Pastor's Blog

Becky Sellers has been admitted to the hospital and has been placed under hospice care.  The situation is not good.  Pray for Becky, Dave, Brittany, Bernard, Rusty, the rest of the family and the medical folks giving care.

“As each one has received a special gift, employ it in serving one another as good stewards of the manifold grace of God.” I Peter 4:10

T0day’s Bible reading – 1 Chronicles 25-27; John 9:1-23

The visitation with the Melvin Nelson family takes place today from noon until the 2:00PM service time.  Everything at Serenity Funeral Home in Theodore.  Pray for the family.

Tommy Watson remains hospitalized.

Visited ever so briefly with Dave & Becky Sellers late yesterday afternoon.  Not sure if Becky is going to be up to traveling to the wedding but you never know.  She is a very strong person.

Kenny Cooper left yesterday heading to serve as a counselor at the camps hosted by Chick-fil-A.  He will be serving in nine different camps and will return home on August 6.  Pray for Kenny as he continues to follow God’s calling on his life.

We were blessed with very good attendance in all of our Bible studies and classes yesterday morning and evening.  I am very thankful to the Lord for this blessing and appreciate those who are faithful to attend.

Tonight, Lord willing, I will attend a banquet at USA that will recognize Coach Eric Collier and Coach Calvin Crist.  Eric is the head football coach at Theodore High School and is very involved in the Friendship family.  Great guy!

Calvin Crist is Courtney Cavin’s father.  He passed from this life and entered Heaven back in November.  I had the privilege of knowing Calvin for many years and played basketball against many, many years ago.  His father served as pastor of the Friendship family back in the 1950’s.  I did not realize any of this until Chris & Courtney came to Friendship.  I was blessed to have a small part in Calvin’s celebration of life service and will be happy to see him remembered/honored tonight.  (I think tonight could be the night when Courtney will pledge her allegiance to the University of Alabama Crimson Tide which would make Calvin so proud!).

I will be traveling tonight heading to Pell City for the wedding which means I cannot work in the garden and yard tomorrow.  So, today will be juggling ministry work with pulling corn, picking beans and mowing grass.  It is all good!  Soy will give me an assist with the grass and hopefully I can find his twin to do likewise.

I pray that you will have a great Thursday with Jesus.

“As each one has received a special gift, employ it in serving one another as good stewards of the manifold grace of God.” I Peter 4:10

T0day’s Bible reading – 1 Chronicles 22-24; John 8:28-59

“You did not blog today” is the comment I heard more than once yesterday.  Just for the record, I was aware of that fact – LOL!  I did learn that our youngest daughter, Gina, reads the blog which puts us at fourteen readers now – an all time high!  I am thinking we are now around the top two or three billion blog readerships in the world.

Tommy Watson remains in a Louisiana hospital.  He had to be put back on the breathing machine due to some low blood pressure issues.  I hope my source can get me another update today.

Becky Sellers remains at home and is fully determined that she will be attending Rusty & Anna’s wedding in Pell City this Saturday.  The girl is amazing!  What a awesome attitude!

Phil Sims remains at home and is now doing good.  Keep praying for Phil.

Charles Clark is doing good in his recovery.  Hopes to be full speed ahead very soon.

The funeral service for Keith Young takes place the morning in Georgia.  Pray for his wife and family as they go through this time.

The funeral service for Melvin Nelson, uncle of Amy Huhn & Kendall Falana, will take place tomorrow, 5/25, at 2:00PM from the chapel of Serenity Funeral Home.  It will be preceded by two hours of visitation with the family.  Pray for the Nelson family.

Regular schedule today/tonight.  The 7:30PM Bible study fare will be poppy seed chicken with all of the trimmings.  This is in honor of Zach Huhn being back with us!

Our TNBA has exploded numerically as we had twenty six guys present last night.  I am not going to name the only guy who did not suffer defeat at all last night – just saying!  The competition has gotten stiffer which has caused Bradley Phillips and Johnny Five to stay away.

Looking forward to a large number of the Friendship family  joining us for bowling this Sunday night, 5/28, in Gautier.  Once again, Tim & Peggy Knighten will be hosting a “feeding” at their house since they live just around the corner.  Contact them for the details!  LOL!

I pray that you will have a great Wednesday with Jesus.

Keith Young age 53 of Tucker, GA; formerly of Snellville, GA; passed away on Saturday, May 20, 2017. He was born on August 10, 1963, a 1981 Graduate of South Gwinnett High School, Keith was employed with Home Depot for 18 years, and a member of First Baptist Church Tucker. He was preceded in death by his Father Allen Keith Young, Sister  Dianah Lynn Young, and Brother Ronald Allen Young. He is survived by Wife; Alison Smith Young of Tucker, GA, Mother; Wanda Welch Young of Snellville, GA, Brother & Sister In Law; Gordon & Jackie Young, Niece; Caroline Young, Nephew; Cooper-Young all of Oak Hill, VA,  Aunt: Mary Stewart of Cumming, GA. And many special friends in Friendship Baptist Church in Grand Bay, AL including Pastor Jerald Hovel and Jerry & Gloria Whitmore. Funeral Services will be held Wednesday, May 24, 2017, at 9:30 am at Snellville United Methodist Church with Dr. Jim Cantrell officiating. Interment will follow at Eternal Hills Memory Gardens. Arrangements by Byrd and Flanigan Crematory & Funeral Service Lawrenceville, GA. (770)962-2200 ByrdandFlanigan.com

I failed to mention in my first entry today that Bro. Jerry Hovel is on vacation this week.  He will not be back in the office until Tuesday, May 30.  Therefore, please respect his time away and do not contact him.  Thank you for your cooperation in this matter.

“As each one has received a special gift, employ it in serving one another as good stewards of the manifold grace of God.” I Peter 4:10

T0day’s Bible reading – 1 Chronicles 16-18; John 7:28-53

Tuesday, May 23 – 1 Chronicles 19-21; John 8:1-27
Wednesday, May 24 – 1 Chronicles 22-24; John 8:28-59
Thursday, May 25 – 1 Chronicles 25-27; John 9:1-23
Friday, May 26 – 1 Chronicles 28-29; John 9:24-41
Saturday, May 27 – 2 Chronicles 1-3; John 10:1-23
Sunday, May 28 – 2 Chronicles 4-6; John 10:24-42

I am under the impression that Tommy Watson should be moved to a facility much closer to Grand Bay at some point within the next day or so.

Ethan Nelson said that Shelby remains in a lot of pain, is receiving wound care, and has begun some physical therapy.  Keep praying for Shelby as she has a long road in front of her.

Kendall Falana and Amy Huhn had a maternal Uncle pass away yesterday morning.  Pray for that family.

Bro. Jerry Whitmore will update us on the arrangements for Keith Young once he receives them.

Good day in our services yesterday.  Special thanks to Tena Hovel, the other workers and the children for the musical last night.  It takes a lot of effort to put together such a program and I appreciate their efforts.  This concludes our children’s choir ministry until August.

Special recognition went to Amber Brannon, Jordan Eckert & Madison Poiroux yesterday morning as being the 2017 high school graduates in attendance in our 10:30AM service.  Jordan was the co-valedictorian of the 2017 Alma Bryant High School Class which deserves a huge congratulations.  All three of these girls had a GPA of over 4.0 which is impressive.

Bro. Jim Chinners did a nice job of sharing the Word with us in our two morning services yesterday.  Thank you Jim!

Prayer time tonight from 5:00 – 6:30PM in the auditorium.  Use the West side door to enter/exit.

GROW ministry tonight from 6:30PM until 7:30PM.  Meet in the fellowship hall at 6:30PM and then in the auditorium at 7:30PM for report time.

Did the Celtics really beat the Cavs in Cleveland last night?  Levi S says they did but you know how Levi is.  Wow!

I pray that you will have a great Monday with Jesus.

Received word from Jerry Whitmore earlier this afternoon that Keith Young has passed from this life.  Wow, that was a quick passing once they diagnosed him with this unusual affliction.  Pray for his wife, Allison, and the family.  Keith & Allison live in the greater Atlanta area.

Larry Whitehurst confirmed that Phil Sims was discharged from the hospital this morning.  Praise the Lord!

Also, praise the Lord for this rain.  We have not gotten a deluge as of this writing (6:50PM) but we have had some good showers.  I just pray that we Baptists will not let the rain keep us from attending the services tomorrow morning and evening.

I pray that you will have a great Saturday evening with Jesus.

“As each one has received a special gift, employ it in serving one another as good stewards of the manifold grace of God.” I Peter 4:10

Today’s Bible reading – 1 Chronicles 10-12; John 6:45-71

Well, I almost wrote in yesterday’s entry that the Friendship family was free of having anyone in the hospital except for Tommy Watson in Louisiana.  Enter Phil Sims!  He called Lisa to let me know that he was in ICU.  I visited last night and he had been moved to a regular room.  He was doing good and should go home this morning.

Speaking of Tommy Watson, my source (Zach H) tells me that he is now in a regular room.  That is good news.  The belief is that he will be moved back this way at some point early next week.  I hope that is true for his sake as well as for the sake of his family.

Heard from Dave Sellers yesterday afternoon and he said Becky had spent the day in bed.  Just really tired from the day before going to the doctor and such.  Keep praying.

Charles is doing good now that he is at home.  Still has an issue or two but he will be fine in time.  Trying to get him to remember telling me that he was going to give me my inheritance prior to his passing from this life.  Not successful yet.  I guess the modified will he signed will have to do!

Last day of this soccer season today beginning at 8:00AM.  My tribe plays at 9:00AM.  Am I sad to see the season end?  Let’s just say that I am glad to see this sport serving as a ministry to our community and helping us reach folks.  Plans are to move it to our campus next year.  Bigger and better!

Bus workers meeting at 8:30AM followed by a time of visitation.  Pray for this vital ministry.

We will recognize our high school graduates of 2017 in our 10:30AM service tomorrow.  Each graduate needs to be punctual as we will begin on time.

As we move to some new security measures, our Buildings & Grounds Committee will be asking the Friendship family tomorrow night to approve new entry/exit doors for the CAB.  This will basically complete the renovation of that building and will go a long way in helping us keep that building secure.  I appreciate the work this committee has done regarding this matter and Leslie Hacker has given them a huge assist by serving as the point man.

Jeanette Bates and I are discussing some possible changes for our adult choir.  These changes are in the praying stage right now but I think they will be shared soon.  I do appreciate Jeanette’s many efforts in working with our choir.  She does a great job!

I have not been able to shake this feeling not so great this week.  Thursday night Daphne gave me two shots.  My only question was, “is it really necessary to twist the needles while giving the injections!”  She twisted a bit harder and said, “yes!”  Mumbled something about a whipping when she was in the eighth grade or so!  Wow!

Yesterday was a good day for me as I spent almost all of it in the garden and yard.  It was humid!  I worked on making the garden a Santa Claus garden – hoe, hoe, hoe!  Plowed everything except the corn.  Fertilized some stuff.  Then moved to the yard and did a little push mowing and weed eating.

Here is the deal – I had two helpers with the yard work yesterday.  Soy & Bobby Gene.  Here is the problem – they were on identical mowers and I could not tell which one was which as they favor.  The girls call him “Uncle Bob” if that tells you anything.  That Bobby Gene is a jack of all trades!  Told me that he was a much better electrician than Sammy Bowden.  We now have lights around our pool thanks to Bobby Gene!

Good job Celtics!

Yard work, soccer and more yard work for me today.  Eating weeds.  Trying to straighten up what the boys did yesterday!  Just saying!  It appears per weather.com that rain may affect the soccer and my yard work plans.  One local tv station says it will be an afternoon event.  Nanette’s favorite weather website tends to agree with weather.com.  Either way, Lisa is not going to let me out of the yard work – just saying!

I pray that you will have a great Saturday with Jesus.

“As each one has received a special gift, employ it in serving one another as good stewards of the manifold grace of God.” I Peter 4:10

Today’s Bible reading – 1 Chronicles 7-9; John 6:22-44

Charles Clark was discharged from the hospital late yesterday afternoon.  We are thankful.

Becky Sellers’ situation remains basically unchanged.  She did see the doctor again yesterday.  Her family, in town and out of town, is staying in close contact and supporting Becky, Dave & Brittany.  Just keep praying.

I attempted to see Greg Boutwell at yesterday.  Just keep praying for Greg too.

Our Spring 2017 soccer season ends tomorrow morning.  Phillip Turner and the others helping him have done an excellent job with this ministry.  I hesitate to list the “others” for fear that I will miss someone.  I do thank the leaders, the coaches, officials, concession stand workers and anyone else who has been involved.

Our bus workers meet and visit tomorrow beginning at 8:30AM.  Pray for this ministry and join them if you so desire.  Contact Bro. Benny McGath for more details.

Regular schedule on Sunday morning and evening.  Children’s choir musical on Sunday evening beginning at 6:00PM.  Pray and attend.

I pray that you will have a great Friday with Jesus.

“As each one has received a special gift, employ it in serving one another as good stewards of the manifold grace of God.” I Peter 4:10

Today’s Bible reading – 1 Chronicles 4-6; John 6:1-21

Good news in that Jimmy Tagert’s mother was discharged from the hospital late yesterday afternoon.   She was so ready to go home and continues to be thankful for the prayer support.

Charles Clark is still coming out from under the influence of the medicines.  He was some better but as of last night still had a ways to go.

Zach Huhn is my source regarding updates on Tommy Watson.  They did remove the vent and he is talking.  Not sure what/when the next step is/will be.

Dave sent me a message saying that Becky has had another setback.  Just keep praying.

We enjoyed a good Wednesday in our services.  The time at Sam’s for the 7:30PM folks was good.  I do like supporting a locally owned business.

I will be appointing an ad hoc committee to formulate a proposal regarding the security on our campus.  If you would like to serve on this committee, please contact me personally via e-mail and your name will be given consideration.

Coach Collier missed the service last night so I “assume” he was out signing autographs now that he is famous!

Well, with Randall & Rita blazing the trail, the question is “which ‘seasoned’ married couple will be next?”  I am taking your opinions.

I decide to pull for the Celtics and they get blasted in game one.  Go Cavs!

Meanwhile, Bobby & the boys continue to set the pace in the NL.  It is all third base coaching pure and simple!  Keep sending them home Bobby!

I pray that you will have a great Thursday with Jesus.