DEDICATED TO BRINGING GLORY TO THE LORD JESUS CHRIST

COLLEGE LAKES BAPTIST CHURCH

4704 Ramsey Street
Fayetteville, North Carolina 28311-1615
Church Office 910-488-8344
Church Cell Phone 910-658-3475

church@collegelakeschurch.org
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THE
COLLEGE LAKES

Challenger

News From College Lakes Church

A Message from Reverend Lanier. . .

November 6, 2014

America through challenging circumstances.

It is, In God we trust. CPCF, Nov. 4, 2014.

Hopefully, Good
The American people have cast their
vote this week. I hope that you participated in
this national privilege as an American citizen.
However, our responsibility as Christians does
not end at the ballot box. We must continue
the burden of prayer for these elected officials.
If my people, which are called by my name,
shall humble themselves, and pray, and seek
my face, and turn from their wicked ways;
then will I hear from heaven, and will forgive
their sin, and will heal their land. (II
Chronicles 7:14). What a great prospect!!
There is hope that God will fulfil His promise
and good will come of this weeks vote. We
need to pray that our elected officials will
LEAD in the same spirit as our Founding
Fathers did.
Lea Carawan, of the
Congressional Prayer Caucus Foundation, Inc,
observed: Our Founders and other great
leaders engraved in Americas history have
laid the groundwork for success: 1) invite God
to intervene in the affairs of men through
prayer, 2) live and lead according to the
principles that promote self-government and
cultural engagement, 3) trust in God to guide

Open Doors, Open Hearts

God Is Working behind the Scenes
By Jerry Ferrso
One of the great privileges of serving
God is that we are laborers together with
Him. Sure, He has given us the command
to preach the gospel, but He didnt leave
the work entirely up to us. While we find
the ears to hear, He is working on hearts.
When Paul went to Philippi, the first
convert the Scriptures record was a woman,
Lydia. Acts 16:14 says of her, And a
certain woman named Lydia, a seller of
purple, of the city of Thyatira, which
worshipped God, heard us: whose heart the
Lord opened, that she attended unto the
things which were spoken of Paul.
Paul may have been saying the words, but
it was God who opened her heart.
When we understand the Lord is working
with us to see people saved, it changes how

2 News From College Lakes Church

November 6, 2014

we witness to people. We are not highpressure salesmen trying to manipulate a

quick decision. We are instruments for the
Holy Spirit to use as He changes hearts.

working a job (Mark 1), or traveling back

home (Acts 8) secretly hoping that someone
has the answers to the questions they dont
even know to ask.

God is working in ways we cannot see.

Circumstances change in peoples lives.
Going soulwinning in the same city several
times a year isnt futile because the people
are different every time we meet them. The
same neighbor who has never even accepted
an invitation might have just found out his
child has a serious medical condition.
Where his heart was closed before, God
opened it through a trial.

The first command of the Great

Commission in Matthew 28:18 is go.
Unless we go, we wont have the
opportunity to see God work in peoples
hearts. Working together with God, we can
be the vessels to see His Spirit change lives
for eternity.

We cant prejudge who is a good

candidate for the gospel. We have a
tendency to make rushed decisions about
people, even when it comes to their
responsiveness to the gospel. If they are too
rough around the edges with piercings and
tattoos, then their hearts are hardened. If
they are too well dressed, then they wont
see their need for God. We can always find
a reason why someone wont get saved if
we are looking for it.
Remember, we dont know what God is
doing in their hearts. When Jesus met a rich
young ruler, he asked the rich man to sell
all he had as a test of that mans heart.
When the rich man walked away, Jesus
made the famous statement, For it is
easier for a camel to go through a needles
eye, than for a rich man to enter into the
kingdom of God (Luke 18:25). This didnt
sound good for rich people, yet in the very
next chapter of Luke, the chief tax collector
(a very lucrative position) willingly put his
faith in Jesus. Then he gave half of his
money to the poor and much of the rest as
restitution for his corrupt collections!
We dont know the condition of their
hearts until we speak to them about the
Lord. Its only as we share the gospel, oneon-one, that we can begin to see if God is
working. Most people are not going to ask,
What must I do to be saved? They are
waiting in line to get a drink (John 4),

Ushers for November 9th

A.M. Jerry Adams
Michael Williams
John Johnson
Elijah Henry
Billy Tyson
Sonny Alvarez
P.M. Ken Triplett

Durham Rescue Mission

Help us to get things together to take to the
good work of Brother Mills in Durham.
Canned food, clothes, childrens toys, etc.,
will help the needs there. Boxes are placed
so you may bring in the needed items.

Land Purchase
Pray still for the finalization of one of the
Churchs long term goals.

Christmas Offering
The important and exciting season will be
coming soon. Pray and get ready to give as
the Lord leads in our once a year offering.

Thank God
Answers to Prayer and His care for us.

November 11th
Veterans Day, God Bless and protect them
AND their families. We respect them!