Pastor's Newsletter (3.7.23)
Coffee with Pastor is a weekly newsletter from Pastor Painter for the Lincoln Baptist Church
Good Morning,
There is an old saying that applies to the work of the ministry. It goes, "Work like it all depends on you, but pray like it all depends on God." Obviously, it does all depend on God, but I believe one of God's tools is our hard work. If we will be successful in this ministry for God we need to roll up our sleeves and get to work.
"The difference between success and failure is work." - Dr. Jack Hyles
What a wonderful weekend we had here at the Lincoln Baptist Church. We kicked off the weekend with a Karen Sunday School activity which about thirty folks attended. We had lots of good food and fun.
On Saturday we had four precious souls saved. Bro. Say Ler and I went visiting together and met Poe Lay and his family who have been here in the states for only a short time. On Saturday they trusted Christ as their Saviour and came to church as visitors on Sunday.
On Sunday of course we had fantastic services with around 175 in attendance and over 20 total visitors. A total of three souls were saved at the church Sunday. One in the auditorium and two downstairs in the Junior Church.
There were so many of you who put forth an extra effort to ensure that we were well-prepared for our grand opening Sunday. I want to thank you so much for all your help. I hope and pray that the Lord will be with our church members this week in your work and the decsions that you will need to make. May God bless you with wisdom. Have a wonderful week!
- Pastor Jonathan Painter
This is a bonus thought from the Bible Study last Wednesday night. If you missed the Bible Study you can watch it here.
Wednesday night in the Bible study I taught on the Deacon in his role and requirements. I want to take a moment with this bonus thought to discuss the example of a Deacon that we find in Scripture.
Stephen the Deacon
Luke gives us a great description of the newly appointed Deacon, Stephen here in the book of Acts. He writes, "And Stephen, full of faith and power, did great wonders and miracles among the people. Then there arose certain of the synagogue, which is called the synagogue of the Libertines, and Cyrenians, and Alexandrians, and of them of Cilicia and of Asia, disputing with Stephen. And they were not able to resist the wisdom and the spirit by which he spake." (Acts 6:8-10) This passage shows us four things about Stephen in his example. Stephen was not a perfect man by any means, but he is whom God pointed out in Scripture as the gold standard for a deacon, and I believe that every Deacon should strive to follow Stephen's example as found here in Acts.
STEPHEN WAS FULL OF FAITH
I believe that Stephen was strong in faith and the doctrine of the Word of God. He would eventually demonstrate his steadfastness in the faith when he stood before the Sanhedrin Court. He believed in God and he believed in true doctrine and he was not afraid to defend it.
STEPHEN WAS FULL OF POWER
Stephen understood what it was like to have the power of God in his life. He lived in a manner that pleased God and experienced the empowerment of the Holy Spirit in what he did in his church ministry for the glory of God. He undoubtedly asked God for His power and God obviously granted it to him.
STEPHEN WAS A MAN OF ACTION
The Scriptures say that he "did great miracles and wonders among the people." He was someone who was busy working with the people of God. I believe that he cared for them and he prayed for them and labored among them to the point that the power of God in his labors was evident to the people of God.
STEPHEN WAS A SOUL WINNER
"And they were not able to resist the wisdom and the spirit by which he spake." He was a witness for Jesus Christ. He was not afraid t
o share the Gospel. This is why he stirred up enemies. They hated the message of Jesus that he was spreading. He spake with wisdom.
Check out this month's Church Bulletin
Church Bulletin (March 2023 Final)
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