Easter Eggstravaganza
As we got in the car my wife, Nancy said, “We have the most incredible church ever!” We had just finished the Easter Eggstravaganza. Over 350 people braved the driving rain and thunder storm to collect eggs and watch people follow their Lord in believer’s baptism. What impressed Nancy so much was the amazing commitment and dedication of the dozens of volunteers who were soaked to the bone, yet still served with a “never-give-up” attitude.
The setup team got everything ready. The registration ladies signed people up and gave out bags to collect the eggs. The grillers grilled up over 500 hotdogs. The car parkers squeezed vehicles into the parking lot out front. The food crew collected all the side dishes and put them all out. The sno-cone people scooped ice for the endless line of shivering children. You get the idea. Everywhere you looked someone was pitching in to help. I was so proud of our church that day. In spite of the adversity, we had a great 17th birthday celebration!
Watching the kids stomp through the puddles and mud was precious. The rain was the furthest thing from their minds. They ran, they waded, they dove, they crawled. Their only mission: CANDY! Who knew the Easter egg bags we gave them would only last about 7 minutes when wet? As each child tried to acquire the allotted 40 plastic eggs, inevitably the bottom would fall out of the bag before they could make it to the finish line with their loot. Parents were forced to abandon the relative ‘dryness’ under their umbrellas and help scoop the eggs up. It truly became a family event. What a sight!

Eight People Baptized
Of course, the best part for me was seeing eight more people baptized. I just love our baptisms. This one was especially memorable. The clouds and rain did nothing to dampen the spirit of those adults and teenagers who took the plunge. I wish everyone could experience a baptism from up on the deck where I stood. I got to really watch what was going on as I held the umbrella for Pastor Rich. There is nothing like watching the faces of hundreds of believers as they rejoice and cheer when a fellow church member comes up out of the water. It was a baptism none of us will forget for a long time. I overheard someone say, “Well, we baptized eight people, but really everyone got sprinkled again.”

So Many Saved
The weeks leading up to and including Easter proved to be a time of tremendous harvest at Seminole. We saw thirty-five people pray to ask God to forgive them of their sins and accept Jesus as their personal Savior. Yea God! There were another nine people who rededicated their lives to following Christ. It is so great to be a part of a New Testament church that accepts people just the way they are and then loves them to Christ. Our whole purpose as a church is to lead people into a growing relationship with Jesus. God has sure been accomplishing that purpose through Seminole recently.

New Series
In the weeks to come I will be starting a new series on faith. We are going to look at the five things God uses to grow our faith. Most people realize it is God who draws people to himself and causes them to want to attend churches like ours. He is obviously the one who reveals to them how much he loves them and saves them. Did you know that God is also the one that grows our faith? Sometimes we get a little confused and think that it’s the church’s job to grow our faith. Actually, God grows our faith, not the church. He seems to use five things in our lives at different times in our lives to do it. Please come as much as you can the next six weeks as we discover together how God used these five things to grow perfect faith in us. These messages are too important to miss.

I want to thank everyone who made this Easter season possible. I am so thankful for each and every one of you. Our staff is grateful to serve you and serve along side of you. And I am so proud to be your pastor.

God Bless,

Pastor Jerry