April 2023 Newsletter

Can you believe that it is already springtime?  Where has this year gone?  Spring brings many exciting things.  Flowers start to bloom, trees begin to bud, and it seems like everything comes back to life.  Spring is a wonderful time of year.  To me the greatest thing about the spring season is it is the time in which we celebrate the resurrection of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.  The Easter celebration has been the great celebration of the church down through the years.  The heart of the Christian faith is the event of the resurrection.  It is the resurrection of Jesus Christ, which makes sense out of it all.  Paul wrote in 1 Corinthians 15:13-15 “But if there is no resurrection of the dead, then Christ has not been raised; if Christ has not been raised, then our preaching is in vain and your faith is in vain.”  The resurrection will help us to see that sin can be defeated, that suffering can be overcome, that death has no final power and that we can trust in Jesus’ promise that He will always be with us even until the end of the world. 

Let’s think about these four things for a moment.  The Old Testament tells us that without the shedding of blood there can be no forgiveness of sins.  The Old Testament people would offer sacrifices to God for their sins.  These animals that were sacrificed had to be the very best of the animals.  They had to have no blemishes or spots.  But even then their blood was not good enough to wash the sins away, it would only cover it for a time.  Jesus had to come and die upon the cross shedding His perfect blood so that our sins could not only be covered but they could be washed away.  Because our sins can be washed away by the blood of Christ, sin has no victory over the Christian.  We might have the consequences of sin in our lives, but ultimately sin has been defeated by Jesus.

The resurrection also teaches us that suffering can be overcome. All of us have our problems and trials.  We all go through our times of pain and troubles.  But Jesus died and rose from the grave to prove to us that he can help us overcome all that will try and keep us down.  The writer of Hebrews tells us in chapter 4 verse 15, “For we have not a high priest which cannot be touched with the feeling of our infirmities; but was in all points tempted like as we are, yet without sin.”  Christ knows what we are going through and will be there to help us overcome all that we have to face.

“O death, where is thy sting? O grave, where is thy victory?  The sting of death is sin; and the strength of sin is the law.  But thanks be to God, which giveth us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ.” [1 Corinthians 15:55-57]  Jesus by His marvelous resurrection has conquered death.  We have no need of fearing death anymore.  Death has no power over the followers of Jesus.  Death is just a doorway that we must go through in order to be with Christ for eternity.  Jesus promised that he was going to prepare a place for us and one day those who trust in him will be able to spend eternity in his presence.

After the death of Christ many of the disciples felt depressed.  They thought Jesus was gone and they did not know what to do.  They had gathered in a room hiding from the authorities trying to figure out what to do.  All of a sudden Jesus appeared to them and said, “Peace be unto you.” [John 20:19]  Have you ever wondered why Jesus said “peace be unto you.”  Think about it, the disciples were worried.  They had seen the one whom they thought was the Messiah die on a cross and be placed into a tomb.  The one whom they had followed around for some three years was now gone.  What were they going to do?  It seemed like they were all alone.  But through the gloomy air of loneliness, Christ appeared to reassure them that they were not alone.  He was there to give them the kind of peace that the world does not understand.  The kind of peace that cannot be bought or achieved on your own.  This kind of peace only comes from the Prince of Peace who has promised never to leave us or forsake us.  From that point the disciples understood that Jesus was there.  He was there for them.  And He is here for us.  He will always be there when we need Him even until the end of the world. 

May the Lord place a smile on your face and love and joy down deep in your heart as we celebrate the resurrection of our Lord.

                                             Pastor Baggett

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We are looking forward to Easter! With So many fun ways to celebrate the resurrection of Our Lord and Savior! 1,2,3, Jesus is Alive! Join us as we sing and dance during Children’s worship about Jesus’ Resurrection, Truth, and Life!

We are looking forward to the Egg hunt this Saturday! Please join us for eggs, candy, and LOTS OF FUN!!! We do still need people to bring cupcakes, chips, and drinks! Please call the church office if you can bring in those items.

During Ultimate Wednesday, we are still making sure to "Check-in with Jesus." Seeing these kids learn what it means to pray and enjoy spending time with Him has been incredible!

We are also looking for more Volunteers in our Church nursery! We need your help! One Sunday a month, can you volunteer to spend time with our little ones, see to their needs, and share with them the LOVE OF GOD? Please See Chandler Whitford for more information!

Please also continue to pray for our many Children's Workers who shine the love of Jesus as they serve these kids and their families! Also, pray for our kids as they learn to love Jesus and grow closer to Him! We continue to pray that God will grow our children’s ministry and HIS CHURCH! We aim to bring the good news of the Gospel of Jesus to every boy and girl in Ayden, Grifton & Beyond!

When looking at the story of Jesus in the Gospels, we see Jesus welcoming the younger ones of society to come to Him. This is a beautiful image of how we need to be as the church to invite, welcome, and love the youth of our community. It is such a blessing to see all that God is doing in the lives of our teens. Even when we find the days that it does not seem they are listening to a word we say or participating as we hope. They are picking up what it means to be more like Jesus every day. It is subtle, but the sparks are connecting, and they’re beginning to understand what it means to live in the ways of Jesus.

We hope all of our middle and high school students can join us on Wednesday Nights and for our Grove Youth Night coming up on April 16th! We are planning on having a time of games, fellowship, and a time reading God’s Word together!

Thank you for your continued prayers for our youth and their families!

~Pastor Jonathan, Youth Pastor of Elm Grove Church

March 5th ~ Joey & Carrie Adams

March 12th ~ Debbie Best

March 19th ~ Jimmy & Hilda McLawhorn

March 26th ~ The Wethington Family Michael, Tiffany, Laikyn, & Cutter

In Loving Memory of Lenwood Earl Sauls

By James and Jenny Lou Garris

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In Loving Memory of Jesse B Holland Jr.

By James and Jenny Lou Garris

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March 2023 Newsletter

During the month of March, we focus on Missions.  This includes Foreign Missions and the mission ministries at home.  There is another part of missions that is just as vital that I am afraid that we are not as involved in as we ought to be.  That part is called personal witnessing.

God has called each and every one of us to share the good news of Jesus Christ with our family, friends, and acquaintances.  We are to tell them about the amazing love and salvation that can be found in Jesus Christ.  Some might say, “Well, I don’t think it is a good idea to discuss religion with other people.”  And I might understand what you are saying, but I am not asking you to discuss religion, I am telling you that you need to talk to people about your relationship with Christ.  People might be able to argue with you about religion, but no one can argue with your story or your testimony.  You just need to tell and show them what the Lord had done for you.  How God has worked in your life.  How God has blessed you!  How God has brought healing to you!  How God has given you forgiveness and how you have found that joy and strength to keep going each day.  People are hurting, and they need someone to help them find the answer to their situations, and that answer is Jesus. 

If we are going to reach the people in our world for Jesus, we are going to have to understand a few things.  First, we are going to have to understand how vital it is that people come to know Christ as Savior.  There is nothing more important in this world than a person’s soul.    Scripture teaches us that a person’s soul is worth more than the entire world.  “What shall it profit a person if they shall gain the whole world and lose their own soul, or what shall a person give in exchange for their soul.”

We need to understand that people’s eternal destination is determined by how they respond to Christ.  We need to help people meet Jesus.  There seem to be three groups of Christians, just as there are three types of people at the scene of an accident.  At accident scenes, there are three groups of people, each with a different response toward those involved in the accident. The first group is the bystanders and onlookers. They are curious and watch to see what happens but have little active involvement. The second group is the authorities, like police officers.  Their response is to investigate the cause of the accident, assign blame, and give out appropriate warnings and punishments. The third group is the paramedics. They are the people usually most welcomed by those involved in the accident. They could care less whose fault the accident was, and they do not engage in lecturing about bad driving habits. Their response is to help those who are hurt. They bandage wounds, free trapped people, and give words of encouragement. Three groups - one is uninvolved, one is assigning blame and assessing punishment, and one is helping the hurting. In which group are you?

When it comes to reaching the lost and hurting, we’re going to be in one of these three groups. We will be uninvolved and let others do the work. Or we will condemn people for their foolish behavior, saying things like, "It’s your own fault that you’re in this mess. If you had been going to church and doing as you should, this never would have happened!" Or we will be concentrating on helping those who are lost and hurting. I hope we will be showing compassion like those in the last group!

The second thing we need to understand is that reaching the lost takes effort.  Helping people come to know Christ is not always easy.  It will take hard work and effort. 

Several years ago, I was directing a week of camp at Vandemere.  At that time, all the boys and men stayed in a big room that was full of bunk beds.  One evening in the middle of the night, I was awakened by the door going outside shutting.  I got out of bed and realized that one of our young campers was gone.  It just so happened that I had been told that this boy was known to sleepwalk on occasion.  As I looked out the door, my heart dropped when I realized the river and pool were just a few yards away, and I did not see the young child.  My heart began to accelerate, and I began to yell the young man’s name.  By that time, one or two of the other male counselors came outside and asked what was wrong.  I explained to them what had happened, and we began to search near the pool and river bank.  We did not find the camper, and I began to get even more excited, rushing around even more.  We looked everywhere we could think of, and finally, I went into the dining hall, and there was the young boy sitting at a table fast asleep.  I felt so relieved that we had found him.  (By the way, after that, I put a bed in front of the door so no one could get out without us.) 

We had been so concerned over that young man that we made every effort and searched everywhere.  I never said, "Well, I’ve lost one child, but we have other campers here at camp." No, one child mattered! He mattered enough to give everything we had toward finding him.  Here’s the point - it took an effort to find him, and it will take that same kind of diligent seeking for us to reach the lost. In our Christian lives and in the church, it sometimes seems that we do the opposite. We tend to wait for the lost to come to us. We’re passive rather than active. We’re waiting for people to come to Christ instead of putting effort into bringing them to Christ! I know that we all could do a better job of witnessing for the Lord.  We want people to come to know Christ as Savior, but have we really put the effort in.  This has to change if we’re to reach the lost for Jesus. 

How do we practically exercise this principle? What do you and I need to do in order to be following Jesus’ instructions about giving effort to reaching the lost? There are several things we can do. First, a significant part of our prayers should be for the lost. Second, making every effort means making evangelism a significant part of the ministries of Elm Grove. We must also be careful to dedicate a significant part of the ministries toward disciplining those who are already Christians. Nevertheless, this is no excuse for not seeking the lost as Jesus instructed us to. Third, making every effort to reach the lost means we must be willing to make outreach a significant part of our personal and church spending. And fourth, we must intentionally form a relationship with those who do not know Christ and tell them about Him.  We must intentionally invite people to church, Sunday School, and other events at the church so that people can hear the Good News. It has been proven time and time again that more people are introduced to Christ by their friends, family, and acquaintances than they are by strangers or even sermons from preachers.   The most important thing you and I can ever do is to share Christ with someone.

Another thing that is necessary for reaching the lost is persistence. It is not easy to reach people’s hearts so that they receive Jesus. It is not usually the case that our first efforts meet with success. Sometimes it takes years and years of persistence, but we should not be discouraged or give up.

The story is told that following an exhilarating performance at New York’s Carnegie Hall, celebrated classical cellist Yo-Yo Ma went home, slept, and awoke the next day exhausted and rushed. He called for a cab to take him to a hotel on the other side of Manhattan and placed his cello—hand-crafted in Vienna in 1733 and valued at $2.5 million—in the trunk of the taxi. When he reached his destination, he paid the driver but forgot to take his cello.

After the cab had disappeared, Ma realized what he had done. He began a desperate search for the missing instrument. Fortunately, he had the receipt with the cabby’s ID number. After searching all day, the taxi was located in a garage in Queens with the priceless cello still in the trunk. Ma’s smile could not be contained as he spoke to reporters.

Here’s the point, Yo-Yo Ma did not quit but persisted because what was lost was too valuable to give up on. The spiritually lost are too valuable for us to quit trying to reach even though our efforts do not pay off quickly.  We must keep telling, living, and doing the good news of Jesus Christ.  Unsaved people matter to God.  Scripture tells us that all heaven rejoices and throws a party when one person comes to know Christ as Savior.  If lost people matter this much to God, shouldn’t they matter this much to us? Shouldn’t we be willing to give everything needed in order to reach the lost? My answer is "yes," and I hope yours is too.

May the Lord place a smile on your face and love and joy down deep in your heart as we seek to win the lost to Jesus.   Be blessed, and be a blessing!!!!

                                             Pastor Baggett

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In Children's Worship, we have recently completed our series on Love! We finally made it through all of the words in 1 Corinthians 13! To find out more about all that we learned, take a look at the February 2023 Newsletter! Now we will be turning our attention to sharing God with others and understanding His grace!

On Wednesdays, we continue to learn about prayer! We are learning about who we pray to, when and where we can pray, and SO MUCH MORE! Our Kids have enjoyed popcorn prayer and play dough prayer! If you see some of our Wednesday kids, ask them which they liked best!

We are getting ready for some exciting Easter fun! Go ahead and put the Easter Egg Hunt on your calendar (April 8th) and be prepared to invite all those you can! We are planning a special and fun way to invite your neighbors and friends to spend time with us hunting eggs! 

Continue to pray for all of our volunteers! They do so much for the Kingdom of God by sharing God's love with these little ones! If you see someone serving, please take a moment and tell them thank you!  Continue to lift up our kids as well! Pray that they may walk with Jesus, in close fellowship with God, all the days of their life.

That is my prayer for each of you as well.
Be blessed!

It is a great time to be involved in youth ministry! Yes, there are days when it seems challenging and hard, but we have a God whose grace is sufficient for all of our needs and supplies us with everything. I say this because we have the great opportunity (and I dare say the responsibility) to be a place that is open and welcoming to any and everyone that comes to Grove Youth! One of our hopes is that each teen that we interact with knows that God loves them, and we do too! Even if that means opening up the gym for some ball and having snacks to enjoy. Being here is a place of refuge, and this is a place they can begin seeing and encountering God, who is there for them.
We are looking for others willing to help us out to be a smiling face to our teens. Please let me know if you are willing to help us pour out love on them! 

~Pastor Jonathan,
Youth Pastor of Elm Grove Church

Dear Church Family,

God has answered my prayers again.
Thank you so much for your help in getting a ramp for Pat.
"Your thoughtfulness means so much more than words can say."

God Bless you all,
Pat & Barbara Roberson

February 5th ~ Hernandez Family

February 12th ~ Bettie-Coley Allen

February 19th ~ Jerry Stallings

February 26th ~ Carol Whiteley

In loving memory of Philip M. Haddock
by James & Jennie Lou Garris

In loving memory of Dr. Michael B. Hobbs
by James & Jennie Lou Garris

In loving memory of David B. Shirley
by James & Jennie Lou Garris

In loving memory of Wayne G. Bridges
by James & Jennie Lou Garris

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January 2023 Newsletter

I pray that each of you had a blessed Christmas and will have a blessed new year.  Going through the season of Advent and Christmas should remind each of us about the importance of being a blessing to others.  The spirit of Christmas is the spirit of giving. As we look at the epiphany story we read that the wise men brought gifts and presented them to the newborn King of Israel. They brought gifts of gold, frankincense, and myrrh. Gold is the king of metals and is an appropriate gift for one born to be the King of men. This new King was to rule, not by force, but by love. His throne was to be a cross.

They brought a gift of frankincense, which is a gift appropriate for a priest. The Christ was to be the high priest who would open the way to God for sinners. He was to build the bridge by which we could come into the presence of God and by which God in love would enter our lives.

The wise men also brought a gift of myrrh, a spice that was used to anoint the bodies of the dead. Even at the beginning of Christ's life there was an indication of a cross at the end of the way. Jesus Christ was to be the true King, the perfect priest, the supreme Savior.

The wise men are not the ones who started the practice of giving gifts at Christmas. It is appropriate for us to take note of their gifts for the King, but let us not forget the great gifts that Christ gave to us.

The Christ of Christmas was born to be the King of our hearts. For the kingdom of God, He was born and lived a sinless life on earth. For the king­dom of God, He prayed and preached and wrought miracles and taught His disciples. For the kingdom, He suffered the darkness of Gethsemane and endured the awful agony of the cross. For the kingdom, He arose from the dead and lives to make intercession for those who come to God through Him. Jesus Christ is the one whom God has appointed to be our King.

He offers us the gift of forgiveness. Our part is to repent and turn from a life of evil and self-destructiveness and He gives us the gift of eternal life. He also offers us adoption into the family of God (John 1:12). He offers us guidance through the difficulties and perplexities of life (John 8:12). He assures us of fruitfulness and significance if we will abide in him (John 15:5-9). His desire is for us to be with him forever (John 17:24).

He has given us the Holy Spirit to be our guide. The Holy Spirit will be our teacher and helper throughout all of the journey of our earthly life (Luke 11:13; John 14:16-18).

These are precious gifts of God that come to us through His Son. They are perfect, precious, permanent, and personal.

The wise men brought rich gifts and presented them to the Christ child while he was still a baby. They could not possibly know the joys of His salvation as we know them today. If they brought the best that they had, it only makes sense that we should bring even greater gifts to this one whom God has appointed to be our King.

Let us give Jesus Christ the throne of our hearts. Satan wants to be enthroned in our hearts and be the sovereign of our lives. Perhaps Satan's greatest rival for this position is our own selfish selves. We have an ungodly desire to put ourselves above all persons and things. Instead of giving ourselves the throne rights of our lives (which means giving them to Satan), let us give them to Jesus Christ.

Jesus deserves to be King because of who He is.  He deserves to be King because of what He has done for us.  Jesus deserves to be King in our lives because of what he will do in us and through.us.

Let’s present our ourselves as a gift to God in gratitude for His great mercies to us (Rom. 12:1). Paul taught the believers at Corinth that their bodies were the tem­ple of the Holy Spirit (1 Cor. 3:16). He further declared that their bod­ies belonged to God because they had been purchased by God in the act of redemption (1 Cor. 6:19-20). In reality, Paul was encouraging them to let God abide within their bodies so that others would be reminded of his gracious presence in them.

We also ought to bring the gift of thanksgiving and give God the praises of our heart. Through the psalmist God declares, "He who brings thanksgiving as his sacrifice honors me" (Ps. 50:23 RSV). To remain silent when we can give praises to God for His goodness is to rob God and at the same time to deprive oth­ers of the blessings this testimony could bring. To give a joyful testimony about God's goodness before nonbelievers is to encourage them to trust God with their lives. This is the greatest favor that we can give to an indi­vidual, and it is the greatest joy that we can bring to the Father God.

Living the Christian life means we are to give unto the Lord. God initiated this spirit by giving His Son to be our Savior. To become our Savior, Jesus became our sub­stitute. He bore our sin by dying on a cross, and God raised him from the dead to show his great love for us.

Because God loved us first, we should love him. Because God gave his best, we should give our best back to him. True worship is bringing the best we have to God, who has already given His best to us. Why does God love a cheerful giver? It is because God is a generous giver. God loves in a special way those who have responded to His love and become the channel through which His love reaches others.  Let us become givers of our­selves to God, to our family, and to others.     

May the Lord place a smile on your face and love and joy down deep in your heart as we become generous givers to the Lord and others. Be blessed and be a blessing!!!!

                                             Pastor Baggett

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This month in Children's Worship, our kids refocus on love. As we learn together what true love is, we learn how to notice God's love in this world,  and we learn how to be God's love in this world! Thank you so much for joining us on this journey!

Ultimate Wednesday is back in action! This semester we are focused on how to "Check-in with Jesus." As we focus on prayer and what personal time with God looks like, we hope our kids will learn to develop a real personal relationship with Jesus! Please pray for our kids as they memorize scripture each week and hide God's word in their hearts!

Please also continue to pray for our many Children's Workers who shine the love of Jesus as they serve these kids and their families! Just a reminder for those serving with children in any capacity, there will be a children's worker training on January 29th, during the Cafe'; please get your food and go to the classroom for a brief review of how we keep our kids and workers safe, as well as a few other updates!

We are excited to see God moving in this new year! Grove Youth Night will be on January 15th from 4:30 to 6:30. Open Gym, games, snacks, Worship, and Devotion! Our hope and goal is for our teens to know who Jesus is and grow closer to Him every day!

As we grow and become more like Jesus through the relationship we have with Him, it is our hope that we help nurture you and your walk with God that will last a lifetime of growth and be a stronger disciple of Jesus.

During Ultimate Wednesday, we focus on this relationship, strengthening our prayer lives and learning scripture that empowers us to walk with Jesus daily.

We are still looking for more volunteers to help with our teens on both Wednesday afternoons, Wednesday evenings, and during Grove Youth Nights. We would love to have you come love on these young people!

Dec. 4th - Steve and Rheta Russell
Dec. 11th - Bryan Smithson Family
Dec. 18th - Phyllis Worthington
Dec. 25th - Jesus!

In Memory of Joann & CJ Wade
by Terry & Cheryl Manning

In Memory of Vickie Cox
By Agnes & Marvin Strickland

In Loving Memory of Vickie Cox
by James and Jennie Lous Garris

In Loving Memory of Shirley Smith
by James and Jennie Lous Garris 

In Loving Memory of Janet White Tripp
by James and Jennie Lous Garris 

In Loving Memory of Willie Pogue
by James and Jennie Lous Garris 

In Loving Memory of Johnny Oakley
by James and Jennie Lous Garris 

In Loving Memory of Cindy Venters
by James and Jennie Lous Garris 

In Loving Memory of Gary G. Baker
by James and Jennie Lous Garris 

In Loving Memory of Pattie Moore
by James and Jennie Lous Garris
 
In  Honor of Stephanie Goetz - ECU Graduation 2022
by the Chappell Family

In Memory of Misty Mills Pellington by Kellie Chappell - Gonzalez

In Memory of Bill Jones, Jr  by  Kellie Chappell - Gonzalez

In Honor of Eli Tucker Chappell Baby Dedication 12- 11- 2022
by Kellie Chappell - Gonzalez

Pat & BT Chappell, Happy Anniversary Love, Kellie, Tom, & Steve

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