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Growing in Our Faith
A Church With A Future In The Making
Lighting the Way
Page 1
The First Baptist Church of Owego, N.Y. Volume 19 Issue 10 June 2013
Saturday, June 15th—”Adam’s Rib”
We are still displaced from space, however; the tradition continues….
CONGRATULATIONS
Patrick Brown—
our pianist
graduated from
SUNY Binghamton
Karen Crandall ,
daughter of Scott
Crandall, graduates from Owego
Free Academy
This year the menu is:
Hotdog [Plain, Chili, Sauerkraut]
Chips
Soda
Bottled Water
Helping hands are needed to help set-up the food tent on
the front corner of the lawn, serve during the fest on Saturday and then tear down again at the close of the festival
Saturday afternoon.
Your presence will help to re-build this church and make
this fundraiser a success!!
Please let us know if we have
overlooked anyone who may be
graduating this year.
See page 7 for more that is “happening” at the First Baptist
Church Owego during the Strawberry Fest.
Inside this issue
Vacation Bible School
at First Baptist!
July 29th - July 1st
See Page 7
From the Pastor’s Desk
2
Serving God Together
3
Missions
4
Missions
5
American Baptist Women
6
Strawberry Festival
7
This n That
8
Lighting the Way
Let’s see – where
were we? Oh, yes. I
was ‘talking’ about a
couple of paths the
Lord put me on
when, years ago, I knew things had to
change. I knew I was not born and
saved and called for the rut that I was
in. I cried out to God and He took me
down these paths in the ensuing
months.
The First Path: I shared about this in
May’s Newsletter. It was the path that
taught me to get serious about giving as
seed that I was sowing. I’m still doing it
and God is still Blessing!!! Praise His
Name!
The Second Path: This path was all
about my learning to Pray ‘The Prayer
Of Jabez.’ Here is the Text – 9 Jabez was
more respected than his brothers. His
mother had named him Jabez. She had
said, “I was in a lot of pain when he was
born.” 10 Jabez cried out to the God of
Israel. He said, “I wish you would bless
me. I wish you would give me more
territory. Let your powerful hand be
with me. Keep me from harm. Then I
won’t have any pain.” God gave him
what he asked for. ~ I Chronicles 4:9-10
(NIRV)
Jabez asked God for BIG TIME
BLESSINGS – of God’s Own
choosing! In the Hebrew, the
thought is A LOT OF BLESSINGS! We don’t know the details that followed, but God
said, ‘Yes’ to this petition.
Jabez asked God for MORE TERRITORY – a bigger farm or ranch,
a bigger business. Again, we
don’t know the details that
followed, but God said, ‘Yes’ to
this petition.
.
Growing in Our Faith
A Church With A Future In The Making
Jabez asked God for HIS HANDS
OF ANOINTING to be all
over him. Guess what!
Again, we don’t know the
details that followed, but
God said, ‘Yes’ to this petition.
Lastly, Jabez asked God to KEEP
HIM FROM HARM AND PAIN
– evil, sin, wickedness; I believe from doing such and
from experiencing such.
You got it! Again, we don’t
know the details that followed, but God said, ‘Yes’ to
this petition.
I ‘double-dog-dare you’ to ask God
for BIG THINGS! Big Blessings of all
the kinds that He has at His disposal.
Ask God for a bigger business, a bigger Ministry, a greater influence, for
your life to make a bigger impact for
His Glory than anything you have
ever before experienced or imagined. Ask God to put His hands all
over your life – AND THEN WATCH
OUT! Ask God for His BIG TIME PROTECTION! There is a lot of evil, harm,
and pain on all fronts. God can keep
you such. Don’t be timid or fearful of
approaching our VERY BIG GOD with
VERY BIG RERQUESTS. God gave
Jabez what he asked for. I continue
to believe He will give me what I’m
asking for. I follow the Jabez pattern
often when I Pray.
I’m asking God to give me Owego for
His Glory. I’m asking God to usher in
Revival in Owego and in The Historic
First Baptist Church Of Owego. I’m
asking God to give me Tanzania for
His Glory. I’m asking God for more
and more houses and lands and assets. I’m asking God to give me the
desires of His Heart. I’m asking God
the Holy Ghost to possess me. I’m
asking God for Kingdom health and
Blessings through-out my body – my
person. I’m asking God to touch the
world through me
Page 2
I’m asking God to help the likes of me
(sinful man that I am) so that He will be
Glorified all over the earth – so that
‘He’ll come out looking good’ wherever
my feet shall go and wherever my word
(His Word through me) shall be heard.
What are YOU asking God for? If your
Prayers – and mine – are not asking
God for something BIG I believe our
Prayers are an insult to Him. If your
Prayers – and mine – are not asking
God for something BIG I believe our
concept of God is way too small!
What just might happen in your life and
in our Church if we all seriously Prayed
‘The Prayer Of Jabez’ daily for thirty
days. The challenge is for all of us to do
just that for the entire month of June!
Are you up to it? God is. Watch out,
Owego, this Church is ‘coming alive!’
God Bless! - P.
T.
Lighting the Way
First Baptist Church
228 Main St.
Owego, NY 13827
607-687-4394
e-mail: [email protected]
http://www.fbcowego.org
Facebook:
http://facebook.com/firstbaptistowego
Rev. G. Terry Steenburg
Rodger Fritz
Daisyanna Fritz
David Berry
Patrick Brown
Marilyn Murray
Pastor
Moderator
Church Clerk
Choir Director
Pianist
Office Manager
Church Office Hours: Tues-Thurs 10am-3pm
Marilyn Murray
Newsletter Editor
Deadline for letters and articles is the third
Sunday of the month.
Growing in Our Faith
A Church With A Future In The Making
Lighting the Way
Page 3
Prayer & Fellowship
The importance of prayer
Prayer is the Christian’s life. Though every other ordinance be attended to, yet if this one be neglected, all is in vain. It is as impossible
for the soul to be spiritually alive and active without a punctual course
of fervent and believing prayer, as for the body to be alive and active
without breath.
Prayer has more influence on the sanctification of the soul than all
other ordinances. It is going directly to God to receive the life-giving
Spirit according to an absolute and often repeated promise: “Ask, and
it shall be given to you; seek, and ye shall find; knock, and it shall be
opened unto you.”
—Edward Griffin
Owego Community Prayer
for Revival.
Always the last Tuesday of the
month @ 7:00pm
June 25: ?
July 30: St. Paul’s Episcopal
August 27: Sword & The Spirit
September 24: Owego Nazarene
Church
October 29: Tree of Life
November 26: ?
December 30 [Monday]: FBO
“Simple Supper and Prayer”
Wednesday Night
Weekly at 5:45 to 7:00pm
We very much need to be in the spirit of prayer.
Come and spend just one hour, you don't have to pray out loud and
we have great fellowship too.
We usually have pizza & soda but always open for suggestions.
Come on along as we seek our saviors face.
Board & Committee
Meetings
Sunday, June 9th
Deacons
Following Sunday Worship Service.
Saturday, June 22nd @ 9:00am
Board of Managers Breakfast
meeting [Admiral Clark Room,
Owego Treadway]
Sunday, June 16th
Executive Council
Following Sunday Worship Service.
Christian Education TBA
Music Committee TBA
Thank you to all who are faithful
in serving on these Committees
and Boards.
Lighting the Way
Growing in Our Faith
A Church With A Future In The Making
Page 4
One Great Hour of Sharing
Sharing Brings Joy: To Us, To Others, To God
“God is able to provide you with every blessing in abundance, so that by always having
enough of everything, you may share abundantly in every good work.” (2 Corinthians 9:8)
The One Great Hour of Sharing Offering (OGHS) will be received as the Deacon’s Offering on June 2.
This American Baptist offering is used to provide for the human needs of the world, such as emergency relief, development projects and refugee ministries.
Have you ever wished for an extra hand? – Like when you have something in one hand and you need
the other hand to turn a door knob or hold the door open, and you need a third hand to turn on the light,
scratch your nose, or help someone else?
Magicians have such a thing! They have a “device” which can be used to create that third hand. Then
the magician can do something which requires two hands and still have another hand to
do the trick, which of course then amazes the audience.
The OGHS is like a third hand. The offering can extend my hands to places they can
never go and it even stretches my hands to many different places at once. Through my
sharing, I can extend my hands for tornado damage relief in Alabama, flood relief in Thailand, hunger relief in the Sudan or Somalia, civil war relief in the Middle East, and countless other places and purposes.
But the offering is not magic; it’s a miracle! It is truly miraculous that someone feeling “pain” at the gas
pump in the United States will give hard-earned money to pay for a water pump in Africa. It’s a miracle that
someone with an electric blanket will generously give five dollars or five thousand dollars for one or one
thousand blankets for people they don’t even know. It’s a miracle that the face of a hungry child can move
a mountain of money when generous hearts are touched.
OGHS gives us the extra hand we need. It’s a miracle of God’s generous love poured on us and through
us to all God’s children.
As we take part in the OGHS Offering, we join Christians around the nation in multiplying
our gifts for the common good. Our sharing embodies the compassion to which Jesus calls us.
Together our gifts nurture stronger futures and self sufficiency through health care, education,
job training, and tools for livelihoods.
Together, our gifts bring safety, shelter, and food to refugees after circumstances have made
their hometowns uninhabitable.
Together, our gifts build homes, schools, medical clinics, and clean water and sewage facilities in villages
devastated by earthquakes, floods, and poverty. We may give to this ministry for one week, one day, or one
hour, but the good work done by our gifts lasts much longer.
Thank you for your joy-filled sharing!
Continued on Page 8
Lighting the Way
Growing in Our Faith
A Church With A Future In The Making
Page 5
It Took Nine Months
Excerpts from the Missionary Journal of Dr. Bill Clemmer
American Baptist Missionary in South Sudan, Africa
Dr. Bill and Ann Clemmer currently serve in South Sudan, Africa. Dr. Bill serves as
country representative for Interchurch Medical Assistance (IMA), working with a team
to help establish and reinforce primary health care services for an estimated 4 million
persons in two of South Sudan's states, many who are returning refugees. Ann supports communication, logistics, and the needs of Sudanese health care
workers in various settings.
“We are told that “on earth we will have many trials and sorrows”. Indeed during 20 years of service in
places such as Haiti, Congo, and now South Sudan, Ann and I have seen our share of sorrows, sadly more
often visited on the innocent: the children in Haiti orphaned from AIDS, the babies who succumb to malaria in the Congo, and in South Sudan the hundreds of women who die during childbirth, pregnancy being
the number one cause of death for a woman between the ages of 13 and 40. Why does God allow the innocent to be afflicted?
We have heard the reasons: “God does not create evil but allows it”, that “we live in an imperfect
world”. Such reasoning may explain the injustice but does not diminish the responsibility to act. In fact to
be aware yet indifferent makes us equally accountable. While God may allow for injustice in the world, He
enables and equips His people to address the inequities and respond to the needs.
We look at our situation in South Sudan, a nation which was born just over a year ago. We came because there was a need, because we had skills to offer, because we were available…. but principally, because we were called.
A short while after arriving, our ABC partner, IMA, was approached by authorities in this new country. Women were dying during childbirth at unacceptable rates because of lack of skilled care.
We were asked to build and equip five maternities and birthing centers in isolated areas of the state where maternal mortality was staggering. In addition to
building the facilities, there were no doctors so we would have to train nurses to do
deliveries, no roads so we would have to fly everything in including cement, no
electricity so we would have to supply power. In short, a near impossible task, but
not for God, as “His are the cattle on a thousand hills”!
We found the funding and built five centers, we recruited 13 young nurses from the villages and sent
them to Kenya for advanced training, we imported containers, flew in equipment, established a supply
chain of medicine, and provided solar lighting and electricity. Nine months to the day the nurses are back,
the buildings erected, the facilities equipped……and pregnant women come for help, over a hundred in the
first month of operation, to each of the five facilities.
God is aware of the suffering in places such as Congo, Haiti, and South Sudan. He allows the anguish
for a time but compels and enables ordinary people like you and me to respond. The difference in these
five birthing centers may not be measurable on a global scale but is manifest on an individual one.
The lives of these women and their babies in South Sudan are loved and cherished by God. Pain and
suffering exist wherever we serve, but He has overcome such sorrow… and more!”
Lighting the Way
All women are
invited to
participate in
American Baptist
Women’s
Ministries.
Each woman is encouraged to
participate according to her own
needs, interests, and gifts as led
by the Spirit of God.
In-as-much Circle
We will meet again in
September
Sunbeam Circle
June 12th @noon
A picnic / planning meeting will
be at the home of Paula Slavy,
13 Halstead Avenue, Owego.
Central Area Conference
Retreat
June 14 & 15
ABW Ministries NYS
Delta Lake Conference Center,
Rome, NY
Board of Managers
Planning Meeting
Thursday, June 20th @ 7pm
Cornerstone Community Church
ABW Summer Event
Tuesday August 13th @ 6PM at
Community Baptist Church,
Chenango Street, Port Dickinson
Growing in Our Faith
A Church With A Future In The Making
Our heartfelt sympathy surrounds
Joe Langevin and Sharon Campbell whose loving wife and big
sister, Norma Brown, went home
to dance with Jesus on Sunday,
April 28, 2013.
She was born in West Virginia on
February 3, 1942 the daughter of
the late Thomas and Mary (Byers)
Brown. She was predeceased by
her stepfather, Oscar Luther; one
brother, John Brown; brother-inlaw, Jay Campbell and special
cousins, Jack Cornett, Jean Ackerman and Margaret Kishpaugh.
She is survived by her husband,
Joseph Langevin; one sister,
Sharon Campbell. Norma worked
as a supervisor for the Tioga
County Dept. of Social Services
and also for the Giant Supermarkets. She worked as a volunteer
receptionist at Tioga Opportunities in Owego. Norma was a lifelong member of the First Baptist
Church in Owego and former
member of the Board of Managers.
A Memorial Service was held at
Richards Funeral Home, 3670
Waverly Road, Owego, on Thursday, May 2, 2013 at 11:00AM
with Rev. G. Terry Steenburg, her
pastor, officiating. Burial is in Tioga Cemetery, Owego.
In lieu of flowers, please consider
a memorial donation in Norma's
memory to the First Baptist
Church, Flood Recovery Fund, 228
Main St., Owego, NY 13827.
Page 6
What a Blessing!
Reverend Ken Simpson, who was
the Pastor at First Baptist Church
Owego for 25 years, returned to
the church to spend three Sundays, May 12th, 19th & 26th
here with us while Pastor Terry
and Pastor Marlene were on a
much needed and well deserved
vacation.
They were able to see Ben
Ciranowicz [Marlene’s son]
graduate from Law School in
Tulsa, Oklahoma, then on to visit
Pastor Terry’s mom in Texas,
spend quality time with Angela,
Phil, Randy & Madelyn [P.T’s
daughter, son-in-law & grandchildren in Jonesboro LA], visit with
P.T’s son Ryan, Kristen and
grandchildren in Louisville KY and
finally a visit with P.T’s son, Matthew & Amanda in PA.
A Musical Trio
“What The World Needs Is Love”
This was sung during the worship
service on Sunday May 19th; by
Reverend Simpson’s Granddaughter's Katelyn Simpson, Alex
Pallassino; They were accompanied on guitar by Rachel Pallassino
Growing in Our Faith
A Church With A Future In The Making
Lighting the Way
Page 7
See The
JESUS Film
See The
JESUS Film
Professionally produced
Set in 1st Century Palestine
Professionally produced
Set in 1st Century Palestine
What: “The Story of Jesus
for Children,” a captivating true story of Jesus
from a child’s perspective,
but equally interesting
and challenging for
adults.
When: 3:30 PM, Saturday, June 15
@ the Strawberry Festival
Where: The Spot @ Owego First Baptist
228 Main Street. 687-4394
Free Popcorn & Cheap Sodas!
Vacation Bible School
@ First Baptist
July 29-July1
“Colossal Coaster World”
Through every twist, turn, and dive, Colossal
Coaster World will challenge kids to
face their fears and trust God.
There's excitement around every curve as kids
learn that God has given them a spirit of power,
love, and sound judgment.
This VBS is the ultimate ride!!
What: “Magdalena”, Mary
Magdalene, narrator &
participant, traces the
story of powerfully
changed lives through belief in Jesus. Equally interesting and challenging for
all genders and ages.
When: 6:30 PM, Friday, June 14, just prior to the
Strawberry Festival
Where: The Spot @ Owego First Baptist
228 Main Street. 687-4394
Free Popcorn & Cheap Sodas!
We welcome once again the team from
Ox Hill Baptist Church, Chantilly VA.
They will be having this same VBS at
their church the week before they
come and spend the next week with
us. They are coming to help with this
VBS outreach and help re-build the
church too.
We need your help to make this VBS a success!
Please let Gladys Sirvent know if you can volunteer a
couple of hours every day that week. We need teachers, workers—this would be a great area for the teens
to participate.
Lighting the Way
Growing in Our Faith
A Church With A Future In The Making
Page 8
Continued From Page 4
Statistics and Facts
HUNGER
Hunger is the world’s No. 1 health
risk. It kills more people every year
than AIDS, malaria and tuberculosis
combined. There are more hungry
people in the world than the combined population of the USA, Canada and the European Union.
WATER
Almost 1 billion people lack access
to an improved supply of safe drinking-water.
Poor water quality can increase the
risk of such diarrheal diseases as
cholera, typhoid fever and dysentery, and other water-borne infections.
Flea Market
Now who would want to sell Fleas?!?!?!
It seems there is a Flea Market on Saturday, June 8th
from 9:00am to 2:00pm that is happening at Conklin
Avenue First Baptist Church 269 Conklin Avenue, Binghamton NY in the Church Parking lot.
This church is a member of the Broome-Tioga Association
CHILD HEALTH
Over three million children die
every year within a month of their
birth. Every minute a child dies
from malaria in Africa. It is one of
the leading causes of death in the
region among children under five.
Insecticide-treated nets prevent
transmission and increase child survival. Early treatment with antimalarial medication also saves lives.
SANITATION
Sunday June 16th is Father's Day in the
United States It celebrates the contribution that fathers and father figures make
for their children's lives. Its origins may
lie in a memorial service held for a large
group of men, many of them fathers,
who were killed in a mining accident in
Monongah, West Virginia in 1907.
Father's Day is an occasion to mark and
celebrate the contribution that your
own father has made to your life.
Each year more than 200 million
people are affected by droughts,
floods, tropical storms, earthquakes, forest fires, and other hazards. Sanitation is an essential component in emergency response and
rehabilitation efforts to stem the
spread of diseases, rebuild basic
services in communities and help
people return to normal daily activities.
June 2013
BD=Birthday
Anniv=Anniversary
SS=Sunday School
TOL=Tree of Life
OUMC=Owego United Methodist Church
Sunday
Monday
27
2
3
June 2013
S
2
9
16
23
30
Tuesday
Wednesday
28
29
4
5
M
3
10
17
24
T
4
11
18
25
W
5
12
19
26
July 2013
T
6
13
20
27
F
S
7
14
21
28
1
8
15
22
29
Thursday
S
M
T
W
T
F
S
7
14
21
28
1
8
15
22
29
2
9
16
23
30
3
10
17
24
31
4
11
18
25
5
12
19
26
6
13
20
27
Friday
Saturday
30
31
Jun 1
6
7
8
May 26 - Jun 1
May 26
SP=SPOT
OFA=Owego Free Academy
Jun 2 - 8
9:15am Adult/Youth SS
Jun 9 - 15
6:00pm A.C.T. Dinner; OUMC
10:00am Quilting Group; SPOT 2nd flr Back Meeting room
11:30am Fellowship
5:45pm Prayer Gathering the SPOT
Deacons Mtg
10
11
12
7:00pm He's Alive Board mtg; SPOT
7:00am Prayer mtg TOL; Day Hollow road
1:00pm Bible Study; SPOT
13
14
15
Flag Day
5:45pm Prayer Gathering the SPOT
1:00pm Bible Study; SPOT
11:30am Fellowship
6:30pm Jesus Film; @SPOT
17
18
19
Anniv; Rodger & Daisy Fritz
Exec Council mtg
BD; Chris Ford
20
BD; Gloria Jakat
9:15am Adult/Youth SS
Strawberry Fest
7:00am Prayer mtg TOL; Day Hollow road
3:30pm
10:00am Worship Service
BD ; Winnie Allen
21
6:00pm A.C.T. Dinner; OUMC
Jesus Film
@ SPOT
Open House @Camp
Vick, Freedom NY 10-3
22
7:00am Prayer mtg TOL; Day Hollow road Anniv; Doug&Marilyn Murray
10:00am Quilting Group; SPOT [upstairs back meeting room]
9:00am Men's Breakfast with Men of MPBC;
9:00am Bd of Managers mtg; Owego Treadw
5:45pm Prayer Gathering the SPOT
1:00pm Bible Study; SPOT
OFA Graduation
@10am
10:00am Worship Service
23
24
9:15am Adult/Youth SS
25
Anniv; Jason & Kaija Fritz
26
7:00pm Owego Community Prayer;
27
5:45pm Prayer Gathering the SPOT
28
6:00pm A.C.T. Dinner; OUMC
12:00pm Mens Lunch; KamFung
11:30am Fellowship
30
29
7:00am Prayer mtg TOL; Day Hollow road Anniv; Ron & Verna Tomassetti
@ First Baptist Owego
10:00am Worship Service
BD; Kathy Paro
9:00am Flea Mkt; Conklin Ave Baptist
Open House @
Pathfinder lodge,
Cooperstown NY 10-3
1:00pm Sunbeam Circle; picnic P. Slavy's
6:00pm
home A.C.T. Dinner; OUMC
9:15am Adult/Youth SS
16 FATHERS DAY
Jun 23 - 29
Anniv ; Rich & Kandi Saxton
10:00am Worship Service
9 CHILDRENS DAY
Jun 16 - 22
BD; Jericho Sirvent
BD; Rebecca Peterson
1:00pm Bible Study; SPOT
Jul 1
2
3
4
5
6
Jun 30 - Jul 6
Anniv; Roger & Pat Hansen
9:15am Adult/Youth SS
10:00am Worship Service
11:30am Fellowship
First Baptist Owego
1
5/25/2013 4:15 PM
Lighting the Way
First Baptist Church of Owego
Rev. G. Terry Steenburg, Pastor
228 Main Street
Owego, NY 13827
th
June 9
Sunday Bible Classes [all ages]
Worship
Wednesday prayer gathering
9:15am
10:00am
5:45pm
Return Service Requested
2013
♦
♦
♦
♦
♦
♦
June 2—”Growing In Our Faith—God’s Word At Work”/Jeremiah 1:1-19 [*Vs. 12]
June 9— CHILDREN/YOUTH SUNDAY
June 16—”Growing In Our Faith—God’s Blessings Via His Word”/II Timothy 3:10-17
[*Vs. 16]
June 23—”Growing In Our Faith—God’s Faithful Word”/I Kings 8:54-58 [*Vs. 56]
June 30—”Growing In Our Faith—God’s Gift Of Faith!”/Romans 12:1-8 [*Vs. 3]
July 7—”Growing In Our Faith—God’s Pleased with Faith That Believes”
Hebrews 11:1-6 [*Vs. 3&6]