Soli deo gloriaSoli deo gloriaSoli deo gloriaSoli deo gloriaGlory to God AloneGlory to God AloneGlory to God AloneGlory to God Alone

Volume 38, Issue 8August 2012

By Pastor John Dawson

NewsletterAbingdon Presbyterian

Church

Prayer is the lifeblood of your relationship with the Lord. Reading the Bible, hearing sermons and knowing theology is profitable, but without prayer it can become just an intellectual exercise. Seminaries and universities are full of people who are learned experts on the Bible, but whose personal life is in no way directed by it. So are churches. Knowledge is not enough to sustain your relationship with the Lord.

Prayer is the lifeblood of your relationship with the Lord. Doing good works, extending yourself to interact with the needy (and those who are economically needy are even more needy in their heart and mind) is one of the marks of true

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Prayer Is the lifebloodPrayer Is the lifebloodPrayer Is the lifebloodPrayer Is the lifeblood

Consider the lilies how they grow: they toil not, Consider the lilies how they grow: they toil not, Consider the lilies how they grow: they toil not, Consider the lilies how they grow: they toil not, they spin not; and yet I say unto you, that Solomon they spin not; and yet I say unto you, that Solomon they spin not; and yet I say unto you, that Solomon they spin not; and yet I say unto you, that Solomon in all his glory was not arrayed like one of these. in all his glory was not arrayed like one of these. in all his glory was not arrayed like one of these. in all his glory was not arrayed like one of these.

Luke 12: 27Luke 12: 27Luke 12: 27Luke 12: 27

Photograph by Joyce Ferris

Prayer is the lifeblood Prayer is the lifeblood Prayer is the lifeblood Prayer is the lifeblood (continued)(continued)(continued)(continued)

religion (see James 1: 27). Yet, when done without prayer, your good works can do harm to yourself and to the ones you hope to help. Without prayer, you cannot access the power of God and are left only with your own strength, resources and creativity. You will begin to see those you seek to help as ungrateful and even stupid. You will see yourself as superior and will lose your gratitude to God for his mercy and love which sustains you. Good works are not enough to sustain your relationship with the Lord.

The Westminster Standards name three things as means of grace; there are three things that the Holy Spirit uses as a channel to communicate the grace of God to us. A normal question presbyteries give on their examination for potential preachers is to name the means of grace. Too often, only two are mentioned: the preaching of the Word of God and the administration of the sacraments (baptismand the Lord’s Supper). The third is the most important: prayer, and it should be the most practiced. Both the preaching of the Word and the sacraments must be administered and received with prayer if they hope to have effect. It is in prayer that we respond to God’s grace through the other two means of grace.

Prayer is not passive. The Word can be read and heard in a passive manner. It can be meditated on, considered, even written about and debated without ever having its claims come to your heart. When I feel far from God, I can always read the Bible. Praying is harder. Those of us trained in schools know how to consider a topic and even think how it may be applied, all the while keeping it from our heart. But in prayer, there is no cover. There is no hiding place or detachment. In prayer, you are before the throne of God. There you make your heart known to God. There God’s heart, his Law, and hislove make connection with you. You will either respond to the Lord positively, or negatively. A common negative response is to run and hide from the Lord. This is what we do when we fail to set time aside to pray.

Prayer takes time. Like any relationship, your relationship with the Lord takes time. It is good to have an attitude of prayer throughout the day. The Lord is with you. You can constantly thank the Lord for blessings and tell the Lord your requests. But no relationship grows without some dedicated “quality time.” What is your prayer life really like? Your relationship with the Lord will reflect it. Others may notice, or they may not, but your heart will be different. Remember, prayer is the lifeblood of your relationship with the Lord.

Out of the depths have I cried to you, O Lord; Out of the depths have I cried to you, O Lord; Out of the depths have I cried to you, O Lord; Out of the depths have I cried to you, O Lord; Lord, hear my voice! let your ears be Lord, hear my voice! let your ears be Lord, hear my voice! let your ears be Lord, hear my voice! let your ears be

attentive to the voice of my supplications. attentive to the voice of my supplications. attentive to the voice of my supplications. attentive to the voice of my supplications. Psalm 130: 1Psalm 130: 1Psalm 130: 1Psalm 130: 1----2222

August Nursery ScheduleAugust 5 – Carolyn Dando & Chellie Davis

August 12 – Charlie & Teresa BergAugust 19 – Brenda Holbrook & Teresa LawsonAugust 26 – Annie Dawson & Zula Lambert

WomenWomenWomenWomen’’’’s ministriess ministriess ministriess ministries

I am the rose of I am the rose of I am the rose of I am the rose of sharon, and the sharon, and the sharon, and the sharon, and the lily of the valley. lily of the valley. lily of the valley. lily of the valley. As the lily among As the lily among As the lily among As the lily among thorns, so is my thorns, so is my thorns, so is my thorns, so is my love among the love among the love among the love among the

daughters. daughters. daughters. daughters.

Song of Solomon 2: 1Song of Solomon 2: 1Song of Solomon 2: 1Song of Solomon 2: 1----2222

For All APC Women:Mark your calendars for the Fall PresWIC Meeting! Saturday, September 29th

Eastern Heights, PCA8:30 am – 12 pm

Hope Sullivan will speak on “Unity in Service”

We will meet at the church and carpool together.

The morning Glories will The morning Glories will The morning Glories will The morning Glories will resume August 23resume August 23resume August 23resume August 23rdrdrdrd

Session update:1. Budget report

a. June Income $10,833.b. June Expenses $13,050.c. YTD Income $75,173; YTD Budget $81,668; YTD Expenses $94,410.

2 Pastor Dawson will be on vacation from August 2-20. They will be gone for three Sundays.

a. Rev. Ralph Boersema will preach on August 5th.b. Dr. Phil Blevins will preach on August 12th.c. August 19th service preaching to be determined.

3. The session attended the latest Presbytery meeting which was held at Westminster PCA in Kingsport. The meeting handled routine issues and concluded with nominating David Dawson as the next moderator. This means David is scheduled to serve the Presbytery as the leader for the next two regular meetings of Presbytery and any called meetings in the meantime.

4. Pastor Dawson will be teaching a Greek class at Graham Bible College on Thursday evenings during the fall semester.

5. The Bristol Care Group will not be meeting for the month of August and will resume on September 5th. The Abingdon Care Group will not meet on August 10th

but will, however, meet on August 24th.

From the sessionFrom the sessionFrom the sessionFrom the session

Cade’s Cove

By Susan Ojanen

APC FamilyAPC FamilyAPC FamilyAPC Family

Meet Meet Meet Meet Sandy Sandy Sandy Sandy

ArmStrongArmStrongArmStrongArmStrong

Sandy Armstrong is my treasured friend – one of those rare friendships I hope we all comprehend the value of in our lives. These friendships are a blessing from God, and it is a joy to share a little more about her with you.

In describing Sandy, her faith makes her who she is. She is a nest-maker who desires activities that spring from a love for making a home for her family and the opportunities God brings to help others. Sandy is a doer – no fanfare. She just gets busy and gets it done with a joy that pervades all she does. It’s God’s love that shines through her.

Sandy was raised in Knoxville, Tennessee. Sandy’s father was an insurance agent and her mother, Frances (whom we all enjoy seeing each Sunday) was a secretary. Frances left work to raise Sandy, their only child. I find it pretty amazing how an only childhas become a mother (an exceptional, godly mother) to a large family.

Sandy’s parents raised her in church, and at the age of only nine, Sandy had a special opportunity to attend a Billy Graham Crusadewith her mother. When Rev. Graham gave the altar call, Sandy wanted to go down and receive Jesus. Although she did not go down at that time, Sandy would later give her heart fully to Christ as her Lord and Savior.

Sandy had two extremely influential people in her life whom God used to lead her to Christ and disciple her. Sandy was blessed with a cousin who was a strong Christian, who was sevenyears older than Sandy and nurtured her in her faith. Another great blessing to Sandy was her wonderful Christian friend, Leslie, who befriended Sandy during her freshman year in high school. Leslie invited Sandy to youth group where she heard KayArthur speak. This experience and other conversations led Sandyto Christ.

Sandy with her parents, Carl & Frances Bennett

Sandy & Nathan Bayly with Sarah, David, Frances &

Cassie

Sandy Armstrong (continued)Sandy Armstrong (continued)Sandy Armstrong (continued)Sandy Armstrong (continued)

She continued to grow in the Lord through a girls’ Bible study hosted by a lady at Leslie’s church. It was while attending Leslie’s church and later at Bryan College that Sandy learned to love the traditional, old hymns, so much so, that she knows most of them by heart. (That comes in handy when there are more people than hymnbooks in her pew!) Knowing the words that are coming in a hymn, Sandy’s heart is filled with gladness as she anticipates the joy of their meaning.

Following graduation in 1982 from Bryan College, Sandy received a summer internship as Assistant to the Vice-President at David C. Cook Publishing Co. in Chicago in the College & Seminary Relations Department. She managed presentations, mostly by telephone, for colleges and seminaries promoting the publishing house’s curriculum. Now this is where it gets interesting…

a certain handsome young man would pass by Sandy’s desk as he came through to see his father, Joseph Bayly. The summer internship was extended through December (how nice!). Nathan Bayly and Sandy Bennett were engaged in November; Nathan started seminary at Gordon-Conwell in January 1983 and they were married that July.

After graduation from seminary in 1986, Nathan was called to Community Church at Bristol as Associate

Pastor of Youth and Education. Randy and I attended there, and I recall so well the brightly lit faces of those two! We got to know them quickly as Nathan became an important part of our children’s lives at church, and both Nathan and Sandy became our dear friends. It wasn’t long before Nathan was called in 1988 to serve as Pastor of newly founded Cornerstone Chapel in Bristol, Tennessee, also our family’s new church home, where he served for twelve years.

The Bayly’s were ready to start a family and began the process of adopting in 1992. It was during this time they received the opportunity to care for two foster children from Virginia. They welcomed Cassie, 4-1/2 years old and Sarah, 2 years old, in May 1994, and later adopted them. Their family went from doubling in size to tripling when they were accepted to receive Frances and David from Colombia in March 1995. All a great joy!

It was in August of 2000 that Nathan was diagnosed with esophageal cancer. The treatments involved removing the esophagus and creating a new one by stretching the stomach, chemotherapy and radiation. For someone who loved food as much as Nathan, it was very hard to watch him struggle to eat and swallow. His spirits were always high and during visits with him, Nathan always turned the conversation to the visitor’s needs and concerns. He looked after his sheep even in sickness.

During that time, Nathan and Sandy were thankful for faithful prayers, church family and extended family. They felt God’s presence through His people. Hope of a recovery was dimmed in February 2001 when spots were found on the liver. Nathan’s heavenly life began in September 2001.

Sandy Armstrong (continued)Sandy Armstrong (continued)Sandy Armstrong (continued)Sandy Armstrong (continued)

One can hardly imagine the effect that losing a husband and father has on such a young family. God did not need to imagine: He knew and provided fully for them. The importance of church involvement was heightened at this time, and Sandy saw God’s provision for the particular needs of the children through Vance Bible Church which continues to be a blessing in their lives today.

Through this experience, Sandy became more somber. It was more than a year after Nathan’s death when Sandy heard a sound that she recognized but hadn’t heard in a long time. She realized it was her own laugh. She knew then that God could sustain them through anything. When asked how all of this has affected her, Sandy’s immediate response is that she is more thankful for heaven, and she is glad that God uses us even after death to praise Him.

God’s provision and blessings continued with the marriage of Joe Armstrong and Sandy in August 2005. Joe had been a dear friend of Nathan’s and a blessing to the family after Nathan’s death, and now a wonderful, godly husband and father. Their family is a beautiful lot whose comings and goings of the now eight children are something to keep track of. Sandy has worked in Joe’s ophthalmology practice for twenty-five years, and after adopting the children, she went from full-time to eleven hours/week. Since Sandy can manage the practice in this concentrated timeframe, one begins to understand her ability to focus and get right down to the business at hand!

Some of Sandy’s favorite things: she loves, loves, loves to talk with all of the children – and it doesn’t faze her even when they say she asks too many questions; she relishes breakfast in the greenhouse with Joe; gardening has always been a delight as well as reading, especially history; sewing first for her children and now, along with Frannie and Sarah, dresses to bring with them on mission trips to Belize. The mission trips with the children and Joe are a precious time and a joy to Sandy.

In 2005 they began attending Abingdon Presbyterian Church and have become members. She very much enjoys the fellowship of her new friends and the faithful preaching of the Word.

Joe & Sandy Armstrong

Sandy is encouraged by a favorite Bible verse, Ephesians 2: 10, “For we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works which God prepared beforehand that we should walk in them.”

Every Sunday:

10 am Sunday School 11 am worship 6 pm evening study

Sunday Monday Tuesday Wednesday Thursday Friday Saturday

6 7 8 9 10 11

12 13 14 15 16 17 18

19 20 21 22 23 24 25

26 27

Sam & Brenda

Holbrook’s

Anniversary

CommunionPrison Ministry

3

Prison Ministry

Did you know: in the Southern Hemisphere, August is the seasonal equivalent of February in the Northern Hemisphere?

Men’s Study

1 2

Abingdon

Care Group

28 29 30

AugustAugustAugustAugust2012201220122012

31

Dinner Day

4

5

Men’s Study

Zula Lambert’s

Birthday

Joe & Sandy

Armstrong’s

Anniversary

David Dawson's

Birthday

Annie Dawson’s

Birthday

Frances Bennett’s Birthday

Ed Warhurst’s

Birthday

Men’s Study

Tess

Moormans’

Birthday

John Haydon

Dawson’s

Birthday

Morning

Glories

Teresa

Lawson’s

Birthday

Ed Carter’s

Birthday

Chellie Davis’

Birthday

Drexel Hull’s

Birthday

Alma Jarrell’s

Birthday