Sunday November 15th 2009

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Good morning faithful followers of BBT.  I am having a great week and I hope you are also. I have been listing my blessing for the last 3 days and I find it hard to just do 3 per day.  Many of our blessings are “everyday” blessings, Like waking up in our right minds, the fact we have a job, a family, food to eat, etc.  These are things that don’t really change on a daily basis or at least we hope they don’t.  But what about those “special” blessing that you received this week, something that was unique for that day.  These “special” blessings are just for you and they are the ones that we remember.  We seem to take our “everyday” blessing for granite but these “special’ blessings we pay attention to.  I pray that we will start seeing our “everyday” blessings” as just as miraculous as  the ” special” blessings and I pray that there will be more and more of the “special’ blessings.  I believe when we start thanking God for the “everyday” blessings we will see more of the “special” blessings in our lives.  Starting on Thursday we are suppose to be praying for others.  As you are praying this week ask God to bring someone to your mind and then ask God to bless that person.  We can make a difference in somebody’s life and we may never know it, but God knows.

This weeks sermon is about our bedrock faith.  No it has nothing to do with the Flintstones.  The scripture is found in  Mark the 13Th Chapter and verses 1-8.  Do you ever make predictions?  Some prediction’s are easy to make for instance if you drive while drunk you will eventually have an accident.  But many of the predictions we make are just something we are guessing about or maybe hoping for.  This is not the case with Jesus.  He knew the future and if he said something was going to happen you can bet it would.  In this scripture he catches the disciples by suprise when he talks about the Temple being destroyed.   What was Jesus trying to show the disciples by this strange prediction and what does it mean for us.  I hope we will have a better understanding about what is needed to have rock solid, bedrock faith after we look more closely at these scriptures.  In the mean time I predict that God is going to bless you this week and I don’t have to be a “Houdini” to predict that.  This is an easy one because God loves you and me and wants to give us blessins every day and special blessing along the way.  Don’t overlook a single one.

One special blessing we will have Sunday is the chance to have Thanksgiving dinner together.  We never know how many Thanksgiving’s we are going to have so let’s make them all count.  I am excited about sharing this with you and let me predict that you will leave full, happy and blessed.  Now don’t make me a liar, be there and be ready to give as well as receive.  This will be the last Sunday we will be at church for 2 weeks and we will miss you terribly but let me have the opportunity to see you before we leave.  keep praying for others, keep loving without restrictions, keep forgiving without boundaries and do something good for the people around you.  May God bless you and we speak blessing and victory on you and your family.

Pastor David & Pris

Sunday November 8th 2009

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Greetings and blessing to the faithful followers of BBT.  I hope you are blessed this week and I hope you are being a blessing to someone else. We are quickly closing in on Thanksgiving, and I think it is time we took a moment and started counting our blessings. We are so lucky to be in the Kingdom but we have not experienced even a small portion of the power that God has made available to us. We just need to remain faithful and open to new ideas and new chances to please God. Last week we got to experience a little bit of what church is about when we were able to pray for some members in our family that are struggling. We all have been there and it is nice to know that there are people who care about us and want to be there for us. My desire is that we will become even closer,  I don’t think you can Love too much or Care too much about your brothers and sisters. Our problem is generally we don’t care enough. You are a special group of people and I know that as much as we care about each other we can do even more.

This week’s message is about thanksgiving and what it means to say thank you. The scripture is Luke 17: 11-19. IT is the story of the ten lepers that were healed that day but only one came back to say thank you. We read this story and think how ungrateful these nine were, and they were, but before we judge them let’s make sure we have the beam out of our eye.  I know I am guilty of being so excited or thankful for something I have forgot to say thank you to the one that blessed me, especially when it is God who blessed me. It is not like we mean to be ungrateful we just are.  I hope if I can learn to do anything better in my life it will be to be more appreciative for what has been done for me.  I have so many good friends that go out of their way to help me, I have a loving family that would be willing to do anything for me and I serve a loving God who greatest desire is to give me the desires of my heart.  I don’t know about your personal circumstances but I do know about your God because he loves you just like he loves me.  I want us to really see this week are we taking the time to say thank you? And what does it do for us as a person when we do take the time to say thank you. It is always a good idea to ask God to help.  I catch myself saying SO far today, God, I’ve done all right. I haven’t gossiped, haven’t lost my temper, haven’t been greedy, grumpy, nasty, selfish, or overindulgent. I’m really thankful about that.   But in a few minutes, God, I’m going to get out of bed and from then on I’m probably going to need a lot more help.

I am hoping to see you on Sunday as we celebrate our birthdays and anniversary for the month of November. And don’t forget about our Thanksgiving dinner on November the 15Th. I hope you will keep praying for the ones in our family that need our encouragement and support and lets be especially grateful this Thanksgiving season. Let’s remember to express our gratitude for the help we receive from others and from God and let’s make sure we are BEING a help as well. We love you and speak blessings and mercy and grace on you and your family

Pastor David & Pris

Sunday November 1st 2009

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Greetings followers of BBT.  I hope you are having a great week and I hope you are trying to make this place a better place to live.  I know I am better because you are part of my family of God.  I hope you enjoyed Summitt being with us on Sunday, it always amazes me how much trouble they go to, to be part of our ministry. They continue to bless us and I know that Joel will be coming to me around the end of the year to see if we still want them to come out each month. They have thought me so much about living in the Kingdom of God I would hate to think that they were not going to be part of us each month but I know what a commitment it is for them to do this. Lets pray that what ever God wants to do with this little church that we will be excited about the challenges and blessings he set before us.  I hope you will renew your commitment to this body of which you are a big part.  I am excited about the future but lets not overlook today by looking to tomorrow.

This week’s sermon is a strange one I call it “Good news about Death”.  I know that death is really something that we just don’t want to talk about and it certainly not something we see as good news because we know that when we go we leave everyone and everything behind. It is scary to think that we have to face death because it is something we have to do alone, or so we seem to think.  I remember talking to Barbara about death and she said I just don’t want to die alone, yet bless her heart there she was alone in her kitchen when her hearth stopped beating. Just seeing her there just broke my heart. You hear all the time that people just want to be at home when they die surrounded by friends and family, I know I do. But in the end it is you making that journey to the other side while everyone else stays here to mourn, or we hope they do! But there is good news and I believe that it is in the scripture we are reading this week John Chapter 11 vs 32-44. This is the story of Lazarus and Jesus raises him from the dead. We are going to see what the real reason Jesus chose to do this and we are going to discuss does God really care about me?  I can assure he does but in times of grieving we sometimes feel like God is so far away. This is where our faith comes in and it is important to understand what death really means.

I hope you will be in church on Sunday but I also hope you will be praying for this church on a daily basis. We have many members who need our prayers and if we can’t do anything else, we can pray. My family is praying for you and we thank God that we have the chance to do the work of the Master with such a dedicated and loving membership. Lets keep doing good things for others and keep looking for new ways to make others happy.  I speak Joy and Blessings on you in the name of our Heavenly Father. We love you!

Pastor David & Pris

Note from Larry:  I imported this post from our forum software on the day we are holding Pastor David’s memorial service.  I did not know beforehand what the topic was.  The link to the audio seems to have disappeared, but I still have the file and have attached it to this message because of the timeliness of his topic.

Sunday October 25th 2009

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Good morning faithful followers of BBT.  As I look out my window this Wednesday morning I see the rain and the cloudy sky and I think what a gloomy day this is.  This is the kind of day that makes me want to go back to bed and just sleep till the weather is brighter.  What is it about the rain and cool air that makes me want to just give up on the day? What I should be doing is giving thanks for this rain and enjoy the fact that weather is cool and I should be grateful for it’s benefits.  We all should take every opportunity we get to appreciate the fact that we are alive and that God has blessed us with another day.  I know many of us are going through some tough times right now but I promise you the Sun is about to break through and we will be better for the struggles that we have been through!  Last week in church it was disappointing to see so few people in God’s house on such a beautiful day.  I know many are sick and hurting and my prayer is that after we prayed for you that you did feel the power of the Holy Spirit and you are better today because of it.  Don’t be like me when you see the gloomy weather,  rejoice for this is the day that the Lord has made and be GLAD in it.  I am going to make this a great day because I will never have this time back, so regardless of the weather I am going to make something good of this day.  I hope you will also.

This Sunday Summitt Church will “Be in the House” and I hope and Pray that you can be there too.   Joel has had some dental work done this week but he will be there and ready to worship OUR God.  Joel, like he shared with us last month, has been going through a battle of his own and he needs our prayer and support.  I hope to see a great outpouring of the Holy Spirit and I want us to minister to Summit they way they have ministered to us.  I need your help and support to do this, so please make every effort you can to be there and see what God has for you.

Last week we talked about how we as Christians should be people of ambition and people with goals and dreams.  As I said last week I believe we all are capable of doing GREAT things for the kingdom of God but we can’t do it if we just sit back and let other people do all the work.  Let’s get involved and let make a difference for Christ sake.   You can start today, on this gloomy Wednesday, live today like it is sunny and bright and have a great attitude with the people you meet. Then do something for them, maybe something they would never expect.  My family loves all the people that help support Bartimaeus and we really do care about you.  We will see you on Sunday!

Pastor David & Pris

Sunday October 18th 2009

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Good morning followers of BBT.  I hope you are feeling blessed this week.  I appreciate your concerns for me last week after the service but I am doing fine and really feeling very good.  We had another great service last week with Linda’s Sunday School lesson topped off by Larry’s beautiful song ” The Love of God”.  I was really moved by both.  It was good to see Anita back after a few weeks and I hope maybe this week she may be able to play the organ.

This week our scripture verse is going to be  in Mark the 10Th Chapter starting with verse 35-45.  You may not think there would be much good news about being ambitious after reading these verses but I believe we can be.  This is a story of two brothers Jesus calls the “The Sons of Thunder”.  That is a cool name.  We really have a fear of thunder and lighting don’t we .  it reminds me of the story, one summer evening during a violent thunderstorm a mother was tucking her small boy into bed. She was about to turn off the light when he asked with a tremor in his voice, “Mommy, will you sleep with me tonight?”
The mother smiled and gave him a reassuring hug. “I can’t, dear,” she said. “I have to sleep with Daddy.”   A long silence was broken at last by his shaky little voice: “The big sissy.” What a good Super Hero these guys would make.  But despite there closeness to Jesus they still did not understand what they were asking of Jesus in these scriptures.  Do we really understand what greatness is today.  Are we going by what the World calls Great or what Jesus calls Great.  Read these scriptures this week and I think you will get the picture.  I believe we are all capable of greatness if we understand what it means to be Great in the kingdom of God.

Keep praying for those that need our help and remember to check the prayer room every day so you will remember who we are asking for pray for.  This week we will celebrate our birthday and anniversary for this month on Sunday so invite someone to come with you and let’s celebrate our good fortune.  Do something good for somebody this week, try loving those people you find hard to love and see what a blessing you will receive.  We love you and will see you Sunday!

Pastor David & Pris

Sunday October 11 2009

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Good morning faithful followers of BBT.  This is Thursday morning and it is the day after our annually Fair excursion.  What a great day we had yesterday.  I know many of you who were taking care of the rest of us and walked all over the Fair must be tired but I really appreciate everything you did yesterday.  We had a great time and I can not express how grateful I am for all those that went with us.  The weather was great, except for 1 little shower, and I am grateful we went yesterday.  I hope you got to see everything you wanted to see and got to eat everything you wanted to eat.  I would like to get a card together along with the photo we took and give it to my nephew who sponsors our trip every year. I hope you will memorize your scripture verse this week and be able to share it with us on Sunday.

This week’s message is on rejoicing.  It seems like we as Christians have so much to rejoice about but I constantly see sour faced Christians who seem like they have no joy in their lives at all.  Our scripture verse this week is in Philippians 4: 4-7. Paul writes to the Church at Philippi and tells them to rejoice.  We need to hear this word today.  We need to rejoice not just in the good times but in the bad.  It is time to lay aside our worries, our heartaches, dry our tears and rejoice.  Easier said then done but lets see what instructions Paul gives us to do this.  Linda is going to do the Sunday School lesson this week and Larry is going to share a song ” The love of God”.  I hope you will be in Church Sunday ready to receive a blessing and be a blessing to someone else.

Remember to pray for those that need our help and pray for this ministry that we will continue to move forward in the kingdom of God.  Rejoice today and make someone else feel good about themselves and share what God is doing in your life.  I will see you Sunday.  We love you

Pastor David & Pris

Sunday October 5th 2009

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WOW, What a great day we had last week. Pastor Sorge really blessed us with a message of hope and I know I was sorry to see him have to go.  I hope we get a chance to hear him again.  What a humble and devoted servant this man of God is.  I hope you were one of the lucky ones that got a chance to meet him.

This week I am going to be preaching from the book of Mark again, this time chapter 9 vs 38-50.  The title of the sermon is “Be at peace with one another” If we can do anything in our lifetime to make this world a better place we  should be spreading the Peace of God to everyone we meet.  unfortunately if we have no peace we are not going to be the examples Christ wants us to be.  I know how hard it is to have peace in these troubled times but I promise you, no let me rephrase that, God promises us we can have peace not just any peace but perfect peace even in these trying times.  I want to show you this week what God has shown me in these verses on what we can do, and not do, to have peace that passes all understanding and show us who we are.  I hope you will be able to be at church on Sunday and bring a quest with you,

On Wendsday the 7Th we will make our annual trip to the State Fair of Texas.  If you are interested in going please let me know before Sunday. We always have a great time and it is something we can do as a church to fellowship outside the walls of church.  We can be witnesses to the people we see at the Fair and show them that our God is good and we have the joy of the Lord in our lives.  Continue to pray for those that are hurting and if you have a prayer request please let me know and I will get the word to the other members and let us pray for you.  Thanks again for all you do for this ministry and this minister.  I could never tell you how privileged me and Pris feel just to be a part of this ministry.  I am going to make it a point to do something good for somebody this week why not join me.  We love you and can’t wait to see you on Sunday

In God’s Love
Pastor David & Priscilla

Sunday September 28th 2009

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I cant wait to meet Pastor Sorge.  He will be here this week and will hold just this one service before heading back.  We are expecting a big crowd so make plans to get there early. Services start at 2:30  and we will be through around 4 pm.  I do not know the message he will bring but I am sure he will share his testimony with us and he will have several copies of his books available to purchase at a reduced price.  I expect God is really going to bless us through his message and I hope you will do everything possible to be there Sunday.  Lets make our guest feel very welcome.  We owe a special thanks to Larry and Linda for inviting Pastor Sorge to our service and to Sandra who helped pay for his trip down here.

I hope you enjoyed last week’s service as much as I did.  Joel really shared with us from his heart and I was encouraged and inspired to sacrifice what ever is necessary to help advance this body to where we need to be in God’s Kingdom. It is not about us as individuals but it is about what we can do as a body and though we may not be many in numbers God has never needed the odds in his favor to win victory after victory.  God wants to do the miraculous and we want him to use us to perform these miracles.  Please keep praying for those that are sick and lets do something GREAT this week and give God all the glory.  We love you and are excited about seeing you this week.

Pastor David & Pris

Sunday September 20, 2009

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What a great service we had last week.  The weather was bad but the food was great and the message was even better.  Thanks so much to Zach and his family for being there and as always thanks to Pris for her Sunday School lesson.  We did not have as many there as in the past but we had a good group. It was great to see Mary back for the homecoming as she is the original member going back 51 years and most important God was in our midst and we felt the Holy Spirit as we heard the Word of God shared with us.  Again we thank Zach for taking time away from his church to come and share with us.  This week Summitt is making an early visit as they generally come on the 4Th Sunday of the month but because Brother Sorge will be here on the 27Th they have agreed to come a week early.  Joel is back with the Summitt church fresh off his sabbatical and I know he will have some encouraging words for us and a message that will inspire us.  I pray we will have a good group and that we will let the spirit move us in a new and challenging way.

I have good news regarding Sammy he is suppose to get to come home on the 17Th and he is very anxious to get back to church as soon as he is able.  We need to continue to pray for Arvella and Dee Dee as they are still trying to find s new place to live. I also got terrific news from my sister today and that is the test came back on my Brother in law Bill and there is no sign of any cancer at all.  God is good!!! Lets continue to pray for those in our family that are struggling and lets pray for all those that need to hear the message we have, God loves you and wants to take care of you.  I hope you will be at Church this week at our regular time and lets invite somebody to come with us.  Do your part this week by sharing the good news with somebody this week and we will see you on Sunday.  We love you and thank God for you everyday

Pastor David  & Pris

Sunday September 13th 2009

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Well we have made it to Homecoming and what an exciting day this Sunday will be.  We are going to start service at around 9:45 and we will be having lunch around 12:00.  Brother Zach will deliver the message and Priscilla will be leading in Sunday School.  I know we have a lot to celebrate and I hope all of you will be able to be there.  This is 51 years we are celebrating and I know God still has something left for us to do.  If you know someone that needs a place to come and worship please invite them to come on Sunday and help us celebrate this wonderful event.

Good news I have found Sammy and he is doing well and is in a rehab Center called Global rehab off of Empire central and I 35.  He is in room 221 and would love to see or hear from any of you.  Keep praying for Arvella and her housing situation and all those listed on the prayer list.  We will see you on Sunday and come ready to worship and come hungry.  Do something good this week and lets talk about it on Sunday.  We love you and will see you then