News you can use...from Frio River Baptist Association

Volume 2, Issue 4 | April 2019

Tomb, thou shalt not hold him longer;

Death is strong, but life is stronger.

Stronger than the dark, the light;

Stronger than the wrong, the right.

Faith and hope triumphant say,

Christ will rise on Easter Day.

—Phillips Brooks

Dear Brothers and Sisters in Christ,

Who do you pray for? Most of us will pray for those closest to us who are sick, or need a job, or are spiritually lost, or have some other need. Within the church family, we may do the same. This is needed, as we should all be in prayer not only for ourselves but also for others. James encouraged us to pray for one another. The first church in Acts spent a lot of time in prayer. Prayer is the most powerful tool we have as Christians in praying for not only each other but also for the advancement of God’s Kingdom. God is the only One able to change men and women as well as events.

Let me continue with another question: How many of you pray for government and world leaders? I venture to say that we probably don’t do so as much as we could and should. Paul says in I Timothy 2:1-2 “I urge, then, first of all, that requests, prayers, intercession and thanksgiving be made for everyone – for kings and all those in authority, that we may live peaceful and quiet lives in all godliness and holiness.”

In Romans 13 Paul mentions that God has established the authority given to those in governing positions. I see this to refer to all those in local, state, national and international positions of government leadership. What an awesome responsibility before God. Yet I wonder how many of those representatives realize that God has established the authority they hold. When I hear in the news what some of those representatives stand for, and what they want to establish, and how they want to go about promoting their proposals, it disturbs me. In all my years of being able to vote, never have I seen so much hatred towards our current president as I have seen now.

That is what has prompted me to write about the need to pray more for our government officials. We cannot change their hearts, but God can. He is in the business of making people new again. I like what Isaiah 65:1 says: “I revealed myself to those who did not ask for me; I was found by those who did not seek me. To a nation that did not call on my name, I said, ‘Here am I, here am I.’" Helen Jean Parks in her book Holding the Ropes said: “We are to pray for heads of state and government officials to speed the gospel on its way.”

Let’s do that! Let’s all pray for our government officials, not only here in our state, but in our nation and throughout the world. Whether we agree with them or not, whether they are good or bad, we have an obligation to pray for them in their office. They need Christ too. And when we intercede for them, praying that God change their hearts, God is honored and pleased, as I Timothy 2:3-4 states.

I encourage you, pastors, church staff leaders, church members…all of us: Pray! Pray! Pray! Pray for those in government positions.

Your Fellow Servant,

Bro. Loren

Upcoming Events

April 2019

2nd - OCL Meeting - 6:30pm

3rd - South Zone Pastor’s Prayer Meeting

4th - East Zone Pastor’s Prayer Meetings

14th - Palm Sunday

8th-10th - Texas Baptists Educators Retreat

(T Bar M - New Braunfels, TX)

18th-20th - Pre-Easter Retreat (Alto Frio)

18th - FRBA OFFICE CLOSED

19th - Good Friday

21st - Easter Sunday

22nd-25th - Renew Spring Adult Conference (Alto Frio)

(details below)

24th - Administrative Professional's Day

25th - North Zone Pastor's Prayer Meeting

27th - VBS Clinic - 9am to 12pm at FBC Charlotte

May 2019

1st - South Zone Pastor’s Prayer Meeting

2nd - East Zone Pastor’s Prayer Meetings

3rd-6th - FRBA Ladies' Retreat (HEB Foundation Camp)

7th - OCL Meeting - 6:30pm

6th-8th - SBTC Church Administrative Assistant's

Retreat (San Marcos)

12th - Mother's Day

21st - FRBA Executive Board Meeting

9:30am – Fellowship

10:00am – Business Meeting

21st - 1:00-2:30pm - Conversations with Jehovah's

Witnesses Seminar with Keith Walker

23rd - North Zone Pastor's Prayer Meeting

27th - Memorial Day - FRBA OFFICE CLOSED

Wednesday, April 24th

Special thanks to all of you dedicated

and hardworking ladies & gentlemen who keep things organized and make things happen for our churches.

YOU ARE APPRECIATED!

COMING SOON!!

ATTENTION LADIES!!

We've still got space available for our 3rd Annual Ladies' Retreat at HEB Foundation Camp.

Grab your friends and come join us the first weekend in May.

We promise you'll come back refreshed, closer to Jesus, and connected to some new friends....including Christian author & speaker Dawsie Meek .

You can find all the details (registration forms, what to bring lists, directions to the camp, a tentative schedule and more) on our website by clicking HERE !

Can your church fill a cabin with 20 ladies or half a cabin with 10 ladies?

Registration is open thru April 22nd, so please pass the word, and invite your friends!

REGISTRATION FEES:

--Individual Registration - $55.00 per person

--Group Registration (for groups of 10 or more) - $50.00 per person

Registration is all-inclusive for the entire weekend !

(All food, lodging and retreat materials are included.)

We've got about 40 spots left, and they're filling up fast,

so be sure to save your place TODAY!

FINAL REGISTRATION DEADLINE: April 22, 2019

CLICK HERE to register online or contact Laurie Beth in the FRBA office for more information.

Pastor Pete Pawelek of Cowboy Fellowship will be taking a group to Greece and Italy next March for a biblical tour tracing the footsteps of Paul. Anyone who would like to go can contact him directly at Pete@CowboyFellowship.org . Additionally, he will be glad to come and do a presentation on a Wednesday or Sunday evening for any of our churches.

Click HERE for a flyer with the complete Itinerary.

The trip cost is all inclusive including 5- star hotels, airfare, tips, taxes, tour guide, tour bus, all entrance fees to the sites and much more! The only thing people will pay for after leaving Houston is their lunch each day and any souvenirs and personal things they may want to buy. This will be a great trip and a great value for the money!

Contact Pastor Pete if you have any questions. People can sign up with a $500 deposit at www.pastorpetetx.org .

Around the Association

Old Rock Baptist Church in Somerset, TX has a new pastor! His name is Charlie Simons and his wife's name is Emily . He studied at Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary and graduated from Trinity University. He officially began on March 24th, after having served as a substitute several times. He was the pastor at Alamo Heights Baptist Church for 18 years and has also pastored at Comfort Baptist Church. A reception was held after church on March 24th to welcome the two of them into fellowship with Old Rock.

We offer a hearty welcome from the Frio River Baptist Association as well!

The congregation of First Baptist Church of Jourdanton hosted a reception for a beloved member, Mary Isabella Williams , on Saturday, February 9 ^th in the Fellowship Hall.

Mrs. Williams celebrated her 100 ^th birthday on Valentines day! She was surrounded by family, friends and former students.

She was born February 14, 1919 in Rockport, TX to William J. Miles and Beulah Martin Miles and moved to Jourdanton in 1921. Her father was a rancher and her mother, a homemaker.

She graduated from Jourdanton High School in 1936 and the University of Mary Hardin-Baylor in Belton in 1940. In 1943 she married Edgar Leroy Williams. She retired after 31 years of teaching Language Arts to 6 ^th- 8 ^th Grade Jourdanton I.S.D. students. Mrs. Williams credits her longevity to always looking forward and staying positive, regardless of what is going on in her life.

Do you break out in dance when VBS music comes on?

Can you never get your fill of arts and crafts? Is your favorite sound that of kids laughing?

Cowboy Fellowship's Children's Ministry is HIRING an assistant!

Follow the link below to apply!

cfjobs.net

On Sunday March 3rd, FBC Pearsall held a special morning worship service.

Gaelan Frazier and Mark Lynch were o rdained to the Deacon Ministry of the church.

It was a well-attended and worshipful experience.

Also on Sunday, March 3rd, the Compa ñ erismo de Frio River held their

quarterly meeting at Iglesia Bautista Nueva Vida in Pearsall.

10 FRBA churches were represented with over 130 in attendance.

Click HERE for more pictures.

This year's AWANA Grand Prix at FBC Pleasanton was a great success!!

The Singing Men of South Texas recently performed at FBC Devine .

Love in Action

This group of preteens from Cowboy Fellowship signed up to do a service project for the Pleasanton Chamber of Commerce. They cleaned up the Atascosa Showbarn and grounds after the Cowboy Homecoming events. For their hard work, the chamber blessed them with a donation for their upcoming mission trip to Colorado this summer.