the connection
DESCRIPTION
May 2015 NewsletterFirst Assembly of God - RollaTRANSCRIPT
YOUTH GROUP
TO COMPETE
NATIONALLY
The Davis family was established in June of 2005 when Justin and
Lindsay were married in this very church by Pastor Chuck.
Justin has a master’s degree in geology and has
worked for the Department of Natural Resources for
almost 7 years. Prior to dating Lindsay, he attended
First Assembly of God in St. James. He became a
Christian in the summer of 1997. Justin enjoys moto-
cross, gardening, hunting/fishing and many other
outdoor activities.
Lindsay is a pediatric nurse and has worked for
PCRMC Medical Group for almost 6 years. She was
born and raised in this church; dedicated as a baby,
water baptized and married. She and Justin later
dedicated their babies in this church. She received
the baptism of the Holy Spirit at age 14 while attend-
ing youth camp. Lindsay enjoys yard sales, reading and keeping up with her
guys (all three of them).
Mason is 7 years old and in the first grade at St. James Elementary.
He is a very passionate little man and tells his mommy and daddy often that
Jesus lives in his heart and he can’t wait to live with Him in Heaven. He
loves fishing, riding his bike and motorcycle and going on adventures.
Reid is 4 years old and attends Church of Christ Day School on Tues-
day and Thursday mornings. The remainder of the time he is with his Nana.
He is sweet and loving. He enjoys going to church to learn about Jesus with
his friends. He also enjoys hot chocolate with his Nana, Legos and anything
(Davis continued on page 4)
This past February the
Youth Department took 29
students to the District Fine
Arts Festival in Springfield.
Fine Arts is a program de-
signed by the Assemblies of
God to assist our students
with discovering, developing,
and deploying their ministry
gifts. It empowers our teens
to be confident in using their
God given gifts to make Jesus
known. It has proven to be a
very effective program, and
our teens love participating.
Out of the 29 students that
we took to districts, 22 of
them advanced to the Nation-
al Fine Arts Festival which will
be held in Orlando, Florida,
(Continued on page 6)
25 YEAR ANNIVERSAY Looking back, it’s a common wonderment:
Where did the time go? In the case of Pastor Chuck
and Annette’s anniversary, those are my first
thoughts.
For context, Dorse and I had already been at
First Assembly for 26 years before their arrival. We
had a three man Board of Deacons at the time
(Dave Mesplay, Fred Brookshire, and myself) and
before his arrival we had been searching for a new
pastor… without success, I might add!
However, a lady from Steelville mentioned in
casual conversation a young man serving as youth
pastor over there who was reportedly doing a fine
job and was well liked by all. Shying away from
the “young man” characterization, nothing more
was said about it and our search continued.
As I remember, I was at the time assisting the
(Anniversary continued on page 5)
MINDEN TEEN CHALLENGE FAMILY CENTER
DIRECTORS ANDY AND CHRISTY JENKINS
We are gathering items of need for the Minden
Teen Challenge Family Center ahead of our missions
trip at the end of this month. We hope you can look
over the list below and help them out! We've also
listed some prayer needs that the Challenge Center
Director sent to us. There is a wheelbarrow in the
church foyer for collecting items; monies can be
placed in a tithe envelope and marked “Teen Chal-
lenge”.
Physical Needs:
Prayer Needs:
Financial blessings-They do not charge for girls in
the program, and costs for the facility are very high.
Additional staff members.
For vans and transportation needs.
That God pour out the Holy Spirit on the staff.
That God equip Andy and his wife to continue lead-
ing the girls and the staff.
Prayer for protection for the staff, for spiritual dis-
cernment and wisdom, for rest so they don't burn
out, and for protection against the enemy.
Prayer also for the staff's families and children.
CENTER NEEDS AND PRAYER REQUESTS
Will Heaven be boring? Will we just be floating
around on clouds strumming our harps? Or will Heaven be
an unending church service? That could get long and bo-o-
o-o-o-ring! Right? Think again!
Randy Alcorn, in his excellent book, Heaven, writes,
“Our belief that Heaven is boring betrays a heresy – that
God is boring. There’s no greater nonsense. . . . Did we
invent wit, humor and laughter? No, God did. . . . Our de-
sire for pleasure and the experience of joy come directly
from God’s hand. He made our taste buds, adrenaline, sex
drives and the nerve endings that convey pleasure to our
brain. . . . Are we so arrogant as to imagine that human
beings came up with the idea of fun?” The psalmist con-
curs, “In Your presence is fullness of joy; At Your right hand
are pleasures forevermore” (Psalm 16:11.) Fullness of joy
and pleasures forevermore? Does that sound boring? Not
at all.
Unfortunately, many believe Satan’s lie that sin is
fulfilling (and maybe Hell will be too) and righteousness is
boring. Randy Alcorn, in Heaven, speaks the truth.
“However, in reality, sin robs us of fulfillment. Sin doesn’t
make life interesting; it makes life empty. Sin doesn’t cre-
ate adventure; it blunts it. Sin doesn’t expand life; it
shrinks it. Sin’s emptiness inevitably leads to boredom.”
Have you ever realized that Hell will be boring? In Jesus’
account of the rich man and Lazarus in Luke 16:19-31, the
rich man in the afterlife was alone as well as in torment.
No, there won’t be parties and drinking and having fun with
your buddies in Hell. Satan, who wants to keep people
from being reconciled to God, perpetuates this lie. Instead,
picture Hell as solitary confinement with just yourself and
your regrets in torment . . . forever. You don’t want to be
there!
Dr. David Jeremiah, in his study guide, Revealing the
Mysteries of Heaven, gives us five reasons why Heaven will
not be boring. They are:
1. “Heaven will not be boring because God is not bor-
ing” (Psalm 16:11.) (This was discussed above.)
2. “Heaven will not be boring because you will not be
boring” (I Corinthians 15:51, 52.) (Remember,
you are going to be changed!)
3. “Heaven will not be boring because your friends
will not be boring” (Hebrews 11:22, 23) (You’ll be
hanging out with angels and Old and New Testa-
ment saints, as well as Jesus.)
4. “Heaven will not be boring because your work will
not be boring” (Revelation 7:15.) (This will be dis-
cussed next month.)
5. “Heaven will not be boring because Heaven is the
place you’ve always longed for” (Rom. 8:22, 23.)
(You will enjoy a satisfaction and fulfillment that
was never achieved on this earth.)
No, Heaven will not be boring- not for a minute. The
Everlasting God, infinite in goodness and creativity, will
fully delight and satisfy all of His children throughout eter-
nity. See also Isaiah 55:2, 3, Ephesians 2:7 and James
1:16, 17. Don’t miss it! References:
Randy Alcorn, Heaven, pp. 410, 411
Dr. David Jeremiah, Revealing the Mysteries of Heaven, pp. 31-38
Beverly Flori
1300 weeks.
Congratulations, not only
to Pastor Chuck Whitmire, but
to his family as well for the
past 25 years of ministry here
at First Assembly. Let us stop and take a look
back over the road that has been traveled during
those years.
At the start, he was working the office pretty
much by himself and ministering during the
week; hospital visits, in-home visits, and prepar-
ing ser-
mons for
three ser-
vices. It
w a s n ’ t
long until
staff was
hired to
help with
a growing
congrega-
tion: a youth pastor and a secretary.
Still the workload grew as the congregation
grew, as did the vision for what he believed the
Lord would want done. Missions—a reaching out
I remember driving up out of the canyon
from Batopilas on that Mexico Mission
Trip. We had just finished the series of
switchbacks and we're bouncing along
this rocky, washed out, narrow Mexican
dirt road and Pastor Chuck, who's relaxed
and grinning ear to ear says something
like, "this is like a bunch of those Dent
County backroads." Drew Blair
beyond the borders of Rolla, Missouri,
and the US, into the foreign field.
That vision for missions has grown
over the past 25 years; and more so
as he and some friends went to India
and other countries
and experienced
firsthand what the
burden was in his
heart.
From there,
the congregation
has gone on nu-
merous missions
trips both foreign
and domestic; and
from there burdens
were birthed in other hearts as well. Many—too
many to count—people have been ministered to
and have been pointed to Christ as a result of the
ministry of First Assembly as the Lord Jesus has
been building His church by using laborers, while
encouraging other laborers to get into the field of
work.
Thank you, Pastor Chuck and family, for
faithfully ministering, laboring if you will, encour-
aging and leading a work force for Christ to be
part of building the Kingdom as the Lord Jesus
directs.
He’s one of the most thoughtful,
generous, caring pastors I’ve ever seen. Frank Ratliff
TWENTY-FIVE YEARS: A QUARTER OF A CENTURY OF MINISTERING
There was the time that I spilled disappearing ink on PC’s white shirt just before church started. You should have seen the look on his face as I told him, “don’t worry; it will be gone in 5 minutes”.
Ross Haselhorst
that involves his Daddy and big brother.
Justin, Lindsay and the boys consider this
church home. They feel very blessed to have been
provided with meals when sick, visitors while hospi-
talized and an amazing group of prayer warriors that
are always available.
Lindsay Davis
(Davis continued from page 1)
Thank you for
hearing the voices
of others as they
have dreamed
about a ministry
the Lord gave
them and put it to
work.
Thank you for
the hours no one
knows about, sitting in hospitals with many of us
as our family members were going through sur-
gery.
Thank you to your family for their sacrifice
done through the years because you were out
late at night or very early morning ministering to
some wayward soul.
Thank you for the investment into our com-
He is the husband of a famous
author.
I appreciate Chuck because
he cares more about reaching
the people outside the church
than he does about numbers
in the church. Mike Schanta
TWENTY-FIVE YEARS: A QUARTER OF A CENTURY OF MINISTERING
Pastor Chuck has the heart of shepherd. He is a
man with a heart after God, a sense of humor, and
passion. He is the real thing, speaking the Word of
God, correcting and disciplining through the Holy
Spirit. He has the spiritual strength of 10 spiritual
giants. He is not proud, but very humble. He is a
motivator to win souls for Christ Jesus. So thankful
for our Pastor. He shows by Word and deeds how to
live a Christ-centered life for God. Judy Schanta
Steelville Assembly with the installation of a computer
system (the same as the one used in our church).
While asking about our quest for a qualified pastor,
the Steelville pastor, Brother Harris, suggested we
consider his assistant—Chuck Whitmire. As they say,
the rest is history!
Pastor Chuck was an immediate “hit” with our
congregation. His approach to the task ahead made a
tremendous difference in attitude in just a short while.
Difficulties of the past were soon forgotten and the church has grown to become what you see it to be today.
Note the pictorial evidence of Pastor Chuck merging “seamlessly” into the life of the church. The Sen-
ior Adult group (Pacemakers) were having a western themed program that called for appropriate western
dress. Pastor Chuck is on the far right—”cowboyed up” in fine fashion. (Someone help me—Could it have
been “Daddy Sang Bass”?
It goes without saying, both he and Annette have contributed greatly to the successful church we have
today. Carl Wilkinson
(Anniversary continued from page 1)
munity through the ministries that touch our com-
munity: KidCare/Thrive, a benevolence house for
families who have lost their home to fire, and the
church to be used for a shelter during disaster.
Thank you, Whitmire family, for all that you
have done during the past 25 years. We look for-
ward to more as the Lord Jesus continues to build
His church—using laborers He calls for that task.
Thank you.
Carl Wilkinson, Dave Skyles,
Carl Curtis, and Pastor Chuck
Well, it is that time of year again! May will mark
another school year down and the busyness of sum-
mer will be upon us. This time of year we take time to
honor those who have reached a milestone in their
lives and move on to another season. We have quite
a few First Assembly family members who will be
graduating from High School as well as college. We
would like to congratulate you all. The church will be
recognizing all college graduates on Sunday May 3rd
in the first service. The high school graduates will be
recognized on Sunday May 10, also during the first
service. Please let the office know if you fall under
one of these categories so we can recognize your ac-
complishment.
Youth Summer Events All Events are open for 8th – 12th graders
May 10: Pastor Chuck will recognize HS graduates dur-
ing first service
June 1-5: Church Camp with speaker Joseph Kellog—
Full Week Camp - $147 (Scholarships available)
July 18: Youth Six Flags trip
August 1-8: National Fine Arts Festival Open only to
those students who advanced to the NFAF
August 15: Youth Sectional Rally at First A/G Rolla
August 22: “Engage the Campus Youth Rally” in St Louis
This fall First As-
sembly will begin offering
Junior Bible Quiz (JBQ).
JBQ was created and de-
signed to help children
develop a love for the
Bible and an understand-
ing that its truth can
guide their lives daily. JBQ offers a fun, exciting way to
motivate children to understand the all-important
truths in God's Word. Children will learn Bible content
and memorize scripture with their family at home and
at team practices. Then, through cooperative competi-
tion, the children meet with other teams for a fun quiz-
zing match. Children in kindergarten through sixth-
grade are eligible to participate in JBQ.
Participation in JBQ is a family commitment.
Learning the material together as a family provides
many opportunities for discipleship and is an excellent
way to organize family devotions. Parents can also
participate by coaching teams and helping at quiz
meets with scorekeeping & officiating. If you have any
questions or want more information, please contact
Erin Gibson (573-647-0840 or erinre-
UPCOMING GRADUATE RECOGNITIONS
this August. Out of those 22 students, 16 of them
have committed to attending this conference.
For those of you who were able to make it to
our Showcase in February, you were able to see how
hard our students have been working. Our Christian
Band, “Benevolence”, achieved the ‘Award of Merit’
with the highest score in the State of Missouri. Micah
Wells also received this award with her brass solo.
The Youth Leadership Team could not have been
more proud of our students.
The next step is Nationals in Orlando, Florida.
With that comes a great need, and I am here to ask
for your help. The cost of taking 16 students to Orlan-
do for a week is great. Every year our church takes
students to Nationals and we could never do it with-
out the generosity of our church family and for that,
we thank you. Each student will be responsible for
paying for a portion of his or her own trip. This way all
of them will work for this trip. We rely on donations
to offset the cost per each student. This year we have
made it easy to give with the “Envelope Fundraiser”
that you will see in the lobby of the church starting on
4/19. If you would like to give, please see a student
in the lobby and they will give you an envelope. You
may also designate ‘Fine Arts’ on your giving envelope
and put it in with your Sunday morning tithes and of-
ferings. All donations are tax deductible. If you have
any questions or thoughts please contact Pastor Ja-
son. Thank you!
Pastor Jason – Youth Pastor
(Continued from page 1)
JUNIOR BIBLE QUIZ COMING SOON!
PA
ST
OR
S &
ST
AF
F
Sam Parker After School Ministries &
Missions Director [email protected]
Karen Turner Administrative Assistant
Mark Berry Facility Manager
Pansy Bingham Business Administrator
Abby Swearingen Media Assistant
Chuck Whitmire Lead Pastor
Ray Cook Associate Pastor
Brian Feller Children’s Pastor
Jason Gibson Youth Pastor
1608 N Oak St Rolla MO 65401-2342
NON-PROFIT ORGANIZATION
U.S. POSTAGE PAID PERMIT #116 ROLLA, MO
JUSTIN AND LINDSAY DAVIS Spotlight family
25 YEARS A Celebration of Pastor Chuck and Annette’s Ministry
WILL HEAVEN BE BORING? Worldview FAQs
MISSIONS Teen Challenge Family Center, Minden, Louisiana