Missionary Spotlight ~ Joey Wright, Mississippi College

Joseph G. Wright, IV (Joey) is the campus minister for Reformed University Fellowship (RUF) at Mississippi College. Joey has just celebrated his ninth anniversary with his lovely wife, Summer. Both Joey and Summer are from Anderson, South Carolina. Joey attended McCallie high school in Chattanooga, TN and then Mercer University in Macon, GA. After being converted in college through the ministry of RUF, he found himself attending seminary at RTS, Jackson.

Joey began ministering on MC's campus under the oversight of the Mississippi Joint Committee of Campus Work and Bebo Elkin. He worked there for two years part-time as he completed his MDiv. He has just completed his sixth year full-time there. Joey and Summer have been blessed with two covenant children: Joseph G. Wright V (Grady) who is six, and Owen Nathan Wright who is four.

Prayer Requests*-- Robert Murray M'Cheyne once commented that his congregation's greatest need was his personal holiness. Pray for Joey, that he might delight in Christ more than anything else in the world. Pray specifically that he might grow in, and live in Psalm 73:25-26 more each day.

-- Pray that Joey might be a faithful husband and father. Pray that he would not neglect his greatest earthly calling. He says it is a constant temptation to put the ministry at MC before the ministry at home. Pray that he might have the wisdom and strength to fight this temptation.

-- Pray that they would be given favor in the eyes of the new and returning students. Ministry is all about relationships, and God is the author of relationships...He gives and He takes away. Pray that He would grant them opportunities to love these students, to speak to their hearts, and to lead them in righteousness.

They would like to extend their deep gratitude to the First Presbyterian, Jackson church family. Your gracious support and encouragement have been an unspeakable blessing to them. They say thank you, from the depths of their hearts for partnering with them in this ministry!

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Frank Reich to Speak at FPC

MEN OF THE COVENANT LUNCHEON
September 6, 2007
First Presbyterian Church, Miller Hall
11:45 a.m. – 1:00 p.m.

Men, don't miss this opportunity for fellowship, outreach, and mutual encouragement! Bring friends along with you.

Frank Reich is known for his incredible comebacks. During his football career, playing for the Buffalo Bills, Carolina Panthers, New York Jets, and the Detroit Lions, he led his teams to victory twice in the face of virtually insurmountable odds. However, his record setting comebacks are just part of the story he shares. He has learned that both victory and defeat provide an opportunity for growth in grace in Jesus Christ. Until recently, he was President of RTS, Charlotte. He is currently pastor of Cornerstone ARP Church in Charlotte, NC. Frank and his wife, Linda, have three daughters.

Reservations are not required and the cost of lunch is $5.00. Please contact Allison Gatlin in the discipleship office if you have any further questions: 601-973-9128 or AllisonG@fpcjackson.org.
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Missionary Spotlight ~ Ellen Barnett, Mexico

Ellen is a native Tennessean who also claims North Carolina as home. She studied elementary education at Wheaton College and recently received her MA in Biblical Studies from Covenant Seminary.

Ellen doesn’t know of any time she didn’t know Jesus as her loving friend. She accepted Him as Lord and Savior before age five.

As a result of early contacts with missionaries, Ellen felt the only reasonable response to the Lord’s work in her life was to serve Him in missions. In her teens she reexamined that desire in light of her fears and limitations, but the Lord reconfirmed her decision as she trusted in His power for His work.

Ellen has served in Acapulco since 1975 with MTW. Her ministry has included Bible studies; work with children, youth and singles; and leadership training in Acapulco and Guerrero State. Ellen’s present responsibilities include development and teaching in Maranatha Bible Institute and teacher-training seminars throughout Mexico. She especially enjoys discipling young people through these ministries. Recently Ellen has worked in the formation of New Horizon, a Christian primary/preschool. Ellen is involved in finding resources for development, strategic training for the staff and board, and fundraising for property and future construction.

Pray for Ellen as she prepares for her HMA from October 2007-June 2008. Pray for provision of teachers at New Horizon School, as well as new students and funds for the building payments.

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A Saturday Night Thought for Lord's Day Worship (August 19, 2007)

David F. Wells, one of the most insightful and widely respected Christian theologians and cultural analysts of our times, has recently said: "In our time, understanding our culture takes on an urgency because this culture is so intrusive and so powerful in its capacity to shape our souls and minds that if we are not pushing back from an explicitly biblical, Christian point of view – we are going to get swallowed up." Wells is absolutely right, and Paul's inspired and prophetic words are more timely than ever as we have contemplated them in Philippians 1:27-28 – "let your manner of life be worthy of the gospel of Christ, standing firm in one spirit, with one mind striving side by side for the faith of the gospel, and not frightened in anything by your opponents."

So as we prepare to praise God in this congregation today, let me exhort you, dear brothers and sisters, 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 (Romans 12:1-2).

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Missionary Spotlight ~ Chuck & Lauren Askew, South Carolina

Chuck Askew is the campus minister for Reformed University Fellowship (RUF) at Coastal Carolina University. Chuck is originally from Atlanta, Georgia, but became involved with RUF in his time at the University of Florida.

After graduating, Chuck desired to test his gifts for ministry and so he spent 2 years as an intern with RUF at Mississippi State. After those two years, Chuck went to RTS Jackson for seminary. There he met his lovely wife Lauren, originally from Syracuse, New York, who was in the Marriage and Family Therapy program of RTS. After graduating in 2005, Chuck and Lauren moved to Conway, South Carolina to start the RUF at Coastal Carolina University.

Coastal Carolina University is a public university in the Myrtle Beach, South Carolina area. Coastal has 8,000 students, drawing heavily from the Northeastern states. You are just as likely to meet someone from New York, Pennsylvania or Ohio as you are to meet a native of South Carolina on Coastal's campus.

During the first year of the Askew's ministry at CCU, God blessed them with their first son, Charlie, who is now 21 months old. This past April, the Lord blessed the Askew family with the birth of a daughter, Eleanor Katherine Askew.

Please pray for:

*Freshmen Outreach this fall: Pray that God would connect new students to the ministry of RUF.

*Developing leaders: Pray that God would use RUF to equip and encourage students to reach out to their friends and classmates.

*An office near campus: Pray that God would provide an office at or near the campus for Chuck to be able to have a place to prepare for Bible studies in between student meetings.

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Fall MOC Luncheon Line Up

The fall line up is set! Don't miss this wonderful opportunity the first Thursday of each month to join with men of all ages from the church and community. No advanced registration is required. Just come, and invite friends and co-workers.

MEN OF THE COVENANT
First Presbyterian Church, Miller Hall
11:45 a.m. – 1:00 p.m.
________________

“Men, Mercy, and Missions”

September 6th – Mr. Frank Reich
Former NFL player

Frank Reich, a native of Charlotte, North Carolina, is known for his incredible comebacks. During his football career, playing for the Buffalo Bills, Carolina Panthers, New York Jets, and the Detroit Lions, he led his teams to victory twice in the face of virtually insurmountable odds. However, his record setting comebacks are just part of the story he shares. He has learned that both victory and defeat provide an opportunity for growth in grace in Jesus Christ. Until recently, he was President of RTS, Charlotte. He is currently pastor of Cornerstone ARP Church in Charlotte, NC. Frank and his wife, Linda, have three daughters.

October 4th – Judge William H. Barbour Jr.
Senior Judge

Judge Barbour received his undergraduate degree from Princeton University. He received his Juris Doctorate degree from the University of Mississippi School of Law in 1966 and was selected to the Moot Court Board and Phi Delta Phi legal fraternity. Before his appointment as Judge, he was a partner at the law firm of Henry, Barbour and De Cell in Yazoo City, Mississippi. In 1983, he was given his commission as a United States District Court Judge for the United States District Court for the Southern District of Mississippi by Ronald Reagan. He was elevated to Chief Judge in 1989, served in that position through 1996, and took senior status in 2006. Judge Barbour attends the First Presbyterian Church in Yazoo City, Mississippi.

November 1st - Dr. David Elkin
UMMC Associate Professor, Department of Psychiatry and Human Behavior

Dr. Elkin received his undergraduate degree in Philosophy and History at Vanderbilt and his Ph.D. in Clinical Psychology at the University of Memphis. For his postgraduate work, he was an intern in Pediatric Psychology at the University of Oklahoma Health Sciences Center and also completed advanced training in the Interdisciplinary Training Program in Child Abuse and Neglect at the Center on Child Abuse and Neglect at the University of Oklahoma Health Sciences Center. He is involved in many professional memberships including the American Psychological Association, International Neuropsychological Society, and Sigma Xi the Scientific Research Society and has done much funded research in the area of psychology. He is married to Allie Elkin and has four daughters, Bailey Grace, Emma, Sarah, and Claire.

December 6th – Dr. George May
Oral and Maxillofacial Surgeon

Dr. May, a native of Jackson, MS, completed his undergraduate degree at Mississippi State University and received his postgraduate degree at the University of Mississippi School of Dentistry, after which he finished his Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery Residency at Parkland Memorial, a teaching hospital of the University of Texas Health Science Center at Dallas. He participates in many local professional and community service organizations, and has been actively involved for many years with Student Ministries at First Presbyterian Church, Jackson. Dr. May and his wife, Cathy, have three daughters, Elizabeth, Laura Cate, and Caroline.


Reservations are not required and the cost of lunch is $5.00. Please contact Allison Gatlin in the discipleship office if you have any further questions: 601-973-9128 or allisong@fpcjackson.org.

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The Pursuit of Happiness

Some people think that if they are Christians, they will miss out on the joys, and happiness and pleasures that they might have had if they were not Christians. They are tempted to think they cannot be as happy as Christians as they could be if they were not. They think that to love God, to obey his commands, to pray, to worship, to pursue godliness and to live as Christians, is gloomy business.

But God tells us that none can be truly happy and really joyful but the one who loves him. And every one who has repented of sin, trusted in Christ and who loves the Savior, knows that there is more happiness in this new life than in any other.

A person may indeed be happy a little while without fellowship with God. But misfortunes and sorrows will come. Your hopes of pleasure will be disappointed. You will be called to weep; to suffer pain; to die. And there is no one but God, and nothing but knowing Him through the risen Savior, Jesus Christ, which can console you in trials, give you a deep and lasting and true happiness, and a peace in the hour of death.

It is that you may be happy, not unhappy, that God wishes you to be a Christian. In fact, God wants us to be supremely happy in him, joyful in him, delighted and delighting in him. The Gospel call is to the greatest happiness - everlasting, grace-enabled enjoyment of God. No other happiness approaches it. After all, it was Jesus who said to his disciples: "These things I have spoken to you, that my joy may be in you, and that your joy may be full" (John 15:11).

(the above is my take on this John Abbot quote below)

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"Some children appear to think that if they are Christians, they cannot be so happy as they may be if they are not Christians. They think that to love God, and to pray, and to do their duty, is gloomy work. But God tells us that none can be happy but those who love him. And every one who has repented of sin, and loves the Savior, says that there is more happiness in this mode of life than in any other. We may indeed be happy a little while without piety. But misfortunes and sorrows will come. Your hopes of pleasure will be disappointed. You will be called to weep; to suffer pain; to die. And there is nothing but religion which can give you a happy life and a peaceful death. It is that you may be happy, not unhappy, that God wishes you to be a Christian." (John S. C. Abbott, The Child at Home: The Principles of Filial Duty)

(HT: Justin Taylor, for helping me track down the author and source of the Abbott quote)
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Missionary Spotlight ~ Craig & Lisa Sheppard, Bulgaria

Craig and Lisa Sheppard have been serving the Lord with Mission to the World in Sofia, Bulgaria since 1996, where he serves as a church planter, seminary instructor, publisher, and founding board member for the Sofia Christian Academy. As the MTW Regional Director for Eastern Europe, Craig is also tasked with overseeing the ministries of more than 65 missionaries in five countries (Bulgaria, Romania, Slovakia, Czech Republic, and Ukraine), as well as developing new church planting works in other Eastern European countries (such as Russia, Greece, Latvia, Croatia, and Belarus).

Craig is from Wichita, Kansas and Lisa is from St. Louis, Missouri. They served together in university ministry for four years before Craig attended Reformed Theological Seminary in Jackson, Mississippi. There he earned a Master of Divinity degree in Missions, and a Master of Theology degree in Theology. While in seminary, Craig served on the staff of the First Presbyterian Church as the Director of College Ministry. He is ordained in the Heartland Presbytery of the PCA. They have four sons and a daughter (Jared, 16; Nathan, 14; Luke, 11; Andrew, 8; and Abigail, 6).

They are still missing four bags from their trip back to Bulgaria. Please pray that their luggage is found soon and that it would arrive back to them in good condition.

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Labor Day Picnic

The annual Labor Day church picnic is scheduled for Monday, September 3, 2007. A BBQ supper will be served at 5:00 p.m. and the facility will be open throughout the day. Make plans now to see Twin Lakes and to take part in the fun activities. The activities begin at 2:00 p.m. and include:

Waterslide & the Inflatable Water Park

Horseback Rides

Canoes

3 Story Treehouse

Giant Swings

And much, much more.

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Exterior and Interior Pics of New Meeting House

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Missionary Spotlight ~ Sidney & Louise Anderson, Czech Republic

Sidney and Louise have had the privilege of serving in the US, Nigeria, and the Czech Republic. Louise came to faith in Christ through the witness of her mother, and Sidney through the witness of his parents.

In Nigeria, the Andersons worked with the Tiv Tribe, laboring in the areas of theological education and evangelism. The vibrant spiritual climate among the Tiv stands in stark contrast to that of Prague, Czech Republic, where John Hus, forerunner of the Reformation, once boldly served the Lord. Today only about half of one percent of all Czechs are Evangelical Christians.

The Andersons’ goal is reformation in Central Europe. They plan to approach this enormous task by (1) church planting, (2) theological training, and (3) the publication of Reformed literature. They know, on the other hand, that without prayer nothing of eternal weight can be accomplished. The task is too enormous in such a thoroughly secularized culture. Will you join with them in prayer for the Czech Republic? Three churches have been started – one at Zlin in Moravia (now particularized), another at Zbraslav in Southern Prague, and one at Strechovice in Northern Prague. There are plans for a fourth congregation in Modrany, also part of Prague, the capital city.

Sidney and Louise have one son named Paul.

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