The Faith Connection 03.01.12

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This Sunday  At Faith . . .     We will continue in our new sermon series this Sunday morning.  In this series we are looking at five major purposes for our lives.   We were planned for God’s pleasure, so your first purpose is to offer real worship. We were formed for God’s family, so your second purpose is to enjoy real fellowship. We were created to become like Christ, so your third purpose is to learn real discipleship. We were shaped for serving God, so your fourth purpose is to practice real ministry. We were made for a mission, so your fifth purpose is to live out real evangelism. This Sunday we are looking at the second purpose which is to enjoy real fellowship.  When God created man He saw that it was not good for man to be alone.  He made man a social creature who was designed to interact with others not go solo.  That is where the church comes in, the church is a living organism where believers experience life together.  It is God's version of Facebook.  What draws us together, the Spirit of God and our relationship with Christ.  We will take some time this Sunday to unpack the whole concept of fellowship and how it impacts our life. Facebook is the world’s largest social network, with more than 800 million active users around the world, and roughly 200 million in the United States, or two-thirds of the population. Created in 2004 by Mark Zuckerberg in his dorm room at Harvard, Facebook grew from being a quirky site for college students into a popular platform that is used to sell cars and movies, win over voters in presidential elections and organize protest movements. It offers advertisers a global platform, with the exception of China, where Facebook does not operate. Before facebook became so popular God already recognized the need for believers to connect,  this Sunday morning we will look at "God's Facebook". Sunday night (6 PM)    This Sunday night we have a very special guest, Efrain Escorza and his wife Letti will be our special guest, he will be giving an update on the ministry in Mexico where he serves as director of the school for the deaf in Mexico,  Many of our members have traveled to this school to help in ministry and construction projects.  Efrain will also have one of the students traveling with him.  This promises to be a very special service, please plan now to attend it should be a great evening. Brody Walls Our phone rang a few nights ago, an excited voice on the other end shouted out "I Got Jesus!".  It was our seven year old grandson Brody who had just prayed with his dad to invite Jesus into his heart..  The photo above is of Brody and his mom (Robin) and dad (Matt),he is getting ready to be baptized.  I thank God for Christian parents who saturate their children with love and the gospel.  Isn't great that we live in a country where our children can hear about Jesus and publicly identify with Him without fear of persecution. In my world. . .  Easter Musical Sunday April 1 in both morning services Easter is just a month away, the one Sunday of the year that gives us the greatest opportunity to reach out to the unchurched, pray, invite, park in the gravel, bring just one car let's make this Easter the best on record Deacon on Deck for March:Mike Wade (962-4732) Missionary  of the week: Pink and Selena Davis in New Zealand Follow us on Facebook http://www.facebook.com/pages/Faith-Baptist-Church-Covington-VA/367864835486 Is there something you would like to comment about in this update?  Need to let the rest of us know something?  leave comment on Facebook at the link for this update Praise the Lord for our nursing home ministry, this past Sunday we had 40 people in attendance at the church service Fred Parks is in the Woodlands nursing home, while Elaine and I were visiting last week we just happened to see Fred and a 94 year old lady compete in a wheel chair race down the hallway of the home.  Fred who is paralyzed on one side showed great courage in racing, but the 94 year old granny was just too much, maybe next time Fred. A note from one of our members . . . "Thanks for putting the sermons online.  Victoria is iced in today at UMW and was watching a past Bro. Billy Sermon this morning.  Also, as I relate sermon topics to an unsaved but very interested friend, this feature is proving a tremendous asset.   Thank you C. L." You can watch or listen to the sermons from Faith on the Internet just follow this link to watch a recent sermon. http://www.truthcasting.com/player.aspx#showSermon=35980 You can also watch or listen to sermons on your iphone,ipod or ipad.  You have to download the Truthcasting app for your device. http://www.truthcasting.com/     THE GOLDEN TELEPHONE     A man in Dallas, Texas decided to write a book about churches around the country. He started by flying to San Francisco and started working east from there. Going to a very large church, he began taking photographs and making notes. He spotted a golden telephone on the vestibule wall and was intrigued with a sign, which read “Calls: $10,000 a minute.” Seeking out the pastor he asked about the phone and the sign. The pastor answered that this golden phone is, in fact, a direct line to heaven and if he pays the price he can talk directly to God. The man thanked the pastor and continued on his way. As he continued to visit churches in Seattle, St. Louis, Chicago, Milwaukee, and around the United States, he found more phones, with the same sign, and the same answer from each pastor. Finally, he arrived in West Virgina, upon entering a church in Lewisburg, low and behold – he saw the usual golden telephone. But THIS time, the sign read “Calls: 35 cents.” Fascinated, he asked to talk to the pastor, “Reverend, I have been in cities all across the country and in each church I have found this golden telephone and have been told it is a direct line to Heaven and that I could talk to God, but in the other churches the cost was $10,000 a minute. Your sign reads only 35 cents a call. Why?” The pastor, smiling benignly, replied, “Son, you’re in  West Virginia now and as you know we are almost Heaven. You’re in God’s country, It’s a local call.”    Hope to see you Sunday