Photo by Timothy Rumey
Last Saturday, July 9, St. James Missionary Baptist Church held its first Bible
study cookout at Reynolds Park.
Outside
from page fiJ
asking "once you have
accepted Jesus into your
heart, what are you doing
with it?"
Because St. James is at
a location with two other
churches in close proximi
ty, Robinson felt the need
for them to step outside of
the walls of the church. He
says as a church they must
mark out their own territo
ry to make their mark in the
community not for the sake
of new members but for
others to get to know
Christ.
Following the Bible
' Ml ". J. .? ML11 .'I* "J
study, the congregation was
treated to a delicious cook
out style meal that included
burgers, fried fish and
salad. Everyone said they
enjoyed themselves and
really enjoyed the food.
'Today our Bible study
was centered around the
redemptive power of Christ
and how he paid a ransom
for our souls," said
Minister Stuart Eaton. "We
just let everyone know that
we cannot do anything by
ourselves; we have to be
covered by the blood of
Christ and take that salva
tion message from house to
house."
According to Eaton, St.
James Pastor Mack Hi-.
" T.
McConnell's vision for the
day was for the church to
go outside of the church
like the early church did in
the book of Acts. The early
church went from house to
house breaking bread and
fellowshipped with the
community.
Robinson touched on
the fact there were young
men playing basketball
while Bible study was tak
ing place. He noticed they
did not leave and were
aware of every word he
said. His thought on the
young men observing was,
"I just want to get the Word
out to the people, and the
Lord will do the rest."
Photo by Timothy Ramsey
Pastor Gary James of Renewed Hearts Inc. will be speaking to the congrega
tion of Ephesus. Seventh Day Adventist church from July 10-16.
Prayer
from page B5
Seventh Day Adventist
faith. He feels as though
you do not have to dumb
down the message in order
for today's youth to absorb
what he has to say.
"Hearts are broken
throughout life by a lot of
different situations, espe
cially with young people,
and most of them center
around relationships,"
James said. "What we try
to do is make individuals
whole and from there we
build relationships and that
renews their heart. When
the heart is renewed, the
first thing people want to
do is tell someone else who
may be hurting that they
have been there before."
James said in his organ-*,
ization, "we don't tolerate,
we accept." He wants the
young people to come how
they are and they will
understand you and then
see where they need to go.
He said one of the chal
lenges he faces during a
youth week of prayer is
having to reach the entire
audience. James wants to
have information for the
young people but also have
something the parents can
take away as well. He says
without the parents rein
forcing what he is trying to
convey to the young peo
ple, his message is null and
void.
"The message I want to
convey this week is how
the parents can effectively
help the youth in these dif
ficult and challenging
times we live in and give
them an understanding of
the big picture," James
went on to say. "When you
have the big picture, you
have better tools and strate
gies to fight the challenges
they fight.
"Many of the young
people do not know why
they are here. They do it
because they think its right
and they have done it all
their life and have come up
in the faith. But when you
know why you are here, it
helps you fight battles. If I
could sum it up, I would
just say know why you are
here."
Ephesus Church Pastor
Godwin Mitchell said he
has known James for years
and the fact he has worked
with the millennial genera
tion for years was a bless
ing to be able bring him
back to the church.
"He is so solid in God's
Word and what he does is
he unpacks the Ward in a
way that anyone can grab
it," Mitchell said. "There
are a lot of questions from
the millennial generation
and addressing those ques
tions is a challenge nowa
days. For him to come and
reach back and deal with
something that many aren't
willing to deal with is
great. His plus is that is he
loves young people and
could not have thought of
no other person to come
and speak with our young
people. He is very relat
able and down to earth and
the Lord has an anointing
on him."
For individuals who are
not of the Seventh Day
Adventist faith who attend
the week of prayer, James
said, "Even though you
may not be of the Seventh
Day Adventist faith, that
does not mean you are not a
part of the family of God.
All God's people are of the
family of God and play a
role in God's plan. I want
them to ask the question,
not do I become a Seventh
Day Adventist but what do
I need to do as my sole pur
pose with my relationship
with God."
Lesson
from page B5 .
Messiah are saved (Rom.
3:22). Paul explains that
all have "sinned" (Romans
3:23). All "fall short" of
God's glory. There is how
ever, God's free gift of
grace (vss. 23-24). Paul
indicates that God's pardon
was offered "freely" (vs.
24) as a gift, because of His
"grace" and could not be
earned. It is through the
sacrificial death of Christ
that we all who repent and
believe receive salvation
(vs. 24). We are all guilty
of sin and Jesus' sacrificial
death was the means for
our acquittal. His death on
the cross turned away
God's justifiable wrath
against us as sinners. It not
only accomplished "propi
tiation" - the appeasing of
God, it also provided
"expiation" - the removal
of personal guilt.
Righteousness.. .continues
Paul, is received by faith,
and not works. He wants
us to understand that trust
ing in the blood of Jesus,
not observing the law, was
the reason for God's par
doning us (vs. 28). Paul's
rhetorical question of
whether God is the God of
Jews only, begs the Jews
themselves to acknowledge
that He is the God of all
since He is also the creator
of all (vs. 29). Paul
addresses the question also,
whether emphasis on faith
overturned the need for the
law. He emphasizes his
regard of the Mosaic Law
to be "holy, righteous and
good" (Rom 7:12). Not
only that, Jesus himself
stated that He came to ful
fill the law, not replace it.
"The law was fulfilled
when it led people to see
their sinfulness, turn to the
Savior in faith and conform
their lives to the moral
norms taught in the law"
(David C. Cook).
For Your Consideration:
What does it mean for us to
be declared righteous (jus
tified) by God's grace?
How would your relation
ship with God be different
if you could earn salvation
by your works?
Life's Application:
God is both just and loving.
He loves us and wants us to
join Him in His eternal
kingdom and has made that
possible by the death of
Jesus on the cross as an
atoning sacrifice, which
annulled our sins. We have
only to accept this
unmatchable gift.
DivorceCare Seminar
offers hope and healing
SPECIAL TO
THE CHRONICLE
The Stephen Ministry
at United Metropolitan
Missionary Baptist Church
(UMMBC) is offering its
fourth, 13-week
DivorceCare seminar start
ing on Monday, Aug. 1.
A broad range of topics
are covered during the
seminar, including how to
face anger, loneliness and
depression, developing
new relationships, finan
cial survival and single
sexuality, reconciliation
and forgiveness, moving
on and growing closer with
God.
The UMMBC
DivorceCare program pro
vides help and healing for
those hurt from separation
and divorce and is open to
the public.
According to
Comelious Flood, one of
the UMMBC Stephen
Ministry leaders, the pro
gram is meeting expecta
tions. "Every participant
enrolled has completed the
entire 13 week program,"
he said.
Participant feedback
has been positive
also. They have discovered
that they do not have to go
through their pain alone,
that what they are going
through is normal, and that
it is okay to talk about it
and get help.
One participant shared
that the program has
helped her through her sep
aration and the emotions
she felt such as anger, bit
terness and stress.
"I think the videos
were very helpful because
they outline all these emo
tions and how to cope,
along with scripture and
the group discussion," she
said. The workbooks also
provided good information
that she could reference
later and the group discus
sions were helpful. "There
would be days when I
would feel down, so when
we would discuss these
feelings and talked, it
made a difference," she
went on to say.
The facilitators were
very helpful, understand
ing, caring and good listen
ers. This is a great pro
gram. Group facilitators
have been trained and all
have experienced divorce.
Participants also dis
cover that UMMBC is
more than just a church
service on Sunday and
Bible study on Wednesday.
It reaches out to the entire
community and embraces
the needs people may have
and addresses them
through various
ministries.
Flood says that
"Participants rediscover
hope and peace, realize the
power of God, start to heal.
and feel much better about
themselves when they
complete the program."
And sometimes a life is
saved.
Some divorced people
feel embarrassed and.
ashamed to tell or talk
about it. And many
African-American church
es do not have an ongoing
ministry to help individu
als deal with the pain and
hurt of divorce or separa
tion.
Separated or divorced
people who would like to
join the 13-week program
should complete an online
registration form at:
https://beyondthesanctu
ary.wordpress.com/divorce
care-ministry.
DivorceCare is a com
prehensive, Christ-cen
tered divorce recovery
ministry. The 13-week pro
gram holds meetings once
per week for two hours.
There is a nominal regis
tration fee of $15 to cover
participant workbooks.
Child care is also avail
able.
For additional informa
tion, contact the church
office at church@united
metropolitan.org or call
336-761-1358. A complete
UMMBC DivorceCare
meeting schedule can be
located online
at: http://www.divorce
care .org/groups/62759.
Mt. Olive nurses
celebrate anniversary
Arzella Carson
SPECIAL TO
THE CHRONICLE
The Mt. Olive Baptist
Church Senior Nurses
Board celebrated its
anniversary recently.
Arzella Carson was named
the Nurse of the Year. She
is a faithful member of the
Nurses Ministry and is
married to Calvin Carson.
The Senior Nurses'
Board was organized in
1934 under the leadership
of the late Rev. T. H.
Harris. Through the years,
the board has undergone
many transitions. By the
grace of God and the assis
lance of Pastor Dr. Charles
E. Gray, the membership
has grown tremendously.
The Senior Nurses
meet on the first Saturday
of each month at 1 p.m.
Their primary duties are to
take care of the pastor's
needs during all home
services and when the pas
tor visits other churches.
They also assist the con
gregation with its needs,
administer first aid or emo
tional support to those in
need, provide nursery care
to young children, visit the
sick in the hospital and
assist the bereaved at
funerals.
Rel. Cal.
from page B5
Vacation Bible School
Mt. Olive Baptist Church, 1301 C. E.
Gray Drive, will have Vacation Bible
School July 18-20 from 6:30 - 8 p.m.
Charles E. Gray is the host pastor.
July 18-22
Vacation Bible School
St. Stephen's Episcopal Church, 810 N
Highland Ave., will hold its annual
Vacation Bible School July 18-22. The
theme is: "Super Heroes for Christ." There
will be classes for PK-Adults. The ses
sions begin nightly with dinner at 5:30 and
end at 8 p.m. All are welcome. Call 336
724-2614 for more information and to sign
up.
July 21
Food box giveaway
Greater Tabernacle Worship Center
will have a food box giveaway on July 21
from 12-2 p.m. at 2058 Dellabrook Road.
The Host Pastor is Apostle BJ McCloud.
For additional information, please contact
Greater Tabernacle Worship Center at 336
777-1113.
July 22
Summer beach party dance
First Christian Church Ministries,
1130 N. Main Street, Kernersville, will
host a Summer Beach Party Dance for
people with special needs on Friday, July
22 from 7-10 pm. We will have dancing,
karaoke, and snacks. This is open to all
ages with special needs participants
attending with a parent or caregiver. The
dress is casual. We want you to be com
fortable and have fun! Please sign up by
email to tracyb@fccministries.com or by
calling Tracy at 336-996-7388. For more
information, please contact Tim Bussey at
336- 996-7388 or
timb@fccministries.com.
July 20-24
Youth Conference
Fresh Fire Worship Center Inc., 1538
Waughtown St., will host the Resistance
Youth Conference July 20-24, presented
by Sr. Pastor Phillip G. McCloud and First
Lady Michelle McCloud. Speakers are:
Wednesday, July 20, 7 p.m., Pastor Aaron
Tharrington, Apostolic House of
Deliverance, Durham; Thursday, July 21,7
p.m., Minister Charity Campbell, Potter's
House Of Greensboro; Friday, July 22, 7
p.m.. Pastor Lathan Wood,
Movement Worship, Charlotte; and
Sunday, July 24, Youth Sunday Service at
10 a.m.. Minister Shamsudin Hakim of
Fresh Fire Worship Center Inc. Along with
Praise and Worship, there will be spiritual
dance teams and more. Sponsors are cur
rently needed. For information, go to
www.freshfireworship.org or call 336
833-4208.
July 23
Cancer Survivors and Thrivers
event
Solely For Christ Ministries, in collab
oration with Cancer Services, will hold a
Cancer Survivors and Thrivers event on
Saturday, July 23, from 11 a.m. - 4 p.m., at
1510 Martin St., to bring awareness to one
of the leading causes of death within our
community. We will provide testimonials
of those who've been afflicted by this dis
ease, triumphing over it and are now
labeled as survivors. We will also allow
you to hear from those going through this
journey, and provide support to them as
they stand courageously and share their
experiences. Vendor space is available to
provide informational materials and health
screenings. To make a donation, please
visit our' PayPal Account at;
https://www.paypal.me/SFCMinistries.
For more information on how you can par
ticipate, please contact Shannon Brooks,
336-486-9151 or
swbrooks39@gmail.com, or Christina
Harris, 704-658-7530 or
charrissfc@yahoo.com.
July 29
Health Fair
Love Fellowship Outreach Church,
205 East 25th Street, will have a health fair
on July 29 from 6:30-8:30 p.m., that is
open to the community. There will also be
a cookout and free food, a bounce house,
and games for children.