MATTHEWS MONTHLY MESSENGER
July, 2017 - In This Issue:
GOD HAS BLESSED AMERICA

Psalm 33:12 a

Blessed is the nation whose God is the LORD.
 
If America is blessed it's because God has blessed her!  It's not because we are better than other nations of the world; i t's because of the grace and mercy of God.

This week we remember our heritage and celebrate our freedom and liberty and rightly so.  We must not forget this freedom and liberty came about because this nation was founded upon Christian principles.  We cannot forget God and still be blessed as a nation.

  Psalm 9:17

The wicked shall be turned into hell, and all the nations that forget God.

God gave us:

-   Our FREEDOM and He can take it away!
-   Our PROSPERITY  and He can take it away!
-   Our POWER and He can take it away!
-   His PRESENCE and He can take it away!

Abraham Lincoln said,

"We've grown in numbers and wealth and power as no other nation has grown.
We've vainly imagined in the deceitfulness of our own hearts that all these blessings were produced by some superior wisdom and virtue of our own.
Intoxicated with unbroken success, we have become too self-sufficient, too proud to pray to the God that made us."

History has proven that the greatest enemy of any nation is not what attacks it from without but what erodes  it from within.

16 of the 19 great civilizations that have passed away from the beginning of time; have done so because of internal decay.

French Historian Alexis de Toqueville said,

"America is great because America is good. If ever America ceases to be good, America will cease to be great"

Somewhere along the way we came up with the bright idea that God was the source of our problems; o ur nation has been working feverishly to remove God from every phase of society.

Little by little God is being removed from our nation.  It is not the god of the Hindus, Muslims or Buddhists that they want out; it's Jehovah God.

We better get ready for it; as problems heat up, Christians will be blamed for the problems in our nation; in fact it's already happening. 

Let us not forget that Nero blamed the Christians for the burning of Rome.

A biblical parallel occurs in -

1 Kings 18:17

And it came to pass, when Ahab saw Elijah, that Ahab said unto him, Art thou he that troubleth Israel?

King Ahab blamed Elijah for the judgment that had fallen upon the nation.
The force of his words indicates that he believed Elijah should be put to death.

We have forgotten as a nation that God birthed America!
  • We sing, "My Country Tis of Thee"
  • We declare in our pledge to the flag; "One nation under God"
  • On our currency we have inscribed, "In God We Trust"
  • When the President takes the oath of office he puts his hand on the Bible and concludes his vow with, "So help me God"
  • Our Constitution ends with: "In the year of our Lord"

When the Pilgrims survived the first harsh winter their immediate response was to thank God; they marched through the corn fields singing, Psalm 24:1 "The earth is the LORD's, and the fulness thereof; the world, and they that dwell therein."
They put it in their Mayflower Compact:  "For the glory of God and advancement of the Christian Faith"

It was during a dismal morning during WWI, David Lloyd George stood grimly before the members of the British cabinet.  The seriousness of the situation was evident.  The Prime Minister said,  "Gentlemen, we are fighting with our backs to the wall.  The only way out is up. Our only hope is God. Let us pray"

Let us not forget that if it had not been for the Lord on our side where would we be today! 

The only way out is up; our only hope is God!
VBS IS COMING!

Visitors to SonTreasure Island are welcomed by the scent of exotic flowers, the taste of tropical fruits and the captivating sound of island music. 

But this is no ordinary tropical escape! There is treasure to be found here. More precious than gold, more lasting than diamonds, it is the greatest treasure of all-God's love!

At SonTreasure Island, treasure seekers will play island games, create colorful crafts and enjoy tropical snacks. But more importantly, they will discover the rich treasure of God's love through the life of Jesus.

Ahoy Mates; come aboard Treasure Island July 9-13 at 6:30 nightly!

Y.P.E.

Does anyone remember the days when youth services were called, Y.P.E.? 
It w as such a special time until we had our own Y.P.E. song.

Things have changed since those days but we still have young people who are endeavoring to make a difference for the cause of Christ.

It's vitally important that those young people have effective leadership. We are very proud to have such leaders with Ed & Beth Baker; they both do a great job as youth pastors of the Matthews Church of God.

They are very busy inside and outside the church along with raising a family; yet they are investing themselves daily into the lives of others.

Ed teaches special education at two of the Mecklenburg County schools and is having a great impact on those students.

He recently was surprised by a former student with a letter of appreciation (right column) for the work he did at Alexander Youth Network, that was sent via Facebook to his wife.

Also, recently Beth participated in a talent competition at Wells Fargo and won 1st Place with her singing. She also orchestrated the meeting at Billy Graham Library for our choir to sing at Christmas and just recently at a breakfast meeting.

We are proud of our Youth Pastors; way to go Ed & Beth!

ANNIVERSARY

On Sunday, August 6, the Matthews Church of God will be celebrating 63 years of ministry. God has richly blessed our church and we praise Him for where He has brought us from to where we are today.

Matthews Church of God # 4705 was organized on August 8, 1954 by W.C. Lambert & State Overseer Earl P. Paulk with 27 charter members. (We currently have 414 members)

The church has had a rich heritage with great pastors; each one laying a stone for those who followed to build upon. The church would not be where it is today without these great men of God and their families along with every member the church has had down through the years. 

Winston Clark (1954) *
Paul Horne (1954 -1955) *
James Wynes (1955 - 1956) *
Odell Dyson (1956 - 1959) *
C.M. Roseman (1959 - 1960) *
Bob Sustar (1960 - 1968) *
F.M. Vaughn (1968 - 1972) *
Kenneth Rouse (1972 - 1976)
David Hatcher (1976 - 1978)
Howard Sloan (1978 - 1980)
A.M. Stephens Jr. (1981 - 1983)
Lewis Hatchell 1983 - 1989)
Larry Wells (1989)
J.D. Collins (1990 - 1999) *
Rick Brackett (2000 -
(* Deceased)
 
"For while one saith,I am of Paul; and another, I am of Apollos;...Who then is Paul, and who is Apollos, but ministers...I have planted, Apollos watered; but God gave the increase. So then neither is he that planteth any thing; neither he that watereth; but God that giveth the increase."

(I Corinthians 3:4, 5, 6, & 7)

YOUTH EXPLOSION

The annual "YOUTH EXPLOSION" is coming up August 11-13.  
Service times will be at 6:00 p.m. Friday & Saturday and regularly scheduled church times on Sunday.

Join us for our 12th annual youth explosion and a powerful move of God! 
 
This year's youth explosion will start off on Friday night with a "bang" with the Bowling Family including the "Bowling Sisters".


Awards and Accomplishments include:
  • 23 #1 songs 3 GRAMMY® nominations
  • 19 Dove Award nominations
  • 11 Dove Awards including multiple "Song Of The Year" Dove wins for Country, Southern, and Traditional
  • Southern Gospel News Award for Male Vocalist and Female Vocalist
  • 18 Southern Gospel News Awards
  • Regulars on the Grand Ole Opry
  • Multiple appearances on the Gaither video series
  • Featured on the Gaither video tribute to the Crabb Family (playing on television networks, 2009, 2010)
  • The Bowlings are the only artist in Southern Gospel to have four #1 songs on one album (Faith To Believe.)
  • Performances at Carnegie Hall, Brooklyn Tabernacle, The Potter's House, just to name a few.
Guests on Saturday & Sunday will include: 
  • Lowell Church of God praise team
  • Highest Praise Church of God drama team from Kannapolis
  • Morningstar Ministries from Lumberton
  • Drama team from the Rock Church of God in Lumberton
  • Teens-N-Truth 2:22 Drama team Matthews Church of God
  • Judah from the Praising Place
  • Evangelist Adrian Franklin
Outreach ministry will be conducted on Saturday followed by cookout. 
There will also be a mass youth choir in the Saturday evening service. 


We  are  also excited to announce that  Sara Bethany King  will be ministering at our youth explosion on Saturday August 12. Sara has an incredible voice and ministry; she is also the daughter of Allen & Regina King, pastors of the River of Life Church of God in Valdese, N.C.


Check out her latest Christian music video by clicking here:  https://youtu.be/TZVM-Mmeni8   


MUSIC

Are you interested in working with a great church choir or know someone who might be? We are looking for an individual or couple who can lend a helping hand and baton ;).

Those interested must be experienced in choir directing and teaching parts. 

It's a great opportunity to be involved with a dedicated choir and loving congregation.



If you  are interested, send resume to [email protected]

WORSHIP WITH US!

We are thankful for the presence of God and the moving of the Holy Ghost in our services.  Our people love the Word of God and that love for the Word motivates preachers to preach.

"The backslider likes the preaching that wouldn't hit the side of a house, while the real disciple is delighted when the truth brings him to his knees." ~Billy Sunday

Preaching is the means and the method by which God has chosen to save the lost.

I Corinthians  1:21 b 

It pleased God by the foolishness of preaching to save them that believe.

"The world's greatest need is preaching preachers. The Gospel is our emancipation proclamation: let's take it to the slaves of sin." ~ Lester Roloff

"I preached as never sure to preach again, and as a dying man to dying men." 
~ Richard Baxter

Excerpt from
Excerpt from "Lovers of Pleasure" - Sunday A.M. 6/25/2017

Matthews Church of God
517 E John St
Matthews, NC  28105

704-847-5625






"A Church with open arms, a smiling face and a loving heart for all people."      


Come Worship With Us!