Get CONNECTed!

Back up and running

2009-11-20T09:55:00.001-06:00

So, yes, it’s been a while. Much has happened since my last update. National SBC leaders are dropping like flies, the Tennessee Baptist Convention has come and gone without major incident, my family has welcomed into the world boy #3, and we’ve still been getting together for CONNECT on Mondays at 10:30. As we embark on the Thanksgiving and Christmas holidays, stay tuned to what’s going on in the world of ministry. I know this Saturday there’s a big food giveaway at the WDBA Ministry Center. All 250 slots are filled, but they could sure use some volunteers to help coordinate the effort.

Also, make plans to have someone from your churches represent your flock December 5 at FBC Paris as we coordinate the Ministerial Association Food Box Ministry. Tom Winchester has worked super-hard to ensure that every needy family in our community receives food. In order to prevent some families from receiving multiple boxes while others go without, it is absolutely necessary that everyone get involved. Remember pastors, you don’t have to be there. Just be sure someone from your church is.

Wade and Barbara Akins

2009-09-28T08:54:00.002-05:00

Hey guys! I hope you'll join us this morning, as we'll have a couple of guests with us. Wade and Barbara Akins are conducting a"Lordship Revival" this week at Springhill and agreed to come and share with us this morning. You DEFINITELY will want to be there! Wade and Barbara both have been serving overseas longer than I've been alive. Currently, they travel the world training pastors and laypeople in church planting through their ministry, Pioneer Missions. Break away from whatever you're doing and join us. It will be a blessing for you. See you at 10:15 at the Ministry Center.

Freebie!!

2009-09-24T19:56:00.002-05:00

Here's a freebie from our esteemed Director of Missions, Bro. Jim Twilbeck. 40 free sermon PowerPoints for download here. All you have to do is register at the site.

CONNECTion Through Service

2009-07-20T14:28:00.003-05:00

Had a good discussion this morning on Chapter 9 of Stetzer, et al's Lost and Found. Chapter 9 is entitled "How Churches are Making a Difference Through Service." Some of the high points:

There are a variety of opportunities to involve your church in community service (even here in Paris/Henry County)
Perhaps the most effective way to move people into community service is through your church's small group ministry (Sunday School, etc.)
Young adults tend to be more interested in service than their Boomer predecessors, but have less time to contribute
We discussed from personal experience what seems to work and what does not work when it comes to moving people from the pew and into service.

It's about time we finished this book, so over the next few weeks we'll be tackling 2 chapters at a time until we get through it. Next week we'll discuss chapters 10 and 11. We'll also hear a report from our esteemed DOM (and anyone else who would like to share) on the Associational Mission Trip to Iowa. We'll have a lot of territory to cover; you won't want to miss it.

Prayer Requests:

Upward Flag Football
Joe Davis's son, Carl Davis on a mission trip in Kenya
Maplewood--Last week of volunteers this week
Kenny Cook--back problems
Randy Hart--mother passed away
Soldier in Afghanistan in captivity by Taliban
Caleb Ducworth--headed to Iraq
Bruce Alexander's nephew (Liam)

ReCONNECTing

2009-07-20T09:32:00.000-05:00

Just a reminder—CONNECT will be back this morning at 10:15 at the WDBA Ministry Center. If we have anyone there who participated in the Associational Mission Trip to Iowa, then we’ll hear what God did there. If not, we’ll pick back up where we left off (quite some time ago) in Stetzer’s Lost and Found. See you there!

Coffee CONNECT!

2009-07-13T15:38:00.002-05:00

We came, we got our coffee on, and we CONNECTed! It was a great time of fellowship and prayer at Jack's Java this morning as Bro. Corey Cain, Bro. Mickey Lovett, and Bro. Otis Hinton joined me for a caffeine fix. The guys helped me brainstorm a little for speakers for next year's West Tennessee Pastor's Conference at Union University, we took prayer requests, we prayed, and then we were surprised by a big announcement:

Otis is engaged! (Yes, he did give me permission to share that.) We are very happy for our brother and excited about the future that God has for him and his new fiance. For more details, you'll need to contact the big man himself.

Be in prayer for our Iowa Mission Team. I spoke with Bro. Jim this morning and they had a great turnout at their revival services yesterday. He said that Bro. Bobby Campbell is doing a great job preaching the Word. VBS and construction projects get rolling today, and the revival will continue in the evenings. Keep Bro. Jim, Bro. Bobby, and the rest of our missionaries in your prayers throughout this week.

Other things we prayed for today:

Maplewood's new building: construction teams are in and progress is being made (Praise the Lord!)
Families having lost loved ones in various accidents around the area.
One couple recently baptized and another very close to making a decision for Christ.

Next week we'll be back at the WDBA Ministry Center, where, hopefully, we'll hear a report from some of our missionaries. See you then!

Long time, no CONNECT

2009-07-13T08:23:00.002-05:00

It has been quite a while since I last blogged, and I apologize for that. This morning (July 12) a few of us here in Henry County not on the Iowa mission trip will be CONNECTing at Jack's Java, since the Ministry Center will be closed. Be in prayer for our local mission team, and join us at the coffee shop in downtown Paris if you can break away from you Monday morning. We'll be there at 10:30. See you there!

CONNECT with Poverty

2009-06-08T09:21:00.002-05:00

I hope you'll join us today as Randy Pool from the Mississippi River Ministry will be with us to share some ideas on how we can CONNECT with poverty. This will be an important presentation, especially in light of the current economic climate. See you there!

Back from break

2009-06-01T15:20:00.002-05:00

We've had a couple of weeks off, so it was good to reCONNECT with everyone this morning. We had a great discussion on developing a deeper sense of community in our churches without getting so inwardly focused that we have trouble welcoming new believers. Be sure and join us next week as we welcome Randy Pool, Director of our regional Mississippi River Ministry. Randy has some good things to share with us regarding cross-cultural ministry. I hope to see you there. Be sure and check out the prayer requests below.

Prayer Requests

Bro Bill smith--treatment tomorrow
Maplewood Honduras trip
Janice Burney--fighting cancer (Mike, Temple)
Maplewood volunteer workers in on June 21
Leroy Parrish--Maplewood deacon
VBS--First Baptist, Maplewood, Bethlehem
Ramble Creek--looking for pastor
IMB--appointing fewer long-term missionaries & cutting short-term appointments
Mary Ellen Vaugn--missionary in dangerous area being relocated
Dan--missionary in Muslim area
Iron Man fellowship at Covenant Ranch
Camp season at Covenant Ranch
2nd Harvest food delivery and distribution coming soon

Today's Requests

2009-05-11T15:15:00.002-05:00

We had a great time of fellowship and discussion today. Thanks to those who were able to make it, and if you didn't make it this week, we hope we'll see you next time. Speaking of next time, there will be no CONNECT meeting next Monday due to the Associational Senior Adult Extravaganza at FBC Paris, so if we don't see you there, we'll see you in 2 weeks at the Ministry Center. Here are a few praises and prayer requests that came out of our fellowship this morning:

Praise!! 3 saved at the Iron Man fellowship at the Covenant Ranch last Thursday.
Praise!! The successful delivery of Rebecca Elana Waddey and the subsequent recovery of her mother, Robin.
Praise!! Shirley received Christ last week. Pray for her as she grows in her faith and battles her very aggressive cancer.
Janice Burney (Mike, Temple), as she battles cancer.
Otis Hinton's daughter, Fay--tree fell on their house in Clarksville.
Otis's sister, Wanza Benson--in the hospital in Jackson.
Brian Pecanty--30 year-old with very progressive and aggressive cancer--doctors estimate 3 weeks to live.
Maplewood needs good weather to get the slab for their sanctuary poured
Jones Chapel--revival this week
Travis Twilbeck--getting ready to work this summer at Linden Valley Conference Center.

Feel free to submit any other requests under the comments, or e-mail me and I'll add to the list. See you in 2!

Get CONNECTed.

2009-05-11T09:25:00.000-05:00

Get CONNECTed.

Get into real, life-giving fellowship.

Get away from where you are now and get involved.

Get out of the office and into relationships, friendships.

If not you, who? If not now, when?
If yesterday has you down, let CONNECTion lift you up.

If yesterday has you up, don’t keep it to yourself!

Get CONNECTed.

Set a reminder for 10:00am. Get in your car. Drive to the WDBA Ministry Center. Leave earlier if you live far away. We’ll start at 10:30.

Get CONNECTed. See you there.

Quick CONNECT

2009-04-27T21:28:00.002-05:00

Sorry it's been so long since I last blogged. We've really been busy the last couple of weeks with our evening CONNECT fellowship with the ladies and with our Fish Fry Ministry last week. Thanks to everyone who helped out with both events!

I'll update tomorrow with more prayer requests from our fellowship today, but wanted to encourage you to pray for Robyn Waddey (Mike's wife, Cottage Grove) tonight before their 6th child's labor will be induced tomorrow following some complications. Thanks for praying.

CONNECTing with the unchurched by reCONNECTing with service

2009-04-06T21:24:00.002-05:00

Good fellowship today at CONNECT. We had a very meaningful time of prayer requests and prayer. Corey shared with us some insights and experiences from the Memphis area pastor's conference he attended last week featuring David Jeremiah. And in our discussion of the latest chapter of Stetzer's book, we brainstormed ways that we could reCONNECT with the younger unchurched through emphasizing evangelistic service in our ministries. It was a really helpful time of discussion for me. If you weren't able to be with us, know that we missed you.

Over the next two weeks, CONNECT is going to be a little different. Next week, CONNECT will take place, not on Monday morning as usual, but on Tuesday night at 6:30 at the WDBA Ministry Center. We hope to see a lot of our bivocational pastors and others who are not able to join us on Mondays there. We desperately want to CONNECT with you. You are a vital part of our ministry in this community, and it is so important that you have that sense of CONNECTion to our fellowship as spiritual leaders here. Wives are welcome next week as well. Barbeque will be provided by the Association.

CONNECT will take place the following week, not at the Ministry Center, but at our Fish Fry Ministry at the Fairgrounds. Come whenever you can that morning to help set up or just to hang out and CONNECT with other pastors and those that we're trying to reach. There will be no real set time this week, so just come whenever you can. I'll be praying for you this week as you prepare for Easter, and that God will use you in a mighty way next Sunday. See you Tuesday!

Prayer Requests:

Praise: Joe Davis's bar ministry seems to be going well. Pray for Joe as he seeks to make an impact on this often neglected community.
Susie, Joe's stepsister, in the death of her mother.
The lost, specifically Justin, Bob, Rick, Dan and Vicky
Ray Whitlow (McDavid Grove)'s mother
Ramble Creek revival
Hunter Dye (sculeosis)
Jim cox
Bro. Bill Smith
Praise: Success of Bible Drillers Sunday in their memorization of Scripture
Colleen Twilbeck, dislocated elbow
David Stephan (Music, First Martin), prostate cancer
Easter services around the county

Prayer Need

2009-03-31T14:47:00.002-05:00

I received a phone call this morning from one of our partners in ministry. He will remain nameless, but he's facing some challenging situations in his church (as we all do from time to time, I suppose). Anyway, I've committed to pray for him, and I'd like to ask you to do the same. The Lord knows the situation, so there's no need for further elaboration. Just lift him up. Thanks!

DisCONNECTion

2009-03-31T14:29:00.003-05:00

It happens easily. We get so involved in our ministries and responsibilities that we lose touch with the rest of world. If we're not careful, we can find ourselves disCONNECTed from those around us--our families, our churches, and the larger community we've been called to serve. That's why I'm so thankful for the opportunity I'm afforded each week to CONNECT with other pastors. We get opportunity to share our struggles and our hurts, to pray for one another and to laugh together. We get opportunity to remind one another of our priorities and challenge one another in our approaches to ministry. Thanks, guys, for your encouragement yesterday.

And let me challenge you, blog reader. If you're feeling disCONNECTed, give us a try. You'll be amazed at the effectiveness of intentional CONNECTion.

On a side note, mark your calendars for the Tuesday night after Easter (April 14th). That evening at 6:30, we're going to have our weekly minister's and wives CONNECT fellowship at the WDBA Ministry Center. We will NOT meet Monday, April 13th. I hope to see as many of you as possible. I know we have a number of ministers in our network that are unable to CONNECT with us on Monday mornings. This meeting is for you. See you then!

Prayer Requests

Bill Smith--chemo. treatment this morning.
Hunter Dye--recent diagnosis of sculeosis (sp?)
Douglas Waddey (Mike's father)--annurism on his heart
Ray Whitlow's mother
Spring Creek revival (through Wed.)
Ramble Creek revival next week
Mickey Lovett--Greek mid-term coming up
Hicks family
Jim Cox
Upward Ministry at FBC, Paris
2nd Baptist, Clinton, KY--lost building to fire
Matthew Smith--relocating to Paris

Check it out!

2009-03-23T15:38:00.002-05:00

I'm really excited. Some of you may remember a few weeks ago when I expressed frustration at the lack of resources when it comes to evangelistic small group Bible Studies geared toward non-believers. Well, quite by accident, I came across some. They're called "Investigative Bible Studies," and are produced by a ministry of Campus Crusade for Christ. They are geared toward college students but look as though they could be easily adapted toward any age group.

Just thought I'd share. You can find them here.

RereCONNECTing

2009-03-23T14:41:00.002-05:00

Corey and I were the first to arrive to our CONNECT fellowship this morning. As he, Jim and I were the only ones there at first, Jim and I commented that we might should have considered Spring Break this week and perhaps cancelled this week's fellowship. I'm glad we didn't. As it turned out, we had a great crowd, great discussion, a meaningful time of sharing prayer concerns, and insightful input in our book study discussion. In my opinion, it really was one of the best meetings we've had this year. That just goes to show that sometimes your leaders don't know what they're talking about!

Having said that, if you weren't able to be with us this week as a result of Spring Break travels, or for whatever other reason, know that we missed you and prayed for you. As a pastor, you are important to this fellowship of pastors, and we want you to feel a part. Thanks to Jim, Corey, Tom, Bill, Mike, (the other) Jim, and Otis for making it a really fun time of fellowship. See you next week!

Prayer Requests:

Praise: Travis Twilbeck's return from a week of mission work in Montana
Praise: Maplewood's closing on their building loan tomorrow!
Krista (John's wife) Smith's grandfather
Todd Brady (flu)
Ginger Dalton from Maplewood
Eula Mae Hunter from Maplewood
Ray Whitlow's (McDavid Grove's pastor) mother
Fred Sanders from Springhill
Fae Hubbard (wife of Ken Hubbard)
Bill Smith and his battle with cancer
Evan Twilbeck--dental work coming up
Jim Twilbeck and Mike Waddey as they attend the "Apple" conference
Joanne Winchester (wife of Clifton Winchester, area pastor and cousin of Tom)
Virgina Allen from Bethlehem

Also, pray for those in our circles of influence that need to know Christ:

Charlie
Brad
James
Randy
George
Randall
Justin
JB
RS
Jerry
Bill
Sharon
Bob
Bob
JH
JR
JV
DH
EJ
TR
TC
TB
KB
JB
Joseph
LS
Dixie

Finally, do your best to CONNECT with the following events through your prayers and, if you can, your participation:

Regional Pastor's Conference in Memphis featuring David Jeremiah, this Monday and Tuesday, March 30-31.
Prayer and Praise Service on Maplewood's new property tomorrow at 9 a.m.
Revival meetings at Bethlehem in Henry (through Wednesday)
Revival meetings at Spring Creek next week
Revival meetings at Ramble Creek the week after next
Fish Fry ministry to the Carnival workers
Fish Fry Christian Concert on Wednesday night of Fish Fry

ReCONNECTing

2009-03-17T17:23:00.002-05:00

Sorry to be so long since the last post. I had a busy Monday last week in Middle Tennessee with the TBC Executive Director/Treasurer Search Committee. Thanks to Corey Cain for filling in for me. I heard the guys had a great discussion, but for details, you'll have to check with Corey. We had another good meeting yesterday at the WDBA Ministry Center. We were down in number a little, but it was good to reCONNECT with at least one pastor who hasn't been with us for a while. Next week we'll pick back up with chapter 4 of our book study, and hopefully reCONNECT with you then.

Prayer Requests

Gail & Joe Davis as they travel and celebrate their 40 anniversary in Hawaii (poor people!)
The Fred Winters family in their time of grief
Bill Smith as he undergoes chemo
Jim Cox as he recovers at home
Corey Cain while he is in Kansas for Doctoral classes
Families as they face the current economic crisis
The TBC Exec. Director Search committee as we meet with groups in East TN this Thursday-Saturday.
Travis Twilbeck as he is serving this week in Montana working with Brodie Swisher and Mark Hasenyeager

Announcements

Special Pastors and Wives CONNECT on Tuesday, April 14. Listen up for details soon.
Read Chapter 4 and join us next week. (I know I mentioned it above, but I really hope to see you there!)

The Lost, the Found, and the CONNECTed, Part II

2009-03-02T15:42:00.002-06:00

Good discussion today at our CONNECT Minister's Fellowship. It was good to have Jon Smith, pastor of Fairview Baptist Church, back with us for the first time in a while. It was also good to have Bro. Bill Smith with us, especially following his recent surgery and current battle with cancer. And, as always, Jim, Mike, and Corey, it was good to see you, too :).

Today, our discussion centered around Chapter 2 of Lost and Found, by Ed Stetzer, et al. I'll save the details of the chapter for when you read the book yourself, but the sentiment we came away with today was essentially this: the younger unchurched are resistant to the church, but they do not seem to be resistant to spirituality, God, or even Jesus. We had a good discussion as we brainstormed ways that we, as church leaders, can help bridge that gap. The sentiment of our group today seemed to be that, when it comes this this age group, it helps to start with personal relationships. We must be in proximity to the lost. If we're going to be effective in reaching this generation, we have to climb out of our ivory towers and CONNECT with people that don't know Christ. Hopefully, as we continue in our book study we'll glean specific ways to make that happen.

Again, I had a blast today. If you weren't able to make it, pay attention to the announcements and prayer requests below so, as you CONNECT with us in person next week, you'll know what's happening. See you soon.

Prayer Requests:

Larry Dukes-traveling to conference in California this week
Praise--man at Christian Men's Job Corp saved last Monday. Pray for Joe as he grows in his newfound faith.
Hunter Dye--sick
TBC Youth Evangelism Conference this weekend
Evan Twilbeck--not feeling well, but a praise as he celebrates his 18th birthday this week.
Maplewood BC's building process--that they'll get everything taken care of that needs to be taken care of before volunteer laborers begin to arrive on June 22.
Praise--New Harmony BC's new ministry at McCray's Chapel is going well, with a number of people saved.
Blake Nichols--church plant in Smyrna
Grow Groups--new Sunday Night ministry at Springhill BC
Week of Prayer for North American Missions this week
Center for Biblical Counseling
Tomorrow's Hope Pregnancy Help Center
Fish Fry Ministry and Concert

Announcements:

Pastor's Conference featuring David Jeremiah in Memphis, March 30-31 for more information, click here.
Maplewood's Pancake Supper to benefit their Honduras Mission Trip, March 28
"Word Within the Word: The New Testament Use of the Old Testament" Bible Study Conference at Union, featuring D.A. Carson, April 24-25. Register here.
West Tennessee Pastor's Conference, tomorrow, March 3, in Luther Hall at Union University. Fellowship begins at 9:30 a.m., program featuring Dr. David Dockery will begin at 10:00. No registration or reservation necessary; lunch will be provided.
Paris/Henry County Ministerial Association, Wednesday, March 4, 8:30 a.m., in the Henry County Medical Center cafeteria.

Copycat Preaching

2009-03-02T15:17:00.004-06:00

Here's a video I came across today that reminded me of a discussion we had a few weeks ago during our minister's fellowship. I thought you guys would find it interesting (apalling, hopefully, but interesting nonetheless).

For the record, the first guy in the video, Tad, apparently admitted to copying the illustration. Groschel appears to be the originator of the story. Your thoughts?

The Lost, The Found, and the CONNECTed

2009-02-24T15:06:00.003-06:00

Yesterday, after spending some time praying together, we dove into a discussion of the first chapter of our latest read--Lost and Found by Stetzer, Stanley, and Hayes. Basically, Chapter 1 is a descriptive chapter. The authors tell us what, generally speaking, the younger unchurched look like. While the chapter makes no claims to be exhaustive, it does provide helpful insights into this particular generation of the unchurched. How are we to respond to these insights (to find out the specific insights, you'll have to read the chapter yourself :))? The answer to that question remains to be seen, but I'm sure we'll receive guidance later on in the book.

I enjoyed our discussion Monday and look forward to finding out how to apply these characteristics in our evangelism (remember, the question is not whether we evangelize; it's how we do it). Note the prayer requests below, and if you haven't been able to be with us yet, join us next Monday morning at 10:30 (10:15 if you want to visit for a little while before we begin). We'll discuss Chapter 2 then.

For your convenience, and so you can get an idea of Ed Stetzer's heart, I've added a link to his blog to our website list on the right. I hope that will help.
Prayer Requests:

Geneva Conger
Elizabeth Luter and the Women's Conference this weekend
Participants in the Women's Conference, that their hearts would be open to the message.
Joe Davis's aunt, Helen Davis
Joe's Bar Ministry
Kay Parrish-secretary at Maplewood, battling cancer
Betty Jordan--battling cancer, stem cell arvesting at Hope House
Virginia Allen--recovering from cancer surgery today
Carthage Dye and Joe Davis--working out possible return trip to China
Craig Peavyhouse and his ministry at Bird's Creek
Unspoken request
Praise--Kenny Louden's first baptisms at New Harmony at McCray's Chapel. Great service at New Harmony with several folks saved. Praise God!!
Bro. Jim--West Africa Summit in Birmingham
Cindy L.
TJ Willougby
Possible Hispanic Ministry in Paris

Prayer for the Lost (Please add the following to our list below from last week):

Brad
James
Randy
George
Randall

CONNECTing with the lost...

2009-02-16T16:53:00.002-06:00

We had a great discussion today during our CONNECT minister's fellowship. Together, we navigated through issues in our "Bible Belt" culture that make leading people to Christ so difficult. Too many "religious" people in our immediate world have bought into the myth that they are saved because they had a singular experience a long time ago that has no relevance in their lives today. It is extremely difficult to get lost people to recognize their lostness when they think they got it all taken care of years ago through a raised hand, a walk down an aisle, a filled out card, or a repeated prayer--even though none of those things have any impact on their lives today. Jesus said that to "come after" Him, we must deny ourselves, take up our crosses, and follow Him. Certainly, we must begin following Him at a singular point in our spiritual lives, and certainly, if we sincerely desire to follow Him, He will not leave us behind (we can't lose our salvation). But, unfortunately, our "Bible Belt" culture is full of people who have never really started following Jesus.

With this in mind, we decided to start praying together for the lost within our individual circles of influence (see below). I encourage you to do the same.

We also ran through the introduction to our latest book study, Lost and Found. If you haven't picked up your copy, we encourage you do so ASAP (cost of the book is $10), read chapter 1, and join us next week for discussion.

It was a blessing to gather with you today, guys. If you weren't able to be with us, I hope you CONNECT with us next week. Blessings!

Announcements

Pick up your Lost and Found books ASAP and read chapter 1 for next week. Cost of the book is $10.
Don't forget about Associational Executive Board Meeting tomorrow night at 7 p.m. at Central Point.
Trent Bullock is in full swing at FBC Paris. Keep him in your prayers.

Prayer Requests

Gary Zook, headed to Honduras for and extended mission trip
Dwayne Mathis, having heart surgery on Thursday
Bro. Bill Smith, and his battle with cancer
Your Tennessee Baptist Convention Executive Director/Treasurer Search Committee
Maplewood Baptist Church, as they finalize their loan proceedings for the new building
The families of our community

Pray for the lost (This is a new section. Each week we'll post the first names or initials of people in our lives that we would love to see come to know Christ. Join us on Monday to add to the list, or e-mail me [Fred] any name that you would like to add.)

Justin
JB
RS
Jerry
Bill
Sharon
Bob
Bob
JH
JR
JV
DH
EJ
TR
T
C
TB
KB
JB
Joseph
LS
Dixie

CONNECTing the dots

2009-02-02T13:30:00.005-06:00

Hey guys! Thanks to those of you who took the time to join us today for our CONNECT Minister’s Fellowship. We had a great discussion about what we as pastors and church leaders can do to reverse the downward trend of our denomination. Research has demonstrated clearly that, in spite of our commitment to theological truth and biblical inerrancy (both of which are very good things!), the SBC is still failing to really impact the American culture. We talked about the fact that this negative trend is due, at least in part, to a lack of creativity and intentionality in the denomination as a whole, but more specifically, in the local church. If we are going to reach people, we must be intentional about it. The people of this culture we are trying to reach must see us as authentic, relevant and loving. We must be willing to think outside the box in order to reach them.

That’s a summary of our conversation today. It certainly doesn’t cover everything we discussed, but I think I hit the high points sufficiently. If you joined us today, and there’s something you’d like to add that I left out, feel free to leave a comment below. Even if you weren’t able to be with us today, but you have a thought on this issue, feel free to do the same thing. Again, it was really good to be with you. There are few things better in the Christian walk than the fellowship and accountability that come from meeting with men of the same calling, who are seeking after the same goal, for the glory of the same Person. See you next week.

Announcements

If you get a call from a Todd Powell asking for help, refer him to Damascus Road. He’s abusing the system.
Don’t forget to RSVP by today if you plan to attend the Pastor – Staff dinner before the Evangelism Rally on Sunday Feb 8 at 4:30 pm. The Evangelism Rally will start at 6 pm. Russ Cooper will be bringing the message.
Encourage the ladies in your church’s women’s ministry to sign up and participate in the Women’s Conference on Saturday, February 28th, featuring Elizabeth Luter, wife of Fred Luter. Tickets are $10 before February 14th, and $15 after that. Call the Ministry Center for more information.
Pastor David Jeremiah will be in Memphis for a special, regional Pastor’s Conference March 30-31. He’ll be speaking on issues related to his recent book, What in the World is God Doing? Tickets are $25 for ministers and spouses.
Books will be in for our book study, which will (finally) kick off next week, no later than this Friday. Pick up your copy from the Ministry Center before Monday!

Prayer Requests

Our neighbors to our North as they continue to recover from last week’s ice storm
Disaster Relief teams as they move in to do chainsaw work and operate feeding units as part of storm recovery
FBC Paris’s chainsaw team, as they are doing relief work in Graves County, KY.
Randy Kuykendal, pastor of Northfork B.C., as he recovers from damage to his house from the ice storm.
Directors of Missions from all over the state as they meet with the TBC Executive Director/Treasurer Search Committee this Thursday.
The TBC Executive Director/Treasurer Search Committee as we finish up the 40 days of prayer and fasting and prepare for a number of listening meetings around the state.
President Obama and his leadership over our country

Altar Calls...

2009-01-29T15:22:00.002-06:00

In our discussion on evangelism the other day, the issue of "altar calls" came up. I came across a blog post today that speaks to why many churches do not participate in the practice. I'd enjoy hearing your thoughts. Here's the link to the post:

http://pathood.typepad.com/ramblings_from_a_hoodlum_/2009/01/alter-calls.html

Links

2009-01-27T11:26:00.004-06:00

Corey came across a couple of links that will be relevant in our discussion next week (see previous post below). He's posted them under "comments" the last couple of weeks, but I thought I'd make them a little more accessible. We had a hard time tracking down the first article, but Corey found it for us. Thanks, Corey!

http://www.tennessean.com/article/20090119/NEWS06/901170354

http://blogs.lifeway.com/blog/edstetzer/2009/01/the-sbc-in-the-tennessean.html

To CONNECT or not to CONNECT? That is the question.

2009-01-27T10:52:00.003-06:00

Actually, it's not the question. The message of Scripture is clear; we were made to CONNECT. That's why I appreciate so much all of you who showed up yesterday for the latest meeting of our minister's fellowship at the WDBA Ministry Center. I had a couple of church members having surgery yesterday, so I had to come in a little late. Thanks to Right Reverend Twilbeck, though, you guys were able to get the fellowship kicked off without me.

I know it might sound weird to talk about fellowship in a Baptist setting without food. When we think of fellowship, we think of fried chicken and lots of dessert. Real, biblical fellowship is much more than that, though. Real fellowship is about coming together under one purpose and for one task--to bring honor and glory to our Lord Jesus Christ. It involves praying for one another, ministering to one another, and holding one another accountable to the task we've been given. I appreciate Chris, Mike, Tom, Larry, Jim and Corey for the encouragement they were to me yesterday. If you haven't made it out to one of our times of fellowship, I hope you'll try to make it next week. It really is a great way to kick off your week of ministry after a busy Sunday.

Announcements:

After much delay, our next book study will kick off Monday, February 8. Books should be available before the end of next week, so swing by the Ministry Center to pick up your copy then.
Next week we're going to be talking denominational issues. What, in your view, sets us apart as Baptists? What direction will our denomination need to take in order to reach this next, "post-denominational" generation? This discussion should serve as a good preview of our book study. See you there!
Bro. Jim and Mary need to know ASAP if you will be attending the meal prior to our annual Evangelism Rally, Feb. 8 at McKenzie High School. The meal will start at 4:30 p.m., and the rally itself will begin at 6.

Prayer Requests:

Bro. Bill Smith
Silas Smith, son of Pastor Jonathan Smith
Your Tennessee Baptist Convention Executive Director/Treasurer Search Committee (whew! that was a mouthful) as we seek the direction of the convention as a whole, but most importantly, the Lord's direction for the next leader of our state convention.
Pastors Tony Wiggens and Jeff Hardy, as they've been under the weather.
a "Mr. Vick" and another lady led to faith in Christ by Joe Davis.
The family of Diane Walters (particularly her husband Gary) as she died suddenly this past Saturday from what appeared to be acute bronchitis. She was only 54.
The Defer family, as they mourn the loss of their father.
President Barack Obama
Jim Cox
The Christian Men and Christian Women's Job Corps of Paris and Henry County. Pray for "Arthur" as he has received Christ and is now seeking to grow in his faith. The ministry is also looking for men to help mentor some of the men coming through this program.
Pat Sanders, wife of Bobby Sanders.

Thanks for your prayers. See you next week!

Quinn Chapel

2009-01-20T14:28:00.003-06:00

We had a great time CONNECTing yesterday with fellow ministers and leaders from the community at the annual MLK breakfast and march at Quinn Chapel Church in downtown Paris. Thanks to everyone from our group who made an effort to attend. As preachers of the gospel and bearers of the name of Jesus Christ, we ought to do whatever we can to bridge the racial gaps that, unfortunately, are so often evident in our community. Yesterday was a time of celebration and praise, and I considered it a privilege to be a part of it. I hope you did, too. I'd love to hear your comments if you were able to be there.

In the meantime, we'll see you next Monday, Jan. 26 at 10:30am, as we get CONNECTed once again.

A prayer request and 2 announcements from the office:

Be in prayer for Bro. Bill Smith who goes in for exploratory surgery tomorrow. The Dr.’s have found a lump and will go in to see what it is and remove it . He will be at Baptist Hospital in Union City.
Connect will pick back up next Monday at 10:30 at WDBA Ministry Center.
Please put Feb 8 on your calendar. That is our Evangelism Conference being held in conjunction with Weakley, Carrol –Benton and our Association at Mckenzie High School at 6 pm. Russ Cooper is the guest Evangelist.

We came, we saw, we CONNECTed...

2009-01-12T21:30:00.001-06:00

We had another great meeting today. Thanks to all the guys who came out and got CONNECTED through fellowship and discussion. After our discussion last week on sermon preparation, we talked today about the subject of pastoral care. I asked the guys about their methods of pastoral care. How often do you visit? What’s your typical procedure when you hear about a ministry need in your church? I really appreciate everyone’s input. I believe the overwhelming sentiment was that the purpose of pastoral care is to let your church members know that they are important, and that you, well, care. How you accomplish that depends on a combination of your personality and the personality of your church. Larry Dukes made an important point. He reminded us that, after we’ve moved on, our people may not remember the sermons that we preach, but they will remember the times that we were there when they needed us.

Also, in our meeting today, we agreed to help one another out, especially as it relates to out of town hospital visitation. Consequently, if you have someone in the hospital in Nashville, Jackson, Paducah, or Memphis, and you can’t make it, use the comments section of this blog to let the rest of us know. If any of us will be there anyway, we’ll be happy to drop by, visit, and pray with your church member (letting them know that you asked us to stop by). This is just another way that we can partner in ministry together and reach this community for Jesus Christ.

If you weren’t able to make the meeting today, and you’d like to let us know about how you handle pastoral care, we’d love to hear from you. Just click on “comments” and, well, comment, or e-mail me at fred@springhillchurch.net, and I’ll post it for you. Again, I really enjoyed being with you this week, and I look forward to our discussion in two weeks, January 26, on evangelism, outreach, and in-reach. See you next week at Quinn’s Chapel (see announcements below)!

Announcements

Next Monday, we’ll CONNECT with our African-American brothers at Quinn’s Chapel Church at 8:30 a.m. in observance of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Day. This will take the place of our regular CONNECT meeting at 10:30.
We’re pushing the book study back a couple of more weeks. Sorry to have to do that, but we’re not able to get the books shipped until Feb. 1. Because of that, we’ll get rolling on the book discussion on Monday, Feb. 9.
In the meantime, we’ll continue the discussion format we’ve followed the last couple of weeks. If you haven’t been able to be apart of that, it’s really been fun. Don’t miss another week with us.

Prayer Requests

Mickey Lovett—speaking Tuesday at the Tennessee Turf Grass Association Prayer Breakfast.
Hulon Moon, member of Maplewood airlifted to St. Thomas today with heart trouble.
Bro. Bill Smith—possible surgery next week
Jon Smith’s child’s surgery recovery.
Earl Tyler—a new Christian, led to faith in Christ by Joe Davis.
Joe Davis—working with Union University to establish a Biblical Counseling curriculum for the University.
Mary Dye—broken wrist.
The Tennessee Baptist Executive Director/Treasurer Search Committee
A possible partnership between WDBA and the Center for Biblical Counseling in Paris.
Bro. Jim, as he work toward developing international missions partnerships.
Josh Burney, as he continues to recover from surgery.
Mickey Lovett’s Sunday School class.

Dropping Out...

2009-01-06T08:06:00.003-06:00

Yesterday, Bro. Jim gave a preview of our book study, Lost and Found, by Ed Stetzer and company (see the announcements in the previous post below), which prompted a short discussion on why we're not reaching the latest young adult generation. Mickey Lovett ran across some interesting statistics related to that discussion. Here's his e-mail (which he gave me permission to post).

Regarding your discussion today, this article from LifeWay may shed some light:

http://www.lifeway.com/lwc/article_main_page/0,1703,A=165949&M=200906,00.html

My thoughts during the meeting were that in many churches, the membership has dropped in attendance overall (not just 18 - 22 year olds) and this lack of commitment and enthusiasm for worshipping God and fellowshipping with fellow Christians has resulted because of a failure to know God and stand in awe of His Majesty and Love. Some who think they are Christians but fail to live out their love for Christ may not truly know Him or love Him.

How can a true Christian become bored with God? How can someone who claims to love Christ not want to spend time with other Christians? How can a lack of fellowshipping with the saints now (in this present age) support a desire to fellowship with Him and fellow saints eternally?

Well what do you think? Feel free to comment.

A Great First Meeting!

2009-01-05T18:14:00.003-06:00

Well, we had a terrific first CONNECT meeting this morning at 10:30. Thanks to everyone who made an effort to be there. As I shared with the guys this morning, the nature of a fellowship like CONNECT is that it's a double blessing. On the one hand, you are a blessing to everyone else as you contribute to our discussion and accountability. In addition to that, though, our prayer is that you, too, will be blessed as you are encouraged by others in our fellowship. That's certainly the feeling I came away with after our meeting today. After listening to your ideas and opinions on the subject of Bible study and sermon preparation, I came away more fired up than ever about preparing for next week's messages. I love that we can come together and further motivate one another in the things we're passionate about already. If you weren't able to be there this morning, let me encourage you to join us next week at the same time. We'll probably follow the same guided discussion format we did today, but next week we'll entertain a new topic. Today we talked primarily about Bible study and sermon prep. Next week, we'll think together about pastoral care.

Prayer Requests and praises (pardon any mispelling of names):

Praise--Trent Bullock (pastor-elect at FBC Paris)
Praise--Chris Hefner (new pastor at Buchanon)
Praise--Cheryl Conner as she is commissioned for further service with Tommorrow's Hope Pregnancy Care Center, now under the authority of the North American Mission Board.
Mike Burney (battling a cold)
Mickey Lovett (preparing for a Greek class)
Mrs. Doris Lucas, in the loss of her husband
Mr. Fred Sanders, in the loss of his wife
Mark Hosinyager, pastor of the Outdoors Church in Missoula, Montana, as they recover from a very heavy snowfall that destroyed their building.
Bro. Warren Sykes and his ministry
Colleen Twilbeck, as she recovers from vandalism to her classroom at Henry School
New Harmony Church, as they seek to reach the lost (and, as Bro. Jeff Hardy heartily emphasizes, not members of other churches) through an exciting new multi-campus ministry starting in Big Sandy.
Other requests, too sensitive to be listed on the blog.

Announcements

Our next meeting will be next Monday, January 12, at 10:30am. As I mentioned, we'll discuss pastoral care methods and ideas together.
On Monday, January 19, we'll begin our latest book study, Lost and Found, by Ed Stetzer, Richie Stanley, and Jason Hayes. Sorry for the delay. We've had to wait until the book is officially released next week.

I've added a couple of links on the right to websites that we discussed today at our fellowship. "Wingclips.com" and "sermonspice.com" are designed to help those who use video to supplement their messages. Thanks again for all your input. Check back regularly for updates and additions. I hope God will bless you and your ministry in a mighty way this week.

Happy New Year!

2008-12-30T18:51:00.004-06:00

I trust everyone had a terrific Christmas! Continue to pray for one another this week--that as we take a break from the hectic nature of the holidays we won't grow lazy or apathetic in our love for Christ and His ministry. I'm praying for all of you, and that God would use you mightily in 2009. Happy New Year!

Oh, and don't forget. CONNECT gets rolling live and in person this coming Monday, January 5, at 10:30am. If our books are in, we'll get started on our book study. If not, well, you'll just have to come see for yourself! Blessings!

Rural Church Blog

2008-12-24T16:31:00.004-06:00

As a number of the churches in our association are what would be defined as "rural churches," many of you will be interested in a blog hosted by one of our own, Pastor Mike Waddey of Cottage Grove Baptist Church. Mike has a passion for rural church ministry and a heart for rural church pastors. Check out his heart at ruralchurch.wordpress.com.

Your Christmas traditions, ideas, or memories...

2008-12-21T16:14:00.003-06:00

Merry Christmas! No CONNECT meeting tomorrow or next Monday, but I'll look forward to seeing you in 2009 (Jan. 5 at 10:30am to be exact). In the meantime, I'd like to get a good holiday discussion rolling. What Christmas tradition, idea, or memory has God used in your family or your church? Take a minute and let us know. I'd love to hear how God is working in your lives.

Prayer Requests and Announcements

2008-12-15T14:52:00.001-06:00

Prayer Requests:
Josh Burney—son of Mike Burney, pastor of Temple—as he recovers from surgery.
Parker? Family—11 year old son was tragically injured in a car accident on Hwy 79 this past week
Mickey Lovett, as he seeks the Lord’s direction in his ministry, and as he prepares for an upcoming Greek class
Liz Buie (Mary Dye’s mother) as she recovers from surgery
Pray that, in all the chaos of the holidays, our hearts would be singularly focused on Christ this Christmas.

Announcements:
No CONNECT meetings for the next two weeks. Our next gathering will be Monday, January 5.
Our first Monday morning discussion topic for the first several weeks of the year will be on the book, Lost and Found, by Ed Stetzer, Richie Stanley, and Jason Hayes (if we can get them before the release date—if not, we’ll let you know). WDBA will be providing the books. All you have to do is e-mail Bro. Jim at wdbapt@bellsouth.net to reserve your copy.

We're up and running!

2008-12-15T14:38:00.000-06:00

Yep, this is our first post. Here's what I want from you. Let me know what you're looking for on this blog. We're going to keep you updated on prayer requests, announcements, and that kind of thing, but if there's anything else you can think of that will help you get CONNECTed to our fellowship, I want to know about it. Just hit "comment" below this post and pour your heart out in the provided field. If you've got your own blog, give us the address and we'll provide a link to it. If you don't have a gmail account or aren't signed in, be sure and leave your name at the end of your comment, or you'll just be listed as "anonymous." Our first weeks announcements and prayer requests will soon follow. Thanks!