What does it mean to be a “member” of a church?  What are the qualifications, and what are the responsibilities?  It depends on what kind of church you are.

Ivy Farms is a Southern Baptist congregation.  All members are believers in Jesus Christ as a personal savior.  All have confessed their sinfulness and put their faith in Jesus to save them from hell, putting their name in the Book of Life, that they go to heaven when they die.  And as believers, they agree to live their life as best they can by the standards set by the Bible, especially as described in the New Testament.

The Baptist church has two ordinances for the people:  the Lord’s supper (known to some as Communion) and full immersion baptism  Baptism is not given to infants, but only to those who first declare Jesus as savior.  The baptism is an outward sign that who they used to be is considered dead and buried, and that the person is now given new life in Christ.  We affirm the person going into the water and celebrate as they come out.

Most, but not all people attending Ivy Farms are Christians.  At present, all these attending Christians have been baptized by immersion.  And most of these Christians have taken the second step of declaring a desire to join the church.

The Baptist word is to “unite” with the church.  That is the goal. You become one with the group, and they pledge their affiliation with you.  We agree to support one another in prayer and encouragement.  We agree to volunteer for jobs that need to be done.  We agree to pool our money to pay the necessary expenses of heat and light and water and salaries.

That is what it is to be a member.  We care about all in our neighborhood, and enjoy the company of the visitors and regular attenders.  but Jesus (in John 15) told the disciples to “love one another” as a mark of their faith.  Membership provides our special concern because members have become one of our “another.”

There’s a movie about to be released called Fireproof. It will be in theaters Sep 26.

It’s about a man and a woman, husband and wife, with a marriage in trouble.  His job as a fireman is a metaphor for what’d happening at home.  Small fires keep popping up, and it’s all he can do to keep them under control.

Fireproof the Movie says there’s a better way.  Here’s the trailer:

FIREPROOF is the third movie from Sherwood Pictures, the hope-filled, heartfelt moviemaking ministry of Sherwood Baptist Church that continues to touch the world from Albany, Georgia.

At Ivy Farms Baptist Church, we endorse this movie.  And if you see too much of your own marriage in even this brief video, come let us talk with you about it.

see also http://fireproofthemovie.blogspot.com/

One of the friends of the church writes for TurnaroundChurches.  He has a new post that quotes a speech by Alexander Solzhenitsyn at Harvard in 1978: “A decline in courage may be the most striking feature which an outside observer notices in the West in our days. The Western world has lost its civil courage, both as a whole and separately, in each country, each government, each political party and of course in the United Nations”

Come out Wednesday, Aug 27 for a community picnic at the church.

The highlight will be the hot dog eating contest.

More important, it’s a chance to meet your neighbors.

And it’s walking distance.

JL Fuller, a Mormon apologist, has a great comment to a posting on the Whats This Mormon Thing?” blog. In it, he suggests that although we regret losing the presence of the Holy Spirit, it is that temporary loss that God uses to build our faith.

When He returns I understand I benefited from His absence. It made me think about what I was doing or did. … Afterwards, my testimony of Christ, Heavenly Father and the Holy Ghost is strengthened.

I understand that feeling. I remember being mad at God once, and yelling at him to leave me alone.

He did.

In that instance, He showed me how much of my life depended on Him. Without God, I experienced a depth of emptyness, of aloneness, such that I never want to feel again. And when He returned, an instant later, my testimony was strengthened.

But then, as JLFuller said, “Is it tough to face the world alone? Yes it is. But I need reminding.”

(read the comment in context here.)

Although Ivy Farms Baptist continues services each Sunday morning at 10:45am, GracePlace is taking a break for the summer. I’m over committed and our small congregation agreed to suspend for the summer, and tackle the restart again in the fall.

What did we learn?

• The facilities are old and tired. It was difficult running sound and video from the pulpit. Having a sound board behind the choir loft is unacceptable. We’re going to move it this summer.
• You can’t run a church without help. Too hard to do alone. It wil wear you out fast.
• Frequent communication with all building tennants is needed. I showed up one evening to find the afternoon church had scheduled an ordination service to begin about an hour before my service. I had done some extra advertising that week, and was a little upset. (The deacon calmed me down.) I was reminded that ordaining men for service was worth more than my feeble attempts at doing church. The other congregation closed the auditorium door and I moved into one of the classrooms. We started talking that evening. The communication with that pastor helped convince the host church to let us paint the hallways, and make a plan to renovate the too-small women’s bathroom.
• Just when you think you’re making progress, the devil will find a way to shut you down.

Starting in July, we’ll start the prayer walking again, and start over in the fall. I’m building a Money 101 course and the pastor is getting his parenting workshop ready. If we can find someone to help get the ballfield in shape, we’ll run a flag football league.

Pray with us. With God’s help, we’ll start this again in the fall.

Praise God!

GracePlace, the evening experimental congregation at Ivy Farms Baptist, needs operating revenue – for a video projector, sound equipment improvements, advertising, etc. I looked around the church and found an unused set of handbells, 4 cases with 37 bells in fairly good shape. The church authorized me to sell them, so I put out the word that I they were for sale. Most people that responded considered only the age (>30 years old), and not the fact that they hadn’t been played in 20 years and were still shiny with good tone, and only wanted to pay $1200-1500 (a new set costs $9000). So I held on to them and prayed some more. This week on Sunday night, I posted them on Craig’s List. I put the bells on the market for $4000, which is a good price given their condition, but still gives us enough cash to do some upgrades.

On Tuesday, a 16-year-old young lady searched Craig’s List for handbells for the first time. She does solo handbell performances with borrowed bells.  She also wants to start teaching special needs kids to play handbells, since it doesn’t involve learning to read music, but only counting carefully and ringing when it’s your turn. She’s on a choir tour this week, but her parents came to see them Wednesday afternoon. They agreed that the bells were in generally good shape, but will need some refurbishment (some of the 30-year-old plastic is cracking and one bell won’t ring). This family paid the full offering price, minus a fair refurbishment cost, which is $3200 – the exact amount their daughter has in her bells savings account!

This transaction provided more cash that I frankly expected to get, provided better bells than she expected to get, and came at the exact right time for both of us. It won’t do everything we need money to do, but it will meet some immediate, critical needs. Praise God with me!

Mike Mitchell

GracePlace Worship Leader

On Sunday, March 30, World Athiest Day will be commemorated during the 6pm service at Ivy Farms Baptist Church, 55 Ivy Farms Road, Newport News, VA. 23601

Speaker Mike Mitchell will actually use the church’s Bible, psalms 14, verse 1, to describe how the Day came to be recognized.

Seating is limited. Call 595-0577 to reserve your place.

If you’re in the area,
Come hear Nabeel Qureshi, a former Muslim, explain
why he believes in Christ as Lord and
what Christians can do to better
share their faith with their Muslim friends.

Nabeel Qureshi had grown up with devout Muslim parents and had read the entire Qur’an in Arabic by age 5. He has a thorough understanding of the claims of Islam and thought he knew about other religions. He came to faith in Jesus while a student at ODU. He graduated in 2004 as a top student, one of six students winning ODU’s Kaufman Honors. He has since earned his Masters Degree in Christian Apologetics at Biola University, and is now working toward his Medical Degree at Eastern Virginia Medical School. He is co-founder of the Apologetics ministry, Acts17.net.

The presentation will be part of the GracePlace service at Ivy Farms Baptist Church, starting at 6pm. The church is located at 55 Ivy Farms Road in Newport News. Ivy Farms Road is 1/2 mile south of Harpersville Road on Jefferson Avenue, and the church is at the eastern end of the road, across from Ivy Farms Park.

For more information, contact the church at 595-0577 or email GracePlaceNN@yahoo.com

GracePlace

Worship Service

Feb 24, 2008, 6pm

Lighting of the Worship Candle

Every good thing given and every perfect gift is from above,
coming down from the Father of lights,
with whom there is no variation or shifting shadow.
(James 1:17)

Songs of Worship

My Maker and My King

1 Chron 29:14, Eph 1:3

My Maker and my King, To Thee my all I owe;
Thy sovereign bounty is the spring Whence all my blessings flow;
Thy sovereign bounty is the spring Whence all my blessings flow.

________________

1
My Maker and my King, To You my all I owe;
Your sovereign bounty is the spring
where all my blessings flow;
2
The creature of Thy hand, On you alone I live;
My God, Your benefits demand More praise than I can give.
My God, Thy benefits demand More praise than I can give.
3
What can I give When all is Yours before?
Your love demands a thankful heart;
But my gift is so poor.
4
O! let Your grace inspire My soul with strength divine;
Let every word and each desire And all my days be yours

Fill Me

Words & Music – Jared Johnson

Be my vision and my sight, Be my reason be my light
Be my all consuming fire, Be the joy of my desire
Be a gentle falling rain Be the bearer of my pain
All you promised you would be I receive now faithfully

Fill me, fill me fill me with your holy spirit
Fill me, fill me fill me to overflowing
These doors are open wide
King Jesus come inside and fill me

Be a gentle falling rain, Be the bearer of my pain
All you promised you would be, I receive now faithfully
Awaken hope within me, rekindle the fire inside
As I receive your mercy heal me now.

Amazing Grace (My Chains Are Gone)

(Isaac Watts/Chris Tomlin)

Amazing grace How sweet the sound That saved a wretch like me
I once was lost, but now I’m found Was blind, but now I see

‘Twas grace that taught my heart to fear And grace my fears relieved
How precious did that grace appear The hour I first believed

My chains are gone I’ve been set free. My God, my Savior has ransomed me
And like a flood His mercy reigns Unending love, Amazing grace

The Lord has promised good to me His word my hope secures
He will my shield and portion be As long as life endures

My chains are gone I’ve been set free My God, my Savior has ransomed me
And like a flood His mercy reigns Unending love, Amazing grace

The earth shall soon dissolve like snow The sun forbear to shine
But God, Who called me here below

Will be forever mine Will be forever mine. You are forever mine

Hearing Scripture

James 1: 2-4, 13-15, 12

Consider it pure joy, my brothers, whenever you face trials of many kinds, because you know that the testing of your faith develops perseverance.

Perseverance must finish its work so that you may be mature and complete, not lacking anything.

When tempted, no one should say, “God is tempting me.” For God cannot be tempted by evil, nor does he tempt anyone; but each one is tempted when, by his own evil desire, he is dragged away and enticed. Then, after desire has conceived, it gives birth to sin; and sin, when it is full-grown, gives birth to death.

Blessed is the man who perseveres under trial, because when he has stood the test, he will receive the crown of life that God has promised to those who love him.

Time of Teaching – “Daniel and the Firey Furnace

Mr Mitchell – Daniel 1-6

1. The young man’s courage, wisdom and faith.
2. The peril of position – when faith is tested.
   1. Evil triumphs when good men do nothing – Although he is not mentioned as being there, as a chief advisor in the royal court, he certainly was there. Daniel worried more about his position as advisor to the king, and was willing to compromise by bowing to the statue.
   2. Our God will rescue, but even if not … – Shadrack, Meshack and Abednego were faithful to God, trusting Him to save them, but willing to die rather than even appear to put an idol in the place of God.
3. The God of second chances – the example of his three friends surely had an effect on Daniel’s life. His gift of prophesy was there in the next chapter, and when the hand wrote on the wall during Belshazzar’s feast, Daniel refused the promised wealth and power – “you can keep your money, or give it to someone else. Yet I will interpret for you what the LORD has written.” Speaking clearly the words of God were more important than fortunes or position.
4. The faith of a mature man. – when faced with a chance to worship the king or worship God, Daniel had learned his lesson. He continued to pray next to an open window, in full view of his accusers.
5. Has your God been able to rescue you? – Daniel’s faith was an inspiration to the king, and the king was worried all night. In the morning, he asked if Daniel was still there – “Did God rescue you?”

And that is my question to you. Have you let God rescue you? Did you fail God and think you can never be forgiven, or have you let the God of grace take control, forgive, forget, and restore you? Are you right now willing to let Him take first place in your life, before all else?

Time of Response and Worship

Before The Throne of God Above
Before the throne of God above I have a strong and perfect plea.
A great high Priest whose Name is Love, Who ever lives and pleads for me.

My name is graven on His hands, My name is written on His heart.

I know that while in heaven He stands, No tongue can bid me thence depart.

When Satan tempts me to despair, And tells me of the guilt within,
Upward I look and see Him there Who made an end of all my sin.
Because the sinless Savior died, My sinful soul is counted free.
For God the just is satisfied, to look on Him and pardon me.

Behold Him there the risen Lamb, My perfect spotless righteousness,
The great unchangeable I AM, King of glory and of grace,
One in Himself I cannot die. My soul is purchased by His blood,
My life is hid with Christ on high, With Christ my Savior and my God!

With Christ my Savior and my God!

Words and Music by Vikki Cook, Charitie Bancroft© 1997 PDI Worship (ASCAP) (Adm. by Integrity’s Hosanna! Music) All Rights Reserved. Used by Permission. International Copyright Secured.

Closing Prayer