Brothers and sisters,
Happy Monday to all! It was great to worship with you yesterday as we praised the matchless name of Jesus and offered our lives as offerings to Him. It was also wonderful to hear a couple of reports from you of how God was working in your lives. In the message from John 16 we considered the wonderful advantage we have in Jesus providing for every believer His Holy Spirit. Even though we long to see Jesus face-to-face, until He comes we have the presence of His Holy Spirit always with us who believe. Yes, it is to our advantage and the advantage of all the people of God throughout the world that Jesus was crucified, buried, risen, ascended to heaven, and glorified. Now Jesus is at the right hand of the Father interceding, praying, for us. Jesus sent us His Holy Spirit after He was glorified to be ever-present with us who believe as we take the good news of Jesus to others. As we share the good news of Jesus, God’s Spirit also works in the hearts of unbelievers to show them their need for a Savior. God’s Spirit also guides God’s people to increasing understanding of God’s truth. God’s indwelling Spirit glorifies God and guides God’s people into increasing intimacy with God.
We will restart Sunday morning Bible studies for all age groups next Sunday morning, October 17, at 9:30 AM. I want to encourage each of you to be part of one of these small group Bible studies. There will be a new class for adults that gives a general overview of God’s Word and gives overviews of specific books of the Bible. David Juhlin will be teaching this class. Also, Jason Donaldson’s class will continue in depth teaching on one book of the Bible at a time. There will also be classes for grade school children and preschool.
We will be reaching out to our neighbors on October 30 at 3:00 PM with a “Trunk or Treat” event. We will ask people to dress in costume and hand out candy and treats to the children of our neighborhood. We will need lots of cars, people, and treats to pull this off, so we ask all of you to be involved. You can start now by bringing your candy and treats to the church building in preparation for this even. For more information and to sign-up to help, contact Grace.
Remember to keep praying continually for each other.
Love being your pastor,
Bob Ray, Pastor, East Madison Baptist Church