A day away in a quiet place
Maya Angelou said, “Each person deserves a day away in which no problems are confronted, no solutions searched for. Each of us needs to withdraw from the cares which will not withdraw from us.” Similarly, when Jesus’ disciples were consumed with ministry, he urged them, “Come with me by yourselves to a quiet place and get some rest” (Mark 6:31, NIV).
The late days of summer might be just the time to seek “a day away” not only from problems but even from ministry. While serving God and others can be energizing, we must balance work with rest. God set that example, resting after creating the world; Jesus set that example, calling his disciples away — not just alone, but
with
him
— to be refreshed.
Spend a relaxing day at a lake. Go on a scrapbooking retreat or a leisurely hike with a friend. Find a monastery that welcomes guests, and experience 48 hours of prayer and silence there. Invite Jesus into that time and space. And remember another message he shared: “Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest” (Matthew 11:28, NIV).
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Dear Brothers and Sisters in Christ,
"Time flies when you are having fun”
, the saying goes. I think it should be changed to
“Time flies when you are busy.”
So it seems to be as the summer rapidly comes to a close. I hope you have had a good summer, having accomplished a lot. August is here and that means back to school for many students and teachers. This summer, like each summer, held a different kind of school: Vacation Bible School. What a summer it has been!
My goal this summer as DOM was to visit as many of our church VBS’s as I could. What a challenge that was! Many of our church schools were held the same week at the same time of day. It appears that more VBS’s are being held in the later part of the day. On some days I visited one school, then drove many miles to attend another school. This routine went on for several weeks. But what an interesting experience it has been: each school different, many adults and youth leading the VBS, different schedules with different themes, but all filled with children and youth
(and some cases with adults)
excited about being in Bible School and learning about the Lord. Many of those who attended the Bible School also came to know the Lord as their Savior.
Wouldn’t it be great if people got excited in the same way about going to church each Sunday? Instead of taking the day to go fishing
(or hunting)
, or camping, or shopping or just sleeping in, they got up and got dressed and went to church. Years ago, it used to be that way. We worked hard 5 days of the week, Saturday we did things at home or relaxed and Sunday was church day. Someone once said to me that attending church has become a “convenience”: when there is nothing else to do on Sunday, going to church is a convenient alternative. Ouch!
We should not take Sunday as our “personal” day. It is the Lord’s Day. In Exodus the 4th Commandment says,
“Remember the Sabbath day by keeping it holy”
. God gave us six days to do our work. One day was set aside for Him. It is His Day, not ours. I believe attending church is a blessing and a privilege…
”I get to!”
So, let’s make Sunday church day a priority and get excited about attending church. Matthew 6:33 says
“But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well.”
Put God first in all you do, and He will bless you many times over. Let’s do that!
Have a productive 6 days and on the Sabbath I’ll see you in church.
Your Fellow Servant,
Bro. Loren
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August 2019
1st - East Zone Pastor's Prayer Meeting
6th- OCL Meeting - 6:30pm
7th - South Zone Pastor’s Prayer Meeting
9th-10th - Texas Baptists Childhood & Family
Ministry Summit
9-10th - Compañerismo Family Camp
(at Alto Frio)
10th - Equip 2019
(Champion Forest Baptist Church -
Houston, TX)
13th - FRBA Executive Board Meeting
4:00pm - Associational Council Planning Meeting
6:30pm - Dinner & Fellowship
7:00pm - Business Meeting
20th - 10:00am - Finance Committee Meeting
22nd - North Zone Pastor's Prayer Meeting
August 30th-September 1st - Compañerismo Union Femenil Misionera Camp
(at Alto Frio)
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September 2019
2nd - Labor Day Holiday
(FRBA OFFICE CLOSED
)
3rd - OCL Meeting - 6:30pm
4th - South Zone Pastor's Prayer Meeting
5th - East Zone Pastor's Prayer Meeting
8th-11th - FRBA Progressive Revival
(Locations TBA)
13th-14th - Texas Baptists Special Friends Retreat
(Plains Baptist Camp Floydada, TX)
14th - RESTORE 2019 FRBA Ladies' Event
(at FBC Pearsall - details below)
24th - FRBA Executive Board Meeting
9:30am - Fellowship
10:00am - Business Meeting
26th - North Zone Pastor's Prayer Meeting
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SAVE THESE DATES!!
October 20th
- FRBA Annual Gathering at FBC Natalia
(more details coming soon)
May 1st-4th
- FRBA Annual Ladies Retreat at H. E. Butt Foundation Camp
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“Hallelujah!
Give praise, servants of the LORD;
Praise the name of the LORD. Let the name of the LORD be blessed
both now and forever.” Psalm 113: 1-2
Hallelujah, it is a word that means to rejoice in the LORD, often expressed in singing, or recalling His wondrous deeds. Perhaps Psalm 106:12 describes it best when it says, “
Then they believed his words; they sang his praise.”
Our hallelujahs often rise in our hearts as they respond to seeing God move. It’s as if heaven reaches down and intersects earth right inside of us, and our joy wells up with such force that the only way to express it is in a praise back to God. Then there are other times, times when we know there is nowhere to go but God, no words to believe in but His. And as we turn to those words and hold on to them for dear life, a praise of response can’t help but rise in us, acknowledging that He is doing just as He said He would, “never leaving our side.” Our hallelujahs are our response to God based on His unfailing character toward us. They are our sometimes our greatest evidence to others, and even ourselves that God is real, and He is real in us.
"Finding Your Hallelujah"
is our theme for this year’s retreat. We will celebrate and bask in the wonder with Mary whose compulsory praise broke out in response to God’s confirmation of His word to her. We will weep with Jesus who, after leaving the last supper, sang His own hallelujahs on His way to His greatest trial.
We
will ponder the how’s of those moments God allows our hallelujahs to find us, and the whys of those moments He allows us to be stretched in having to reach for our hallelujahs.
You will walk away not only having a reason to sing, but also knowing and hearing the Voice of the One Whose been singing over you this whole time.
EarlyBird Registration
(by Aug. 31st)
:
$15 per person
LATE REGISTRATION
(Sept. 1st-Sept. 6th)
:
$20 per person
(plus $2.85 service fee)
FINAL REGISTRATION DEADLINE: September 6th, 2019
Tickets
WILL NOT
be available at the door.
Lunch and all materials are included in all registrations.
PLEASE NOTE: There will be no childcare available during this event.
Click
HERE
to register or contact Laurie Beth Scantlin at (830)334-2061 with any questions.
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Frio River Baptist Association & First Baptist Church in Pleasanton
welcome
Darrell Sullivan and his wife, Terri
, as he begins his ministry as pastor of First Baptist Church.
Darrell and Terri are moving to Pleasanton after serving the past 10 years at First Baptist Church in Wellston, Oklahoma. Pastor Sullivan received his Masters of Divinity from Mid-America Theological Seminary in Memphis, Tennessee and has a Bachelors of Science in Computer Science and Business from East Central University in Ada, Oklahoma. Darrell has also served churches in San Jon, New Mexico, Rotterdam, New York and churches in Arkansas and Mississippi.
Darrell and Terri have three adult children, Rebekah, Eli and John, one granddaughter, Khloe, and one grandson, Haiden. Terri is a nurse and Darrell enjoys shooting sports. Darrell has a strong interest in missions, evangelism, equipping believers and developing leaders along with his calling of teaching the preaching God's Word.
First Baptist Church encourages everyone to welcome Darrell and Terri to our community and to take time to come by and greet them.
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Trinity Baptist Church
in Lytle, Texas, is looking for a
part-time music minister
. Job qualifications include:
- committed follower of Jesus Christ
- in agreement with the Baptist Faith and Message 2000
- the ability to lead with guitar preferred
- work with pastor and other staff to plan and lead worship services
- ability to lead both hymns and contemporary songs for a blended service
- other assorted abilities as assigned by pastor
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Please check back next month for lots of great VBS pictures from around the Association!
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FBC Cotulla
welcomed their newest member,
Gia Del Real
,
baptized by Pastor Loren Fast, our DOM.
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The youth group from
FBC Pleasanton
joined 24 other youth groups at
Alto Frio Area Youth Camp
. The theme for the week was
Remain
and the verse for the week was John 15:5. We should all remain in Christ throughout all areas of our lives not just at camp or at church.
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First Baptist Church
and
Crosspoint Fellowship
of Pleasanton held their
annual family camp at the H.E. Butt Foundation Headwaters campsite,
15 miles north of Leakey, where the Frio River begins.
150 adults, children and youth attended, representing 53 families.
Fred Smith was the camp pastor and worship leader. Fred served
as youth minister at FBC, Cotulla many years ago.
A father and son duo were baptized in the Frio River on the last night of camp.
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Keep your eyes on our
website
for lots more VBS pictures
from around the Association!
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“A lot can happen in three days”
… that was the theme in Tilden, Texas on July 26th, 27th & 28th.
Tilden Community Changers
completed its first year with 51, boots on the ground, volunteers. Six porches repaired, two signs repainted, and multiple lawns were mowed; eight families total were served by these various projects. The West Family served as worship leaders for Tilden Community Changers with Keri West sharing a word from the Lord the first night. Jennifer Wheat shared her heart Friday night and Pastor Whick Turner of Christine FBC, closed the weekend out with an amazing message about letting our light
“SO SHINE”
.
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Community Changers originally started at
Christine First Baptist
in 2018 with five full days of service. The youth of
First Baptist Church Pearsall
, led by Cody Kitchens, joined forces with Joey Riggs, Amy Kollman & Jennifer Wheat of FBC Christine, served the City of Christine by painting, mowing and doing repairs. The evenings were spent serving the kids through VBS. It was only natural for the ministry to continue this year with an even bigger group and brighter flame for the Lord.
2019 Christine Community Changers
completed its second year this June, led by Christine Youth Leader, Joey Riggs and Pearsall Youth Leader, Cody Kitchens.
Both Tilden Community Changers & Christine Community Changers pray the ministry continues year after year with the flame to spread like wildfire into surrounding communities. Even having neighboring communities work together like Pearsall and Christine. Changing the world first starts with changing our back yard.
1 John 3:18
“Dear Children, let us not merely say that we love one another, let us show the truth with actions.”
Click
HERE
for more pictures!
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FBC Taylor
read about our River Ministry Hygiene Kit project in our recent newsletter and put together 270 hygiene kits for the migrants in Laredo!
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Crosspoint Fellowship
&
FBC Natalia
have also put together kits, and donated loose supplies for this project as well. A member of FBC Natalia even made some wooden crosses to send along. Most of these items have already been delivered, and are greatly appreciated.
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FBC Charlotte Donates Splash Pad to the Local Community
On Friday, July 12, the city of Charlotte, TX hosted the grand opening of the newest addition to the city park; a Splash Pad. The Splash Pad was made possible through the donation of funds from
First Baptist Church Charlotte
.
“The seed was planted by the young adults in our church. They said there was nothing for the kids in terms of water for the kids to enjoy such as a pool,”
said
FBC Pastor Duane Mayberry
. Surrounding cities were expanding their city parks to include attractions like skate parks and splash pads, so why not Charlotte?
“We had our Centennial Funds for Missions that we use for scholarships each year, but our members wanted to do something more with that money.”
This concern was brought before the church for a vote, and the decision was unanimous in favor of providing the City of Charlotte with the physical structure.
The foundation was laid in early-June and the final touches of padding, fittings, and spouts were added just prior to opening. On Monday of that week, fliers were placed throughout the town: businesses, stores, city hall, the library, and post office were eager to make residents aware of the big event set up for the beginning of the weekend.
One of the greatest things about small communities is the involvement of its citizens; everyone gets involved. City workers provided hot dogs, chips, and lemonade to serve those who came out to enjoy the festivities. Local Constable Cregg Thompson and the Sheriff’s department were in attendance to show their support.
FBC Charlotte also provided watermelon and snow cones to add to the Summertime atmosphere. By 6pm, the park was filling up and children from the community were ready to get wet.
After a ribbon cutting ceremony by Mayor Buddy Daughtry, Pastor Mayberry dedicated the Splash Pad, said a prayer, and set the children loose.
Pastor Mayberry said in his dedication speech,
“[The Splash Pad] is designed to help the community. Our hope is they will know that Jesus loves them and will provide for them. We wanted to be a blessing to the kids and community, for them to receive as we have received. We also want this to be a safe place for kids to enjoy.”
First Baptist Church Charlotte has been reaching into the community since it opened its doors in 1914. Today, the ministry is known as
“Loving Charlotte.”
In addition to the Splash Pad, FBC Charlotte held a Fish Fry for the community during Lent. It was an outreach to minister to the traditions of the Catholic community. Showing the citizens of the city that all denominations represented in Charlotte can all work together in the name of our Savior Jesus Christ.
Click
HERE
for more pictures!
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Operation Christian Love
Operación de Amor Cristiano
A KNOCK AT THE DOOR
by Beth Ann Brundrett
Several years ago, there was a knock on the door of our RV parked at Iglesia Baustista Jerusalen in Eagle Pass. When I opened the door that afternoon, a young man greeted me with a smile and a simple,
“Hello, Sister. My name is Lupe Negrete”
. He explained that he was the pastor of a small church, Monte de Jehova. He had heard about our ministry and had past our RV each day for some time and decided to stop and say hello.
We visited on the doorstep for a while. Then, a young boy about 11 or 12 years old appeared. He whispered something very politely (with a big smile on his face, but great concern showing in his eyes) in his father’s ear. His father smiled, and with understanding in his eyes, excused himself for a moment to address the apparent problem. Lupe had left 2 of his children in the car, the boy, Jesus, and his youngest sister, Elizabeth. Jesus was given the responsibility of caring for her. He had stepped out of the car and Elizabeth immediately locked the doors. Jesus had tried to get her to unlock the car to no avail. Thus, Lupe had to remedy the situation. Jesus was not the typical young person that would be disgusted with his sister and blaming her for his distress. Instead, he felt that he had failed in his responsibility in caring for her. As God had done before, He had knocked on my door that day allowing Lupe and his family to enter our lives and become a part of OCL. Jesus touched my heart. I felt Jesus’s sincere desire to care for his sister and please his father. His simple moment of stepping out of the car for an instant, changed his being in charge of his sister to her taking advantage of him. He learned a lesson that day. So did I. Through the years, we have watched Jesus grow into a fine, caring young man.
We attended a Wednesday evening service at Monte de Jehova, in July. Jesus was not there. He was at work. When the service ended, we were visiting and receiving hugs from his 3 sisters. Suddenly there was Jesus. His big smile covering us with his love as he hugged us. He had been on the way home after a long day at work and felt an urge to go by the church (a nudge from God). As he turned into the parking lot, he saw the Operation Christian Love sticker on the side of our car. Thrilled at the opportunity to see us he gave God the credit for sending him. He proceeded to tell us his youth group was governed by a board made up of the officers. Helping others was their main initiative. He wanted to know how they could help. Thus, entered Ryan, Hailey, Jacqueline, Alondra, and Jesus into our volunteer corp assisting with the King building.
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During the summer of 2017, several parents from the Eagle Pass area brought their youth to volunteer with them doing construction at the King’s Ministry headquarters building in Quemado. Among other things, these youth learned how to build and erect interior walls. What a blessing they were. Among them were Aaron, Josh and Oscar.
In July, sheetrock was going up in the residence area of the same building. There were only 3 of us, all elderly, there to do the work. We started the day with the projects we could do. About 8:30am, I received a call from Helen, mother of Aaron and Josh. She said the boys were fixing their lunches and Oscar was coming to pick them up. The 3 of them, who had help erect the walls, wanted to learn how to sheetrock and complete these same walls. Next came a phone call from Lupe saying that he was on his way bringing Jesus, Jackie, Hailey, and Ryan. Our numbers went from 3 to 11! God provided a crew of His choice for us in His time.
They worked that day and the next. Lupe and Hailey could not come back. In place of Hailey, Alondra arrived. Now, 5 youth from this special group have volunteered for OCL. We continue to learn that God provides our needs in His time if we just let go, and in faith, leave it all up to Him.
Thank you to these youth, their parents and Br. Lupe for
“Serving God by Serving Others”
. Additional thanks to Greg Cowan
(of Cattle for Christ International, Inc.)
for his continued assistance in this project and others across the border.
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Alford Brundrett
has prepared several water purification units and trained adults in the care of them in several of the orphanages and ministries. The units will soon start crossing the border.
Anyone wishing to participate in this please, call Alford at 830-965-3449
. This simple ability to purify water will save each ministry money desperately needed for other bills.
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Jack, Nancy and Jessica Seals
have collected over 4,000 articles clothing including new school uniforms for the Mexico orphanages and other ministries, both in Texas and Mexico. Presorting of these garments was done by the
Dual Credit
college students of the Cotulla ISD
under the direction of
Ms. Cissy Allen and Dr. Garcia
at the end of the school year. In addition,
the youth from the Cotulla Church of Christ, along with their youth leaders,
participated in the sorting and folding of clothes. The massive effort by these groups is deeply appreciated.
Final sorting
(for specific orphanages and ministries)
and distribution will be done by the Eagle Pass youth once these sorted, sized and folded garments arrive in Eagle Pass.
A special thank you to the sponsors and parents of these youth groups who have taken their time to encourage these young people to
“Serve Others.”
This will implant in the hearts of these youth the needs of others, AND that they can do something about it.
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Individuals & groups are busy sewing stockings and gifts for the
2019 Christmas ministry
.
Several churches are busy having their congregations bring balls, jacks, jump ropes, tops, marbles, etc., & toiletries. Deadline for these items is
November 1st
. If your church would like to get involved, please call, Beth Ann, 210-854-9360.
Operation Christian Love is a 501(c)3 charitable nonprofit organization.
It is a nondenominational group made up completely of volunteers.
Donations may be sent to John E. Heiligman, PO Box 117, Charlotte, TX, 78011
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FRBA RESOURCE LIBRARY
This Bible study and many more are available
through our resource library!
Unglued: Making Wise Choices in the Midst of
Raw Emotions
by Lisa Terkeurst
(6-session DVD study)
Click
here
to download one of our checkout forms. Then just complete it and
bring it by the office to borrow a Bible study to meet your needs.
We’re also accepting donations of used DVD Bible study kits.
If you or your church have some that you are no longer using, we’d love
to have them here to share with other churches in our Association.
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Frio River Baptist Association | Phone: 830-334-2061 | Fax: 830-334-3025 |
Email |
Website
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