What’s your Prayer Life like?

By the title of the article you expect me to tell you that, “you need to pray more.” While no

one who is honest would say that they pray as much as they should, that is not the point of this arti-

cle. This article is not about how much you pray, it’s about how you pray. When I say how I do not

mean “do you kneel” or “do you fold your hands,” I mean what do you spend most of your time pray-

ing about?

If you are like me you spend most of your time praying for things such as; people who are

traveling, people who are sick, people who are having or have had surgery, people’s financial needs,

people who need jobs, upcoming tests or exams for students. I am not saying we should not pray for

these things. What I am going to say in the rest of this article is, that while we should pray for these

things, they should not take up the majority of our prayers. Please go back and read this paragraph

again so you are not misunderstanding what I am saying.

So what should make up the majority of our prayers? I am glad you asked. Paul gives us

some examples of what should make up the majority of our prayers in Colossians 1:3-12. Paul men-

tions that he is giving thanks and praying always for the Colossians, but this is not a general prayer.

He is praying specifically that they may,

be filled with the knowledge of His will in all wisdom and spiritual understanding; that you

may walk worthy of the Lord, fully pleasing Him, being fruitful in every good work and in-

creasing in the knowledge of God; strengthened with all might, according to His glorious

power, for all patience and longsuffering with joy; giving thanks to the Father who has quali-

fied us to be partakers of the inheritance of the saints in the light. Colossians 3:9b-12 (NKJV)

That certainly is not what makes up the majority of my prayers, how about yours?

In the letter to the church in Rome Paul writes that, “I thank my God through Jesus Christ for you

all” (Romans 1:8a NKJV). When is the last time you thanked God for those at First Baptist? Not

just the people you like or spend time with or are your friends but all of the people? Even, I would

suggest especially, those who may frustrate you, who irritate you or who you don’t see eye to

eye with on things (I am not referring to Red Sox and Yankee fans J). If you are like me you would

2014

P.O. Box 324 ~ 71 Grace Ave. Waldoboro, ME 04572 Phone: (207) 832-7659 Fax: 866-291-9919

www.fbcwaldoboro.org

rather pray, not only that God would “heap coals of fire on [their] head” (Romans 12:20b

NKJV), but God would allow you to help with the heaping.

How can we change the focus and make up of our prayer life? How can we move our

prayer time from what is important to what is of the utmost importance? Again, don’t misunder-

stand what I am saying. Go back up and read the second paragraph if you need to so there is no

miscommunication. First pray Scripture. What do I mean? Take a passage of scripture and use

it as a prayer asking the following questions; what can I rejoice (worship/praise/give thanks)

about? What do I need to repent about? What do I need to ask (request)? The easiest place to

start learning to do this is by using a Psalm, such as 19, 96 or 139, or some of the prayers re-

corded in Scripture.

Second, move the focus away from the problem or issue and put it on God. What do I

mean? Too often my prayers are all about me, my needs, my plans and my requests instead of

about God, His will and His plans. Sound familiar? We need to refocus our prayers. As Brad

Bigney states, “Our prayers should be long on God and short on our problems.” In other words,

our prayers should be about God in light of our fears, concerns, worries and problems not about

our fears, concerns, worries and problems in light of God. At first glance, those two statements

may seem to be saying the same thing, but read them again. Do you see the subtle, but signifi-

cant difference each statement reveals about our focus and therefore our heart?

Where is this all coming from? Is it because I see a lack of “correct” prayer at First

Baptist? No. Is it because I am the “prayer intern” who has all this mastered and prays for hours

daily? Certainly not. It is coming from an honest evaluation of my own prayer life. This hon-

esty is motivated, in part, from some of my seminary assignments. Each semester we have been

assigned to read through specific books of New Testament at least five times and then write a

spiritual growth paper based on our reading. The motivation and focus of my prayer life has

been a theme in each of my spiritual growth papers so far in seminary.

Bryan Krick, Intern

Resources to help refocus your payers

http://thegospelcoalition.org/blogs/kevindeyoung/2013/01/04/how-to-pray-using-scripture/

http://andynaselli.com/wp-content/uploads/2013_pray.pdf

Any book on prayer by Edward McKendree (E. M.) Bounds

The Valley of Vision: A collection of Puritan Prayers by Arthur G. Bennett

Praying the Names of God A Daily Devotional Guide by Ann Spangler

CONGRATULATIONS to Steve & Danielle Bailey on the birth of their son, Stephen Jase. Stephen arrived on April 28th at 5:04 pm. He weighed in at 7 lbs and was 3 weeks early!

Congratulations to Hannah Sorterup and Matt LaMaster who were joined in holy matrimony on May 18th in Chicago, IL. They are residing in Chicago.

Congratulations to David Ernst Jr. David graduated from Maine Maritime Academy with a Bachelor of Science in Marine Engineering on May 3rd.

Ladies! Are you tired of dealing with food is-sues? Tired of finding yourself turning to food constantly during the day to re-lieve stress, or anger, or sadness, or boredom? Tired of focusing on the food at the party rather than on the people? Tired of not being able to live the life you know Christ has redeemed you for because your weight slows you down physically and emotionally? Join us at Lose It For Life on Wednes-day evenings at 6:30 beginning June 4th. The Spirit has breathed new life into this group and we will be restarting the book Lose It For Life by Steve Ar-terburn while also discussing nutrition, encouraging commitment to disciplined eating patterns, and setting each mem-ber up with an accountability partner.

This is not about trying a new diet; it is about learning a way of life that is fo-cused on God and not on food - a way of life that develops new and perma-nent eating and exercise patterns that will enable us to do His work and bring Him glory – a way of life that puts food back in its proper place of fuel for us instead of consuming our thoughts throughout the day. Join us! Cost of book - $13 Questions? Call RoseAnne Holladay at 677-2291

CHURCH GARDENS

A lot of help is needed,

especially someone to

oversee the care of the

gardens. Please contact

the office if you are

interested.

VACATION BIBLE SCHOOL Sunday, July 20-Thursday, July 24

Time: TBA

Join us every Wednesday night at 5:30 pm, during the sum-mer, for a BBQ and tons of

family activities.

$2 per person with a max of $10 per family

BRING a side dish to share.

Ladies,�Ladies,�Ladies,�Ladies,�do�you�wonder�what�God�expects�of�you?�Do�you�wonder�how�He�wants�to�use�you?�Do�you�believe�that�you�live��“for�such�a�time�as�this”?�Join�us�this�summer�as�we�look�for�answers�in�the�book�of�Esther�(study�by�Beth�Moore)�.�We�will�begin�Tuesday�morning,�June�17th—9:00-11:00�a.m.��Babysitting�for�young�children�will�be�pro-vided.��Please�check�the�Women’s�Ministry�Board,�near�the�Welcome�Center,�to�sign�up.�Deadline�to�signup�is�june�1st.�Call�Pam�Meservey�@�832-4351�if�you�have�questions.��

COMBINED WORSHIP SERVICE

June 1st

There will be NO Sunday School on this day and only ONE service at 10:00 AM. A potluck will fol-low the service. There will be plug ins available for crock pots and refrigerator space for cold food. The warmer will be ready at 9:30 for any non crock pot hot food. NOTE: “non crock pot food” that needs to be kept warm, should not arrive before 9:30 AM.

OTHER COMBINED WORSHIP

SERVICES THIS SUMMER

July 6th August 3rd August 24th

All at 10:00 AM and no Sunday School. BBQ / Pot-luck will follow.

Summer is here and that means concerts at the Cottage in the Woods. The first con-cert will be on June 28th, at 7:00, with ice cream sundaes and other treats available at 6:30. Nationally known group, The Hyssongs, are sched-uled for this first concert of the summer, so be sure and mark the date and find your way to the music in the woods! For more info. or directions, contact Maynard or Sandra Townsend - 563-5807, email: maysantownsend@aol.com or check their Facebook page "Cottage in the Woods".

Saturday, June 21st

Noon at Wawenock Country Club in South Bristol. Last day to sign up is June 15th! $25 (includes 18 holes and a cart). Potluck for golfers and their spouses following at the Olsen’s home. See Elayne for what to bring.

Greeters 6/1 Hilton / Merrill 6/8 Olsen / Olsen 6/15 Burnham / Harris 6/22 Wade / Wade 6/29 Cole / Cole

Chair Team

6/7 Ludwig

6/14 Baldwin

6/21 Bubar

6/28 Richardson

Official

Chair

Team

Jeremy Joslyn 6/1 Nate Chute 6/3 Kevin Labombarde 6/3 Christiana Payor 6/3 Sam White 6/3 Dick Vose 6/4 John Nice 6/ 5 Douglas Peaslee 6/6 Sandra Townsend 6/8 Darci Harrington 6/9 Mercedes Schweighauser 6/10 Cedric Delano 6/10 Bethany Fields 6/11 Larry Schooley 6/12 Michael Dougherty 6/13 Breck Holladay 6/14

Katarina Payor 6/15 Ron Barbour 6/16 Mike Ward 6/17 Kaitlyn Rooks 6/20 Isaac Stred 6/22 Brad Davis 6/23 Tyson Brown 6/25 Daniel Burns 6/25 Sammy Knof 6/25 Bea Simmons 6/26 Becky Baldwin 6/27 Buddy Brown 6/28 Jerry Morrison 6/28 Katelynd Peaslee 6/28 David Ackley 6/29 Alan Reed 6/30

June Birthdays

June Anniversaries

Aaron & Emily Cheesman 6/2/2001 John & Ellen Beckman 6/7/2008 Curt & Donna Crum 6/7/1997 Grant & Faye Sorterup 6/7/1986 Donald & Lisa Young 6/14/1986 Ben & Nicole Brown 6/19/2004 Jim & Barbara Wade (D & L) 6/19/1971 Matt & Marion Hunt 6/20/1998 Wayne & Kathy Ludwig 6/20/1981 Dave & Elaine Ernst 6/21/1975 Jerry & Pam Morrison 6/21/1969 Phil & Faith Nicewonger 6/22/1996 Randy & Karen Curtis 6/25/2011 Gary & Colleen Magur 6/25/1982 Paul & Libby Miner 6/29/1996

Church Information

Phone: (207) 832-7659 Fax: 866-291-9919

Website: www.fbcwaldoboro.org

Staff E-mails

Pastor: jonvermilion@fbcwaldoboro.org Youth Pastor: phil@fbcwaldoboro.org

Intern Bryan Krick: bryan@fbcwaldoboro.org Intern Troy Nelson: troy @fbcwaldoboro.org Bookkeeper: bookkeeper@fbcwaldoboro.org

Secretary: office@fbcwaldoboro.org

Church Services

8:00 am: Worship Service 9:30 am: Child & Adult S. S. 11:00 am: Worship Service

You think English is easy? Part 2—Author unknown

Let's face it - English is a crazy language. There is no egg in eggplant, nor ham in ham-

burger; neither apple nor pine in pineapple. English muffins weren't invented in England

or French fries in France . Sweetmeats are candies while sweetbreads, which aren't sweet,

are meat. We take English for granted. But if we explore its paradoxes, we find that

quicksand can work slowly, boxing rings are square and a guinea pig is neither from

Guinea nor is it a pig.

If the plural of tooth is teeth, why isn't the plural of booth, beeth? One goose, 2 geese. So

one moose, 2 meese?

If teachers taught, why didn't preachers praught? In what language do people recite at a

play and play at a recital? Ship by truck and send cargo by ship? Have noses that run

and feet that smell?

How can a slim chance and a fat chance be the same, while a wise man and a wise guy are

opposites? You have to marvel at the unique lunacy of a language in which your house

can burn up as it burns down, in which you fill in a form by filling it out and in which, an

alarm goes off by going on.

English was invented by people, not computers, and it reflects the creativity of the human

race, which, of course, is not a race at all. That is why, when the stars are out, they are

visible, but when the lights are out, they are invisible.