Pastor’s Report, July
2013
The arrival of summer signals the return of some of our
seasonal friends to the Boothbay region and to our church. This summer is also a time of transition as
we continue to work through the prescriptions that resulted from the Ministry
Mapping visit of CBMissionNE. As a part
of that process we will be considering at today’s meeting the adoption of a
Mission statement and a Vision statement that were developed in response to the
feedback we received. A committee presented a recommendation to the elders
which was approved for presentation to the church. The value of such statements
is that they help us as a church family to understand more clearly our purpose
and then to evaluate how our ministries can work together to move us in the
direction that God would have us to go.
For any church it is essential that together we can affirm and embrace a
common vision and a clear understanding of our mission. It is our hope that
these statements can be a step in that direction.
As we have begun our fourth year with Boothbay Baptist Church
my ministry has continued to focus on the basics of preaching the Word and
encouraging the saints. I’ve enjoyed the process of preaching through the
Gospel of John and that series will conclude this Sunday. The next “series”
will be shorter, as we turn to the practical and challenging letter of
James. James will challenge us to
consider what authentic faith looks like. On every Wednesday morning at 6:30 AM we have
a coffee and prayer time for men at the parsonage. This group has consistently
been small, but is a great time to be together for a brief time in the Word,
and especially to pray together. At 6:30 PM at our regular church Prayer
Meeting we’ve continued our devotional series in Psalms and then spend time
together praying for the needs of our church, our missionaries, and our
country.
I have also been available for counseling for individuals and
couples. One scriptural admonition that we should all take to heart is “to bear
one another’s burdens, and so fulfill the law of Christ” (Galatians 6:2). I
have been encouraged to see how many in our fellowship take that admonition to
heart, reaching out to brothers and sisters in times of need. We all have those
moments. We are created for community, as a family, as the body of Christ, and
need the support, encouragement, and admonition of our brothers and sisters to
become all that the Lord intends us to be. The enemy would prefer to isolate us
and “pick us off” in our times of weakness.
One avenue toward genuine fellowship is the informal opportunities we
have to visit, spend time together as families, share meals together, in
general, to be involved in each other’s lives. Those spontaneous and relaxed
times of sharing together are essential to deepening our relationships. Is it
true of our church that by our “love for one another” people know that we are
Christ’s disciples (see John 13:35)? It should be! By the way, I’ve enjoyed tutoring one of our
men in biblical Greek on a weekly basis. I am open to such “one on one”
sessions if others have interest. In relation to that I’ve been asked to teach
intermediate Greek this year at New England Bible College. In consultation with
the elders I plan to begin that in September, on Thursday mornings.
We are also looking forward to the restarting of our small
group ministry in the fall. We have some groups (including ours, on Thursday
evenings at the parsonage) that have continued through the summer and others
that are looking toward a Fall restart. These groups are a great context in
which “church” can happen, as we spend time together in the Word, learning from
each other, discovering and developing our spiritual gifts, and praying
together. Please talk to me or an elder about leading, hosting, or attending a
small group.
Be encouraged as we seek God’s will and share in His mission
together.
Your co-workers in Christ,
Pastor Steve and Mary Ann
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