I would encourage you to copy these and keep them for future study. Pastor Phil presents the Truth of the Scriptures accurately. Pastor Phil doesn't back down when the Truth conflicts with what society would have us to believe. You can be confident that you will hear the Truth.

     Pastor Phil preaches steadfastly, unashamedly, proclaiming the Truth of the Scriptures with compassion and love.

To view Video and Audio Sermons by Pastor Phil click here...

Visit our Church

     Debbie and I attend church at First Baptist Church in Powell, Tennessee. We would like to invited you to visit our church. I really like to hear our pastor. I feel like when I get to church I am not going to hear what the pastor thinks, but the plain truth of the Scriptures. I don't put up with traditions and foolishness, I only want to hear the truth. I feel like this is exactly what I get each Sunday at First Baptist Powell, TN.

View First Baptist Church Website
 

www.coldwatermedia.com

     Last night I couldn't sleep because I was not feeling well, so I went up to my study and turned on the television set for a few minutes. While flipping through the channels, I stumbled across a program about history. The program was really good. History was presented right alongside the Bible. While teaching ancient history the program illustrated that God had waited “until the fullness of time had come” before sending Jesus into the world.

    The program illustrated how the Alexander the Great, and the spread of Hellenism had brought the world under the influence of one common language and culture, enabling the church to spread the gospel quickly across a large portion of the known world. The program also illustrated how the message of the Gospel influenced and changed the world. The program was narrated as it took the viewer to ancient ruins and historical sites. The narrator was very humorous as he talked about the history of Ancient Greece, Alexander the Great, the Roman Empire, the Persian empire, and the spread of Hellenism.

Links to Bible Study Websites and  Tools

    
I have been getting the news letters from AFA for a long time. I like the way AFA keeps me informed about issues in government and society that affect Family values and Christianity.

     If you have paid any attention to the news media lately, you can clearly see that Christianity and Family values are under attach in this country. AFA helps keep me informed about these issues, and many times provides an easy way to voice my opinion by sending my comments directly to state representatives and others who have the ability to influence change for the good.

     Try their e-mail alerts for a while and see what you think.

My Personal Testimony

This is the account of how I came to believe on Christ
and was saved by His grace.

     In 1966 my father was the pastor of a small church in Markham, Illinois. At the age of six, I didn't understand many things. I knew that we went to church every Sunday, and I knew that it was very important to my parents, but I didn't know why we went to church.

     Already, at the age of six, I was aware of what sin was. I knew that I had done things that were wrong. For example, this very same summer I had stolen a $20.00 bill from my aunt Jackie's purse. This is the first time I remember experiencing guilt.

     One afternoon, while dad was at work, I sneaked into my aunt's purse and stole a twenty dollar bill. After stealing the money, I slipped out of the house. I made it out of the house without being caught. Feeling like I had gotten away with what I had done, I slipped off the corner store on my bike.

     I had never had so much money in my life! Now I could buy anything I wanted! I picked out big round sticks of bubble gum called "Bubs Daddy's" that were bout 2 feet long (remember those?), I bought candy, I bought "Hula Poppers" (remember those little firecracker like things that you pulled the string and they popped throwing out a bunch of strings everywhere?), I bought a bubble making machine and some other toys. I spent the whole twenty bucks! Twenty bucks was a whole lot of money in 1966!

     I loaded my ill-gotten gains onto my bike and headed down the street toward home. I was completely unaware that at the very same moment my dad was driving home from work. Oh boy, you guessed it! I was caught!

     I didn't see dad until I was pulling my bike across the field behind our house. Maybe he didn't see. For the first time I can remember I felt the burning condemnation of guilt. I hoped for the best, but alas, all hope was lost when dad asked me what was in the bag I was carrying across the field on my bike. Next was the question "where did you get the money to buy this stuff?" Then the confrontation with my Aunt who I had stolen the money from. Dad took the loot I had purchased, gave it away to another kid, and banished me to eternal punishment!

     Oh boy. I had went from being rich to being poor again, except this time it was even worse, I was ashamed, guilty, and being punished.

     The next time I remember feeling the guilt for my sin was when my brother Rick and I just about burned the school down. Yep, you heard right, we just about burned the school down.

     If you grew up in the city, you probably remember all the kids in the community hanging around the school yard and playground after school and weekends. One Saturday afternoon my little brother and I slipped out with some matches we had taken from our house. We went to the end of the block, where the neighborhood kids usually gathered on summertime afternoons, to the playground next to the school.

     After playing a while, my little brother Rick and I gradually began to slip toward the field behind the school. After going far enough that I knew no one could see what we were doing, I pulled out the matches. What a great time! We were lighting matches and throwing them up in the air, watching them smoke out like little missiles. How cool was that! This was great!

     We were having a great time watching the matches leave little smoke trails, pretending they were little missiles, when I noticed one of the matches had started a little fire in the sage grass. One thing you learn quick around the farm, is that you don't start a fire near sage grass! I picked up some old shingles that had been dumped in the field, and began trying to hit the flames and put them out. It was no use, I was just fanning the fire. The fire was getting bigger and bigger! What to do? The fire was racing for the school building!

     Looking around, and realizing that the fire was out of control, I came up with a plan. It would take a little while for the parents and children on the playground to notice the fire, so we walked far away from the fire and entered the playground again from another direction. No one had noticed the fire, and it was getting bigger and bigger. Once on the playground I put my plan into action. I looked in the direction of the, now huge fire, pointed my finger and yelled "Hey look! the field is on fire!"

     Well someone called the fire department and the whole neighborhood came to watch the fire department battle the fire and save the school. While all the excitement was going on, my brother and I slipped away and walked back down the block home. (the parsonage that the church had provided for the pastor and his family to live )

    After I got home I tried to act like nothing had happened. I went across the field to a friends house and acted like I was playing. There, once again, I began to feel the pangs of guilt. I heard my mother calling, so I ran home to see if someone had saw what I had done and told my mother. Nope. She said she didn't call for me! I thought I heard my mother call for me several more times that day. The guilt was tearing me up on the inside, making me hear things!

     Sometime later that day, close to evening, as I was coming home from the neighbor's house, I saw two little twin girls leaving the driveway. Before I could get into the house I was confronted by my mother. Those two "little goody-two-shoes" had told my mother I started the fire! Once again, I was caught, guilty and ashamed.

     Now I have shared these stories with you to illustrate how God had been dealing with my heart about my sins. I had began to think on other things as well. Thoughts were going through my mind like, "Where did I come from?",  "Why do I exist?," "Where do people go when they die?" I began to question why we went to church as well.

     One Sunday afternoon while those questions were floating around in my mind, and I finally just came out and asked my dad "why do we go to church?" Dad, sensing that God was dealing with my heart, began to share with me that it was because of what Jesus had done for us that we went to church. He explained that when Jesus died on the cross, he had taken the punishment for the sins of all you would believe on Him.

     I knew what sin was. I had already been suffering from it's guilt. I knew I was a sinner. Dad went on to explain that Jesus had died to be able to offer those who believed on him the "Gift" of forgiveness. Dad picked up a baby's toy that you wind up and it plays a song while a little scene rolls around the window. Dad explained forgiveness like this, "Pretend that I am God and I want to give you this toy. It's a gift. It didn't cost you anything , but it cost God a great deal." Dad then stuck out his hand and offered the gift to me.

     I reached out and took the gift, then Dad asked me a question. "When did the gift become yours? I answered "when I reached up and took it." At that moment I realized that God loved me, and wanted to forgive me of my sins. Dad asked me "Would you like to accept the gift of forgiveness that God is offering you?" I said yes, and I prayed and told God that I wanted to reach out and accept this Gift that Jesus had died to make possible for me.

     At that moment, the Holy Spirit of God came into my heart and filled my heart with joy. All the questions that I had been wondering about had been answered. I now understood why I existed. I now had a reason to live. I now knew where I what was going to happen to me when I died. I knew in my heart that that I was changed on the inside. From that day foreword I began to learn more about God and the Bible. My love for God grew daily, and continues to grow to this very day.

     The reason I have created this Blog is so that someone, like you, might read this and hear that God loves you too. He sent his Son, Jesus, to die for your sins too. He is offering you the free gift of forgiveness. Is God is speaking to your heart? Will you reach up and accept the gift of forgiveness today?

     If you feel God is speaking to your heart too, give me a call. I will be glad to talk to you. My number is (865) 936-5922. If you would rather e-mail, just drop me a line at bill@billwoodyphotography.com

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