From the Pastor's Heart
Pastor Dalton 9/19/2024
Church Family,
Psalm 19:14 says, "Let the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart be acceptable in your sight, O LORD, my rock and my redeemer." This verse is the last verse of Psalm 19 where the Psalmist has declared the glory of God in creation and the written Law. The psalmist was declaring the awesomeness of God as he dwelled upon these things, and that was where he wanted his heart to dwell continually. Now this final verse is challenging. I'm sure we would all desire the same thing and this could be our prayer as well. But how hard is it? Controlling the tongue is one thing, but controlling the meditations of the heart? That's even harder! Which is why this ought to be our prayer. We need the Lord to keep our heart focused and then by connection, our words pure. We need grace each day to live a life that is acceptable in the sight of God. So let's pray this verse together today!
As for announcements, I don't know about you, but I had a blast at Homecoming! We had a packed house, and the singing was great! Thank you for coming and singing! It was also a good time in the word with Rev. John Watkins as he encouraged us to reflect on how we love the Lord. And finally, the fellowship meal afterwards was a huge spread and it was delicious! So thank you to everyone who brought a dish and helped with setup/cleanup! It was a great celebration, and we praise the Lord for it!
Second, this coming Saturday morning we will have a Men's Breakfast at 8am. It will be a smaller breakfast and we will have some time in the Word as well as time for fellowship. So, if you're a man and able to join us, then come on! We will start right at 8.
Finally, I do want to encourage you to attend the Saluda Baptist Association Annual Celebration on October 6 at First Baptist Church of Iva. The ministry fair will begin at 4pm and the service will start at 6pm and is scheduled to go until about 7:30pm. During the time you'll get to hear about all the work the association has been doing, and it's also a great time of worship. Dr. Tony Wolfe, the Executive Director of the South Carolina Baptist Convention, will be preaching that evening, so if you haven't met or seen him, this a good opportunity to do that as well! So carpool if you need to, but come on and join us down in Iva on October 6.
With that, I'll see you Sunday!
--
Serving Him,
Pastor Dalton
Hopewell Baptist
Pastor Dalton 9/12/2024
Church Family,
1 Corinthians 15:9 says, "For I am the least of the apostles, because I persecuted the church of God." Here Paul is reminding the Corinthians of how the gospel was preached, and he recounts his own salvation. The thing I find fascinating here is that Paul consistently remained humble in his letters, although from our perspective, he is the most fruitful apostle! He wrote 13 letters in the New Testament, and he was responsible for bringing the gospel to many churches in Macedonia and all the way to Rome. By worldly standards, he is the man! And yet, Paul didn't look at himself from a worldly perspective, but rather, he looked at himself as he was in Christ. And there, Paul saw himself as the least of them all. In a culture that is all about self-esteem and focusing on you, maybe we need to take notes from Paul. We need to look at who we are in Christ and that will humble us, and exalt our joy in Christ!
As for announcements, Homecoming is here! This coming Sunday we will be celebrating 221 years. So make sure to bring the dish that you signed up for and come ready to sing and worship the Lord! I'm excited about it!
Second, the Men's Ministry will be having breakfast on Saturday September 21. So if you're a man, then make plans to come and join us for that time of food and fellowship. We are hoping to do these more regularly than we have in the past as we seek to encourage and exhort one another.
Finally, the Saluda Baptist Association Annual meeting will be October 6 at First Baptist Iva. They will have a ministry fair that begins at 4pm, and then the service will begin at 5:30pm. If you're able, I want to encourage you to come a join us at this special meeting. It will be a time of worship, you'll learn about the work that's been done, and you'll get to hear the new Executive Director of the South Carolina Baptist Convention, Dr. Tony Wolfe, deliver a message from the Word of God! So mark it on your calendar and plan to be there.
With that, I'll see you on Sunday!
--Serving Him,
Pastor Dalton
Hopewell Baptist
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