From The Pastor 9.01.10
09/01/10
Dr. John Brock
I like September! It means the hot weather is just about over and a new football season is officially here. I like both of those things and when you put them together, life doesn't get much better. This September is even more special for our family. On Saturday, September 4, my parents will celebrate their 50th wedding anniversary. They have been such a blessing and an inspiration to so many people. In these days of failing commitment and disposable relationships, when families die every day, I am thankful that the people who have influenced my life the most have been role models of faithfulness, commitment and endurance. Thanks Mom and Dad for walking out the truth of God-honoring commitment and letting Christ be your "hope of glory." Charman, Elizabeth, Johnathan and I love you very much.
From The Pastor 8.01.10
07/29/10
Dr. John Brock
AUGUST promises to be one of the most exciting months of our year. Let me tell you why. FRIEND DAY will be August 29.You will be hearing more and more about this in the weeks leading up to that day, but here is the bottom line.August 29 could be a day your friend(s) could remember for all of eternity. Be praying about who the Lord wants you to invite.I can't promise you your friends will accept Christ as their Savior that day. I can promise you they will hear the gospel clearly presented and be given an opportunity. I can't promise you your friends will get connected to the Highland family. I can promise you they will be welcomed warmly and given the chance to make an initial connection. Please make FRIEND DAY a matter of high priority as you pray.
From The Pastor 7.01.10
07/20/10
Dr. John Brock
July is going to be a great month at Highland. Here are some of the things we have to look forward to. First, on Sunday night, July 11, we will have our first Starting Point. This is designed to be a class/fellowship for new and prospective members of the Highland family. Please make your plans to join us if you have joined Highland within the last 18 months or if you are considering it. Starting Point will help you get to know Highland in a deeper way.
From The Pastor 7.08.10
07/08/10
Dr. John Brock
After having to postpone their original visit, I am pleased to remind you that Allen and Julie Tate will be with us this Sunday, July 11. It is the unanimous recommendation of our Personnel Committee that we extend a call to Allen to serve as our Minister to College Students and Young Singles. In our Deacons’ meeting on Sunday, June 20, that recommendation received the unanimous endorsement of our Deacon body. I am very excited that you will finally get to meet this awesome young couple.
From The Pastor 6.03.10
06/03/10
Dr. John Brock
This month, we are celebrating a major milestone. Bro. Chris has been on our staff for 20 years. God has blessed Highland beyond measure by leaving him here for two decades. He has invested his life in this church family and God has used him mightily. It has been my joy to share the journey with him and he has added so much value to my life and ministry over the years. I know that he has been a blessing to many of you and that you will want to help celebrate his anniversary. On Sunday night, June 6, there will be a reception in his honor at 7:00 PM immediately following our evening service. In the days between now and then, you will receive a letter from me with details about the celebration and about how you can express your love in tangible ways. Please mark your calendar and plan to join us as we celebrate Bro Chris, Kelly and the girls.
From The Pastor 5.01.10
05/01/10
Dr. John Brock
May 2010 is here and it promises to be a busy but wonderful month. There will be graduations, weddings, and special days abounding this month. Let me take this opportunity to draw your attention to two or three things. Thursday, May 6 is the National Day of Prayer. Some have expressed concerns over the rumors that President Obama has canceled the NDP. Let me encourage you not to worry too much about that possibility. The most he can do is remove any official Washington sanctions and choose not to participate himself. If that is true, it is indeed a shame and a disgrace. However, The National Day of Prayer Task Force chaired by Shirley Dobson (The wife of Dr. James Dobson) is the organization that mobilizes believers to get involved. It is not something the president does nor anything he can stop. He cannot stop believers from joining our hearts together on that day or any other day to intercede for our nation. I made this statement in May's TIE article last year....
From The Pastor 04.01.10
04/01/10
Dr. John Brock
EASTER is here. On April 4th , we will join with our brothers and sisters all over the world to celebrate the risen Lord Jesus. He is alive and, because He is, we live. That is worth the grandest celebration of all. Please remember that on Easter Sunday, we are expecting company. In addition to the Highland family and all of the guests we normally have, we have personally delivered invitations to almost 10,000 homes. Let me say it again. Company is coming. Many of those in the house on that day will be people with no personal relationship to Christ and no church home. We must be sure we greet them warmly and make them feel welcome. Our guests need to always experience the love of the Lord Jesus and the warmth of His people when they walk onto our campus. On a day when we are expecting so many of them, we must be even more careful and diligent to insure that happens.
From The Pastor 03.01.10
03/02/10
Dr. John Brock
Welcome to March! I believe this month has the potential to be a new beginning for the Highland Family. For the last two weeks, we've been talking about The Power of One. We have one Lord, one love and one life. This year, I'm praying that - if nothing else happens - the Holy Spirit will light a fire in each of us that will burn with a "white-hot" love for our Savior.
From The Pastor 02.01.10
02/01/10
In the month of February, you will begin hearing us talk about “the power of one.” That phrase will be our theme for the remainder of 2010. We will be explaining it to you and calling you to embrace it as February unfolds. For now, let me just say this, “never underestimate THE POWER OF ONE.” I covet your prayers as I travel to the African nation of Botswana on February 4. I am going with Dr. Terry Herald, Executive Pastor at Whitesburg Baptist, and Dr. Phil Roberts, President of Mid-western Baptist Theological Seminary. Although I will be preaching on that Sunday, this is primarily a vision trip to explore some strategic ministry opportunities and – hopefully – establish a longterm partnership. We will be examining two needs that exist in Botswana – establishing theological education for their pastors and helping a church in the capital city establish an ongoing sports and recreation ministry. Please pray for safety in travel and for our efforts to be productive for the Kingdom.
From The Pastor 01.01.10
01/01/10
Dr. John Brock
January means the beginning of 2010. As we enter a brand new year, my prayer is that this will be a year of great forward momentum for us. I am praying that we will grow and change, stretch and reach, and rise to meet every challenge the Lord sets before us in this New Year. Easter Sunday is April 4. I mention that to you now - three months out - because we are already praying and planning for it to be the greatest harvest day we've had in a long time. If you were here the night Bro. Sammy preached in July, you heard him talk about GPS - God's Plan for Sharing.
The Trinity Explained
08/12/09
Dr. John Brock
In preparing for our Questions series, we got some questions that I wanted to avoid like the proverbial head-cold. There weren’t many I wanted to avoid more than I wanted to dodge this one. It is very hard to comprehend the Trinity, how do you explain to your child that Jesus and God are one, but Jesus sits on the right hand of God? Don’t you people have any easy questions on your mind? Couldn’t you have asked about the transubstantiation / consubstantiation views of the Lord’s Supper? It would have been easier than this one. In fact, my first response when I read it was, “good luck with that – let me know how it turns out.” However, I’ve made a commitment and a conscious effort not to avoid the tough questions so here goes.
Does the Bible seem to contradict itself in regard to women?
08/05/09
Dr. John Brock
Thank you for coming back to read this “Questions” blog and for your patience with the pastor who has been quite inconsistent in writing new entries. Today, I want to answer a cluster of questions. Here they are exactly as submitted: “Why does the Bible seem to contradict itself in regard to women? We are told that women are equal partners, and that there is no man or woman in God's eyes, but still women were not allowed to speak at meetings, they are required to submit to their husbands, must wear head coverings to show their submission, must not wear jewelry or have fancy clothes or hair. At the same time, Jesus spent a good amount of time with women during his ministry on earth (are they apostles too), Phoebe was a deacon (Rom 16:1), the church met in Nympha's house (Colossians 4:15) etc.”
"Who has the authority to baptize new members in our church?"
06/22/09
Dr. John Brock
Thank you for your response to the first installment of the “Questions” series and the first blog. I’m sorry to be so late in the week posting this second installment, but with Vacation Bible School and some other distractions last week, it was difficult to get everything done. Well, here is the question of the day exactly as it was submitted (with minor corrections – I can’t help myself – I’m married to an English teacher).
"What ever happened to the good old foot stomping music?"
06/11/09
Dr. John Brock
Welcome to the new “Questions” blog. This summer, I am preaching a series of messages designed to answer questions about God, the Bible, Christianity, the church, or how any of those things connect with the issues of the day. The good news is that our congregation submitted many excellent questions in the weeks leading up to the start of the series and I am grateful for their participation in the process. The bad news is they submitted more questions than we have Sundays to answer them. So, the idea behind this blog is to answer some of them that won’t make it into a Sunday morning sermon.
