Wednesday night, November 19th, 2008, was a very special evening in the life of our church. The orchestra and choir had our first rehearsals in the new sanctuary. Smiles filled the faces of all that were there, and the spirit and energy of every note rang in the air as a sweet aroma. Brother Chuck spoke to us about how blessed we all are. He spoke of sacrifice and how we do NOT ever want to think that we are special because of what we have or where we worship. It is all God's. He prayed for us and the church and then the singing began. Tim Spencer stayed as calm as possible as he led us through our Christmas music. The dynamics were noticeable in that the acoustics are state-of-the-art in the new building.
Psalm 134:2
"Lift up your hands to the sanctuary and bless the Lord."
It was a "hand-lifting" night.
I have included a few photos below, including the outside of our building, and views inside and from the choir loft during our rehearsal.
I also got a sneak peek at our new choir robes.
The first services will be on December 7th. The Choir Christmas program is on December 14th.
God's timing is ALWAYS perfect- His will is ALWAYS done!
Thank you Lord for your blessings!
We have so much to be thankful for this year and every year!
Most importantly, Jesus Christ!
Nov 20, 2008
Nov 14, 2008
Our Foundation
The church's foundation is Jesus Christ. It was built by His blood and sacrifice for all His children. One day He is coming back to bring His church home to heaven where He is today. Until that day, we all meet to worship in man-made buildings that are our temporary churches. I have always been fascinated by the beauty of church buildings with their stained-glass windows, lifted and majestic crosses, ornate bricks, curved pews, and their shimmering, yet calming baptistries. Architectural lines form marvelous shadows everywhere in and around a church; however, unless our personal worship lines up with the Word of God and the worship of His Son, then it is all in vain.
We, at Collierville First Baptist Church, are in the process of moving into a magnificent, new sanctuary. I am personally excited about the growth of our church body, but I am more in awe of how God has brought so many wonderful saints together to serve Him. We have been in constant prayer and fasting as we ready to enter our new building-and that is just what it is-a building. It is made of steel and brick, sheetrock and concrete, and it has colorful glass, a nice fountain, a bookstore, new classrooms,...you get the picture. As a body, we are praying for God's work within this building. We are praying that God will use His body outside this building. We are praying that many will come to know and love the Lord God of Heaven and will worship and give thanks to Him that deserves all the glory. HE is the reason for the church. HE owns the building. HE built it. HE is the foundation. And the gates of hell shall not prevail against Him and His church! We give Him all our praises for blessing us. He is THE FOUNDATION and the reason why we exist.
Thanks to Amanda Warren from our technical ministries for the pictures that I am going to be posting from the new building.
Below takes you from January 2007, where we prayed and then broke ground on that cold and blustery day, to the summer of this year, 2008.
I will be adding more pictures soon, including the finished work, our prayer covering the entirety of the building, the cross lighting, and the opening services which are due to be on December 7, 2008. What a joyous time to be a member of FBC Collierville. This truly shall be a Thanksgiving and Christmas for the ages. Thank you Lord for all the love you have poured into our lives. Let us be good stewards and show you all the honor that is due you, forever and ever. Amen.
We, at Collierville First Baptist Church, are in the process of moving into a magnificent, new sanctuary. I am personally excited about the growth of our church body, but I am more in awe of how God has brought so many wonderful saints together to serve Him. We have been in constant prayer and fasting as we ready to enter our new building-and that is just what it is-a building. It is made of steel and brick, sheetrock and concrete, and it has colorful glass, a nice fountain, a bookstore, new classrooms,...you get the picture. As a body, we are praying for God's work within this building. We are praying that God will use His body outside this building. We are praying that many will come to know and love the Lord God of Heaven and will worship and give thanks to Him that deserves all the glory. HE is the reason for the church. HE owns the building. HE built it. HE is the foundation. And the gates of hell shall not prevail against Him and His church! We give Him all our praises for blessing us. He is THE FOUNDATION and the reason why we exist.
Thanks to Amanda Warren from our technical ministries for the pictures that I am going to be posting from the new building.
Below takes you from January 2007, where we prayed and then broke ground on that cold and blustery day, to the summer of this year, 2008.
I will be adding more pictures soon, including the finished work, our prayer covering the entirety of the building, the cross lighting, and the opening services which are due to be on December 7, 2008. What a joyous time to be a member of FBC Collierville. This truly shall be a Thanksgiving and Christmas for the ages. Thank you Lord for all the love you have poured into our lives. Let us be good stewards and show you all the honor that is due you, forever and ever. Amen.
Nov 10, 2008
Name that Food!
Attention friends of our blog...
Here is a little contest and a little "food for thought." (Sorry for the fun puns.)
The person who can correctly name the most foods in the pictures below will win a nice prize from the Rushes and our trip to South Korea.
You should email us with your answers via the blog or our email at winkandjeanann@gmail.com.
You have one week to enter, so the deadline will be next Monday, November 27, 2008 at 3pm C.S.T. (In case of a tie, the person whose entry is posted first will win.)
Everyone is encouraged to enter, so look closely at all the pictures below and try to figure out exactly what we all were eating.
Are you hungry?????
Have fun!
Wink
Here is a little contest and a little "food for thought." (Sorry for the fun puns.)
The person who can correctly name the most foods in the pictures below will win a nice prize from the Rushes and our trip to South Korea.
You should email us with your answers via the blog or our email at winkandjeanann@gmail.com.
You have one week to enter, so the deadline will be next Monday, November 27, 2008 at 3pm C.S.T. (In case of a tie, the person whose entry is posted first will win.)
Everyone is encouraged to enter, so look closely at all the pictures below and try to figure out exactly what we all were eating.
Are you hungry?????
Have fun!
Wink
Nov 7, 2008
Billy Graham is 90
I believe the word "great" is overused. I believe that only one man was truly great and that His name is Jesus Christ!
Billy Graham has been used greatly by God, and he is great in the way Jesus described in Matthew 20:26-28, "Whoever wants to become great among you must be your servant, and whoever wants to be first must be your slave— just as the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many."
Billy Graham has been used greatly by God, and he is great in the way Jesus described in Matthew 20:26-28, "Whoever wants to become great among you must be your servant, and whoever wants to be first must be your slave— just as the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many."
Billy Graham has served his Savior, and what a humble servant he has been.
Here are some wonderful excerpts from his biographies:
One night in March, 1938, Billy Graham returned from his walk and reached the 18th green immediately before the school’s front door. “The trees were loaded with Spanish moss, and in the moonlight it was like a fairyland.” He sat on the edge of the green, looking up at the moon and stars, aware of a warm breeze from the south. The tension snapped. “I remember getting on my knees and saying, ‘God, if you want me to preach, I will do it.’ Tears streamed down my cheeks as I made this great surrender to become an ambassador for Jesus Christ.”
***
***
Billy went out in the forest and wandered up the mountain, praying as he walked, “Lord, what shall I do? What shall be the direction of my life?”
He had reached what he believed to be a crisis.
He saw that intellect alone could not resolve the question of authority. You must go beyond intellect. He thought of the faith used constantly in daily life: he did not know how a train or plane or car worked, but he rode them.... Was it only in things of the spirit that such faith was wrong?
“So I went back and I got my Bible, and I went out in the moonlight. And I got to a stump and put the Bible on the stump, and I knelt down, and I said, 'Oh, God; I cannot prove certain things. I cannot answer some of the questions Chuck is raising and some of the other people are raising, but I accept this book by faith as the Word of God.’”
***
He had reached what he believed to be a crisis.
He saw that intellect alone could not resolve the question of authority. You must go beyond intellect. He thought of the faith used constantly in daily life: he did not know how a train or plane or car worked, but he rode them.... Was it only in things of the spirit that such faith was wrong?
“So I went back and I got my Bible, and I went out in the moonlight. And I got to a stump and put the Bible on the stump, and I knelt down, and I said, 'Oh, God; I cannot prove certain things. I cannot answer some of the questions Chuck is raising and some of the other people are raising, but I accept this book by faith as the Word of God.’”
***
“With all my heart as I look back on my life, [I believe] I was chosen to do this particular work [of evangelizing] as a man might have been chosen to go into East Harlem and work there, or to the slums of London like General Booth was. I believe that God in his sovereignty - I have no other answer for this - sheer sovereignty, chose me to do this work and prepared me in his own way.”
***
He told students in 1964 at Harvard Divinity School… “I used to think that in evangelism I had to do it all, but now I approach evangelism with a totally different attitude. I approach it with complete relaxation. First of all, I don’t believe that any man can come to Christ unless the Holy Spirit has prepared his heart. Secondly, I don’t believe any man can come to Christ unless God drives him. My job is to proclaim the message. It’s the Holy Spirit’s job to do the work, period.”
***
He is famous for saying that he preached too much and studied too little.
One of my great regrets is that I have not studied enough. I wish I had studied more and preached less. People have pressured me into speaking to groups when I should have been studying and preparing. Donald Barnhouse said that if he knew the Lord was coming in three years, he would spend two of them studying and one preaching. I’m trying to make it up.
One of my great regrets is that I have not studied enough. I wish I had studied more and preached less. People have pressured me into speaking to groups when I should have been studying and preparing. Donald Barnhouse said that if he knew the Lord was coming in three years, he would spend two of them studying and one preaching. I’m trying to make it up.
***
May God continue to bless you Bro. Billy and your family.
Happy Birthday!
Nov 3, 2008
Pictures are Priceless!
Here are some more pictures from our trip. I just chose these to give you a few samples of the people and places we encountered. There are more to come :)
Tommy praying with a young man. Wink praying for a young boy. Jean Ann and Young Me speaking to a couple of cuties. 
The goup with kids at a school. Wink showing the pink/blue optical illusion. Resting and admiring the beauty. 
Eating Korean style...again. Planning our day at the university.
Betty Horn with the sweetest smile you would ever would see.
Trees in the park that Pastor Bae took us to. 
Tommy praying with a young man. Wink praying for a young boy. Jean Ann and Young Me speaking to a couple of cuties.
The goup with kids at a school. Wink showing the pink/blue optical illusion. Resting and admiring the beauty.
Eating Korean style...again. Planning our day at the university.
Betty Horn with the sweetest smile you would ever would see.
Trees in the park that Pastor Bae took us to.
All the leaves were changing and God's nature was on full display as He had painted pictures of magnificent splendor all around us.
The view from our Spatel in Daejeon. Magnificent mountains!
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