Churches schedule homecoming services

CRESTVIEW — These churches have scheduled homecoming services:

Shady Grove Assembly of God Church celebrates its 94th annual homecoming 10 a.m. Oct. 2 with lunch served at noon. Glory Bound, a group from Pensacola, will provide singing for the event, and the guest speaker is Craig Hicks, West Florida District youth director. Call 537-2774 for more information.

First Baptist Church of Milligan's homecoming service is 11 a.m. Oct. 2 at 5238 Old River Road, Milligan. A potluck dinner will follow the service in the fellowship hall. Brother Richard Martin will deliver the message. Past and present members may attend.

Brother Mike McVay and the congregation of First Baptist Church of Laurel Hill will have a homecoming service 9:45 a.m. Oct. 9 with Bible study, followed by worship at 11 a.m. and dinner on the grounds at noon. The guest speaker is Brother Bud Doctor. The Gospel group Sound and Spirit will sing at 5 p.m.

The Svea Assembly of God Church homecoming is 10 a.m. Oct. 16 at 4638 Grimes Road, Laurel Hill. Sound and Spirit with Carol Rogers will provide singing. A guest speaker and lunch will follow.

Women’s ministry to honor cancer survivors

CRESTVIEW — The Women Walking in Ministry Quarterly Conference is scheduled for 10 a.m. Oct. 8 at Kingdom Life Worship and Training Center, 798 Martin Luther King Jr. Blvd., Crestview.

The guest speaker is Prophet Rae Moffitt. Also attending are guest Dance Minister Barbara Qxendine and guest Psalmist Stephanie Mills.

In recognition of Breast Cancer Month, the event will include a celebration of all attendees who have survived cancer.

This article originally appeared on Crestview News Bulletin: Homecoming services, cancer survivors celebration scheduled

The fall season has arrived. Football games are in abundance — whether high school, college, professional, NFL or CFL. People cheer for their favorite team and hold long prejudices against certain others.

Presidential campaigns stir up people’s ire.

Racial tensions seem to continue to increase in certain parts of our nation.

The gap between the wealthy and the poor seems to widen.

Much divides us as a nation, much divides us within the Body of Christ and much divides us even within the human race.

Yes, there are differences among people: the color of skin, the color of hair, the color of eyes, language, religious beliefs, political positions — the list goes on.

But do those differences mean we must avoid people who are different?

Do they mean we must hate other persons because they are different?

Absolutely not!

It is human nature to want to get rid of or destroy anything different from oneself. Yet, when you read the Bible, you find it calls us to fight against our human tendencies and strive for the ways of God.

I do not believe the divisions we impose on ourselves or others are how God intends for us to live. As I recall, the apostle Paul said it quite well: “There is no longer Jew or Greek, there is no longer slave or free, there is no longer male and female; for all of you are one in Christ Jesus.” (Galatians 3:28)

God created all persons. God calls us to be one in Christ Jesus.

How well do you play your part in striving for unity — even when you disagree with another person?

How well do you look past the differences of another person to recognize that person as a creation of God?

What would happen, do you suppose, if you treated everyone the way you desire to be treated? Jesus put it this way: “Do to others as you desire others to do to you.”

If you want to be loved and respected, you need to treat others with love and respect.

If you want to be treated with kindness, you need to treat others with kindness.

If you want people to be generous with you, you need to be generous with others.

See how it works? You get what you give. (Jesus said something about that, too!)

Look at your own life. Where are you falling short in recognizing and accepting differences with the people around you? Are you willing to let there be unity even in diversity?

Not everyone is the same. We were not created to be, either.

It is time to be filled with courage to accept the possibility of rejection as you reach out to someone. They may have been too hurt to trust you.

But with gentle persistence, you will be a tremendous witness for our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ.

The Rev. Mark Broadhead is pastor at Laurel Hill Presbyterian Church and First Presbyterian Church of Crestview.

This article originally appeared on Crestview News Bulletin: Let there be unity amid diversity

CRESTVIEW — A youth block party is scheduled for 4-7 p.m. Oct. 8 along the entire block of Industrial Drive.

The Belief Foundation will host the event, which features live performances from DJ AJ, Great Faith Ministries saxophonist Jordan Chalden and Toni Taylor. Food, music and raffles also are parts of the event.

The foundation’s members mentor at-risk middle and high school students in Crestview. Caring adult volunteers pair with youths as part of a support system.

See www.belieffoundation.org for more information about the foundation.

This article originally appeared on Crestview News Bulletin: Crestview youth block party scheduled

CRESTVIEW — These churches have scheduled homecoming services:

• Shady Grove Assembly of God Church celebrates its 94th annual homecoming 10 a.m. Oct. 2 with lunch served at noon. Glory Bound, a group from Pensacola, will provide singing for the event, and the guest speaker is Craig Hicks, West Florida District youth director. For more information call 537-2774.
• First Baptist Church of Milligan's homecoming service is 11 a.m. Oct. 2 at 5238 Old River Road, Milligan. A potluck dinner will be served after the service in the fellowship hall. Brother Richard Martin will deliver the message. Past and present members may attend.
• Brother Mike McVay and the congregation of First Baptist Church of Laurel Hill will have a homecoming service 9:45 a.m. Oct. 9 with Bible study, followed by worship at 11 a.m. and dinner on the grounds at noon. The guest speaker is Brother Bud Doctor. The Gospel group Sound and Spirit will sing at 5 p.m.

This article originally appeared on Crestview News Bulletin: 3 North Okaloosa churches set homecoming services

CRESTVIEW — A Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints mission group recently left its Fort Walton Beach Stake headquarters and headed to Hammond, La., with a variety of tools and lots of determination.

The stake encompasses Crestview, Destin, Fort Walton Beach, Niceville, DeFuniak Springs and Baker members.

The crew, wearing bright yellow “Mormon Helping Hands” T-shirts, visited flooded homes and tore out wet carpets, Sheetrock and furniture. They gathered personal and sentimental belongings and cleaned moldy, smelly refrigerators.

Women and youngsters 12 years of age and up joined in the effort.

Stake presidents Mike Roberts, a doctor practicing in Niceville, and Craig Miller, Niceville High School assistant principal, pitched in to lead one of the work crews.

“There were 145 workers and 14 teams that came from our stake to help with the cleanup efforts in Louisiana,” an event spokesperson said. “Altogether, roughly 4,600 members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints gave 1,860 hours of volunteer work in Louisiana with the Mormon Helping Hands Flood Relief Effort.”

The experience particularly touched Roberts, a Crestview resident who has family in Baton Rouge.

"We lived in New Orleans the first few years of our marriage and had the experience with our members getting flooded and our car being smashed by a falling tree," his wife, Ingrid, said. "He was born and raised and went to college in Louisiana, so he has a special love for the area.

“The people there are so humble and generous. We hope they recover from this tragedy quickly and we were so grateful to be able to help!”

Roberts’ team included people from Florida, Louisiana, Texas, Washington and Utah.

In addition to onsite labor, the Fort Walton Beach Relief Society collected and sent items such as diapers, wipes, insect repellent, first aid and cleaning supplies.

Semiautomatic trucks loaded with supplies for personal use and tools for cleanup arrived in Covington from the Bishop’s Storehouse in Atlanta (run by the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints) after Gov. John Bel Edwards asked faith-based organizations to help flood victims.

9,400 Mormon Helping Hands volunteers from six states sorted through blankets, clothes, food and other supplies, getting them ready for flood victims.

More trucks are on the way.

This article originally appeared on Crestview News Bulletin: North Okaloosa LDS members aid Louisiana residents

CRESTVIEW — Act4Murder will present dinner theater to benefit a local church.

"Bebopped at the Sock Hop" will take you back to the ’50s and a sock hop with more twists and turns than Elvis himself.

The event, a fundraiser supporting youths' activities at Life Tabernacle Church in Crestview, is 7 p.m. Oct. 15 at the church, 3136 Pinewoods Drive.

Doors open at 6:30 p.m. with a buffet and show at 7 p.m.

Tickets cost $40 for adults. The fee includes a meal and the show, as well as a raffle ticket.

Call 826-1828 to purchase tickets. Visit www.act4murder.com for additional show night details.

This article originally appeared on Crestview News Bulletin: Act4Murder event benefits Crestview church