Sunday is Coming!
Have you ever been rescued?
I have a vague childhood memory of falling into a creek while fishing and being pulled out of the cold, mucky water by my father. Recently, Jen recounted a story of a time when her sister, Erin, fell off of a boat as a child and was quickly pulled out of the water by her father. Later in life, Erin in turn had the chance to rescue their friend from Raystown Lake after she fell off of a dock.
Your Heavenly Father sees you and is ready to rescue you!
Depending on our circumstances, this may take many different forms today, but let’s remember that we all share one similar story about God’s Divine Rescue plan!
On Sunday, we will continue our study of Torah, the first 5 books of the Bible, that have much to say about ourselves and our God. We will turn in our Bibles to Exodus and look at Moses, the traditional author and compiler of these 5 books. Moses shares about his own personal encounter with God in the wilderness—the time when God appeared to Moses and called him to be a Divine representative to rescue God’s people from slavery in Egypt. Remember last week in Genesis we saw that all humans were created in the image of God? Moses was called to truly represent God in a special way before the ruler of Egypt.
God appeared to Moses from a miraculous burning bush and called him:
When the Lord saw that he had gone over to look, God called to him from within the bush, “Moses! Moses!” And Moses said, “Here I am.”
5“Do not come any closer,” God said. “Take off your sandals, for the place where you are standing is holy ground.”
6Then he said, “I am the God of your father, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac and the God of Jacob.” At this, Moses hid his face, because he was afraid to look at God.
7 The Lord said, “I have indeed seen the misery of my people in Egypt. I have heard them crying out because of their slave drivers, and I am concerned about their suffering. 8 So I have come down to rescue them from the hand of the Egyptians and to bring them up out of that land into a good and spacious land, a land flowing with milk and honey…
--Exodus 3:4-8
Once again, we explore the question: “Who is God?” –a key revelation from the book of Exodus is: He is our Deliverer – this will be the summary focus for the weekend, but this particular passage reveals quite a lot more about our God.
We will also consider the question, “Who are We?” in light of what we know about God. Exodus reminds us that God is fully aware of what is happening to us in this world. Exodus 3:7 tells us that God sees & hears & knows the challenges faced by His people. God does not just share a passing concern, but a vested interest. He is a God who desires to be involved in the affairs of His creation, especially those in relationship with Him. As verse 8 reveals: “I have come down to rescue them.”
In the New Testament, Jesus fulfills and expands this story of rescue in a greater way! In Luke 4:18-19, Jesus says:
“The Spirit of the Lord is on me, because he has anointed me to proclaim good news to the poor. He has sent me to proclaim freedom for the prisoners and recovery of sight for the blind, to set the oppressed free, to proclaim the year of the Lord’s favor.”
Jesus continues and enlarges the Deliverance of our God!
And just as God called Moses and sent him to be his representative before Pharoah, while promising to be with Him, so also, Jesus still calls and sends disciples to represent Him to the ends of the earth and the end of the age, promising to be with them, as we read in Matthew 28:18-20, where Jesus says:
“All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age.”
Jesus has rescued us, and He calls us to join him in the ongoing rescue mission! He sees and hears and knows the needs of His creation! Do we share His concern?
This Sunday
8:25 Traditional Worship
We will share our welcome and announcements at 8:25, followed by a musical prelude for a time of quiet reflection.
A Shelter in the Time of Storm #693
And Can It Be? #347
Guide Me, O Thou Great Jehovah #682
You Are My Hiding Place #700
9:45 Sunday School for all ages.
Check out our Care Groups & Sunday School Classes on our website, or visit the welcome desk to learn more.
11:00 Contemporary Worship
Everlasting God
Lead Me To The Cross
10,000 Reasons (Bless The Lord)
Better Is One Day
Community Night is Resuming Soon!
Our Wednesday Night ministries will be resuming next week, on September 2. There is something for all ages at Community Night including:
- Children’s Ministry – AWANA
- Teenagers – Youth Group
- Young Adults – “Foundations of our Faith”
- Kinetics – The Continuing Adventures of the Apostles in Acts
- Fresh Start – He Speaks to Me by Priscilla Shirer, Focusing on Prayer
- Ladies in Step – The Gospel in Hard Times by Joni Eareckson Tada
Learn More:
Shippensburg First Church of God | Wednesday Community Night
The Next Generation Needs You!
*We are still seeking additional team members to serve in AWANA with our Children’s Ministry!*
This is a fun and rewarding way to invest time & talents in the Next Generation! Responsibilities include showing God’s Love to Children, encouraging them to Learn God’s Word as they memorize verses, and working as a team with other caring adults to create a positive learning environment for these young learners.
One volunteer who began serving with AWANA last fall said it was the best part of her year!
Contact our Children’s Ministry leaders (or reply to the email) to learn more.
Bible Adventure is also Seeking a CDL Driver and other helpers.
Let the little children come - to Bible Adventure, formerly known as Bible Released Time.
Established in 1980 by Children's Bible Mission, it has been known as Joy-el Ministry since 2004.
The Shippensburg Bible Adventure ministered to over 50 children every Thursday morning last year and is in desperate need of volunteers who love children and who are willing to help them find and memorize verses of scripture. A CDL bus driver with a passenger endorsement is also needed.
Bible Meets at our Shippensburg First Church of God On Thursday mornings 8:30 to 10 and/or 10 to 11 During the school year, starting October 1 Serving:
· James Burd Elementary
· Nancy Grayson Elementary
· Shippensburg Intermediate
Please consider volunteering! To learn more, contact Carol Hunsberger, coordinator, at 223-205-8369.
Young Adult Fellowship Meals
We are excited to share that our Friday Night young adult fellowship meals will be resuming next week on September 4th. All young adults (college students, recent grads, career focused, etc.) are invited to come out to the Annex on Friday evenings at 5:00 throughout the semester to enjoy a meal and a time of socializing.
New this year, we are also planning to host a special Sunday Dinner for our college students and all other young adults in Crossroads Station on September 20th. The Menu will include spaghetti, salad, garlic bread, & drinks. We are also in need of desserts to share—if you would like to help in this way, please bring your treats Crossroads Station the morning of September 20th. Cooks and Servers are welcome too! If you would like to help prepare or serve for this special event, please contact our Discipleship & Next Gen. Ministry Director, Troy Shively (troy.shively@shipfcog.org ).
Grief Share Training
We are hosting a special round of Grief Share that will focus on training participants to provide care and encouragement to others who are experiencing loss. Many of us know people who have lost loved ones, and we desire to support them as best as we can, but we may not always be sure how. This class will equip you to serve others as Christ-like care-givers to comfort those in times of grief. The class will begin on Tuesday, September 8th, and will meet every Tuesday morning at 10:00-12:30 in room 108, until October 20th. To learn more, contact Visitation Director Jessie Duggan. (visitationdirector@shipfcog.org )
Church Picnic
You are invited to our annual Church Picnic!
The Picnic will be on Sunday, September 13th at Memorial Park. It begins at 10:00 am with a combined worship service, followed by a meal together, and some activities, games, and fellowship.
We will once again be organizing a cornhole tournament. Teams, please sign up by 9/6.
See the sign-up sheets in your Sunday School Classroom or in the Gathering Place to learn more and to RSVP, and to register your team for the cornhole tournament. There is also more info in this month’s edition of the FYI Newsletter.
Bible Quiz Team
Join the Team!
Our quizzers recently concluded a successful season with top ranked finishes at the national competition, and now they are looking forward to next season studying the Gospel of John! Teenagers grade 6-12 are encouraged to join in this fun way to learn the Scriptures and meet other young believers. Practice for Jr/Sr High will resume on August 23rd and any interested teens are encouraged to check it out. Final commitments for the season are needed by September 8th. The first quiz of the new season will be October 4th at Camp YoliJwa. To learn more, reply to this email or contact coach Nancy Morton.
Online Apparel Shop
Represent SFCOG at work or in the community!
We have partnered with Creative Engravings here in Shippensburg to set up an online apparel shop—you can custom order various shirts with our church logo embroidered on them. Select from 4 different styles (polo, t-shirt, long-sleeve t-shirt & sweatshirt) and several different colors. Items can be purchased online and picked up right here in Shippensburg at the Creative Engravings shop, or you may also reach out to us if you would like us to pick it up and deliver it to your church mailbox for you (select “Store Pick Up” and let us know when you receive notice that it is ready).
Visit the store:
Creative Engraving Plus, LLC| Ship First Church of God | CreativeEng&Apparel
Church Center
We have been gradually rolling out a new database tool called “Church Center.” It will be utilized for scheduling, record-keeping, giving, and many other ministry functions. You will be hearing more about it in the coming months as we implement new aspects of this resource, such as:
- a directory feature,
- an online giving option,
- and upcoming changes to our Children’s Ministry check-in system.
You can begin learning more and start exploring it by visiting this page on our website to create your own log-in:
Shippensburg First Church of God | Church Center
Communications Updates
Bulletins and newsletters are available for you as you enter for worship—you can find them right outside the main doorways into the sanctuary on a table or stand for easy access. Some are usually available at our welcome desk also, but we encourage you to keep access to our welcome desk (and our handicapped accessible seating) open and available for those who may need it.
*Be sure to check out our Activities Calendar and the Events page on our website to learn about more upcoming opportunities!
*If you or your small groups, committees, etc., are planning special events involving the facilities, please be sure to communicate with the church office so we can best accommodate your needs and coordinate planning details between various ministries—Thank You!
The latest monthly edition of our “FYI” Newsletter is available in the Gathering Place or as you enter into the Sanctuary. The FYI contains information about upcoming events, care group opportunities, giving and attendance information, and more.
If you have events or information you would like to communicate, communication request forms are available from the church office, in the Gathering Place, or online.
Let us continue to worship our Good Creator together in the Sanctuary or Online this Sunday!
Pastor Rodney Bistline
Shippensburg First Church of God
seniorpastorbistline@shipfcog.org
Helpful Links:
Online Messages (shipfcog.org)
Our Activities Calendar & Events
Care Groups & Sunday School Classes
Shippensburg First Church of God | Church Center
Weekly Bulletin (updated over the weekend)
shipfcog.net/site/shipfcog/shipnews/index.html
