IT'S SATURDAY NIGHT! How grateful we are for the PEACE of the LORD in the midst of the storms of LIFE!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dehd9a61tBY
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dehd9a61tBY
Sunday, June 9, 2013
GREAT COMMISSION 2013 - ONWARD!
Around the same time that we launched FCC we were inspired to begin a revolutionary new youth camp--a camp that would be centered on evangelism and witnessing.
We announced to the young people in our sister churches and others who shared our vision, that this new ministry would be called MISSION AMERICA!
We gathered together 25 young people and leaders, and began a week of intensive Bible Study, Teaching witnessing techniques, door-to-door evangelism, and nightly church services led to a large extent by the young people. After services we would have refreshments and sometimes “open-mic” night. The first MISSON AMERICA in St. Louis, Vickie had 15 teen girls sleeping all over our small 800 square foot apartment. (I graciously exited!)
Those were great days. The vision was picked up by others and MISSION AMERICA went to MISSOURI, ILLINOIS, INDIANA, and OKLAHOMA. Some of the families attending FCC today were first introduced to us through MISSION AMERICA.
With the coming of the new millenium we became aware that there was already a national ministry calling itself MISSION AMERICA. We thought and prayed about a new name and GREAT COMMISSION caught our attention.
When Pastor Andrew Durst took leadership of the movement he added to the name and GREAT COMMISSION CAMP advanced to the next level. In addition to the 4 original states, GEORGIA and OHIO were added to our outreach.
Literally ten’s of thousands of invitations have been distributed by 200+ young people over the past 17 years. Only eternity will reveal all the good that has been accomplished.
GREAT COMMISSION INDY will convene on Tuesday of this coming week. This year our teams will be in Indianapolis (June 11-12), St Louis (July 9-12), Central Illinois (July 16-18), and at FOUNDER’S WEEK-Urbana (July 22-26).
Here in St. Louis, the GREAT COMMISSION teams will help
(Concluded on back cover)
us with Vacation Bible School--GOD’S MIGHTY KINGDOM!
We are in agreement with the man who said, A GREAT COMMITMENT, to the GREAT COMMANDMENT and to the GREAT COMMISSION, will build a GREAT CHURCH!
We are claiming the promise as well as the commission Christ gave us in Matthew 28:18- 20 And Jesus came and spake unto them, saying, All power is given unto me in heaven and in earth. Go ye therefore, and teach all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost: Teaching them to observe all things whatsoever I have commanded you: and, lo, I am with you always, even unto the end of the world. Amen.
www.fccstlouis.org
We announced to the young people in our sister churches and others who shared our vision, that this new ministry would be called MISSION AMERICA!
We gathered together 25 young people and leaders, and began a week of intensive Bible Study, Teaching witnessing techniques, door-to-door evangelism, and nightly church services led to a large extent by the young people. After services we would have refreshments and sometimes “open-mic” night. The first MISSON AMERICA in St. Louis, Vickie had 15 teen girls sleeping all over our small 800 square foot apartment. (I graciously exited!)
Those were great days. The vision was picked up by others and MISSION AMERICA went to MISSOURI, ILLINOIS, INDIANA, and OKLAHOMA. Some of the families attending FCC today were first introduced to us through MISSION AMERICA.
With the coming of the new millenium we became aware that there was already a national ministry calling itself MISSION AMERICA. We thought and prayed about a new name and GREAT COMMISSION caught our attention.
When Pastor Andrew Durst took leadership of the movement he added to the name and GREAT COMMISSION CAMP advanced to the next level. In addition to the 4 original states, GEORGIA and OHIO were added to our outreach.
Literally ten’s of thousands of invitations have been distributed by 200+ young people over the past 17 years. Only eternity will reveal all the good that has been accomplished.
GREAT COMMISSION INDY will convene on Tuesday of this coming week. This year our teams will be in Indianapolis (June 11-12), St Louis (July 9-12), Central Illinois (July 16-18), and at FOUNDER’S WEEK-Urbana (July 22-26).
Here in St. Louis, the GREAT COMMISSION teams will help
(Concluded on back cover)
us with Vacation Bible School--GOD’S MIGHTY KINGDOM!
We are in agreement with the man who said, A GREAT COMMITMENT, to the GREAT COMMANDMENT and to the GREAT COMMISSION, will build a GREAT CHURCH!
We are claiming the promise as well as the commission Christ gave us in Matthew 28:18- 20 And Jesus came and spake unto them, saying, All power is given unto me in heaven and in earth. Go ye therefore, and teach all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost: Teaching them to observe all things whatsoever I have commanded you: and, lo, I am with you always, even unto the end of the world. Amen.
www.fccstlouis.org
Wednesday, June 5, 2013
TWO MINUTE MESSAGE - GOT TROUBLES?
WATCH THE TWO MINUTE MESSAGE HERE:
We
may not actually be in what the Bible calls, “The Great Tribulation,” but there
certainly are a lot of people who are facing great tribulations.
What’s
a Christian to do?
Hi,
I’m Pastor Rick Jones, and I have about a Three Minute Message I’d like you to
think about!
FIRST
I HOPE YOU WILL NOT FORGET THIS,
GOD LOVES YOU! Others
may not love you. Those who you once depended on may turn on you. You may not love you. But GOD LOVES YOU! He loves you with an everlasting love. I love the way Moses puts it,
There is none like unto the God of Jeshurun, who rideth upon the heaven in thy help, and in his excellency on the sky. The eternal God is thy refuge, and underneath are the everlasting arms. Deuteronomy 33:26-28
GOD LOVES YOU,
AND UNDERNEATH ARE HIS EVERLASTING ARMS!
SECOND, DON’T LET YOUR
TROUBLES DRIVE YOU AWAY FROM THE LORD, RATHER TAKE YOUR TROUBLES TO THE
LORD!
King David knew something about troubles. He had troubles that were not his fault. He had troubles that were completely his fault. And yet, through it all he learned this great
truth, GOD WAS NOT HIS ENEMY, GOD WAS HIS BEST FRIEND. OVER AND OVER HE TESTIFIED, “GOD IS MY
REFUGE.”
In the 91st Psalm He affirms, “I will say of the Lord, He
is my refuge and my fortress: my God; in him will I trust.” Psalm 91:2
Keep talking to the Lord! He’s listening. He cares.
He will guide.
AND REMEMBER, GOD LOVES YOU!
THIRD, LISTEN TO THE LORD!
God is trying to get us to pay attention to
Him! He has answers.
He has answers in His Word—Read the Bible!
He has answers in Prayer—Get alone with God!
He has answers in Worship—Get to a Bible preaching church with sincere Christians who love the
Lord Jesus!
He has answers in Godly Counsel—Get together with godly and good people! I know that if it were not for some great
and godly friends who have helped me think straight, and then make wise
choices, I would have been overwhelmed.
AND REMEMBER, GOD LOVES YOU!
LAST, IF YOU’RE GOING THROUGH A TRYING TIME RIGHT
NOW, DON’T GIVE UP, AND DON’T QUIT! That is exactly what the enemy wants you to
do.
Of course we need to take care of ourselves
physically—be sure we eat healthy and get enough rest—but then we must get
moving! Get up. Ours is a faith that works by love. Do something.
Do something for the Lord. Do
something for someone that needs help.
Do something to improve your circumstances. But don’t sit around staring at mindless
idiocy on a screen!
AND REMEMBER, GOD LOVES YOU!
CONCLUSION:
So whether our
tribulations are the result of our mistakes or misdeeds, or if they are the
result of our godly commitments or good deeds, we as God’s people can count them
all joy!
REMEMBER GOD LOVES
YOU! And He will work all things
together for good to them who love HIM!
Sunday, June 2, 2013
30TH ANNIVERSARY UPDATE!
Dear Friends of Faith,
Today's 30th Anniversary Celebration in the Ministry was such a blessing. Over 120 attended the services. We were especially blessed to see 52 at the evening service. There were seekers at our altars. And God's people sacrificially gave and moved our FRESH START Mortgage Offering to $18,180. We are now praying for the balance of $11,820 in the next 3 weeks, by June 23. Your prayers and offerings of every size are greatly appreicated!
If you would like a CD of the messages today:
WE HAVE THIS MINISTRY (2 Corinthians 4) and
WE HAVE THIS MINISTRY (2 Corinthians 4) and
TIMES CHANGE, JESUS REMAINS (Hebrews 13:8)
please call, or text, or email us.
May the Lord richly bless you!
FOR TWO MINUTE MESSAGES
AND
IT'S SATURDAY NIGHT HYMNS & PRAYER
CLICK ON OUR YOU-TUBE CHANNEL:
Saturday, June 1, 2013
IT'S SATURDAY NIGHT - 30TH ANNIVERSARY IN THE MINISTRY
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CDotTejvNaE
ON THIS 30TH ANNIVERSARY EVE IN THE MINISTRY, "IT'S MY DESIRE" AND "I OWE IT ALL TO THEE" are the songs we're singing.
THANK YOU FOR ALL YOUR LOVE, YOUR FAITHFUL PRAYERS, AND YOUR KINDNESSES TO ME, TO MY DEAR WIFE, AND TO OUR CHURCH FAMILY!
ONWARD! PR
THIRTY YEARS - A REFLECTION
A lot has changed over the past 30 years. When I graduated from Christ Theological Seminary in Urbana, Illinois and entered the full-time ministry as an Assistant Pastor for my Father, I was a single guy, with no wonderful wife and precious daughter.
There was no
internet or e-mail, nor were there PC/Laptop computers, Game Boys, Sony Wii’s, Smart
Phones, Mobile Phones, MRI’s, Fiber Optics, Office Software, CDs, MP3s, LEDs,
LCDs, GPS, E-Bay, Digital Photography, Video Cameras, Bio Fuels, Genetically
altered plants, Human Genome Mapping, ATMs, or Stents. We still typed on electric typewriters and
made copies by offset printing or ditto machines.
While
technological and scientific advances have progressed at a dizzying pace, we
have witnessed a jaw-dropping decline in moral virtue and Christian
spirituality. Nearly every cultural indicator—out of wedlock births, unmarried
couples living together, divorce rates, availability of pornography, STD’s,
sodomy, juvenile delinquency, drug dependency, financial irresponsibility, dishonesty,
cheating, educational deficiency, and declining church participation
(particularly among the young) and lax Church standards—confirms that the very
fabric of our civilization is unraveling before our very eyes.
As
we march into this Brave New World convinced that traditional mores are
outdated and irrelevant to our times:
- Western
governments are spending themselves into bankruptcy trying to meet the
needs of their citizens—needs that have historically been met by traditional
families,
- Psychological
duress is debilitating and destabilizing large portions of the population
while the wages of sin are wreaking havoc with public health, social
welfare, and family stability &
- Children
are undervalued, undisciplined, insecure, and woefully unprepared for the
challenges of adulthood.
I’m starting
to wonder if I’ve enlisted in a losing cause!
Actually I have. Martin Luther
was right when he penned the words to this classic hymn:
Did we in our own strength confide, our
striving would be losing;
Were not the right Man on our side, the Man of God’s own choosing:
Dost ask who that may be? Christ Jesus, it is He;
Lord Sabaoth, His Name, from age to age the same,
And He must win the battle.
Were not the right Man on our side, the Man of God’s own choosing:
Dost ask who that may be? Christ Jesus, it is He;
Lord Sabaoth, His Name, from age to age the same,
And He must win the battle.
And though this world, with devils
filled, should threaten to undo us,
We will not fear, for God hath willed His truth to triumph through us:
The Prince of Darkness grim, we tremble not for him;
His rage we can endure, for lo, his doom is sure,
One little word shall fell him.
We will not fear, for God hath willed His truth to triumph through us:
The Prince of Darkness grim, we tremble not for him;
His rage we can endure, for lo, his doom is sure,
One little word shall fell him.
That word above all earthly powers, no thanks to them, abideth;
The Spirit and the gifts are ours through Him Who with us sideth:
Let goods and kindred go, this mortal life also;
The body they may kill: God’s truth abideth still,
His kingdom is forever.
The Spirit and the gifts are ours through Him Who with us sideth:
Let goods and kindred go, this mortal life also;
The body they may kill: God’s truth abideth still,
His kingdom is forever.
IT WOULD BE A LOSING CAUSE, BUT CHRIST JESUS WILL
NOT FAIL—HE MUST, AND HE WILL WIN THE BATTLE! Praise the Lord! Hallelujah!
Glory to God in the Highest! I am not
worthy—But HE is! I am not able—But HE
is! I am not wise enough—But HE is!
FOR MY 30TH ANNIVERSARY IN THE MINISTRY
it would be thrilling to…
+Sing 30 verses of Gospel Music this Sunday!
+Have 30 riders on each bus route!
+Have 30 men, 30 women, and 30 teens in the morning
service!
+Hear a 30 voice choir singing Sunday Morning!
+Have $3,000 pledged and given to “Fresh Start”
Building Fund Campaign
+Have 30 minute sermons (yeah right!)
+Have everyone over after Church Sunday evening for
fellowship.
TWO MINUTE MESSAGE - HOW MANY TIMES CAN CHRISTIANS SIN AND STILL GO TO HEAVEN?
Outdoor Video:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KZNsMngfxMw
Indoor Video:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XOfzEe0wLkg
In fact, those who are born of the Spirit, who walk in the Spirit, and who are led by the Spirit, are not asking …
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KZNsMngfxMw
Indoor Video:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XOfzEe0wLkg
H
|
OW
MANY SINS CAN WE COMMIT AND STILL GO TO HEAVEN?” Would you say that if I am a Christian I can
commit as many sins as I can commit and still get to heaven when I die?
Or
would you say that a Christian really shouldn’t sin but a few once in a while
won’t hurt?
Hi
I’m Pastor Rick Jones, and I’ve about a TWO MINUTE MESSAGE for you to think
about.
It’s
an interesting question. “How many sins
can we commit and still go to heaven?”
And
as is so often the case, the question itself raises another question: Why are you asking?
And
gets to the heart of the question—literally.
Why
would a child of God, born of the Spirit, adopted into the family of God, who
loves the Lord with all his or her heart, be asking
“How
many times can I dishonor you Lord?” And still live with you in heaven forever? Or,
“How
many times can I disobey you Lord?”
And
still enjoy the blessings of your love?
Or,
“How
many times can I disgrace you Lord?”
And
still experience the joy of your presence?
In fact, those who are born of the Spirit, who walk in the Spirit, and who are led by the Spirit, are not asking …
How
many times can I dishonor you Lord,
They
are asking… what Lord can I do to honor you Lord?
We
are not asking, “How many times can I disobey you Lord,” rather, “In what ways
Lord may I please and obey you?”
We
are not asking “What disgrace will God’s grace cover? Rather, “Lord how can we
live to the praise of the glory of His grace?”
In
fact, if there is a part of our heart that hopes that we can get away with
doing “our will” rather than “God’s will,” our love for God is not yet
whole-hearted.
And
that is the issue. Jesus said that all
the commandments could be summed up into two—Love God with all your heart,
soul, mind, and strength, and Love your neighbor as yourself.
It
is loving God, loving God without reservation, and in loving God with a
passion—a fervent desire to please Him in everything, that our love for God is
perfected.
John
tells us, “God is love, and he that
dwells in love, dwells in God, and God in him.” And this love longs to do God’s will.
“This is the love of God that we keep His commandments.”
So
if I fail to keep His commandments, it’s actually because I failed to love God
as I ought.
Can
God forgive us? Of course, we have an Advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ
the righteous. When we confess our sins
He is faithful and just to forgive us and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.
But
let’s not ask how close to the line we can draw and still enter the city of God,
let’s ask “Lord what more can I do to express my love and my gratitude for your
sacrifice and death on the cross?” I hope
you’ll think about it.
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