Our little dude is ready for school

Here is the Fullertown 2nd grader.  He has done really well in school so far.  We are so proud of his maturity and drive to do his homework and soak up all that he is being taught.  Although his work load is very tough along with all of his church activities and sports, he is balancing it all very well.  We are so excited about his 2nd grade year.

Our School Girl

This is a picture of our Anna Brooke as she stands outside on the edge of the front porch this morning.  She looks so adorable in her school girl dress.  She is really enjoying school and loves to tell us all about her new friends each evening.  We are so thankful that Kindergarten has been such a success so far for her. 

Our Second Grader

Our Luke man started 2nd Grade yesterday.  He was really excited to see his friends and go to school so that he could hang out with Mr. Hewitt, his really cool P.E. teacher.  He was also excited to show off his new DUKE backpack.  Here is a picture of our handsome man before leaving home on the first day of school.

Our Kindergarten Girl

Anna Brooke started Kindergarten yesterday.  It is so hard to believe that she is 5 years old now.  Time indeed does fly by.  She has had a great 2 first days of school.  She is talking nonstop about all that she has done and all of her new friends.  We are so proud of her.  This is a picture of her before her first day in the foyer as we were about to leave home at 7 am.  Look at our beautiful girl.

Prayer makes a difference

Here we are having our prayer time.  Mommy zoomed in on us from the kitchen as she was washing our breakfast dishes.  When I saw this picture later today, I was brought to tears by it.  It reminds me of the important role prayer has in our lives.  Each morning before school, we pray for our teachers, fellow students, and ourselves so that we can have the best day possible.  Today was a great day for Luke and Anna Brooke and I honestly credit that to our prayer time and God's blessings when we pray.  Thank you JESUS for allowing us to talk to you each morning.

Our Morning Bible Reading

A couple of years ago, the Lord gave me an idea that has really blessed our devotion time here at Fullertown.  Since there are 180 days of school each year, we read one psalm a day and then one proverb a day throughout the school year.  Today was the first day of school so we read Psalm 1 just like we have done the past couple of years since Luke started school.  This is such a special time for us each morning as we enjoy beginning our day with God.

LUKE THE PREACHER

Luke reminded me recently that he was still planning to be a preacher when he grows up.  This relaly blesses my heart although I know that could change in the years to come.  I reacently found this picture of him after church 5 months ago.  Here he is behind the pulpit preaching away.  What a great reminder of what could be in his future.

God Answers Prayer! YES HE DOES!

Today was a very busy Friday.  Although it was my day off, I spent most of the morning working with several appointments.  It was all very productive and I am thankful for the opportunity to serve our Lord.  This afternoon, I went to the kids school after receiving a request from one of the leaders that they needed my help this afternoon.  As I walked in, I was greeted by Luke's kindergarten teacher in the office who immediately came up to me and said, "have you heard the great news?" I responded with a response of wonder because I had no clue what she was talking about.  Then she started jumpin up and down with a large smile and said, "We jus tgot our class roster and found out that Anna Brooke is going to be in our class!" It really blessed me to see the enthusiasm on her face.  Then she said, "Tell Mrs. Laura she will certainly be asked to be our room mom again like she was 2 years ago."

This was such a compliment and blessing to our family because we have prayed that Anna Brooke would have this teacher.  Then, after volunteering for a couple of hours, I came home and we received our code on the phone tree to go on the school site to find out who Luke's teacher was. As we looked, we were so blessed to find out that he is getting the teacher of our choice too! WOW, GOD IS SO GOOD!

We have prayed about this because we realize that a childs teacher makes all the difference in their life and the legacy they will live out.  Thank you JESUS for answering our prayers.  JESUS, you made our day at Fullertown.

Deacon Ordination of Coach Darryl Brown

Last Sunday evening, it was the pleasure of our church to set apart and ordain this amazing man of God.  He has attended Southside since he was 2 years old.  He has been a member of Southside for 23 years.  Over the past few years, I have watched him grow in his relationship with JESUS in a way that is amazing.  We are looking forward to his ministry as a deacon of the Lord Jesus at Southside.  I have complete faith and confidence that God has called him to this ministry and that God will use him for many years to come in this way. 

He is a great witness for our Lord as a high school teacher and coach.  He has been used of God to help many who otherwise would have no opportunity to succeed in life.  He sacrifices great amounts of time to share God's love with his players and students.  I will never forget a couple of years ago when he was at football camp and called to tell us that 6 of his players had received Christ at camp. WOW, Go God.

Please pray for Coach Brown as he begins his new ministry.

Friday Night Football

One of the things we love about school starting is FRIDAY NIGHT FOOTBALL!  Here at Fullertown, our crew loves to attend all the home games at Southern Guilford along with so many others from our church family.  It has been neat to see our fan club grow as we support Coach Brown and his staff, of which 2 attend our church.  Tonight will be the first game.  We will be praying with the cheerleading coach, Mrs. Terrell, who also attends Southside at each home game at 7:00 pm inside the gate on the hill.  We would love to have you join us as we pray for God to use some of our church members as they share JESUS by coaching  and leading young people in the right direction.

Carson, we are so proud of you.

Carson Harvell is an amazing young lady.  She will leave this coming Friday for college.  She has surrendered her life to be a missionary and what a blessing it is for Southside to send her out with our multiplied blessings.  Here is a picture of Carson as she is rewarded with the North Carolina Baptist Scholarship for her faithfulness to missions.  Carson has traveled with our church to Canada, Costa Rica and Dominican Republic.  She is amazing as she works in AWANA and serves as a witness for JESUS.  As her pastor, I could not be more proud of her for her accomplishment.  TO GOD BE THE GLORY.

A $15,000.00 challenge

On Friday, I received word from one of our building and grounds team members that we have an opportunity to finish replacing the 7 heat/air units at our church for a tremendous deal.  It would normally cost around $50,000.00 to do it, but the company is willing to do it for our church for $15,000.00 if we do it within the next month.

This morning, I made an announcement that we will have a 4 week campaign to collect the money to help with this project.  As you and your family have your family devotions this week, please pray about how God would have you give to help meet this need.  God commands us to tithe and our tithe should go to the regular church ministry budget.  However, I am convicted in my own life that God also desires for us to give an offering above our tithe.  As you pray about giving above your tithe, please pray about giving to our heat/air fund over the next 4 weeks. 

I am confident if all of us work together, we can meet and surpass this goal.  God has blessed us with an amazing facility and we all enjoy the comfort of heat and air.  Therefore, we should all participate in providing this comfort for many years to come just as it has been provided for us.  Let's unify our hearts around this opportunity to give to GOD and lets bring him glory with our sacrifical gifts to make his house at Southside a comfortable place for ministry to go forward for many years to come.

Hunter McDaniel with me this morning.

This morning, we were so blessed to have Hunter McDaniel at church.  This is his week to be out of the hospital and we are thankful that he was well enough to be with is this morning.  Please pray for Hunter, one of our amazing youth, that wil; go back to the hospital next Friday for 6 days of chemo.  Also pray for him as his friends all start school.  He is so sad that he will not be able to go to school this year. I love this young man as God bonded our hearts together last year on a mission trip to Costa Rica.  Please remember him in your prayers.

As I think about the power and glory of God, I am simply amazed at how God has chosen to bless our church with such gifted and talented people the past few years.  Here is a picture of Forrest, an amazing lady of God that God sent our way two years ago.  She has been all over our country speaking to women and leading in women's ministry.  Here she is as she is speaking to many of our ladies last tuesday night for our annual Christmas in August event.  I am thankful to God for this lady as she teaches sunday school at our church each week, counsels with many women, and prays for her pastor.  Thank you Lord for allowing our church the blessing of this lady who is true in building a legacy of faith for women in our fellowship.

Two Amazing Youth

Last Tuesday evening, our church hosted our annual "Christmas In August" event.  Two of our youth, Carson and Karley, hosted a dramatic table that perfectly describes their personalities.  I am so proud of them for taking the lead and using this event as an outreach to other teenage girls.  As their pastor, I am blessed beyond words for their faithfulness to our great GOD.  I will never forget when they went with me to the Dominican Republic a couple of years ago.  It has been amazing to watch their spiritual growth since that time.

Can You believe they would do this to me?

This picture was recently emailed to me so I thought I would share it.  At our Valentines dinner this past year during the time of entertainment, as humor was filling the room, in an instant on the screen came this picture.  I can not describe the feeling that I had.  I wanted to crawl under my table and hide.  However, the entire church family bursted into laughter and then the announcer even called us to the front and gave us dead flowers for being the Southside couple of the year.  I have never been so embarrassed in all my life. All I have to say is, wait til next year.

The Fellowship of Friends

Today, we were so blessed to have the opportunity to entertain and fellowship with sweet friends who are from another state.  They were traveling and came by for a special time of fellowship.  It was wonderful to have them come by the church as I was working today and sit in the office for a while.  It was also great to share a meal at lunch with them.  They make me realize how special and priceless true friends really are.  Thank you JESUS.

Happy Birthday Lilly

Today is the 5th birthday of our sweet niece, Lilly.  Here is a picture of her with Anna Brooke in the backgroud at the beach last week while we were all on vacation.  Lilly is such a blessing to us and we love her very much.  When she and our girls get together, they always have so much fun.  They love calling themselves best friends. Lilly, your Unc P and Aunt Laura love you and pray that God will bless you as you start Kindergarten.  You are such a precious and special blessing to us.

God is AMAZING!

I am so excited!  Tonight, it was so good to be back in worship with my church family.  I was so amazed by the amount of people in worship tonight. However, I am excited because I was so blessed by our guests tonight.  It constantly amazes me how God continues to bless us with guests as he uses our church for His glory.  I look forward to visiting these precious folks with 2 of our deacons tomorrow night.  What a mighty GOD we serve.

God's Church @ Southside

This morning as I made my way to the office, I noticed several vehicles in the parking lot as several of our ladies were preparing for our ladies event tonight.  As I walked into the fellowship hall, my heart was flooded with joy I was reunited with several people who are such a blessing to our church and the ministry at Southside.  After being away for the past week, I was so glad to see "my family."  Each of these ladies are part of our family and we are grateful to God for them.  This picture shows the beauty of the outside of our facility, but there is no picture availabe to show the beauty of the sweet spirit that so many of our leaders and people have that make up the Southside family.  Thank you JESUS for allowing me to be a part of your bride - the church of JESUS CHRIST.

Reflections of a Godly Woman's Influence.

Today I had the pleasure of visiting a dear lady in our church that loves JESUS with all of her heart.  She is a widow and is in her 80's.  She has an incredible ministry as she encourages our leaders and her pastor on a regular basis.  She is a rock and one of the matriarch's of our church. 

As I reflect on my visit with her today, God taught me several things:
1.  God always puts people in your life that will  bring hope and blessing to you.
2.  God uses people to bring others to Jesus no matter their age or circumstance.  (This precious lady     always goes with us on door to door visitation before VBS each year.  WOW, what a testimony at her age)
3.   God uses people like her to show those of us that are young how we can live with JOY throughout our lives continually. (She is a model of GRACE and JOY to our church)

As I have reflected on our visit today, I realize that people like her are why I love to serve as a pastor.

Thank you JESUS.

Our Picky Princess

It is so funny to watch Anna Brooke on the beach.  She is so concerned about her feet getting dirty and her toe polish getting messed up that she walks SO SO SO slow on the beach.  Here is fine example of how she has the "picky girl" walk perfected.  While the other 3 kids love the beach and could stay for hours, Anna Brooke prefers the lazy river, pool and hot tub.  After about ten minutes at the beach, one of us usually has to walk her back to the resort for her "cement time."  She prefers cement over sand any day.

The Sunglass Princess

Sarah Belle is so hilarious.  She loves sunglasses and thinks she needs a different pair for every outfits she has.  Here she is in the ocean with her sunglasses on! What a doll.

Our Beach Dudes

Our Luke loves the beach.  He could stay on the beach for hours.  Here is a picture of him this week as he is about to dig in the sand.

Paul loves the water.  He is very brave to be so young.  Here is a picture of him as he enjoys the water along the edge of the ocean.

The Blessing of Encouragement

As most of you know, I have been on vacation this week with my amazing family.  It was such a joy for us to all be together without interruption for a few days.  Well, today we traveled home and arrived about 7 pm tonight.  I unloaded the suburban while Laura vaccummed it out.  After about an hour of getting settled, I decided to make a trip to the office to get a few things done since I have 7 meetings tomorrow beginning early and ending late. 

When I arrived, I began checking messages and working through the piles of stuff that was left for me to do while I was away.  As I was going through things, I was so blessed to receive one of the most special and encouraging notes from one of our quiet and humble senior adults.  As I read the note, I began to cry and was filled with such emotion. 

At that moment, I knew why God kept prompting me to go on in to the office tonight to get a jump start on my busy week.  God wanted me to begin my work week with this amazing blessing of encouragement.  WOW! What an awesome God we serve.

Now, I can not wait to pass on the blessing as I plan to write a note to someone tomorrow hoping to bless them as I was blessed tonight.

Thank you JESUS!

Luke and Anna Brooke

Luke and Anna Brooke are such wonderful pals.  It is so fun to watch them as they enjoy each other so much.  Everywhere we go, people ask us if they are twins.  Although they are not twins, they love to act like they are.  Here is a picture at the pool of them earlier this summer.  What amazing smiles!

That Smile Is Priceless

Our sweet Sarah Belle has a smile that is priceless.  Her beautiful smile blesses our family every day. It is so wonderful to watch her as she displays such joy in all of her activities each day.

The Little Swimmer's

Here is a really cool picture of Paul and Sarah Belle at the pool in our neighborhood.  Luke is also in the background.  This is where the little Fuller's spend every morning in the summer with mommy before it gets too hot.  We are so blessed to have such a nice pool for them to enjoy each morning after breakfast. 

Luke's Perfect Attendance Award

We are so proud of Luke for achieving his second year of perfect attendance.  Here is a picture of him in June as his principal gave him his metal for perfect attendance in 1st grade.  WOW, what an accomplishment.

Anna Brooke is playing in the sand

Anna Brooke is enjoying her hand prints in the sand on the beach.  She loves playing in the edge of the water as she enjoys wet sand.  She is so much fun at the beach.

Sarah Belle is riding the wave

Belle Belle is having so much fun in this picture.  She is riding the wave into shore with her butterfly board.  YES, a butterfly board! Anyone that knows our Belle, knows that she is a butterfly fanatic.  She is so beautiful with her charismatic personality as she enjoys the ocean.

Luke and his new board

Luke is a true beach dude.  He loves to ride the waves and spends all of his time while on the beach doing just that.  Here is the new board that his Nana bought for him.  Isn't he a cool dude?

Paul at the beach

Here is a picture of Paul at the beach.  He loves the beach and especially enjoys playing in the sand. Isn't he just the cutest little man?  It is hard to believe that he is almost 3 years old.