1. Over the last church year (September 1, 2013 through August 31, 2014) we saw 18 people baptized at Bush Memorial. Furthermore, we saw over 40 people join our faith family. This is all a work of God! Let's continue to pray that disciples will be made and people will be reached by the gospel of Jesus Christ.
2. BMBC voted to support Alvie and Priscilla Walker with the new church plant, Burning Bush Cowboy Church. This new church will launch at the Cattleman's Arena on January 25, 2015. Praise God from whom all blessings flow! Please continue to pray for this church plant. Also, there is still a great need for volunteers. Don't forget about the Horse Whisperer Event on Saturday, January 24. This is an evangelistic event for our community and will also be a kick-off event for the Cowboy Church.
3. In addition to supporting the new church plant, BMBC continues to support Anthony and Aileen Gardiner as they pastor the Hispanic church in the Clio/Louisville area. Second, we continue to prayerfully support Tanner and Kimberly Ethridge as they continue to serve at First Baptist Abbeville. Tanner is the youth pastor of First Baptist Abbeville and he is doing a great job! Let's continue to pray for the Gardiner and Ethridge families as they make disciples and serve the Lord Jesus Christ.
4. In the spring, we participated in iServe in our community. Over a 100 volunteers participated in servanthood evangelism projects throughout Troy and Pike County. What a great and glorious day! I can't wait for the opportunity to do this again in 2015!
5. This past summer, we participated in Camp Troy (Vacation Bible School) and saw an average of 150 children per day! These children had fun, studied the Word, and clearly heard the gospel of Jesus Christ. Thank you to all the volunteers that made this possible!
6. Also, this summer, we took up an offering to support David and Sue Kite and the Cowboy Church ministry in Southeast Idaho. God blessed and we saw over $2000 given in one day! Praise God for the opportunity to encourage our North American missionaries out West.
Additionally, our church has given nearly $7000 towards the Lottie Moon Christmas Offering. This offering supports nearly 5000 International Mission Board missionaries all over the globe!
7. In September 2014, Bush started the D-Group ministry. These intentional discipleship groups meet on a weekly basis to study the Word, memorize scripture, and for accountability. So far, 11 of these groups have been formed. May Bush continue to be intentional about making disciples of King Jesus!
8. God has given us a great opportunity to disciple and serve college students at Troy University. These students include international students. Several of our students went on mission trips in 2014 or are serving overseas!
9. Five times in 2014 we participated in the Food Distribution Ministry at BMBC. Each time we fed over 165 families in our community. What a great opportunity to serve our community! Awesome job volunteers!
10. And last but not least, as of December 14, 2014, we have seen almost $500,000 given through tithes and offerings! That means we are on pace to meet our budget for the first time during my pastoral tenure. That also means that by the end of the year, Bush will give over $50,000 to see the gospel of Jesus Christ spread to the nations! Thank you for your sacrificial giving!
This may not seem like such a big deal, but if you remember this last time last year, our church was struggling financially. However, many of you stepped up your giving and now we are seeing a surplus in our budget. Thank God!!!
Bush family and friends, please know that I love each of you. As we think back over 2014, let's praise God for all that He had done! As I close, I want to remind you of the words of Jude from the Word of God:
To him who is able to keep you from stumbling and to present you before his glorious presence without fault and with great joy— to the only God our Savior be glory, majesty, power and authority, through Jesus Christ our Lord, before all ages, now and forevermore! Amen.Merry Christmas and Happy New Year!
Pastor Dwayne
