Pastor's Blog

We had a blessed day in our services yesterday and we thank God for His blessings.  The trio, Felicity, sang in the PM service and I appreciate their willingness to come minister.  It was good to see a number of folks respond to the invitation last night as they spent time encouraging one another. 

Dollie Trout will be undergoing heart surgery around 10:30AM this morning so please keep her and her family in your prayers. 

It is my understanding that Rusty Lewis will have one of his kidney’s removed today.  His son, Cam, attends our student Bible study from time to time.  Please pray Rusty and his family too.

Pete Nelson, Rita’s dad, will have some testing/procedures done today in California.  Please pray that the doctors will be able to get a clear picture of what is happening with his heart and that they will be able to correct it.  Pray for Rita as she waits beside her dad.

The funeral service for Tammy Litton takes place at noon today so pray for Pastor Ed and his family during this time.

The final mission team, 1st Baptist Wilmington, NC, to use the mission house this summer came home yesterday.  We are thankful to them and all the other churches that have used the mission house thus far this year.  It has been a blessed year of ministry. 

Derrick & Jodie Wilkerson ended their interim ministry as our resident missionaries to Guatemala yesterday too.  I appreciate the ministry they have had for the past eighteen months.  Derrick resumes his seminary studies tomorrow, 8/21.  Pray for them as Derrick completes this final year of seminary and they apply with the IMB for appointment. 

FYI – the Foundations of Friendship class is completely filled.  Thanks to all of those who have signed up.  It will be offered again beginning the first Sunday in October. 

I pray that you will have a great day with Jesus!

I had said that I would not post again until Monday but I wanted to share a few prayer requests with you.  First, Rita Vice’s dad, Pete Nelson, did not have the test done yesterday as it has been postponed until Monday.  I spoke with Rita via the phone this afternoon and she is pretty  upset over the whole situation.  Her dad did not have a good night Friday night and now has pneumonia.  Rita was scheduled to fly home Monday but that has obviously been changed.  Please pray for Rita and her dad.

The visitation for the Litton family will take place tomorrow night at First North Mobile with the funeral service for Tammy Litton taking place Monday at noon.  Pray for Pastor Ed, their three children, and all of the family as they go through this valley of sorrow. 

Dollie Trout will have open heart surgery Monday morning.  Hopefully, it will involve a single by-pass only.  Pray for Dollie and her family. 

Hope to see the members of the Friendship family in church tomorrow morning and evening. 

Yesterday proved to be a very interesting day.  The funeral service for Mark Smith, Tena’s brother-in-law, was very well attended and the pastors did a nice job of bringing comfort from the Word of God.  Continue to pray for that family. 

I was in my office preparing for a staff meeting when Miss Kittie informed me of a major fire at the Chevron refinery in Pascagoula.  A couple of phone calls gave me an assurance that no one was missing, injured, or deceased as a result of the fire.  That was certainly good news considering the fact that we have a large number of the Friendship family who work for Chevron or at Chevron for a contractor.  We thank God for His watchcare.  Kerry Woods was the person responsible for making the announcement via the intercom to the refinery workers and I am told that he did it very professionally and calmly even though it was a major fire indeed.  I really would expect nothing less from Kerry.  Pray for those guys as they evaluate the damage and begin rebuilding that portion of the plant. 

Word came late yesterday afternoon that Tammy Litton, wife of Pastor Ed Litton, was involved in an automobile accident on Highway 98 in Mississippi just west of Lucedale.  The accident proved fatal to her but their 13 year old daughter survived and is going to be okay physically.  Ed serves as the pastor of First Baptist North Mobile.  Please join me in praying for this family during this difficult time. 

Rita Vice’s father, Pete Nelson, is having an angioplasty done today at a hospital in CA.  Rita is still there with him.  Please pray as he goes through this procedure. 

Derrick & Jodie have two more days of ministry in Guatemala.  Pray that all will go well as they bring this phase of their ministry lives to a close and move forward in another phase.

I don’t plan on entering another post until Monday.  I hope that the members of the Friendship family will join me in Bible study and worship this Sunday morning and evening.  May your weekend be blessed!

We had a good day yesterday in our respective Bible studies, prayer meetings, et cetera.  The attendance in our morning prayer meeting was very good and the same can be said for our evening attendance.  Our children’s choir under the leadership of Kathy Wadkins began a new year last night.  I encourage the parents of children in the 1st – 5th grades to involve those children in this choir each Wednesday night at 6:00PM.  They will present a musical one Sunday evening during the Christmas season.

Speaking of music, we will host the musical group, Seraph, on Sunday, 8/26, during our 6:00PM service.  Steven Kelley is a member of this group.  Please make plans to join us for this special service and note that we will receive a love offering in that service. 

Our adult choir will have “Christmas In August” on Sunday, 8/26, from 4:00 – 5:00PM to preview their Christmas music.  This is a good time to join the adult choir. 

Rita Vice’s father made a significant turn for the better yesterday.  They will do some more testing today.  Thank you for your prayers. 

Lord willing, I will be attending the funeral service for Mark Smith this morning.  Please continue to pray for Velvet (Tena Hovel’s sister) and her family. 

We are in the process of signing up for our GRACE ’08 summer trips.  We have extended the deadline to Sunday, September 9.  We hope to have some definitive dates by Sunday, 8/26.  One of these trips is filling up very quickly so please don’t delay in signing up.  Again, if you don’t have a passport then you need to go ahead and apply now because the passport agency is really backed up. 

I trust that you will have a wonderful day with Jesus.   

I received an e-mail yesterday from Judy Creal asking us to pray for Holland family in Virginia as Lois Holland passed away this past weekend.  Lois was a friend of Judy’s and we had been praying for her so please pray for her husband, Mark, and family now. 

On the other end of the spectrum, I received an e-mail last night from Danny & Angie LeBlanc informing me that they are now grandparents.  Matt Daniel LeBlanc checked in weighing around seven pounds.  Danny & Angie’s son, Clay, is the proud father.  Congratulations! 

I haven’t gotten a further update from Rita Vice’s father in California but do know that he continues to need our prayes. 

Our friends in Guatemala, Mario & Amuy Monroy, continue to need our prayer support too.  Amuy is pregnant and is on complete bed rest as she has been having some problems carrying this baby.  Presently, everything is okay but please keep praying. 

Derrick & Jodie are in the final few days of their ministry in Guatemala.  They are hosting a team from 1st Baptist Wilmington, NC this week.  They are scheduled to arrive in Mobile late this Sunday night, 8/19. 

Today is a normal Wednesday for the Friendship family.  I look forward to seeing many members of the church family in our various Bible studies and prayer meetings.    

The funeral arrangements for Mark Smith, brother-in-law to Tena Hovel, are as follows:  visitation tomorrow night, 8/15, from 5:00 – 8:00PM at the Valhalla Memorial Funeral Home 8730 Sims Road in Eight Mile.  Funeral service on Thursday morning, 8/16, at 11:00AM from the Indian Springs Baptist Church 4241 Lott Road Eight Mile, AL preceded by an hour of visitation.   

Sorry to be delayed in posting an entry today but my morning has gotten away from me.  The funeral service for George Parker, Lindsey Hatcher’s maternal grandfather, will take place from the Holder-Wells Funeral Home in Moss Point, MS today at 2:00PM.  Pray for the family as they go through this time of grief. 

The arrangements are still pending for Mark Smith, Tena Hovel’s brother-in-law.  I expect that those arrangements will be completed at some point today and I will post them once they have been finalized.  Continue to pray for the Smith family too.

Kevin Vice e-mailed me yesterday to let me know that Rita’s father, Pete Nelson, suffered a heart attack.  Mr. Nelson lives in California.  Rita was in Missouri visiting family and was to fly to CA yesterday to be with her dad.  However, the flights didn’t work out and she spent the night in Atlanta, GA instead.  She is supposedly on her way to CA today.  Her dad is in a small hospital with no cardiac unit and they won’t move him to another hospital until he is stable.  So, pray for wisdom for all involved in this situation. 

Rita Arriola left early this morning returning to Guatemala.  Pray that she will have a good day of traveling.  Speaking of Guatemala, Derrick & Jodie have six more days (including today) as our interim missionaries as they are scheduled to come home this Sunday evening, 8/19.  Derrick resumes his seminary studies next Tuesday, 8/21.  I thank God for their ministry over the past eighteen months and ask you to join me as they now finish seminary and look to be appointed by the IMB of the SBC. 

Happy birthday wishes go to my niece, Jamie Glenn, who is celebrating her 29th birthday today.  She is a sweetheart and it has been good to see her often this summer due to the weddings, showers, et cetera.  Hope you have a great day Jamie! 

I pray that you will have a good day with Jesus. 

First, I want to share the arrangements for Mr. George Parker.  The visitation will take place tonight, 8/13, from 6:00 – 9:00PM at the Holder-Wells funeral home in Moss Point, MS with the service taking place tomorrow afternoon, 8/14, at 2:00PM. Please continue to pray for this family. 

The Lord certainly blessed us yesterday in all three of our services.  The special music by Rita Arriola, Mary Jane Turrentine, and Vince & Madison Bosarge was great and Pastor Terry Rainey did his usual wonderful job of delivering the message from God’s Word.  Thank you to each person who prayed, attended the services, invited others, et cetera to help make the day a blessing.  Of course, the ultimate praise goes to God for His blessings.  We had a great day! 

Thanks to Melissa Brown & Teresa Ladnier for putting together a surprise birthday party for Pastor Terry after the evening service.  Today, 8/13, is his 58th birthday.  I really appreciate folks who are willing to help in whatever way is needed. 

We received word after the service last night that a brother-in-law of Tena Hovel was involved in an automobile accident in Georgia yesterday and passed from this life.  The arrangements are incomplete but I would ask you to pray for Tena and her family. 

I pray that you will have a good day with Jesus. 

I received a call from Lindsey Hatcher early yesterday morning informing me that her maternal grandfather, George Parker, had unexpectedly passed away during the night.  The arrangements are incomplete as the family will meet with the funeral directors this afternoon.  Please pray for the Parker family as they go through this time of sorrow. 

The wedding of Deidra & Michael was wonderful.  Thanks to each person who helped in any way – before, during, or after – to make the evening so memorable.  Thanks to each family member and friend who came from out of town to attend the ceremony.  Thanks to each member of the Friendship family and other local residents who attended the ceremony.  Thanks to our Heavenly Father for blessing us in so many ways!  We are thankful indeed! 

Pastor Terry Rainey will be preaching in all three of our services today.  I hope those in the south Mobile County area will join us for these services.  If you live elsewhere, go to church today.  You need the church family and the church family needs you! 

Our oldest daughter, Deidra, will become the bride of Michael Taylor tomorrow afternoon.  Obviously, I have missed the days leading up to this event as I have been with the GRACE team in Guatemala.  However, Deidra is fine with that because she knows that the mission trip was scheduled months before she and Michael set their wedding date.  I am very appreciative of those who have helped thus far in getting things ready for this wedding.  The auditorium and CAB already look great. 

So the next two days my focus will be on helping with the wedding preparations.  Our out of town family members and friends have already begun arriving and most of them will come in today.  We are not having a rehearsal tonight as Deidra & Michael opted to do everything in one day which, in my opinion, is a good move.  Please pray that these next two days will go smoothly and pray for Deidra and Michael as they begin their life together. 

Of course, Charles has already called wanting to know when I going to get his grass mowed.  So today will see me spending several hours in some fairly extreme heat to try and stay in that will!  You talk about shock – coming from the “land of eternal Spring” to this lower Alabama heat wave – wow! 

We are excited for Deidra & Michael and are praying that this weekend will be one that is led by the Spirit, exalts Jesus, and brings glory to the Father.  Please join us in that prayer!