“The earth and everything in it, the world and its inhabitants, belong to the Lord; for He laid its foundation on the seas
and established it on the rivers. Psalm 24:1-2 (HCSB)
Poolesville Baptist Church in Maryland, will have an installation service for their senior pastor Joel Gilbert at 5 pm on April 7.
Joel and Danielle Gilbert (center back) have three children — Zachary (left) now in Air Force Training; Melody, (right) a senior at Washington Christian Academy; and Zoe (front center) a fifth-grader at Christian Academy.
Gilbert was born in California, raised in a Christian home, and made a confession of faith when he was seven years old. His family moved to Maryland three years later. “During middle school and high school, God opened my heart to the world of missions and gave me a passion for leading people in worship (mostly with guitar),” Gilbert wrote in a short church biography.
It was also in middle school that Joel met his wife, Danielle. They began dating while attending Montrose Christian School. Danielle was a member of First Baptist Church of Rockville, in Maryland, and Joel was a member of Forcey Memorial Church, in Silver Spring, Md.
They both attended Taylor University in Indiana where Danielle graduated with a degree in Elementary Education, and Joel graduated with a Bachelor of Science in Music Composition and a minor in Church Music.
“During our senior year of college, we sensed the Lord leading us back to Maryland to Danielle’s church. God had laid on our hearts a desire to work with the teenagers,” Joel wrote.
Joel joined First Baptist Church in 1995, and they both began volunteering. “What began as youth-only evolved to assisting with worship during a time of transition. In 1999, the new senior pastor invited me to join the staff as a part-time youth pastor. From that time on, God has grown in me a love for His church and a heart to shepherd His people. God has allowed me to serve in various combinations of youth ministry, worship ministry, church planting, and administration.”
Joel and Danielle have three children — Zachary, now in Air Force Training; Melody, a senior at Washington Christian Academy; and Zoe, a fifth-grader at Christian Academy.
“We’ve had the joy of seeing all three of our children come to know the Lord and uniquely demonstrate their love for Him,” Joel said.
Severna Park Baptist Church
Dave Brown, the pastor of Severna Park Baptist Church in Maryland, began writing a simple doctrine in the form of questions and answers — a catechism for his children, starting when his oldest daughter, Alethia Grace, was old enough to begin asking spiritual questions. “I utilized it as a discipleship tool for her,” he said. He had the privilege of baptizing Alethia two years ago when she was nine-years-old. Since then he uses the format with his younger children, and he has shared it with church families and others to help them teach and disciple their children.
Brown recently made the information more available in a public format, posting the questions and answers, and a devotional, each Wednesday on the church Facebook page. “The Heidelberg and Westminster Catechisms are deep and good, but they’re a bit wordy. I wanted to try to simplify and summarize it in a more condensed way for kids,” he said.
Here is a recent post: Each Wednesday we share a question with its answer and biblical support. Our goal is to provide clarity of faith and a common language for what Christians believe. Feel free to comment or let us know if you have questions. Track the hashtag for previous questions #CatechismSPBCMD.
What is the Lord’s Supper?- The Lord’s Supper is a memorial meal that symbolizes Jesus’ death in body (bread) and in blood (cup). The meal reminds the believer of fellowship with God and with others, by grace through faith. 1Corinthians 11:26 “For as often as you eat this bread and drink the cup, you proclaim the Lord’s death until he comes.”
Food represents nourishment and intimacy. Most often we eat food with family and friends, and on occasion may share a meal with a stranger. When we eat and share food with others, we are normalizing others and inviting them in. Likewise, Jesus often used meals to engage people and invite them to enter into His life.
The Lord’s Supper is a meal for Christians to regularly share together in remembering the life, death, and resurrection of Jesus. Most often the only food elements are bread and cup with the fruit of the vine.
The bread represents the perfect life of Jesus lived to honor God in place of our imperfections and failures. Further, the bread represents the body of Jesus which was beaten and bruised on the cross, taking the sin punishment of death we deserve.
Equally, the cup represents the blood of Jesus, where His life was vanquished but His love for humanity fully visible. The bread and cup are a small foretaste of heaven, experiencing a meal in the presence of God and seeing the stripes and scars on Jesus’s body to thank Him for His mercy and grace.
Brown said LifeWay Christian Resources recently published a “The New City Catechism – 52 Questions and Answers for Our Hearts and Minds.”
Arundel Baptist Network
The Arundel Baptist Network will host a missions conference at Grace Baptist Church of Sunset Beach in Pasadena, Md., at 10:30 am on March 31. Presenters include Greg Kame, ABN director of missions, Bill Peacock, with Gideon’s International, and Ellen Udovich, Community Engagement Consultant with the Baptist Convention of Maryland/Delaware.
The Transformation Center
The Transformation Center, in Brooklyn, Md., now offers free mental health services for residents in the Brooklyn community. “Life Needs” is open 10 am to 2 pm on Tuesdays and Thursdays. Board-certified therapists and social workers are available on a walk-in basis. For more information email jrandall@lifeneedsbaltimore.com.
Roundup Cover image by Jill Wellington from Pixabay