Jeff Foxworthy has made his mark as the most recorded comedian in history.   Several years ago, Jeff agreed to lead a group of homeless men in a weekly study at the Atlanta Mission. As Foxworthy tells it, he felt led to teach these men about giving even though they had next to nothing. He proposed giving a $50 bill to the 250 homeless men and then withdrew $12,500 from his bank account and distributed the cash to them. Jeff then told the assembled group of a dire need in a local elementary school at which the teachers were short on supplies and money. Jeff suggested they take up a collection and was shocked as every single man gave up his $50 bill and then dug into their collective pockets searching for more change to give! Jeff reported that he had to dismiss himself to the hallway and cry.   Those men who had nothing gave all they had and did so with great joy. That story gives us an appreciation for those who give generously and sacrificially.      You have given to our GENERATIONS FOLLOWING campaign in a similar way, and, on behalf of the entire leadership team, I want to thank you from the bottom of my heart for your awesome generosity.   To date, we have $1.26 million in three-year commitments, received over $40,000 on our First Fruits Sunday, and presently have $550,000 in cash on hand! We had a good month in April with 353 in Bible Study.  Our women enjoyed the Priscilla Shirer Simulcast on Saturday, April 6^th.  Our Easter Musical, “Triumph: Victory of the Cross,” was especially moving this year.  We had a great Easter Sunday worship attendance on April 21^st of 537!  And, as I write, we are looking forward to our women’s worship event called The Canopy on April 25^th and our Church-wide Picnic on Sunday, April 28^th at The Rock Ranch. May is filled with some great opportunities. The National Day of Prayer is scheduled for Tuesday, May 2^nd, beginning at 12:10 P.M. in our C.F.L.C.  Mother’s Day and Baby Celebration is on Sunday, May 12^th.  Our Missions Recognition Program is on Wednesday evening, May 15^th at 6:30 in our Sanctuary. Our Children’s Music Recognition Program is on Sunday, May 19^th at 6:30. And Baccalaureate is on Wednesday evening, May 22^nd, at the Lamar County Fine Arts Center beginning at 6:30. May is going to be a great month!   COME EXPECTANTLY! I Love You, Garth                                                                                                                 First, I would like to thank everyone that worked on the prayer and fundraising committees of the Generations Following Campaign. These members stepped up in a huge way to help our church have a successful campaign. Thank you for your willingness to serve! After much prayer and sacrificial giving, our church members have pledged $1,260,432 over the next three years to fund the Student/Young Adult building.    In addition, we also have received $500,000 in cash for a grand total of $1.76 million dedicated to this building that is estimated to cost $2.1 million!   What an amazing God we serve! For our “First Fruits” Sunday, we received another $40,676 toward out new building on April 14^th.   We are off to a great start.   Please continue to pray about future opportunities in this new building to share Christ.   It’s very exciting to see our church embracing the generations that follow us and give to them like others before us gave!   Truly, God is at work at FBC Barnesville!!! Kim Wall, Fundraising Chair

For the five Sundays in March we focused on our GENERATIONS FOLLOWING FUND-RAISING CAMPAIGN for the purpose of raising the monetary commitments to build a new Student/Young Adult Building. But, a campaign like the one we have participated in is about more than just raising money for a particular project. It is about raising the spiritual climate of our church family so that each and every life is challenged to live more for the Lord and give more to the Lord! In one of my messages, I told the story of John D. Rockefeller, Sr.  He was the founder of the Standard Oil Company.  He is widely considered the wealthiest American of all time. To give you some idea of his vast wealth, Jeff Bezos of Amazon is the richest man in America today and worth $112 billion.    That sounds like a lot of money, doesn’t it? But by comparison, John D. Rockefeller was the richest American of all time and if his wealth was brought into today’s dollars, he would be worth $409 billion! The great thing about John Rockefeller is that as one of the richest men in the world he was also one of the most generous. He gave away millions of dollars and there are buildings all across America with his name on them. What is interesting is that from his very first paycheck until his death he tithed on his earnings. The story is told that at one point he thought he was dying, so he began giving away his wealth. An amazing thing occurred, he lived, and he attributed his living to his having become a more generous person! Now, I’m not promising you that if you live a lifestyle of generosity that you will live longer, but I can promise you that if you live a generous lifestyle other will be glad that you lived longer! In his last meeting with the elders of the Church of Ephesus, the Apostle Paul said to them, “In everything I did, I showed you that by this kind of hard work we must help the needy, remembering the words the Lord Jesus Himself said: ‘It is more blessed to give than to receive.’ ”  (Acts 20:35) We had a good month in March with 380 in Bible Study. We enjoyed the Bible Emphasis Saturday with Andy Cook of Experience Israel Now on March 2^nd and then our Creation Seminar with Steve Levinson on March 10^th. April is filled with some great opportunities:

• Our ladies are looking forward to the Priscilla Shirer Simulcast “GOING BEYOND LIVE” that takes place here at our church on Saturday, April 6^th.
• The “FIRST FRUITS SUNDAY” of our Generations Following Campaign will be on Palm Sunday, April 14^th, at all three morning services. We are asking our folks to give generously to this first official offering for our new Student/Young Adult Building. We’ll also celebrate the Lord’s Supper that day.
• Our COMMUNITY EASTER EGG HUNT at Summers Field is from 2:00 to 3:30 on the afternoon of April 14^th. We are putting on this community event this year in conjunction with First United Methodist Church of Barnesville.
• April 14^th is also the date of our EASTER CHORAL PROGRAM which will take place at 6:30 in our Sanctuary.
• The women’s worship event known as THE CANOPY will take place on Thursday evening, April 25^th, beginning at 7:00 with doors opening at 6:30.
• An old favorite, our CHURCH-WIDE PICNIC AT THE ROCK RANCH will take place on Sunday, April 28^th, from 5:00 to 7:30.

April is going to be a great month!   COME EXPECTANTLY! I Love You, Garth April 2019 Witness