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EPHESUS Preview Issue [March 2013]
God &
The Kingdom
2
In This Issue
Kingdom Builders 4 Pastor Pooler
Singles’ Day: What did YOU think? 7
Married Lovers’ Retreat 8 Rachel Paschal
Responsible Fatherhood/Church Anniversary 11
Engaged!: Stephanie O’Neal and Shaun Mathis 12
Wedding of Oren and Antrinette Brown 14
10 People, 12 Weeks, 1 Goal: BMORe 16 Tiffiney Miles
“It Takes Teamwork to Make a Dream Work” 18 Tiffiney Miles
In Loving Memory 20
3
Come Worship With Us!
Ephesus Seventh-day Adventist Church
7709 Wilson Boulevard
Columbia, SC 29203
803.786.2800
Service Times Sabbath Morning Praise and Worship 8:00am
Sabbath School 9:15am
Divine Worship Service 11:00am
AYS One hour before sunset
Wednesday Night Prayer and Bible Connection 7:00pm
4
world and lose his soul?” (Matt.
16:26).
It is not just the Kingdom
Building that we’re trying to do and
perceive in the sense of building a
greater edifice here at the church, or
acquiring new grounds or new build-
ings alone. I believe that’s important
and something we should pursue in
glorifying God, but if we don’t have
the mindset, what good will all that
be? Just like Judas, not having the
mindset, but having the land and
having the means to purchase the
land means absolutely nothing if you
don’t have Christ and Him at your
center and your core. So I believe it
is, in these last days, that Jesus is
very soon to come, and we as believ-
ers need to be about our Father’s
business.
It is my grand desire that eve-
ryone, at church and outside the
church, become Kingdom Builders by
going to work and shopping and
wherever it is that you spend your
time, that everyone can see the
Kingdom that is within you...if peo-
ple can see the Kingdom within us as
Christ sees the Kingdom within us,
that shows us that we have value,
and that value is that we are in the
ministry of reconciliation. We are
showing the world and proving to
the world that Christ has not only
died, but risen, and He has died for
our sins, and this is really the es-
sence of the Gospel.
I think a lot of people are
scared about these last days that
we’re going through. In a trepida-
tious way, people are fearful of the
PASTOR POOLER SHEDS LIGHT ON THE INSPIRATION
OF THIS YEAR’S THEME
T he question has been
asked, “What is behind
the theme of Kingdom
Builders?” As it is stated
even on those banners in the sanc-
tuary, in Luke 17:21, it is so im-
portant for us to recognize that the
Kingdom of God is the essential
point of the New Testament gospel.
When Jesus Christ began His minis-
try, He was trying to desperately es-
tablish the Kingdom of God. The
disciples were very deceived in
thinking that it was a literal kingdom
that would come, and a palace had
to be established, but Jesus had to
rectify His disciples [in] that the
Kingdom of God is a spiritual one
and is located in you, meaning that
God can use us, transform us into
viable parts of Kingdom Builders.
The reality is that this Kingdom that
God is speaking about is a spiritual
one, and the challenge for us is to
get a mindset change and to recog-
nize that we are to be used for His
glory.
I believe that Ephesus is at a
great point , [an] historical moment.
It is not by happenstance or chance
that we are placed here together as
pastoral family and church members.
These are the last days , and I believe
more than anything that Christ is
right now establishing His Kingdom,
and if we don’t recognize and realize
how important this is, we’re going to
miss out on the Kingdom, just like
some of the disciples did, because
we’re trying to build a literal one like
Judas, being caught up in the worldly
agendas, and thinking that it’s all
about the pursuit of how we look in
the world rather than how God sees
and perceives us. If we get caught
up, we will be just like Judas and sell
our souls for thirty coins and miss
out on the whole adventure. We’ll
make an investment here in the
ground like Judas did, and we’ll have
a nice edifice, but we’ll lose our soul;
and the Bible makes it very clear,
“What profits a man to gain the
5
Kingdom of God, and that’s people.
People are important to the King-
dom of God. Without people, there
is no Kingdom.
...God says, “I don't neces-
sarily need you, but I want you here.
I don’t know about you, but that
makes me feel all the
more valuable. That
makes me wake up
with a sense of pur-
pose. That makes me
know that I have a pur-
pose here, that I must
be connected to God,
who is my Source. I’ve
got to get involved
with the various factions of the min-
istry, and how the Holy Spirit is try-
ing to bring me from being absent
and putting me front and center and
using me. I like to say to everybody
if God can use me, He can use any-
body. Some people come to me and
ask me all the time, “Hey, how do
outcome of the economy [and] to
what’s happening around them, and
they just really don’t know; they are
in absence, and the Bible makes it
very clear that we should not be in
absence. We know things and have
insight because we are Bible-
believers. We should not be afraid.
The only way we should be afraid
is when we lack. Ignorance is the
basis for fear. If we don’t spend
time in God’s word, if we don’t ask
Him to really show us who we are,
Psalms 139 tells us, “Lord, search
my heart.” That really is a transpar-
ent way of viewing it.
If we are the Kingdom of
God, we got to spend time building
ourselves up mentally, physically,
spiritually, financially; and those are
all not in succinct order, those are
all number one. Mentally, physical-
ly, spiritually, financially, we’ve got
to be fit. In these times, God has
invested so much in us, it would be
a shame for us to
simply bury our means
and not invest them at
this point. This is the
point where the Bible
says “Cry aloud and
spare not; lift up thy
voice as a trumpet.”
These are the times
that we’re living in.
The surface of my preaching,
the direction of my preaching, is
only going to intensify as the years
keep going because I know that
with every year comes a closer day
to seeing Christ return. I believe in
my heart of hearts that Jesus is
soon to come, so that’s really the
basis for the Kingdom Builders. I
hope that this will be electrifying to
the Body of Christ. We are still in
that Body-Building mode, but we’re
also Kingdom Builders. We’ve got to
reach out and stop the pettiness of
Christianity where we fight one an-
other and look for position, to be
validated, and look for pats on the
back to know that we’re valued. We
got to look beyond that now and get
beyond the devil’s schemes and re-
ally see what’s important to the
“I believe that Ephesus is at a great
point, [an] historical moment. It is not
by happenstance or chance that we are
placed here together as pastoral family
and church members.”
Cont. on page 6
6
you see that in the Scriptures? How
did you preach that message from
the Scriptures?” Let me be first and
foremost to say that it’s not I, but
it’s the Christ and the Holy Spirit
that is within me, and everyone has
that ability.
I would just ask that every-
one would fall in love with the word
of God, because of word of God is,
essentially, who Jesus is. As we get
closer and closer to the end time, I
just want you, as believers, to not
just believe that “Hey, Ephesus is
going to be built up because Pastor
Pooler and his family are here,”...but
that if we don’t all chip in, the King-
dom dies here, and we lose out on
so much of the advantages of what
God could have done.
...I give this charge to every-
one: study your Word, fall in love
with the Word, ask the Holy Sprit,
“Lord, teach me to read the word of
God. Not like people I’ve seen or
heard or [through] preachers, but
Lord, give me a personal revelation
and build up the Kingdom within
me”
7
“The message that Sister Blake brought to us was a fantastic
message...I think she helped a lot of people because a lot of us
are carrying baggage that we should let go. And she was speak-
ing from experience because she said that she had a lot of bag-
gage herself. The Lord came to her and told her to let it go, she
did, and her life was changed. That’s what God does.”—Elder
Robert Scott
Singles’ Day:
What did YOU think?
“[Audrey] did pretty good! Ba-
sically, everybody got prob-
lems. No one’s problem is big-
ger than the next person’s. But
if we pray and give our prob-
lems to God, everything will be
alright.”—Dalton Sease
Above: Audrey Blake, guest speaker for Singles’ Day
8
“W e are
g o i n g
t o
m a k e
this a pilgrimage,” says Michael
Thomas member of the Ephesus
Seventh-day Adventist church in
Columbia, SC. Mike and his wife
Patty joined about 200 couples at
the South Atlantic Conference’s
Married Lovers’ Retreat in Savan-
nah, Georgia February 15-17, 2013..
Beginning Friday evening,
the couples took part in a rousing
devotion. After devotion, couples
had an opportunity to mingle and
get acquainted with each other.
Each couple was given a per-
sonalized program and welcome
letter. Each couple was also given a
booklet of Marriage Tips and Les-
sons to live by.
Over the course of the long
weekend, couples attended four
seminars:
Friday Evening:
"The Cornerstone of Your Home is Jesus -
You Can Do It - He Can Help"
Sabbath Morning:
"The Foundation of Your Home is the Bi-
ble - When in Doubt - Do the Book",
"Because the People in Your Home are Im-
perfect, When you Mess up, Fess Up"
Sabbath Afternoon:
"The Purpose of Your Home is Intimacy -
It's Not Good to Be Alone"
Sunday Morning:
"The Priority of Your Home is About
God's Glory - It's Not About You"
"The Witness of Your Home is Contagious
- So Pursue Love"
Dr. David and Teresa Ferguson,
presenters for this years retreat,
stressed Doing The Book (Living
God's Word). Each couple was
asked to do the Book (Bible) by ex-
periencing various Bible verses in
their marriage. For example: ‘Bear
one another’s burdens,’ ‘Love your
neighbor as yourself,’ ‘A soft answer
turneth away wrath,’ ect...
Couples were asked to think
about what God is getting out of our
marriage and is the Glory of God
present in our marriage.
Couples were asked to get
vulnerable with each other and trust
God with the results.
The presenters stressed the
importance of Yoking up with God
and allowing Him to teach us how to
love and treat each other. Instead of
(Above) Dr. David Ferguson leads a workshop for the South Atlantic Conferences’
Married Lovers’ Retreat. (Above Right) Micahel and Patty Thomas share a laugh
during a discussion session. (Below Right) A packed house of about 215 couples attend
the Friday evening session, “The Cornerstone of Your Home is Jesus - You Can Do it -
He Can Help.”
Married
By Rachel Paschal
Lovers’ Retreat
9
allowing our anger and unforgiveness
to destroy our marriages (Do The
Book) 2 Corinthians 10:5 - “Casting
down imaginations, and every high
thing that exalteth itself against the
knowledge of God, and bringing into
captivity every thought to the obedi-
ence of Christ.”
Husbands and wives were
challenged with exercises to
strengthen their relationship. Exer-
cises included (1) Spouses sharing
with each other areas in the marriage
where they know they need to im-
prove and make commitments to do
so, (2) Spouses sharing with each
other a vulnerable situation and the
other spouse expressing empathy,
Cont. on page 10
10
acceptance and concern, (3) Spouses
sharing an experience with each
other that brought them joy and the
spouses rejoiced over each others’
happiness. (4) Spouses praying
with each other concerning their
marriage.
The Married Lovers’ Retreat
was more than workshops. Saturday
afternoon allowed down time to re-
lax at the hotel or enjoy a walk along
the Savannah River. And Saturday
night included romantic carriage
Sam and Rachel Paschal, Family Life Leaders at the Ephesus Seventh-day Adventist Church, take a night time carriage ride
through Savannah, GA at the Married Lovers’ Retreat. When commenting on the workshops and the information presented to the
couples, Rachel noted that, “It was like a light bulb went off. . .Do the Book!”
rides through downtown Savan-
nah and a fun filled round of Love
and Marriage Game and Talent
Show.
Before leaving, husbands
and wives took part in a marriage
vow renewal ceremony, officiated
by South Atlantic Conference
president, Elder William Winston
and his wife.
Mark your calendars now
for the 2014 Married Lovers Re-
treat to be held in Greenville, NC.
Dr. and Mrs. Wintley Phipps
will be the presenters for the retreat
next year.
11
A workshop presented by a guest presenter
will look at the challenges men are facing in
the world as they seek to parent their kids,
and the vital role fatherhood plays in the
success of the next generation.
Responsible Fatherhood
March 9, 2013
Ephesus Seventh-day Adventist Church
102102102ndndnd
Guest SpeakersGuest Speakers
AnniversaryAnniversaryAnniversary
Looking Back...Reaching Forward
Friday, March 15th Memorial Service: 7:00pm
f Pastor Victor Bartley
from the West End Seventh-day Adventist
Church
Saturday, March 16th Divine Worship: 11:00am
j Pastor Calvin Preston
from the West End Seventh-day Adventist
Church
March 13, 15, and 16, 2013
12
Engaged! O n Saturday, February 9th, Shaun Mathis surprised his now fiancé, Stephanie O’Neal with a marriage proposal during the Ephesus church service.
Stephanie recounts the event: “When the pastor called me down to do the transfer [of membership reading],...I’m thinking, ‘Okay, this is weird.’ But I didn’t think about that! ...And then I heard the music playing, I was still kind of like in disbelief. Then I saw his family walking through the door and my friends, and that’s when I started crying.” The couple plans to get married in April of 2014.
13
Engaged! O n Saturday, February 9th, Shaun Mathis surprised his now fiancé, Stephanie O’Neal with a marriage proposal during the Ephesus church service.
Stephanie recounts the event: “When the pastor called me down to do the transfer [of membership reading],...I’m thinking, ‘Okay, this is weird.’ But I didn’t think about that! ...And then I heard the music playing, I was still kind of like in disbelief. Then I saw his family walking through the door and my friends, and that’s when I started crying.” The couple plans to get married in April of 2014.
Photographs by Nicholas Blocker (Around the Block Photography))
14
(Above) Newly Married Oren and Antrinette Brown are surrounded by the some of the ladies of the bridal party. From Left: Marsha
Fields, Esther Munoz, Quaneta McDaniel, Shay Torres, LaQuanna Lowe, and Taneisha Wells.
(Right) Oren and Antrinette Brown pose for pictures after the ceremony.
(Below) Tynaisia Ealey, Jonae Finnie, Taliah Ealey, Sanaih Atchinson, and Dominique Atchinson
15
A Wedding
Ceremony
Uniting
Oren &
Antrinette
Brown
Sunday
February
24, 2013
16
BMORe
T his year, the Health Minis-
tries of the Ephesus Sev-
enth-day Adventist Church
wants to help others re-
claim their health so that they can
glorify God through their bodies.
One of the ways that Health
Ministries is educating the church
about the importance of health is
through the BMORe study. BMORe,
which stands for Multicenter Obesity
Reduction, is sponsored by the USC
Cancer Prevention & Control Pro-
gram and lead by Katherine Shavo,
the Intervention Coordinator for the
study. Mrs. Shavo explains more
about this project: “We are looking
to see if a diet high in flavonoid
foods, with physical activity and
meditation, will reduce markers of
inflammation inside people.” Yolan-
da Robinson, leader of Health Minis-
tries, also goes into further explana-
tion about BMORe: “The BMORe is
a healthy-living program that is pro-
moting prayer and claiming God’s
promises and having a more peace-
ful state of mind. The study can be
done to see that it can contribute
to people to be more at peace and
less stressed.”
Ten members from the
Ephesus church have volunteered
to participate in this study. Before
the sessions began, the partici-
pants attended a clinical in which
height, weight, and blood pressure
were taken, and after the 12-week
study is completed, measurements
will be taken again in order to show
how adopting a healthier lifestyle
has been beneficial.
Participants meet every Tues-
day for the sessions. Each partici-
pant was also asked to bring a sup-
porter every week, someone who
would not only provide encourage-
ment but to hold him or her ac-
countable for doing weekly assign-
ments. Each session is broken up
into different segments: exercise,
education, meditation, and cooking.
Participants get active in the 10-30
minute Exercise segment which in-
volves strength training and cardio.
In the Education segment, Mrs.
Shavo teaches the class about sever-
al health topics, such as how to read
labels and how to set realistic health
goals. For the Meditation segment,
the participants are asked to share a
Scripture or any inspirational mes-
sage. The participants also do a
Body Scan exercise to help release
Health Ministries leader Yolanda Robinson, right, is in the USC Cancer Prevention &
Control Program kitchen making a black bean hummus.
10 people
12 weeks
1 goal
By Tiffiney Miles
17
stress and anxiety. The last seg-
ment is Cooking, and the partici-
pants learn how to cook healthy
meals from the kitchen.
After each session, partici-
pants are given homework assign-
ments to apply what was learned.
The goal at the end of the BMORe
study is for participants to adapt a
healthier lifestyle that will stay with
them for the rest of their lives.
Not only is Health Ministries
involving church members in a
health study, but they are also in-
volving women in the church to be-
come active through the Divas Half-
Marathon in North Myrtle Beach on
April 28, 2013. The marathon is
13.1 miles, and women are asked
to train every week in preparation.
The women who are participating
are split up into different teams,
and the teams meet once a week
to train, and each team member is
also asked to train at least two oth-
er
days out of the week. There are
currently about ten women from
Ephesus who are raining for the half
-marathon.
When it comes to future
events, Health Ministries is also
looking forward to restarting the
exercise classes after the BMORe
study is completed. The ministry is
also wants to work with local
churches to have a walk or mara-
thon within the community. Ephe-
sus members can also look forward
to hearing a health emphasis at the
beginning of every month from a
Health Ministries committee mem-
ber.
Katherine Shavo (left), Intervention Coordinator of the BMORe study, demonstrates at the USC Cancer Prevention & Control
Program kitchen how tofu can be cooked in several ways.
18
“It Takes
Teamwork to Make a
Dream Work”
F or the month of February,
the Adventist Youth Soci-
ety (AYS) Department
placed its emphasis on
knowing the importance of African
American history and culture. With
February’s theme called “It Takes
Teamwork to Make a Dream
Work,” AYS leader Natasha Jones
explains the main purpose of the
February AYS programs. “From the
Black Youth Convocation to The
Great Campmeeting, our aim was
‘Edutainment’: to try and get eve-
rybody involved and entertained
but educated [and] looking back at
the past.”
The first AYS program in
February “Black History: A Thing of
the Past,” took the Ephesus church
members on a journey into African
American history by watching a
short video clip of prominent Afri-
can Americans and their historical
impact. “if we didn’t have those
people to build that foundation,
then we wouldn't have our first
black president. It’s 2013 but we’re
still having first blacks. If nothing
else, that’s a good enough reason
to still be looking at black history,”
says Natasha.
Involving the youth into the
AYS programs is of high importance
for the AY council. “What I have
been hearing from the young people
is that they just want to be consid-
ered in the programming,” Natasha
states, “so what we try to do is to
look at things that are considered
fun.” For one AYS program, church
members were divided into differ-
ent groups and were asked to create
a portrait that depicted different
families from the Bible by using only
shapes. The children were asked to
explain the portrait while other
groups guessed at which Bible fami-
ly was represented.
For March, the AYS
Department will be collaborating
with other ministries to provide pro-
grams geared towards every age.
“In March, we have our Centennial
coming up, so Music Ministries is
going to be doing a concert one
weekend.,“ Natasha says. “We are
also coupling up with Singles’ Minis-
tries and planning a talent show at
the end of the month, which will be
Youth Day also. “ AYS is also plan-
ning a program that will look into
women’s history.
The AYS Department is very
excited about its upcoming events
and is hoping that more families will
come out and participate in future
programs.
Ephesus church members participating in a musical skit called “The Great Campmeeting,” one of the programs tied into February’s AYS theme “It Takes Teamwork to Make a Dream Work”.
19
Upcoming AYS Events March 23rd Tri-State Youth Federation
March 30th Youth Day
May 2013 Mid-Week Youth of Prayer
Ephesus church members participating in a musical skit called “The Great Campmeeting,” one of the programs tied into February’s AYS theme “It Takes Teamwork to Make a Dream Work”.
20
In Loving Memory
21
“It was
In Loving Memory
22
www.EphesusSDA.org
Every department,
Every ministry,
Every member,
has a story
for Christ.
Share it with us.