Welcome to Church!
As we gather for worship this weekend, I want to make sure you know how grateful we are that you have joined us. It's a blessing to worship, pray, and serve alongside friends and neighbors.
If you have attended church before, you know every church is unique. Some of the things that we hope you will notice about us are first, the priority we give to the Scriptures, not just in worship, but in all things related to God and our relationship with HIm; also, we are committed to being a blessing to every person, representing Christ in our community, and we seek to follow God as he guides and empowers our daily lives through the Holy Spirit. We believe these are essential to our calling to be His church here in Rock Hall.
Today we continue a study of the book of Acts. We look at a man named Stephen and are drawn to his faith driven ministry. We see in Stephen an inspirational life, a life of deep commitment that God makes available to his disciples in order to build His Kingdom. Lets see how we can develop this same deep commitment in our lives.
After the service, take a few minutes to engage friends and neighbors in conversation, or spend some time in prayer. We hope you find our church and church family is not just a place of worship but a community of support and love.
Thank you for being a part of our family today. My prayer is that our time together in worship would be a source of inspiration, reflection, and connection in your relationship with Jesus. If you have any questions or want to discuss your faith journey, please don’t hesitate to contact me directly. My office telephone is 410-639-2144, or email me at the address below.
Richest Blessings!
Pastor Gary Priddy
Order of Worship:
Welcome Prayer of Adoration
Opening Worship Prayer of Confession
Prayers of the People
Message
A Picture of Deep Commitment
Acts 6:8-15
Pastor Gary Priddy
Next Steps
Find practical ways you can take a first “next step” in your faith journey on our website.
Just go to nextsteps.yourrhc.com.
Benediction
Life is much more than an accident. Wherever I go, I believe God needs me there. Wherever I am, I trust God has put me there. He has a purpose for me being there -
Christ, alive in me, wants to do something through me, no matter where I am.
I believe this and go in His grace and His love and His power.
If you would like someone to pray with you, please come and meet one of our ministry leaders at the end of the service.
Songs for Worship
Wesley Chapel
Jesus Calls Us
I Need Thee Every Hour
Take Time to Be Holy
Rock Hall Church
Same Power
How Deep the Father’s Love
Psalm 23 - Surely Goodness
Message Text
Acts 15: Stephen: A Picture of Deep Commitment
Acts 6:8–15
A Disciple’s Commitment is Personal
Matthew 20:28, Galatians 5:13
We are never closer to Christ than when we are SERVING , and we are never FURTHER from Christ than when we are expecting to be SERVED .
A Disciple’s Commitment is Zealous
Romans 12:11, Colossians 3:23–24
Ministry is not an OPTION in the disciple’s life; it IS the Disciple’s life.
A Disciple’s Commitment is Exhausting
Proverbs 3:5-6, Matthew 11:28-30
Safest place to be is in the CENTER of God’s will
Move to Jesus
Changed by Jesus
On mission with Jesus
Take it Home:
What does it mean for you to deny yourself, take up your cross daily, and follow Jesus?
What social costs might you have to pay for following Jesus?
What injustices might you experience for following Christ?
What type of wrongs did Stephen and Jesus experience?
How does the Holy Spirit empower us to follow Jesus?
What does it mean to be full of the Holy Spirit?
What 2* Change can you make this week?
How can we seek more of the Holy Spirit?
How can you deepen your prayer life?
How might Jesus change you as you follow him?
Will you follow Jesus?
This Week's Announcements:
SIGN UP NOW to join us for a daily Wake-Up Call.
Wake-Up Call provides a daily encouragement to shake off the slumber of our busy lives and turn our eyes toward Jesus. Each morning our community gathers around a Scripture, a reflection, a prayer, and a few short questions, inviting us to reorient our lives around the love of Jesus who transforms our hearts, homes, churches, and cities.
Click HERE to sign up.
Meet with Pastor Gary Do you have a question or issue you need to discuss? Pastor Gary is available for pastoral counseling with individuals and couples To schedule, just Click “Meet with Pastor Gary” on our website
Prayer Request Policy Change In order to maintain a more current prayer list, we provide a copy of this past week’s prayer requests. Submit prayer requests using the prayer request cards in the pews or the digital prayer request form on our website: pray.yourrhc.com Please make sure you have permission to share other’s information.
Current Prayer Requests
Our children and youth ministries
Caregivers and first responders
People of Ukraine
Our nation’s leaders
Healing of our nation
Israel and the Middle East
People battling addictions
Single parents and their kids
Pastor Gary and family
Dickie & Bettie Porter
Frank & Mariann Dulin
Elmer Gustafson
Marge Kelley
Rick Reedy
Sandy Scanlan
Pastor Kenny Hickman
Pastor Bill Carroll
Family of Rosemary Elburn
Cricket Hayes (PG’s Mom)
Kat Fithian
Jean Spence
Patricia Brown
Pastor David Kelley
Joyce Christian
Emma Eller
Dean Wood
Christine Weber
Active Military & their families including:
Trevion Hopkins
Kyle Schauber
Brock Willey
Makenzie Williams
Steve McCarthy
Tristan Hague
Dakota Collison
Geoffrey Andersen
John Pettit
Jonathan Conner
Dante Spagnolo
Homebound:
Phyllis Dierker
Jackie Price Williams
Edna Cox
This week's prayer focus:
Join us in focused and specific prayer for our church, our community, and our world. Be prepared to see God do great things as we collectively turn to Him in prayer.
Sunday - Our Mission: God, let Your church be a light in our community and world. Matthew 5:16
Monday - Our Church: God, bring unity to the Body of Christ. John 17:20-23
Tuesday - Our Leadership: God, help our worship leaders and musicians lead us before Your throne in a spirit of worship. Psalm 33:3
Wednesday - Families: God, help our families faithfully follow Your commands. John 14:15
Thursday - Our Community: God, soften the hearts of the lost in our community, show them your light. John 3:16-18
Friday - Children/Youth: God, change the world through our young people rather than letting the world change them. Romans 12:2
Saturday - Adults: God, enable our adults to live lives of faithfulness to You and perseverance to the end. Hebrews 12:1-3
This week’s events:
Sunday
9:30 am - Weekend Worship @WC
11:00 am - Weekend Worship @RHMC
Monday
11:30 The Chosen @RH Church Hall
6:30 pm - Women’s Bible Study Small Group @The Robbin’s
Tuesday
7:00 pm - Bible Study Small Group @RHMC Hall
Wednesday
Day of Prayer - Sanctuaries are open all day for prayer.
3:30 pm - Rock Solid Kids after School @RHMC Hall
6:00 pm - Family Dinner @RHMC Hall
6:30 pm - Youth Group @RHMC Hall
Thursday
7:00 pm - Worship Team Practice @RHMC
Sunday
10:00 am - Combined Weekend Worship @RHMC
- Church Conference
Sunday, January 28th
Vote to approve merger of Wesley Chapel and Rock Hall Church
WCMC - Wesley Chapel Methodist Church
RHMC - Rock Hall Methodist Church
