Our Blog

Kids Happenings September 2018

Hello church family,
 Wow we had an amazing end of July and August in the life of our children’s ministry!  Kids Camp was so incredible.  By the end of the week we had 5 extremely exhausted adults (Pastor Bryan Gotcher, Jacob Townsend, Leah Ice, Mary Beth Potts and myself) and 26 kids encouraged and ready to live a life that grows them closer to our Lord. Oh and of course they were pretty tired too. The worship was high energy and uplifting for all involved. And the teaching Pastor had so much passion for the children learning truth and delivered the message in such a way that young and old can be moved to respond.  I’m so thankful that we have a church family that invest in our children and helps to allow them to attend Kids Camp each summer. It truly does help to make a difference in these young ones lives and in the life of our ministry.

With response to the Holy Spirit, through VBS, Kids Camp and superb parenting we had nine children follow in baptism during the month of August. Now that is a reason to CELEBRATE!  Praise God for these professions of faith. I can’t wait to see what plans God has in store for these young lives and their future as they go into the world proclaiming the Good News.

I would like to give a shout out to all of our new Sunday morning Kids Life Group teachers. Promotion Sunday and the weeks that followed, transitioned smoothly.  I am very thankful for all of you and your willingness to invest in our children each Sunday morning.  Also, we were able to fill most of our AWANA teaching needs and have a solid group of adults ready to disciple our children each Wednesday evening starting September 5th at 6pm. If your child isn’t already planning to attend AWANA on Wednesday evenings, I would like to strongly encourage you to allow your child to try it out.  Children are discipled by faithful & loving leaders and learn scripture in fun ways helping them to understand and apply it in their daily walk. For more information about AWANA go to www.oakhillbc.org/ministries/kids.

On a side note of upcoming activities in the life of our children’s ministry check out these dates:

• September 5th - AWANA Kick-off 6:00 - 7:30 pm
• September 22nd - Growth Initiative 8:30 - 11:30 am - childcare provided for infant-5th grade
• Month of October - Upward Basketball and Cheer Volunteer Sign Up - in main lobby
• October 26th or October 27th - Upward Basketball and Cheer Evaluations - check out our website for details - www.oakhillbc.org/ministries/kids

Thank you for allowing me to love on your little ones.
God Bless,

Spiritual Development September 2018

What a Friend We Have In Jesus

So what do you do, where do you run, what do you tell yourself, or how do you respond when, in this broken world, you are left alone? In some way, it happens to us all. Made to live in      community with God and with one another, we find ourselves alienated and alone. Such aloneness cuts deep and hurts a lot precisely because we were designed to be social beings. We were made to live in self-sacrificing love and peace with one another. Harsh words, disloyal acts, slanderous intentions, and violent moments were never supposed to infect and destroy the  community for which we were made. But immediately after Adam and Eve disobeyed God, tension and accusation erupted in their relationship, and then it became really bad really fast. Cain, the son of Adam and Eve, murdered his brother in a fit of sibling jealousy. Since sin has  infected our world, wrong infects our relationships. It shatters the community God intended us to live in and leaves many of us alone. This aloneness takes many forms: 

• Friends turn their backs on friends.
• Husbands and wives divorce.
• Neighbors move away.
• Employees get fired.
• Children reject their parents.
• Churches divide.
• Problems of life carve a gulf between us.
• Friends and relatives lose contact.
• Old age leaves us lonely.
• Death takes dear ones from us.

Yes, somewhere in your life, you will be left alone. But it is in this experience of aloneness that you must remember the gospel of Jesus Christ. Jesus captured the relational beauty of this in his own life when, as he faced death, he said to his disciples: “Behold, the hour is coming, indeed it has come, when you will be scattered, each to his own home, and will leave me alone. Yet I am not alone, for the Father is with me” (John 16:32). Yes, people and circumstances leave you alone. Yet, it is impossible for one of God’s children to be completely alone, because we have a Father in heaven who is always with us and who will not leave us, no matter what. Remind yourself today that, as God’s child, no matter how many people have walked out of your life, fundamental aloneness is a thing of your past. If you’re God’s child, you are loved  today even if, in your human relationships, you are completely alone. 

                                                                                                                   
(Excerpted from New Morning Mercies)

Recommended Resource— In His Image by Jen Wilkin
Sometimes we ask What is God’s will for my life? when we should really be asking Who should I be? The Bible has an answer: Be like the very image of God.
By exploring ten characteristics of who God is—holy, loving, just, good, merciful, gracious, faithful,  patient, truthful, and wise—this book helps us understand who God intends for us to be. Through Christ, the perfect reflection of the image of God, we will discover how God’s own attributes impact how we live, leading to freedom and purpose as we follow his will and are conformed to his image.