Inclement Weather Plan

As we look ahead to the possibility of bad weather, here's a reminder of our inclement weather plan as it relates to our Sunday morning worship services.

Our preference is to wait as long as possible to see what the actual situation is rather than rely upon reports that might forecast the worst-case scenario.

When severe weather threatens, we'll decide whether to cancel our Sunday morning services by 8:30 a.m. on that morning.

Cancellation notifications will be posted on our website.

Since many who attend TCC come from a long distance, please use your discretion about your own local conditions as to whether it is best for you to come or not. We realize that just because conditions are fine in Athens, safe travel conditions may not exist where you are.

Pray weekly for our weekly services

Over the years, I've exhorted our church to be a praying church.

One of the times most important for our church to pray is as we head into our weekly Sunday service.

This is the one time each week when our church is gathered together. It provides us the opportunity, not only for corporate worship, but also mutual encouragement, fellowship, and even evangelism. These times need to be covered in prayer, and we should arrive on Sunday full of prayer.

My prayer life has greatly benefited by using prayer lists. I wanted to share with you a prayer list that I use for our Sunday service in hopes that you'll join me in concerted prayer for our Sunday gatherings.

The list isn't comprehensive, but these are 14 things I want to make sure I pray for. Each item begins with a prayer starter and includes a verse or two to set my heart on Scripture.

Download a copy of it and use it as-is or make your own list.

Regardless, I hope you'll join me in praying weekly for our weekly gatherings.

-PASTOR BOYD

How to Get Started with One-to-One Bible Reading

One way powerful and easy way to share the gospel with an unbeliever and introduce them to Christ is by reading the Bible with them evangelistically. This is called one-to-one Bible reading. As a church, we want to create a culture of outreach where we routinely invite people to "come and see" Jesus in the Scriptures. This is one way to do that

The following tips will help you get started in one-to-one Bible reading.

Step 1 - Pray

Pray that the Lord would open your eyes to see the people around you and give you the desire to engage them.

Pray for a burden for the lost and a zeal for the gospel.

Pray that God would bring someone into your life who is interested in learning more about Jesus and who would be willing to read the Gospel of John with you.

Pray the Lord would grant you Spirit-given boldness to ask someone to read John with you.

Step 2 - Ask

Once you've identified someone, simply ask something like, "Would you like to read the Gospel of John with me?"

Your friend might say no. That's ok. The fruit isn't ripe. Pray that the Lord would ripen the fruit in your friend's life and, meanwhile, pray you'd find someone else to read with you.

When someone says yes, pick a place where you can read together and have a discussion. If you don't know the person well, you might choose a public spot, like a coffee shop or the library. If you know them well, you might choose your living room.

I highly recommend that you keep the time to no more than an hour and set that expectation. If you let the time consistently go longer than that, commitment usually drops over time.

Remember: We have Gospel of John books available on our hospitality table each week for you to give to your friend who says yes.

Step 3 - Read

When you get together, spend a few minutes chatting and then get right into it. I recommend you organize your time as Prayer-Bible-Prayer.

Prayer
Open with a brief prayer, asking that the Lord would help you to understand and focus on the reading, that he would guide your discussion, and that his truth would be revealed.

Bible
Then simply read perhaps a chapter or two or three of the Gospel of John. You can take turns reading paragraphs or sections. Stop along the way if your friend has a question. Resist the urge to teach through the reading. Instead, let the word have its effect as it is read. At either the end of your reading or the end of each chapter, consider using the following questions to guide your discussion.

  • What does this passage say about Jesus?
  • What does this passage say about faith?
  • What does this passage require of us?

You can certainly use other questions, but by asking the same, basic questions each time, it will help your friend know what to expect and get in the habit of looking for answers to these questions during the reading. These questions will also help you routinely get to the gospel.

Prayer
Ask your friend if there is anything he or she would like you to pray for. Then pray, being sure to give God thanks for his Word, for discoveries made in the reading, for your time together, and for Jesus.

Have confidence that God's Word does not return void. For some, he gives new life. For some, he hardens their hearts. Our success is not measured by how many conversions we see in our lifetime. We are simply to be faithful to His command to share the good news of the gospel with the lost.

The 5/7 Plan

The first Bible reading plan anyone ever shared with me may be the best plan for developing a daily habit of Bible reading.

I learned it soon after I was saved as a college freshman, and it's called the 5/7 plan. The plan is to read the Bible for at least five minutes a day, seven days a week. This idea is deceptively simple, yet effective in making Bible reading a daily habit.

Here's the secret that everyone who daily reads the Bible knows: the hard part is getting started.

But with the 5/7 plan, the time commitment on the front end isn't large, so it's easy to get started. And everyone has five minutes to give in a day.

When I first tried it, something surprised me. As it turned out, that five minute period actually went by pretty fast and I ended up reading longer than five minutes. As I became consistent, I was increasingly eager to read the Bible and devoted more time to it.

Someone could object: "Five minutes isn't long enough!"

But here's the math: 5 > 0. Better to read something than nothing.

Just by starting, most people will read for longer than 5 minutes.

Here's one other benefit to the 5/7 plan that I didn't learn until later. By consistently reading each day, the amount of the Bible I could read over time was massive.

Average readers read between 200 to 300 words per minute. How long do you suppose it would take you to read the entire Bible every year at those speeds?

At 200 w.p.m., just under 11 minutes a day.

At 250 w.p.m., under 9 minutes a day.

At 300 w.p.m., about 7 minutes a day.

It's like a dripping faucet. Each drip doesn't amount to much. But come back later and the bucket will be filled.

In this way, I read the entire Bible for the first time in my life as an undergrad.

So if you haven't developed the habit of daily Bible reading, try the 5/7 plan. You'll be amazed at how easy it is and how much of the Bible you'll read.

Drip. Drip. Drip. . .

5 Tips for Jumping Back into Bible Reading

We're already one-quarter into the year. If your Bible reading has fallen off, here's five tips to jump back in.


1. Start anywhere you'd like.

For many people, starting in Genesis and working your way through Revelation won't be the best plan. Pick a book of the Bible you're interested in reading and begin reading there.


2. Keep a record of what you've read.

We all have favorite books in the Bible that we enjoy reading. That's great, but we also want to take in the whole counsel of God in all the Scriptures. To avoid reading the same books over and over again, keep a log of what you've read this year. I've been using this one from the Navigator's for nearly two decades.


3. Try listening while you read.

Does your mind ever wander as you read? One way to help stay focused is to listen to the Bible read as you read along. I especially like doing this with Old Testament narrative books. I use the ESV mobile app.

You'll notice that the app reads slower than what you can probably read. One trick I use is to speed up the audio. In the ESV app, I timed the Fast Speed at 250 words per minute, a pace that is still very easy to comprehend but keeps moving so that you'll stay with it.

One caution: as you listen, don't start doing something else (like checking your email). Have your Bible open and follow along. Your understanding of the text will increase, plus you'll learn how to say all those hard-to-pronounce names!


4. Make a plan, a place, and a space.

Without a plan, a place, and a space, the likelihood that you'll be consistent in Bible reading is slim. So, first, make a plan. Know before you go to bed what you'll be reading the next day. What chapter will you start with and where will you end? A Bible reading plan can be a great tool to help you read through the whole Bible regularly. 

Next, know before you go to bed when you'll be reading your Bible. In other words, make a space in your calendar. Treat it like a doctor's appointment. You won't cancel those appointments unless it's an emergency. So make a commitment. This is a time to read God's very words, after all.

Finally, make a space where you'll go to read. Know exactly where you plan to read. Is it a favorite chair? A coffee shop? A park? Decide now and put it in your calendar. If it's in your home, make the space free of distractions the night before (e.g., take the laundry off the chair!).


5. Start fresh every day.

Let's say yesterday you got off schedule and didn't read what you'd planned. Start fresh today. Forget about trying to make up readings. That gets discouraging. Just start right back in today with a clean slate. His mercies are new every morning (Lam. 3:22-23).

Keep at it. God has treasures stored in his word waiting for you to discover. Just imagine what he has in store for you as you read in 2016!

 

Resources to help you pray

During the sermon this morning, Pastor Boyd gave a list of a number of resources he uses to help him pray. The resources are linked below: 

Seven Things to Pray for Your Children - Desiring God

 9 Ways to Pray for Your Soul - Desiring God

What Should We Pray For? - Desiring God

 I Pray This For My Children - Dr. Greg Harris

A Sample Prayer Plan - Mike Riccardi (Cripplegate)

Praying with Paul - book by D.A. Carson

About Our Logo

TCC’s logo is designed around multiple chevrons, which imply movement.

The inner chevrons picture the church coming together and forming a cross to worship Jesus Christ, who gathered his people by dying on the cross for their sins.

The outer chevrons picture the church going out and telling others what Jesus has done (the gospel).

This idea of “gathering to scatter” or “come and see, then go and tell” is central to the vision of TCC.

The red color alludes to the passion of Christ.

The entire logo appears like a diamond jewel with the cross of Jesus at the center. In that sense, it fittingly portrays not only our name, but also that we are a church that treasures Christ. 

Pick Your Ministry

There's a lifetime of ministry in the one-anothers:

  • Prefer one another (Romans 12:10)
  • Be devoted to one another (Rom 12:10)
  • Be of the same mind with one another (Rom 12:16)
  • Do not judge one another (Rom 14:13)
  • Build up one another (Rom 14:19)
  • Accept one another (Rom 15:7)
  • Admonish one another (Rom 15:14)
  • Do not sue one another (1 Cor 6:7)
  • Do not deprive one another (1 Cor 7:5)
  • Care for one another (1 Cor 12:25)
  • Do not envy one another (Gal 5:26)
  • Be truthful to one another (Eph 4:25)
  • Be kind to one another (Eph 4:25)
  • Be subject to one another (Eph 5:21)
  • Regard one another (Phil 2:3)
  • Do not lie to one another (Col 3:9)
  • Bear with one another (Col 3:13)
  • Teach one another (Col 3:16)
  • Love one another (1 Thess 3:12)
  • Comfort one another (1 Thess 4:18)
  • Encourage one another (1 Thess 5:11)
  • Be at peace with one another (1 Thess 5:13)
  • Seek good for one another (1 Thess 5:15)
  • Pray for one another (1 Tim 2:1)
  • Encourage one another (Heb 10:24)
  • Do not slander one another (Jas 4:11)
  • Be hospitable to one another (1 Pet 4:9)
  • Serve one another (1 Pet 4:10)
  • Be humble to one another (1 Pet 5:5)
  • Greet one another (1 Pet 5:14)
  • Fellowship with one another (1 Jn 1:7)