Instead of translating it – to follow, it is normally translated in the Bible – to persecute. . We know what persecu- tion is: opposition that comes to de- stroy us - never flinching, never relent- ing, and never giving up. Persecution is willful, forceful, and aggressive. It can be ruthless and disconcerting. Now Paul uses this same word to dem- onstrate how fiercely we should love one another. According to Paul, we must learn to willfully, forcefully, and aggressively love one another. This must mean that loving one another doesn’t always come naturally to us. We must aggressively pursue it in or- der to make it a reality in our lives! If you’re finding it difficult to love some people in your life, ask the Holy Spirit to help you, to empower you and en- able you to love them. Then be pre- pared! If their personalities rub against you the wrong way, you will have to make a willful decision to love them. You cannot depend on your emotions to carry out that decision for you. You must decide to love them. We cannot wait for “ooey-gooey, tin- galy, warm fuzzy” feelings to come to us. Learning to love people with the love of Jesus Christ is not based on natural feelings that come and go. It simply doesn’t happen that way. In other words, willfully, aggressively, and forcefully pursue love. If you set your heart to walk in love, and if you pursue it with all your heart, you can walk in love toward even the most unlovable person. Jesus told us, in John 13:35 (NIV) “By this all men will know that you are my disciples, if you love one another .” We will be known by our ability to love or our lack there of. If we can learn to live out the “One Another” passage in scripture we will be well on our way to being known by all men as His disci- ples. Let me remind you of a few of the “One Another” passages: Love One another. John 13:34, 1 John 3:23, 1 Peter 1:22, 2 John 1:5 Be devoted to one another. Romans 12:10 Live in harmony with one another. Romans 12:16, 1 Peter 3:8 Don’t pass judgment on one an- other. Romans 14:13 Accept one another. Romans 15:7 Instruct one another Romans 15:1 Greet one another. 1 Peter 5:14, 1 Corinthians 16:20, Romans 16:16 Agree with one another. 1 Corin- thians 1:10 Serve one another. Galatians 5:13 Be humble, gentle, patient, bear with, kind, and compassionate to one another. Ephesians 4:2-3 Speak to one another. Ephesians 5:19 Submit to one another. Ephesians 5:21 Forgive one another. Colossians 3:13 Admonish one another. Colos- sians 3:16 Encourage one another. Hebrews 3:13, 1 Thessalonians 5:11 Spur one another on to love and good deeds. Hebrew 10:25 Don’t slander one another. James 4:1 Offer hospitality to one another. 1 Peter 4:9 Be submissive and humble to one another. 1 Peter 5:5 Be in Fellowship with one another. 1 John 1:7 “Follow the way of Love…” Make that decision today, and the Holy Spirit will help you carry your decision all the way through to the end! To quote Juan Carols Ortiz again, "The message for today is, 'Love One Another,'" Hope to see you during the Month of Love! Blessings, Jeff Wiedenmeyer The Month of Love We are declaring February to be the “Month Of Love” here at Jamestown First Assembly. Saint Valentine has already de- clared February 14 th as the love holiday. This month we will be preaching on love and how it’s worked out in our rela- tionships. So let me kick it off here with these thoughts: There are some messages, which need to be repeated... A number of years ago I listened to Juan Carols Ortiz tell what happened in his church in Argentina one Sunday morning. He got up to preach and said, "The message for today is, 'Love One An- other,'" and then he sat down. Every- one just sat there waiting for what would happen next — I guess they weren't accustomed to such a short sermon! So the Pastor got up again and said, "The message for today is, 'Love One Another,'" and then again sat down. The third time he went to the pulpit he said, "The message for today is, 'Love One Another,' and until we begin doing that, there won't be any more messages." Slowly, a rather strange thing hap- pened. People began turning to one another, talking with each other, pray- ing for each other, and even opening their wallets and giving money to those near them who were going through difficult times financially. Eventually, they did hear other messages from the Pastor, but they did learn that impor- tant messages bear repeating. Paul wrote in 1 Corinthians 14:1 (NIV) “Follow the way of Love…” Is there anyone in your life you have a hard time loving? Perhaps you’d rather just look the other way and forget about them, but you know the Holy Spirit wants you to love them with the love of Jesus. This is exactly why the apostle Paul said, “Follow the way of Love…” The word follow is taken from a Greek word, which literally means to willfully, forcefully, and aggres- sively pursue.
Transcript
Instead of translating it – to follow, it is normally translated in the Bible – to persecute. . We know what persecu-tion is: opposition that comes to de-stroy us - never flinching, never relent-ing, and never giving up. Persecution is willful, forceful, and aggressive. It can be ruthless and disconcerting. Now Paul uses this same word to dem-onstrate how fiercely we should love one another. According to Paul, we must learn to willfully, forcefully, and aggressively love one another. This must mean that loving one another doesn’t always come naturally to us. We must aggressively pursue it in or-der to make it a reality in our lives! If you’re finding it difficult to love some people in your life, ask the Holy Spirit to help you, to empower you and en-able you to love them. Then be pre-pared! If their personalities rub against you the wrong way, you will have to make a willful decision to love them. You cannot depend on your emotions to carry out that decision for you. You must decide to love them.
We cannot wait for “ooey-gooey, tin-galy, warm fuzzy” feelings to come to us. Learning to love people with the love of Jesus Christ is not based on natural feelings that come and go. It simply doesn’t happen that way. In other words, willfully, aggressively, and forcefully pursue love.
If you set your heart to walk in love, and if you pursue it with all your heart, you can walk in love toward even the most unlovable person.
Jesus told us, in John 13:35 (NIV) “By this all men will know that you are my disciples, if you love one another.” We will be known by our ability to love or our lack there of. If we can learn to live out the “One Another” passage in scripture we will be well on our way to being known by all men as His disci-ples. Let me remind you of a few of the “One Another” passages:
Love One another. John 13:34, 1 John 3:23, 1 Peter 1:22, 2 John 1:5
Be devoted to one another. Romans 12:10
Live in harmony with one another. Romans 12:16, 1 Peter 3:8
Don’t pass judgment on one an-other. Romans 14:13
Accept one another. Romans 15:7
Instruct one another Romans 15:1
Greet one another. 1 Peter 5:14, 1 Corinthians 16:20, Romans 16:16
Agree with one another. 1 Corin-thians 1:10
Serve one another. Galatians 5:13
Be humble, gentle, patient, bear with, kind, and compassionate to one another. Ephesians 4:2-3
Speak to one another. Ephesians 5:19
Submit to one another. Ephesians 5:21
Forgive one another. Colossians 3:13
Admonish one another. Colos-sians 3:16
Encourage one another. Hebrews 3:13, 1 Thessalonians 5:11
Spur one another on to love and good deeds. Hebrew 10:25
Don’t slander one another. James 4:1
Offer hospitality to one another. 1 Peter 4:9
Be submissive and humble to one another. 1 Peter 5:5
Be in Fellowship with one another. 1 John 1:7
“Follow the way of Love…” Make that decision today, and the Holy Spirit will help you carry your decision all the way through to the end! To quote Juan Carols Ortiz again, "The message for today is, 'Love One Another,'" Hope to see you during the Month of Love!
Blessings,
Jeff Wiedenmeyer
The Month of Love
We are declaring February to be the “Month Of Love” here at Jamestown First Assembly. Saint Valentine has already de-
clared February 14th as the
love holiday. This month we will be preaching on love and how it’s worked out in our rela-tionships. So let me kick it off here with these thoughts:
There are some messages, which need to be repeated... A number of years ago I listened to Juan Carols Ortiz tell what happened in his church in Argentina one Sunday morning.
He got up to preach and said, "The message for today is, 'Love One An-other,'" and then he sat down. Every-one just sat there waiting for what would happen next — I guess they weren't accustomed to such a short sermon! So the Pastor got up again and said, "The message for today is, 'Love One Another,'" and then again sat down. The third time he went to the pulpit he said, "The message for today is, 'Love One Another,' and until we begin doing that, there won't be any more messages."
Slowly, a rather strange thing hap-pened. People began turning to one another, talking with each other, pray-ing for each other, and even opening their wallets and giving money to those near them who were going through difficult times financially. Eventually, they did hear other messages from the Pastor, but they did learn that impor-tant messages bear repeating.
Paul wrote in 1 Corinthians 14:1 (NIV) “Follow the way of Love…” Is there anyone in your life you have a hard time loving?Perhaps you’d rather just look the other way and forget about them, but you know the Holy Spirit wants you to love them with the love of Jesus.
This is exactly why the apostle Paul said, “Follow the way of Love…” The word follow is taken from a Greek word, which literally means to willfully, forcefully, and aggres-sively pursue.
PAGE 2
PASTORAL STAFF
Mary Ann Adams Children’s Pastor
Jeff Wiedenmeyer Lead Pastor
Kenneth Curtis Youth Pastor
Deacon Meeting Thurs. Feb. 7, 2013, 7 pm at the church
Communion
Sun. Feb. 3, 2013
February time change!
For the month of February , Sunday School will start at 9:00 am and
the morning service will start at 10:00 am. This will allow more people
from the church to help with the Meals on Wheels Outreach.
February is our month to be of service! Six
drivers are needed for each Saturday and six drivers are needed for each Sunday. There is a sign-up sheet in the foyer. It is best to sign up in pairs. Also please put your phone num-
ber by your name. Contact Vivian Welsh at 252-7969 or 320-8256 for more information.
Thank You! Note: When delivering meals, if no one answers the door don’t leave the meal, bring back to the
Senior Center and let them know.
MEN’S CONFERENCE 2013 SWING’N FOR THE FENCE
BISMARCK EVANGEL ASSEMBLY
FEB. 22-23, 2013
Friday: Workshops begin at 3 pm. Catered Men’s meal at 5 pm. Main service at 7 pm. Late Night activities after service. Saturday session at 9 am. Adults: $34.00, Students: $17.00 -Registration deadline is Feb. 18th. $10.00 late fee after the 18th. There are 10 rooms reserved at Country Suites in Bismarck for our church. Registration due into the church office by Feb. 10. Two men per room. Cost is $68.18 per person for the room or $136.36 for one. Contact Pastor Jeff for more info. SPEAKER: Joe Oden from North Texas District of Assemblies of God.
SUPER BOWL SUNDAY!
SUNDAY, FEB. 3, 2013
No evening service!
Contact Small Group Leaders for various Super
Bowl activities. Youth Super Bowl party at
Andy and Melissa Noreen’s. Contact
Pastor Kenneth for more
information.
Chuck and Bonne have been training men and women for ministry across East Africa for the past 35 years. They have lived in Kenya during this entire time. Chuck con-tinues to serve with Global University in training more workers for leadership and ministry roles in East Africa. He also serves as chairman of the Kenya Assemblies of God Child Development. Bonnie presently min-isters through Community Health Evangel-ism. They have three grown children who serve in missions also.
Chuck & Bonnie Ness, Assembly of God
missionaries to Kenya, East Africa will be speaking on
Sun. Feb. 24 At 6 pm.
Happy Birthday for the month of February!
Edna Werth-4 Kenneth Halvorson-5 Kristen Spanier-7 Sam Liechty-7 Jarron Waldie –14 Jim Casavant-15 Alan Spanier-15 Morgan Baumgartner-16
Tyler Halvorson-17 Claire Erickson-17 Alma Vilhauer-17 Oscar Vilhauer–18 Jill Riffe-18 Magda Job-19 Tommy Gunderson-21 Curt Waldie-23
S.S. Morning Service Toddlers Evening Service
3 Loree H. Pam Harr Jordan S. No Nursery
Darcy Harr
10 Vivian W. Claudine Flowers Lynn K. No Nursery
Biff Flowers
17 Bonnie D. Bethany Hillesland Kandy E. Vivian W.
Selah Jasmann
24 Pattie C. Becca Thompson Pam H. Jill Riffe
Makayla Delair
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JBQ Practice Sunday Nights @ 6:00 p.m.
JBQ Meet Bismarck Evangel Sat. February 9th @ 10:00 a.m.
In need of officials and volunteers! Please contact pastor Mary Ann if you are willing to help!
3-5
Registration Due Sunday ,March 10 Registration Forms available in the children’s church room or just ask Pastor Mary Ann for one. Scholar-ships are available.
$50.00
2012 was a banner year for BGMC! The kids here at First Assembly raised over $5600! The North Dakota district reached the $100,000 mark. We are expecting even greater things in 2013! We are challenging the kids to be “BGMC change Agents,” reach a $6000 goal and change the world one dollar at a time.
Attention Parents: Pastor Mary Ann is invit-ing you to drop off your kids at her house ,106 4th Ave SW, Jamestown on Thurs. Feb.14th for Lego Mania. It will start at 6:00 p.m. and go until 8:00 p.m. Go and enjoy Valentine’s Day as your kids eat pizza, build with legos and watch Veggie Tales!! Please let Pastor Mary Ann know if your kids are coming by Wed. Feb. 13th!
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Our small group began meeting on Monday evenings about 7-8 years ago and is still going strong. We have studied a great variety of subjects relating to Christian living as it relates to our personal lives and daily events. We’ve covered over a dozen different topics during this time. The core people of our group, lead by Gary and Jill Riffe, still consists of about 8 of the original people; we have had others in our church and outside the church, come and study for a period of time as well. Our current study is by David Platt on the topic Radical which consist of a DVD study along with a corresponding work-book. This is a short study; we have about 4 weeks to go and then will start another topic. We just finished a 12-week amazing study of the topic of God’s Grace. There is some homework to do each week but probably the biggest benefit of our group is our bond in Christian love and faith towards one an-other. We have prayed for each other, our extended families and friends for the healing of wounded hearts. Nothing is too big for God: we’ve been able to share the hurt of a wayward son or daughter, the hurt of a broken mar-riage, illness, financial struggles, and more, because we have learned to trust and care for each other like family. We have laughed, cried, and rejoiced to-gether. Gossip is not welcome in our group; neither is the Devil although he has tried to get in. Sometimes there is a week or two where someone in our group cannot be there; we pray for them in their absence. We just want to help and see each other continue to grow spiritually. There have also been times for additional fun such as a picnic, soup supper or meal in someone else’s home, game night, a play or concert in the community and Christmas caroling. We try to be open to needs outside of our Monday night group as well. If you have Monday evenings open, we would love to have you come and join our group and grow with us in our daily walk with Jesus. We currently meet at the home of Gerry Hofmann, 1502 14th Ave SW in Jamestown. Come as you are; don’t dress fancy. Gerry will have hot water, coffee, or a cold bever-age ready for you when you arrive. Be ready for an interactive discussion where God is present; you will be glad you came. Blessings, Gary Riffe Small Group Facilitator
The book of Jude describes apostates, people who fall away from Jesus. While the end of the age will be characterized by a general, world-wide departure from the faith, apostasy can afflict any nation, society, age, culture or person. It is always a threat. Jude, the half brother of Jesus, teaches us the importance of persevering in our faith by walking closely with God and understanding the tenants of our faith.
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WOMEN’S MINISTRY
“The next time the cup of your heart feels empty, remember to step back and look up and realize that nothing in this world can fill the cup of your heart…Let God fill your cup” , Lysa TerKeurst. Lysa TerKeurst, head of the Proverbs 31 woman International, and five additional authors collect and study the stories of twelve women in the Bible. This study will run for the next 3 months during Morning Break and Evening Break. By looking at the triumphs and failures of Mary Magdalene, Rebekah, Hannah, Leah and eight other women, you will discover new insights and be challenged, encouraged and empowered to face trials in your own life by drawing nearer to God. Come join us Tuesdays at 9 am or Wednesdays at 6:30 pm. (Child care provided.) For the month of February, join other women, as we tie Blankets for “Project Night Light”. On February 11
th and 12
th 1-3 pm each day, These soft and warm blankets will bless the life of a child subjected to
abuse. Come fellowship with other ladies as we tie these blankets for a child in need of the love of Christ. Also, look forward to Sunday, February 24
th, Women’s Ministries Day. We will have a display of our
different ministries for woman and also take a special offering for Woman’s Ministries. Be thinking of a place where you can use your talents and get involved. We have some exciting things ahead…. Come and be apart of the moment.
Blessings,
Tamra Wiedenmeyer Woman’s Ministries
PAGE 6
Breach Youth Church
Pursuing the moments,
Kenneth Curtis
STL Fundraiser!-Come prepared for Great Chinese Food and a great mes-
sage from our DYD Twyla Kuntz!
SuperBowl Party! Feb 3
@ Noreen’s
4:30-10 pm
Food, Games,
Football!!
Saturday March 2nd the Breach Youth Church will be helping package food bags for Kids Against Hunger at the Buffalo Mall 1-3pm.
PAGE 7
FEBRUARY 2013
Sun Mon Tue Wed Thu Fri Sat 1 2
7 pm Prayer time @ church
3 am Pastor Jeff No evening Service! Super Bowl activities
4
5 9 am Ladies Morning Break
6 7 am Deacon
Prayer 6:30 pm Ladies Evening Break 6:30 pm Men’s 318 Club 6:30 pm Kidz Club 6:30 pm Youth True Love Waits
7 7 pm Deacon meeting
8
9 JBQ meet at Bismarck 7 pm Prayer
10 am Pastor Jeff Gideons-5 min. cameo 5:30 pm pm STL Valentine Banquet
11 1-3:30 pm WM’s Blanket tying
12 9 am Morning Break 1-3:30 pm WM’s Blanket tying
13 7 am Deacon
Prayer 6:30 pm Kidz Club 6:30 pm Ladies Evening Break 6:30 Men’s 318 Club 6:30 pm Youth Church
14 Happy Valentine’s Day 6 pm Kids Night Out- Lego Mania at Pastor Mary Ann’’s
15 16 7 pm Prayer time @ church
17 am Pastor Jeff pm Pastor Jeff
18 President’s Day-no school
19 9 am Ladies Morning Break
20 7 am Deacon
Prayer 6;30 pm Evening Break Bible Study 6:30 pm Kidz Club 6:30 pm Men’s Bible Study 6:30 pm Youth Church
21 22
23 7 pm Prayer time @ church
24 am Pastor Jeff WM’s Sunday pm Missionary Chuck Ness
25
26 9 am Ladies Morning Break
27 7 am Deacon
Prayer 6;30 pm Evening Break Bible Study 6:30 pm Kidz Club 6:30 pm Men’s Bible Study 6:30 pm Youth Church
Return Service Requested “...stimulate one another to love and good deeds, not forsaking our own assembling together …
Hebrews 10:24-25
OUR FELLOWSHIP SCHEDULE
Opportunities for worship, learning, fellowship and service.
Feb 2013 Sun 3 Communion Super Bowl Activities Wed 6 Youth True Love Waits event at JHS Thu 7 Deacon Mtg Sun 10 STL Valentine Banquet Mon 11 WM’s blanket tying for Project Night Light Tues 12 WM’s blanket tying for Pro-ject Night Light Thur 14 Valentine’s Day Kids Night out-Lego Mania Sun 17 Ignite-Youth Winter Confer-ence thru the 18th Mon 18 President’s Day-no school Fri 22 Men’s Conference thru the 23rd Sun 24 WM’s Day
Mar 2013 Sun 3 communion Fri 9 JBQ meet at Bismarck Sun 10 Daylight Savings BGMC Banquet Thur 14 Deacon Meeting Fri 22 Surge thru the 24th Sun 24 Palm Sunday Sun 31 Easter
