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National Day of Prayer

Posted in Adults  |  By Shades Staff  |  Posted on Tue May 5, 2020

Thursday, May 7, is the National Day of Prayer.

We as a church family will pray with brothers and sisters around the country for our nation and for God's kingdom. Our encouragement is to set aside a few minutes each hour to pray for the Seven Centers of Influence. You can find prayer prompts by clicking the button below.

View Prayer Prompts

Here's a brief overview of the day and the prompts for each hour:

  • 9 a.m. -- Government
  • 10 a.m. -- Military
  • 11 a.m. -- Media Arts
  • Noon -- Business
  • 1 p.m. -- Education
  • 2 p.m. -- Church
  • 3 p.m. -- Family

You can download the document above to revisit the hourly prompts, or you can follow us on social media. At 4 p.m. we'll host a prayer service online where we'll pray for one another's prayer requests and lift up the National Day of Prayer prompts. If you'd like to join our online prayer gathering, you can access the Zoom link sent in Shades Weekly on Wednesday, or you can email Jacob Simmons.

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New Online Small Group Available

Posted in Adults  |  By Lisa Davis  |  Posted on Thu Apr 23, 2020

We have a new online small group on Sundays at 11 a.m. for anyone who’s new to Shades or who is not already involved in an Adult Sunday School Class. To sign up for it, email groups@shades.org and you’ll receive an invitation to join us over Zoom. Our hope is that this small group will introduce you to some of the new faces at Shades and stay connected with them throughout quarantine.

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Shades Equipping Center

Posted in Adults  |  By Bradley Patton  |  Posted on Wed Feb 12, 2020

In January, we launched a new ministry called the Shades Equipping Center. As a church, we want to send transformed people to influence their world for Christ. The Equipping Center helps us answer the question: “How do we become transformed people?”

Romans 12:1-2 says that we are, “transformed by the renewal of our minds that by testing we may discern what is the will of God – what is good, acceptable, and perfect.” But transformation is challenging because we live in a time and place where Biblical illiteracy is rampant, marriages and families are being torn apart, Christian beliefs are challenged in the public square, and the influence of the church seems to be fading.

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Calling

Posted in Adults  |  By Bradley Patton  |  Posted on Mon Oct 29, 2018

I’d like to consider with you our calling. And I’d like to do so through the lens of 1 Corinthians 1. Paul gets at a few things in the text; what does it mean to be a church member? Who do we follow? What do we preach and proclaim as believers? And how does this message we proclaim and the savior we follow align with our various places in society? 

The ancient city of Corinth sat at the crossroads of the ancient Roman world. Commerce played a key role in Corinth’s social, political, and cultural environment. Aided by a favorable economic climate, Corinth emerged as a thriving metropolis by the time of Paul and the apostles. One commentator noted, “Perhaps no city in the Empire offered so congenial an atmosphere for individual and corporate advancement.” The potential for advancement brought various groups of people to the city seeking to take advantage of Corinth’s commerce for personal gain. The value of trade, business, and pragmatism in the pursuit of success fed the zeal to attain public status, promote one’s own honor, and secure power.

This passage is in the middle of Paul’s argument about the centrality and foolishness of the cross. It’s a scandal to Jews and folly to Gentiles. Paul turns his focus to the Corinthian believers themselves to illustrate his claim. He first reminds them that not many of them were wise, powerful, or of noble birth. He’s flattening their attempts at self-exaltation and demolishing their boasts in human accomplishments. Their calling actually has the same design as the cross—their salvation shames and nullifies the values in which their society boasts. Therefore, Paul says, no human being can boast in the presence of God except as they boast in the Lord Jesus Christ who died on the cross. All people are on equal footing when they stand in the shadow of the cross because only weak and foolish people would respond to Paul’s preaching – which was not in wise and persuasive words. 

So, first question: 

As we deal with others, how often do we show weakness? And I’m not talking about false weakness. I mean true weakness. The insecurities. The stresses. The unrecognized competence and know-how. The fights with your spouse. If you don’t show your weakness, then you’re actually living by worldly standards. You’re really believing or trusting in what the world says of you and not what Christ says of you.

The Corinthians had apparently forgotten their humble estate and, given their culture, they probably didn’t want to remember their weakness. But I think Paul was convinced of this and I’m convinced of this, too: If we forget our brokenness and weakness and neediness, we’ll never respond to the scandal of the cross. We’ll never be truly Christ-like. The Christian life is not about getting education or status, but with marveling at Jesus Christ. One of my professors summarized Paul’s point well, “When they look back on God’s grace, the Corinthians should see an implausible message brought by an unimpressive messenger to a group of unlikely candidates for membership in God’s people.” The Corinthians, though surrounded by a culture riddled with self-glorification, should be characterized by self-sacrifice. 

Second question: 

As we deal with others, how do we challenge them? Do we challenge them to be better and try harder or do we challenge them to marvel at Jesus? Power over pornography isn’t rooted in challenge. Authority over anger isn’t found in avoiding difficulty. Command of courage isn’t found in motivation. These things are rooted in our identity and our inheritance in Christ. In him we have wisdom, righteousness, sanctification, and redemption. 

Paul roots the life of the Christian outside of himself declaring, “because of [God] you are in Christ Jesus, who became to us wisdom from God, righteousness and sanctification and redemption…” (1 Cor. 1:30). James K.A. Smith states, “Discipleship is less about erecting an edifice of Christian knowledge than it is a matter of developing a Christian know-how that intuitively ‘understands’ the world in the light of the fullness of the gospel.” The thought of the Corinthians’ boasting in anything but God and God’s work is inappropriate. Salvation came to them because of God’s grace and only his grace.

Third question:

As we deal with others, what are we encouraging them to boast about? Bible studies, attendance? Good things, no doubt, but if our boast isn’t in the Lord, then we’re missing it. Performing for our identity and inheritance leads not to holiness but to exhaustion, bitterness, and death.

Let’s call each other to a more compelling vision of the Christian life. Let’s call one another to the way of weakness. Let’s all challenge to marvel at Jesus. Let’s boast in the Lord and in his kindness to us. For it is God’s kindness, not God’s challenge that leads us to repentance.

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Contentment: Living as Sheep in the Fold

Posted in Adults  |  By Jeremy Horton  |  Posted on Wed Oct 17, 2018

Life is a series of ebbs and flows. With every end, there is a beginning. The end of summer introduces the beginning of Fall. The end of one school year leads to the beginning of the next semester. The completion of one successful financial quarter initiates the striving for yet another. There is little that is constant in our earthly lives, and our tendency as finite creatures is to always look to what is next for fulfillment. 

Is this what God intended for His people? Are we to live in a constant state of desiring what is next, seeking fulfillment and contentment in each new endeavor? David helps us to answer this question in his writing about the Lord as the shepherd of his life is Psalm 23:

“The LORD is my shepherd; I shall not want. He makes me lie down in green pastures. He leads me besides still waters. He restores my soul. He leads me in the paths of righteousness for his name’s sake. Even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil, for you are with me; your rod and your staff, they comfort me. You prepare a table before me in the presence of my enemies; you anoint my head with oil; my cup overflows. Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life, and I shall dwell in the house of the LORD forever.” Psalm 23

Many who have been believers for a long time are familiar with this Psalm. It is a retreat for those who are walking the valleys of life. It is a comfort to those experiencing grief. But it is also a guide for contentment in the Lord in every season of the Christian life. Let us observe three primary ways that Psalm 23 teaches us to be content in the goodness of our Shepherd. 

1. Our Identity as Sheep is Found in our Shepherd (vs. 1)

The very first statement made by David is a statement of identity. Yet, David doesn’t state who HE is. He doesn’t identify Himself as God’s anointed one, as the one through whom God would establish Israel as a powerful and prosperous nation. He doesn’t identify himself as he who killed the great Goliath, or the leader of the mighty men of God who defeated the infamous Philistines in battle. No; he identifies himself by the one to whom he belongs: “The LORD is my shepherd.” 

Where then, do we find our identity? The world tells us that our identity is in our accomplishments and success, or lack thereof. This means that many of us find our identity in our sales numbers. Others of us find it in our education and number of degrees. Some of us even find it in our years of church service or in the successes of our children. We hold our resumes and our personal goals next to others in the hopes that we will measure up to what the world deems as successful, and hope that this in turn tells us who we really are. Don’t get me wrong, these things are not inherently bad in and of themselves. But they were never meant to give us our identity or lasting contentment. 

The true meaning of contentment is not found in what we accomplish, but to whom we belong: the Lord Jesus Christ. Notice that the result of David’s identification in the Lord is that he, “shall not want.” How can this be so? The Lord is his shepherd! In other words, what could David desire or accomplish which would be of more value, more worth, more comfort than in knowing and walking with the living God? What in life could he achieve which would climax the care he knows as a sheep in the flock of the Lord?  

For those of us who are believers, Jesus has accomplished all we need to become sheep who belong to the Good Shepherd. We will never find contentment searching for the acclaim of the world and the accomplishments of man; true contentment only comes to those who belong to the flock of the Lord. Your identity is not in who you are, but in who He has declared you to be in Christ: a sheep belonging to the Good Shepherd.  

2. Our Care as Sheep is Provided by Our Shepherd (vs. 2-4)

Not only does David define himself by his identity as a sheep in the fold of God, but he expounds even further on the ways that God cares for His sheep. He is not a rough rancher; one who provides for the sheep only so far as they will bring Him profit. Instead, His care for the sheep involves genuine love. He gives them protection to lie down in the luscious fields of grass which will fill their stomachs to satisfaction. He leads them confidently to still waters which quench their thirst and maintain their health and vitality. He genuinely cares and leads them in His way, asking that they trust His guidance and protection in the valleys of life. 

True contentment in God our shepherd is trust that He will provide for your needs. By the Word of God He feeds our hungry souls like luscious green grass that satisfies our inquiries. By the power of His Spirit He leads and guides us by still waters where we can experience His righteousness and learn His ways. By the peace that surpasses understanding, His presence protects and comforts us in the midst of trial and difficulty, that we would identify with the sufferings of Christ. In all of these things, our shepherd cares for us, and when we experience such care, we begin to understand that contentment in the midst of the changes of life can only persist by His gentle hand of care in our lives. 

3. Our Security as Sheep is Ensured by our Shepherd (vs. 5-6)

David knew that goodness and mercy would follow the man who was content in God all his life. How could he make such a confident assertion? The security of his place in the flock of God was not sustained by his own work, but by the shepherd. Therefore, with confidence even before his enemies, David could rehearse, “I will dwell in the house of the LORD forever.”

Such is the promise to all who place their faith in Jesus Christ. If all else on this earth is lost; all wealth, all loved ones, all status, all accomplishments, everything we have, one thing the world cannot take is our security as one in the fold of God. Why? Because it is no effort or production of the sheep that defines them as one of the fold, but the work of the Good Shepherd, Jesus Christ, which has made a way for their invitation into the flock. And that security alone is goodness and mercy beyond comparison; such that it is the very foundation for contentment in life.

Conclusion

There will always be ebbs and flows in life. Times will be good; times will be bad. Some things will come to an end, and others will begin anew. But as sheep in the flock of God, our song remains the same through it all: “It is well, with my soul. It is well, it is well with my soul.”

Let us find our contentment in God alone, who gives us identity, genuine care, and eternal hope in the glory of His Risen Son!

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Moving Forward

Posted in Adults  |  By Meghan Roper  |  Posted on Wed May 3, 2017

Editor's Note: Through the loss of her daughter, Ellanie Beth, God has faithfully mended Maegan Roper's broken heart to encourage other families dealing with loss as well. Maegan facilitates infant loss retreats to help women find healing in Christ. In addition to her book, 30 Days of Hope for Restoration in Infant Loss, she's also written for digital and print publications such as Pregnancy After Loss Magazine, Engaging Motherhood, MinistryMatters, The Better Mom, Missions Mosaic and more. She resides in McCalla, AL with her husband, Jeremy and children Emmalyn and Harrison.

When moving forward seems impossible…

“I would have lost heart, unless I had believed that I would see the goodness of the Lord in the land of the living. Wait on the Lord; Be of good courage, and He shall strengthen your heart; Wait on the Lord.” Psalm 27:13-14 (NASB)

Infant loss is unique. It has many faces and forms, and while each of them are different, no one can prepare you for how to handle the sorrow. You can rejoice in the relief of knowing that you are fully understood by the Lord. Others will not understand what you’re going through. They’ll try to answer the unanswerable. And while they mean well, most of what they say will probably frustrate you.

And that’s okay. God gets your struggles. Your feelings of inadequacy. Your hurt. And your hesitancy to move forward with a “normal” life.

I vividly remember having a come apart in my parent’s living room one week after we lost our daughter to a rare birth defect called anencephaly. We did not find out until I was 20 weeks pregnant with her. She was born and went to heaven all in the same breath. It was the month of December, and it just didn’t feel like Christmas time. We hadn’t participated in any of the usual traditions and festivities, and I hadn’t bought a single gift. Not one. It suddenly seemed to all come crashing down on me, and I found myself loathing “normal.”

I didn’t want to get out and go shopping. I didn’t want to attend Christmas parties or send out Christmas cards. What is usually so exciting and anticipated seemed unnecessary and daunting. And it wasn’t, really. It was just my perspective at the time. And instead of approaching this grieving process one day at a time as it slowly merged with my once normal life, I felt that I was supposed to shut off what had just happened and dive back into normal life.

That’s not what God expects of you at all. The reality is that you’ll have a new normal from here on out. It’s almost as if your life becomes divided -- before loss and after loss. And after loss, you do your best to get back to what you were doing before loss, but it just isn’t the same and that’s okay.

He has promised that we will see His goodness in the land of the living and give us courage to approach our new normal if we wait on Him. I think for the longest time I feared for taking any steps into a new normal because I felt I was leaving my baby girl behind. But sometimes sorrow and hope must mingle in the present, as we take one step at a time.

Those steps forward do not mean you love less. They do not mean you stop grieving or missing. They do not mean you forget. They do not mean letting go. Moving forward is about learning, growing, and trusting. You just learn to live in a world that keeps turning, even though yours stopped for a bit.

When others would say “It’ll be okay; you’ll move on...” it didn’t feel right. I know our natural human reaction is to leave a bad situation in the past, but part of me wanted to keep it in front of me AS I moved forward, a reminder of God’s grace in my pain and the promise of future glory.

There is no rulebook for the pace at which you should move. Don’t rush, but don’t be afraid either. Moving forward means turning toward hope and believing God is greater than it all.

In my journey toward restoration, the Lord led me to write a 30 day devotional, encouraging others through infant loss. It is called 30 Days of Hope for Restoration in Infant Loss. I am truly humbled by how the Lord has chosen to use our daughter’s story to bring healing hope to others.

There are other resources that have helped me understand God’s purpose and have pointed me to Scripture that I would recommend. I pray that you find them helpful as well:

-    Safe in the Arms of God by John MacArthur

-    Mended by Angie Smith

-    Your Pain is Changing You by David Crosby

If you’re walking through infant loss right now and would like to be a part of a community encouraging one another, then please check out Engaging Motherhood. As co-editor of the infant loss section, we are offering an email series to parents who need encouraging in this area. You may sign up to receive the emails here

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Focus your soul on Jesus this Christmas

Posted in Children, Students, Adults, Worship, Community Life  |  By Shades Staff  |  Posted on Mon Dec 19, 2016

You guys, Christmas is great.  

What’s not to love?! It gets a little cold, but not too cold (I see you, January.) so you have a chance to pull out your best jacket and drink warm drinks. There are lots of parties, so you get all caught up on the happenings and the goings-on. There are some great things on TV. It’s a season with it’s own music that you already know the words to. It’s a perfect opportunity to take a tree that normally goes outside, and put it inside! Seriously, what’s not to love about Christmas?

I’m writing a bit tongue-in-cheek, of course, but these parts of Christmas truly are fun and something to look forward to. But without the Christ-child, they’re meaningless. They’re window dressing. They’re liquid butter without the popcorn.  They’re a parade without purpose. They’re an appetizer without a main course.  

The Christmas season is a season of anticipation and remembrance. If the object of our anticipation is wrong, our celebration will be misguided. And if our remembering is weak or fuzzy, our worship is miscalibrated.  

It’s tempting to only anticipate the “season” of Christmas instead of the event. And it’s tempting to remember the Christmases of years past and their memories instead of the original Christmas and the hope that comes with it.

But succumbing to those temptations leads us down a road of misguided praise and misplaced worship. We become the misinformed child who becomes enamored with the cardboard box and unaware of the treasure inside. 

So this Christmas season, practice ways in which the coming of Christ (and his coming again!) is more anticipated than the coming of Santa.  

Read the Christmas story together as a family. Talk about who the Biblical characters were and what they would have felt like. Name out loud how your life would be different in the Christ-child hadn’t come.  

If the Christmas season is about the presence of God with us, practice presence with your family. If the Christmas season is about God’s greatest gift, consider making a gift to someone in need.  

Find a baby, hold him, and think about him as the savior of the world. Consider putting that baby in the dog bowl and ponder the humility of Christ.  

Whatever you need to do to focus your soul on Jesus, strive hard to do that thing.  You were created by the Almighty God to worship Him and know Him. 

Let Christmas be the season for you to do what you were created to do. 

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College Students: 5 ways to avoid a restless winter break

Posted in Students, Adults, Community Life  |  By Shades Staff  |  Posted on Mon Dec 12, 2016

Most of us run so hard during the semester that by the time we get to winter break we don’t know what to do with "free time” – whatever that is. We think that simply having free time will mean that we will rest. But we have all had breaks where we had all the free time we could want and yet end up more restless at the end of the break than when it began. Simply having time off from homework and class does not ensure that you will be able to rest. We do not rest by simply not having anything to do. That can actually make us rest less. In order to rest we cease doing things that drain us and focus on things that refresh us. So here are some suggestions on how to have a restful and not a restless winter break.

1. Receive Grace. 

Jesus is our rest. He frees us from our constant and exhausting striving to prove ourselves to God. He says to us, “Come to me, all who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest.” (Matthew 11:28) We can have rest through Christ because he bore the greatest restlessness on the cross – separation from the Father and the punishment for sin that he did not commit. This is the good news of Christ. And it is news that our souls need every day.

How do we rest in the rest Christ provides? We do this largely through what the church has called “means of grace.” These are avenues by which God assures us of his loving disposition towards us in Christ, allowing us to know him in a deep and real way – and subsequently to rest. Among other things the means of grace include: baptism, the Lord’s Supper, community, hearing Scripture read and explained, and personal Scripture reading and prayer.

The devotional acts of reading, meditating, journaling, and praying through Scripture are some of the key ways the Spirit reveals God’s true heart for us in Christ. Grab a bible, a pen, a journal, set an alarm to go off in 30 minutes so you’re not constantly checking the time, and see what God might do. There’s no wrong place to start.  

 2. Worship Corporately.

 As Western Christians we tend to focus almost exclusively on private ways of growing in love for God and others. We focus a lot on reading Scripture and praying by ourselves (“devotions” or “quiet times”) – which we should. But we often neglect corporate means of grace such as weekly worship services and community groups. 

What does is it look like to engage in corporate worship? It involves more than showing up and sitting in a pew. It is easy to get into the habit of attending church services just because that is what you do in the South on Sundays.  Even if you don’t always like the preaching or always connect with the music it means attending a worship service with a sense of expectation that God himself will speak to you as the gospel unfolds through the service. 

What if you prayed before the service that your heart would be prepared to receive? What if you prayed for the pastor preaching? What if you prayed for the people you would talk to before and after the service, that you would be able to find ways to encourage and comfort them with the good news of Jesus Christ? What if you finished the service by praying that the church as a whole would respond in repentance and belief to the Word preached?

Engaging in corporate worship can do wonders for our souls. Whether you choose to attend your home church or a different church in your hometown, don’t miss the benefit of the Sundays between the fall and the spring semesters.

3. Expect Temptation.

 If Jesus is the source of our rest, then sin is the key cause of our restlessness. Breaks provide unique opportunities for the enemy to whisper his subtle lies in our ears. Be aware that being back home with a lot of free time will remind your heart of old temptations and stir up new ones. Sin tempts us with the promise of satisfaction, fulfillment, and deliverance. But take hope because we have a better satisfaction, lasting fulfilment, and truer deliverance that are ours perfectly in Christ. 

The beautiful thing about the gospel is that it provides us safety to be honest with ourselves (and others) about the true state of our souls without feeling condemned. The reality is that we are all five minutes away from destroying our lives. So let’s look to Jesus in the moment of temptation, thank him in the moment of victory, and cling to him in the moment of failure.  

4. Stop Scrolling.

 Nothing gives the illusion of rest like scrolling through social media.  We think we are resting because we are on the couch, free from work with phone in hand.  But the constant scrolling keeps our minds hyper-stimulated with a stream of disconnected tweets, blogs, statuses, and images. Our attention is diverted every two seconds with a new post. This constant stimulation makes us restless even as we image it to be restful.  

When we look to social media to give us rest we fail to realize that rest takes work. I’ll say that again: rest takes work. We don’t accidently rest. Rest necessitates focused attention to that which energizes us. Social media scrolling acts as a pacifier for the restless. It distracts for a little while but it doesn’t solve the problem. Always scrolling; never resting.

Often our phones are the main hindrance to our rest. So what if you shut down your phone for an hour each day of the break to put energy towards something that actually refreshed you? Or what if you took a fast from social media for a week? What kind of rest would be available to us if we disconnected for even a little while?

5. Engage Family.

While you’re disconnected from your phone, connect with your family. Ask them questions. Tell them you love them. Share with them what you are learning. Consider their needs and serve them. We can easily slip back into “kid mode” when going home for breaks during college. Kid mode is characterized by taking, not giving. Don’t be alarmed by this, but: you’re an adult. You have the privilege and responsibility to serve your family by giving and not simply taking.

What does this have to do with not being restless? As our Lord said, “It is better to give than to receive.” (Acts 20:35) By taking initiative to be more present and engaged with your family you will be blessed and find rest.

I recognize that this is easier for some than others. Some of you have a wonderful family that you can’t wait to see and spend time with. But some of you might have a painful relationship with your family and you are dreading going home.  If you find yourself with a difficult family, I encourage you to focus on prayerfully taking small steps in this direction. We can do this because our Lord Jesus made us his family members when we were his enemies.

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Community Engagement at Shades

Posted in Adults  |  By Shades Staff  |  Posted on Mon Dec 5, 2016

“We don’t go anywhere.”

These were the words of the young man buying our old air hockey/pool table combo. He saw the table for sale on Facebook and had come by to haul it off. As we prepped the table to be moved, I asked him for his story. He grew up “Over The Mountain,” graduated from a local high school, and served in the military. Afterward, he returned to the area to raise his family. 

When we lifted the table onto the trailer, he asked what I did for a living. I told him that I was one of the pastors at Shades Mountain Baptist Church.

“Oh, yeah. I’ve driven by there many times before," he said. "On Columbiana right?” 

“That’s the one,” I told him. 

“Where do you go to church?” The question was in the natural flow of conversation. It didn’t catch him off guard or offend him that I asked.

He matter-of-factly responded, “We don’t go anywhere.”

Here is someone that has driven past our church many times. He knows the location, has seen banners advertising our events, and has never stepped in the door. The days of people coming to church simply because there is a church to go to are long gone. In fact, statistics tell us that nearly half of people who live Over The Mountain “don’t go anywhere.”

This breaks the heart of God. He has created people for a thriving, meaningful relationship with Himself. Jesus gave His life so that people would enter into a relationship with God and become part of the movement known as His Church. We cannot sit on the sidelines and watch our community trickle away from God. So what do we do?

It is time for us to engage our community. Shades Mountain Baptist Church is launching a new initiative aimed at making a difference Over The Mountain for the Gospel. Community Engagement is about three things:

  • Serving our Institutions
  • Sharing with Individuals
  • Starting New Endeavors

Serving Our Institutions: Our schools and first responders need our support. In the coming months we will make a significant investment to bless our community institutions Over The Mountain. We will adopt schools in our own neighborhoods. We will tangibly bless our first responders through building relationships, bringing meals, and training chaplains from our own congregation. We will expand our partnerships so that our community institutions know that Shades cares.

Sharing with Individuals: God has uniquely positioned our church membership through the community. In many neighborhoods and businesses, there are people from Shades who can share the Gospel with people who are in desperate need of it. In the days ahead, we will equip hundreds of Shades members with effective ways to share their faith and help others begin a relationship with Jesus.

Starting New Endeavors: Across our community, there are pockets of people in neighborhoods without a strong, gospel-preaching local church. Perhaps it is because some of the churches in that area are in decline and getting ready to close their doors. Perhaps it is because there is no church at all to be a witness in that part of the community. Shades will begin new endeavors in church planting, church revitalization, and/or starting campuses Over The Mountain to meet the need.

Our hope in Community Engagement is not to get everyone in the community in the doors of our church, but to get our church into the community. We see a day coming when Shades is more than a church that someone drives by on Columbiana Road. We imagine a day when Shades will bring life and light to every road in the community Over The Mountain. 

I hope that you will join us in this new and exciting vision. May God use every effort of Shades in Community Engagement to bring people into a life-giving relationship with Jesus Christ!

If you are interesting in joining and leading within this effort, please email Steve Browning at sbrowning@shades.org

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Why it's important to be thankful as a family

Posted in Adults  |  By Stephanie Hartsell  |  Posted on Mon Nov 21, 2016

As we look forward to Thanksgiving this week, we are all more aware of the need to be thankful. As parents we desire for our children to say thank you and to be grateful for the many blessings they have such as nice homes, more than enough clothes to wear, food on the table, and so on. In our give me, give me world, helping our children (and ourselves for that matter) have an attitude of gratitude can be a challenge. 

So what does the Bible say about being thankful?

1 Thessalonians 5:18-  “give thanks in all circumstances; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you.”  Having an attitude of gratitude is God’s will for us. 
Ephesians 5:20- “ giving thanks always and for everything to God the Father in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ,” We are to give thanks always and for everything.
Colossians 3:15- “And let the peace of Christ rule in your hearts, to which indeed you were called in one body. And be thankful.”  We are to let peace rule in our hearts and be thankful. 

What does a thankful heart look like? It is a heart that counts blessings, is happy with simple pleasures of life, and expresses gratitude for everything given, both to God and to man. 

A scientific experiment done at the University of California showed that those who spent ten weeks journaling things they were grateful for had higher levels of well-being, had more optimistic expectations, felt they had more connectedness to others, and were more willing to help others compared to the other groups who either journaled about things that annoyed or irritated them or journaled about things that had a major impact on them. 

How can you practice thankful more in your home?

  • Model being thankful.
  • Pray asking God to help your family have an attitude of gratitude.
  • Initiate conversation around the dinner table by having everyone name one thing they were thankful for that day.
  • Once a month, have family members go around and say, “I am thankful for ________ because _________.” Everyone must say one thing they are thankful for about each person.
  • Volunteer with Urban Purpose or Jimmie Hale Mission and serve those less fortunate.
  •  Have a “no complaining” day.

It is God’s will for us to be thankful in all things, all the time. When we teach and model an attitude of gratitude to our children, it helps strengthen our families as well as our relationship with God.

Reference:

Emmons, R. A. & McCullough, M. E. (2003). Counting blessings versus burdens: An experimental investigation of gratitude and subjective well-being in daily life. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 84, 377-389

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