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First Connect
February 4, 2015
VISIT OUR WEBSITE AT WWW.FBCOKC.ORG
(405) 232-4255
Tax Assistance Begins TODAY. Our church is once again hosting AARP tax help. Each
Wednesday, from February 4 through April 15, Jerry Reese and others will assist people with
their tax returns. Our church is recognized as a gracious host to our visitors. Thank you,
Jerry and volunteers, for assisting with this important ministry.
Upcoming Children’s Events
Parents, please mark your calendars for some upcoming events in our preschool and children’s
ministry.
Friday, February 20 – Kids Night Out for preschool and elementary kids, 6-10 pm
Sunday, February 22 – Elementary kids will serve as greeters at the doors before worship
Saturday, March 7 – Mission Ignition for elementary kids (see details below)
Reserve a spot for Mission Ignition! Elementary students, Mission Ignition is just around the corner. On
Saturday, March 7, we will gather at Portland Avenue Baptist Church for a day of missions fun – lunch
included! And we will be awarded our THIRD Platinum badge for missions service projects. Please RSVP to
Kristin by February 11 so we can reserve our spot. Parents, the event lasts from 9a m to 3 pm, so I know you are
ready to sign up the kids NOW! Make plans and add this to your calendar today.
Disciple Now 2015: Love is a Fire. Our Youth Disciple Now weekend is
almost here! We’ll kick off everything on Friday, February 13 at 6 p.m.
in the Youth Center. We WILL be eating dinner when the students arrive.
Parents, use the north entrance under the carport (CareForOKC entrance).
Don’t forget to bring your medical release forms and $30 per student.
Information sheets with all the details are in the Youth Center or you can
email [email protected]. It’s going to be an incredible weekend
discussing the joys and complexities of relationships and how our
relationship with God is the foundation for all others.
Let’s Read the Bible Together! God intends for His Word to be our source of strength, hope, truth, and peace.
Here are daily readings for this week:
February 4: II Samuel 18-20
February 5: II Samuel 21-22, Psalm 18
February 6: II Samuel 23-24, I Kings 1
February 7: I Kings 2-4
February 8: I Kings 5-7
February 9: I Kings 8-10
February 10: I Kings 11-13
February 11: I Kings 14-16
Men’s Breakfast
Saturday, February 21
Don’s Alley in Del City
4601 Southeast 29th Street
We will meet for breakfast and fellowship at 8:30 a.m.
“All you can change is yourself, but sometimes that changes everything.” G.W. Goldstein
Get to Know First Lunch – Sunday, March 1. If you’re new to FBCOKC or have visited
our church and want to learn more, we invite you to join us for lunch on Sunday, March 1 in
the Coffee Shoppe after worship. Lunch is free but please RSVP to [email protected] or
sign up in The Commons by February 25. Don’t miss this opportunity to meet new friends and
learn what makes FBCOKC a different kind of Baptist church.
Good Shepherd is off and running...and we need you to run (or walk) too! The 6th Annual Health Dash is a
philanthropic project benefitting a free clinic affiliated with the OU Health Alliance.
The recipient this year is Good Shepherd’s Clinic on the Move. Clinic on the Move is
a fully equipped mobile clinic that allows Good Shepherd to visit a community and
directly impact their health. You can help by signing up to walk 1 mile, or
run 5K or 10K, on Saturday, March 28. The Health Dash starts at 9 am on
the campus of OU Health Sciences Center (near our church). Several
members of our church have already signed up, so come and join the fun and help our community too!
Volunteering @ CareForOKC – Join us at CareForOKC on Monday nights from 4:30-6:30 as we assist
people with their physical needs (food pantry, clothes closet) and also spend time hearing their stories and
praying for their spiritual needs. Volunteer once a month or every Monday and bring a friend to serve with you!
Email [email protected] or call the church office for more information about volunteering or giving to
CareForOKC.
Insights & Musings from…Sabrina Davis
Each week at staff meetings, we have an agenda item titled “Stories”. This is an opportunity for the staff
to share exciting things happening in the church. It could be a random act of kindness performed by a church
member, a break-through or “Aha!” moment in one of our ministries, or a story about a budding relationship with
someone who we hope will call FBCOKC home one day. I recently used the “story” time to express gratitude to
our ministers who have had an impact on my family. As I began to share an update in my son’s
life - getting ready to graduate high school, planning for college - I realized how important
this church has been in his story. FBCOKC has been a haven for my family through formative
years that are often difficult for children. Our ministers do an amazing job. I also recognize
the multitude of laypeople (to use a churchy word) who volunteer their time serving this
church in both profound and simple ways. All of these pieces work together to make up
FBCOKC, and my son has benefitted in the process. So, I cannot limit my expression of
gratitude to the staff meeting. Thank you, church, for being the light for my family. We’re eternally grateful.
Missions
Your World Missions Offering Supports…RMG, a family working in SE Asia. Their work on a
demonstration farm is quite interesting and helpful to those in their area. They also work with a medical boat
which provides the only medical care for many, many families isolated in a remote jungle area. Here is a recent
update from them.
The local church that we attend has a tradition of visiting 5 to 6 homes after the Christmas and New
Year’s Day services each year. The entire church takes part. Only about 4 or 5 families own
cars in our congregation, so the house-to-house caravan includes all the available cars packed
and a trail of motorbikes with entire families riding on one motorbike. Our family was chosen
as one of the homes to visit following the New Year’s service. Our plan was to rush home after
the service for any last minute food preparations before their arrival. We found our car had a
flat tire, and so a quick exit after the church service was not possible. R. and several helpful
men from church got the spare tire in place, and we were able to get home without too much
delay. Our guests did not arrive right away. We later found out that we were the fourth house
to be visited, so we had plenty of time. However, everyone was already quite full by the time
they arrived. Our house was packed with about 50 people arriving at once. Even though not
many of the snacks were eaten, we enjoyed the time of fellowship and prayer together.
VISITORS ARE ALWAYS WELCOME
Our city is not on the way to anywhere and not the easiest place to travel to, so we enjoy it when visitors
do come. We are blessed to be receiving two special groups these first few months of the New Year! We are
delighted that a DTS team will be serving on Mercy Medical Boat this month for two weeks
providing daily clinics, and in the evenings they will visit in the homes of villagers, prayer walk
through the villages, and provide fun activities for the children. Then they will spend two
weeks at the demonstration farm helping with harvesting rubber, composting, and planting
crops. In the afternoons they will lead sports camps for the children in the neighboring
villages. In the evening they will visit in homes and conduct prayer walks in the nearby
villages.
We are also thrilled that two doctors will be visiting us and encouraging the medical boat team as well as
leading seminars at the city’s medical university and eye center.
WEAVING HIM IN
As the New Year begins we are full of anticipation and thankfulness. Thank you for your prayers,
encouragement, and financial support as we join together to weave Christ into the fabric of this land!