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Class Christmas Party Schedule
Below is a helpful reference for all the scheduled Class Christmas fellowships this season.
November 20: Adopted Students/Families, 6:30pm
December 2: Preschoolers, 10am
December 2: Deacons and Wives, 6:30pm
December 3: Church-wide Reception following Choir Christmas Musical
December 4: College
December 8: Adult 4, 6:30pm
December 9: Choir
December 11: Pacemakers, 11:30am
December 13: Youth, 6:30pm
December 16: Adult 3, 5:00pm
December 16: Adult 2, 6:30pm
Seeking Rest
Ryan Trask
John 15:4; Matthew 11:28
Why the God-Man
Dr. Leroy Kemp
December Creekside Overflow
The December edition of Creekside Overflow (our church newsletter) is now available.
When God Calms the Storm
Dr. Trey Turner
Matthew 8:23-27
Some thoughts on the Valley Mission Funds Investigation
I have a general perspective of the investigation and questions raised by Texas Baptists regarding the misappropriation of the mission funds by a few individuals in the Valley. I realize it has stirred feelings of distrust between the Valley Christians and other Texas Baptists. Equally, those who live in the Valley do not want people to disassociate with mission work where there is such an opportunity being taken to the Glory of God. With the revelations of wrongdoing the newly formed Executive Board was tested as to its oversight function. I must also recognize that the extent of such misconduct was only seen when the $150K investigation was completed. Some have not been happy about the length of time Charles Wade and his the administration of the BGCT took to respond to alegations and when they did respond, they alienated pastors in the Valley who have complained to the BGCT for years regarding these men and their methods. As an executive board member, I am extremely disappointed in the way these pastors were cut off from the BGCT administration and how their complaints were staved by E.B. Brooks. We have the benefit of hindsight and investigation. I am willing to give Charles Wade the opportunity to right the wrongs which have been done and believe that he is able to build bridges to these churches again.
As an executive board member, I do not believe that I am shirking my responsibilities by the actions we took at convention this week. David Montoya and others believe that by saying that we are going to pursue civil action if deemed appropriate by legal counsel and executive decision, we are in fact protecting the secrets and giving an out. If the BGCT commits to criminal and civil action, we will not be able to make necessary decisions to restore relatioships in the Valley. This will be impossible if done from the floor of the convention which meets once a year. Similarly, this work would not be able to be done by the Executive Board month-to-month. Instead, responsibility is placed on Charles Wade to implement the motions which were made by the Board. First, an oversight group of board members will see that the investigators recommendations are implemented and followed. Second, the church starting guidelines are raised to policy level. Third, the audit committee begin an internal audit function. Fourth, with proper counsel, work to recover funds misused or misappropriated by those listed in the October 31st report. Fifth, refer the findings of the October 31st report to appropriate investigatory bodies. These things will be done and reported on at the next board meeting.
It was not reported, but Dr. Wade said that if these matters were not dealt with by the next board meeting, the Executive Board “would not have to ask for his resignation.”
I know that for David Montoya, anything less than Charles Wade’s head on a platter was a failure. I do not call these actions failure. Likewise, his motion to insert a phrase in the BGCT constitution saying somehow in his mind protecting the convention in session from the power of the Excutive Board is a misunderstanding of our polity. The Convention in session is the only convention we have. The Executive Board acts under the authority of the BGCT convention. That is the only recognized convention. It seemed that since David Montoya did not have is motions accepted by the convention, it was an injustce. This is simply false. Time will show that what was done at the BGCT November 2006 does not show the work of a sick convention, but a healthy, functioning, and Baptist action.
November Newsletter
The November edition of the Creekside Overflow (newsletter) is now available.
Ramblings of an EM
Do people really need Sunday School anymore?
In this day and age where bible study is at our finger tips, I really wonder. You can go to store and get all the bible studies you want — marriage, parenting, singleness, senior adultness, teen help, preteen help, particular books of the bible, Beth Moore, Henry Blackaby. You can wonderful books by standard Christian writers like Charles Stanley and John MacArthur, by edgy writers like Rob Bell and Donald Miller, and the list goes on and on.
Do people really need to come and sit through one more bible study on the meaning of the temple in the book of Hebrews? Or, the difference between justification, sanctification, and glorification? Or, whether or not….you insert the latest buzzword or fashionable tip for Christian living?
I think what frustrates me is when people live on the surface. You don’t know me and I don’t know you. We smile, shake hands, give a hug, share prayer requests about a friend’s aunt who just found out she has cancer, open the word, learn a few things, forget a few things, pat one another on the back, and go live our lives only to return again to repeat the same process.
Is this really helpful? Is it really needed?
If Sunday School is how I described above, then it is a waste of my time and yours. I know, I know, when the Word of God goes out, it does not return void. I am not talking about that.
We are strongly isolated from one another. I don’t know how it got this way, or maybe it has always been this way. Maybe the glory days of the 50s were all a facade as well. Believe me, I am not looking for feely, feely, gushy, gushy kum bay ya moment. I simply do not see people being real with one another. I don’t see that people really like each other. And I really don’t see people accept one from the outside all that often. We prefer to stay isolated. It’s comfortable. It’s cozy. It’s easy. It takes no effort. We are tired because we are so busy. We have no energy because we don’t take care of ourselves. And we carry this into our Sunday morning experience.
I cannot speak for anyone else. And really don’t want this blog to frustrate you or hurt you because despite knowing better, I do care what others think about me. I want people to like me and I don’t want to disappoint anyone.
I cannot speak for anyone else. But I do know that I need to be real with people. I need to show my hurts, my failures, my successes, my dreams. Before you go thinking that I am on some ego, narcissistic rant….I am simply talking about laying my life bare before everyone, God and people included. And I wish others would do the same.
If Sunday School were like this. Then yes, I would say that it is not only needed, I would say that it is vital. More than vital. Whatever word could be used to describe more than vital would be a good one to use here. Sunday School should be a can’t miss opportunity. Jesus laid bare his life to all mankind. I wonder if we shouldn’t do the same.
In light of what I just said, I invite you to struggle along with me.
Website Updates
We’ve made some updates to the website in the last week we thought would be worth mentioning. 
First, we’ve made it easier to get from one part of the site to any other through the drop-down menu just under the logo on each page. We also “widened” the page, so it should be easier to read on most computer monitors.
We’ve added a “What’s New” section at the bottom of the home page so you can see the latest activity at a glance. And for those of you who prefer email to RSS, you can now subcribe to The Creek and have the latest content delivered directly to your inbox!
In the interaction deptartment, we’ve finally enabled comments on the News posts, so you can be a part of the discussion. There’s also a link at the bottom of every News entry to send the article to a friend (and maybe invite them to The Creek)!
Hopefully, these changes will make the site more useful (and pleasant) for you as you take a look around The Creek. As always, please drop a line to the Webmaster if you have any comments (or complaints) about the site, or just want to say Hi
Pastor’s first blog
In today’s message I talked from my heart about the direction the staff has been working. It is not a secret to the church, but all the details are not fleshed out for function. My ideal is for each person know where they are in our church and be able to state it clearly and describe what they are doing to grow. For many it will be how they are bringing others along in that process. CREEK identifies where people are and
FLOWS describes the church’s responsibility to them. Ephesians 4:11-12 and 2 Tim 2:2 tells the leaders responsibilities for discipling people and moving them toward maturity in Christ. I will move our staff toward putting the infrastructure in place so that FLOWS will function at the Creek.
Here is a description of where people are with the responsibilities of the church toward them below that description:
C. Community
F. Find them wherever they are
R. Reached (in an event, we have person's name)
L. Love them into the body
E. Enlisted (in a small group)
O. Organize them for growth
E. Equipped (for a service)
W. Weave them into service
K. Kingdom Builder (creating opportunities for others to grow and develop)
S. Send them to find them
Dr. Abraham Sarker
December 10th, Dr. Abraham Sarker will be speaking to our church as an emphasis for International missions. He started [Gospel for Muslims](http://www.gospelformuslims.com/), a ministry to and about ministry within the Islamic culture. Their vision is to bring the Gospel of Jesus Christ to the more than 1.3 billion Muslims worldwide is based upon the biblical mandate for missions found in the Great Commission in Matthew 28:18-20
Dr. Sarker has these words to say about his history:
I was born into a devout Muslim home in Bangladesh, the third largest Islamic nation in the world. Son of a prominent Islamic leader and an Islamic schoolteacher, as a young Muslim boy I was instilled with a great devotion to Allah and a love for the beauty and poetic grace of my culture.
However, a sudden astounding, uncanny dream from God commenced my journey toward Christianity. A few years later I left my home country and came to the United States to share my Islamic faith with American people. Here I found the answer to my fears and insecurities, and the assurance of my salvation—through a relationship with Jesus Christ.
Read the rest of this entry »
C.R.E.E.K.
Dr. Trey Turner
Romans 1:16; Esther 4:14
Lakeside Service Pictures
Last month, The Creek met at the lake one Sunday afternoon and had a great time all around. Naturally, there was a camera there, and those pictures finally [found their way to our website](http://www.creekfamily.org/photos/main.php?g2_itemId=602)!
The Lord’s Supper
Dr. Trey Turner