Southview Connect

Thanks Eddie!

       

A big shout out of THANKS to Eddie Gallion, who crafted Southview's new welcome center in the lobby!  THANKS Eddie - incredible job!!

Bye Bye Winter!

Spring is here and winter will soon become a distant memory… though I love the cold I think I’m happy to see it go away for awhile!!! But with winter receding it also means summer is looming on the horizon. And wow, what a summer we have planned! Everything, from VBS to sock wars, from pizza and sugar infused drink filled nights to kidnappings, from Europe to taping kids on the outside church wall (ahem… uh yeah… I can explain, I think!!!). In other words we’re looking forward to an action packed summer for our youth. There’s much to plan for and much to pray for. Here are some things to keep in mind:                                                                                                                        

• We will be welcoming back Jordan Spivey. For those of you who don’t know, Jordan was our youth intern last year. We liked him so much, we thought we’d have him come back this year! He is scheduled to be arriving here on May 18^th, and will be staying with us until August 17^th.

• The Europe trip is taking shape. We are scheduled to leave July 22^nd and return August 5^th. We are still in the process of outlining our plans for Italy but the German portion of our trip is all planned. You may have seen a number of fund raisers happening around the church. The proceeds from those fundraisers are to help alleviate the cost of this trip. We are in real need of funds to help get the youth on this trip. If you feel led, please let me know if you would like to support the trip financially. I believe that this trip will have an immense impact on our youth. In Germany we will be attending the Baptist World Youth Alliance conference, where youth groups from all over the world will be attending. The motivation of the conference is to equip our youth to better outreach to the world around them. In Italy we will be teaming up with a youth group from Rome, experiencing and outreaching from within the Italian culture.

• Finders Keepers (Vacation Bible School). As a youth group we are intending to play a prominent role in helping organize and support this children’s ministry outreach event. I can enthusiastically encourage everyone in our church community to help out. Finders Keepers is happening from June 23 to June 28 here at Southview.

There’s so much more planned (including that taping issue!!!). Please keep in prayer all of these events, that we may have a safe, spirit-led and fun summer! In the meantime…. The planning continues!

And before I forget...

A MAJOR shout out to our worship team - what an incredible job they did in leading us in worship today!WOW.  Absolutely awesome example of being faithful to what God has called y'all to do!

What an awesome day

This morning was one of the most memorable Easter Sunday services I can remember.  It was so great to be at Southview, worshipping  with all of you who were there - I do believe we lifted the roof at least an inch or two as we sang praises to our God and CELEBRATED what He did for us in sending His Son! 

What love.  What incredible, amazing love that God has for you and me - and for every person He's ever created. 

Today was a high point for Southview.  Today we worshipped, we praised, we charged up our batteries.  Let's remember what they're charged up to do - let's stay focused on the reason we exist - to share the message of hope that we have received, that has changed our lives.  Let's never forget what it cost  Jesus - what it's worth to us - and the privilege we have of sharing that with others who are living the shadow life far from God. 

Moving forward with you!
--Pastor William

Easter's coming fast...

Who are you praying for?  Who are you inviting to the Easter Sunday service?  This is a great time of year to invite those you know who are living far from God to come and hear about a God who loves them so much.  Easter Sunday will be the last message in this Difficult Questions series, and I'll be speaking on "Is Jesus Really the Only Way to Heaven?"   I'll be sharing the straight truth about this question - what does Scripture really teach?  Be praying as I'm studying and writing - I want God's Word to come through loud and clear. 

Look for those opportunities to invite your friends, family, co-workers, neighbors - any and everyone you know who are living far from God.  Don't miss this opportunity to invite them to hear the most important truth they'll ever hear, and to give them an opportunity to respond to the greatest offer they'll ever receive. 

GREAT day yesterday

What an awesome day in worship yesterday!  It was a very special time of setting our new Elders apart for the service that they have been called to by God and this church.  Thanks to all of you who were there and were a part of this day - the best is yet to come! 

This Sunday, I'll be continuing my series on Difficult Questions with this one: "Do I Really Have to Share My Faith?" Evangelism is such a scary thing for so many Christ-followers, and I believe this is unnecessarily so.  I'll be talking about what Jesus said and did with regard to this topic and I'll be sharing some practical next steps that you can take, regardless of how experienced you are in this area.  Sharing about your relationship with God and about the difference that this relationship has made in your life can be the most natural thing for a Christ-follower - we'll spend some time Sunday talking about how to get there.

Stay on your knees and stay focused on God - and let's see where He takes us next!

Elder Ordination this Sunday

This Sunday, we'll be ordaining Southview's first Elder team.  I thought I'd take a minute and define exactly what we mean by "ordination" here.

When a man or woman is ordained by a local congregation, it means they are set apart for a specific ministry work or role.  Southview has three types of ordination - we ordain deacons, Elders, and ministers.  Deacons and Elders are congregation members that the church has chosen to be set apart for these very important roles of serving the church and leading the church.  We ordain those who feel called by God to a full time (occupational) ministry role as ministers.  Ordination of a minister can come before or after formal training through seminary - that's at the local church's discretion.  At Southview, the senior pastor and associate pastor(s) serve as Elders by virtue of their calling as ministers. 

Elders are chosen by the congregation to lead the church.  They spend time in prayer and study, discerning what we believe to be the will and direction of God for this church, and they lead the church in following that direction.  While each Elder is gifted differently, each is expressly equal in the group.  Each Elder brings something very important to the table, and each Elder is called by God and this church to this role.

As we prepare to formally set these 4 apart this Sunday to this work, spend some time in prayer this week thanking God for providing such godly leadership for our church.  Pray that the Elder team will be effective in closing every entrance where Satan will try to come in and distract or destroy the work of this church.  Pray that the Elders will gain a clear and compelling sense of the direction God would have us go as a church, and pray that we will make God smile through our obedience and commitment to Him and His Word.

I continue to be amazed and excited at the work of God in our midst.  It is a joy and a privilege to serve our God with you.