Tuesday, August 29, 2006
Saturday, August 26, 2006
Lemonade Stand
My first blog in a month! Last night after having friendly dinner with a few couples from the church, I was thoroughly pummeled for not having posted in the last month. I'll try to do better :).
Today Hannah and Emily ran a lemonade stand on the sidewalk in front of our home to help raise money for Michael & Jonathan George's mission trip to Kenya. I didn't think they would sell a have dozen cups of lemonade all day. I was wrong! Hannah just counted the money she made... $65.19 by selling fifty cent lemonade!
I am proud of both of them. I wondered if Hannah would be tempted to keep some of the money after she counted it and saw how much it was (more money than she has ever had), but she didn't. Couldn't we all learn some lessons from that!
Otherwise it's been a pretty lazy day. The kids stayed at a friend's house last night so Donna and I were able to sleep in. It was nice. I watched the rerun of last year's OSU - Texas football game today. I can't wait until football starts this Thursday.
I'm looking forward to tomorrow. We're still in our morning series on Nehemiah, but we're changing gears a little. As we come to chapter eight, we see the model worship service. Tomorrow we will study that model worship service and see if we can find instructions for how worship should take place each week at our church. In the evening, we will be continuing our Bible Study on the Return of Christ from Matthew 24-25. We will study the nature and timing of the Rapture in this week's message.
Noel
Today Hannah and Emily ran a lemonade stand on the sidewalk in front of our home to help raise money for Michael & Jonathan George's mission trip to Kenya. I didn't think they would sell a have dozen cups of lemonade all day. I was wrong! Hannah just counted the money she made... $65.19 by selling fifty cent lemonade!
I am proud of both of them. I wondered if Hannah would be tempted to keep some of the money after she counted it and saw how much it was (more money than she has ever had), but she didn't. Couldn't we all learn some lessons from that!
Otherwise it's been a pretty lazy day. The kids stayed at a friend's house last night so Donna and I were able to sleep in. It was nice. I watched the rerun of last year's OSU - Texas football game today. I can't wait until football starts this Thursday.
I'm looking forward to tomorrow. We're still in our morning series on Nehemiah, but we're changing gears a little. As we come to chapter eight, we see the model worship service. Tomorrow we will study that model worship service and see if we can find instructions for how worship should take place each week at our church. In the evening, we will be continuing our Bible Study on the Return of Christ from Matthew 24-25. We will study the nature and timing of the Rapture in this week's message.
Noel
Saturday, July 29, 2006
Vacation Has Ended!
Many of you have wondered why I haven't blogged in the last couple of weeks... one word... VACATION. The girls and I so badly needed a vacation, and we had a good one! I tried to do as little work as possible for two weeks and just focus on the family. We swam, and rode bikes, built sand castles, and played carpet golf, uno, & mancala, for hours and hours.
Hannah (my seven year old) became a true daddy's girl these last two weeks by learning to eat ribs, wings, and raw oysters with her dad!
There are many stories to tell some other time...
We left Myrtle Beach yesterday morning at 7:00 a.m. and due to criss crossing the country to see relatives and a traffic jam north of Charleston, WV, we didn't get back home until 2:00 a.m. this morning. Needless to say we're a little tired.
Right now, I'm locked up in my super secret hidden bunker catching up on stuff that needs to be done before Sunday. (I'm really just in my study, but don't tell anyone.) I'm starting a series of messages from the book of Nehemiah tomorrow morning. I believe God has a message for us as we start this new church year, and I believe we will see that message as we go through Nehemiah these next few weeks.
Tomorrow night we will start something new. Do you want to know what it is? Come and see :)
Glad to be back...
Pastor Noel
P.S.
Today is the 11th anniversary of my marriage to my wonderful bride!
Hannah (my seven year old) became a true daddy's girl these last two weeks by learning to eat ribs, wings, and raw oysters with her dad!
There are many stories to tell some other time...
We left Myrtle Beach yesterday morning at 7:00 a.m. and due to criss crossing the country to see relatives and a traffic jam north of Charleston, WV, we didn't get back home until 2:00 a.m. this morning. Needless to say we're a little tired.
Right now, I'm locked up in my super secret hidden bunker catching up on stuff that needs to be done before Sunday. (I'm really just in my study, but don't tell anyone.) I'm starting a series of messages from the book of Nehemiah tomorrow morning. I believe God has a message for us as we start this new church year, and I believe we will see that message as we go through Nehemiah these next few weeks.
Tomorrow night we will start something new. Do you want to know what it is? Come and see :)
Glad to be back...
Pastor Noel
P.S.
Today is the 11th anniversary of my marriage to my wonderful bride!
Monday, July 10, 2006
Great Youth Weekend
Something to celebrate...
I spoke with Troy... We had over eighty youth at our youth ministry event on Friday night with three making professions of faith!
WOW!
Keep up the good work, Troy and your youth ministry team.
By the way, on Sunday night, July 23, we have Joel Penton coming to speak to the church and our youth.
Joel is a starting defensive lineman for OSU and a much sought after speaker. You might have seen the feature on him in the Columbus newspaper a couple weeks ago. It will be a great night for our whole church.
Pastor Noel
I spoke with Troy... We had over eighty youth at our youth ministry event on Friday night with three making professions of faith!
WOW!
Keep up the good work, Troy and your youth ministry team.
By the way, on Sunday night, July 23, we have Joel Penton coming to speak to the church and our youth.
Joel is a starting defensive lineman for OSU and a much sought after speaker. You might have seen the feature on him in the Columbus newspaper a couple weeks ago. It will be a great night for our whole church.
Pastor Noel
Good Sunday -- Busy Week
Didn't we have a good day Sunday. Sweet spirit in both services. It was good to see so many people responding Sunday morning, both in the altar and in their seats. We had a great time observing the Lord's Supper last night. Other than me getting carried away with my ten minute message that went forty, I felt like it was a very God-honoring service. I love to watch families serving each other the Lord's Supper.
Remember to pray for Pastor Wally as he is on vacation this week. Pray for all of the missionaries from our church... Tyler & Caleb Sims in Costa Rica; Mike Parry leaving for Tennessee this morning; the Pierponts surrendering to full time missions starting in just a few days; and those preparing to head to the Ukraine in the next few weeks. Pray for our mission church in Thornville. They have two mission teams with them this week, one from close to where I used to live in Alabama. Pray for Pastor Jeff as he gives them leadership.
We have something very exciting planned this Sunday morning. I'll give more details as the week progresses.
On a personal note. Remember my girls, Hannah and Emily, they are with their Grandmother in Alabama. I miss them, but in some ways, it sure is nice having a little bit of a break. Saturday, Donna and I went bike riding on some of the trails in and around Granville. We do this often, but with the kids I have to stop every 200 feet to help them with something and I usually end up tying a rope to Emily's bike and pulling her the last two or three miles. It's much easier with Donna. She is off the training wheels now, and I only had to pull her the last couple hundred yards.
Today is root canal day! Trade places with me?
Pastor Noel
Remember to pray for Pastor Wally as he is on vacation this week. Pray for all of the missionaries from our church... Tyler & Caleb Sims in Costa Rica; Mike Parry leaving for Tennessee this morning; the Pierponts surrendering to full time missions starting in just a few days; and those preparing to head to the Ukraine in the next few weeks. Pray for our mission church in Thornville. They have two mission teams with them this week, one from close to where I used to live in Alabama. Pray for Pastor Jeff as he gives them leadership.
We have something very exciting planned this Sunday morning. I'll give more details as the week progresses.
On a personal note. Remember my girls, Hannah and Emily, they are with their Grandmother in Alabama. I miss them, but in some ways, it sure is nice having a little bit of a break. Saturday, Donna and I went bike riding on some of the trails in and around Granville. We do this often, but with the kids I have to stop every 200 feet to help them with something and I usually end up tying a rope to Emily's bike and pulling her the last two or three miles. It's much easier with Donna. She is off the training wheels now, and I only had to pull her the last couple hundred yards.
Today is root canal day! Trade places with me?
Pastor Noel
Friday, June 30, 2006
Looking Forward to Sunday
Blogging just hasn't fit into the schedule this week. Things have been pretty busy. We've had a ton of people in and out of the hospital including some pretty major stuff. (It is amazing how these things seem to go in spurts.) Everyone seems to be doing fairly well now. Pastor Wally and I are about to head to Columbus for a surgery this morning, but it is expected to go well too.
I'm looking forward to Sunday. In the morning I will be preaching from Acts 17:11 a message titled, "How To Receive The Word of God." Sunday evening, I will be preaching from Ruth 1.
I know the city's big patriotic celebration happens Sunday evening, but I've got a plan. Come to church for the six o'clock service, then around seven, we can all just walk together from the church over to the celebration and get there just in time for the kids to play, the adults to have a pop and a coney or maybe a brat (for my southern readers, email me and I'll explain what those are), then we can watch the fireworks show from the field behind the church...
If you have password access to the prayer wall, keep a check on it through the day for medical updates on members having surgery.
Pastor Noel
I'm looking forward to Sunday. In the morning I will be preaching from Acts 17:11 a message titled, "How To Receive The Word of God." Sunday evening, I will be preaching from Ruth 1.
I know the city's big patriotic celebration happens Sunday evening, but I've got a plan. Come to church for the six o'clock service, then around seven, we can all just walk together from the church over to the celebration and get there just in time for the kids to play, the adults to have a pop and a coney or maybe a brat (for my southern readers, email me and I'll explain what those are), then we can watch the fireworks show from the field behind the church...
If you have password access to the prayer wall, keep a check on it through the day for medical updates on members having surgery.
Pastor Noel
Monday, June 26, 2006
What A Weekend!!!
Great weekend. What a joy it was to celebrate our 50th Anniversary as a church. I met people who had traveled from Florida, Alabama, North Carolina, South Carolina, Kentucky, West Virginia, and all parts of Ohio to be with us for the weekend.
Former pastor Ferguson and Hix did an outstanding job preaching in our Saturday evening service. For members and music pastors did a great job singing. Our 50th Anniversary team could not have put together a better weekend for our church.
They tell me we had nearly 400 people in worship on Saturday evening, and although I don't have the official numbers yet this morning, it seemed like we had twice that on Sunday morning.
Thanks to all who made the weekend what it was!
Pastor Noel
Former pastor Ferguson and Hix did an outstanding job preaching in our Saturday evening service. For members and music pastors did a great job singing. Our 50th Anniversary team could not have put together a better weekend for our church.
They tell me we had nearly 400 people in worship on Saturday evening, and although I don't have the official numbers yet this morning, it seemed like we had twice that on Sunday morning.
Thanks to all who made the weekend what it was!
Pastor Noel
Monday, June 19, 2006
Current Events
Today's News Headline:
New US church leader says homosexuality no sin
I will discuss this and give a 'convention report' in our upcoming Wednesday night service.
Pastor Noel
New US church leader says homosexuality no sin
I will discuss this and give a 'convention report' in our upcoming Wednesday night service.
Pastor Noel
50th Anniversary
I thank the Lord for the sweet spirit we had in our services yesterday and especially in the business meetting last night. One person made a profession of faith in the AM service, that was good news. It was great to hear Bill Marriot share about his brother and sister-in-law making a profession of faith last week. That was a real answer to prayer. I was really encouraged by the response of the church when I shared in the morning service the parking lot details that I shared in the previous blog.
Overall, it was a pretty good Sunday.
This is a busy week upcoming, especially with our 50th Anniversary Services this weekend. We will have a great time this week. I'll try to list the ministers who will be returning for the weekend in a blog later in the week.
Pray that all will go well.
Pastor Noel
P.S. For my FBC Heath readers... remember Margaret Williams' open heart surgery scheduled for tomorrow (Tuesday).
Overall, it was a pretty good Sunday.
This is a busy week upcoming, especially with our 50th Anniversary Services this weekend. We will have a great time this week. I'll try to list the ministers who will be returning for the weekend in a blog later in the week.
Pray that all will go well.
Pastor Noel
P.S. For my FBC Heath readers... remember Margaret Williams' open heart surgery scheduled for tomorrow (Tuesday).
Friday, June 16, 2006
Praising God for a Parking Lot
I pulled into the church this morning and finally got to see the completed parking lot. It looks so good. The water/drainage problem is solved; new striping; new parking surface for part of the lot; resealing for part of the lot...
To some this may not seem like a big deal, but it is! How long have we struggled with the drainage problems and the eye sore? How long has the poor condition of our parking lot been a bad reflection on the excellence and majesty of the Lord we serve? How long have the parking and drainage needs hung over the finances of our church like a dark cloud?
I praise God for His provision. This is an example of what God can do through His people when we are obedient and sacrificial. All total the renovation will total somewhere just under $50,000. (We will have a finacial statement available soon.) We did this, along with all of the other improvements and the welcome center, while at the same time paying about seven times more toward our indebtedness than we did in the same time last year. And we have done all this with CASH over and above our budget! Just in the past three weeks, you have contributed over $6,000 further to this project!
Thank you for your willingness; your faithfullness... and His Goodness!
Pastor Noel
To some this may not seem like a big deal, but it is! How long have we struggled with the drainage problems and the eye sore? How long has the poor condition of our parking lot been a bad reflection on the excellence and majesty of the Lord we serve? How long have the parking and drainage needs hung over the finances of our church like a dark cloud?
I praise God for His provision. This is an example of what God can do through His people when we are obedient and sacrificial. All total the renovation will total somewhere just under $50,000. (We will have a finacial statement available soon.) We did this, along with all of the other improvements and the welcome center, while at the same time paying about seven times more toward our indebtedness than we did in the same time last year. And we have done all this with CASH over and above our budget! Just in the past three weeks, you have contributed over $6,000 further to this project!
Thank you for your willingness; your faithfullness... and His Goodness!
Pastor Noel
Wednesday, June 14, 2006
Convention Finale
Great finale! Sixteen hundred person choir, Casting Crowns, and eighty-four banners!
The new president was introduced tonight. I was hoping he would say something that would indicate his heart and direction. He didn't. I am trusting and praying that he will be what our convention needs. Time will tell.
Heading home tomorrow.
Noel Dear
noel@fbcho.com
pastordear@blogspot.com
Casting Crowns
For all of you Casting Crown fans...
I am sitting in a front row seat as they do their sound check for a concert they will do in a couple hours which I will also see from the front row.
Those of you who know me well know that it was Donna's choice to sit here. I wanted to sit in the back. The last time I sat in the front row of a concert was in the early ninety's. It was an Amy Grant - Michael W somebody concert. I was a youth minister. I quit the youth ministry shortly afterwards.
Noel Dear
noel@fbcho.com
pastordear@blogspot.com
Facing the Giants
I saw a special screening of the movie today (see previous blog entry). It was a great movie. I can't wait for it to come out in theaters. Already hundreds have made professions of faith at a couple of public test screenings. It is a good witness to people of all ages, especially students and young families. It has much less of a geographical limit than Flywheel. I think people from any part of the country can relate to this movie.
Noel Dear
noel@fbcho.com
pastordear@blogspot.com
Wednesday
Not much exciting going on at the convention this morning. Tonight should be good.
This afternoon I'm going to a special pre-screening of the upcoming movie 'Facing the Giants'. Check out the web page for this movie (www.FacingTheGiants.com). It should be a great movie. It will hit theaters in September. I've seen the othe movie written and produced by the same person. That movie, Flywheel, was a great movie and a great Christian witness.
Frank Paige was elected pesident of the convention yesterday. I am not sure if that is a good or bad thing. Something happened last night that made me feel better about him. I will write more when I know more.
Noel Dear
noel@fbcho.com
pastordear@blogspot.com
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