D-Now Weekend

Last weekend 12 of Antioch's youth participated in the Suwannee Baptist Assocation D-Now weekend.  It was 2 days full of godly teaching, games, food, fellowship and training.  

Here is a look at some of the weekend.

Family Ministries Meal

Remember our Family Ministries on Wednesday night.  Meal is provided and served at 5:30 PM.  The menu this week is:  pork loin, sweet potato casserole, cabbage casserole, salad, bread and dessert.  

There are classes for all ages, children, youth, ladies Bible study and prayer meeting.  Ministries begin at 6:30 PM. 

Hope to see you there!

Beth Moore - Living Proof Live- Tampa

BIBLE TEACHER AND BEST-SELLING

AUTHOR

BETH MOORE

in Tampa June 12-13, 2015

for LIVING PROOF LIVE

Event features life-transforming Bible teaching with popular

women’s author and speaker Beth Moore

www.lifeway.com/livingproof 

LifeWay Christian Resources is slated to bring well-known Bible teacher and best-selling author Beth Moore to USF Sun Dome on June 12-13, 2015.

Living Proof Live, sponsored by Nashville-based publishing company LifeWay

Christian Resources, will feature Moore’s dynamic storytelling and passionate Bible teaching.

Living Proof Live starts Friday, June 12 at 7:00 p.m. and concludes for the

evening at 9:30. It starts back up the following morning at 8:30 and ends at

12:15 p.m. General admission seating, which covers both days of the event,

is $69.

To register for Living Proof Live, go to lifeway.com/livingproof or call

1.800.254.2022.

Mission Miami

The association wide missions conference was a huge success!  

Pastor Martin Vargas has such a passion for missions and reaching people for Jesus!!! I believe he has lit a fire in Suwannee County and we need to fan the flames!!!

     

On  May 14th 7:00 pm there will be a meeting at the association office for all who are interested in going on the trip.  Remember there are only 52 spots available so it’s first come, first serve.

Here is more information on the trip....

Miami Mission Trip

August 2, 2015 – August 8, 2015

This trip will be a State Mission Trip, a North American Mission Board Trip and will seem like a foreign Mission Trip all rolled up into one as we travel to and work to plant a new church in Miami, Florida.

We will be staying in the Florida Baptist Urban Impact Center locate in Hialeah, Fl.  They have a beautiful facility with beds, showers, a complete kitchen and dining/meeting facility located conveniently to the area we will serve.  

There will be a variety of opportunities to serve as we assist in a new church plant of Turning Point Church in Miami.  We will work in two high rise apartment buildings with approximately 300 living units.  One building is a 55+ population and the other is typical families.

We will be doing ministry that will take many forms including a Backyard Bible Club, Senior VBS, Food Distribution.  We will also be doing VBS & Outreach with Inglesia Real and working in a 3rd New church plant, and a lot of just plain old building relationships and loving on the residents as we prayer-walk these buildings to assist a church planter.

Cost of the trip: Reduced this year to only $325.00

Space is limited.

Apply now by signing up today or

call the Association Office at 386-362-1110

Sacred Secrets Ladies Bible Study

Our ladies began a new Bible Study last Wednesday night - Sacred Secrets by Beth Moore.  Here is a description of the study...

"Jesus wants to spend secret time with you—an interior relationship that's unique to just you two. Sacred Secrets is the new 6-session study from Beth Moore that explores the theology of secrets. Secrets can be good or harmful. Some need forgiveness, and some should be kept between you and God. While Sacred Secrets is lighter than Beth's typical Bible studies, it does not lack richness or quality. Discussion potential abounds without any expectation of revealing personal, private information. Join Beth to find out what happens when we let God teach us "wisdom in the secret heart" (Psalm 51:6, ESV)."

There is still time to jump in and glean and grow in God's Word together.  Next session will be April 22 beginning at 6:30 PM.

2015 Missions Conference

This Sunday, April 19 will be the 2015 Association Wide Mission Conference.  This will be held at First Baptist Church from 6:00 - 8:00 PM.  Be encouraged to come, hear and support missions - taking the gospel message all over the world.

There will be no evening service at Antioch that evening, but plans are to meet at the conference at 6:00 PM.

Youth Skeet Shoot

Several of adults organized and supervised a skeet shoot for our youth group.  We appreciate them taking the time to share with our youth.  Everyone had a great time!

I Am A Church Member

During Wednesday night prayer meeting, a new series has began "I Am A Church Member".  This series looks intently at the value of a functioning and contributing church member.

Here are a few declarations from the series...

I am a church member.

I will seek to be a source of unity in the church. I know there are no perfect pastors, staff, or other church members. But neither am I. I will not be a source of gossip or dissension. One of the greatest contributions I can make is to do all I can in God’s power to help keep the church in unity for the sake of the gospel.

I am a church member.

I will not let my church be about my preferences and desires. That is self-serving. I am in this church to serve others and to serve Christ. My Savior went to a cross for me. I can deal with any inconveniences and matters that are just not my preference or style.

I am a church member.

I will pray for my pastor every day. His work is never-ending. His days are filled with constant demands for his time; with the need to prepare sermons; with those who are rejoicing in births; with those who are traveling through the valley of the shadow of death; with critics; with the hurts and hopes of others; and with the need to be a husband and a father. My pastor cannot serve our church in his own power. I will pray for God’s strength for him and his family every day.

I am a church member.

I like the metaphor of membership. It’s not membership as in a civic organization or a country club. It’s the kind of membership given to us in 1 Corinthians 12: “Now you are the body of Christ and individual members of it” (I Corinthians 12:27). Because I am a member of the body of Christ, I must be a functioning member, whether I am an “eye,” an “ear,” or a “hand.” As a functioning member, I will give. I will serve. I will minister. I will evangelize. I will study. I will seek to be a blessing to others. I will remember that “if one member suffers, all the members suffer with it; if one member is honored, all the members rejoice with it” (1 Corinthians 12:26).

I am a church member.

I will lead my family to be good members of this church as well. We will pray together for our church. We will worship together in our church. We will serve together in our church. And we will ask Christ to help us fall deeper in love with this church, because He gave His life for her.

I am a church member.

This membership is a gift. When I received the free gift of salvation through Jesus Christ, I became a part of the body of Christ. I soon thereafter identified with a local body and was baptized. And now I am humbled and honored to serve and to love others in our church. I pray that I will never take my membership for granted, but see it as a gift and an opportunity to serve others, and to be a part of something so much greater than any one person or member.

I am a church member.

And I thank God that I am.

Wednesday Night Youth Dinner

The Wednesday Night Family Ministries meal has been going great!  Food, fellowship and attendance have been wonderful.  There are now ministries for all age groups every Wednesday night.  

This Wednesday, April 15, our youth will be hosting the supper to help support the costs of their upcoming youth camp.  The meal will consist of Spaghetti, Green Beans, Salad, Bread and Dessert for a donation to the youth fund. 

Please plan to come out and support our youth, enjoy a great meal and engage in Family Ministries!

10 Questions First Time Visitors May Ask

It is always a blessing when visitors attend our church services!  Antioch is well known for being friendly to our guests.  Sometimes it helps to get another perspective on what may be going on in other peoples's minds.  Here is a list of 10 questions first time guests may be thinking in their head.  

1. Is the roof going to cave in on me? Or sometimes stated, “Am I going to get struck by lightning?”

Many of our guests are feeling the incredible contrast between their current lifestyle and what they know God wants from them. Because of this, they think that God and them are on the outs and that He’s probably ticked off at them.

2. Is anyone going to acknowledge me?

This is human nature. Whether we are visiting a church or a restaurant or a store. When we walk into an organization we believe to be customer-driven, we expect someone to speak to us. In fact, we get weirded out if NO ONE even tries to acknowledge our presence.

3. Are my kids going to be safe?

For many of them, their most frequent exposure to churches and children has been news stories of pedophiles violating kids. They’ve taught their kids all their life to be wary of strangers, and now they’re not only completely surrounded by them, but you’re asking them to “trust” you.

4. Is the message going to be boring or confusing?

Most of the unchurched do have some church background. For the vast majority, their only exposure to preaching was a negative one. They think of the Bible as totally irrelevant to normal people and preaching as either a remedy for insomnia or some ranting lunatic who thinks volume is a motivational tool.

5. Am I going to be dressed right?

Have you ever gone to an event either overdressed or underdressed? Nothing can be more embarrassing and uncomfortable. Since church attendance is not a routine in their life, it only stands to reason that they probably do not know what the dress code is and they’re looking around to see if they stand out.

6. Will I know where to go?

Do you remember your first day of middle/high school or college? You’re given a class schedule but almost never a map. That’s the time when you figure out that clear signage can be a life saver! After a few weeks, you never even glance at those signs again, but the first timer views them as life or death!

7. Who can I ask a question?

Even the clearest signage doesn’t answer all your questions. There are some things you just need to get from someone in the know. A first-time guest is too scared to just start randomly interrogating people. They need to be able to easily identify someone who seem to be a designated question answerer.

8. Are they going to do anything weird?

Going to church for most visitors is like visiting a foreign country. The culture is so different that I don’t know what’s going to happen and I’m terrified I’ll be put in an uncomfortable situation. They know Christians are different, they’re just hoping they’re not psycho!

9. Am I going to have to sing or clap?

How many environments does the average American go to that they’re asked to sing out loud and clap along with? Exactly! It’s funny that we like to measure worship by crowd participation, but then we neglect to measure our evangelistic effectiveness by the lack of crowd participation. Just saying.

10. Is there any hope?

Finally, and most importantly, they are secretly wondering if there is hope for them. They’re praying that second chances are real. They’re hoping that God really can fix broken hearts and homes.

The answer to those questions will most likely determine whether or not they ever come back.