Highland Lakes church of Christ

WEDNESDAY EVENING BIBLE CLASS

Proposed Schedule for Wednesday Evening Bible Classes

October 7th — Kynn Maxwell

October 14th — Joe Winnett

Come and assemble with your brethren on Wednesday night for a spiritual uplift! Speakers will bring devotional messages followed by congregational singing.

BEAUTIFUL FOOTNOTES

MISSION WORK AND PRAYER

Weekly we encourage prayer for different mission works. Recently our Cambodian missionary Dennis Welch shared some powerful thoughts about the role of prayer in mission work. Read this week’s part of it, consider your prayers and keep praying. For the elders, Ken D

Prayer is mysterious. No way around it. No matter how much we read about it in scripture, read books or hear presentations about it, or practice the various forms developed through the ages by prayer sages, none of us really understands it. Not really. It doesn’t work like a Coke machine. Sometimes if feels like a slot machine, but we know that is not right either. It is a personal interaction with the Creator of the universe who is constantly monitoring over 7 billion humans on just this one planet, and who knows how many spiritual beings or other creatures on other planets in this vast universe flung over countless light years. We cannot understand it or master it.

This is not like talking to other people. It is communicating in the spiritual realm from spirit to Spirit, but it is something we can’t do without using our bodies. It is talking, but it transcends words or even groans. It involves listening but not hearing. It involves vision but not seeing. When we’ve done it, we aren’t sure what has happened, if anything. And when something we’ve asked for takes place, we can never know for sure what role our request played, if any.

For those of us who are of a rationalist orientation, that is frustrating. Perhaps that is why churches from heavily rational traditions would rather preach than pray. I think we need to acknowledge that prayer can be frustrating. It can be boring. But so can anything else if done regularly, including riding roller coasters. Still, it is also powerful and faith-developing, especially when we see what we prayed for happen in dramatic fashion.

For those of us who work in the world of missions and ministry (a distinction with little meaningful difference), we need to understand that prayer is not something we do in preparation to our work. Prayer is our work. Prayer is not something we do to support mission work. Prayer is mission work. Prayer is not just a prelude to setting strategy. Prayer is our strategy or should be. Prayer immerses us in God and joins our spirit to his Spirit as we join his work in the world. Once we grasp this, living out mission without immersion in prayer will become obviously ludicrous.

Toward this end, I think it is helpful to think about three ways God is with us in prayer. We might call this the prayer trinity as we commune with the Trinity. This concept is not original to me, but it has been so long ago that I first heard and began to approach prayer this way that I’ve long ago lost the source. That person was likely not the original source either.

Praying to the Father before us: As we enter prayer we need to picture the one before us. When we kneel or bow in prayer it is because we are addressing the Almighty who would terrify us beyond speech if we had not come to know Him as Father in Jesus. We come onto holy ground, with or without shoes, and make ourselves vulnerable to a consuming fire as we bring our needs, hopes, sins, fear, requests, and bodies to the one who made us. God the Father is before us. He is the source of our life and power. We come asking. There is no shame in this. Most of the Lord’s prayer is composed of requests. But it is more than a shopping list. It is seeking his blessing, his assurance, his empowerment, and his wisdom. We come needy to the one who has everything. We come foolish and uncertain to the one with all wisdom. We bow before the Father who is good but not safe. God is before us. We speak to him and connect with him as unworthy servants.

(Continued next week)

Wednesday Evening Bible Classes Schedule

September 30th — Troy Futrell

October 7th — Kynn Maxwell

October 14th — Joe Winnett

Come and assemble with your brethren on Wednesday night for a spiritual uplift! Speakers will bring devotional messages followed by congregational singing.

BEAUTIFUL FOOTNOTES

Evangelism and Edify

We always need to be mindful of our need as God’s people to help evangelize the lost and to edify them and our fellow Christians. Always be aware of our support of the Holy Spirit and pray for our dedication to evangelism and edification.  For the elders, Ken D

Do We Evangelize and Edify?

“But Peter and John answered them, „Whether it is right in the sight of God to listen to you rather than to God, you must judge, for we cannot but speak of what we have seen and heard‟” (Acts 4:19-20).

On the day of Pentecost, the Holy Spirit was poured out on those gathered all together in one place and then was promised to all believers who would repent and be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of sins.

Emboldened by God’s presence dwelling within them, they chose to go forth as Jesus had commanded and make disciples of all nations. The Holy Spirit did not take them over and make them do anything. That’s not how God works. It’s not recorded that any of them snapped out of a hypnotic-like state to discover that they had been preaching the gospel.

Just days before Pentecost, when the resurrected Christ ascended into heaven, His bewildered followers must have been terrified to receive the orders to evangelize and edify, but what a change after the Spirit-filled church was established!

Since God’s Spirit that emboldened them is also given to us, why do we act as if we do not have it? Since we have received the gift of the Holy Spirit, do we evangelize and edify?

THANK YOU NOTE

Dear Church Family,

Thank you so very much for your caring, prayers and cards to comfort me in the loss of my beloved Guy. He loved the Lord and all of you so much.

Love, Charlotte and family

CORPORATE MEETING

All members are encouraged to stay a short while after our Sunday, September 20th worship assembly for the Annual Corporate Meeting. Thank you!

WITH SYMPATHY

Kay Parker’s grandson, Noel Parker, at age 29, passed away on Saturday, September 12th, after struggling with muscular dystrophy for many years. Kay tells us that God had blessed him with great intelligence and a warm and kind disposition. He will be greatly missed by many, esp. his parents who had been great caretakers. They had also visited our worship assembly.

Our condolences, love and prayers go out to Kay, Noel’s parents, family and to all who knew and loved him.

WEDNESDAY EVENING BIBLE CLASS SCHEDULE

September 23rd — Cary Miller

September 30th — Troy Futrell

October 7th — Kynn Maxwell

October 14th — Joe Winnett

Come and assemble with your brethren on Wednesday night for a spiritual uplift! Speakers will bring devotional messages followed by congregational singing.

Still required:  Wearing masks and social distancing!

BEAUTIFUL FOOTNOTES

Adventures in Missions Prayer Requests

One of the privileges we always have is to take our prayers on behalf of others to the Father. 2 Thessalonians 1:11 (ESV): “To this end we always pray for you, that our God may make you worthy of his calling and may fulfill every resolve for good and every work of faith by his power”. Below are some prayer requests from our AIMer, Kaylee Hankins, on behalf of those she is very concerned about. Kaylee and her team will be headed to Witchita Falls very soon to begin working with the church there. Please include her, her team and her requests in your daily prayers. For the elders, Ken D

Hey y’all!

This isn’t a typical newsletter, just prayer requests. There’s a family that’s serving as missionaries in their hometown, Seattle, WA. A family member of that team was shot in the back. The bullet hit her spine, her airways, and lodged next to her heart. They’ve had procedures done to keep her stable. She has a breathing tube and a feeding tube. The last update I had a couple days ago was that they couldn’t remove the bullet in fear of putting her at more risk. She’s a cousin to one of my classmates who’s an AIMer in Arlington. He said she’s just 16 years old. They are a strong family, but I know with the help of prayer peace will fall upon them.

Another prayer request…I’m sure you all have heard about the West Coast fires that have been destroying so many homes, businesses, and lands. I’ve had so many friends to be affected by this. My teammate, Logan Peugh, is from Medford, Oregon. It was confirmed yesterday that her and her family lost their home due to the fire. She’s been evacuated from a few more different cities. This is devastating to a family, losing everything just over night. Also, her father has Crohn’s disease. About a month ago, it flared up really bad and he had to undergo two surgeries. He is starting to keep food down now, but not much. She said when she was a toddler, they almost lost him. So it’s pretty serious for her family and very scary. Her dad’s name is Glen. I’m going to have a GoFundMe page setup tomorrow for her and her family. Just something that can help buy them new clothes and food. Logan is still preparing to come to Wichita Falls, but she has nothing to pack with her. They didn’t have time to grab anything, and I know whatever we raise, it’ll benefit them so much.

I ask for prayers for Team Brazil for peace. My best friend is supposed to be going to that field. However due to the virus, we don’t know what’s going to happen. Everything keeps changing for everyone. She has a meeting Friday with the director of AIM and her team to make the final decision whether or not to wait until Brazil is ready or to send them to a stateside field.

And finally for my field. We are all arriving the weekend of the 18th-19th of this month. The apartment we applied for wasn’t ready for us last week. We are eager to move in together and get started. Prayers for safe travels and enough support raised for each of us. And just special prayers for Logan. She’s handling so much at the moment.

Thank you so much for all your prayers!

Still Following,

Kaylee H.

WELCOME NEW MEMBER!

Bill Christian let us know last Sunday that he wanted to place membership with us at our Highland Lakes congregation. Bill is Wanda Christians’ dad.  We welcome you, Bill, to our fellowship, work and worship of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ!   Please add to your directory his information which is available from the church office.

WEDNESDAY EVENING BIBLE CLASS

Resuming Wednesday Evening Bible Classes on September 16th

A series of teachers will take turns delivering devotional messages of their choice during the first 30 minutes of class time, followed by 15 minutes of congregational singing

Our proposed schedule:

September 16th — Ken Darnell

September 23rd — Cary Miller

September 30th — Troy Futrell

October 7th — Kynn Maxwell

October 14th — Joe Winnett

We are still required: Wearing masks and social distancing!  If you feel comfortable assembling with your brethren, please mark September 16th on your calendar!

BEAUTIFUL FOOTNOTES

GOSPEL CHARIOT UPDATE

Some exciting news as George Funk shares from the Gospel Chariot ministry, which we have long supported. Continue to pray for these efforts as they help spread the gospel. For the elders, Ken D

Hi everyone,

Hope this finds you doing well. This is just a short update on the vision going forward and it is all very exciting as we spread the wonderful name of Jesus throughout the world. For us to do this we have to have new vision and our plan and goal is as follows:

GOING GLOBAL

As you know we are an African work with 15 Gospel Chariots going into 26 countries that baptizes more than 3,000 souls a year and helps plant around 30 churches a year. Our strength has to be our method of taking Africans to reach Africa. That said, I have worked my way out of a job to a certain degree and am now working on taking Gospel Chariot Missions global and more specifically into Asian Pacific countries, and that is if it is the Lord’s Will. Please pray for this.

GOING DISCIPLESHIP MULTIPLICATION

This is something that is long overdue. We have always been very evangelistic. That is why we have so many chariots, but we have always lacked the knowledge on how to equip leaders who equip other leaders and especially them equipping ordinary members on how to share the gospel in a simple, biblical and reproducible way and I am glad to say that God has blessed me with some years of searching and praying and being trained and today this training is spreading like wildfire throughout Africa and now India and the Philippines. Once we were STUCK, but now God has released us and what is most amazing, a lot of our training has been done during the Covid lockdown. Talk about God’s hand. We, as a ministry, can’t wait to get those chariots back on the road, because there will be double trouble for the evil one as we will not only have chariots traveling, but also intensive discipleship training taking place wherever the chariots travel, but not only that, many of us are now multiplication trainers that work online, training disciples and helping start new churches from our homes wherever we might be. This is sooooo exciting. Please pray for this.

GOING DIGITAL TRANSFORMATION

This is exactly what I have just said. It is where we are doubling up our efforts by not only having gospel meetings and planting new churches, but now we are training trainers on how to go from Addition to Multiplication through discipleship multiplication and much of this is online, meaning we can equip and work with leaders before we even get there with the gospel chariots. Digital transformation is where we will now integrate digital technology into all areas of our outreach resulting in fundamental changes to how we operate and this will allow us to equip and release leaders who train and equip others and even those in areas we cannot take a gospel chariot into due to the countries being Muslim and some unstable countries.

WITH SYMPATHY

Our heartfelt prayers, sympathy and love go out to Charlotte Hastings, as, last week, her husband, Guy, passed from this life into the arms of Jesus.

We will miss Guy who was always willing to serve His Lord, and he did so in the Food Pantry and World Bible School. He was always ready to go to church, to him it was a place of comfort and rest.

A memorial service will take place sometime in the future.

Margaret Hunter, Sheri Zoller’s mother-in-law, passed away at her home in Dillion, Texas. She was close to 90 years old. Funeral arrangements will be known at a later date.

Our love, sympathy and prayers go out to Sheri and to all in the extended family.

BEAUTIFUL FOOTNOTES

NIGERIA PRAYER REQUEST

We must remember to always be keeping our fellow Christians in our prayers for their faithfulness and protection in often difficult situations around the world. Our brother Sylvester Imogoh reports on the dangerous concerns they have in Nigeria as Christians. Please always pray for them and others around the world for God’s care for his people. For the Elders, Ken D.

Please share this with our brethren and let them know that we continue to ask for prayers for Nigeria, for our safety and security. The situation as described in the news is far worse in reality. All these have been a part of the insecurities that I have been reporting. Especially our county is the gateway to the Middle Belt (of west Africa). We are less than an hour and a half to the city of Lokoja which is called the Confluence City because it is located at the meeting point of the two great Rivers Niger and Benue that divides Nigeria into two thus: The predominantly Muslim North and the predominantly Christian South. But right now Muslim militia and terrorists have circulated virtually everywhere in the North and South. Life for most people is unsafe. Ordinary trips to the market, farms and other places of economic activities are now dangerous. And this is worsening the state of poverty and suffering. We are living every day at a time and looking forward to the day that God in His Providence would intervene. Otherwise, no one knows when they would strike!!!! ~~ Sylvester Imogoh