Who's It Going To Be?

Who's coming to dinner?

Join us for a Mystery Date on March 29th. Submit your top three restaurant choices and you will be "paired up" with other couples. 3-4 couples will be in group. If your date will be unable to go, but you still want to attend, you are more than welcome! We may be able to pair you up with someone else who will be single for the evening.

You will receive a call a few days prior to date night with your restaurant location. Show up and see who will be dining with you!

This a wonderful way to connect with others in the class, ones that you may not have otherwise been able to get to know! Arrange for a babysitter - and plan to meet for dinner around 6:00.

Worshiping God

Hey guys!
This week's readings have focused on worshiping God, which will be our focus for Sunday. The question for Monday made me think, where do I worship God?
While I believe it is important for us to have quiet times of devotion, in which we can worship God without distraction, sometimes we miss opportunities to worship God
as we go about our daily lives. Some time ago, I began asking God to open my eyes to His work around me, and to make me aware of times to pray and be with Him.
This has led to some incredible moments celebrating the small, everyday occurrences that are actually miracles of God's work.
It may sound cheesy, but these range from finding the parking space I needed, to help getting through some tough work or family situations. Since marrying Robby and having Kaylee in my life, this had led to some neat moments of getting to show her how to worship God in our daily lives as we thank God for leading us to the things we needed while shopping or thank Him for answering her prayers for a puppy.
I want to encourage you this week to seek God in all things in your life. Ask Him to reveal Himself and His working around you, and to provide opportunities to worship Him through your thanks and your life.
Blessings to you all!

Forgiveness Needed

Guys, I need to ask your forgiveness.
Week before last, I really dove into the lesson and daily readings. I was convicted about my lack of private time with God, and I challenged you all to think about the time you spent with God. It was an awesome, incredibly convicting and incredibly close time with God.
And then what do I go and do?
I was so confident about my spiritual walk that I went and didn't have one single quiet time until Saturday night, when I finally began to study the lesson. And even then, I didn't find a quiet place.
Believe me guys, by midweek, it began showing, and by the end of the week, I was a Crabby, Irrational, Whiney, Pity-Partying, ***??!?!?!**. (I can't spell it out here.) Thank God for my wonderful husband with his patience and love for me NO MATTER WHAT!
I've asked God's forgiveness for neglecting that which would help me grow closer to Him and fulfill and increase my desire for a stronger, deeper, more truly devoted relationship with Him.
But I also need your forgiveness as a class for not upholding my responsibility to prepare myself to be a class leader. I am committing now to regular quiet times with God, to spend time with Him, study His Word and prepare for class. I commit that to Him and to you.
I'm also asking God to increase my desire for time with Him, as well as for Him to lead me to that which He wants me to study.
I also plan to blog, as God leads, to share what He's teaching me. Please hold me accountable if you haven't heard from me in a while. It may be that He hasn't led me to share, but it also may be that I've fallen behind, and I would appreciate your help and encouragement.
God is doing wonderful things in our class, and Satan is not happy. He is going to look for any opening to cause trouble, and boy did I give him a huge one!
Thank you, guys. I'm so glad and proud to be part of our spiritual community.

Spiritual Community

Good evening, everyone!
For those of you that missed Sunday's lesson, and the chili lunch, you missed an opportunity to see the lesson in action. Vaughn did a great job of sharing why we need Spiritual community and challenged us to be committed to the pursuit of community. And it's hard to think of a more perfect way to demonstrate this than the chili lunch. IT was an icky, gray day, but the dining room was warm and filled with the sounds of children laughing and playing, and even some adult conversation was managed. :)
The lesson made me realize that it's not enough for me to attend church and Sunday School or even teach the class. Until I start talking with you all, sharing my life, and truly listening to you share yours, I'm not going to have spiritual community.
I grew up in a wonderful spiritual community, which was our home church. My parents still go there, and it truly feels like home when I go back. I had been seeking that same type of community and praying for it for several years, in fact. I realized Sunday that I have found it again: a place where I can grow, and my family is welcomed. I know that if I ever need anything, there are people in the class I can turn to. And with that privilege comes the responsibility to respond to the needs of others. But that responsibility feels like an honor and a privilege because of the relationships we have.
This class is open to anyone, and I know that anyone will be welcomed and supported, no matter how long or how little they have been coming. It is open to YOU. I encourage you to step up, become involved in the care group and larger class activities and start enjoying the rewards of our FAMILY TIES.

Spiritual Community

This Sunday is going to be absolutely awesome and we discuss spiritual community!! Please, please let your care group leader know if you did not get a copy of this week's lesson. It's really important to read ahead and be prepared for the lesson. We had a great session last week as so many people participated!! We all are looking forward to seeing God continue to move in our class. To Him alone be the glory!!

CHILI LUNCH

Be sure to join us on THIS Sunday, Feb 17th in the Dining Hall after the 3rd service for a chili lunch. We will furnish chili, all the toppings, dessert, drinks as well as PB&Js for the kiddos for $7 per family. If you haven't signed up, please either post here or email Rhonda at rhonda@stewart-treglown.com.

WELCOME!

Welcome to the class's newest members, Michael and Holly Brown, who joined on Sunday! We are so glad that you decided to join the family! Be sure to introduce yourselves to them next week!

A Fresh Start

After reflecting on how God has been moving in our class and how so many of us have experienced a spiritual renewal, the leadership decided to kinda "re-brand" our class. We of course are keeping the Family Ties name, but Scott Camp, graphic designer extraordinaire, took a few moments from his busy job of being a graphic genius at Samford University to design a new logo for our class. Since so many have made a fresh start with their walk with Christ, we saw it fitting to do the same with our class logo. So, take a moment this Sunday to thank Scott for his work.

Wednesday and Thursday reflections

Good evening everyone!
The reading for Wednesday focused on 1 Samuel 3:5-7 and asked us to remember a time when God revealed Himself to us and spoke to our hearts. Thursday's reading focused on 1 Samuel 3:8-9 and asked where we go to get advice from spiritually mature people.
Life is funny. There have been times when, like Samuel, I heard God's voice, but because I wasn't listening for Him, I went running off in the wrong direction before I got all the details. Thank God for the spiritually mature people in my life who, like Eli, stopped me and said, "No, that's God speaking. Stop, go back and listen to Him. See what He wants and then start going and doing."
How incredible would it be to have the spiritual maturity to say as Samuel did, "Speak, Lord, for your servant is listening." Do I really think of myself as God's servant? All too often, I think of God as my servant, there to meet whatever need I currently have.
It's been really incredible to experience God speaking to me through this lesson. As I've gone deeper into the verses and lessons, I've begun spending more time more frequently with Him. My prayer and hope is that with God's help, I, too, will be able to say, "Speak Lord, for your servant is listening." And you know what? I hope that when God speaks, He will so strengthen my will and spirit that instead of shrinking from that contact, I will welcome and embrace it. Praise God! He is constantly at work in me, completing that work which he has begun and is faithful to complete.
Blessings to you all!

Tuesday's Vital Pursuits Reading

Happy Super Tuesday Everyone!

Today's reading for the Vital Pursuits lesson focuses on 1 Samuel 3:4. The question is, "How do you know when God is speaking to you, and how would/do you respond? (I'm quoting from memory, so the book may phrase it a little differently.)
If you read my novel-length blog yesterday, you saw what my initial response was to the thought of God verbally speaking to me. Not so great or faith-filled. But He and I are working on that. :)
Looking at today's question made me think, "Are God's other ways of communicating -- such as through other people, during my Bible study, circumstances or the prompting of the Holy Spirit -- any less important or imperative just because they do not involve His audible voice?" NO!
So my personal struggle with listening to God may have less to do with the method of God speaking and more to do with the message.
How many times have I avoided prayer or the Bible, other Christians or going to church just because I knew I was involved in sinful activities? Doing so just made me even more reluctant to be around the people and things of God. Why? Because I knew God would try to speak to me!
I want to encourage you to seek God and truly try to listen to what He has to say through the weekly lessons and daily readings. He obviously is speaking to me through them, and I know He wants to talk with you, too.
And you know what? Even though listening to God is not always pleasant, how comforting and awesome it is to know that He holds the solutions and will help us overcome the sin, temptation, and imperfections in our lives and walks with Him. Thank God that He not only tells us where we're going wrong, but He also forgives and tells us how to correct our course! I'm so glad that God loves me as I am, and loves me too much to leave me that way! (I borrowed that from someone, but what a comforting thought!)

Wow, what a lesson

Hey guys,
I just had to write to encourage you all to really get involved in our new series, Vital Pursuits. Sunday, Scott did an awesome job of leading us to think about our prayer lives, and to seek out how we can truly talk with God.

Having the book for this series will really deepen your understanding of each lesson. There's so much valuable information that it will be hard for Scott, Vaughn and me to cover everything during our class time on Sundays.
Also, there is a series of reflective readings and questions that help you focus on each lesson's Scriptural basis, and will help you apply it in your life.

For next Sunday's lesson on Listening to God, the readings focus on 1 Samuel 3:1-20. Today's reading takes verses 1-3 and asks us to reflect on the question "What effort has God created you to be involved in?"

I have to admit, I began reading the lesson last night with the full intent of answering Monday's question so Last-Minute Me could get ahead. :) But I got caught up in the lesson itself, and felt I needed to share what God showed me.

1 Samuel 3 is the story of God speaking to Samuel. As 12-year-old Samuel is sleeping in the temple, God calls his name, "Samuel, Samuel." Samuel ends up answering God with "Speak, for your servant is listening."

Wow! What an awesome privilege to audibly hear God speak your own name!
That was my first thought. But it was quickly followed by this:

"Do I really want God to speak like that? What will he ask me to do? What if it's something that will hurt me or my family? What if he wants me to do something that everyone else thinks is crazy? There are plenty of stories in the Bible of God's devoted followers being hurt, persecuted and killed. I like my cozy life with my church, job and family. I finally feel settled and I don't want to mess that up!"

God help me. My will, no, even my spirit, is so weak that I shrink from such glorious contact for fear the message given would be too hard. Forgive me, Father, for my lack of trust in You and Your promise in Jeremiah 29: 11, "For I know the plans I have for you," declares the Lord, "plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future." Help me to remember that no matter the mission, You provide the means to accomplish it.

How many times have I missed out on God calling me to an effort which could have blessed me and my family because I purposely plugged my ears? I am willing to listen when I come to him with an agenda or need, but am I willing to listen when God initiates the conversation? Evidently not. My prayer for you all, as it is for me this week, is that we will not only listen to God as we pray, but that we will be willing to listen when He calls, and seek His strength and courage to follow through when ours is lacking. Remember, "My grace is sufficient for you, for My power is made perfect in weakness."

God provides! May His blessings overwhelm you.

Vital Pursuits

There were many in our Family Ties group last week that made major decisions to devote themselves to grow closer to Christ through their daily walk. Others recommitted themselves to the Great Commission. Some made first time decisions to follow Christ! It is awesome to see God move in our midst! I personally cannot wait to see what God has in store for our group. Wouldn't it be awesome if God used the Family Ties Bible Study Group to take this church to the next level? He can do it if we stay serious about our desperate pursuit of holiness and fully surrender every part of our lives to the Lordship of Christ.

In order to help in the journey of life as fully devoted Christ-followers, we will be starting a new series called "Vital Pursuits" this Sunday. This study is designed to aid us in our daily pursuit to grow closer to God. We will have books for this study so you can read your lesson prior to Sunday's class. Ths will allow us to be able to better follow along and discuss the material. Also, that way, if you are unable to attend class one week, you can still have the material to read on your own. Each week's lesson will stand alone, so if you can't be there one week, it's okay. The church is supplementing the cost of the materials, but the book will cost us $5 a piece. We will begin taking orders and money TOMORROW morning. We will have your first two lessons copied for you so you won't be behind.

Looking ahead, we will be beginning "The Perfect Kid", another series by Perry Noble, after this study. We then will have a finance study called "Your Money Counts".

Congrats to Vaughn and Ambre Harris

(And the two BIG brothers, Bryant and Gavin)

on the addition of a precious baby girl,

Ella Grace.

She was born at 1:04PM & weighed in at 9 lbs 8 oz. & was 21-1/2″ long.

Leave the Harris's a comment here on this post, or visit them at their blog:

http://www.ourlittleprincess.info/

WHAT A WEEK!!!

I have not blogged in a long while, and Amy's story prompted me to post. Normally, I would be singing the same kind of song. We all get so bogged down in things and, just like Amy said, we wonder how we would manage without someone having His hand on it all. Here is my WHAT A WEEK! story:

Wednesday night we got home from church. Marty had been home with Brady and Trey and I had been to choir. It was late, and Marty had gone in to say prayers with Trey. Marty called me in there and said that Trey wanted to talk to us about something. He began to talk about Heaven. He said he had been thinking about that baby (Burgess) that died and went to Heaven. He got teary and said that he wanted Jesus in his heart so he could spend eternity in Heaven with Him. I talked to him about how Christianity was not about the destination but about the journey and how many people we touch as we travel through it. He proudly exclaimed that he wanted to stand up and be different. He wanted to tell other people about Jesus and how He died for our sins even when we did not deserve it. We all knelt beside his bed and each of us prayed. He just cried as he prayed for Jesus to be his Lord and Savior and forgive him for his sins. After our prayers, he looked up and said, "There sure are lots of tear stains on my bed!" Oh to be seven again! So there you go... Thank you Jesus... WHAT A WEEK! Trey will be baptized at the 10:45 worship on February 3rd.

Care Group Functions:

Group #1 - Jan 20th - Lunch at Fox's Pizza immediately after the 3rd service. Contact Dianna Goss.

Group #2 - Jan 20th - Lunch at Fronterra immediately after the 3rd service. Contact Jenny Brannan.

Group #3 - Jan 27th - Lunch at DelSol in Springville after the 3rd service. Contact Pam Prickett.

Group #4 - Jan 20th - Bowling at Lightning Strikes at 4:00. Contact Trina Waid.

Congratulations!

Congratulations to Toby and Jennifer Bearden on the birth of their first child, Brody Ray, born January 7th. Brody weighed 7 lbs., 8 oz. and was 19 ½ inches long. Please leave a word of congratulations to the newest member of our extended family!

HAPPY 2008!

Here is an online article I read today and I felt it was worth sharing with all of you. I pray you've all had a happy start to this new year, and I hope to see you all in Family Ties this Sunday!

Hope for the New Year
By Gwen Miller
The approach of a new year is a time of hope. Everyone likes the thought of a clean slate—a new beginning. As we look ahead, many people set goals or blow off the dust from previously set goals.
When January rolls around, there are generally two groups of people, those who make New Year’s resolutions and those who don’t. Do you make resolutions or do you choose to refrain? I admit, I have been in both camps.
Several times I have set health and fitness goals. I have aspired to greater spiritual disciplines. One year I determined to shore up in the area of housekeeping. One January I had a new baby. She was my fourth child—I already had three little boys at home, ages 5, 3 and 22 months. I remember my New Year’s resolution that year was to maintain a peaceful balance in my home.
Whatever kind of goals you set, the new year can be a time of valuable reflection. Proverbs 4:26 (Amplified) says, “Consider well the path of your feet and let all your ways be established and ordered aright.” Taking time to consider our life’s path demonstrates wisdom. After all, we are the sum total of all the choices we have made.
Life evaluation can inspire hope. God created us to thrive on hope—the hope of one day experiencing the perfection of His original plan. Remember the Garden of Eden? It was certainly a place of perfection. But all that changed when sin entered the world. With sin came death, pain, sorrow, sickness, disease and every negative emotion we can encounter—like hopelessness.
Hopelessness unchecked can be a downward spiral ending in depression and despair. We believers must guard our hearts, taking time to renew our hope. How? By spending time in God’s Word.
When we remind ourselves of the love of God and the plan He has for us, we grow in strength and joy. Psalm 139 is a testimony of God’s attention to every detail of our lives. Why not take a few moments to read it?
God remembers things about our lives that we have already forgotten. He knows more about us than we do. He is a God of magnitude and detail. He cares about every little thing that concerns us. The most valuable thing we can do as we approach a new year is to get His perspective on life.
Set aside some time to evaluate where you’ve been, where you are and where you’re headed. You may want to take a weekend and get away by yourself or with your spouse for a time of regrouping and seeking God’s direction for the next step. If you can’t afford a mini-vacation, you can take several hours on a Saturday morning and find a quiet place with your Bible and notebook to ask God for His vision for you in the coming year.
New Year’s resolutions may or may not insure a more productive year. But renewed hope based on a heavenly vision for the year ahead will make your life richer in every way.
GWEN MILLER lives in Fort Worth, Texas, with her husband of 18 years and four children. Gwen assists her husband, who pastors a growing church. She enjoys teaching others to walk out their God ordained destinies. She can be reached at chapelassembly@att.net.

Welcome, More New Members!

In the first two weeks of December, our family grew by four!

Welcome to Nathan and Natalie Hinds

and Michael and Carla Roberson!

Why is Jesus better than Santa Claus?

Thanks to Scott who read this for us in class today.

Santa rides in a sleigh...

JESUS RIDES ON THE WIND AND WALKS ON THE WATER.

Santa comes but once a year...

JESUS IS AN EVER PRESENT HELP.

Santa fills your stockings with goodies...

JESUS SUPPLIES ALL YOUR NEEDS.

Santa comes down your chimney uninvited...

JESUS STANDS AT YOUR DOOR AND KNOCKS, AND THEN ENTERS YOUR HEART WHEN INVITED.

You have to wait in line to see Santa...

JESUS LETS YOU REST IN HIS ARMS.

Santa doesn't know your name, all he can say is "Hi little boy, or girl, what's your name?"...

JESUS KNEW OUR NAME BEFORE WE WERE BORN. NOT ONLY DOES HE KNOW OUR NAME, HE KNOWS OUR ADDRESS TOO. HE KNOWS OUR HISTORY AND FUTURE AND HE EVEN KNOWS HOW MANY HAIRS ARE ON OUR HEADS.

Santa has a belly like a bowl ful of jelly...

JESUS HAS A HEART FULL OF LOVE.

All Santa can offer is a "HO HO HO"...

JESUS OFFERS HEALTH, HELP, AND HOPE.

Santa says "You better not cry"...

JESUS SAYS "CAST ALL YOUR CARES ON ME FOR I CARE FOR YOU."

Santa may make you chuckle but...

JESUS GIVES YOU JOY THAT IS YOUR STRENGHT.

While Santa puts gifts under your tree...

JESUS BECAME OUR GIFT AND DIED ON A TREE...THE CROSS.

We need to put Christ back in CHRISTmas, Jesus is still the reason for the season.

"For God so loved the world, that He gave His only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in Him should not perish, but have everlasting life." John 3:16

Tidings!

MERRY CHRISTMAS AND HAPPY NEW YEAR FROM YOUR FAMILY TIES LEADERSHIP TEAM!!!!!

WE THANK GOD FOR EACH OF YOU AND CAN'T WAIT FOR WHAT GOD IS GOING TO DO IN US AND THROUGH US IN 2008!