Coming to Contagious Youth

Compassion International

Jay and Alicia Sutherland are planning a church presentation of Compassion International. If you are a Compassion child sponsor and would like to help, please contact them at jsuth3@yahoo.com or 441-4636.

And speaking of adoptions...news from Stacey Smith

Dear Family and Friends,

I have more great news to report from Precious Miracles in Ecuador!
I mentioned in my previous letter, that I was to become a foster mom to two precious miracles in December. That plan came true with a slight twist. At the beginning of this month, a third precious little miracle was added to my household.

I am currently caring for three little girls in my apartment here in Quito. Nataly is five years old, Joselyn, her sister, is four years old and Flor is also four years old. Flor has severe cerebral palsy and is still in diapers, does not walk, and her vocabulary consists of approximately eight words. She is a sweet little girl who has a gorgeous smile and she makes our house and our routine even more fun. I am currently homeschooling Nataly and Joselyn which keeps me busy during the mornings. Twice a week Flor goes to physical, occupation, and speech therapy which she thoroughly enjoys.

Please keep my family in your prayers as we deal with the day to day adventures. Please also pray that all three of these girls will be joined with their adoptive families very soon. All three of them have been declared “adoptable” by the government here in Ecuador. We are now waiting for interested families to choose to love these girls forever.

And speaking of forever families, our little Alex is now with his. Alex had been with the Precious Miracles Foundation since July 2006. Two weeks before Christmas he met his adoptive father and mother and is now living with them in Riobamba, Ecuador. I’m attaching a photo of the day this loving couple met their son. It was a beautiful moment and there were many tears shed. Our psychologist, Dr. Reyes, went to Riobamba to do a follow-up visit and he reports that the child and his parents have adapted wonderfully and that everyone is doing very well. Please pray for this family as they continue to adjust to each other.

For some who still may not have heard, I authored a book during my furlough. It has now been released and I’m eagerly spreading the news to anyone who wishes to purchase one to read more about the miraculous stories of the children God has put in my path. The book is titled For the Least of These. Please contact me if you are interested.

Thank you for your consistent, faithful support and for remembering us in your prayers. I am always touched when I hear that people all over the world are praying for the Precious Miracles in Ecuador.

I pray that God will continue to bless you,
Stacey Smith

Putting Action to their Convictions

On Sanctity of Human Life Sunday (January 18) these families - parents and children of adoption - gathered after our worship gatherings for a group photo. Actually there were two photos that have been combined into one.

We're proud of you all for your willingness to live it out loud.

E-mail Daily Devotion

There are several good e-mail devos out there.  One I subscribe to his from Homeword.com.

It is a short read like the Daily Bread and also offers some "going deeper" options if you want to spend a little more time thinking about the daily thought from the devotion.

Here is today's devotional thought if you would like to check this resource out.

A.L.

(Note that homeword.com has been added with a link under our Online Devotional Aids.)

Sonshine Team

In case you missed it, we introduced one of NHC's newest ministry teams this past Sunday...The Sonshine Team. This team exists to serve people in our church and community who need some practical help with things. Mowing a lawn, making a trip to the doctor, running some errands, or just giving some time to hang out and talk.



Call the church office or fill out a communication card if you're interested in joining this team or if you know of somebody in the church or community who could use some practical help.

Don't Slip Through the Cracks

Back in "the day" when our congregation totaled less than 75 people and we could all fit for worship in the little 100 seat room of the old building, I could tell you who was missing from church every Sunday. After all, when you stand up for 35-45 minutes looking over a group that small, it's not hard to do.

But things are different now. Bigger room. Multiple gatherings. Way more people. For a while I found it frustrating that I couldn't "keep up". But I'm a shepherd and part of my job is making sure all the sheep are in the fold safely. Yet, a few years ago I noticed that was no longer a possibility for me.

In a church that "services" several hundred each Sunday there is no way to know when someone is MIA right away. Unless, of course, we issued cards that everyone had to scan upon entry or something like that, and that's not going to happen. So there are people who unfortunately "slip through the cracks".

How can that be prevented? What can we do to make sure no one is slipping away and/or falling prey to the enemy. And if you think missing church isn't a sign of that, you're likely slipping away yourself.

1. Plug in to a Connection Group. In a group there not only is Bible study, prayer and relationships, but there is also the caring kind of accountability we all need. Your Connection Group is your first line of protection against becoming a has-been. Believers who are in groups are less likely to slip away.

2. Get on an active Ministry Team. And by "active" I mean one that requires your service regularly. Many of our teams minister every Sunday. Your ministry team captain and fellow team mates are a second line of that loving accountability. Plus, ministry gives you and me the sense of fulfilling a call to something bigger than ourselves, and that's something we all need.

3. Check in if you have to check out. Let someone in your group or on your team know if you're going to be away for more than a Sunday or more than once in your group. It's easy to make a phone call or send an email. Just don't make everyone else wonder. And yes, they can call, too, but it's much more courteous and responsible to let others know. And on that thought, don't be shy about telling someone if you're having to miss due to an illness or surgery!

4. Exercise your spirit. By that I mean stay close to God through your own time reading and studying His Word and in prayer. God wants you to be in a close active relationship with other believers in the church. That's plastered all over the pages of the New Testament. But if we ignore time with Him, we will forget and put His will out of our minds, even finding ways to rationalize our disobedience.

5. Give someone permission to hold you accountable. Develop a friendship with another growing, maturing believer and give that person permission to ask you the tough questions about your own growth and relationships. By the way, you gain that kind of friend by being friendly. Don't sit around waiting for someone to become your friend. God is our great example of being the initiator in relationships. We love Him because He first loved us.

6. If you miss someone, do something. Every time someone comes up to me and says, "Rick, I haven't seen so and so for a long time. Where is he/she?" I want to say, (and often do), "Then why haven't you called him/her?". If you genuinely care, you'll act. You are the church.

Having said all that, (if you want to play games with my mind), don't always sit in the same place on Sunday. Move around. Some of you are so predictable and regimented in your routine! But the positive benefit of doing that is that you'll be introduced to new worshippers. And that's always a good thing.

Sunday Feedback January 25

Whether it was in a song, a conversation, a ministry opportunity or from today's message, what did you come away with today?

Retreating elders

Tonight (Friday) and all day tomorrow our pastors will be meeting together for our annual "retreat". Please join us in prayer as we work and learn together.

The Call 09

The Call 2009, February 13-14

Each year we host this youth event and have 300 students and their leaders come to learn how God's purpose for their lives makes the difference in life.

As a member of NHC you can be part of The Call Team.  Join the team today here.  You can choose where to serve and what shift you want to serve.

Students can register to attend here.  Cost is $25 per student for the Friday night and Saturday event.  This is one of our biggest events we encourage our youth to attend each year.

News stories!

Today's Outer Banks Sentinel has a fantastic front page story on the Johnson family. Their blog is linked to the right. Their mission is inspiring!

And in Raleigh, on ABC channel 11 this report aired. It's the 4th that anchor/reporter Barbara Gibbs has done on Tricia, Gwyneth and Nathan.

Praying for our new president

Like many (if not most) Americans, I watched the inaugural proceedings with interest and a background of history. We have a new President. It's a great testament to the strength of our country.

As a Christian I'm instructed to pray for him and all of our leaders. Paul wrote, Pray for rulers and for all who have authority so that we can have quiet and peaceful lives full of worship and respect for God. 3This is good, and it pleases God our Savior, 4who wants all people to be saved and to know the truth. (1 Timothy 2:2-4 NCV)

How should we pray? Here's a good article that just came to me from Leadership Weekly, written by Pastor Mark Labberton.

Food for your thought and prayers.

CREST

(Jodi Leary originally wrote this on her blog last summer after attending her first CREST.)

Communication Response Energizing Strategy Teams. Okay, so it's official (again), I love my church. Quarterly our church has its Wednesday night version of a business meeting (sorry, NHCers, I had to relate it to something). Tonight was our first since becoming members and I'm going to give you a list of phrases that I didn't here...keep in mind this is a Baptist church so this is a small miracle in itself.

Disclaimer: I've been in a Baptist church my entire life, throwing stones at myself here.I did not here:"Motion""Second""All in favor.""All opposed.""Stop biting, biting is not allowed.""Hitting is permissible as long as you avoid the face.""Why a spoon, cousin?" "Because it hurts more, you twit."Okay, so those last three are not ones that I've actually ever heard at a business meeting, but they might as well have been for all the arguing and manipulating that I've seen in the past.

So, tonight, after our first CREST meeting, we have come home energized and happy to be a part of something so "purpose driven" and "mission oriented." Now, we just have to figure out where we fit in to all that is NHC.

Update 1-20-09: My husband and I have both found our fit at NHC. I have become part of the nursery/children's ministry as the "Kiosk Queen" (Andy's title, not mine :) and my husband has joined the Milepost 13 Band as one of their bass players. He got a new bass guitar out of it...can't beat that. We love serving our church family and (shameless plug here) I would personally like to have a couple of back-up kiosker helpers, if anyone out there is looking for their place to serve. God bless!! ~Jodi

Sunday Feedback January 18

Moses showed up!

Whether it was in a song, a conversation, a ministry opportunity or from today's message, what did you come away with today?

Bible Study and Q and A

Just what did happen to the dinosaurs?
How did the 66 books in our Bible become Scripture?
Do we become angels after we die?
All of us have questions about life and eternity and want to know just what does the Bible say.

Here's a great site if you want to find the answer to your Bible questions. They also have solid resources to help you in your Bible study. Bible.org, a non-profit Christian ministry, is one of the few places I solidly endorse. Their doctrine is sound. I've been to them on many occasions and even corresponded with some of their authors.

A word to the wise: as good as this site is, it doesn't replace the need for each of us to have our own time of digging in the Bible to uncover its treasures.

Is it warfare or is it discipline?

Christians often fall into a type of self-righteousness that reasons this way: "If something unpleasant happens in my life it must be Satan attacking. It must be spiritual warfare." I say "self-righteousness" because thinking that way excuses me from accepting anything negative as being the correcting hand of God. "Surely I haven't done anything to deserve this" might just be a form of denial.

In today's devotion at blackaby.org* you'll find a very good article addressing this misconception. Sometimes the bad stuff is happening because God is attempting to correct or discipline my life.

Bad times are not always a spiritual attack from the enemy. Sometimes they are the loving hand of God attempting to bring us back.

(If you go to blackaby .org after today you can pull up any previous day's devotionals by putting in the date of the one you seek. It's located under the current day's post.)

The Call Team 2009

It's that time of year again.  The Call Team is forming! 

The Call is the only annual purpose driven student conference on the east coast.  Last year we hosted over 20 youth groups at NHC for this great event.  This year's focus in on evangelism and sharing our faith.  Exodus will be leading our worship again this year.  We are flying in the original The Call speakers from Oklahoma to join Andy in leading this event.  

If you would like to join The Call Team and help serve at this weekend event please go to The Call's site and join the team today.

“Beware of false prophets!” – Jesus.*

Recently I taught about the return of Jesus. At NHC we believe He is coming again, and we hope that it is soon. The Bible has lots to say about it, and we’re told by Paul not to be ignorant on the subject of eschatology.

I also included a warning that with the world’s current events there would be a lot of talk about the 2nd coming; even predictions of when it would occur, despite the clear teaching of Jesus that no one knows the day or the hour. I didn’t know that within the week a follower of a “prophet” (someone named “Tim”) would come and visit me in the church office with literature proclaiming his “conversations with Christ” (which he considers the “Word of God”) and a timeline chart indicating Jesus will rapture the church in “about 2011”.

I love the way God allows things to happen, don’t you? The same week I teach on this, here comes this guy to see me.

So I visited this group’s web site to check them out a little. Here is how Tim describes who he is and what he does.

“My friends, I do not wish to replace, or take away, or add to the Holy Bible! Rather, these words and this understanding was given to Me by the Lord, and is for all those who have ears to hear. He alone may "add to" His Word for our benefit and to give us greater understanding.
I have not accepted even one penny for the Letters, nor do I plan to...the Word of God is free to all!
I do not have any previous learning in Scripture, no degrees of any kind, nor have I attended seminary, nor have I received any teaching from any pastor, minister, etc., nor have I been to church...I must remain separate from those whom God wishes me to give His message to, lest I become biased toward a certain denomination. I do, however, gather together with many others for Bible Study every Sabbath.”

How do you discern the false from the genuine?

1. The Bible is God’s complete revelation. While he says he doesn’t wish to add to the Bible, he says God has given him these revelations and they are “the Word of God”. Yet you can read for yourself John’s warning in Revelation 22:18. Scripture is perfect and sufficient (2 Tim. 3:16-17). “If it’s new it isn’t true”.
2. God gives us teachers to equip us. Did you see what he admits? No previous learning in Scripture (he’s a novice); no training or education, not even from a Sunday school class! I’m certainly not one to insist on seminary education for every teacher, but again, this guy completely disses the Bible. Check out these passages and see it for yourself. 2 Tim. 2:2; Eph. 4:11; Titus 1:9; 2:1-4; Acts 2:42. Does that mean we’re to swallow hook, line and sinker everything we hear from a teacher? No! We’re to be like the Bereans in Acts 17:11 and check out the Scriptures for ourselves to see if what we’re being taught is what the Bible says. But to say, “I don’t need to be taught” is to disagree with God’s Word.
3. If you diss church you’re dissing God. Again his words: “nor do I go to church”. Yet he thinks he’s hearing from Jesus things only shared with him. Again, he demonstrates either total ignorance or his disdain for Jesus and His Word. Jesus established the church. The Holy Spirit birthed the church. And how can you possibly read any of the Bible from Acts through the epistles (most of them letters to churches and church leaders) and think that being part of a church family doesn’t matter to Jesus? Here’s what I think (only because I’ve seen this played out before): “Tim” knows he’s got his own following of the gullible, and knows that if he were to become accountable to a church he would have to agree to its teaching. He doesn’t want to submit himself to any authority (other than the “Jesus” he perceives gives him his letters).

I asked the young man who came by about his own involvement in a church. He was not in a church, but with Tim, meets with others on “the Sabbath” (Saturday), not together, but online. You know I’m a fan of using the internet. But what they do is not a substitute for being in a healthy church family. Neither, by the way, is watching a service on TV or listening to radio or CDs, for that matter.

What’s my point here. Simply this: Make sure the Bible is your guidebook. When a “prophet” or group tells you they’ve got some kind of “new revelation” that the rest of the Christian world has somehow missed you can be sure they are off-base. Stay away from them.

*Matthew 7:15; 24:11; 24:24

Sunday Feedback

Whether it was in a song, a conversation, a ministry opportunity or from today's message, what did you come away with today?

Middle East Peace and Anti-Christ

Mart DeHaan of Radio Bible Class and Our Daily Bread offered these thoughts in his blog this week. It's a great follow up to my message Sunday.
Click here to go to Mart's blog.

Rick

Great Bible Reading Tool

Andy's Blog has this super idea for a daily Bible reading tool online. Read about it here.

A new blog for a new year

Perhaps you visited our 40 Days blogs during 40 Days of Prayer and 40 Days of Purpose. Maybe not. But many asked that we continue the opportunity to use blogging to share within our church family what God is doing in our lives, community, families, groups, ministries and mission outreach.

We want to hear from you in comments. This is a place to share your victories and struggles. Learn something today in your quiet time with God? Share it here. Let us learn, too! Unlike my personal blog, this space is totally about NHC and for NHC. If I can coax others to post (which I'll try to do), you'll hear from a variety of writers within our congregation.

We'll keep this blog within the church, so don't feel like the "whole world" is reading. They're not. Just family. It will also be another avenue for getting out the word, whatever that may be, about things happening within the NHC family.

If you have your own blog, let us know here. As they come in your blog will be linked here.

If something needs editing, it will be edited, but there will be a high level of freedom of expression here, as long as it maintains a godly, Christ-honoring tone.

Bookmark the blog address. Check in regularly. If you're new to the whole blogging thing, don't be intimidated by it. It's not hard to figure out, and there are enough of us around who are regular bloggers that we can lend you a hand if you have a quesiton.

January!

Like everyone, I'm a bit concerned (I won't say "worried", 'cause worry is a sin!) about what 2009 is going to bring. The great thing is that God's not concerned at all. He knows what's coming down the road for me, my family, my church, my country. And He's got a plan.

My job - your job as a Christ follower - is to discover that plan and follow it. That may mean we all have to make some adjustments in our way of life. You probably already have. I'm always looking, for example, for simple ways to save money.

But it's the mystery ahead that often causes us to fear. We are naturally afraid of the unknown.

With that in mind, I'm starting January's first two Sundays off with a little mini-series I'm calling, "If Only I Had a Crystal Ball". The obvious implication is that I don't have one. So do I panic over what I can't see or know? I hope not.

The first Sunday I'll take us to some promises in the Bible about events God has planned that are getting closer every day, and why those events bring hope to us, even in the darkest of times.

The second Sunday we'll switch over to asking, "So what should we as a church be doing this new year full of unknowns?" As you did last Sunday from Larry Benson, you'll hear a word that might be somewhat new to you: "missional". And I'll talk about the difference between planning for the future and being prepared for it.

Then on January 18 Doug Whitley will be with us to help me launch into a new series on the life of Moses. I've wanted to teach through Moses' life for a long time. You can find out about Doug by visiting this site. But I promise you won't want to miss that Sunday.

Another thing coming in January will be the appearance of a new blog site (taking the place of this one) just for us at NHC to use interactively. I hope it's use will grow and be an encouragement to the church family as we share what God is doing and how He's growing us.

January is also a month when we support our local Crisis Pregnancy Center. You'll see baby bottles at church. Take one home and during January fill it up with change (or bills). Then at the end of the month we'll give it all to the Center to help them save the lives of otherwise unwanted babies and educate young girls and women on how to be good moms. They also share Christ very effectively with them.

So, don't be scarce in January! Lots of great opportunities to learn, grow and serve are ahead.