Lamplighter

Vol. 5 Issue 9 September 2012

The

Our Church Staff

Gary Burden
Senior Pastor 919-631-6789

Bethesdas Second Annual Chicken Bar-BQue Fund Raiser- Friday, September 14th
Hours: 11:00 AM - 2:00 PM and 4:00 PM - 7:00 PM $ 7.00 per plate (eat in or take out) Proceeds will go toward His Vision - Our Mission See page 3 for more details.

Landon Orr
Minister to Students 919-229-9379

Debbe Langdon
Music Director/Pianist 919-410-0271

Bethesda Homecoming Sunday September 23, 2012

Time to notify previous church members and family/friends to worship with you on this Homecoming Sunday and to fellowship with lunch afterwards.

Chastity Comeau Admin. AssistantFinances Pat Baucom

Admin. Assistant - Publications

Its SeptemberStart Your Engines!

This Months Highlights
Sept Highlights Note from the Pastor Note from Landon Announcements Financials Calendar A Note from Debbe Extended Session Birthdays Anniversaries p. 1 p. 1 p. 2 p. 3 P. 3 p. 4 p. 5 p. 5 p. 6 p. 6

The month of September is more than the beginning of our church year; it traditionally is a busy month, and this September is no exception. You will see many events on our September calendar and highlighted in this edition of The Lamplighter. So pay close attention so as not to miss a thing. Each event is important and deserves our prayerful attention, even if we cant participate in each one. Many of these events are also being promoted in our church foyer and on our church website. Some of the big events include: new Sunday School curriculum for most of our classes begins September 2; Clayton Harvest Festival September 13-16 with our Awana ministry manning a booth on Saturday and our music ministry (and all the rest of us in attendance!) participating Sunday afternoon; our 2 nd Annual Chicken BBQ fund raiser for our building program on Friday, September 14 (we need all hands on deck for this critically important event!); iChoose Steps for Life Saturday, September 22; our annual Homecoming on Sunday, September 23; three new LifeLine small group studies beginning Sunday night, September 30.
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your head spinning yet? I hope not too much, because with all these important events there is one item I did not list but which I must emphasize. With all the hype and exaggerations flying this election year, I am more and more convinced it is not mere hype and alarmist talk to say this upcoming election may very well be the most important in our lifetimesetting the course for our country for generations to come, should the Lord tarry His coming. To squander the stewardship gift of this God-given country, and to ignore or neglect the clear citizenship responsibilities given us in Scripture, would be the spiritual equivalent of high treason. There is no excuse for any Bible- believing Christian to fail to stay informed, to inform and influence others, and to vote. But more than that, we can and we must PRAY! Gods mercy and not any political candidate or party is our ultimate need. We definitely cannot continue on our current path! So I calling you to prayer! Not just any prayer. But what does all this have to do with September? There are and will be many worthy prayer movements going on leading up to the November 6 election. I will be promoting the 40/40 Prayer Vigil designed by leaders in our Southern Baptist Convention. And I will be encouraging the 40-day format which includes prayer guides for 40 days beginning on September 26. Printed prayer guides will be made available, and I hope and pray all of us will do our partusing this guide or some otherto make a difference. The devil laughs at our schemes and plans, but he trembles at our prayers. And more than that, the Lord promises to honor our prayers those that humbly confess our sins, beseech His mercy, and give Him alone the glory! So, yes, start your new church year engines. But more than that, ask the Lord to ignite or re-ignite your spiritual engines by His Holy Spirit!

I was doing a little bit of organizing and studying for an upcoming LifeLine class that I will be teaching and I was reminded of a particular detail that I thought was important enough to pass along. What I remembered was this: the Holy Spirit empowers us before, not after, we go out. What do I mean by that? Often, when we think about evangelizing (think this past summers Bethesda Night Out) we plan, we make things happen, we show up wherever we go, and then we think that the Spirit will take over from there. Im not saying it doesnt work like this, and Im not saying that we went about planning our Bethesda Night Out incorrectly. I want you to think about this: how often do you pray for the Spirit to empower you in your Christian walk? Its really easy for us to forget all about the Holy Spirit until we get into a hard place, and then we begin to plea to Him to give us the strength to make it through. I challenge you with this - as we continue on this year, let us begin to bathe everything we do with prayers of empowerment, and lets see what God begins to do through us. On a side note, I mentioned an upcoming Lifeline class at the beginning of my article. Ill be teaching a class entitled How to Study (and Teach) the Bible. Im excited about the experience, and am looking forward to teaching a class of both youth and adults. If you have a desire to dig into the Word more, or you dont know where to begin when you look at Scripture, this would be a great class to get started with. It should be fun, challenging, and rewarding!

Landon

Gary Burden SEE ISRAEL TRIP INFORMATION ON PAGE 6 40/40 PRAYER VIGIL INFORMATION ON PAGE 6

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2nd ANNUAL Chicken Bar-B-Que Friday, Sept. 14.

We need volunteers for: cooking the chicken, helping Carolyn Durham in the kitchen, serving in the Fellowship Hall, delivering meals that have been ordered, and clean-up, etc. The cost is again $7.00/plate. Please see sign up sheets on a table in the foyer. LOOK FOR THE RED ARROW.

Facts & Figures for August 2012

Date July 29 Aug. 5 Aug. 12 Aug. 19 Total Avg. S.S. 96 105 114 120 435 109 AM Worship 156 152 165 158 631 158 Budget Offering 5,885.48 8,657.35 5,113.78 5,496.25 25,152.86 6,288.22 His Vision Our Mission 750.00 1,560.00 1,190.00 1.665.00 5,165.00 1,291.00

Average Attendance & Offerings for August 2011

LifeLine
Sunday Night Small Group Studies September 30November 11
Art of Marriage Couples Study Facilitators: Larkin & Brigitte Creech Cost: $20.00 for each couple How to Study (and Teach) the Bible Facilitator: Landon Orr You Are A Gifted Child (Discover, Develop, Deploy your Spiritual Gifts) Facilitator: Pastor Gary Burden These studies will begin at 6:00 PM every Sunday night during the time period listed above. You have a choice of which study you prefer to attend. Additional information is available from each of the facilitators.

Avg.

104

142

6,248.86

1,010.75

STEPS FOR LIFE

IChoose Pregnancy Support services is having its annual fundraiser walk on September 22nd. It will be held at the Clayton Community Park on Amelia Church Road. Registration is scheduled for 10 AM with the walk starting at 10:30 AM. If you need more information, please contact Sharon Orchard.

It's time for another exciting year for Awana. Clubs are available from 2 years old through 5th grade. Registration is available in the lobby and on our website. We are counting on you to reach out to friends, neighbors, and even that lady in the checkout line and invite them to join us. Please be in prayer for our leaders and clubbers as we come alongside families to help children know, love, and serve Jesus Christ!

OPERATION CHRISTMAS CHILD With all those back to school sales going on, NOW is a great time to shop for school supplies for your Operation Christmas Child shoe box. Items for your shoe boxes are pens, pencils and sharpers, crayons, markers, stamps and ink pads, writing paper or pads, solar calculators, coloring and picture books, hard candy and small toys. LAST QUARTERS SUNDAY SCHOOL LITERATURE
Please place your last quarters Sunday School literature in the work room. These materials are used by pastors and lay people to teach and disciple families in 3rd world countries. Approximately 80% of Christian believers outside the US have no Christian literature.

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Sunday

Monday

Tuesday

Wednesday

Thursday

Friday
1

Saturday

2 Breakfast Fellowship Weekly Sunday Service No Evening Gathering 9 Weekly Sunday Service

4 5 Ladies Bible Study 10 AM Deacons Mtg. 7:00 PM 11 12

6 AWANA and Weekly Wed. Schedule

Office Closed 10

13 AWANA and Weekly Wed. Schedule

14

2nd Annual Chicken Barbeque

20 21

15 Clayton Harvest Festival (Bethesda Children 8AM-5PM)

16 Weekly Sunday Service Clayton Harvest Festival (Adult Choir, 5:30 PM) 23 Homecoming Sunday No Evening Service

17

18

19 AWANA and Weekly Wed. Schedule

22 Steps for Life (an IChoose Project) Clayton Park 10:00 AM 28

24

25

26 AWANA And Weekly Wed. Schedule

27

28

30 Weekly Sunday Service

Weekly Sunday Schedule

9:15 am .................................................................... Bible Study Fellowship 10:30 am ......................................................... Morning Worship Celebration 6:00 pm.......................................... LifeLine...Get Connected (Small Groups)

Weekly Wednesday Schedule

6:30pm ...........................................................Awana, Youth Bible Study 6:45 pm ..................................................... Adult Prayer and Bible Study Choir Rehearsal

Student LifeLine SPK CHOIR (Shout Praises Kids) - Grades 1-5

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September is the beginning of a new Choir Year --- and there's no better time to join! We have several exciting events coming up: singing in the Clayton Harvest Choir Festival on September 16; Bethesda Homecoming on September 23; holiday music for Thanksgiving and a special Christmas musical! As our new fall schedule begins, please give prayerful consideration to becoming a part of the choir family. Weekly choir rehearsal will be held on Wednesday evenings from 6:45 - 7:45pm; come join us as we "make a joyful noise unto the Lord" - what a wonderful opportunity to witness and worship together!! The town of Clayton holds an annual Harvest Festival mid-September, drawing a crowd of people to downtown Clayton through a variety of events and entertainment. On Sunday, September 16 from 1:30-9pm, there will be a Praise Choir Festival on the Town Square near the Clayton Center, sandwiched between Main and Second Streets. Bethesdas Adult Choir is on the schedule at 5:30-6:15pm, and we welcome all who would like to become special choir members and sing with us that afternoon! Plan to bring your lawn chair earlier in the afternoon, enjoy the music and fellowship with other believers.and we will not hold evening activities at church so that we can stay on Town Square for more praise and worship. While making plans for the Harvest Festival, I thought about that wordand what it means: Harvest--- the Merriam-Webster dictionary offers these definitions: the season for gathering crops; to gather and store a crop.

SEPTEMBER EXTENDED SESSION AND KIDS CHURCH

Sunday, Sept. 2 - AM Babies: Kathleen McLamb & Cherilyn Murphy 2s: Heather Henry & Tori Smith 3s/4s: Julie Brueggen & Kristen Duncan K-3rd Kids Church Frances Burden & Angel Duncan Sunday, Sept. 2 - PM No Activities Wednesday, Sept. 5 Frances Burden & Louise Gilmore Sunday, Sept. 16 - AM Babies: Sondra Gatewood & Jane Gatlin 2s: Brittany & Andrew Arant 3s/4 s: Leigh & Will Smith K-3rd Kids Church Terry Gatewood & David Duncan Sunday, Sept. 16 - PM Clayton Harvest Festival Wednesday, Sept. 19

Sunday, Sept. 23 - AM Babies: Faye Wells & Shalee Sams 2s: Wendy Beasley & Diane Duncan 3s/4s: Kristol & Nick Flanigan K-3rd Kids Church Will & Leigh Smith Sunday, Sept. 23 - PM No Activities Wednesday, Sept. 26 Christina & Warren Casper Sunday, Sept. 30 - AM Babies: Faye Parrish & Elvis Farr 2s: Sondra Gatewood & Louise Gilmore 3s/4s: Laura Benson & Sara Orr K-3rd Kids Church Sabrina & Trenton Seagroves Sunday, Sept 30 - PM Bill & Julia Stephens

Sunday, Sept. 9 - AM Babies: Brigitte Creech & Jan Culpepper 2s: Brandi & Tobi Sauer & Shannon Coomer 3s/4s: Mandy & Brianna Windham K-3rd Kids Church Nicole & Michael Ritchie Sunday, Sept. 9 PM Jane & Johnnie Gatlin Wednesday, Sept. 12
Jennifer Harrison & Terry Gatewood

And we read in Matthew 9:35-38: Jesus went through all the towns and villages, teaching in their synagogues, proclaiming the good news of the kingdom and healing every disease and sickness. When he saw the crowds, he had compassion on them, because they were harassed and helpless, like sheep without a shepherd. Then he said to his disciples, The harvest is plentiful but the workers are few. Ask the Lord of the harvest, therefore, to send out workers into his harvest field. So we have an opportunity before us: to venture out of our comfort zones, to witness through music and fellowship, to be workers in Gods harvest field Wont you join us? God bless. Debbe Langdon

Preschool Regis. Desk Diane Duncan 2 year olds every Sunday Night Frances Burden

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LETS GO TO ISRAEL
4967 Highway 70 West Business Clayton, NC 27520 Phone: 919-553-7678 Address Service Guaranteed

Were on the web!

www.bethesdaclayton.com

September Birthdays
Ava Creech Linda Lee Jerry Gilmore Carness Underwood Lynne Raker Neta Jones Lehman Godwin David Creech Frank Avery Rosa Johnson Michael Tart Dolly Bryant Wayne Little Chris Johnson Bill Stephens Sis Godwin Audrey Langdon* Michael Hall Diana Lee Adam Johnson 1st 4th 5th 5th 8th 9th 11th 12th 15th 15th 15th 18th 18th 19th 24th 25th 25th 26th 26th 30th

Now is the time to Sign Up! Only 23 seats available. Leaving from RDU on Tuesday, May 14, 2013 Returning to RDU on Wednesday, May 22, 2013 Estimated cost per person: $3,000.00 (Cost does not over lunches, tips, incidentals, purchases, additional insurance, etc.) First Deposit: $100/person due by September 1 Second Deposit: $150/person due by November 1 (All deposits fully refundable until February 8, 2013)

See pastor for details and to sign up. Dont delay!

40/40 PRAYER VIGIL

We as a church are registered with many other churches in our Southern Baptist Convention and beyond to commit to pray for our nation. We desperately need spiritual revival in our churches and renewal in our nation. Although we will encourage each member to choose the 40 day option, you may choose the 40 hour option. You can pray once each day between September 26 and November 4, or for 40 hours, between 4:00 pm, November 2 and 8:00 am, November 4. The important thing is that we pray! Prayer guides will be made available in September.

Anniversaries
Ayden Jr.* & Betty Lee Ron & Carol McNeece Brian & Kathleen McLamb 8th 13th 20th

Ladies, after an unexpected interruption in my life about 3 months ago, the Lord is giving me His grace to continue in our time of prayer and the Word here together in my home on Tuesday mornings. I would like for u s to start again on Tuesday, September 4th (after Labor Day), 10:00 AM, at my home on 209 Will Court, Clayton. If ever we need to join hearts and hands in prayer to the Father through our Lord Jesus Christ, it is now! Jesus said in Luke 18:1 that ...at all time we Pray without ceasing, so lets do it! Looking forward to meeting with you at the throne of grace, I am sincerely your sister in Christ.

Sharon Levin