Above All, Give Thanks!

Enter his gates with thanksgiving and his courts with praise; be thankful to him and bless his name.                                                                              - Psalm 100:4

For the Christian, our practice of giving thanks is a daily discipline.  However, Thanksgiving is the one day of the year set aside for us to inventory our blessings and to express our gratitude to God with specific intentionality.  As Johnson Oatman, Jr. reminds us in his great hymn, “Count your many blessings, name them one by one; and it will surprise you what the Lord has done.”

As you plan your Thanksgiving schedule, I pray that you and your family will enjoy a fun and memorable gathering for Thanksgiving.  May our feasting truly be a celebration of God’s grace and provision. May our table emanate an aroma of gratitude affirming that our blessings are indeed a gift from God.  And may our living reflect our commitment to prioritize our plentiful resources for the glory of God and an eagerness to generously share with those in need.

 William Faulkner once wrote, Gratitude is a quality similar to electricity: it must be produced and discharged and used up in order to exist at all. This year, above all else…turkey, travel, football, and shopping…above all, give thanks!          

If you are on the road during the Thanksgiving holiday, I hope you will be back for worship and Bible study on Sunday.  If not, please plan to attend worship and Bible study with those friends and family you are visiting.

This Sunday begins the first Sunday of Advent.  We launch our countdown to Christmas by lighting the prophet’s candle and by singing songs that point us toward the birth of the Christ Child. Our theme this year is “When Heaven and Nature Sing.”  This Sunday we are talking about how we are “Like Clay in the Potter’s Hands” as we look at Isaiah 64:1-9.

Once again this year our Children’s Ministry has coordinated the publication of our Advent Devotional Book filled with inspiring daily entries by members of our FBCP family.  You can pick up a hard copy at the Welcome Center or in the Children’s Ministry office.  You can also access the devotional book online.  And, new this year, you can download the Advent Devotional Book on your Kindle.  And be encouraged to share our Advent book with a friend to encourage them during this holy-day season.

May our feasts and our festivities this week remind us of our blessings and encourage us to live our days serving God, sharing with others, and growing in faith and friendship.

Good Grazin’

Have you noticed what a great job members of FBC Pensacola have done welcoming us to worship in recent weeks?  I think our church is being enriched by the increasing participation of our members in worship leadership and in ministry.

Last Sunday, Buddy Burks shared the welcome in our Early Service and Jim Murphy shared the welcome in the Midmorning Service.  Both Buddy and Jim, without conferring, each commented on their joy in being a part of this body of believers we call First Baptist Church. 

For me, their comments came during a weekend when I was giving thanks for our church family, specifically our strong commitment to missions, our emerging commitment to local ministry, and our growing sense of spiritual community.  During recent weeks I have witnessed the following things firsthand:

·         I have noted the positive impact of those who work at Samaritan Hands. 

·         I have observed individuals and small groups organize meals to deliver to the homes of some who are battling health complications and other’s who have lost loved ones.

·         I have admired those who took vacation time to spend 10 days in Haiti doing medical missions, construction work, and orphanage ministry.

·         I have been in the trenches with our members who were helping guide others through a season of personal crisis and tragedy.

·         I have listened as guests in our worship services have told me that “this is the friendliest church we have visited.”

·         I have appreciated deacons and their spouses who delivered and served the Lord’s Supper to our homebound members.

·         I have received enthusiastic reports from members who volunteer at our local schools with Backpack Buddies, First Friends, and other programs.

·         I have gazed at the dolls and apparel put together by our Sewing for Jesus circle.

·         I watched as all ages brought in their shoeboxes to send to children around the world through Samaritan’s Purse.

·         I have been thrilled to hear students say, “We’re going to miss Brad, but we believe God will send us a new student minister who will help us continue to grow.”

·         I continue to be grateful for the growing commitment of our deacons to partner with their pastor in taking specific ministry assignments.

·         I have celebrated the great report that our church family exceeded last year’s budget goal and that we boldly adopted an aggressive budget goal this year that elevates our commitment to missions.

·         And I am glad we are getting closer and closer to making the final payment on the ROC. (With our matching gift, we lack approximately $150,000 completing payment on the ROC.)

As Thanksgiving approaches, I am grateful for your partnership in this ministry, and I count it a joy to be a part of our FBCP family. 

Also, remember that you are invited to the Community Thanksgiving Service which begins at 7:00 on Tuesday November 22 at Temple Beth-El.

As one step in preparing for worship this Sunday, I encourage you to read Ezekiel 34:11-24. We are talking about “Grazing in Green Pastures.”

As we celebrate the Parade of Flags and our commitment to global missions, I look forward to seeing you in worship and Bible study.

The Right Call

Near the end of the major league season, I read an interesting article about umpires who are tasked with making “the right call.”  When veteran umpires were interviewed, they talked about their focus on making the right call, while everyone of them admitted that they have at times made the wrong call.  They went on to say that you cannot let the fear of making a wrong call keep you from calling it as you see it.  While some fans become critical of umpires when they miss a call, the remarkable thing to me is that umpires make the right call most of the time.

The process that a Baptist church uses to call a staff member is also intriguing to me.  We are tasked as leadership, search team, and congregation with making the right call.  Across the years when calling staff, our First Baptist Family has made a lot of right calls.

This past week, we celebrated the good ministry of Brad Gowing who has served as our Minister of Students for the past 3 ½ years.  While we are sad to see Brad and Maile leave us, we are grateful for Brad’s ministry and we are excited for the Gowings as they follow God’s call to Birmingham.

Now we are beginning the search for our next Student Minister.  Because I believe that Brad was sincerely being led by the Lord to this ministry opportunity in Alabama, I firmly believe that the Lord will lead us to a new Student Minister who will continue to build and expand on the good foundation here.  During my tenure at FBCP, we have called 3 new staff ministers…Don, Ross, and Brad…and all three have been “the right call.”  Recently we called Laura Harrison as our interim Minister of Children, and that is proving to be “the right call.”

Here are a few things you need to know about our process that will lead us to make the right call for our next Student Minister:

Who will be serving on the Student Ministry Search Team?  Maddie Dempsey, Tripp Hill, Leslie Hutcherson, Janet Strange, Luther Taylor, and Robert Turnage.  (Allen Turner, Don Minton, and Barry Howard are ex-officio members)

How will the process progress? Once the Search Team has identified and chosen a candidate that best fits our opportunity at FBCP, they will present that candidate to the Personnel Committee and Administrative Council for endorsement.  Once a candidate is affirmed by all three of these leadership groups, the candidate will be introduced to our congregation on a Wednesday evening. The candidate will share a testimony and then be interviewed by me and some of our students regarding issues that are relevant to life and ministry.  Afterward our congregation will vote on whether to call this candidate to join our staff team.

How long will this process take?  A staff search can take anywhere from a few months to a year or more.  Our intention is to make this an expedient search.  I am hopeful that we will have a candidate ready to begin within a two month time frame.  However, we will take as much time as we need to make “the right call.” My philosophy is that it is better to be patient than to call the wrong person by moving too quickly.

Who will provide interim leadership until a new Student Minister begins?  An interim leadership has been formed to oversee the events and activities related to Student Ministry.  The members include John Robert Hill, Garrett Hodges, Debbie Norris, Nicole Strange, Charlie Wert, and John Wise.  Don Minton will serve as the primary adviser to this group and Barbara Burks will play an instrumental role as the ministry assistant for Student Ministries.

What do we need from our members during the interim season?  We need to be praying for the search team and the call process.  And we need to be praying for our students and their leaders as they continue their discipleship journey during the interim weeks.

What do we need from our students and their families during the interim season?  My observation has been that during an interim time, individuals tend to either sit on the sidelines waiting for the next minister, or they upgrade their participation and continue to grow during the interim time.  To me, sitting on the sidelines is just unthinkable.  Because Brad has planted good seeds for the future, I fully expect that our students, their leaders, and their families will bring out the best in each other and strengthen the spirit of community.

At FBC Pensacola, we are blessed to have an extraordinary group of students and student leaders.  I am excited about the future. And together we will make “the right call” of a new student minister.  

This Sunday we are exploring “Unsearchable Things” as we look at Jeremiah 33:1-11 and probe some tough questions about our faith in God.  We will also be participating in the Lord’s Supper in each of our services.  In the afternoon, our deacons will be sharing communion with many of our homebound members.

I consider it a privilege to learn and grow alongside you as your pastor, and I look forward to seeing you this Sunday in worship and Bible study.

Thank You, Brad!

I first met Brad Gowing at the Carols and Candles Service not long after I arrived in Pensacola. I knew he had to be a pretty good guy, just because of the way his parents talked about him so proudly when he wasn’t around.  Little did I know that three years later, we would be calling Brad to our church to serve as Minister of Students.  And after working alongside him for the past 3 ½ years, I can tell you for certain that Brad is a really good guy, and what you see is what you get….a down-to-earth devoted follower of Christ.

Brad started his tenure on our staff in May of 2008. Next week, he is completing his ministry here to return to Birmingham to serve as Minister of Recreation at Dawson Church where his ministry began. 

During his time at First Baptist, Brad has capably provided solid leadership for our Middle School and High School students.  He has consistently balanced strong discipleship initiatives with fun recreational opportunities.  Parents are grateful for his workshops and planning meetings that keep them in the loop.  Teachers are appreciative of Brad’s insightful planning and dependable implementation.  

Additionally, Brad has visited, prayed, listened, and encouraged many of our members during their hospital stay or in a moment of crisis.  The Lord has used Brad to minister to us and with us at First Baptist.

Although we wish that his tenure with us had been longer, we send Brad and Maile (I heard a rumor that Addison is staying here with grandparents but haven’t verified this) to their new assignment in Birmingham with our blessings and our prayers for continued effective ministry.

As a church family, just as the Lord led us to Brad in 2008, we are confident that God is going to lead us to the right person to lead our Student Ministry.  We have outstanding students and a strong leadership core.  Begin now praying for our Student Ministry Search Team as they prayerfully lead us in calling our next Minister of Students.  Members of the Search Team are Maddie Dempsey, Tripp Hill, Leslie Hutcherson, Janet Strange, Luther Taylor, and Robert Turnage.

A reception is planned to honor Brad and Maile this Sunday evening in Chipley Hall from 6:00-8:00 p.m.  A brief tribute and gift presentation will begin around 6:30.  Don’t forget to write your personal words of appreciation on a card or note and drop it in the card basket at the reception.

Brad, you have been a blessing to us.  Thank you for a job well done!

Remember these upcoming events:

• Blessing of the Shoeboxes this Wednesday night.
• Lord’s Supper on Sunday November 13.
• International Missions Program on November 16.
• Parade of Flags and Deck the Halls on Sunday November 20.
• Community Thanksgiving Service on November 22.
• Children’s Church beginning December 4.

This Sunday we are talking about the story of Jonah and “Lessons from the Bottom of the Sea.” 

I look forward to seeing you in worship and Bible study.