Praise God and please pray!

Dear Family,

 

Praise God for the work He did through many of you as you faithfully serve Him and shared Jesus with children during VBS.  God blessed us with a wonderful week together!  Thank you for serving and for praying!

 

Please lift up Esther Creamer in prayer that God would grant healing and comfort.  She is in the Chambersburg Hospital.

 

“His pleasure is not in the strength of the horse, nor His delight in the legs of the warrior; the Lord delights in those who fear Him, who put their hope in His unfailing love.”  Psalm 147:10-11

 

 For His Glory,

 

Pastor Gary

 

Pastor Gary

 

 

Gary Hornbaker

Shippensburg First Church of God

Pastor of Visitation and Discipleship

Church Phone: 717-532-8421

 

FYI

The FYI will post to the church website tomorrow morning. 

Have a wonderful weekend!

 

Church Secretary

Sonja Shively

Shippensburg First Church of God

Email Secretary@shipfcog.org

Office Phone 717.532.8421

 

Sunshine & Shadows - SFCOG Updates for 7/2

Sundays Coming, and there's always Good News!

 

As we consider our Freedoms as we approach Independence Day, one of the things I love most about the USA is the freedom to travel and see the beauty of God’s Creation that is found across this land. Check out these photos from our first trip to Acadia National Park in Maine in 2005:

 

 

Not so beautiful or inspiring, right? But every trip features a little Sunshine and Shadow…

You’ll have to join us Sunday to hear more of the story, but consider how usually in life we share the Good, and Leave out the Bad. In God’s word we see that the Good News is really amazingly exceptionally Good, because of the Bad News.

 

This weekend we will read some Harsh Words from Scripture. Some words that might make us cringe or uncomfortable at first. We have been taking a look at a variety of letters that are found in the New Testament this summer. Just post cards, really, or snap shots of a much bigger picture. What we see in these letters is that they speak to both great theological concepts, and everyday details of life in the early church. They take a variety of tones, from highly encouraging, to harshly critical. They give us the good news and the bad news.

 

We will continue looking at a letter that Paul wrote to the Church in Rome. In Chapter 3, he lays some theological foundations about the extent of sin and the fallenness of humans everywhere. Not exactly a “feel good” topic, particularly as we look to celebrate freedom next week… But what we will see is that True Freedom is found in Christ Alone, and the reason the Gospel of Jesus is such Good News is because of the Bad News. It’s all part of one story—our story—The Story of God’s Holiness and His Righteous Love for All People.

 

“For all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, and all are justified freely by his grace through the redemption that came by Christ Jesus.”

--Romans 3:23-24

 

What I hope we will see is that when we properly understand sin, it leads us to more freely love our neighbors as ourselves, and to properly worship our Holy God. We can join with Paul and say,

 

“Thanks be to God, who delivers me through Jesus Christ our Lord!”

--Romans 7:25

 

We do have much to be thankful for in our Church!

Thanks to everyone who served and participated in Vacation Bible School This week! 50 children came to learn more about Jesus! Check out a few highlights:

 

And join me once again in welcoming and celebrating the 18 New Members we installed last weekend:

 

Here are some more things to celebrate, look forward to, and pray about next:

• This Sunday we will be commissioning our Youth Missions Team. They leave on July 9^th to serve a community in Kentucky that experienced some devastating flooding last year. They will help with repairs and also provide a VBS to the children of the community.

 

• We will celebrate Communion and Feetwashing on Sunday Evening, July 9^th at 6:30 pm

 

• The Cross Roads Station renovation project is continuing, with new phases of the work projected to begin next week. Also be sure to thank our crew that has been diligently sanding woodwork to restore the stairway!

 

Wherever the roads of life may be taking you this summer, I hope the Lord Leads you into His Goodness and Truth, and reminds you of His Unfailing Love!

I hope to worship with you soon!

 

Pastor Rodney Bistline

Shippensburg First Church of God

seniorpastorbistline@shipfcog.org

 

Helpful Links:

Shippensburg First Church of God | Home (shipfcog.org)

Online Messages (shipfcog.org)

Online Giving (shipfcog.org)

Care Groups & Sunday School Classes (shipfcog.org)

shipfcog.net/site/shipfcog/shipnews/index.html (Weekly Order of Worship and FYI Newsletter, Updated Sunday Mornings)

 

 

FW: SFCOG updates and council highlights for 6/25

 

 

Sunday’s Coming, and so are many exciting ministry opportunities, including Vacation Bible School!

 

All Aboard! Our VBS theme this year is “Rocky Railway,” and our Children’s Ministry team has been hard a work preparing! The Sanctuary has already begun transforming into a scenic mountain train depot!

 

Speaking of Railways, did you know that the longest trip you could go by train in the USA is from Chicago, IL to Los Angeles, CA, which takes you by way of Texas. The entire route would take about 65 hours, covering 2,728 miles, visiting 7 states in 3 days.

 

Interestingly enough… that’s similar to the distance between Jerusalem & Rome – A distance the Apostle Paul traveled (by ship, not by railway) to share the Gospel of Jesus. We will continue our “Post Cards” series this weekend, considering some of the personal letters that were sent by Peter and Paul, some being carried great distances.

 

How far would you go to share the Good News? How about down the street? Or across your office? Across the political aisle? Across the table with a friend?

 

Consider what Paul says in Romans 1:11-15 about his motives for going to such Great Lengths for the Gospel:

 

I long to see you so that I may impart to you some spiritual gift to make you strong—that is, that you and I may be mutually encouraged by each other’s faith. I do not want you to be unaware, brothers and sisters, that I planned many times to come to you (but have been prevented from doing so until now) in order that I might have a harvest among you, just as I have had among the other Gentiles.

I am obligated both to Greeks and non-Greeks, both to the wise and the foolish. That is why I am so eager to preach the gospel also to you who are in Rome.

 

Paul says not only does he “long to see” the Roman Christians to be “mutually encouraged“ but also, he feels “Obligated” to preach the Gospel in Rome.

 

The Greek word for “obligated” can also mean “Indebted.” Paul suggests that we also “owe it to the world” to share the Good News! The Gospel does not belong only to those of us inside the Church—it also belongs to those who don’t yet know the Good News of Jesus. It is a debt or a payment that we must deliver to the people around us, through our words and our actions. It takes effort, but when we come together, we can see the Power of the Gospel at work in our own lives and in our community!

 

This Sunday during our worship together, we will celebrate some signs of God’s Power at work like this in a variety of ways. We will welcome 18 New Members, we will pray over those serving next week at VBS, and we will hear more about Men’s Alliance, a new ministry starting here in Shippensburg. I hope you can join us!

 

Here is some more information about each of these Wonderful Opportunities:

 

• Please join us in welcoming these new members:

Morgan Bard, Nicole Bard, Taylor Bard, Todd Bard, Karyn Brubaker, Wayne Brubaker, Tarik Carlton, Sara Cramer, Stacy Gutshall, Lauren Kegerreis, Michelle Komora, Barb Miller, Jaden Negley, Heather Rowe, Keith Rowe, Patti Slozat, Donna Underkoffler, Jerry Underkoffler.

 

• Vacation Bible School begins Sunday evening and goes until Thursday. Every night the program begins at 6:00, but there is a meal available for families at about 5:30. There will be a closing program on Thursday evening, around 7:40—all are welcome to come see what our Children will learn. It's never too late to register kids, even if you can’t make it all week. Pre-registration is available online: Rocky Railway VBS :: VBS Pro :: Group Publishing

 

• Men’s Alliance will meet every Saturday at 7:00am at 100 Dykeman Road, Shippensburg, PA 17257 (the American Legion grounds, near Dykeman Springs). It features an outdoor exercise workout, and a devotional time around a camp fire. Men of all abilities are invited to support one another both physically and spiritually on a weekly basis. Learn more at Join — Men's Alliance (mensalliancetribe.com) (look for Tribe KEEL).

 

Highlights from the June Council Meeting:

• New Members were approved by council.
• Discussion about the nominating process began for officer candidates. The Nominating Committee will be convening to prepare for our annual election this fall.

 

A few other helpful links:

• Small Group Opportunities Care Groups (shipfcog.org), Sunday School Classes (shipfcog.org)
• Online Giving Online Giving (shipfcog.org)
• Online Worship Online Messages (shipfcog.org)

 

Have a Blessed Week and see you Sunday!

 

Pastor Rodney Bistline

Shippensburg First Church of God

seniorpastorbistline@shipfcog.org