What Do You Think?

During our family devotional times every morning, Stephanie, Moshi and I have been studying the life of the apostle Paul. This morning, we came to Acts 13 and read about John Mark deserting the missionary team of Paul and Barnabas. The Bible doesn't go into detail about why Mark left, other than to say, "John, departing from them, returned to Jerusalem." It's something you might otherwise miss if the subject didn't come up again in Acts 15.

When Paul and Barnabas were preparing to depart for their second missionary journey, Barnabas wanted to bring along John Mark. Paul, however, refused because Mark had deserted them earlier in Pamphylia. The Bible says the difference of opinions was so heated that they eventually split up; Paul taking Silas with him and Barnabas going in another direction with John Mark.

Despite their disagreement and parting of ways, it does appear that everybody made amends at some point in the future. 1 Corinthians 9:6 leads us to believe that Paul and Barnabas had patched things up. And as for John Mark, Paul told Timothy in 2 Tim 4:11 to "get Mark and bring him with you, for he is useful to me for ministry." So by the time of Paul's death, it appears everybody had reconciled.

So, here's the question that I'd like to have your opinion on: Who was right in the split? Was it Barnabas who wanted to bring John Mark along for their second journey, or was it Paul who felt like Mark's past desertion disqualified him from missionary service?

According to John MacArthur, who I highly respect: "The weight of evidence favors Paul's decision, especially since he was an apostle of Jesus Christ. That alone should have caused Barnabas to submit to his authority." My Nelson Study Bible, however, mentions that, "Barnabas had led the church (at Antioch) in its early days. He was the church's main representative at the Jerusalem council, but he did not use his prominence to seek a reprimand of Paul." Are they trying to say that Barnabas made the better decision?

Regardless of who was right, one thing is clear about the situation: God used the split to take the Gospel in two directions instead of one. The Bible says that Barnabas and Mark sailed to Cyprus, while Paul and Silas went through Syria and Cilicia. So instead of one missionary team going into one region, there were two teams going to into two different regions. Both served the Lord faithfully.

I'm sure that many gifted theologians who are much smarter than I am have already debated this matter ad nauseam. Still, I thought it might lead to some thought provoking responses from the faithful few who read this blog. So, what do you think?

I'm Excited

After many years of driving to Birmingham or Douglasville, LifeWay Christian Stores have finally opened a store right here in Calhoun County. I was privileged to attend the store's dedication and a pastor's prayer service this morning at the new bookstore. It is exciting to know that we now have this valuable resource right here in our own backyard. The LifeWay Store is located at the new Oxford Exchange, not too far from Target. Let me encourage you to visit the store this weekend if you get a chance to.

Something else that I am excited about is the premiere in one week of the Sherwood Pictures film Facing The Giants. This movie was created by the same people who brought us Flywheel, a movie that touched many of our church members last year. Facing The Giants opens up in more than 400 theaters across the country on Friday, September 29, including the AmStar theater in the Quintard Mall.

Let me encourage you to not only go and see this film, but go and see it on the opening weekend. Movie theaters look at box office receipts after the opening weekend and that goes a long way in determining how long a particular film will run in that theater. I'm praying that Facing The Giants will far exceed expectations in ticket sales, and more importantly, in changed lives. We've seen how God can use motion pictures with The Passion Of The Christ, and I believe God will use this movie, as well. Why not take a friend who doesn't know the Lord? With a topic like high school football, it shouldn't be hard to get Alabamians interested in this movie. Visit the film's website at www.facingthegiants.com.

One more thing I'm excited about is this Sunday. After two wonderful Sundays and four baptisms in the past two weeks, I can't wait to see what God is going to do this week. I hope to see you here.

Bro. Shane

AWANA Is Coming

It's official. The church voted last night to start an AWANA club at Eulaton. AWANA is a children's ministry that God is using mightily in thousands of churches. I am incredibly excited to see how God is going to work through this ministry at EFBC.

The name AWANA stands for "Approved Workmen Are Not Ashamed" and is taken from 2 Timothy 2:15 which reads:

Do your best to present yourself to God as one approved, a workman who does not need to be ashamed and who correctly handles the word of truth. (NIV)

AWANA will be meeting on Sunday evenings from 5-7 during our Discipleship Training and Evening Worship hours. It will take a little time to get all of the materials and get everything in place before we can actually begin this ministry, but go ahead and be praying and telling parents with children about this exciting opportunity. Our hope is to begin AWANA around the first of November.

Thank you church for your commitment to reach people for Jesus Christ.

Bro. Shane

What A Day!

Sunday was a wonderful day at EFBC and I am still praising God for His awesome presence in this place. What a blessing to see the altar filled and three new additions to the church; one by letter and two by baptism. Let's pray that we will continue to experience the same kind of blessings in the days and weeks ahead.

Now, let me address one issue. I know about a month ago I promised to update the blog more regularly and I have yet to do so again until today. My excuse is going to be the fact that I had oral surgery a little over two weeks ago. I know that's really no excuse, but it's the only one that I can come up with at the moment.

While I'm writing, let me give you some dates that you need to write down and remember: October 22-25. That week we'll be having a fall revival with special guest speaker Turk Holt. Many of you will remember that Turk preached a revival for us in 2003 and how God used him during those services. I'm excited about having him back with us this year and what God is going to do during that week. Please keep this in your prayers.

Bro. Shane

I'm Still Alive

As Mark Twain once said, rumors of my death have been greatly exaggerated. Actually, I'm the one exaggerating, but I know some people have been wondering if I've fallen off the face of the earth since my last blog. After a trip to Virginia for a family wedding, a surgery for Moshi, and a wisdom tooth that continues to be a nagging hindrance, I am returning to the blogosphere.

The trip to Virginia went well, with the exception of a flat tire just as we were getting ready to head home on Monday. Praise the Lord it happened before we hit the road. I'd rather find out about it while the van is sitting still in a gravel driveway than doing 75 on I-85 South. Another praise was that our minivan came equipped with a full-size spare and not one of those pathetic little donuts (you know the ones that look like they came off a little red wagon and say "don't go over 50 miles per hour"). I was able to put on the spare, which was a brand new tire, and have the flat fixed before we left Virginia.

Moshi is doing fine since here surgery on Wednesday to remove a heel spur. Please be praying for her as she heals from this procedure. There are times when she is in a lot of pain.

As for me, despite my nagging toothache, I'm looking forward to being at church tomorrow. My dentist put me on some antibiotics that seem to have taken the edge off the pain. I think I'll be alright to preach tomorrow, but my speech may be a bit muffled at times because I can't open my mouth all the way. I know, I know, for many of my church members that is a dream come true.

Please be in prayer for Stephanie. The responsibility to care for me and Moshi has fallen on her this week, and it has taken its toll on her body. She has come down with flu-like symptoms this weekend and has made the sickness factor in our house 100% (unless you're counting the cats).

Anyway, I hope to be blogging more often now and I hope you won't give up on reading my ramblings from time to time.

Thank you for all of your prayers,

Bro. Shane