DNow Weekend

Feb.24-25 @ FBC Kennett

 Becoming examines the transformation that Jesus Christ
brought about in the life of the Apostle Paul.
Paul was so changed by his encounter with Christ that this former
Pharisee could boldly say…
“For me to live is Christ.”

Four very deep sessions will push our students to
think and examine where they are in their relationship with the Christ and if
they are willing to take the next step in being a TRUE Christ Follower.

We will kick off the event with a Pizza Party
at 6:30 PM and Session 1 featuring worship band All We Are and nationally known speaker Cody Deese!!!

Lodging, transportation, t-shirts, and ALL food and drinks provided.

The cost is  $45 per student.

 You DO NOT want to miss this event!!!
For more info call Rodney Rogers at FBC (573) 888-4689 or email:  rodney.rogers68@gmail.com.

For the complete schedule and more information,
click here to download the promo material.

Haven’t you ever done that? You know, the “New Year’s Resolution” deal we all do each and every year!

Here is the “Top 5” New Year’s Resolutions for most of us.
1. Get Fit/Lose weight!!!
2. Enjoy life more and stop stressing! (Yea right!)
3. Get out of debt.
4. Learn something new.
5. Get organized! (This one is for me!)

Here is the “Top 5” New Year’s Resolutions most of us break in the first 30 days of the New Year!
1. Get Fit/Lose weight!!!
2. Enjoy life more and stop stressing!
3. Get out of debt.
4. Learn something new.
5. Get organized!

This has been one of those yearly traditions all of us have done or said at one time or another and while your list may vary from year to year, most of us make a list every single year. And like most, we either break those or never fully follow through with them for the entire year because life just happens.

I have and still see it in the lives of Christ followers.

Every year I hear people say, “I am going to read the entire Bible this year!” or “I am going to attend church more often.” Maybe it’s, “I am going to pray more or serve others more.” Whatever it is, Christ followers, me included, seem to make all kinds of New Year’s Resolutions that we never seem to fulfill.

Why?

Most likely, we don’t have a solid plan to get us there. We trust our own skill set or our own thoughts on how to lose the weight or to exercise or to get out of debt, instead of consulting those who have a plan that can get us there.

I want to give you something to think about as we head into this New Year of 2012…

RESOLVE TO BE MORE LIKE CHRIST IN 2012!!!

And guess what? I have a plan to get us there….it’s called “THE BIBLE!”

To be more like Christ, we need to do 4 things…

1. Love God/Love Others! – We have got to put God FIRST in our lives! He has to come before your spouse. He has to come before your children. He has to come before your job. He has to be first. I love what Jesus says in Matthew 22:37-39 and it really sums up this first resolve to be more like Christ…”And He said to him, ‘YOU SHALL LOVE THE LORD YOUR GOD WITH ALL YOUR HEART, AND WITH ALL YOUR SOUL, AND WITH ALL YOUR MIND.’ 38 This is the great and foremost commandment. 39The second is like it, ‘YOU SHALL LOVE YOUR NEIGHBOR AS YOURSELF.’ Love God and love others…

2. Read the Bible…DAILY! – Most of us, if not all of us, own a bible and if the government were to say that all copies of the bible are to be burned and no one is to have a copy, we would all march on Washington to say that no one is going to take away our bibles. But the funny thing is that most of us never open it….EVER!!! I don’t know how a Christ follower can mature in his or her walk with Christ if they never look at how we need to live our lives. Psalm 119:11 needs to be our purpose this year. It says, “11 Your word I have treasured in my heart, That I may not sin against You.” This year, treasure the Bible and read it daily!

3. Pray more! – Most of us pray when we either find ourselves in trouble or we want something! This year, be more like what Paul tells Timothy in 1st Timothy 2:1-6 where he says, “1 First of all, then, I urge that entreaties and prayers, petitions and thanksgivings, be made on behalf of all men, 2 for kings and all who are in authority, so that we may lead a tranquil and quiet life in all godliness and dignity. 3 This is good and acceptable in the sight of God our Savior, 4 who desires all men to be saved and to come to the knowledge of the truth. 5 For there is one God, and one mediator also between God and men, the man Christ Jesus, 6 who gave Himself as a ransom for all, the testimony given at the proper time.” This year, pray for other people and not just yourself. Pray for our leadership in the church and in our country. Pray for your community. Pray for missionaries all over the world. Pray for your spouse, your children, your job, your boss, and for the lost. Make this year a constant attitude of prayer to be more like Christ!

4. Serve others. – If we as Christ followers and as a church body would fulfill this one, there is just no telling how it would change us, our church, our community, and the world!!! Serve others. In John 13:12-14, Jesus washed feet. It says, “12 So when He had washed their feet, and taken His garments and reclined at the table again, He said to them, “Do you know what I have done to you? 13 You call Me Teacher and Lord; and you are right, for so I am. 14 If I then, the Lord and the Teacher, washed your feet, you also ought to wash one another’s feet.” Whose feet can you wash this year? Who can you serve?

I believe these 4 things can, if we do them, can make our 2012 one of the best years of our lives.

How about resolving yourself to be more like Christ in 2012 and taking these four steps to do so. You know if you do, some of those other “resolutions” will take care of themselves!

In His Grip,
Rodney

The store takes place in a shopping mall where the class officers have gathered to find a “special” present for their teacher! (That one gift every year that gets “re-gifted”!) As they do their search, they find this store called, “Tiff’s Gifts”. As they are in this store trying to find this gift, they learn three things that really make this season what it SHOULD be about.

The first thing they learn is that God’s gift was given out of love. The next is that God GAVE His very BEST! And the final lesson was that God gave in response to OUR GREAT NEED AND NOT WHAT WE DESERVED!

As I sat and watched the great acting and singing being performed, I thought about all of the people who camped out all night to get that one gift. The countless amounts of hours that people drove and the time they gave up just to save a little bit of money. The large sums of money spent in just one day for things that will one day all fade away. For things that mean absolutely nothing in or for eternity. And then it happened…

The music started playing and a student began to sing…

“Christmas time was approaching; snow was starting to fall. Shoppers choosing their presents, people filling the mall. Children waiting for Santa with excitement and glee; a little boy tugged my sweater, looked up and asked me…”

At this point I am watching all of the kids and listening and then she sang these words…

“Where’s the line to see Jesus? Is He here at the store? If Christmas time is His birthday, why don’t we see Him more? Where’s the line to see Jesus? He was born for me. Santa may bring me presents, but Christ gave His life for me.”

I couldn’t breathe. My eyes were sweating! (Yes I was crying!!)

My mind went back to the times we took Josh to see Santa at the mall or all of us as a family waited to see Santa for HOURS at Macy’s on 34th street in New York City. All of those people standing in line to see a man, that in our world, comes but once a year to bring us gifts that will break, not fit, ruin teenagers lives, tear families apart, gifts that will just give us a “feel good” for a short while and all the while Giver of LIFE has given us His ALL!

While there will be long lines in malls and stores all over the world to see Santa, there will be no lines to get into churches. No lines of people seeking the God child. No lines to go and serve others who have no hope. No lines to give so that others may hear the Gospel. No lines to head to another part of the world or country to share their faith. No lines to see Jesus…

As this wonderful time of the year is here and all of us get to enjoy family and all that the season brings, remember this line in this song…

“In the blink of an eye, at the sound of the trump, we will stand in line at His throne. Every knee shall bow down; every tongue will confess that Jesus Christ is Lord.”

So, let me ask you …

Where’s the line to see Jesus? Is He at the store? If Christmas time is His birthday, why don’t we see Him more? Where’s the line to see Jesus? He was born for me. Santa may bring you presents, but Christ gave His life for YOU!

Merry Christmas and God Bless you and your family!

• Journey groups are messy. Really messy.
• Journey groups are a logistical hassle. Meeting in homes only adds to the chaos.
• Journey groups require lots of leaders.
• Journey groups need constant attention and maintenance.
• In short…Journey groups are a BIG pain.

BUT…
Journey groups are totally worth it.

Here are 4 reasons why we think Journey groups are a big deal.

Journey groups help make invisible students visible
I a couple who had 2 kids in our other student ministry – one of them is going to spend their lives being the center of attention and the other is probably going to enjoy contributing on occasion but usually just fading into the background and allowing someone else to take center stage. Journey groups put every student in a position to contribute and be challenged. A church that only gathers in the large group setting is encouraging only the faithful, vocal few to truly participate…others may attend, but very few participate. Journey groups help make the typically invisible student a little more visible.

Journey groups make any size church feel like home
It really doesn’t matter how big our youth ministry is – it is going to feel unwelcoming or even cold to some degree to an outsider. But when a student is invited into a Journey group… with only a handful of others it begins to feel warmer and more inviting. Personally, I love Journey groups in homes because this helps them feel even warmer.

Journey groups create a youth pastor minor league
We want to turn regular men and women into great youth workers! I asked a couple in Dothan to take a Journey Group and I asked them to try a few seasons in Journey groups as teachers. I was really amazed at how their hearts and love for the student ministry grew and how much they grew spiritually! They grew so much that when I told them it was time for them to rotate off; they threatened me with my life if I did so!!! I have stated this many times…this ministry is not mine! It belongs to all of us and this provides opportunities for lots and lots of youth pastors within one ministry.

Journey groups produce Godly students
OK, this one isn’t guaranteed, but a Journey group environment does allow a great leader to be placed over, care for and disciple a handful of students. You can rest a little easier when a student gets connected in a Journey group – because you know they have a much better chance of their faith sticking because of the relationships that have been set in motion.

Please contact Rodney about being involved in Journey groups or any other student ministry activity or project! WE NEED YOU!!!

Why are we changing the name from Sunday School to Life Groups?

It is important to realize that Sunday schools were originally literally schools: they were places where poor children could learn to read. The Sunday school movement began in Britain in the 1780s. The Industrial Revolution had resulted in many children spending all week long working in factories. Many children worked up to 12 hours per day and even on Saturdays. Sunday, therefore, was the only available time for these children to gain some education.

The English Anglican evangelical Robert Raikes (1725-1811) was the key promoter of the movement. It soon spread to America as well. Denominations and non-denominational organizations caught the vision and energetically began to create Sunday schools. Within decades, the movement had become extremely popular. By the mid-19th century, Sunday school attendance was a near universal aspect of childhood. Even parents who did not regularly attend church themselves generally insisted that their children go to Sunday school.

Sunday school has fallen on hard times recently. At FBC, we have been in a decline in Sunday School attendance since 1987. If we continue this trend, Sunday School will be gone in the next 10 to 20 years.

The phrase “Sunday School” and even “bible study” does not ring well with the lost or seeking world. To them, it is a deterrent in coming to church. It has a negative effect on them. Not to mention, the Sunday School of today is not the same as it was when it was founded or introduced in America in the 19th century. So it is time to make a change. Our culture has changed. The gospel message will never change, but how we present it must!

Why Life Groups?

Doing life together is a key component of the Christian life. We need a group of other believers who can encourage and spiritually challenge us. We need folks who will walk with us as we experience life, grow spiritually, serve others, and live out our Christian faith.
We all agree that being a Christian is a relationship, not a religious exercise. If we really believe it, then everything we do in church ministry should revolve around growing our relationships–with each other and with God. Life Groups can help us do just that and reach other people!

How?

We do it like Jesus did. We start with the Bible and use creative activities to help people experience God’s Word and apply it to life. We fellowship outside of the church with as a group from time to time. We serve others as a group in our community. We grow and do LIFE TOGETHER!

You see, Sunday School, as you know it by, has never left, we have just changed the name to bring it into our setting of today to make it relevant again and to take away a barrier to those who are seeking to find truth…REAL TRUTH in their lives.

People do life together every day. At work. At school. On the baseball fields. At Wal-Mart…so let’s start doing life together where it really matters….in our church.

If you have questions or would like to visit with me on this, please feel free to contact me at the church office or on my cell at 573-717-5260. You can also email me at rodney@fbckennett.com.

Thanks for your service to our Lord and King. May He receive all the glory and honor!

In His Grip,
Rodney Rogers
Education/Student Pastor
FBC Kennett

Journey Group from Rodney Rogers on Vimeo.

Journey Groups are home groups that are designed to grow our students into a deep relationship with God as they are grouped with other students that they do life with on a daily basis. Deep studies, deep conversation, fellowship, and a deepening of relationship with each other. For more information on how you can help with Journey Groups, contact Rodney at rodney@fbckennett.com or call 573.717.5260.

This past two weeks, we have been really dealing with chapter 7 of this book, titled, “There is No Plan B”. Its central theme is God has made the way of salvation available solely through faith in Jesus as the Christ. The lamb to take all of our sins away. John 14:6, Jesus says, “I am the Way, the Truth, and the Life; No one comes to the Father, but through Me.”

More than 4.5 billion people in the world today are without Christ. If this fact were not serious enough, more than a billion of these people have never even heard the gospel. So what happens to them when they die? This is a questions that I posed not only to the adults I have been teaching, but I posed this same question to students as well. This is one of the most important questions facing Christians in America today. If people will go to heaven simply based on their native religious preferences, then there is no urgency for any of us to go to them. But if they will not go to heaven because they have never heard of Christ, then there is indescribable urgency for all of us to go to them. If people are dying and going to hell without ever knowing there is a gospel, then we clearly have no time to waste our lives on an American dream. What does the Bible say about people who never hear about Jesus?

I would challenge you to read Romans 1:18- 2:16. Paul describes how the Gentiles had sinned against God. How they are “without excuse”. And as you read it, continue to read all the way through chapter 3 where Paul calls us all onto the carpet. Paul understood what many of us have failed to realize. Paul, even though he had be saved by the grace and mercy of God, understood that he was without excuse as well. Paul states in Romans 3:10-12, “as it is written, There is none righteous, not even one; There is none who understands, there is none who seeks for God; All have turned aside, together they have become useless; there is none who does good, there is not even one.”

David Platt states, “The case has been made, and it is decisive. All people, regardless of religious, cultural, or ethnic background, stand guilty before God. In Paul’s words, “Every mouth [is] silenced and the whole world held accountable to God” That is a POWERFUL statement!!! All people know God and all people reject God. All people are guilty before God and all people are condemned for rejecting God. God has made a way of salvation for the lost, and people cannot come to God apart from faith in Christ.

We live in a society that wants to call into question God’s justice and love if it is asserted that He would dare not save all human kind. Scenarios are presented in which humans are the victims of a vindictive, impatient, judgmental, wrathful God. The reality, of course, is that He is the victim. We abandoned Him. We deserved no recourse, no rescue, no redemption. Yet, because of His great justice and love He made a way, the Way that humankind might be able to know Him and come to dwell with Him forever.

Ok, so now what?

Christ commands the church to make the gospel known to all peoples. Matthew 28:19-20, we know it as the Great Commission, is our command from Christ as a CHURCH! It is not a suggestion. It is not a “if you feel like it” kind of statement. It is a COMMAND!!!

I was reminded about the first word of that command and its meaning today by Pastor Ed. The small word “GO” literally means “As YOU GO”! That means, just as you are. It means that “As you go” to the supermarket. “As you GO” to work. “As you Go” to a ball game. “As you Go” to where ever your day takes you, you are to make disciples through sharing your faith through your everyday life actions. To flesh out your faith in Christ so that others see Him in you!

If we do not take this command seriously, more than a billion people today are headed to a Christless eternity without ever hearing the gospel and all the while we, people who call ourselves “Christians” waste our lives on chasing the “American Dream”.

This reason this is so personal to me is that last week a 14 year old student in Dothan, Alabama, where we served the first 2 years of our ministry, stepped into eternity. I got the call on Tuesday night from a former student in our ministry and others called or messaged me on facebook. I shared Christ with him in January of this year, but he seemed just to tune me out at one point. I left him with the statement that God loves him so much that He sent Jesus, His only Son, to die just for him so that he could spend eternity in heaven with Him, but he had to receive this gift that God has offered. That if he ever needed to talk, all he had to do was call me. I do not know if he ever accepted Christ or not. Many of my former students struggled with that same thought. My question to them as they expressed sadness for this loss of a young man was, “did you ever share Jesus with him?”

We live in a world that seems to be running head first for hell and the only way to get through to them is to stand in their way and share TRUTH with them. But there will be casualties. If we take a stand to obey God’s command to us, then we must be prepared to pay the cost. It could cost you your friends, a job, a family relationship, or even your life.

If we don’t, the cost becomes even greater….billions of people, our friends, family members, co-workers, will stand before Him and He will say to them…”Depart from Me…I never knew you.”

I challenge you to share with others this gift of Christ. Every day! With whom do you need to share Jesus? Grasp the truth of Jesus being the only Way to God, not as a restrictive limitation, but as an urgent truth that drives your life from here on out.

Michelle and Brian Lane set up and organized a yard cleaning for their neighbor Mrs. Margaret Ray this past Wednesday! They provided water, soft drinks, and food for the day and they got a ton of work accomplished!!!

There was mowing, tree cutting, brick moving, and much more that the team did on a VERY HOT day! But what a great outreach they did!!! Mrs. Ray’s yard looks great and there will be some more days spent over there getting everything done they set out to do.

Being the hands and feet of Christ has so much power in revealing who Jesus is and how much He loves us. Many times people just need to see us living out our faith to want to know more about who He is and what He means to us!

Here is a thought…

If Jesus ministered to others before He thought of himself, shouldn’t we? Let me challenge you to join us in ministering to the town of Kennett in the fall as we seek out to serve those in need. You will be extremely blessed and will be a witness to those you serve.

In His Grip,
Rodney

It’s been a week or two since I have last blogged, but there has been so much going on, that it has been hard just to sit down with nothing else going on and do it…so today is the day!!!
This will be long, so bare with me…

WIRED WAS AMAZING!!!

It is hard to put into words all that God did at our student camp this year, but I am so grateful that we serve in a church where we are given the freedom to allow the Holy Spirit to direct us rather than people!

When I arrived here at FBC, I made a decision on camp because we really had a short amount of time to get registered, travel arrangements made, paperwork done, and all that goes into setting a vision for our parents and students. I made the decision based on prayer and what I had seen done in the lives of students and adults through WIRED! I really built it up too and God did not disappoint!!!

The week before we left, God just worked out who needed to go. We had a few that left open spots and 3 days before we left, God filled those up! The enemy really wanted to keep students from going. He was working to get thru cell phones and relationships students were in. He worked thru parents who wanted to allow the students to lead instead of parents. But in the end…God placed who HE wanted to go on this trip.

The enemy struck again when our van decided not to run well on the way there! God once again stepped on his head and let him know that he would not win. Then, just an hour later, a wreck happened that caused a long delay and again God won as He directed us around it and we were back on track!

From the time we arrived, God just pushed thru and showed up and showed out!!! He used Decemberadio and Cody Deese to bring us to the feet of Christ and He then used our church devotionals to break thru to all of us on unity and who He really is to us. It was here where God really made His mark on our students and parents. Every night seemed to be building up to breaking the chains of bondage off several students’ lives and to break down barriers in the lives of ALL of us.

I can’t even begin to describe the scene on Wednesday night as we scrambled to find counselors to work thru leading several of our students to the understanding, saving power of Christ!!! I believe CHRIST BECAME REAL TO THOSE 18 STUDENTS THAT NIGHT! We had such special times with our students and leaders on this trip. It was even more special than I had prayed for, but it was all GOD!!!

After we FINALLY made it back to FBC Kennett, we were thrilled to see so many waiting for our arrival! What an emotional homecoming!!! Thank you church!! It really meant a lot to me and I know it did our students as well!!!

Monday night after our arrival home, I had the honor of kicking off the youth camp for the association and several of our students went with us. They celebrated 5 decisions that evening and many more throughout the week. To top that off, I had the honor of preaching to our church that next Sunday.

Now comes the time to walk the talk!!! We have to live out who we are in Christ so that others may see HIM in our lives and desire that change in their lives!!! God was soooooo good to us in July and now I am looking forward to seeing what He has planned for us as a student ministry and as a church in the coming months.

Please be in prayer and let God lead us to His calling in our lives….

“12 So then, my beloved, just as you have always obeyed, not as in my presence only, but now much more in my absence, work out your salvation with fear and trembling; 13 for it is God who is at work in you, both to will and to work for His good pleasure.” Phil. 2:12-13

In His Grip,
Rodney

“The time has come
To stand for all we believe in
So I for one
I’m gonna give my praise to you”

“Today today
I live for one thing
To give you praise
In everything I do
Yeah all the praise goes out to you”

“Cause all we are is yours
And all we’re living for
Is all you are
Is all that you are”

This week at WIRED, our students will be on a mission based experience where we will have over 100 teams and over 1000 students out being the hands and feet of Christ! Some will be doing sports camps with kids from 1st-6th grade teaching them drills in 4 different sports and sharing Christ with them each and every day. Others will be on construction teams, 32 different teams, helping out with missions of love by rebuilding porches or decks, yard work, flooring, painting and many other projects. While others will be on Social Teams that will visit nursing homes, soup kitchens, adult daycare, pregnancy resource center, and a favorite place of mine…Mama Tina’s.

Our days will start at 6:30 AM with breakfast and ends with lights out at 11:30 PM! (as if that will actually happen!)

Our team consists of 8 Parents and 34 students. 6 of those students are our guest. No hotels for us, we are staying at FBC Dothan in SS classrooms! Shower trailers for the girls. Hot and humid weather awaits. And all will be done for God’s Glory!!!

I am really looking forward to seeing our team bond with each other and to really see God move in a special way. I praying for a revival among these students. I am praying that we, as adults and parents, will get serious about what is really important in the lives of our students and stop allowing the world to tell us how we are or should raise our students. I think God knows best!

I would ask you to do something really special this week…pray for our students!!! Let’s show that with action! Here is how you can do that…

If you are a parent, grandparent, aunt, uncle, or just a dear friend, I would ask that you commit to praying every day and WRITING THOSE PRAYERS DOWN IN A NOTEBOOK and give it to that student when they come home. This is a wonderful thing to actually see prayers that where prayed for that student that really needed it on that specific day. If you take this action and do what I ask, I want to hear your testimony on how it effected you and the student. I am telling you know, it will be a blessing you do not want to miss out on!

So, the time has come…to stand for what we believe in…are you ready?

Let’s do this thang….Peace. Out!