Community Communicator Newsletter 

Table of Contents

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Range News!

Pastor Deans Range News

Pastor Dean’s Range News

We’re all glad that Sandie Divan is feeling better.  She is ready to ease back into the many areas of ministry in which she has been involved.  One of those ministries is putting together the Communicator, our monthly newsletter.  Since our last newsletter three projects regarding our property and facilities have been completed:

1. new windows in the offices and the stairwell have been installed,

2. the exterior of our church building has been painted, and

3. a new sign has been purchased and installed on the corner of 100 S. and 800 E.

This month our focus is entirely on missions.  By the term ‘missions’ I mean taking the Good News of Jesus Christ to other places and peoples.  Jesus said, “Go and make disciples of all nations.  As God’s people, this is our responsibility—our commission.

On September 26 and 27 we are having a Mission Conference here at the church building.  Missionaries that we support will be here, as well as representatives of missions we support, to share what God is doing.  This is an opportunity to have some ‘face-time’ with the missionaries that we hear about throughout the year.  It is an opportunity to hear from them and to ask them questions about their work and their personal lives on the mission field.  Below is the Mission Conference Schedule.  Please come to all or as many of the sessions as you can.  All of the sessions will be held in the Fellowship Hall.

Fri: 10:00-10:45am Hope Pregnancy Care Center  (Director – Tracie Tice)

  •        10:45-11:30am Dixie Care and Share (Director- Kara Koop)

  •        11:30-12:30pm Lunch at the church (food will be catered)

  •        12:30-1:15pm   Mission Aviation Fellowship (Gene Jordan)

  •          1:15-2:00pm   Kodiak Baptist Mission

  • 4:00-8:00pm  Buffet dinner for missionaries and church members at home of Dr. Ralph & Ange Rohr – please sign up with Ralph or Ange (879-6900).

  • Sat. 10:00-10:45am Ministry to Educate & Equip – Ukraine (Director, Dr. Ernie Campe representing Paul & Susan Shotsbergers)

  • 10:45-11:30am Christian Missionary Fellowship – Ethiopia (Craig & Allison Fowler).

  •  11:30-2:00pm  Chili Cook-off (Dixie Care & Share) At Town Square.

We will have our monthly Potluck Dinner following the Sunday morning worship service on Sunday, September 28th instead of the usual 3rd Sunday.  This will give us more opportunity to interact with our missionaries.

 

Pastor Dean

 

 
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Ask The Pastor

New Sign Out Front

 

 If you haven’t driven past the church lately. We have a new church sign. What a difference it makes. Kudos to Rainbow Sign and Banner.

When you drive by at night, it illuminates the whole corner.

 

Great Job …

 

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Wonderings of a Teenage Mind 

     

July’s Question: What does it mean when they talk about being in this world, but not of this world?

Answer: The phrase ‘the world’ or ‘this world’ occurs 185 times in the New Testament. The vast majority of those occurrences (102) are found in the writings of John (Gospel and letters).  Two chapters focus our attention on the above question: The gospel of John, chapter 17 is Jesus’ prayer to the Father after the last supper with his disciples.  In v.6 Jesus tells the Father that he has revealed the Father to those whom the Father gave him ‘out of the world’.  In v.9 Jesus says that he is praying specifically for those and not for ‘the world’.  Then, in v.14 Jesus says that he has given them the Father’s word and ‘the world’ has hated them because they are not ‘of the world’.  Then Jesus asks the Father (v.15), not to take them ‘out of the world’, but to protect them from the evil one.  Again, affirming (v.16) that they are not ‘of the world’ as he is not.  But they are sent ‘into the world’ (v.18).

Satan, the evil one, is referred to as the ‘ruler of this world’ in John 12:31 and 16:11.  From these and the above references we can conclude that when the phrase ‘this world’ or ‘the world’ is used in John’s gospel it is speaking of the world of men and women as fallen creatures under the control of Satan.  Those who are born of God by the Holy Spirit are born out of the world (15:19).

The value system of ‘the world’ is found in the second significant passage regarding this question—1 John 2:15-17.  Being ‘of the world’ is one who is consumed with indulging self, increasing possessions and impressing people.  These are the same three temptations the serpent tempted Eve with in the garden.

Therefore, the idea of being in the world, but not of the world means that we are not to have the value system of the world.  Rather than being conformed to the value system of the world, we are to be agents of transformation in the world.

Octobers Question: Why are there so many Bible Translations? How do I choose the one that is best for me?

 

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How Much is Enough?

 By Dr. Ralph Rohr

Old Testament Israelites returned a tenth (the tithe) of God’s blessings to their priests, by law.  Withholding the tithe was called “robbing God” by Malachi (3:8-9).  In the New Testament there is no mention of the tithe, except that of the “scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites.” (Matthew 23:23, Luke 11:42).

In the New Testament there is only the offering.  By definition, the offering is voluntary and cheerful.  Jesus cheerfully offered His life as a ransom (“for the joy set before Him endured the cross”—Hebrews 12:2).  That ransom purchased our freedom—out of the slave market of sin. 

In a restaurant most of us tip our waitress according to the quality of service, somewhere between 10% and 20% of the cost of our meal.  Do we appreciate Jesus as much as our waitress?  How much would 10% of Jesus’ Life be?  Can I even calculate that?!

What are the lives of our missionaries’ worth as they sacrifice the comfort and security of the American way of life to give their lives as a ransom for people we don’t know?  Our church gives a tithe to missions—10% of our church’s offerings go to support our missionaries carrying out Jesus’ Great Commission (Matthew 28:18-20).  We are part of that Great Commission Army.

Our goal in this September’s Missions Conference is to double our offering to missions.  That sounds like a big deal, but it’s cheerfully manageable.  If I do my part, all I have to do is give 10% of my present church offering to missions.  For example, if I usually offer $20 each Sunday, I can double the church’s offering to missions by giving $22 each week!  That extra $2 would be my tip to our missionaries. 

How much are our missionaries’ lives worth?  They give themselves sacrificially.  Do I?

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Chili Cookoff 

  

 

This year’s Chili Cook-off, our third annual, is going to be exciting!  It will be held at the St. George Town Square on Saturday, September 27th, and every year it keeps getting better. 

If you are planning on attending the Mission Conference that Sat. (which ends at noon) to go to the Cook-off and support DC&S since it is one of our missions.

 



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Laughter is the Best Medicine
 

Hearing Aid

Seems an elderly gentleman had serious hearing problems for a number of years.

He went to the doctor and the doctor was able to have him fitted for a set of hearing aids that allowed the gentleman to hear 100%.

The elderly gentleman went back in a month to the doctor and the doctor said, "Your hearing is perfect. Your family must be really pleased that you can hear again."

To which the gentleman said, "Oh, I haven't told my family yet. I just sit around and listen to the conversations. I've changed my will three times!"

 

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Revised: September 08, 2008 . Some articles on this page are from public domain.