Author: Stan Blake

Good News Baptist Church

Good News Gleanings

Volume 1, Issue 1

July 1, 2011

And for the Support of this Declaration...

Benjamin Franklin once said, “Give me twenty-six soldiers, and I will conquer the world.” He was speaking, of course, of the letters of the alphabet. He was speaking of the power of words.
Words encourage and inspire. Words inform and educate. Words give hope of a new tomorrow. It was the words of the Declaration of Independence that joined thirteen rag-tag colonies in a fight for freedom against the greatest superpower in the world.
Most of us are familiar with the beginning lines of the Declaration of Independence. “When in the course of human events...We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty, and the Pursuit of Happiness.”
Thomas Jefferson continued on to write out a specific list of grievances against the King of England. He affirmed the rights of the colonies to govern themselves and their independence from the British Crown.
Then he wrote something which perhaps we take little notice of or perhaps have never noticed at all. “And for the support of this Declaration, with a firm reliance on the protection of divine Providence, we mutually pledge to each other our Lives, our Fortunes, and our sacred Honor.”
The Declaration of Independence is filled with words of resolve, words of finality. Our Founding Fathers were saying, “Win or lose, this is where we stand.” These were words of truth and consequence.
But notice also that these were not words left to stand alone. They were words backed by passion and raw courage. They were empowered by the innate desire of the human soul to be free.
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It feels like elementary school all over again...

I’ve never liked being in front of people. It has always made me terribly nervous. I’ve always been afraid that I’ll forget what I wanted to say and say something completely different. Often, I do!
I can remember back to my days in elementary school in California. Every October, we held what was called American Heritage Day. Each child had to choose and dress up as a character from American history.
The fourth through the sixth grades had to write and recite a speech about their particular character. The students in the class who gave the best speeches were chosen to compete in front of the whole school.
I didn’t mind the dressing up part. That was fun. I wasn’t worried about giving my speech in front of the entire school. I knew I would never What I dreaded…
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On the Calendar at Good News:
July 3rd—Lord’s Table in the Evening Service
July 4th—Independence Day
July 9th—Camp Fundraiser
July 10th—Root Beer Float Social
July 16th—Men’s Fellowship, 5:00pm
July 17th—Watermelon Social
July 24th—Snack Food Social
July 31st—Ice Cream Social

Inside this issue:

And for the support of this decl...	P.1
It feels like elementary school all...	P.1
Did you ever wonder who wrote…	P.2
Why do I go to church?	P.2
Monthly Memory verses.	P.2
Good Meals from Good News.	P.3
A merry heart doeth good like...	P.3

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Good News Gleanings

Monthly memory verses
“Oh how great is thy goodness, which thou hast laid up for them that fear thee; which thou hast wrought for them that trust in thee before the sons of men!” - Psalm 31:19
“The king’s heart is in the hand of the Lord, as the rivers of water: he turneth it whithersoever he will.” - Proverbs 21:1
“Let no corrupt communication proceed out of your mouth, but that which is good to the use of edifying, that it may minister grace unto the hearers.” - Ephesians 4:29
Hide God’s Word in your heart!

Why Do I Go to Church???

Did You Ever Wonder Who Designed the Current American Flag?

The man credited with designing the American flag is Robert Heft. He earned his place in history in 1958, while living with his grandparents in Ohio.
His updated fifty-star flag was a class project later adopted by presidential proclamation after Alaska and before Hawaii was admitted to the union in 1959. Since Heft’s flag was made public, he’s been in all fifty states and thirty-seven foreign countries, making hundreds of speeches and traveling more than one hundred thousand miles a year. Heft also has been the guest of nine U.S. presidents at the White House.
Heft is the former eight-time mayor of Napoleon, Ohio and has served as president of the state’s Mayor’s Association. During his career, Heft taught at Northwest State Community College and also works as a real estate broker. Heft’s stars and stripes design has been the second longest serving design since the nation’s founding.
As a seventeen year old high school junior, Heft found himself in need of a class project. His proposed flag idea was initially turned down by the teacher.
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Why Do I Go to Church? - Terry Conger

When I was a young man, I had a paper route. Unlike today, where the paper is delivered by car, I had two paper bags that I carried on my shoulders. Each bag held about one hundred papers, and I walked my route. I clearly remember on Sunday morning, hearing the church bells ringing and the pipe organ playing. The sound of those bells still rings in my ears today.
I remember all the people standing outside of the church, welcoming and greeting each other. I remember all the men standing around their shiny clean cars, talking about the week past. I remember the ladies in their nice, modest dresses and Sunday hats, the men in ties and suits, and the children dressed in their “Sunday Go To Meetin” clothes. Then the bells would ring again advising everyone it was time to start.
Sunday was a special day. People didn’t hang clothes on the line. People didn't cut the grass or work on their cars. They didn’t play basketball, baseball or football, or go shopping on Sunday Morning. They went to church to thank and praise the Lord for all the blessings they had.
Yes, I do go to church to see people whom I have not seen in a few days or more and ask them how their week was. But I don’t go so people can see me. I have met people who come just to say “I’m glad you got to see me” or “Pastor, I brought a big tithe today.”
The main reason I go to church is to receive a blessing from the preaching of God’s Word. I have learned from my experience of many years that my week goes a lot better if I start it with good preaching and fellowship with godly people.
The Bible says in Hebrews 10:25, “Not forsaking the assembling of ourselves together, as the manner of some is; but exhorting one another: and so much the more, as ye see the day approaching.”
I can guarantee you, if you make a conscious effort to go to church whenever the doors are open, God will bless you and your family for it. Moms and Dads need to teach their children that Sunday is the Lord’s Day, all day, and we will go to Church.
Let us all be able to say, “It has been good to be in the House of the Lord.” Plan to be in church this week!

Volume 1, Issue 1

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Words say much, but they mean little if there is no one who will stand behind them. We say we love freedom, yet where is our resolve when freedom is threatened? We say we support our troops, but where is a supporting hand?
The Patriots who founded our nation understood the nature of their words and the consequences that came with them. Our freedom was not bought with only words but with toil, sacrifice, and the blood of the brave. To support the Declaration, they pledged their lives.
While we find ourselves concerned for America in a patriotic sense, let us look inward spiritually. We use many words to describe our ourselves as Christians. We call ourselves faithful. We call ourselves compassionate. We call ourselves good Christians.
But are our words backed with genuine service to our Lord? Are we the strong Christians that we believe ourselves to be?
The Lord Jesus Christ said He would die on the cross of Calvary for the sins of all the world. He said He would rise again. He said He would make the way of salvation. He did all of it. He pledged His Sinless Life in support of His Declaration.
Let us strive to be the Christians that the Lord Desires us to be. Support your Declaration.

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was standing in front of my class to give my speech. I was petrified.
You weren’t allowed to have your speech in front of you for your final grade. Everything had to be said from memory. The teacher wanted expression in your voice and on your face. It was so hard for me to do! If I did one or both of those, then I couldn’t remember the speech!
Only a couple of things got me through the speech each year. One was knowing that I had to do it. There was no way of getting out of it. For some reason, Mom and Dad always backed the teacher instead of me.
The other was knowing that Mom and Dad were pleased that I had done it. They weren’t particularly concerned with my acting skills. They were more concerned that I learned to obey them and the teacher with the right attitude. I did not want to recite that speech. Not because I didn’t want to do a good job, but because I thought I couldn’t.
Sometimes we are so afraid to witness to the lost around us. We’re afraid we won’t do a good job giving the speech. We’re afraid that we might say the wrong thing, and they won’t like us.
Sometimes it doesn't go as perfectly as we planned it in our heads. Sometimes, maybe we do say the wrong thing. But witnessing is not the same as giving a speech about someone in history that we have never met. Witnessing is telling someone of the Savior who has changed our lives so completely.
We can be a witness in the power of the Holy Spirit. We can take the truth of the Gospel and introduce people to the Christ that can save them. The Gospel isn’t a speech. It’s a Person.
Some Christians say, “I know all of that, but I’m still so nervous. I’m not a good speaker.” Well, Moses tried that. God didn’t let him out of it either.
You can be a witness. You can tell others how Christ forgave your sin and saved you from hell. The Lord even said He would go with you in Matthew 28:18-20.
“Go ye therefore, and teach all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost: Teaching them to observe all things whatsoever I command you: and, lo, I am with you alway, even unto the end of the world. Amen.”
Why not start this week, by carrying some Gospel tracts and simply saying, “Excuse me, I’d like for you to have this.” It’s as simple as that. Please the Lord with soul-winning.

Good Meals from Good News
Summertime dessert
1 qt. vanilla ice cream
1 can frozen orange juice or lemonade—thawed
Graham cracker crust
Soften ice cream in bowl. Add thawed juice. Mix well. Spread mixture onto crust. Refreeze and Enjoy!
Optional: spread a layer of Whipped Cream on top.

“A merry heart doeth good like a medicine.”
Things You Never Hear in Church
Hey! It’s my turn to sit on the front pew!
I was so enthralled, I never noticed your sermon went over 25 minutes.
Pastor, we’d like to send you to this Bible seminar in the Bahamas.
Since we’re all here, let’s start the worship service early!

He went ahead and finished his project, receiving a B minus for his efforts. Heft’s teacher compromised and promised to deliver a better classroom grade if he could get the U.S. Congress to accept his flag. The rest is history.
Now retired, Heft spent thirty years as a teacher. He has served eight terms as Mayor of Napoleon, Ohio and twenty-five years as a real estate broker. Born in Saginaw, Michigan, but raised in Ohio, Heft recently returned to his native city and is the Education Manager for the Saginaw County Junior Achievement Board. He is also active in Habitat for Humanity and the Lion’s Club.
(Article found on www.theideafinder.com. Also on www.usflag.org/flagdesigner.html)
Many may believe that the patriotic determination and passion possessed by Robert Heft in the 1950’s are symbols of a bygone era. Many feel that the era of American exceptionalism is a thing of the past. Many have determined to make it that way.
Yes, we have lost ground in the battle to preserve America’s history. Yes, we have lost ground in the battle to secure America’s future. But the fight is still on. It is not a battle that is fought on the battlefields of Afghanistan or Iraq. It is not a battle that contains itself to the halls of Congress.
It is a spiritual battle that must be fought in the prayer closet of every Christian and in the pulpit of every Bible-preaching Church. America’s greatness and blessing from God relies on God’s people getting thoroughly right with Him. It relies on the preaching of the gospel of Jesus Christ.
If you feel your heart swell with pride as those colors are raised, then let your heart be filled with compassion for an America that needs Jesus Christ.

Who has sinned?
Romans 3:10 “As it is written, there is none righteous, no, not one:”
Romans 3:23 “For all have sinned, and come short of the glory of God;”
What is the eternal cost of sin?
Romans 5:12 “Wherefore, as by one man sin entered into the world, and death by sin; and so death passed upon all men, for that all have sinned:”
Romans 6:23 “For the wages of sin is death;…”
Who can pay this cost?
Romans 5:8 “But God commendeth his love toward us, in that, while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us.”
Romans 6:23 “...but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord.”
Will Jesus pay this cost for you?
Romans 10:9-10 “That if thou shalt confess with thy mouth the Lord Jesus, and believe in thine heart that God hath raised him from the dead, thou shalt be saved. For with the heart man believeth unto righteousness; and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation.”
Can you be sure?
Romans 10:13 “For whosoever shall call upon the name of the Lord shall be saved.”
Will you turn to Jesus Christ today?
Pray something like this: “Dear Lord, I turn from my sins, for I have truly sinned against a holy God in many ways. I believe that You, Jesus, died for my sins, paying the price I owe and that You are truly alive now, to help me live for You. Thank You, Lord, for you told me to come to you and You will save me.”

Good News Gleanings

Good News Baptist Church

5812 Signal Ave NE
Albuquerque, NM 87113

Phone: 505-821-1786
info@thegoodnewsbaptistchurch.com
pastorjared@thegoodnewsbaptistchurch.com

Alameda

Signal

I-25

N

San Pedro

We’re on the web!
www.thegoodnewsbaptistchurch.com

“Not forsaking the assembling of ourselves together, as the manner of some is; but exhorting one another: and so much the more as we see the day approaching.”
- Hebrews 10:25

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