Merry Christmas
Good Wednesday Everyone,
Good Wednesday and Merry Christmas!! This is a wonderful week as we approach Christmas. It’s no longer almost Christmas – It is Christmas. What a start to our week as we were so blessed with Bethel Baptist’s Children’s Christmas Program. Sunday evening, our children gave us an incredible and wonderful blessing of what was happening all around the birth of Jesus Christ. A special thanks to Tamara and all her assistants who faithfully and with excellence prepared our children to give us so much. This Sunday evening, we learned something special about something we know so much about – We know how Christ came but we need to know why Christ came to us. Christ came, God came to rescue MY soul, and to show MY soul it’s worth. Christmas is a festive time of giving to those we love, but for Christians we celebrate the receiving of JOY from God. Then as they say, “The rest is history.”
Christmas 2022 will always be a special time for the Bowen family. Bethel Baptist, we celebrate and congratulate the Trey and Alex, and big sisters Addison and Emerson in the birth of baby sister Ellison. The baby of the family will always be the baby in the family. We extended our prayers of thankfulness for all going well: Mother and baby are healthy and happy. Our prayers will continue as the Bowen’s head home for Christmas with their great little package of JOY.
A few reminders for this week. Tonight, we have our final Wednesday Night Fellowship. The menu is potato bar, so if you can bring something to pass or a desert to share. Then as we approached our coming Lord’s Day. We will not have Sunday School this Sunday, and we will meet early for worship at 10:00 am in the sanctuary. We will have a blessing for all as we will see where the Christ was before He came to earth, what happened to Him on earth, and where He is now. You will be blessed. Please join us if you can. Come if you are here, bring someone who is with you who may be visiting.
The following week we will adhere to the same schedule. We will not have Sunday School, and worship will again be at 10:00 am on New Year’s Day in the sanctuary. Then we will be ready for 2023!! All updates and scheduling are available on our Facebook and at our website.
Again, Merry Christmas Bethel Baptist. If you are traveling this week: Our prayers are for safe travels and safe returns. If you are hosting this week: Our prayers are those for fellowship and peace with family. For ALL we pray you receive JOY this Christmas – God’s JOY!! As we give and receive gifts, there are many watching us for what we already have. They want we have. They can’t explain what we have. They can’t find what we have. They certainly can’t buy what we have. What we have is JOY, and “they really want what we have, they just don’t know it yet.” Give away the JOY God has given you. If you do, God will give you even more. If you will, then as they say, “The rest will be history.”
In Christ Jesus,
Pastor Michael
discussinos and What a wonderful weekend behind us. I’m sure most of have earned some well-deserved recovery time. Visits with family and loved ones is always rewarding work. As we close out the Thanksgiving season: “Here come’s Santa Clause, Here come’s Santa Clause, right down Santa Clause Lane.” The next few weeks pass the quickest of the year. Lots of activities for our Bethel Baptist family. Tonight, it’s our regular Wednesday Night Fellowship. The main course is chicken Alfredo, and if you are able, bring a dish to pass and any dessert. An offering basket will be placed at the drinks table. Give as the Lord leads, all will go directly to the Wednesday night meals.
Please mark your calendars for Sunday, December 11, from 2:00 to 4:00pm. This will be our first parsonage open house. Heidi and I would love to see each of you. Come-Go-Stay. There will be refreshments and a real-live barking Christmas dog for all to enjoy. We are very excited about our first open house of many in the future. Then the following Lord’s Day, December 18, we will celebrate with the Bethel Children’s program. Have you noticed how many children we have seated at the front over the last few Sunday mornings? What a blessed future we have at Bethel Baptist. The children are working so hard on their program. Let’s all come and bring friends and family to enjoy and encourage Bethel’s Children’s Ministry. Then we have a special worship service on Christmas Day, Sunday the 25th.
The Thessalonians study of the power of Christianity has been a blessed challenge to prepare and to preach. In prayer and preparation for Sunday morning’s sermons, the Lord has led me to lead a study of Revelation for Wednesday evenings. Remember all: 1 Thessalonians was the first of Paul’s thirteen (fourteen if you are convicted enough to count Hebrews) epistles. In this first letter, to the newest of Christians, Paul was inspired to tell of the power of Christianity, and the process of being a Christian. Within the Christian process, there are no surprise “steps” for the mature Christian, but there is a least popular step. This is the step of evangelism. Paul spent his life evangelizing people, or in other words Paul spent his life instructing and teaching people about Jesus Christ. The most dominant phrase in all of Paul’s writings is “in Christ”. Paul did everything, preached everything, and wrote everything in Christ. Evangelism did not make Paul popular, but it did make Paul obedient.
Today, we cannot be any less obedient. We must experience salvation, then spiritual growth and strength for the expressed purpose of evangelism. What we must teach the world is three-fold: We must teach Christ’s Revelation, His actions, life, works, and His words. Then we must teach others about Christ’s Resurrection. Everyone dies, Christ died, but no one resurrected themselves by their own power – Jesus Christ did!! Then finally, we must teach Christ’s Return. Brothers and sisters, Jesus Christ is coming back, and this truth is the least taught truth of our faith. We are doing excellent in teaching what we know Jesus did and said (Revelation), and we do well to teach others that Jesus Christ is alive (Resurrection), but we cannot omit Christ’s second coming (Return). At Christ’s ascension, the angels present said, “This Jesus, who was taken up from you into heaven, will come in the say way as you saw him go into heaven.” Then the last thing Jesus said to John, and the last words of Christ we have are these, “Surely I am coming soon.” And John replied as we all should, “Amen. Come, Lord Jesus!”
There are many subtleties within our Christian faith. Many of which we hold dearest across differing denominations, but the one fact of our faith is this – Jesus Christ is coming back. This truth must be taught, fears must be released, questions must be answered, and faith must satisfy. In the coming Wednesday nights, I encourage you to bring your questions, and bring your faith as we study what God’s word teaches about Christ’s return.
We cannot help but love our family, love our church, and love the life God has prepared for us HERE, but there is so much more awaiting THERE – HEAVEN. Our good life is incomparable to Heaven. Each week I encourage you to reach people because, “They really want what you have – They just don’t know it yet.” But do you really know what you have, “in Christ?” It is not only a good life HERE – It is a PERFECT life with Christ in HEAVEN. Come tonight. Come this Lord’s Day. Tell someone about both and unleash God’s Holy Spirit into the lives of those around you.
Blessings in Christ Jesus,
Pastor Michael
