Pastor's Weekly Message - 3/27/11

March 27, 2011

Well, most of you know by now that Doug Banks went home to be with the Lord this past Monday. He really went downhill quickly after they found out what was wrong with him. Continue to remember Bobbie and the family in your prayers. They had one son and three daughters, five grandkids and one great grandchild.  Doug was a fun-loving person who I enjoyed being around. Listening to his family talk about him was a joy and a delight. Some of the events they shared with me were tremendous. I praise the Lord that God allowed Doug to be part of our fellowship. I shared at his funeral how it seems like he has always been part of our church. He came in with joy in his heart and brought a sweet presence about him. I am going to miss him and I know many of you will miss him too.

I know that some of you did not hear about his home going and for that I apologize. We do have committees to call people about a death who are on the food committee to fix food for the funerals, but we really are limited on how to contact all of our church members. With that being said, there is a program that we can purchase for the church which would call all the membership with a message from the church concerning announcements. We can notify each group in our church about upcoming things: Choir, C.M.T., Deacons, Seniors, Youth, Kids, food committees, VBS, and any other announcements that we need to send out. So if you see the need to purchase this, and I do, you can give money for this. On the back of the pew are some envelopes take one and write on it new equipment. The price for a system like this is around $650.00. You can give five, ten, twenty, fifty, hundred or whatever. We have needed this for a long time.

We have some other things that we are going to do in the upcoming days and weeks. Easter at the crosses with breakfast to follow, no Sunday school, and we will start our service at 10:30 because the kids and the choir will be having a program. Yes, I will be preaching.  Mother’s day is coming the second Sunday of May and with that we have been asked to put together care baskets (16) for a battered women’s shelter. These will have shampoo, conditioner, deodorant, lip gloss and maybe a brush or something small. There are a couple of them made up which we will show you today.

Pastor Tommy

In Memory of Doug Banks

From the Franklin County Citizen

Glenn Douglas Banks, 72, of the New Bethel Community, passed away Monday, March 21, 2011 at his home after a long battle with cancer.

Born July 10, 1939 in Franklin County, he was the son of the late Dwight and Pauline Ward Banks. He was the father of the late Jeffery Lance Banks. He was a retired construction worker and was a member of the New Bethel Baptist Church.

Survivors include his wife, Bobbie Busha Banks; one son, Tim Banks, Carnesville; three daughters, Gwen Cole, Carnesville; Tina Gipson, Cornelia; and Dawn Williams, Charlotte, N.C.; five grandchildren; one great-grandchild; and two sisters, Faye Adams and Jean Aldridge.

Services were held Wednesday, March 23, 2011 at 2 p.m. at the New Bethel Baptist Church with the Revs. Tommy Childress and Todd West officiating. Burial followed in the Mt. Zion Methodist Cemetery.

Ginn Funeral Home was in charge of the arrangements.

Okefenokee Swamp Trip

Sign up if you can go on Tuesday, April 19^th, and return Friday, April 22^nd.  Details to follow when we see how many are going.  Note if you will be staying at a campground not at the motel.  Sign up sheet is on the communion table.

Pastor's Weekly Message - 3/20/11

Are We Thankful?

March 20, 2011

Are we Thankful to God for all that he has done for us? As I type this article my mind goes back to this past week and month as to what I am thankful for - my health. I was thinking about all the phone calls I received concerning the health of others. As I look back there were some older people and some younger folk whose health was not so great. The calls came at different times during the day and during the night. Some were friends of mine, some were family, and some were friends of others who called to ask me to go and see them. Other calls were to just pray for the family. 

Pastor's Weekly Message - 3/13/11

"IS HE LIKE BILL?"

March 13, 2011

“Bill was a drunk, converted at a city mission. Before his conversion he had gained a reputation as a tramp and alcoholic for whom there was no hope. But when he was converted everything changed. He became the most caring person at the mission. He spent all his days there doing whatever needed to be done. There was never anything he was asked to do that he considered beneath him. Whether it was cleaning up vomit left by some alcoholic or scrubbing toilets used by men who left them filthy, Bill did it all with a heart of gratitude.

Pastor's Weekly Message - 3/6/11

March 6, 2011

I don’t know about you, but the services for the last several weeks have been great.  The testimonies of our Deacons have been the fire that has caused the services to ignite in praise.  Praise is what the Lord desires and deserves.  The Bible says in Psalms 107:8, “Oh that men would praise the LORD for his goodness, and for his wonderful works to the children of men!”  I can say that is the whole purpose of the testimonies.

In Psalms 109:30, “I will greatly praise the LORD with my mouth; yea, I will praise him among the multitude.”  We don’t need to wait for others to praise Him; we should.  One of the great things about the early Christians in the Book of Acts was their praise.  They believed in prayer and praise.