Everyone is Welcome

It has been a while since I have gotten on my blog to share something.  The opportunity presented itself today as I reflected on the message that I gave to a group of middle school students this past Sunday.  We started a new series entitled, Family Matters.  During this series, we are going to take a look at the family we were born into, our Spiritual family (if saved), those people that God has surrounded us with, and those that we should surround ourselves with.  This past Sunday, we looked at a passage that just reading the words that Jesus said sound like He has lost His mind.  After you really dig into what  He has said, you realize that He is proving a point and making a statement that should be reproduced.  The passage that I am referring to comes from Matthew 12:46-50.  To set the scene, Jesus is speaking to a crowd of people inside of a house.  While He is speaking, Mary and his half-brothers have come and they want to talk to Jesus.  A man goes inside to tell Jesus that His family is outside and that they want to speak to Him.  This is where it gets kinda strange.  Jesus replies to the man, "Who is my mother, and who are my brothers?"  Of course Jesus knows who the man was referring to.  Mary, his mother that had given birth to Him and his brothers-James and Jude.  An odd statement, but He was about to point out something that is very important to believers.  Verse 49, says that Jesus stretched out His hands towards His disciples and said, "Here are my mother and my brothers!"  What He was saying to all that were listening, these men were His Spiritual family.  Then, in verse 50, He gives the crowd the evidence of His family when He says, whoever does the will of my Father in Heaven is my family. 

We see how the family or community started back in Genesis 1:26, when God said "Let us make man in our own image, in our likeness....  The Creator of the heavens and the earth wasn't alone in the beginning.  God was referring to what we know as the Trinity-God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Spirit.  God made us to be in relationships with others.  Just look at Adam, God saw that he was lonely and made him a wife to live life together.  God created family but sin destroyed it.  In Matthew 12, we see that Jesus has recreated family, a community of men that is doing the will of God.  God has made each and every one of us to be extraordinary, but we cannot be extraordinary outside of a spiritual family. 
I began to think about all of the different groups or cliques in today's society.  Republicans flock together, Democrats flock together, the wealthy stay together, popular stay together.  I could go on and on about the different groups that clique up in society today.  There is only one person that has an open door policy and everyone is welcome, that is Jesus.  Jesus didn't die on the cross for only certain groups, He died on the cross for everyone.  Jesus didn't come to seek and to save those that are good people.  He came to seek and to save those who are lost.  Everyone in the world today is in some kind on exclusive group or club, but only Jesus is inclusive and everyone has been invited to come into the family of God.

The great thing about being in the family of God and be surrounded by people that are doing the will of God, you have a support system that can not be matched.  You have a family that loves you no matter what your past is and no matter your shortcomings.  You have people that are your prayer warriors, and people that are there to keep you accountable.  You can have that in a small group, a group of people that come together and live life together.  I reflected back to several years ago, when my life was in shambles, my marriage was almost in ruin, and I was running from God.  My son was about the age of 5, my wife was determined to get back into church, because that was where we went growing up.  It was important to her and to be truthful with you, I agreed just to get her to shut up.  We began to shop around for a church that our son would enjoy going to.  We began going to Eastside, we had signed my son up to play Upward basketball.  So we decided to check it out.  After a while, God had began working on my wife to get involved in a small group at Eastside.  Of course, I wanted nothing to do with it.  Years had passed, I can remember talking to my wife about that time in my life where I was fighting God.  She talked about how much the people in her small group prayed for me.  The amazing part of it, was several in my wife's group didn't even know me but they prayed for me anyway.  Looking out our small group now, I see the exact same thing that my wife experienced several years ago.  A group that is living life together.  I don't know how many times a week the people in our group call or text.  We look for ways to get together and hang out.  Just this past Sunday, I got all the guys in our small group to come over to the house to watch the football game.  We enjoy the walk that we are taking with our spiritual family. 

Billy Edwards

Gospel of John-Part 5

This past Sunday, we looked at John 2:12-25, during the Fusion service.  The passage starts with Jesus going to Jerusalem for the Passover.  This week was the most important week on the Jewish calendar.  Even though the Passover was one day, the rest of the week was the Feast of the Unleavened Bread.  As you can imagine, Jerusalem was a circus.  People coming to Jerusalem to pay their temple tax and make their animal sacrifices.  Jesus wasn't happy when He got to the temple.  Men had set up shop and turned the temple into a place of profit.  So Jesus makes a whip, drives out everything, and turns over the tables.  Jesus actions were one a righteous anger.  They had defiled the very place where people came to be in the presence of God.  That was the past.  After Jesus died on the cross for the sins for everyone, we no longer have to go to a building to be in the presence of God.  If we except His free gift of salvation, Christ lives within us.  We do not have to make a blood sacrifice for our sins, the blood of Jesus Christ paid our sin debt. In 1 Corinthians 6:19, Paul writes,
Do you not know that your body is the temple of the Holy Spirit, who is in you, whom you have received from God?  That's good news, we don't have to go to a place to be in the presence of God, His presence is with us.

We see from this passage three things that Jesus showed.

Adoration (12-17)  Jesus was angry for the defilement of His Fathers House. 
Authority (18-22)  Jesus establishes His authority, by giving prophecy of His resurrection
Authenticity (23-25) Jesus sees man's heart.  We are to be genuine, place our faith in Him.  Jesus know who will follow Him and those that will turn away. 


 

Gospel of John-Part 4

If you walk outside and look around, unless your in the middle of nowhere, you are going to see at least one sign.  It could be a road sign, a sign of a business or restaurant, or an advertisement.  On thing that is very clear, there are signs almost everywhere.  When you go on vacation, you usually follow road signs to get to where you are going.  When you see the golden arches, you know exactly what the restaurant serves.   You know where you are because of the sign. 

  John gives us his purpose statement in 20:30-31, "Now Jesus did many other signs in the presence of the disciples, which are not written in this book;  but these are written so that you may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, and that by believing you may have life in His name." 
John writes about only seven signs (miracles), each one point us to who Jesus is and that believing we may life in His name.  The first sign is at the beginning of chapter 2:1-11, the wedding in Cana.  Let me set the scene for you, Jesus, His disciples (at least 5 at this point), and His mother, have been invited to a wedding.  During the wedding celebration, the wine runs out.  Mary, Jesus' mother, must have been like the wedding planner.  She comes to Jesus and says, "They have no wine."  Mary must believe that Jesus can fix the problem.  It was a serious problem, in the First Century, weddings lasted a week or more; it was important to have plenty of food and beverages.  To run out of either was a disgrace and embarrassment for the groom and his family.  Jesus response seems a bit harsh: " Woman, what does that have to do with me?  My hour has not come."  When we looked at this passage this past Sunday, I told the students, do not try this on your Mom, your time may come sooner than you expected.  Jesus reference to His mother as "Woman" was a common term in First Century and it wasn't disrespectful, and it wasn't a term of endearment.
Jesus was redefining their relationship.  For many years, Mary raised Jesus as her son.  Jesus is establishing distance between them.  He is beginning His public ministry.  He is starting His journey that will end on Calvary's cross.  Just as every human being, Mary must respond to Jesus in saving faith.  She must embrace Him as her personal Savior and Lord.  With Jesus' statement, He seems to be reminding Mary that He is controlled by obedience to His Father and not by human wants and desires.  Mary seems to understands at some level, she instructs the servants to do what Jesus says.
He points to 6 stone water pots and tell them to fill them to the brim.  After doing so, Jesus tells the servants to get some and take it to the chief waiter.  The Bible states, the water had become wine.  The chief waiter is shocked about how good the wine tasted.  He accused the groom of breaking a custom and serving the best wine last.  From all indications, only the disciples and servants know what happened.

From this sign, we see Jesus' glory revealed and the disciples believed in Him.  Remember John's 2-fold purpose?  He wants to tell us who Jesus is and to create belief.   Three things that we see from this passage:
           1.  Trust His provision.  The text reminds us that Jesus Christ provides for our needs.
           2.  Believe His plan.  The text shows us that Jesus was living in obedience to God's plan
           3.  See the power.  We trust His provision and believe His plan, He allows us to witness His power.

This passage is not about the wine or to justify the consumption of alcohol beverages.  The Bible is clear about abstaining from strong drink.  to justify drinking alcohol from this text distorts and twists the intended meaning of this passage.

Gospel of John-Part 3

I am on the continuing journey through the Gospel of John.  Yesterday, during our student service, we finished the first chapter with verses 35-51.  These verses cover a topic that Christians fear, sharing our faith with someone.  We fear doing it so much, that we make excuses. Here are just a few excuses that we all have made:
"I don't know what to say to someone"
"I am afraid that they will ask me a question that I don't have the answer"
"I might fail"
"I am not gifted in evangelism"
"I don't know much Bible"
As you read through these verses, you see three very simple but powerful principles.  I encourage you to read through this passage and see the urgency in which these men pointed others to Jesus.

1.  Recognize a Prospect
If you are a believer, you should have a prospect.  For John the Baptist, it was his disciples.  For Andrew, it was his brother.  For Philip, it was Nathaniel.  For you, it is someone different.  It may be a family member, a friend, a co-worker.  There is someone for everyone.  Think about who God is placing on your heart right now.

2.  Refer a Person (who should they see)
After you identify your prospect, your task is to point them to Jesus.  Many people are searching, many are skeptical, but our responsibility is simple:  point them to Jesus.
     John the Baptist did it: Behold the Lamb of God
     Andrew did it:  We have found the Messiah
     Philip did it:  We have found Him of whom Moses and the prophets wrote.
     And you can do it:  Point them to Jesus

3.  Remember a purpose
When you have recognized the prospect, referred them to a person, then, you have to remember the purpose.  The purpose is, Jesus is the only way.  He is the Way, Truth, and the Life.  No one comes to the Father except through Jesus Christ.  It is important to point people to Jesus because there is no hope of eternal life outside of Him. 

We are on the continuing journey through the Gospel of John.  This past Sunday, we looked at verses 19-34 of John 1.  We get to read about the ministry of an odd character, John the Baptist.  He hung out in the desert, wearing animal skin, and had a diet of locusts and wild honey.  That wasn't what attracted people to him, it was his message.  If you read this passage, you see that high priests in Jerusalem wanted some answers to why everyone was leaving their cities to go out into the desert to hear this odd man.  So they send delegates to find out some answers.    Three things that we can learn from this passage as it pertains to us being a witness for Jesus.

1. To be a witness, you have to realize who we are not.  They delegates were looking for the Messiah, Elijah, the Prophet.  Each time, John said that is not who I am.  We have to realize as followers of Christ, that we are nothing without the love and grace of Christ.
2.  To be a witness, you have to know who you are.  After John had answered no to their questions, the delegates couldn't return home without answers.  So they ask him who he is.  He goes all the back to the prophet Isaiah with his response.  He tells them he is a voice.  Wow, what an opportunity John had.  He could have said, I am a prophet or a great preacher.  Look at how many people have gathered to hear me and watch me baptize.  I am awesome!  But John didn't flatter himself or build up his own name.  John knew who he was, I am a voice.  He knew his role was temporary but essential.  He knew that his days are numbered.  He knew that he was to prepare the way for the coming Messiah.
3.  To be a witness, you have to point people to Jesus.  Looking at this passage about John the Baptist, here are some things that we see from his life.  John's life tells us about Jesus' greatness.  We are told about Jesus' sacrifice.  We are told of Jesus' anointing.  In essence, John's life says, its not about me, it is all about Jesus.  To sum this up:

1.  Recognize who Jesus is and who I am not
2.  Recognize my role and who you are


A father and a small boy strolled down the street in Chicago past a place where a skyscraper was being constructed.  Glancing up, they saw the men working on a high story of the building.  "What are those little boys doing up there?" asked the son.  "Those are not boys, they are grown men," replied the father.  After a pause, the son pondered, "I guess when they reach heaven there won't be anything left of them."  The nearer we come to Christ, the less others see of us and the more they see of Christ.
3.  Point others to Jesus 

God Bless

The Gospel of John

We began the study of the Gospel of John this past Sunday during our Fusion Sunday morning service.  I am really excited to begin this journey with the students.  For almost 4 years, we have gone through series about a particular subjects, studied a section of Scripture, but never went through an entire book.  This journey began for me back a couple of weeks ago, when we took a group of middle school students to Fuge camp.  The camp pastor, Tim Bertram, used the Gospel of John each night during worship.  That week revealed some things to me that I had never picked up on in reading before.  So in the weeks ahead, we are going to look at John as he revealed two specific purposes for writing this Gospel-Who Jesus is and why we should believe in Him.

Some facts about John:

In Matthew, you read the words of a believer that loves Jesus
In Mark & Luke, you read the words of writers that used some eyewitness accounts.
In John, you read the words of one of Jesus' closest friends.
John, his brother James, and Peter were the inner three of Jesus.
John's Gospel was one of the last books written in the New Testament.  John was an old man that wrote this Gospel around 70A.D.  Theologians say that John wrote this in Ephesus after the temple in Jerusalem was destroyed.
John didn't give a chronological history of Jesus: birth, life, death, resurrection.  John passionately wrote about the love of Jesus. 
  The theme for the entire Gospel of John is summed up in John 20:30-31.  John writes,

"Now Jesus did many other signs in the presence of the disciples, which are not written in this book;  but these are written so that you may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, and that by believing you may have life in His name."

My prayer as we go through this Gospel is, that we will have a greater understanding of who Jesus is and that the students faith will increase, thanks to the words written in the Gospel of John.

Fabulous Life of a Teenager-A Commitment

 

When the pilot of a giant airline is speeding down the runway; there is a certain point where it staying on the ground is no longer an option.  When he crosses that line, he is committed to the air, he will take off or a disastrous crash is imminent.  The pilot can no longer change his mind he is committed.  This past Sunday, we continued the "Fabulous Life of a Teenager."  Our focus was on commitment, more importantly the commitment to Christ.  There is of course a difference between a decision and a commitment. 

The same can be said about people in the church today.  They made a decision about Christ, but have not made a commitment to Christ.  They have been sitting there gunning their engines, making noise but getting nowhere.  They have been planning on it, meaning to, wanting to, trying to, going to, aiming to, hoping to. But tragedy of tragedies, they have never got off the ground.  My last post, I ended it with Romans 12:1-2 where Paul writes,

"I appeal to you therefore, brothers, by the mercies of God, to present your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and acceptable to God, which is your spiritual worship.  Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewal of your mind, that by testing you may discern what is the will of God, what is good and acceptable and perfect."

It is impossible to be "sort of committed."  You are either committed or you are not committed.  To commit ourselves to God means that we are to yield ourselves to him, surrender to him, abandon ourselves to him, entrust ourselves to him and place ourselves at his disposal.

There are two clear calls to commitment that every believer has to face.

1.  Commitment to Personal Growth-we are called to commit ourselves as disciples.  Disciples are learners.  Make a commitment to continue to grow spiritually.  Start a Bible reading plan, set aside time each day to pray, read good Christian literature, and find yourself a small group or Bible study.  Never give up learning.

2.   Commitment to the Local Body-the local church gathers for worship, teaching, and fellowship to gain power to carry out the ministry as we scatter to the various places of responsibility in the world.  It is getting involved in the life of the church.  Get involved by serving somewhere in the church.

God Bless,

Billy

Fabulous Life of a Teenager-Peer Pressure

I began a study this past Sunday entitled, "Fabulous Life of a Teenager."  Over the next several weeks we will look at the things that impact the lives of today's teenager.  One of the biggest challenges for today's teen is peer pressure.  Even though everyone deals with some kind of peer pressure, I wanted to focus in on the things that teenagers are pressured into. Teenagers are pressured in the clothes they wear, the things they do, and the friends they have.  Everyone wants to feel that they belong, the sad part is that teenagers will do things that they know is wrong just to receive acceptance from a group of their peers.  In the weeks to come our student ministry will look at Scripture to see what God says to us.  Parents, the good news is that, you are the biggest influence on your teen when they are dealing with peer pressure.  My prayer is that God is the focus during some hard conversations that you have with your teenager. 

 Scripture gives us the answer to dealing with the things of the world, in Romans 12:1-2 is says,

 I appeal to you therefore, brothers, by the mercies of God, to present your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and acceptable to God, which is your spiritual worship. ² Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewal of your mind, that by testing you may discern what is the will of God, what is good and acceptable and perfect.

Billy Edwards
Student Pastor
Eastside Community Church

Fabulous Life of a Teenager

Over the next several weeks, the Fusion Student Ministries, will be covering a topic that NO student can say, "that doesn't apply to me and my life."  During our Fusion service on Sundays @ 11am, we will be looking at the struggles of today's teenagers and the responsibility that God has given to each of His children, even teenagers.  One thing that I have discovered during my research for this study, there are things that today's teen has to deal with that I didn't when I was their age.  Each week, I will be posting information and thoughts about the subject that we focused on the previous Sunday. 

Please be in prayer for this series and for the students that will hear it.  That God will work in the lives and hearts of Eastside's teenagers. 

God Bless,
Billy Edwards

High School Basketball Night

Starting Thursday, March 21st, Fusion Student Ministries is having a weekly get together for high school guys to come and play some basketball.  We will be getting together at Kit Carson Elementary from 6-8pm. 

New Small Group Study & a Fusion First

We are at the end of "Defining Moments," the first church-wide campaign at Eastside.  I have enjoyed the discussions that have come inside of the middle school boys small group.  As I began to look for what's next to study as a student ministry, I began to think about what is typically missing in the Christian walk of a teenager.  After spending several days searching, I came across a study that I feel is something that can drastically impact the life of each of the students, if they will dive into this study.  The title of this study is, "Sticky Faith." Starting on Wednesday, April 17th, we will begin the 8-week study that will begin to show students Biblical disciplines and study helps, so they can learn to memorize Scripture.  Each week, we will begin our Wednesday night with a time of worship.  Then, we will break into small groups, we may even mix up the groups for this study.  Our Wednesday nights begin at 6:15pm.  If your are a middle school or high school student, come join us and be a part of a small group.

On April 19-20, we will be having a DNOW Lock-in at Eastside Community Church.  The event kicks of at 6pm on Friday night with an amazing worship service.  The Bible study that we will be having is, "I AM JONAH."  We are going to have games, we are going to have food, but most importantly, we are going to take a hard look at the story of Jonah and how our lives have a lot of similarities with his.  There will be three breakouts, with a small group time afterwards.  The lock-in will end around 6pm on Saturday evening.  There is a cost, it is $20 per student, that will pay for food, study curriculum, and a t-shirt.  I have send invitations to youth groups around Madison County and we want students to invite their friends.  The goal for this event is, for students to see that God has BIG plans for them and what are they running from.

Tragedy seems like a way of life, its everywhere you look.  You sit down at night and turn on the news and typically the entire newscast is about tragedy that has struck someone's life.   The question is, how do we respond when tragedy happens in our life.  Of course, we are sad, hurt, or angry.  I know that we should look to God for comfort, but sometimes when we look to God it is for another reason.  We begin to ask, "Where where you?"  You could have have stopped this from happening, you could have healed them, you could have changed the outcome.  With the tragedy that occurred in Connecticut a couple of weeks ago, we have a lot of "why" questions.   With this still fresh on everyone's mind, I have decided that some of those questions need to be answered. 

Starting Sunday, January 6th, the Fusion students will be tackling some of the hard questions.  The series, "Where was God when....?"  Over the month of January, we will use our Sunday morning service and our Wednesday night small groups to dive into Scripture and find some answers.  Mike Calhoun and Ric Garland have a powerful teaching curriculum and there will be a video teaching to unpack the Word for us.  If you are a teenager, you need to invite your friends and make sure to be in attendance for each session.

Session 1(January 6th)   Omniscience
Session 2(January 9th)   Immutability
Session 3(January 13th) Faithfulness
Session 4(January 16th) Sovereignty
Session 5(January 20th) God's Love
Session 6(January 23rd) Wisdom
Session 7(January 27th) Omnipresence
Session 8(January 30th) Mercy & Justice

Finally, I want to wish everyone a Happy New Year!

Keep Christ First
Billy Edwards

Thankful

With Thanksgiving just a few days away and thoughts are on being thankful.  I wanted to share just what I am thankful for.

I am thankful for my family.  My wife has been the backbone of our family and my number once encourager.  I have two of the greatest kids in the world.  The greatest thing on the earth is the support and love from family.

I am thankful for my church.  To come together with a group of believers each week and worship our Savior.  Thankful for the connection that I have with the members of our small group.  We are completely cut from the same mold and I love them.  I am thankful for the staff team here at Eastside.  They have a heart to see lives changed by God and to see disciples making other disciples.  

I am thankful for the student leadership team that I have the pleasure to serve with.  They have a heart to see students become "sold out" to Christ.  I couldn't ask for a better group of men and women to work with in student ministry.  I am thankful for the students at Eastside.  My prayer is that they will continue to let God direct them in their lives.

Finally,  I am thankful for JESUS.  He came to this earth born of a virgin, lived a sinless life and died on a cross for me.  There was no special requirement that I had to meet, there was no special deals that had to be made.  All I had to do was surrender everything to Him.  

My prayer is that each one has a safe and Happy Thanksgiving.

In His Service,

Billy Edwards

Fusion Student Pastor

Fusion Student Ministries

It is amazing to see what is going on in the life of the student ministry of Eastside Community Church.  With everyone's hectic summer plans over, life has finally kinda got back to normal.  There are several things coming up in the month of September and I am pumped to see what God will do.  Here are some things to mark on your calendar:




1.  The new Fusion T-shirts are in and they look AWESOME!!!  If you ordered one, you can pick it up on Sunday morning.  Don't worry if you think, I missed out on the order," we have extra.

2.  On September 9th, Eastside will be going to two Sunday morning services, 9:30 and 11AM.  The 9:30AM service, will give the Fusion students options-service or worship.  The 11AM service, we will have our Fusion service in the Fusion room.  I encourage all students to come at 9:30AM and get involved in serving others at Eastside. 

3.  On Sunday, September 16th, we will begin the new church-wide campaign, Not a Fan.  We will be seeing what a true follower is God's Word and watch a video by Kyle Idleman each Sunday during Fusion Sunday mornings at 11AM.  Then on Wednesday night starting September 19th, we will come together for our weekly Fusion small groups and go through the study that lasts for six weeks.  You can pick up your free copy of not a fan: teen edition, the next time you are at Eastside.



 I just want to take a second and thank God for our Fusion leaders.  They have had to put up with me, they definitely have shown grace to me.  These leaders are awesome and I can say without a doubt, they love our students and want to see them become fully-devoted followers of God.  I am excited to welcome two new members of our leadership team, Amanda and Chris Meeks.  Amanda will be a leader for the middle school girls and Chris will be a leader for the middle school guys.  Help me to welcome them to our team.

Finally, this Sunday is Friend Day at Eastside Community Church.  We will be having lunch on the campus following the Sunday service.  I want to encourage you to invite, invite, invite!!!

Keep Christ First,
Billy Edwards
Student Pastor
Fusion Student Ministries
Eastside Community Church

Special Moments

Everyone can reflect on their life and list things, events, or activities, that they can remember almost every detail of.  A parent can reflect back to when they first held their newborn child or you could ask someone where they were and what they were doing on September 11th.  Our memories reflect on the good times and the bad.  Each of these moments are life changing in some form or fashion.  Well, I can say that this past weekend was one of those memorable moments of my life.  This past weekend was spent at Laurel Lake Baptist Camp at the Emmaus Walk #30.  I spent 72 hours experiencing a small taste of God's grace and love.  Heading home on Sunday night, I reflected on what had taken place and the friendships that had made.  Just thinking that on Thursday afternoon, when I arrived, I knew no one.  Then leaving and thinking how much I was going to truly miss those men that I can now call my friends.  I saw God at work in the lives of each one of them, including myself.  We experienced three men accept Christ and many others rededicate their lives to the Lord.  I was in the presence of the Lord having grown men in tears.  I was among them, crying like a baby most of the weekend.  I heard amazing testimonies from pastors that had rough beginnings in life and hear how God touched them and made them new in Christ.  If I had to list events or people in my life as some of the most memorable and what I am so thankful for, they would have to be as followed:
1.  God getting a hold of me about 5 years ago because I had turned my back on Him.
2.  My wife
3.  My children
4.  Family
5.  The Emmaus Walk
6.  Friends
7.  My ministry

I am blessed more than I deserve and am constantly thankful for God's love and grace.  Take a moment and reflect on the memories of your life and thank God for what He has done and pray for God to work through you in the days to come.

In His Service,
Billy Edwards
 

Everyone likes pancakes

On Saturday, April 14th, we are having a fundraiser for students that are going to camp this summer.  Eastside's Fusion students will be going to XFuge on Mission camp in North Carolina on June 21-25.  The fundraiser will help pay for the cost of each of the campers.  There will also be a silent auction of merchandise donated by area businesses.  The pancake fundraiser will be in the cafe at Eastside Community Church and it only costs $5 per person.  Please help students get to camp.

Keep Christ First

Easter Sunday

If you do not have a home church, I want to personally invite you to come and join us at Eastside Community Church this Sunday for our Easter services.  We are having two services-9AM and 10:50AM. 

God is SO Good All The Time

I have a problem that I believe that I will never get over, let me explain.  I am a book junkie.  I have a stack of books that grows on a daily basis.  For each one I read, there is at least two that I add to the stack.  But my Mom from time to time brings me a book that she has read or she saw that she thinks I will like.  Normally, I just add them to the pile, but this last one I started just after I got it.  The book is entitled,  Innovate Church by Jonathan Falwell.  If that name sounds familiar, Jonathan is the son of Jerry Falwell.  Jonathan is the senior pastor of Thomas Road Baptist Church in Lynchburg, Virginia.  Jonathan became senior pastor after his father went to be with the Lord.  Jonathan has been a staff member of Thomas Road for over 25 years, in about every position that you can think of.  The first four chapters are about leadership and as I began reading a Scripture verse popped into my head and then later he mentions that same verse.  The passage is 2 Corinthians 3:5, It is not that we think we are qualified to do anything on our own, Our qualification comes from God. (NLT)  As I stopped and thought about this verse, how many times have I made excuses why I can't do something that the Lord commands.  I'm not smart enough, not enough education, people will make fun of me, etc.  The list of excuses could go on and on.  That verse tells me that whatever God wants me to do, He will provide the means and the way for me to do it.  God doesn't half way do it either, you will succeed with the help of the Lord. 

Make today the day that you will let God bless you by being who He wants you to be.
P.S.  Please remember my wife in your prayers, she is having surgery in the morning.  She will be on the disabled list until the first of the year.

Keeping Christ First
Billy Edwards

It's Been A While

It has been a while since my last blog post.  It has been a roller coaster ride over the last several weeks.  One thing that has been constant over the last several weeks,  God loves me and has a plan for me. 

I am truly excited each time I am with the middle school students at my church.  These youth are amazing.  To see how they are inviting their friends to our services throughout the week.  To see how God is really working in the lives of some of them is AWESOME!!!!  For example, one of the middle school guys stayed behind after our Wednesday night small group was over this past week.  He said that he was going to start his own small group as soon as his football season was over.  He is inviting all of his teammates to get together weekly for small group.  As the middle school leader, I am so excited for him.  I have seen a passion to share the Gospel with others in him for some time.  During our small group time each week, he is a sponge.  He is constantly asking questions and taking notes.  It has me digging deeper in Scripture, just because I know that he will be asking questions that the normal middle school student wouldn't have.  God is working through this young man and my prayer is that God will use him to reach the guys on his team.  But that is the passion that God wants from each and every one of us that are a child of God.  A passion to learn more from His Word and a passion to make disciples.  So please keep this young man in your prayers as he prepares for this small group.  That God will use him to reach the lost guys on his team.

Keep Christ First
Billy 

Getting Radical

First of all, I am not having a flashback to a scene of a 80's movie.  What does the word radical mean?  The dictionary definition is thoroughgoing or extreme, especially as regards change from accepted or traditional forms.  What does radical mean to a child of God?  The greatest example of being radical is found in the life of Jesus Christ.  Just take some time reading the life of Christ in the New Testament and you will find numerous times that Jesus said something or did something that had the Pharisees or high priests angry.  The church is more than just going to meet a couple of hours a week and maybe one day when your old, your name gets put on a pew in the sanctuary.  John 15:13 Jesus says, Greater love has no one than this, that someone lay down his life for his friends.  There has been only One that could have gave His life to pay the sin debt for each of us.  So what does that verse mean for us?  To love others as He loves us.  Put away our self for the needs of others.  Being God's hands and feet.  We unfortunately live in a world that there is pain, suffering, and loneliness all around us.  Don't wait for your church to designate a week to help others or for a charity to reach out.  See a need and meet that need.  It opens the door for you to share the love of God to someone that doesn't know Him.  Be the radical example of someone that loves others the way that Christ loves you.