February 2018


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OAKHILL BAPTIST CHURCH

4615 OAK HILL ROAD EVANSVILLE, IN 47711-2943

RETURN SERVICE REQUESTED

January 2018

NON-PROFIT ORG, U.S. POSTAGE PAID PERMIT #1760 EVANSVILLE, IN

4615 Oak Hill Rd. Evansville, IN 47711 • 812-476-3450 • [email protected] The Oakhill Baptist Church Newsletter

Jan 7

PASTOR’S POINTS Dear Church Family, February is known as the month of “Love”. And this year we are once again having our Valentines Banquet on February 11th for the couples of our church to come together and enjoy a night with the love of their life! Make sure to sign up and get your tickets because it is going to be a fun night! It is good that we encourage our couples to express their love to one another, but it is also good for all of us to express love to each other as we do life together in our church family. I love how James Mac Donald explained love from I Corinthians 13 in this devotion. Love is patient and kind; love does not envy or boast; it is not arrogant or rude. It does not insist on its own way; it is not irritable or resentful; it does not rejoice at wrongdoing, but rejoices with the truth. Love bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things. Love never ends. (1 Corinthians 13:4–8a, ESV). What does real love look like? The Apostle Paul tells us . . . Alan D. Scott “Love is patient.” It waits for people to change. It’s long-tempered. It accepts people as they are, not as we want them to be. Love is “kind.” This doesn’t mean passive endurance but active Lead Pastor goodwill. Not just passively accepting people but actively accepting people. Not just standing on [email protected] the other side of the room, thinking, She drives me nuts—I’m going to steer clear of her, but actually going across the room and finding ways to engage or embrace that person. Love looks for ways to express acceptance to people whom we might otherwise target with our harsh criticism. “Love does not envy or boast.” Love is not jealous. Even when those around us seem to prosper and succeed more than we do, love isn’t jealous. Love does not say, “I was fine with my friend until she got _____.” Love does say, “I am happy for your successes and will not let jealousy sour my love for you,” and “I am for you. I have always been for you, and I will always be for you. I will not be caught up in comparisons, even when you are more successful, prominent, recognized, or rewarded than I am. I want the best for you.” When you love the people in your life, you won’t let their successes—or yours—change the way you treat each other. When you’re the successful person, do you continue to love the same people, or do you leave them behind? Love “is not arrogant or rude.” Love chooses not to make another feel uncomfortable by boasting about personal success or highlighting your own life in a way that would embarrass or belittle a friend. Love is accepting. “Love bears all things, believes all things.” Love bears the weight of misunderstanding and defends the heart of the other. Love gives the other the benefit of the doubt and regularly says, “That’s not what she meant.” It believes the best about the other person and defends him: “That’s not why he did that. There must be more to the story.” When Jesus taught, “Judge not, that you be not judged” (Matthew 7:1), He was specifically referring to judging others’ motives. Of course we have to judge actions, but we are not to judge motives. We don’t know why others do what they do, and we should assume the best about them. Love always believes the best about people. “Love bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things.” Love sees people not as they are, but as they will be someday, by God’s grace. We are not the people we once were—God is changing us. We need to extend the same grace toward others that we want extended to us. Love “endures all things.” Endure is actually a military term for driving a stake into the ground. Love does that. Love won’t retreat or back away. Love will be there for the other person and will stand its ground. “Love never ends.” Love will never fail to accomplish God’s highest and best purposes. If a relationship unravels, it wasn’t because of love. Love always takes things to a better place. If you love others wholeheartedly and embrace the people in your life as they are—warts and all, even when they hurt you—God will use that. Love never fails—not at home, at work, or in the church. That’s an unequivocal, absolute, condition-free guarantee: “Love never ends.” My prayer is that love will be the testimony of our lives that the watching world around us sees!! I love you and I love being your pastor

Jan 14

Jan21

Jan 28

8:00 AM Worship

89

85

82

9:30 AM Worship

200

175

228

11:00 AM Worship

218

288

270

245

Total Worship

507

288

530

555

Oakhill Budget Offering

$17,777.27

$11,751.05

$18,157.66

$11,311.59

Mission Club

$420.00

$70.00

$310.00

$170.00

Valentine’s Banquet Sunday, February 11th - 6:00 pm $30.00 per Couple Dinner, Entertainment and Childcare Included Email Wedding Photo to [email protected] Tickets Available at the Welcome Desk

WOMEN ON MISSION Thank you for your generous support of Missions. Here are the Oakhill Mission Receipts for 2017 Mission Club

Special Offerings

Total

North American Missions (Annie Armstrong)

$2,710.97

$3,985.45

$6,696.42

International Missions (Lottie Moon)

$7,137.05

$11,583.00

$18,720.05

State Missions (C E Wiley)

$1,383.15

$1,383.15

Life Change Central (Oakhill Projects)

$1,383.15

$1,383.15

Highland Lakes Camp

$1,217.18

$1,217.18

World Hunger

$2,524.55

$2,524.55

International Seafarers Center

$500.00

$500.00

Combined Mission Giving

$32,424.50

In addition, $57,382.28 was given through the Cooperative Program to the Southern Baptist Convention, 73% of which goes to the support of missions, as well as our seminaries and other entities. Women on Mission will not meet in February.

February Birthdays 1st - Mark Schmitz 2nd - Pam Bates, Olivia Hudson, Trae Ommart 3rd - Amy Gibson, Ashley Gibson 4th - Robert Jackson, Mitchell Johnson, Diana Lamp 5th - Gladys Mason, Livvie Olsen 6th - Catina Hicks, Angela Pressley, Kathleen Qualkenbush 7th - Dalton Cobb, Jenifer Cronch, Teresa Thomas 8th - Meredith Hellmer 9th - Brooklin Shoulders 10th - Brian Wild 11th - Michelle Luttrell, Sadie Thornton, Wayne Treberg 13th - Gloria Lee 14th - Angie Hall, Raina Kessner, Roger Nix, Marcia Vandiver 15th - Chance Goebel, Beth Ruston

16th - Jaden Hodges 17th - Eleni Jackson, Gina Young 18th - Dan Ditzer, Brandon Long 19th - Brandon Broshears, Donovan Eastham, Troy Greenwell 21st - Karl Fark, Ubi Ntewo 22nd - Katherine Painter, Gracie Swenson 23rd - Azalea Ice, Ron Stricklen 24th - Levi Colacecchi, Cordelia Hoover 25th - Sherry Minor, Brayden Ruston, Bryan Scott, Caylen Scott, Kayla Van Doren 26th - Jane Jett, Ethan Schmitt 27th - Carson Boulware, Sandy Falls, Emily Phebus, Peggy Pressley 28th - Alice Deluca, Chad Mehne, Amy Olsen 29th - Royce Erikson, Barbara Robbins

Do you ever wish that you would find an old dingy oil lamp at a garage sale or flea market? Then when you brought it home and started polishing it a genie floated out from among a cloud of blue smoke. Maybe he sounds like Robin Williams, maybe he doesn’t, the point is he offers you three wishes. You can’t believe your luck. These wishes will transform your life; that is until you realize that you can’t wish for infinite wishes…bummer. But three is still good, right? At the end of Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory, Wonka asked Charlie, “Do you know what happened to the boy that suddenly got everything he ever wanted?...He lived happily ever after.” But is it good to get everything we want? Wouldn’t life be easier, won’t we all be happier if we got everything we wanted? I propose to you that it would indeed not be better. I propose that the struggle in life actually makes life better. I understand that all Bryan R. Gotcher trials and struggles are not the same, but generally when we have to strive to gain things in this life, isn’t it better? It certainly makes those things seem more valuable. Pastor of Missions & I can tell you that a few weeks after Christmas the gifts my children received are not Administration valued as much. They are tired of them and some of them are even broken, but I have seen [email protected] where my oldest child has earned money for babysitting and she values that money and if she Blog: bryangotcher. buys something with it, that possession is prized. I also know I have a couple of pieces of paper on the wall in my office that took a lot of time and energy to earn. No one handed me wordpress.com my bachelor’s and master’s degrees, I had to put in long hours of study, class time, writing papers, and taking tests to earn them. They are two of the most valuable pieces of paper I own. The same is true for trials in our life. When we struggle we are made spiritually stronger. James says in James 1:2-4, “Count it all joy, my brothers, when you meet trials of various kinds, for you know that the testing of your faith produces steadfastness. And let steadfastness have its full effect, that you may be perfect and complete, lacking in nothing.” James encourages us to change our perspective on struggles. To not think of them as burdens but as blessings that help us to grow stronger. We are to look upon them with joy! And after we have strived and strained with our various trials we can look at our life and realize that we made it by the grace and power of our Lord Jesus Christ, which in turn has produced a spiritual strength, wisdom, and perseverance in us. Now I realize that this is easier said than done; but if we begin to simply pray and ask God to help us change our perspective, He will. We also need to start with looking at the small stuff. Maybe you had a flat tire and were late to work but in that you were able to spend a few extra minutes with the kids or you were able to interact with someone that helped you change a tire. Maybe you’re sitting in the hospital getting a treatment and your attitude and faith is an encouragement and inspiration to the nurses. Maybe you’ve just had a long day and all you want to do it veg out in front of the TV but instead you stay on your feet to serve your spouse who has also had a long day. These examples may not seem like very big things but often the little trials will prepare us for the big trials in life. One last thought I will leave you with. A few years ago, I visited a butterfly display at a zoo. The zoo keeper there was showing us how the butterflies came out of their cocoon. He stressed the point to the kids in the group to never help a butterfly out of its cocoon. We might look at them and think they need our help. We can ease their struggle by just opening that cocoon for them, but what we don’t realize is that the struggle to get out of the cocoon is what helps the butterfly get its strength to fly. If you “helped” it, then its wings would wilt, and it would quickly die. It is in the struggle the butterfly finds its strength. The same is true for us, we find our strength in Jesus when we trust Him through the struggle. So the next time you come up against a trial, start with prayer and ask Jesus to help you use it to grow for His glory.

Dear Church Family, The Student Ministry has been gearing up for the Spring and Summer by planning for events and putting dates on the calendar. We are really excited for this year’s line-up of things to do together with friends and the rest or our Student Ministry family. It is going to be full of fun times, encouraging fellowship, and spiritual growth. These events are going to be great! But with all that said, I believe there is a danger that we can easily ignore. If we aren’t careful, we will look forward to these events and forget about the essential week-by-week fellowship and worship that we all need. It can be very tempting as believers to operate from one spiritual “high” to another and neglect walking together with Christ. But the Bible doesn’t describe the Christian life as a sprint, but as a faithful and persevering walk with Christ. It is a hike that goes from mountaintops to valleys, from deserts to grassy plains. And we need each other regularly in our lives to keep us looking to Christ no matter what the terrain is. The reason I say all of that is to mention that it would be a shame for us to make it to all Brian Van Doren the church events (which would be great!) but miss out on the weekly fellowship and worship Pastor of Students that is so important for our Christian walk. While the Student Ministry events will be major [email protected] factors in students’ lives, Sunday morning, Sunday night and Wednesday night church will be even more influential over time. Missing these regular times to worship, fellowship, and grow together even though you’re making it to all the events would be like only drinking water once a month. It’s simply unhealthy. Spiritual health can hardly be overrated, therefore, the Student Ministry is a place where building close, genuine relationships and growing together in Christ is a major priority. And the best way to build relationships is regular, frequent time together. That is why I want to encourage all of us to prioritize the weekly times that we have at our church to fellowship and worship. This is how we build lasting friendships and grow in our faith. My hope for students is that they will enjoy time with their friends as well as build new genuine friendships. My prayer is that they will be growing in their faith in Christ and love for one another simultaneously. But I have no reason to expect those things to happen if we are not gathering together regularly for fellowship and worship. God works miracles sometimes, but very often He works through the most mundane things in life to bring about amazing results. I am praying for Him to do both. My hope is that the students of Oakhill Baptist Church and their friends from school and elsewhere would come to all of the events we have planned and experience the love and life-changing grace of God in the gospel of Christ. My prayer is that they will also make it a priority like never before to gather together regularly at church to hangout and have fun together while growing in their faith in Christ. Will you pray for these things with me? Will you pray for these things in your own life and for the rest of our church? We are doing a series on Wednesday nights that will help students know how to defend their faith and have courage sharing the gospel. We will investigate many of the questions that students and even adults have about Christianity. If you have a child or grandchild in the Student Ministry, would you encourage them to come regularly? Come, let us walk together with Christ, from mountaintops to valleys, from deserts to grassy plains. Sincerely, Brian Van Doren

Church Family, I hope this season finds you well as we are almost to the end of winter and to the front of spring. I, for one, am ready for some warmer weather. Being from Alabama, I’ve had about as much as I can take! I’ve never shoveled a sidewalk or driveway in my life until just a few weeks ago. I walked outside with a normal digging shovel when my good friend and neighbor Dale Potts saw me struggling and let me borrow a real snow shovel. I am thankful he helped me or I might have been snowed in! It’s funny, the feeling of being snowed in. I remember looking out the window and seeing all of the snow, thinking, “There’s no way I can go anywhere, I’m going to be stuck for days!” To my surprise, I went outside and saw people everywhere. I saw people leaving for work, people exercising, ect. I thought to myself, “These people are crazy.” Again, being from the South, I expected the whole city to shut down. But that’s not the way it is here in Indiana. People still operate in the snow. So I borrowed Dale’s snow shovel, I shoveled my Jared Mitchell driveway, and I went to work, driving as slow as I could. The funny thing, is that after a Pastor of Worship couple of days, I didn’t mind driving in the snow. I don’t mind getting out in zero degree [email protected] weather. It’s not as hard as I thought it would be, and I’m thankful that my life didn’t have to slow down for two weeks just because of some silly snow. Sometimes, I feel like our walk with God can be like this. We look through our spiritual window, and we see too many things that will keep us from walking with God. We see our sinful desires. We see our temptations. We see our culture. We see the messiness of our lives. And when we look at our lives through a window, sometimes we see things a lot worse than snow. And we think to ourselves, “There’s no way I can walk through this.” We’re tempted to think, “God can’t help me here.” And it’s at this place that we need to be reminded of God’s promises. Psalm 23:1-6 says, “The LORD is my shepherd, I lack nothing. He makes me lie down in green pastures, he leads me beside quiet waters, he refreshes my soul. He guides me along the right paths for his name’s sake. Even though I walk through the darkest valley, I will fear no evil, for you are with me; your rod and your staff, they comfort me.” I pray that we rest in the promises of God. That He is with us. He never leaves us. He never forsakes us. And even when we feel “snowed in” throughout the messiness of our lives, beneath all of our sin, we have a perfect Savior willing to walk with us, and walk for us. So don’t walk in fear, scared of what lies ahead. Go fourth, confident in the God who called you to live your life to bring Him glory. In Christ, Jared

Don’t Always Pray the Same Prayer

Nick Scott Pastor of Spiritual Development

Some people always pray the same prayer, whether they pray it just once a day or repeat it many times. They may use words straight out of Scripture, even praying one of the prayers of the Bible word for word, or they may speak sentences of a merely human origin. Either way, in Heaven their prayers must sound like an unchanging voicemail recording. But one prayer does not a prayer life make. Prayers without variety eventually become words without meaning. Jesus said that to pray this way is to pray in vain, for in the Sermon on the Mount He warned, “But when you pray, do not use vain repetitions as the heathen do. For they think that they will be heard for their many words” (Matthew 6:7). What, then, about Jesus’ teaching in the Lord’s Prayer? Don’t His introductory words to the prayer in Luke 11:2, “When you pray, say . . .” indicate that He wants us to repeat the words of this prayer verbatim? And if so, how can doing this involve “vain repetitions” since these are inspired words Jesus specifically told us to pray?

While it’s true that this command of Jesus in Luke 11:2 justifies praying the exact words of [email protected] the prayer, remember that when He taught this prayer to His hearers in Matthew 6:9 He began by saying, “In this manner, therefore, pray” (emphasis added). That’s why, even though the prayer has been recited in unison by worshipers since the second century, it has been called the Upcoming Event “Model” Prayer, because in it Jesus models all the elements we should include in our prayers. Growth Initiative Not even the apostles understood the Lord’s words here to be the exact and only words we’re (Genesis—2 Samuel) to use in prayer, for we never read in the New Testament of the apostles repeating them nor of March 24th their teaching others to do so. The other prayers of the New Testament follow the model of this 8:30 — 11:30 am prayer, but not its form. Any prayer in the Bible consistent with the Model Prayer may also be prayed sincerely and/or used as a model, but none should be considered merely a script to be Join us as we begin repeated ritualistically. our survey through the beginning of the Jesus also taught the importance of perseverance in prayer (Matthew 7:7-8; Luke 18:1-8), Old Testament! meaning that it’s often necessary to pray many times (maybe even years) for the same thing. But frequent prayer for the same thing is very different from vain repetition of the same prayer. We Sign up at the should never think that we have found “just the right words” and make them the sum total of Welcome Center our prayer life.

Proverbs 22:6 “Train a child in the way he should go, and when he is old he will not turn from it.” April Sharp - [email protected] Children’s Ministry Director

Hello church family, I am so thankful that I get the opportunity to share my thoughts and the happenings of our children’s ministry each month to my church family! Please know that this months article is going to be full of upcoming information for anyone that has children, grandchildren, who loves children, who is looking for ways to serve children, and even for those who are just curious about our children’s ministry. So pretty much… let’s hope that everyone. Let’s start with a few words about Upward: Our games started at the beginning of January and will continue each weekend through February. We are having a blast each weekend as we serve our community. Each game starts with a prayer and has a fun game that coincides with an applicable devotion during half-time and then each coach gets the opportunity to praise their team players with their parents after the game. We have made some amazing connections with families and had many opportunities to pray with them and show our Father’s love. We will finish up the season the first weekend in March with a carnival style celebration and basketball tournament. Having Upward Sports in our church is a huge blessing and opportunity that everyone in our church family should experience. Here is a list of SAVE-THE-DATES for those that are planners and may be looking for ways to get your children involved and possibly even ways for the adults to get involved as well. March 2nd & 3rd - Upward Celebration March 21st 9am & 6pm - Filling 6,000 Easter eggs for Eggstravaganza March 24th - Kids Praise practice during Growth Initiative

It may seem simpler to pray only one prayer all the time rather than learning to pray in accordance with all that the Bible teaches on prayer. But in reality such praying is an oversimplification that reduces prayer to a magic formula designed to get God to do our bidding. The entire Bible is our guide to prayer, and to willfully neglect what God says about it throughout Scripture in order to isolate our attention on one prayer is a waste of breath.

March 31st - Easter Eggstravaganza

Besides, talking to God is too great a privilege to settle for “vain repetitions” when the Bible invites you to “pour out your heart before Him” (Psalm 62:8). (Excerpted from Donald S. Whitney, Simplify Your Spiritual Life)

May 9th - AWANA Celebration

April 7th - AWANA T&T Bible Quizzing April 14th - Vacation Bible School Conference @ State Office (Highland Lakes)

June 25th - 29th - Vacation Bible School “Game On!” July 26th - 29th - Kids Camp 3rd-5th grade @ Crossings Cedermore

Kids Camp

Recommended Resource - Gospel and Kingdom by Graeme Goldsworthy As our church is reading together through the Old Testament this book would be a great resource to anyone who wants to know how and why the Old Testament is essential for every Christian to read and understand. This book will help you see how the Old Testament connects with the New Testament by focusing on the theme of how God has and is progressively establishing his kingdom throughout all of history.

Thank you for allowing me to love on your kiddos. July 24th—27th

(completed grades 2nd-5th)

God Bless,

$260

Serving Others at Oakhill

February 2018 Ministry Calendar Sunday

Monday

Tuesday

Wednesday

Thursday 1 Upward Practice

Friday 2 Upward Games

Saturday 3 Upward Games

Women’s Bible Study 10 am

4 Regular Sunday Schedule

5 Upward Practice

6 Upward Practice

Student Super Bowl Party 4:30 - 9:00 pm

11 Regular Sunday Schedule

Deacon’s Meeting 6:00 pm

12 Upward Practice

13 Upward Practice

Valentine’s Banquet 6:00 pm

18 Regular Sunday Schedule

7 Regular Wednesday Schedule

14 Regular Wednesday Schedule

8 Upward Practice

9 Upward Games

Women’s Bible Study 10 am

Food Pantry 9:00 am

16 Upward Games

20 Upward Practice

21 Regular Wednesday Schedule

22 Upward Practice

17 Upward Games Food Pantry 9:00 am

23 Upward Games

24 Upward Games

Women’s Bible Study 10 am

26 Upward Practice

27 Upward Practice

28 Regular Wednesday Schedule Discover Oakhill 6:00 pm

February 25

Deacon of the Week

Deacon of the Week

Deacon of the Week

Deacon of the Week

Brad Ditter (812) 480-9663

Lucus Pettigrew (812) 319-9971

Richard West (812) 853-7930

Jeff Thornton (812) 746-8739

Matt Schloss (812) 483-1778

Kevin Knuckles (618) 383-2543

Steve Comer (812) 437-2922

Ty Nixon (812) 518-8759

Chair Set-Up Team

Chair Set-Up Team

Chair Set-Up Team

Chair Set-Up Team

Deckman

Simpson

Townsend

Gotcher

8:00 AM Service Nursery Shannon & Kalyn Wild

Nursery Larry & Bonnie Beckham

Nursery Doris & MaciStudent Rutledge

Nursery Ashley Hughes & Mary Gamblin Camp

Greeters Jerry & Shirley Guinn

Greeters Jerry & Shirley Guinn

Greeters Bonnie Beckham, Sharon Harmes, April Helm

Greeters Marge Pontious & Bob Williams

Welcome Center Mary Gamblin

Welcome Center Amanda Washburn

Welcome Center Shirlene Kilgore

Welcome Center Dawn Ommart

Summer Dates: June 12-16

Sunday Schedule 8:00 am Traditional Worship 9:30 am Contemporary Worship 11:00 am Contemporary Worship 5:00 pm Student Life Groups

Nursery Isaac & Jessica Principe

Nursery Dave & Kristie Swenson

Nursery Heather Ntewo

Nursery Sean & Audrey McDonald

Greeters Ryan & Wynter Deckman, Tom & Fong Stofleth

Greeters Brett & Tammy Creamer, Ty & Teresa Nixon

Greeters Jon & Heidi Hart, Tom Stofleth

Greeters Sandy Dierlam, April Helm, Emily McGeorge

Welcome Center Robert Jackson

Welcome Center April Helm

Welcome Center John & Pam Schultz

Welcome Center Sondra Schloss

11:00 AM Service

M3 Member’s Meeting 6:00 pm

25 Regular Sunday Schedule

February 18

9:30 AM Service

Winter Jam Women’s Bible Study 10 am

19 Upward Practice

February 11

10 Upward Games

State Hospital Ministry 9:45 am

15 Upward Practice

February 4

Wednesday Schedule 12:00 pm Prayer and Bible Study Luncheon 6:00 pm Student Gathering & AWANA 7:30 pm Worship Team Practice

Nursery Kathy Masterson & Ella Thornton

Nursery Toni Gillispie & Emily McGeorge

Nursery Ty & Teresa Nixon

Nursery Jon & Heidi Hart

Toddlers Jeff & Lindsay Beck

Toddlers John & Lori Couts

Toddlers Lucus & Leigha Pettigrew

Toddlers Ryan & Wynter Deckman

Greeters Nancy Andrews, Keith & Teresa Thomas

Greeters Curtis Cronch, Carolyn Wilkinson

Greeters Shirley Williams, Ralph Rode

Greeters Curtis Cronch, Dawna Fischer

Welcome Center Kathleen Qualkenbush

Welcome Center Becky Cosby

Welcome Center Amy Olsen

Welcome Center Jacob & Gina Townsend

Van Driver Brad Lamar

Van Driver Lucus Pettigrew

Van Driver Steve Comer

Van Driver Jacob Townsend

August 30th