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Pastor's Points November 2017

Dear Church Family,

I am so excited to be able to share some wonderful news!  Back in 2008 we as a church began a journey of faith as we expanded our church facility to accommodate the growth of our church that God had brought to us.  We initially entered into a capital building campaign to raise 1.7 Million dollars to build the current facility that we worship in.  Along the way the church also approved about $300,000 to build out our fellowship hall, and to invest in repairs and upgrades to our church campus.  We made a pledge to be debt free within ten years and by God’s grace and your faithfulness, I am pleased to announce that we are debt free!!  We will be celebrating this great news at our church-wide Thanksgiving Banquet on November 19^th.  Make sure to be there for a great night of fellowship and celebration!

Along with this great news we have also had a very generous gift given specifically to go towards the purchase of a new church sign.  With this generous   donation along with monies on hand our sign is paid for in full and should be in place by mid-November!  God is so good!  I am so excited for what God is going to continue to do among us.  We are positioned like never before to be used by God to make disciples into the future.  This is our mission and our focus.  Ask God to do a deep work in you, and then ask Him how you can engage in your church family to make a difference in the lives of others.

I also want to say a word of thanks to Jacob Townsend.  Jacob is getting ready to once again lead us as a church family into an awesome season of UPWARD basketball and cheerleading.  We are so ready for the season.  Please pray for Jacob as he leads us in UPWARD ministry.  In the middle of all that Jacob does in the life of our church, he has also recently begun a new job as well. In light of all of this, Jacob has let me know that for right now he desires to step back from his responsibilities as one of our Lay Elders.  He is still going to be one of our Life Group Leaders, and lead out in UPWARD, but for now in the middle of job transition and all the other things of life he needs to step back.  I totally   understand Jacobs’ request and support him fully in his decision.  

With all that said, we have so much to be thankful for!  We are debt free, we have a paid for new church sign, and we have a wonderful ministry that is beginning (UPWARD) that is going to impact many families in our area!  If you can help in any way, contact Jacob Townsend or April Sharp!

Thank you all so much for your faithfulness to God throughout the years!  And thank you for remaining faithful as we continue to invest in God’s family and kingdom right here at Oakhill Baptist Church.

I love you and I love being your pastor,

Pastor Alan

Pastor's Points October 2017

Dear Church Family,
 I am convinced more than ever of the importance of having close, meaningful   relationships with other believers in Christ.  This world is just too hard to go it alone.  Of course, those relationships are grounded in the most important relationship of all with our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. 

My prayer for our church is that we truly will be, “A Family for Life”!  We need to be a gathering of believers that does not just see Oakhill as “a” church that we attend, but that this is our church family where we belong.

I see the benefit of this reality every week in three separate ways.  On Sundays, we gather in our worship services to worship together as we sing and hear God speak to us as we listen to His Word.  I love seeing my church family as we worship together.  It encourages me and is part of what God uses to prepare me for a new week.  Second, I love meeting with my Life Group!!  As we gather on Sunday nights we fellowship, discuss God’s Word, and pray together.  This has been so good for me because for years I have not been able to participate in a group like this and now I can and I have benefited greatly from it!  And third, each week I get to come together with some of my church family as we gather for our Wednesday luncheon where we fellowship, hear God’s Word, and pray together.  There is nothing better than to know that the people I go to church with are not just other attendees, but they truly are my brothers and sisters in Christ!  We get the privilege of living out the “one another” passages together.  You see we do not live those passages out between God and  ourselves, we live them out in community with each other!  How awesome is that!!

So, I want to encourage you to a few things this month. 

1. Make a commitment to be apart of worship each week unless you are sick, working, or on vacation. God will  encourage you as He speaks to you and you will encourage others with your presence.
2. Get involved with one of our “Life Groups”. We have some on campus on Sunday mornings and many off campus as well.  These groups will help you really get to know other people and will encourage you to grow in your faith.  Most of the off campus groups meet in homes and I can personally testify to how much these groups have impacted those who are apart of them.
3. Make a conscience effort to switch your thinking from Oakhill being “a” church that you attend to being a church family that you belong to. Serve often, worship weekly, give regularly, surrender fully, prioritize others, and love deeply.

God is doing great things all around us! He is moving, changing lives, and will continue to open doors of opportunity as we continue to walk faithfully with Him!  This fall and winter will be filled with ways that you can love and serve God like never before.  Take those opportunities and watch what God will do in your life and the lives of others!

Finally, I want to share with you some exciting news!  We have had a very generous monetary gift given to the church to be specifically used toward the purchase of a new church sign.  Our current sign has served us well since the 1960’s but this gift will allow us to place a new sign in that spot for many more years to come!  Praise God!  Look for the new sign sometime around the first of November!  
I Love you and I love being your pastor,
Pastor Alan