Who Needs You?

One of the best pictures of intercessory prayer is found in the historical account of a battle between the nation of Israel and the Amalekites in Exodus 17.  In this battle, the victory hinged on God working through the steadfastness of Moses' prayers.

Read this...

     While the people of Israel were still at Rephidim, the warriors of Amalek attacked them.Moses commanded Joshua, “Choose some men to go out and fight the army of Amalek for us. Tomorrow, I will stand at the top of the hill, holding the staff of God in my hand.”  

     So Joshua did what Moses had commanded and fought the army of Amalek. Meanwhile, Moses, Aaron, and Hur climbed to the top of a nearby hill.As long as Moses held up the staff in his hand, the Israelites had the advantage. But whenever he dropped his hand, the Amalekites gained the advantage.Moses’ arms soon became so tired he could no longer hold them up. So Aaron and Hur found a stone for him to sit on. Then they stood on each side of Moses, holding up his hands. So his hands held steady until sunset.As a result, Joshua overwhelmed the army of Amalek in battle.  (Exodus 17:8–13 NLT)

So here are the questions I believe the Holy Spirit impressed on my heart this morning as I studied this passage:

• Who is counting on me to pray?
• Are there people in the battle of life that are struggling at least in part because I have not been faithful to pray for them as I should? (Or maybe a gentler way to ask the question would be:  Are there people in whose life God would be doing a greater work if I were more faithful to pray?)
• How faithful am I in praying for others?
• Who should I be praying for that I have not been praying for?

Everyone is a Moses to someone.  Who is counting on you?

Pastor Noel

On My Heart...

Quick note to our church family (and other kind readers) of what is on my heart this morning...

... Recently read an old book titled "How To Pray" by a R.A. Torrey. It has been a life changing book! I read a lot of books and I rarely say that, but this small book is worth reading. Currently all of our deacons and council are reading the book and they are saying the same thing about it. Ask Bill Marriott or Henry Zigan or Martin Bauer what they think about the book. I imagine any deacon will give you a strong recommendation to read it.

... I'm excited about our new Church Council. We had our first leadership meeting this past Sunday night. I look forward to how we can work together to serve the Lord and the church. Pray for these eight men: Billy Andrews, Jeff Salyer, Ray Wagner, Andrew Roth, Henry Zigan, Bo Bogardus, Sean Hall, Michael George.

I've got to take a break. More to come...

Pastor Noel

Graduation and Recitals

This has been a busy week, not a good week to have a cold. Today there is a homeschool recital and then a graduation service to follow. Tonight is dance recital number two. Wednesday's recital lasted until nearly 11:00 p.m.! But the nine minutes my girls were dancing were really exciting. During the other three hours and twenty one minutes I read the new Craig Groeschel book, The Christian Atheist. Pretty good book.

Two big events coming up at the church...

Youth leave for youth camp this Sunday!

VBS begins the following week (6/26)!

Be in prayer for these events.

By the way, a lady in our church, Tonya Carlisle, is expecting to give birth to her baby today. She is only at 34 weeks, so we are all in prayer for mom and baby.

Pastor Noel

Ready for Sunday!

I'm sitting at an airport in birmingham AL this morning waiting to catch a flight home. I flew down yesterday to spend some time with my mom who is undergoing treatment for cancer. We had a good day yesterday... My sister and her boys from Atlanta were in too so it was good to spend time with them.

It has been a very busy week. Due to the holiday on Monday everything has been compressed, but tomorrow is the beginning of a new week.

I am really looking forward to worship tomorrow. I will be preaching the last message in our series on Joseph in Genesis. We will be focused on the one thing you see throughout Joseph's life that allowed him to handle everything that came his way.

..............

Sometimes people ask me what I am especially praying for right now. Well, let me share...

... Of course I am praying much for my mother as she goes throughout her treatments.

... I am praying for Edward Rafferty who lost his mother this week.

... I am praying for a very serious community issue that impacts a number of people in our church and also impacts the whole faith family in our area. Just pray that the Lord's will be done.

... I am praying for our missions work in Kenya. I had a good meeting with the Kenya team this week. I am enthused for this ministry right now.

... I am praying for youth camp and vacation Bible school, both of which are just around the corner.

Well, it's time to line up to get on the plane...

Pastor Noel

Reasons I'm Looking Forward To Tomorrow

I'm looking forward to tomorrow for several reasons...

... Tomorrow is the first day of our new Connect group semester. We have some new groups and some carry over groups. All of them will be good. Tomorrow we will have several people attend a Connect Group for the first time. In fact, I just received an email from someone that will be doing that. If you have not yet signed up for a group, just join us tomorrow at 9:30 and we will help you find a group that will be a good fit for you.

... Tomorrow we will begin again our Sunday morning prayer time around the alter. During weeks we have Connect Groups, many people from our church meet at 9:10 and gather around the altar as our deacons lead us in prayer for the upcoming service. I look forward to these special times.

... I'm fired up about my message tomorrow morning. See previous blog posts to read about that.

... I'm looking forward to our new Sunday night study. You can also read more about this in previous blog posts.

... I'm looking forward to meeting new people who will be visiting our church for the first time tomorrow.

... I'm looking forward to worshiping the Lord tomorrow!

Pastor Noel

Upcoming Week

It is going to be a busy week but I had a refreshing time with the Lord this morning so I am ready...

This morning is the Heartbeats Golf Tournament. That is an annual event where we try to raise a little money for Heartbeats, a great organization that helps women in crisis situations, and have a little fun as well. Looks like it is going to rain all morning, so I don't know what that is going to do to the schedule.

I will be preaching a funeral at 1:00 p.m. today. The funeral is for someone I never met. These kinds of funerals can be difficult. Pray that I will have wisdom.

A couple of meetings this afternoon, and I hope to get a little bit of a jump on message prep this week since we are starting a new PM series.

Here is what I'm praying for this week...

... Some decisions about construction plans for preschool facility...
... Connect Ministry: The new semester begins Sunday...
... PM Series. I'll blog more on this tomorrow.
... Youth Ministry: Troy and I will be working together this week...
... New Member Class on Wednesday night...

Pastor Noel

Sunday Morning Prayer

What I'm praying for is morning...

... That our worship service will feature the Lord. I am praying at people will experience the presence of the Lord is morning through singing praises and responding to the preaching of His Word.

... I'm praying for the two special speakers we have this morning. I am praying that each of them will be able to convey a contagious enthusiasm and love for the Lord.

... Visitors and guests! I'm praying that those who are here this morning for the first time will feel the warm love of our church. I pray that they will be able to see how much our church loves Jesus and how much we care about them.

... I am asking the Lord to help me preach with clarity and passion. I want my words to reflect His words. I am praying for few distractions during the message time. I'm praying that people will have soft, receptive hearts.

... I am praying for Kids Praise...

... I am praying for those who will be in our service today who don't yet know the Lord. I pray that today is the day that choose to make Him their Lord.

... I am praying for the testimony a couple pin our church will be doing during the service this morning.

... I am praying, because I know that makes a difference!

Pastor Noel

One Good Year

I'm praying especially for Scott and Heather Parry this morning. They are flying to Dallas today to spend a week at a Fellowship One conference. It should be a beneficial conference. Fellowship One is the software we use to manage church information, track prospects and prospect assignments, facilitate Connect ministry, and some online registrations. It is also the software that will manage our preschool security check-in when the new preschool facility is open.

But the reason I'm praying for Scott and Heather this morning is not just the trip to Dallas. This Sunday will mark Scott's one ear anniversary of serving as our church administrator. Most of scott's work takes place behind the scenes, but his contribution is invaluable to what we do as a church. Two of our recent successes, the amazing results of the Securing Future Disciples financial campaign and this past Sunday's Mother's Day outreach would not have happened without Scott's help.

So join me in praying for this family. Thank the Lord that both of them and their family are such a blessing to our church.

Pastor Noel

A Real Commitment To Prayer

I just had a conversation with Hui Cha, one of our church members who is spending a few weeks back in her home country of North Korea. I asked her to tell me about the churches there. She talked about their passionate love for the Lord and for their concern for lost people. I asked her what she attributed that to, and she told me that most of the churches had a prayer meeting from 5:00 am to 6:00 am six days a week (everyday but Sunday).

That makes me think...

Would we be willing to do that?

How many people would be there each morning?

Pastor Noel

Dead Flies

Ecclesiastes 10:1 (NLT) Dead flies will cause even a bottle of perfume to stink! Yes, an ounce of foolishness can outweigh a pound of wisdom and honor.

Lord, remind me that one hundred right and godly decisions in life, in marriage, and in my family, can be made meaningless with one foolish decision.

Pastor Noel

Babies...

I just looked over an email the church office sent me last night listing thirteen families who have RSVP'd for baby dedication tomorrow. On top of that I know we already have another half dozen we plan to have dedications for this Summer. On top of that I know of at least three pregnant ladies in the church now.

So, what is my point?

I am so thankful to the Lord and to our church for the pending construction of the new preschool ministry suite. You have been so faithful to give to this. I don't recall off the top of my head what the latest total is, but it will be in the bulletin tomorrow. I do know a few thousand dollars more came in this week and that we are well over $100,000 collected for this project in the last couple of months.

Perfect timing... huh?

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I've been praying for the service tomorrow morning. I hope you will join me in this. We are looking for a big crowd and a great opportunity to make an impact in our community.

Pastor Noel

Have you Struggled in Prayer?

Quick note from something I learned in my quiet time this morning...

Have you struggled in prayer? I don't mean, 'have you struggled to pray' or 'have you struggled to remember to pray' or even 'have you struggled to make time to pray'. I mean have you struggled for someone or something in prayer?

This morning I was reading in Colossians and I came across this verse...

Colossians 2:1 (NLT)
I want you to know how much I have agonized for you and for the church at Laodicea, and for many other believers who have never met me personally.

I thought, 'Agonized how?'. When you continue to read and study, you learn that the chief way he agonized for them was in prayer.

Later in the same book, I read this verse...

Colossians 4:12 (NKJV)
12 Epaphras, who is one of you, a bondservant of Christ, greets you, always laboring fervently for you in prayers, that you may stand perfect and complete in all the will of God.

So in these verses, we see Paul agonizing for the Colossians in prayer, and we see Epaphras laboring fervently for them in prayer.

The questions then are... When was the last time I agonized or labored fervently for someone one in prayer? Are my prayers simply reciting a list of concerns? Are there new things I need to learn about prayer?

Pastor Noel

Letter to the Church...

Below is an email I sent to our church members for whom we have an email address on record...

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Dear Church Family,

I'm in my church study preparing for our weekly staff meeting, and I thought I would send out a quick email to the church and share some good news...

First, I just received an email from a lady in our church that felt convicted to go and share Christ with her 95-year-old, Jehovah's Witness aunt. She took her notes from my sermon on the myth "Dead People Go To A Better Place". Her aunt repented of her sins and professed her faith in Christ. Wow!

Some more good news...

Sunday, September 27, was the first day in our new Connect Ministry semester. We had a record attendance of 419 people for the first week! We were up in every age category we measure. We were very grateful for that incredible number but had braced for the number to drop for week two. Guess what... it didn't drop... it went up! When all of the numbers are in, it looks like the total will be between 440 and 450 in small group attendance.

Tomorrow (10/7) I will begin to focus on 1 & 2 Timothy in my daily quiet time videos. If you would like a little help and accountability with your quiet times, check out MyMornings.blogspot.com to see my daily videos. There is an introductory video you can view here and then just join in with the others who are sharing together in our devotions each morning.

This coming Sunday morning I will be continuing my series on "Dumb Things Smart Christians Believe." We will be focusing on the myth: God Forgets All Our Sins. I am looking forward to the day of worship. I hope you will be here with us.

Pastor Wally, Pastor Shawn, Scott, and I will be meeting early tomorrow morning, as we do each Wednesday, to specifically pray for our church members and our community. If you send an email to info@fbcho.com before 6:00 a.m. tomorrow, I promise we will pray especially for you and your need when we gather together.

Pastor Noel

Pastor Fredrick Update III

I received an email a little after midnight last night that said pastor Fredrick had surgery at 10:00 pm Kenya time and is doing well. It didn't give any further details. I'm guessing that is good news.

Pastor Noel

Pastor Fredrick Update II

There has been a lot of confusion today about Pastor Fredrick's situation. He waited all day and they were unable to operate. It isn't clear why. Continue to pray...

Pastor Noel

Pastor Fredrick Update

Here is an email I received early this morning from our team on the ground in Kenya...

Pastor Fredrick is in surgery for appendix @ Kalifi Hop. @ 8 AM this morning. He was taken to Kalifi (was taken to Mombasa first for a good ct scan, then they sent him to Kalifi) the trip to Mombasa started between 10 and 11 pm last night, it was late before they got to Kalifi Hospital.
Mombasa is about one and half hours from here and Kalifi is 45 minutes from here. Mwatete said he will be in the hospital for five days. We will send updates.

Thank you for your prayers.
Your in Christ
John, Sandy, Lisa, and Greg

Congressman Pat Tiberi

In my previous blog, I noted that Congressman Space had agreed to meet with me for prayer in Washington this week. I also want to let you know that Congressman Pat Tiberi has agreed to meet with me this week for a time of prayer as well. I will be meeting with Congressman Tiberi this Thursday at 1:30 p.m. I am very much looking forward to meeting Congressman Tiberi. I am very thankful that he is the Representative from my district!

These two Congressmen, Tiberi and Space, lead the districts that include most of our church members. I submitted requests to our two Senators, and while initially I received confirmations from both of their offices, they have now informed me that they will be unable to meet with me due to scheduling difficulties.

The reason I am traveling to DC is to attend a special briefing for pastors where we will be informed about the behind the scenes status of issues and legislation that our church family and Christians everywhere are most concerned about.

This is a critical time in the history of our nation. This is a critical time for issues such as the sanctity of life, the definition of marriage, and the rights of parents. These are not merely political issues, these are spiritual issues... and biblical issues. Pray that our voice can be heard on these issues. Pray that our political leaders will have the godly wisdom necessary to make the right decisions concerning these issues.

Pastor Noel

Congressman Zack Space

I want to give credit where credit is due...

Congressman Zack Space's office just called to confirm that I could come by his office in D.C. next week to pray with him.*

I appreciate the opportunity. I believe we should all pray for all of our political leaders and I am thankful for those who will take time out of their busy schedules for something like this.

I look forward to praying the that the Lord add daily to the Congressman's wisdom, discernment, and courage. I look forward to praying for him personally, his health and his family. I look forward to praying that the Lord will always reveal Himself to the Congressman such that the Congressman will having a growing knowledge and appreciation of God's goodness and grace.

I ask that you pray for me as I pray for him on Thursday, May 21 at 4:15 p.m..

Pastor Noel


*...although they did also want to confirm that I just wanted to pray with him and not advocate any issues :). I wonder what would make them think I would have any policy issues to debate with the Congressman? Nonetheless, I will honor their request and his time.

Live FBC Heath Prayer Updates

If you want to see live FBC Heath prayer updates you can follow the twitter account 'noeldearprayer' or you can go to the website: www.twitter.com/noeldearprayer.

Pastor Noel

Big Events...

The last half of this week's schedule is packed with events...

• Tonight we have a 'New Member's Class'. We do this every four to six weeks. This is geared for new and prospective members of our church. It lasts about two hours. We have a great time in this class. We go over subjects like... 'how to be certain you are saved', 'what we believe', 'our church's mission and purpose', and 'the nuts and bolts of our church'. There is also a time to meet the church pastors and hear from them how they can minister to families in our church and community.

• Upward Basketball Awards Night is Friday. We have a 6:00 and a 7:30 event to handle the crowd. We are expecting over 1,800 people to attend!

• Sunday Extra Worship begins this Sunday evening at 6:30. This is our new worship service that we have been praying about for several months. As of this Sunday, worship times will be 10:45 a.m., 5:00 p.m., and 6:30 p.m.. The 10:45 and 6:30 services will have the same message.

That gives us much to pray for this week!

By the way, we have had very good response from our big announcement Sunday about our staff reorganization and the adding of Scott Parry to the staff. My plan is to write a letter describing these changes for the bulletin this week. If we are able to get that ready, I will also post it to my blog.

Pastor Noel