Annette and I want to share our family with you this month.

We know
many of you, but several we have not been able to really get acquainted with
and some of our own family is grown and gone now and you may not know
them at all either.
I graduated high school in 1977
from Salem and left for Drury College in Springfield. While getting
my degree in Business Adm. and
Economics I met a young lady
from Burge School of Nursing from
Brooklyn, New York. She began to
share Christ with me and about a
month after we met I came to
Christ at a Christian concert at
Evangel. I worked in the Finance/
Banking field for a short time before sensing a call into ministry and then
went back to CBC/AGTS for more training.
Annette grew up in the Lower East Side of Manhattan, New York and as a
teenager moved to Brooklyn as the neighborhoods continued to get worse
with gangs and school riots in the 70s. After she graduated from Valley
Forge Christian College in Pennsylvania, she sensed a call to pursue a nurs(Whitmire continued on page 6)

WINTER & SPRING CONSTRUCTION MISSION TRIPS

OK all you missions trip fans, this is for you! This December,
we are headed back down to Minden, Louisiana for a missions project at the Minden Womens Teen Challenge Center. The dates are
December 28th-January 2nd. This is the first time weve tried a trip
over the holidays, and we are very excited about this project! This
center is transitioning from being just a womens center to one of only 5 family Teen Challenge centers in the nation, while still operating
as well as a womens center. This center is housed in one of several
repurposed buildings, which have received extensive work over the
(Minden continued on page 6)

of Heaven
Living Christmas Tree
Jesus IS the Majesty
of Heaven! Hes the King
of Kings and Lord of
Lords. His glory fills the
skies and He is the Light
of the world. He is Lord
of all and nothing compares to Him. To Him all
nations bow down and to
Him creation cries out:
Majesty! He is high and
exalted and holds all
things together.
His
name is above all others
and will stand forever.
Unto Jesus be all glory,
(Majesty continued on page 2)

ADULT I CLASS INVITES YOU TO JOIN

Remember this little chorus? Everybody ought to go

to Sunday school, Sunday school, Sunday school, the boys
and the girls and the old folks, too! Everybody ought to go
to Sunday school. Isnt that the truth! I believe that. Im
82 and have gone to Sunday School most of my life. I believe God would have us to be well taught and informed
about the Bible. One of the best ways to do this is to attend a Sunday School class of your choice. We have a vibrant Sunday School class in Room 107 downstairs, right across the hall from the Roberts Family Life Center.
There are three (3) qualified teachers in this class with many years of teaching experience between them,
enabling them to be able to teach the Word of God with the help of the Holy Spirit to give the knowledge and
understanding that will help us live each day as the
Lord would have us live it. We use different methods
of teaching and encourage everyone to participate
in the class. The teachers are: Frank Ratliff, Harold
Are you grieving or do you know someone who is? Kaufman, and Dale Edwards. The class starts at
Everyone experiences loss in their life at one time or 9:15 and lasts till 10:30. Everyone is welcome! As
another, perhaps through the death of a loved one, a they say, Try us, you might like us! Thank you!
broken relationship or the loss of a dream. Grief is
not a disease to cure, but a process to walk through.
Join us on Sundays at 10:45 am in Room 107 for A
Biblical View of Grief and Loss as we learn tools to
help us in our journey through grief and loss in a helpOur mens class begins a new topic this month.
ful and hopeful way. Ralph and Beverly Flori will be
The title is Respectable Sins by Jerry Bridges. In adthe facilitators.
dressing the major sins of our society and culture, it
can be easy for churches to overlook the subtle and
quiet sins that affect those within its walls. Men
(Majesty continued from page 1)
will have a much better understanding of how to adhonor and praise!!
dress and overcome Respectable Sins. Men,
The dynamic title song, Majesty of Heaven, feaplease join us during second service in the Olive
tures a majestic flag presentation performed by Pattie
Street house behind the church (1608 N Olive). If
Elliott, Stacey Berry and Amy Smith. Later youll hear
you have any questions, contact Sam at
the song, Mary Did You Know, sung by George Vinson
[email protected].

A BIBLICAL
VIEW OF

GRIEF & LOSS

RESPECTABLE SINS CLASS

and interpreted by a few of our youth in a human video.

In another song a Junior Choir joins the Adult Choir for a
foot stomping, hand clapping song called, Fear Not.
The beautiful song Christmas Morning, sung by Kathy
Amsinger, wonders if God cries on Christmas morning
without Jesus by His side, knowing that His only Son
would go to the cross and suffer so much. Come and en-

joy all the other great songs and celebrate with the
choir the Majesty of Heaven, Jesus Christ, and please
invite your friends and neighbors.
Performances are December 12th at 7:00 PM, December 13th at 6:00 PM and December 14th at 6:00 PM.

UNGLUED STUDY TO BEGIN IN LADIES CHRISTIAN ED CLASS

The Womens Christian Education class will begin a study on
Lysa TerKeursts book Unglued
Making Wise Choices in the Midst
of Raw Emotions. Lysa admits
that she, like most women, has
experiences where others bump
into her happy and she comes
emotionally unglued. We stuff, we
explode, or react somewhere in
between.
What do we do with these raw
emotions? Is it really possible to make emotions
work for us instead of against us? Yes, and in her
usual inspiring and practical way, Lysa will show you
how. Filled with personal examples and Biblical
teaching, Unglued will equip you to:
Know with confidence how to resolve conflict in
your important relationships.
Find peace in your most difficult relationships as
you learn to be honest but kind when offended.
Identify what type of reactor you are and how to
significantly improve your communication.
Respond with no regrets by managing your

tendencies to stuff, explode or react somewhere

in between.
Gain a deep sense of calm by responding to situations out of your control without acting out of control.
Join them on Sunday mornings at 10:45 in room
103.

LIVING CHRISTMAS TREE

-SETUP HELP NEEDEDMen, we need your help! We are preparing for the annual Living Christmas Tree performances, and will
need help picking up the parts, setting it up, and taking it down. If you can help at any of these times,
please come and join us:

Picking up the tree December 7 at 3:00 pm

Setting up December 8 & 9 at 8 am

Taking it down on December 15 at 8 am.

Mark your calendars nowwe will need many workers
to set up the sanctuary in preparation for one of our
biggest performances of the year.

PENTECOSTAL EVANGEL TRANSITIONS TO ONLINE NEWS

In 1913, the publication we now know as the Pentecostal

Evangel (PE) was launched. The AG has shared PE with as many
as possible, and its stories have introduced readers to Jesus,
changed lives, and connected our ever-expanding fellowship
for more than 101 years.
In recent decades, however, demand for PE has seen a significant decline. Its purposeto communicate Jesus and the
power of the Holy Spirittranscends medium or method. So in
order to continue the legacy of PE and stay true to the goal of
being a part of "the greatest evangelism the world has ever
known," weve decided to move PE to an online news platform,
called PE News. We will transition from production of PE as a

weekly print publication to an online news presence at the end

of 2014. We feel this website will carry on the heritage of PE in
a fresh way.
Meanwhile, weve also recognized a space for an entirely
different kind of Spirit-empowered ministry voice. Were excited
to announce the launch of Vital, a creative discipleship tool we
believe will pave new ground in our fellowship and reach into
the daily lives of its readers.
For Christ and His Kingdom,
George O. Wood
General Superintendent of the Assemblies of God

One of the most Frequently Asked Questions of all

time is If God is good, why is there evil and suffering
in the world? Another form of it is, How could a loving God allow _________________? (You fill in the
blank.) Or Why do bad things happen to good people? Or even more personally, Why me, God?
Dont be afraid of or be stumped by this question.
You have an answer! Christianity is the only religion
which has a good answer for this. The short answer
is that evil and suffering in the world are not Gods
fault; they are mans fault. God created everything
perfectly, including man with a free will, because he
wanted man to choose to love and serve him. Tragically, Adam and Eve chose to disobey Gods rules,
and thus all sin, death and suffering have followed
from that choice. But because of Gods great love,
He provided a second Adam, Jesus Christ, to take
away the sin of the worldbut thats a story for another day!
Lets return to the original question, Why does a
good God allow evil? and discuss it a bit further.
First of all, God is good. One of Gods many attributes is goodness, and everything He created was
good. Genesis 1:31 declares, God saw all that he
had made, and it was very good. Psalm 100:5
states, For the Lord is good and his love endures forever. Gods goodness extends to all, the
evil and the good alike. Psalm 145:9
says, The Lord is good to all; he has
compassion on all he has made.
Matthew 5: 45 He causes his sun
to rise on the evil and the good,
and sends rain on the righteous and the unrighteous.
Luke 6:35 He is kind to the
ungrateful and the wicked.
Dont you appreciate the
goodness of God?
Second, God promises

many blessings (displays of His goodness) to those

who serve and obey Him. Deuteronomy 5:29: Oh,
that their hearts would be inclined to fear me and
keep all my commands always, so that it might go
well with them and their children forever! Proverbs
20:7, The righteous man leads a blameless life;
blessed are his children after him. Ephesians 6:7, 8,
Serve wholeheartedly, as if you were serving the
Lord, not men, because you know that the Lord will
reward everyone for whatever good he does, whether
he is slave or free. If we obey God and keep His commandments, we will receive many more of His blessings than if we disregard His laws. Obedience shields
us from the steep negative consequences of sin.
Proverbs 11:21, Be sure of this: The wicked will not
go unpunished, but those who are righteous will go
free.
But what about when bad things happen to those
who have honored and served the Lord with their
lives? How do we deal with it when something terrible happens to those who have walked uprightly?
The Bible reminds us repeatedly that we will have
trouble in this life. Thirty-eight times in the Psalms
(KJV), the word trouble is used. Psalm 46:1 states,
God is our refuge and strength, an ever-present help
in trouble. Psalm 50:15 declares, And call upon
me in the day of trouble; I will deliver you,
and you will honor me. In John 16:33,
Jesus reminds us, I have told you these
things, so that in me you may have
peace. In this world you will have
trouble. But take heart! I have
overcome the world. Peter
exhorts us in I Peter 4:12,
Dear friends, do not be surprised at the painful trial
you are suffering, as
though something strange
(Cosmos continued on page 5)

Christmas Events
December 6 10:00 am
Choir in Rolla parade
December 6 & 7 6:00 pm
Childrens Christmas Program
December 10 7:00 pm
Living Christmas Tree dress rehearsal
December 12 7:00 pm, 13 & 14 6:00 pm

The Living Christmas Tree

December 16 6:00 pm
AV Christmas party
December 17 6:30 pm
kids and youth Christmas parties
December 24 6:00 pm
Christmas Eve service
December 27-29
Xtreme Winter
December 28 10:00 am
Combined service

TWEENS ATTEND XTREME WINTER

Our 5th-7th graders are excited to attend this
years Xtreme Winter December 27-29. Kids will enjoy concerts by Newsboys, Matthew West, Switchfoot, Mandisa, Colton Dixon, Newsong, Andy Mineo,
Rush of Fools, and the Jordan Howerton Band, and
hear youth-oriented sermons by speakers Tom Richter, David Nasser, and David Edwards.
Each year, Pastor Brian and Sam Parker escort
our middle school kids to this three-day event in
Branson. The $80 fee covers the conference, hotel,
and meals. Signup deadline is December 1; if you
have a tween interested in going, please contact
Pastor Brian at [email protected].
More information about Xtreme Winter can be
found at xtremeconferences.com.

(no evening service)

December 31 6:00 pm
New Years Eve service
(Continued from page 4)

were happening to you.

We live in a sinful world and, unfortunately, tragic things happen, even to Godly people. Again, it is not Gods
fault, for He created the world perfectly! Whether our suffering is a result of our direct sin, or the sinful or devastating choices of others, or whether our trouble is just simply the product of the rain [that falls] on the righteous and the unrighteous, or any other source, God promises to be present, to be near, and to love and comfort us. He will never leave or forsake us. He will walk the road of suffering with us. He commands us to call
out to Him for help in lifes tough circumstances. In His mercy, He promises not only to assist us and comfort
us, but to bring good out of what we are experiencing.
So instead of asking, Why do bad things happen?, perhaps we should ask, Why do you care so much
about us when we are the root of the problem? We can join the writer of Psalm 107 who describes four highly
unfavorable life circumstances, but whose repeated refrain is, Then they cried to the Lord in their trouble, and
he saved them from their distress. . . . Let them give thanks to the Lord for his unfailing love and his wonderful
deeds for men.

(Whitmire continued from page 1)

ing degree at Burge School of Nursing in Springfield,

Mo. It was there she got her R.N degree and her MRS.
Degree.lucky me!
We began our ministry as youth pastors. We
came to Rolla in 1990, from First Assembly in Steelville, and have been so blessed with many church
and community friendships in both towns that we often ponder how wonderful God has been to us.
We raised four children in Rolla. Our oldest son,
Kyle, and his wife Melanie have 3 children. Kyle graduated from Evangel University and is now a police
officer with the Columbia, MO police department.
Melanie is a Spanish teacher who formerly taught at
RHS. Their children Marek, Keira and Maylen are expecting another sister in February of next year.
Ryan lives in Denver, Colorado and enjoys the
beauty of the Rocky Mountains. He graduated from
Wheaton College with a degree in International Business and has lived overseas and works for the State
Department.
Tyler is an Evangel graduate and is in medical
school in St. Lucia and will return for his rotations to
Brooklyn, New York. His wife Erica is also an Evangel
graduate and has been teaching in St. Lucia.
Aimee is attending Evangel and her major has
changed from Psychiatry to Marketing. She is an accomplished shutterbug, taking photos under the
name Tai Photography and is a devotional leader in
her dorm. She was born in China and we adopted her
(Minden continued from page 1)

when she was about 6 months old and has been in

the United States since 1995. The boys all say we
love her the most!
I enjoy singing in the church choir, hunting, working on the farm with my chain saw, reading, kayaking,
and spending time in the woods with whomever will
join me.
Annette has always loved to read, preach at the
jail, and be with our family. She just finished a book
entitled, If Your Mountain Wont Move, Climb It. It is
about her battle with cancer for the past 12 years,
and is now available at The Lords Library.
As I sit at my desk today, on the Wednesday before deer season and type this, I am so very grateful
for such a wonderful family and church family. The
year of 2014 has been one of great victories and trials, but I am more assured today than ever that our
Lord is always with us.
Since our family is spread so far apart, we will
probably have Christmas a few different places and
times this year but from our home to yours we pray
that Jesus is the center of all our Christmas celebrations and may His love be an example for us in our
love for others.
Matt. 1:21 She will give birth to a son, and you
are to give him the name Jesus, because he will save
his people from their sins.

last couple of years, but are still in need of extensive work to be used to their full potential. Teen Challenge
is a residential substance abuse recovery program. Most centers require the attendee to leave their families,
but in a family center, a parent can bring their children with them. Children will receive counseling and be
taught Gods word alongside their recovering parent. A team has already gone down to Minden and done
work on the home for the director. This December, we will be continuing to work on several projects in progress including plumbing, finish work, tearing out overgrown vegetation, framing, and many other
tasks. There is work for both skilled and unskilled workers! The Minden Teen Challenge center needs extensive work; more than our church would be able to do with several trips. Missions committee members are
already planning to approach other churches to invite them to send workers with us; if you would like more
details about this trip or know a church that may wish to be involved, please contact Kathi at missions@rolla
-firstassembly.org. We hope you can join us!

PASTORS & STAFF

NON-PROFIT
ORGANIZATION
U.S. POSTAGE PAID
PERMIT #116
ROLLA, MO

1608 N Oak St
Rolla MO 65401-2342

NEW CHRISTIAN ED CLASSES

Three New Topics Beginning

MAJESTY OF HEAVEN
Living Christmas Tree

WINTER MISSION TRIP

Teen Challenge Center in Minden, LA

HOLIDAY SCHEDULE

Performances & Special Services