THE TRUE VINE

Bro. Smith's message Sunday night was so good. He spoke from John 15.

Jesus talked about the vine and the branches in John 15. He said "I am the true vine". That must mean that there might be some that aren't true. The husbandman is the keeper of the vineyard. He prunes and inspects the vines to produce as many grapes/fruit as possible. If you've ever grown tomato plants, you have seen "suckers" that need to be cut off. If they aren't, they will grow up in the middle of the plant and be a nice stem but have no fruit.

The word "ABIDE" means to dwell in, live in. Verse 4 says "abide in Me". Many people just dabble in church but do not abide in Jesus all the time. There is so much attraction in the world to draw you away from God, but just move in with Jesus and He will abide in you also.

How do we abide with Jesus if He's in Heaven? John 6:63 says "the words that I speak unto you, they are spirit and they are life". The Lord never leaves us alone. We have His Word and His Presence. Think about that. If you abide with Jesus, you must live in the Word, soak it up. If you do that, eat the Word, then your life changes, the Word gets into your spirit. But first, you have to be in the Scriptures. It takes work and if you aren't in the Bible for days or weeks, you get dull to it. Pick up the Bible again, and you will start to get hungry for the things of God once more. When you hunger and thirst for the Word, the spirit man awakens and desires more of the things of God.

John 15:7 contains that little word, IF. If brings to mind doubts. That tells you that you have a choice. You don't HAVE to do it, but IF you do, you may ask what you will and it shall be done unto you.
IF my words, Jesus said, abides in you, then you will bear much fruit and your Father is glorified. What is fruit? It is the fruit of the Holy Spirit, and it comes forth and develops out of spending time with God. The next level is the Gifts of the Holy Spirit, and then that leads into the 5-fold ministry. It's easy to see how this thing snowballs--all from spending time with God in His precious Word. Remember God is never, never ever in error.

We may start to blame Him for unanswered prayer, but He wants you to have your prayers answered. Here is an important fact: If you're in His will, you won't ask anything that's not His will. Simply dwell on the Lord, get alive in Christ Jesus and you life will take on a whole new meaning.

Reading on to verse 11, Jesus comforts us by telling us why He has spoken these words to us. He wants His children to totally rely on Him for everything "that your joy might be full".

Upon this Rock

Most of us know you can't build a house without a good foundation. The church is the same way, it cannot be built on any other foundation than Jesus Christ. That way, it will stand the test of time. Matthew 16:13-19. Jesus said to Peter, the revelation of who Jesus is was not given by man but by the Father which is in Heaven.

The church consists of alot of people. We must have order in church and things done in the proper place and in the right order. There is order in the Cosmos-God spoke order into His creation.

As WCFC approaches the time that we are to become a true church and have members and leadership, we should take time to look at the history of COGOP. Our church covenant began in North Carolina, out of the Church of God denomination. A. J. Tomlinson, a Quaker, went up to Burger Mountain to the "Fields of the Wood" area to seek God's direction. Many in the early church were not particularily educated men, but God touched them and gave them His wisdom, as they were depending upon the Holy Spirit. The Bible is the ONLY true and holy Word of God. They began living by the New Testament, rightly dividing the Word of God, and closely following it.

Peter was a fisherman, not well-educated. However, the Lord saw out-spoken Peter and he recognized who Jesus is, through the Father directly. What is a great church? It is one that belongs to Jesus.

As we go out into the world carrying the message of the Gospel, we must remember that Jesus won't live in a dirty house. We aren't the Savior, but we do bear the message of Christ.

"Let us be silent that we may hear the whisper of God."
Ralph Waldo Emerson

October is a busy month for WCFC!!!

It looks like everyone at our church will be busy here the month of October! As you probably already know, we are scheduled to have a day of cleaning on Saturday, Oct 2nd. Please come out early, around 8AM to begin giving the building a thorough cleaning from top to bottom. The more help we have the easier it will be to get the job done. Of course, there is a good reason for this:

Sunday October 3rd is HOMECOMING AND FOUNDERS DAY!!
We will have several very important speakers from the COGOP Association here to speak. Details were given in the last post.

Lunch is to be immediately afterward. Invite all your friends to come be with us on this special day.


We have been talking alot about the Chili Cookoff on October 9th. Already there have been several people who are entering the contest for the grand prize of $100.00. Get your tickets now and see Carol Barton if you need to get tickets for yourself or someone else. We need to sell those tickets!

We usually think of Halloween as being just for the kids but the adults aren't left out when we have our Annual Harvest Festival. It will be October 30th, Saturday from 3PM until....
So many fun things are planned for this year, if you want to get involved, invite the kids you know and make your plans to be here that day.

HOMECOMING AND FOUNDERS DAY

HOMECOMING AND FOUNDERS DAY

AT WINFIELD CITY FAMILY CHURCH (COGOP)
SUNDAY OCTOBER 3RD

LOCATED ON COUNTY HIGHWAY 173 IN WINFIELD ALABAMA
SPECIAL GUEST SPEAKERS INCLUDE

NATIONAL OVERSEER SAM CLEMENTS

STATE OVERSEER L. V. JONES

AREA PRESBYTER JOHN BILLY BUTLER


SERVICE TIMES BEGIN AT 10:AM
***LUNCH***WILL BE SERVED IMMEDIATELY FOLLOWING THE SERVICE
PASTOR DEWAYNE SMITH AND CONGREGATION INVITES YOU TO ATTEND

COME EXPECTING A BLESSING AND GREAT FELLOWSHIP

Mike Knight

One of our most active and effective members and Song Director of Winfield City Family Church, Bro. Mike Knight, recently completed leadership studies. This picture shows Pastor Dewayne Smith presenting the certificate of completion at the beginning of Sunday morning services, September 27, 2010.

Bro. Knight recieved this recognition from the Center of Biblical Leadership (which is also included and more fully explained on the church website). It is a Certificate from the School of Practical and Advanced Studies.

We are proud of Bro. Mike and all the work and efforts he puts forth for the cause of Christ.

First Annual Amateur Chili Cook Off

Saturday Oct 9,2010. Judging starts at 11am.
Food Fun Fellowship. Games,Music,Crafts and DOOR PRIZES.
$5.00 tickets available Bring The Entire Family.
We still have a few spots available for COOKS to enter. Entry Fee is $10.00 with Crock Pot full of your favorite Chili. $100.00 GRAND PRIZE,second prize, honorable mention,and Best Apron Or Hat.
For tickets please see anyone from the Church.
For entry forms please contact Rick Barton @ 205-486-4868,volunteers please contact 205-269-8860

Sunday Services

We were missing alot of good folks today due to illness. There seems to be some sort of wicked "BUG" going around and it is definately unwelcome here. Several people called in sick this morning-Janice McDaniel, a Sunday School Teacher, Clay Dye's family, Ronnie Beasley, who's one of our great musicians, Ray Mann's family, Rick Barton. There may be others we don't know about. Be assured we feel the emptiness whenever you are away. You are loved and wanted and missed and cared for here at WCFC.

Sunday night we got news that Ronnie Cockrell's aunt Pearl passed away. Her husband was only holding on for her so they don't think he will make it very long. They are in their 80's and were in a bad wreck a while back. Also, Lou Carter's brother, Hollie Sandlin, who is also Dianne Cockrell and Neal Sandlin's uncle, is in the hospital. He has alzheimer's disease and the family is really needing your prayers.

Please, if you have a prayer request you'd like to be posted on the blog, give me the info, and I will be more than happy to update for you. I try to write as much as I can, but I apologize for missing so many announcements and requests. I sure wish I had taken shorthand in high school back in the old days!

Let's remember to keep our beloved Pastor and his family in our prayers. I think maybe we tend to see Bro. Smith as invincible and as strong as steel, and he is in many ways, but he also is human. Pray that the Lord will uphold them and give them strength and wisdom as they steer this congregation. May we as church members try to do as much as we can to support our Pastor's family. We love all of you so much and we enjoyed seeing Joan's mom today at church.
Bless you all!

Update on injured family members

If you remember we asked for prayer for Ronnie's aunt and uncle on the 4th near Double Springs. They'd been run off the road by a drunk driver and went off a cliff 125' deep down to the creek below. She has no function on one side of her brain and a blood clot on the other side and is on life support and feeding tube. Ronnie's uncle, a retired preacher, managed to tell one of the daughters that he was only hanging on for his wife. He is clear-thinking, but would also be on life support the rest of his life unless the Lord intervened. Ronnie thinks he is close to 90. The whole family is coming in to make the decision of what to do. Please pray for this family.

COURTHOUSE PRAYER 9-11-10

Christians nationwide will mark the ninth anniversary of the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks by gathering at their county courthouses to pray for God's mercy and a spiritual awakening in the U.S.

The third annual Cry Out America is expected to draw participants from every state and more than 830 counties. Grassroots supporters will pray from noon to 1 p.m. Saturday at their county seats, repenting and crying out for revival in their regions.

"The American church is being called to experience and lead a contemporary awakening so that new generations of Americans can know the power of Christ's love and this nation can be preserved," said the Rev. Billy Wilson, a Pentecostal minister and executive director of the Awakening America Alliance, which is sponsoring Cry Out America.

In Washington, D.C., a cross-section of Christian leaders—including Teen Mania founder Ron Luce, Tom Phillips of the Billy Graham Evangelistic Association and Global Day of Prayer U.S. coordinator Bob Bakke—also will pray for the nation as they gather at the Pentagon for a wreath-laying ceremony to remember the 3,000 victims of 2001 attack.
Wilson believes Sept. 11 was a prophetic sign of what was coming in the 21st century—including the collapse of structures thought to last for generations, the encroachment of non-Christian religions and terrorist acts that incite fear.

Nine years later "we see that replicated over and over in our nation," he said, pointing to bank failures in recent years, the spread of Islam in the U.S. and random shootings on college campuses.
"In many ways, 9/11 was just a loud prophetic sign, and we feel like it's very appropriate on that day to come before God to say in the 21st century, in this kind of environment-with the encroachment f other religions, an environment of fear and terrorism, an environment of collapse and uncertainty-that we need Jesus more than ever in America," he said. "We're uniting together to cry out for that help and for that covering over our nation and, of course, for a new spiritual awakening."

In a prayer guide posted on its website, the alliance lists 20 indicators of spiritual awakening such as increased conversions and baptisms, a stronger emphasis on prayer and fasting, healthier marriages, and a greater Christian influence in media, politics and other cultural spheres.

Wilson believes the church is "on the precipice of seeing a fresh breakthrough." He says he's already seeing signs of awakening, including more talk of the need for spiritual renewal, unprecedented participation in his group's annual 21-day fast in January, and a growing emphasis on church planting and evangelism.

"Obviously the Holy Spirit is stirring the nation toward a new awakening," he said. "What will push us over the edge will be united intercession and this deep hunger that drives us to go beyond where we've ever been before with the Lord. And that's one of the things we hope Cry Out America on 9/11 demonstrates—the spiritual hunger in the American church and our desperation for God's help."The Awakening America Alliance mobilizes prayer for the U.S. and is partnered with such ministries as the Assemblies of God, Aglow International, Youth With a Mission, the Church of God (Cleveland, Tenn.) and Intercessors for America.Read more: http://www.charismamag.com/index.php/news/29237-prayers-for-spiritual-awakening-to-mark-911-anniversary#ixzz0z5dVud6O

Urgent Prayer Request

Please pray for Ronnie Cockrell's aunt and uncle, Pearl and Leroy McBride who were forced off the road by a drunk woman Friday afternoon. This happened near Thatch where they live. It was on Blue hill road, Hwy 195, Black Pond community. The drunk lady had driven several cars off the road and Leroy tried to avoid a head-on, but they hit anyway and their car went all the way, was airborne, down to the water at the bottom of the gorge. Their g'grandson was with them and he was able to get out of the car and when he couldn't get them to wake up, he thought they were dead. He is still really shaken up but has come out of Children's Hosp.

We just ask for your prayers for this family, they have several grown children and lots of grandkids.

Right to Life Meeting

Marcus and Betty McDonald host a 'Right to Life' meeting followed by a lovely dinner each month. This event is approaching quickly. It will be September 21, 2010 at their home in Wayside.

I can assure you that you will be blessed if you attend one of these dinners. They can be reached at 485-5998. Call and tell them you would be honored to attend. The house is very easy to find and if you need a ride just call and someone would be happy to assist you.

May God richly bless you is our prayer and we hope to see you there.