Dear Mountain View,

Envision if you will: Our church adding new members--each and every week. Baptisms--each and every week. Family members and the community coming to Christ--each and every week. The word of God being spread--each and every week. Shut-ins being visited--each and  every week. Cards and letters being sent to those in need, and those who are wondering if they matter--each and every week. People receiving phone calls--each and every week. Imagine a caring, loving, energized body of believers that are on fire, by Divine Appointment, for Evangelism and Outreach. Well, imagine no longer!!
 
There is someone out there waiting for YOU--by "Divine Appointment", to reach out to them. Yes, I said "Divine Appointment". We are asking God to pave the way and set up by "Divine Appointment" all of the contacts that we will make as we move forward with Outreach and Evangelism. Nothing will be left to chance. God will have His Way and he's going to use US to fulfill his plan.
 
By volunteering to participate in the G.R.O.W. Program (God Rewards Our Work) just one night a month; we can have all of our imaginations come true! That's right, you heard me correctly.  One night a month to meet with a team of your fellow believers to: Write letters and postcards, make phone calls, pray for specific needs, visit someone. Imagine again: Being part of a fantastic Outreach and Evangelism Program that WON'T wear you out! No one would want to miss out on that opportunity!
 
How can I be a part of this wonderful experience, you might ask? Glad you asked. Because this is His program: First, you need to surrender to Him! Second, surrender your time, and third, we need all of you that want to become Evangelism and Outreach Warriors to be well-trained. So:
 
Beginning September 20th, at 7 PM, we will meet in the multipurpose room for the First of Four two-hour training sessions. Session 2, 3 and 4 will be held on September 27, October 4 and October 11, 2016. The First Session will serve as a basic foundation for   how GROW works. The main focus covers the five principles on which the GROW outreach program is built. The goals for Session 1 are:
 
1    To establish a clear, biblical basis for each believer to be involved in reaching people for Christ through the local church.
2    To present a structure of out reach that does not require an impossible time demand for team members.
3    To allow participants and the Mountain View Baptist to experience the joy of church growth and personal evangelism.
 
Please prepare your hearts and set aside time on your calendar for this exciting opportunity! Please contact Sid Graham at his email: sidcerely@comcast.net or call him on 801-726-7444. It is important that I hear from all of you that are participating, so that I can get the session material to you in advance of the sessions.

Looking forward to serving Him with all of you! God Bless you.
 
Sid Graham

We began our emphasis of prayer and giving for the International Mission Board’s Lottie Moon Christmas Offering in August this year since December is such a busy month. We will continue to collect the offering through December. To read about this great woman of God go to www.IMB.org and look for “Lottie Moon” - the namesake of Southern Baptists’ international missions offering. Our goal is $16,800 and 100% of the offering goes to the overseas budget to support missionaries and their ministries. Thank you for your generous contributions to support our international missionaries.

Did you see the post office in the multipurpose room? Each year the Mission Team puts this up for your convenience AND to help reach our goal of $10,000. We would ask that you donate at least what you would have spent on stamps. There is a box handy in which to put your money, which all goes toward the Lottie Moon Christmas Offering.

​Angel Tree Ministry - There are still 50 precious Angels hanging on our Angel Tree in the multipurpose room. Each angel represents a precious child. Won't you please help them? We need all Angel Gifts (between $15-$25) wrapped (with Angels attached) to the church no later than December 18th so that we can get them delivered prior to Christmas. Please remember to use the sign-out log next to the
tree when taking your Angel. Thank you and Blessings.

The Angel Tree Ministry is still accepting volunteers for gift delivery and visits to our precious Angels. 
Contact Sid Graham at 801-726-7444 or Jerilyn Brandenburg at 801-645-6136. You'll receive the Blessing!

Local churches can be silent and absent, or they can breathe life and encouragement into the lives of those they send overseas, Dr. George Robinson speaks from experience. "When I was serving in South Asia and our daughter was born, our local church pastor from here in North Carolina was on a plane with a deacon and in our home within a week of her birth," he said. "He came to bless and encourage us, and it was that and more. His wisdom and input regarding our ministry there was extremely valuable."

Today Robinson is an Assistant Professor of Missions & Evangelism at Southeastern Baptist Theological Seminary. He explains the role of the local church in mission by pointing out how churches are made up of individuals saved by the grace of a missionary God who chose to fulfill His mission through His Church. Those who have received the gospel declare it to a lost world, and the cycle continues as new believers in turn share their faith. This applies both domestically and globally, as the local church is the primary sender of its members.

"The local church is central to God's global mission," he said. "It is dangerous when missionaries are sent to the ends of the earth without remaining vitally connected to the life of their sending church." The role of the sent one is critical in reporting back to his sending church, as modeled by missionary greats Hudson Taylor and John G. Paton, who lived in times when technology didn't allow for easy communication through the internet and Skype, or a relatively quick plane ride home.

Just as vital, though, is the responsibility of the sending church in supporting its sent ones.  Robinson highlights the need for the sending church's "continued shepherding and spiritual oversight of their missionaries after they've been sent. . .to provide ongoing counsel, encouragement and exhortation.

"There must be a reciprocal relationship between local churches and their missionaries" he said.  Robinson understands many churches simply are not doing this because their leaders are ill-equipped and unprepared to lead their flocks in such a vision.  Many may feel overwhelmed or are so program-driven that the voice of local and global missions simply isn't loud enough to demand a spot on the priority list.  But there is hope.

"Pastors need to be equipped to think and live mission ally," Robinson said. "When a pastor understands he and his congregation need to live like missionaries locally, they will then begin to see how they can make a difference globally." According to Robinson, one step in the right direction involves a bit of humility.

"I wish churches (in America) would stop looking at missions primarily for what we can get out of involvement," he said. "Often our churches go into the world assuming we, not Christ, are the hope for the world.  We need to get over our own personal 'Savior complex' and recognize there is only one Savior. He is a global God -- the God of the Universe. That humility will help us to go out not only to serve, but to learn and be challenged ourselves."

Robinson said how churches go about reaching the nations needs to be firmly rooted in God's Word. "Strategy shouldn't be developed divorced from a careful exegesis of Scripture. We see in the Scripture examples of what He has already blessed. We should do those things," he said. "And when we act in accordance with what He has revealed there (pray, evangelize, make disciples, gather together for worship, develop leaders and multiply churches) we can expect Him to do what He alone is capable of saving and empowering."