.00 did not have to be reported to the IRS. I was whistling in the dark. The accounting types who asked about paying taxes turned out to be right. In January, I received a 1099 with $10,000.00 on it with no withholding! I had to pay income taxes on it at my high rate, ouch! At least the 1099 was for the wholesale price. The Rolex I won became the most expensive watch I had ever owned.
  

I had to have two links of the watch band removed at a jewelry store to make the band fit my wrist. The jeweler included the removed links in the package when I picked up the watch. I told him I guess I wouldn't have any use for the spare links, but changed my minds when he said it was worth $250.00 for the gold alone. I also learned that Rolex chronometer watched should be serviced once a year. The service is provided by local jewelry stores who sell Rolex watches. When I took my Rolex in for its first service I was told that the service fee would be $250.00. The lump in my throat was so high I could hardly speak. I mumbled something about it wasn't quite time for the service yet, I was just inquiring. Then I began to think about insurance for my watch. After inquiries to several insurance companies, I thought their quotations were exorbitant, so forget that!
  

I continued to wear my Rolex for almost 10 years. I was older and my forgetfulness was beginning to be a frequent reality. When I went to play golf I put my Rolex into my golf bag pocket. Several times I would go to the bathroom or otherwise be separated from my golf bag and watch. On several occasions it would be dark when we arrived at the golf course. Those times when I would be separated from my watch and golf bag, I began to worry. How many men knew about my Rolex and might have seen my put it into my golf bad pocket? To protect against this eventuality I stopped putting the watch in my golf bag to play golf. I left it in the car locked for safekeeping when I drove to the golf course. But I didn't always drive and when I rode with someone else I continued to put the watch in my golf bag.
  

One morning, I drove to the course and put my watch in my locked car for safekeeping. When I returned to the car after golf, I searched my golf bag for my watch forgetting that I had left it in the car. It wasn't there! I thought about the times I had been separated from my bag that day and they were numerous. I continued my search my bag where I was sure I had put it before playing and finally had to conclude it was not in my golf bag. Therefore it was lost or stolen. There was a feeling of terror that came over me, that is hard to describe. What and how would I tell my friends about the expensive watch I had lost? How could I be so careless? I put my clubs in the back of the car and walked to the front door and got in to drive home, wondering how I could explain the loss of such a valuable watch. When I sat behind the wheel I noticed a small part of a Rolex watch almost under the seat. I had looked there many times before but could not see it until I sat in the drivers seat. I was relieved that I really had not lost it at all. I hadn't put it in my golf bag that morning because I drove to the course alone. Did this incident happen for the Lord to show my what could happen to a forgetful old man?
  

I had been shopping for a diamond ring for Doris and the more I looked, the more I realized that this was going to be a very expensive idea. In a conversation with the jeweler, he noticed my Rolex watch. A sudden brilliant idea flashed across my mind, "Would he buy my Rolex or trade it in for a diamond?" To my complete amazement, he said yes! I timidly asked him how much my watch was worth and after examining it, he said $7,000.00. It was less than half the price of a new one, but I had worn it almost 10 years and Doris needed a ring and I wouldn't have to worry about loosing this expensive watch. When people would ask, "Hey Norm, where's your Rolex?" I could say, "I bought my wife a diamond ring." It was such a brilliant idea, I couldn't resist.
  

Now when people ask, "Hey Norm, where's your Rolex?" Doris can show them her ring. Doris wears the ring at all times. It is sized properly so she won't loose it. The heirloom that was a watch to be inherited by a son; suddenly became a diamond ring the daughters can fight for. It is better to give a ring than to wear a Rolex watch.
  

Wealth and possessions always create responsibilities we may not be prepared or willing to assume. I am relieved of the responsibility of owning and caring for such an expensive watch. I am now wearing an attractive "gold" watch purchased at the Winter Haven Flea Market for $19.99.. If I lose it, so what!

Related Posts:

• A Rolex or a Diamond Ring? - part 1
• A Rolex or a Diamond Ring? - part 2

A Rolex or a Diamond Ring? - part 2 (by Norm Hammond)

Norm Hammond is a member of FBC. Today he continues with part 2 of his story. In case you missed it, read part 1 first.

Hole number 12 on Sultan's Run is a 140 yard par three downhill. The pin was placed about six feet from the front edge of the green. Two players in my foursome teed off in front of me on this hole and both were on the green, but just past the hole. I selected an 8 iron to hit my shot and stepped up to the tee. I teed up a Titleist 6 ball on the tee, looked down at the green 140 yards away, took my stance and struck the ball. I felt as though it was a good stroke and might be good enough to get inside the other balls on the green for a "closest to the pin" prize. I watched my ball fall just short of the green on the apron, bounce up on the green once and fall directly into the cup on the next bounce. Wow! Wow! Wow! I ran around in circles with my arms high in the air. Wow! I hugged the young girls and shook hands with the other in my foursome. Wow! When the celebration calmed down, the young girls took my name as the winner of the Rolex, Wow! When we finished our round of golf on the 17th hole and carted through the 18th hole we passed the leader board. There posted for the entire world to see was: Norm Hammond hole-in-one on number 12, everyone at the golf outing wanted to shake my hand. I felt a little guilty because I was probably the least known individual on the course and was playing that day as a substitute for Jim Williams. God does some incredible things for us sometimes.

After the golf playing was over George and I drove back to the Holiday Inn to clean up and get ready for dinner at 6:30pm, Jasper Country Club. I called Doris to give her the good news and she already knew it. Good news travels fast! George had called his office in Indianapolis when he finished playing and told them about my hole-in-one. The secretary called the Ft. Wayne secretary to tell them about my good fortune. The Ft. Wayne secretary called Doris and told her about my lucky hole-in-one. Someone called Jim Williams in Grand Rapids and told him what he had missed by not being able to attend the golf outing.

At the reception that evening I was an instant celebrity. Everyone, it seemed wanted to shake my hand and congratulate me, maybe to rub off some of my good fortune. The reception blended into a delicious dinner. After the dinner there was a presentation of the prizes. There were prizes for the longest drive, straightest drive, closest to the pin on par 3's plus prizes for foursomes who scored well in the afternoon, after all this, the final presentation of the evening, the Hole-In-One prize.

I was called to the podium to receive the hole-in-one prize. I was sitting at a table in the rear of the room and as soon as I stood up there was a generous amount of applause from those present. I continued until I reached the podium and was greeted by the president of Jasper Rubber Company. From the time I stood up to walk to the podium, terror began to grip my emotions. Our host was very gracious and congratulated my for my accomplishment. Then continued saying that JARCO had had this annual golf outing for 30 years and no one had ever been able to hit a hole-in-one on the designated hole until now. He continued with a few more maudlin comments, but by this time my heart was beating fast and I could feel my face flushing with heat. The terror continued to escalate, after what seemed like an eternity he handed me the watch and asked me to say a few words. I really didn't expect to be asked to do that. Everyone else who had won a prize just came to the front and took their prize back to their table. By this time terror had my emotions in a tighter grasp than before.

I was not very coherent but managed to mumble something that I had used an 8 iron and the ball bounced twice and went directly into the cup. This was my first hole-in-one, ever. I appreciated being asked to attend the golf outing and hoped they would ask me to come again next year, but they didn't.

Come back on Monday to read the conclusion of Norm's story.

Related Posts:

• A Rolex or a Diamond Ring? - part 1
• A Rolex or a Diamond Ring? - conclusion

A Rolex or a Diamond Ring? - part 1 (by Norm Hammond)

Norm Hammond is a member of FBC with a unique story. Today he begins a three-part tale of a Rolex watch and the trouble that it caused.

Some telephone calls we receive are telemarketers to solicit money for charity of for some commercial purpose. Most telephone calls are for routine information and are soon forgotten. Others, however, can be welcomed because of some significant information received. There are still others which are welcomed for the information which is communicated and have ramifications for the rest of your life.
   
Such was a phone call Doris received at home from George Kriel at the Indianapolis Chemcentral office the week of August 11, 1992. George needed a golfing buddy to attend the Jarco Supplier Outing on Wednesday, August 19, 1992 in Jasper, Indiana. Since I was playing golf with friends at the time of the phone call, Doris said yes without consulting me! It was very presumptuous of her to say yes without consulting me even though I was retired. But under the circumstances I was not really angry. Doris had made a commitment for me and I was obligated to fulfill that commitment. I called George to confirm his request and thank him for it, turns out that George, the manager of Indianapolis was going to accompany Jim Williams to the Jarco Golf Outing in Jasper, Indiana on Tuesday, August 19th. Jim Williams, one of George's salesmen had been selected to attend management training in Grand Rapids, Michigan which meant George would have had to go alone unless I filled in for Jim. I realized that it would be a great sacrifice for me but one must not let down a friend when asked to help them in a time of real need.

   
So George asked if I could drive down to the Indianapolis plant on Tuesday morning. We would make a leisurely trip with some sales calls on the way down to Jasper. I left home early Tuesday morning and arrived at the Indianapolis plant about 9:00am. After some coffee and conversation with George we traveled to Terre Haute and made a sales call at MAB Paints with a luncheon. MAB Paints used to be Smith-Alsop in my Terre Haute days. After lunch we drove to Bloomington, made another call, and then finished the day driving to the Holiday Inn in Jasper to stay there for the night. Jasper is an old town settled primarily by German/Austrian descendants. Looking at some of the buildings and especially at the churches you can easily see this southern German/Austrian influence.

   
This golf outing was called the Annual Sales and Suppliers Golf Outing. Several companies hold such outings for an opportunity to invite customers and their salesmen, as well as key suppliers and company personnel to socialize and explore opportunities for closer business relationships. Jasper rubber had invited Chemcentral, Indianapolis as a key supplier to the festivities. Although George and I did not attend the cookout on Tuesday evening, we did attend the golf outing on Wednesday.

   
The gold outing was played on Sultan's Run Golf Course. The name of the gold course came from a very successful show horse named Sultan. Sultan's owner owned the land on which the golf course was built. Before that the golf course area had been Sultan's pasture field, thus the name of Sultan's Run. It was a relatively new course carved from Southern Indiana's rolling hills and creeks. The fairways were sodded with Zoysia so the course, was in excellent shape. George and I arrived early at the course because the format for the outing was a scramble with a shotgun start. Our foursome started on hole number eighteen. George started in a foursome on hole number 16 and so on. It is called a shotgun start because when all golfers are in position on their starting holes the pro fires a shotgun that can be heard over the whole course. In a scramble format each golfer his off the tee in any order.

   
The foursome moves up to their ball positions and decides which ball is best located to hit and all hit from the same place, this in continued until one of the four balls is in the cup. Score is kept by counting each of the best shots until the ball is in the cup. Jasper Rubber had had their golf outing for 30 years and no one had ever been successful in winning any of the par 3 hole-in-one prizes. There were two high school girls near the tee on number 12. They were observers to confirm any hole-in-one, should one happen that day. There were prizes for whoever was closest to the pin on all par 3's. The special prize on hole number 12 was a Rolex Oyster Day Date model wrist watch. Crafted with solid 18 karat gold and jeweled chronometer workings, it is the epitome of fine wrist watches...

Check back on Friday for the second part of Norm's story.

Related Posts:

• A Rolex or a Diamond Ring? - part 2
• A Rolex or a Diamond Ring? - conclusion

Free Shopping Day 2011 - It's Right around the Corner

Setup—Thurs. & Fri., Dec. 8, 9 | Shopping Day—Sat., Dec. 10

Three years ago the Lord gave Lil Tolley an idea: provide a free shopping day for those who cannot afford to purchase Christmas gifts for their families, share the good news of Jesus Christ with them, and teach children the true meaning of Christmas and the joy of giving. And that’s how FSD at Faith Baptist was born.

Click HERE to view photos and HERE to read a story from a past Free Shopping Day.

What’s new? During the three years that Faith Baptist has held FSD, Lil and her team of helpers, including Deacon James Barfield, have learned from each FSD and made improvements the following year. This year’s FSD will be different from the others in at least three ways:

We are not giving gifts to the adults; the children will make gifts for them. Lil says:

When God laid this on my heart, it was not just that the children should receive things, but that they should also learn about giving. That was a point of them choosing gifts for their parents. So we have decided that this year they will be making crafts for their parents.

Lil shares how God provided for these crafts: She and James had been talking over the idea of the children making gifts. “The very next Sunday, James came up to me and said, ‘Hey, Lil, have you seen the bulletin?’ He pointed to where Josh Brown had put a notice that there were a lot of boxes in a certain classroom. “I went over there and wrote ‘FSD’ on all but two of them. I think that 90% of our crafts and supplies were presented right there. I think it will be almost cost free for us to do the crafts. God really provided!” says Lil.

We will be using the Family Life Center this year. Lil says: “We’re using the new gymnasium this year, which I believe will make it a lot nicer, since we will be serving the food to our guests.”

We are giving gifts to 500 children.

What can I do? Lil says, “We need more volunteers!” Each member of Faith Baptist can use their spiritual and natural gifts to help. Here’s how:

Food prep and service—We need people to cook, serve the food, or talk to the people.

There are a lot of children who could not tell you the true meaning of Christmas. So that is the first step—to get them to understand what the true meaning is; that in the birth of Jesus Christ, that was the first step in our salvation plan. Eventually they learn the rest—about Him dying for us and taking our sins and that we then can live throughout eternity in peace with our Lord. — Lil Tolley, FSD Coordinator

Evangelism—“We need soul searchers,” says Lil.

We’ll use Fellowship Hall as a transition place. We need soul searchers to talk to them, tell them we love them, tell them Jesus loves them more.” Lil explains: “My real goal is that many lives will turn to Jesus Christ, that Faith Baptist Church will shine out in our community as a safe haven—a place where people can come and hear the truth, learn the truth, be taught the truth, and be supported by the truthful. The world has so many things to offer this year that are so temporal and they look nice and shiny on the outside, but when you get to the depths, they are just fake; they are not true. At Faith Baptist Church, they’re going to find the real truth. So the goal is that people will come to know Christ as their Savior and avoid that eternal separation that would happen if they didn’t know Him as their personal Savior.

Prayer—“We need prayer for this event. God has blessed us in the last two years more than we imagined,” says Lil. Here are eight prayer requests:

• Gifts or money to purchase gifts for 500 children
• Volunteers to help with FSD
• Hearts open to the gospel. Lil says, “The big, big issue of this whole thing is to bring people to know Jesus Christ as their Savior.”
• Soul seekers and speakers who will share the good news of Jesus Christ and the real meaning of Christmas
• Loving, patient, kind workers on FSD. Lil says that the second goal of FSD is to bring glory to God.
• The logistics. Pray for the logistics concerning gifts and numbers of people in any space at a given time. Lil says, “It takes a lot of organization and follow-through and coding things.” Keeping people moving is important. “We have to watch fire laws, so we can have only so many people in the chapel and other places,” says Lil.
• The follow-up. Lil says, “We should pray for these families throughout the year—that hands would be stopped before they hit, that little ears would be protected, that the adults would find peace.”
• Other aspects of the event

Gift-wrappers—“The reason we offer gift wrap is it completes the process and gives some of that wow factor. When the adults walk out of the building and they have beautifully wrapped gifts, people are going to remember ‘beautiful—that church’; ‘beautiful—God.’ It helps the people, and it also keeps the gift a secret.”

Corporate sponsors—Lil says, “We could use corporate sponsors. Because I’ve allowed myself to get too busy, that’s not something I’ve hit the streets and worked on.”

These are only a few of the areas available for service. Sign-up sheets are available at the FSD table in the foyer. “We’re asking volunteers to put an e-mail address because it takes so much time to sit down to talk (call) individually. So we’ll send one e-mail out to everybody,” says Lil. You can choose your area of interest, or you can indicate you’re willing to serve wherever needed.

Lil understands that times are tough for our church family. She says:

Some of them are probably discouraged—‘I can’t provide for my own family; how am I going to help provide for somebody else?’ My prayer is that God will provide. But the people who can’t give a gift or a financial gift, will be able to help out and have peace about that. Their gift [of service or prayer] is just as important as if they brought a toy or money.

How can I become a shopper?

If you’re interested in being a shopper, or if you know someone who is, pick up an application in the church foyer. Someone will be at the FSD table at least 30 minutes before and after every service, including Sunday School (except not before the 8 a.m. Sunday services). After a person submits the form, or “app,” they receive an orange slip. “That’s the way they get in the door,” says Lil.

All Applications Due by Sunday, November 13.

God's Gifts to Me through the Ladies' Retreat (by Jill Osborne)

The Women’s Ministries of Faith Baptist Church sponsored a Ladies’ Retreat October 14 and 15 at Camp Gilead, Polk City, Florida.

  

• Gift #1 – Beautiful weather!
    
• Gift #2 – The joy of seeing ladies of all ages from Faith fellowshipping together.
    
• Gift #3 – The opportunity to learn new things from our ladies.
    
• Gift #4 – The fun of seeing so many ladies involved in serving the Lord!
    
• Gift #5 – The blessing of sharing God’s Word and life lessons with our ladies.
    
• Gift #6 – The time to talk with ladies and get to know them better.
    
• Gift #7 – The prospect of continued growth, unity and ministry among the ladies of Faith.
     

Related Posts:

• Broken & Spilled Out - Thoughts on the Ladies' Retreat (by Lee Dusing)
• God Gives Good Gifts - A Ladies' Retreat

Broken & Spilled Out - Thoughts on the Ladies' Retreat (by Lee Dusing)

The Women’s Ministries of Faith Baptist Church sponsored a Ladies’ Retreat October 14 and 15 at Camp Gilead, Polk City, Florida.

  
"Broken and spilled out

And poured at Your feet

In sweet abandon, let me be spilled out

And used up for Thee"
  

That is one of the verses the "Retreat Choir" sang for us from "Broken and Spilled Out." That tune has been running in my mind since then. What a retreat! What a blessing I received from all that went on. But also, those words were true for me. Physically? By the time Dan brought me home after the retreat, I could hardly get up the three steps to get in the house. Spiritually? My Spiritual Cup is filled up and overflowing!
   

Early in the week, it was becoming apparent that satan did not want things to go well. I kept fighting a low-grade fever most of the week. Cancellations started coming in, all with good reasons, but it sure kept the book work busy trying keep up with it all. When Phyllis Foster had to cancel because of Jim's surgery, I felt so bad for her because she had literally spent hours helping me with the retreat and was looking forward to it so much. Other problems kept showing up. All of us were praying that the Lord would pour out His blessings and challenge the ladies coming, us included. I started telling others that the Lord must be going to work mightily, because satan was fighting so hard.
   

From my perspective, the Lord got the victory. What a blessing it was as I watched the ladies fellowshipping and meeting new friends. Thanks to Nadine mixing us up at meals, we had to sit by our birth month at one meal and by our folder color at another meal. Then she had questions to be asked and discussed. The fellowship continued Friday night around the "S'more Time" by the bonfire. What a beautiful night the Lord gave us. The stars were out and the temperature was just right. Most of all there was not 6 inches of rain like the previous weekend.

Helen VanHorn performing in a skit.
  

Because of responsibilities, the General Sessions were the only parts I observed. The blessings from all the fantastic speakers, challenges, songs, skits, even Terri making us exercise filled my cup to "overflowing." I watched the Lord answer prayers as some issues presented themselves for solutions. Did we make mistakes, yes, I am sorry to say. Yet, He never deserted us. 
  

Terri Hunter leading an exercise session.
   

Praise the Lord for allowing me to be used, stretched, challenged, but never abandoned. He was right with me giving the wisdom needed. Praise the Lord for all the ladies that helped, whether doing something before the ladies or behind the scenes. Praise the Lord!


See also: Birds at the Ladies Retreat

Faith Baptist Mission & EBM

If you haven't already done so, I encourage you to read our previous post, What is Faith's 100?.  It helps provide some background information for this post.

As you may already know, Evangelical Baptist Mission (EBM) recently dissolved.  This sudden announcement left many missionaries in a difficult position.  At the time of the decision, Faith Baptist Church (FBC) was supporting Chris & Diane Marine, EBM Missionaries currently serving in West Africa.  Our pastor naturally reached out to them and presented them with the option of becoming a part of Faith Baptist Mission (FBM). 

FBC has enjoyed a long relationship with Chris & Diane Marine as they have served the Lord in West Africa.  They are part of our family.  As we began discussing the possibility of them coming under FBM, they were naturally concerned about another family.  This family included an entire team of missionaries that the Lord has put together in West Africa.  Under EBM, the Marines provided leadership to this team as the Regional Coordinator.  The question quickly became, "Can the entire team come under FBM?"

As I write, we are frantically working out all of the necessary details for these missionaries to begin serving under Faith Baptist Mission.  To say that change is hard is a serious understatement in this case.  The missionaries and the staff of Faith Baptist Mission have been stretched and challenged.  But God is good, progress is being made and our prayer is that Jesus Christ will ultimately be glorified through all of this.

Please pray with us and for us as we continue through this transition.

What is Faith's 100?

Faith's 100 is a ministry of Faith Baptist Church (FBC).  In 1995, God called Pastor Nathan Osborne and his family to Winter Haven, FL to become the Senior Pastor of FBC.  Several years into his ministry, Pastor Osborne began to share a vision for Missions that was quite unique.   He said "What if FBC were able to send out 100 missionaries supported 100% financially by FBC?"  This simple question planted the initial seeds for Faith's 100.

As you can imagine, this question stretched the minds of the members of FBC!  Pastor Osborne patiently waited and continued to pray and preach and minister to the congregation.  As he continued sharing his vision, he described a Missions program that sought to:

• know its missionaries intimately
• train & equip its missionaries in the ministries in which they will serve overseas
• through its thorough knowledge of its missionaries - hold those missionaries accountable
• support each of its missionaries 100% financially

This initial vision grew into Faith's 100.  From a financial perspective, Faith's 100 began very small.  Pastor Osborne recognized the importance of FBC being completely debt-free.  So, he led FBC to pay off over $300,000 in 14 months.  Paying off this debt freed up substantial resources and allowed Faith's 100 to flourish.  Being debt free, FBC was able to begin setting aside significant resources for Faith's 100. 

Faith's 100 continues to this day.  It has trained men and women for ministry.  Some have gone into Pastoral ministry.  Some have worked in our local community with at-risk kids.  Some have gone into Camp Ministry.  Others have gone to Africa and Brazil.  There is no 'mold' for Faith's 100.  Everyone who travels through the evaluation process is different and so the process is different each time.  

In recent years, it became apparent that Faith's 100 needed to incorporate as a separate but auxiliary entity of FBC.  Doing so would allow Faith's 100 to hire its missionaries directly.  This reduced the need and the cost of sending its missionaries through an outside mission agency.  In effect, this incorporation established Faith's 100 as a mission agency.  Here is where the terms get cloudy.  There is Faith's 100, Inc. - the Mission Agency.  There is also Faith's 100 - the ministry of FBC that identifies, trains, and sends out missionaries.  For clarification purposes, Faith's 100, Inc. is planning to change its name to Faith Baptist Mission.

Related Posts:

• Faith Baptist Mission & EBM

Eight Analogies of Grace from 2 Samuel 9 (by Pastor Osborne)

 Recently, Pastor Osborne preached a message entitled Eight Analogies of Grace.  In that message, from 2 Samuel 9, Pastor looked at the kindness David showed to the last member of Saul's family - Jonathan's son Mephibosheth.  Pastor highlighted Eight Analogies of Grace that we can see from that story.
   

• There was a time when Mephibosheth enjoyed fellowship with his father.
• So did humanity in the Garden of Eden.
    
• When disaster struck, fear came, and Mephibosheth suffered a fall that crippled him the rest of his life.
• When sin came, humanity suffered a fall, which has left us all spiritually corrupt and crippled.
    
• Out of unconditional love for his friend, David sought anyone to whom he might extend grace.
• God, because of His unconditional love for His Son and His acceptance of His Son's death on the cross, continues to extend His grace to humanity.
    
• The crippled man was destitute and undeserving.  All he could do was accept the kind's favor.
• As sinners we are undeserving and without hope.  In no way are we worthy of our king's favor.  All we can do is humbly and gratefully accept it.
    
• The king (David) took the crippled and broken man (Mephibosheth) from the barren wasteland and seated him at the royal banquet table in the palace.
• God, our Father, has rescued believers from a moral wasteland and seated us in a place of spiritual nourishment and intimacy.
    
• David adopted the crippled man into his royal family, providing every blessing within the palace.
• Believers have been adopted into God's family in which He has provided to us full privileges as adult sons.
     
• Mephibosheth's crippled feet were a constant reminder of David's grace.
• Our moral feebleness and weaknesses keep us from forgetting that where sin abounds, grace abounds so much more.
    
• When Mephibosheth sat at the king's table, he was treated with the same respect as David's sons.
• Some day all true believers will sit at the wedding feast of the Lamb.  We will sit with the prophets, apostles, evangelists, pastors and missionaries from Peter, to Luther, to Calvin, to Moody, to Corrie ten Boom, to Billy Graham.  God's tablecloth of GRACE will cover us all!

   
Related Posts:

• Sermon Archives:  Esther - The Providence of God
• Sermon Series on Spiritual Defection
  

Mary Meehan Testimony - Part 2

Mary & Michael Meehan

 Here is part 2 of Mary's testimony.  If you haven't already done so, make sure you read part 1 first.

I have read since then that it is often the highly religious female between the vulnerable ages of 11 -13 that gets enticed into the occult. Add any family history of occult involvement and the door has already been left ajar. I went to my mother at one point to tell her what was happening and that I was afraid, and she told me that when she was young she use to leave her body and travel in her spirit. I can only presume that I have other ancestors that had similar experiences. I learned that I could do much with a deck of cards, as the icy breeze was there when I picked them up. I could pull an ace out without looking, every time. I never lost at a game of solitaire. The heavy hand that Satan holds one of his is depressing and oppressive. I always said that I knew there is a God, because I knew there is a Satan. The worse thing of all was that I would pray and no one was there. Even worse than that, when I prayed I felt a terrible fear that centered deep inside me. I stopped trying to pray.

We moved as a family away from my friend and this seemed to loosen the tight grip that was on me. I eventually got involved with drugs, and depression and anxiety were a constant companion. I married my high school sweetheart, he was in the Coast Guard and we moved to Virginia where he was stationed. How I missed the God I remembered from my childhood! Such emptiness. My husband at that time would work as a bartender in the evenings. I would play solitaire. I also started watching Pat Robertson on the 700 Club. He would say the oddest things!

I remember every detail from the night I got saved. I did not know that I got saved that night until later, because I knew nothing about “getting saved”. I was sitting on the couch, alone, when it was as if a light came on in my brain and understood for the first time that Jesus had died on the cross for our sins. Catholics are not taught this, and quite truthfully I always wondered why He did. But then, it was made clear; He had died for me, for my sins! I was so excited I exclaimed out loud: “so that’s why You died on the cross”! Then I heard in my head as clear as can be: “I have forgiven you-now you must forgive yourself”. At that same moment a most wonderful thing happened; something came off my back! I felt it release and float away! The power of God was in that room with me, actually seemed as a light. I did not know what happened that night but I knew that it was very good. I told my husband the next morning “that I talked to God last night”. We went to a catholic church at my insistence the following Sunday. When we got in the car he said we wouldn’t be going back to a catholic church.

We moved to Alaska a very short time after my salvation experience and everyone I met I would ask if they knew of a Bible study. My soul was so hungry for God. Finally, someone did and they gave me a phone number. A car picked me up with some ladies and the short little funny looking lady in the front seat looked me in the eye and said: ”So are you saved?”. I stuttered some awkward response. Her name was Joyce Briggs, and some people were uncomfortable around her because all she talked about was the Bible, but to me she was God’s special gift. She took me under her wing and spent much time teaching me God’s word.

After our 2 year tour in Alaska we returned to Maryland. Shortly after that Joyce’s daughter wrote to tell me that she had fallen off a cliff and died when she was walking the dog. I am forever grateful for her in my life. I am also thankful for my first pastor, who took where I had come from seriously and taught me to claim the blood of Jesus for myself and future generations.

I thank God almost everyday for the last 39 years that He had mercy on me and saved me. I have a respect and a fear of Satan. He is not to be messed with. Children can open the door to let him enter with seemingly innocent activities. Ouija boards, horoscopes, stories about witches or wizards, certain music, drugs.

Remember, “we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this age, against spiritual hosts of wickedness in the heavenly places” (Ephesians 6:12-13) So, again I say “Thank you, Jesus”.

Testimony of Mary Meehan - Part 1

Mary & Michael Meehan

 Michael & Mary Meehan are members of our church.  Today, Mary shares part 1 of her testimony - an amazing story of the grace of God.

I was raised in a very Irish catholic home and had some Aunts that were nuns.  I attended Catholic school from 1st to 8th grade. We had Mass everyday until the 5th grade when they decided it was no longer necessary for us to have everyday mass. I was very religious. During playground time I would sneak over to the church and pray to the statues. I remember it so well - St. Joseph on the left, Mary, mother of Jesus on the right. Jesus was on the cross in the center. My favorite was St. Theresa in the back right hand corner.

Sometime during one of those “holy playground” times I decided that I wasn’t going to pray to the statues anymore.  In fact, I decided I wasn’t going to pray to anyone but Jesus. I guess the Holy Spirit was directing me a bit even back then. My plan was to be a nun, hopefully a martyr, and if all went well a saint. All did not go well. A couple of things happened, two major things actually.

• One, I became interested in boys and I could not figure out how I could make them and the nun/martyr/saint thing work together. 
• Two, I was invited over a friends house for a sleepover.

My friend’s parents owned a motel and we were spending the night in one of the rooms. Somebody brought a Ouija Board. No one was having much luck with it. Judy, who was my closest friend, and I, did not try it then. After everyone started falling asleep we took it off to the side away from everyone else. The memory of what happened next is imbedded in my mind. It changed my life forever. As my hand touched the center piece a cold, icy breeze engulfed it. The piece began to move around the board on it’s own accord. Swiftly moving about-we could barely keep holding on to it. It spelled out words, words that I no longer remember. We were alone, everyone else was sleeping, and we were afraid. We put it away. It wasn’t long though until we were discussing what had happened and wondering if we could do it again. But how, since we did not have a Ouija Board? We ended up making it by hand, we used a milk bottle cap for the center piece. It worked! The piece started moving. We soon realized that it was mainly me that the piece was moving through. We called in Judy’s brother as a witness and blindfolded me to test it. Judy asked questions-I answered them using the piece and the letters on the board with the blindfold on. The icy cold breeze would be on my hand.

My friend and I spent hours everyday “playing on the Ouija Board”. At first it was fun, the “spirits” were nice and gentle, or so it seemed to us. The longer we played the darker they got. The presence around us was heavy and oppressive. We started becoming fearful. We would pray and hold the crucifix when we used the board. We stopped using the board but by then it was too late, at least for me....

Continue reading part 2 of Mary's testimony...

Other Testimony Posts:

• Dale & Anne Simpson - "Wonder if We'll Get Saved?"
  

Ladies' Retreat - Joy in Trials & Singing Workshop

Photo by Paul Cleveland

For Patty Dawson, neither trials nor joy in trials is a mere theoretical concept or doctrinal belief—Patty has experienced terrible trials and has learned to how to have joy in them.

Patty’s experience in trials includes

• A difficult marriage during ongoing trials.
• A dangerous delivery during childbirth. Patty almost lost her own life during the birth of her daughter Abigail, who suffered brain damage.
• Loss of a close support network. Patty and her family moved from Lake Placid to Winter Haven to secure full-time care for Abigail.
• The death of another daughter, killed by a drunk driver.
• The death of a brother. Shortly after Patty’s daughter was killed, her brother passed away from cancer.
• Abandonment (with no financial support) and then divorce by her husband.
• Going back to school to get a degree as a doctor of audiology.
• The death of Abigail. The Lord took Abigail Home in 2008.

Patty started writing a 30-day devotional on trials—what they are, what they help you with, and what they do for you. Joy in trials, the theme of the devotional, is based on James 1:2. Patty’s devotional led to the start of a ladies’ Sunday School class and now to this workshop* at the Ladies’ Retreat.

One of Patty’s friends asked Patty to meet with her to go over the truths Patty had learned and written in her devotional. Soon others joined them, and a class was formed. The class has finished the study on trials but is studying Ephesians 6 and the armor of God for spiritual battle. She says,

“Trials are intended to try out, or test, or prove your faith. And faith is your shield in your armor for spiritual battle.”

She says the ladies in her class are moving slowly and in much detail through their study of the different pieces of the armor for spiritual battle. As for the workshop, Patty says,

“I’m going to talk about ways that you can find joy in trials, the reason why you can find joy in trials. The word ‘count’ [in James 1:2] means ‘to bring or lead you into’ joy. It doesn’t mean you’re wrong in being upset when a trial comes—that’s a normal thing to have happen—but what God wants for you is for you to allow that trial to lead you into joy because—the next verse says ‘because’—because the testing of your faith brings about perseverance, patience, which is a steadfastness, a strength to stand.”

If you are going through trials right now or are barely hanging onto your joy, come to Patty’s workshop and discover what the Lord has for you there!

*Please bring your Bible to this workshop.

Singing Workshop

Join your voice with other ladies’ voices to sing “Broken and Spilled Out” under the direction of Jan Sawders (pictured above).

Jan says she has been singing for as long as she can remember. She has directed children’s choirs and dramas, and currently directs the Oakwood Estates Choir, which presents four theme-related concerts a year. Jan learned about singing, music, and directing during her high school years. She says,

“I had an excellent choir director in high school, and I believe a lot of training came from him. We did a lot of Latin. When you do that, you learn to say your words correctly and learn various kinds of music.”

Jan not only sings in our church choir, but she has on occasion served as substitute director for Pastor Jerry. She will be giving her workshop Friday night in preparation for the Retreat Choir’s ministry in the Saturday-morning main session. In addition to practicing “Broken and Spilled Out,” those who attend the workshop will enjoy the interactive introduction Jan has planned.

So, come to Jan’s workshop Friday night, learn about music, and immediately use your gift of singing to minister to the other women at the Ladies Retreat!

Related Posts:

• God Gives Good Gifts: A Ladies' Retreat
• Ladies' Retreat - Workout Time & Bread-Making Workshop
• Ladies' Retreat - Scrapbooking & Encouragement Through Card Making
• Ladies' Retreat - Parenting & Prayer Journaling
• Ladies' Retreat - Couponing & Organization Workshops
• Ladies' Retreat - Joy in Trials & Singing Workshop

Ladies' Retreat - Couponing & Organization Workshops

If you are registered to attend the Ladies’ Retreat on Oct. 14 and 15 but don’t know which workshops interest you or what your “alternate choices” will be if you cannot attend your first choices, check out two of the workshops below and find links to many of the other workshop at the bottom or this article.

Couponing Workshop

If you’re using coupons to save 10¢ here and 50¢ there, you’re not using coupons to their full potential. Missy Eby’s couponing workshop at the Ladies’ Retreat will help you make the most out of saving money with coupons!

Missy Eby (pictured above) appears on TLC’s reality show Extreme Couponing. Using coupons, she once spent only $4 for $1160 worth of products!

Workshop leader Missy Eby says she got involved in couponing out of necessity. “We needed to survive financially because we were not making ends meet on a weekly basis. So I started couponing, and we have been making it ever since.”

Missy took a 30-minute class on couponing at a friend’s home, where she learned the basics. About three weeks later, she started hosting classes herself, and now she has taught over 13,000 families!

Missy says her workshop will teach wives “how to be good stewards of their money and helping their family finances and just making sure that they can provide for their family.”

Come to Missy’s workshop to learn from an experienced “couponer,” who is in her second season as a cast member of TLC’s Extreme Couponing!

Organization Workshop

The organization workshop will be led by Karen Hafner, who will address the “most important places in the home that need organizing to keep the function and flow of the home going smoothly.” Karen will also talk about adding distinctive design flair in the areas that are organized.

Karen says, “Sometimes we feel that organizing is just a big, huge task, that a lot of times we don’t even want to begin to tackle. And there are some simple guidelines that you can go by when you’re learning to organize certain areas and purging certain areas. I truly believe that the more organized you are, the more efficient you are. Efficiency is the goal—not that you can do everything faster, but that you can enjoy the things you’re supposed to be doing instead of having so much mental clutter that weighs you down from doing the things God would have you do.”

Karen suggests that women of all ages can benefit from this workshop. She says, “I used to think that women raising a family with small children at home” would benefit most from help in getting organized, but she has offered help long enough now to know that even retired women with both spouses at home say, “Why do I have so much stuff, and where do I put it?” Karen concludes that needing to organize one’s home applies to all age groups.

So no matter your age or home, come to Karen’s workshop and learn how to organize with flair!

Related Posts:

• God Gives Good Gifts: A Ladies' Retreat
• Ladies' Retreat - Workout Time & Break-Making Workshop
• Ladies' Retreat - Scrapbooking & Encouragement Through Card-Making
• Ladies' Retreat - Parenting & Prayer Journaling
• Ladies' Retreat - Couponing & Organization Workshops
• Ladies' Retreat - Joy in Trials & Singing Workshop