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CAMP MEETING 2009
Next week will begin our state Camp Meeting Conference held at the North Cleveland Church of God in Cleveland, TN. This week will be filled with exciting music, preaching and teaching to minister to every believer. You will not want to miss a service of this great week of ministry. Please make your plans now to attend. There are even sessions taking place in the morning if you are off this week. And especially if your are retired or on vacation this week you will be uplifted and inspired at the teaching and preaching of the morning events. I hope to see you there.
Church of God 2009 Camp Meeting...June 22, 2009 - June 26, 2009 Speakers include: Morning Services: Tuesday-Friday 10AM -Doug Small-Founder and President of Alive Ministries and Project Pray. Evening Services: Monday Night- Tim Oldfield-Senior Pastor of The Potter's House Church in Columbus, Ohio. Tuesday Night-Steve Brock-Evangelist, Featured Guest on Christian Television; Wednesday Night- Loran Livingston-Senior Pastor of the Central Church of God; Thursday Night- Dr. Wallace Sibley- Secretary General of the Church of God; Friday Night- Tommy Bates-Pastor of the Pentecostal Community Church in Independance, Kentucky. Camp Meeting Highlights: Monday Night- Chattanooga-Cleveland Pastors Choir; Wednesday Night - Retired Ministers Choir-and Memorial Tribute; Thursday - Revitalization Clinic with Ed Stetzer; Friday Morning- Ordained Bishops and MIP Graduation; Friday Afternoon- Women's Luncheon; Friday Night- Mass Youth Choir and Afterglow Toddler care and Kids Kamp Meeting/ Every NightJune 22-26, 2009
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Greetings!
Thanks again for checking out our new email newsletter. We are so happy to be able to keep you up to date with events and things happening here at the East Chattanooga Church of God. This past Sunday was another great day of worship and fellowship at ECC. Many have complimented the worship service and the wonderful atmosphere we are experiencing at ECC. We were blessed with several new visitors attending our service. If you are interested in connecting with our visitors and new families attending, please see Joyce Puckett to obtain a list of names and phone numbers so you can make contact wth them. We know how important it is to receive a card or phone call after a new visit. You could be a vital help in making our new families feel connected and facilitate them in getting involved here.
This week we will be celebrating Father's Day. Proverbs 22:6 says, "Train up a child in the way he should go, and when he is old he will not depart from it. " We thank God for our Godly fathers in the church. Those men who are providing the spiritual leadership for us and our children are a critical part of what we do here. This Sunday we will be looking at the Word on how a being Godly Father is vital to a healthy spirit. Please check out the web site and tell your friends and family to visit it. If you know someone that may want to receive a copy of this email make sure you forward them this message. There is a place for everyone to sign up to receive this subscription. We will add them to our list of email contacts and send them the new message weekly. Have a great week and remember to invite someone to church this coming Sunday.
Be Blessed,
Fred & Cindy Smith
East Chattanooga Church of God
Lead Pastor
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FATHERS DAY 2009
Father's Day is a celebration inaugurated in the early twentieth century to compliment Mother's Day in celebrating fatherhood and male parenting, as well as to honor and commemorate fathers and our forefathers. Father's Day is celebrated on a variety of dates worldwide and typically involves gift-giving, special dinners to fathers, and family-oriented activities.
The first observance of Father's Day is believed to have been held on July 5, 1908 in a church located in Fairmont, West Virginia, by Dr. Robert Webb of West Virginia at the Williams Memorial Methodist Episcopal Church South of Fairmont.[1] [2] The church still exists under the name of Central United Methodist Church.
Sonora Smart Dodd of Washington thought independently of the holiday one Sunday in 1909 while listening to a Mother's Day sermon at the Central Methodist Episcopal Church at Spokane,[3] and she arranged a tribute for her father on June 19, 1910. She was the first to solicit the idea of having an official Father's Day observance to honor all fathers.
It took many years to make the holiday official. In spite of support from the YWCA, the YMCA and churches, it ran the risk of disappearing from the calendar.[4] Where Mother's Day was met with enthusiasm, Father's Day was met with laughter.[4] The holiday was gathering attention slowly, but for the wrong reasons. It was the target of much satire, parody and derision, including jokes from the local newspaper Spokesman-Review.[4] Many people saw it as just the first step in filling the calendar with mindless promotions like "Grandparents' Day", "Professional Secretaries' Day", etc., all the way down to "National Clean Your Desk Day."[4]
A bill was introduced in 1913,[5] US President Calvin Coolidge supported the idea in 1924,[citation needed] and a national committee was formed in the 1930s by trade groups in order to legitimize the holiday.[6]. It was made a federal holiday when President Lyndon Johnson issued a proclamation in 1966.
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CHURCH MEMBERSHIP
 Our Church Memebership is growing. We are seeing new families join our church each month. Membership is an important part of growing our church, however it is not by any means a sign of salvation or even a necessity to make it into heaven. Membership is only a sign that you are making a decision to become an intrical part of your local church.
The universal Church-the Body of Christ (Romans 12:5)-is composed of all true believers in Christ, but there is nothing in the Bible about "membership" in a local church assembly. As believers, we have our names written in the Lamb's book of life (Revelation 20:12), which is the only "membership roll" spoken of in Scripture.
The New Testament churches apparently had no need of formal membership, relying instead on God to gather together believers in a local body. "And the Lord added to them day by day those that were being saved" (Acts 2:47). This verse indicates that salvation was a prerequisite for being "added" to the church. Churches today who require salvation before membership are simply following the Biblical model. See also 2 Corinthians 6:14-18.
Church membership is a way of officially identifying oneself with a local body of believers. Church membership is a statement that a Christian is in agreement with that local church and is willing to be identified as a representative of it. Church membership is also valuable for organizational purposes and a good way of determining who is allowed to be in leadership on important church decisions and/or who is involved in official church positions and functions. Church membership is not required of Christians. It is simply a way of saying, "I am a Christian and I believe the East Chattanooga Church of God is a good church and where I would like to be affiliated with."
We hold church membership to a high standard in order to display the appropriate image of a true Christian. Classes are being held in the Pastor's office each Sunday morning beginning at 9:30 am for anyone interested in joining this great chuch. You do not have to join the church to attend the class. The class is set up as an informative teaching class to express to you the values and benefits of church membership. If you are not a member or not sure if you are, please conctact Joyce Puckett, our church secretary, to see if you are listed in our membership records. You are also invited to come and sit in on a church membership class taught each Sunday morning by Pastor. Check it out.
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WEEKLY PRAYER NEEDS
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Please know that we are praying for you. We are praying that God will Bless you, prosper you and keep you and your families safe this week. We are in the last days and we know that Jesus is soon to return for His church. Please keep yourselves ready to meet him. Keep praying for our church and community. Pray that God will direct you to people who need Christ. Share His love with anyone you possibly can. We pray our attitudes will be that of Christ and we will display His love and compassion to everyone we know. Be Blessed.
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Sincerely,
Fred & Cindy Smith
East Chattanooga Church of God
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