Nurture – Hendersonville Church of God

Ministry

Philosophy:

We believe that every believer has a gift from God to use for His purpose (2 Timothy 1:8-10).

Our goal is to identify the gift and use each believer to further God’s Kingdom. We believe in “team ministry” where everyone has a place of importance and fulfillment as part of the Hendersonville Church of God.

Go into all the world and make disciples was the final command of Jesus. The church exists to win the lost to Jesus Christ, but also to build and make better followers of Christ. Our goal is for the HCoG to build relationships and through relationship, build and nurture better disciples.

We strive daily to be the best we can be in Christ. Our best is found only in our relationship and growth in Christ.

We see and love believers at every stage of their growth in Christ. Our desire is to Nurture (Mt. 28:18) every believer to a deeper and fuller and richer relationship with Jesus.

Prayer

What is Prayer

Prayer is, simply put, communication between God in heaven and humanity on earth. We have many books written telling us what prayer is and at times, it can seem a bit intimidating, but prayer is simply talking to God.

WHY? Corporate & Individual

Throughout the history of Israel and the New Testament church, people are called to pray. In one of his last comments to the disciples, Jesus instructs them to “…tarry in the City of Jerusalem” and we find them praying together on the Day of Pentecost.

Corporate prayer opens us to the presence of God and His power (Acts 2).

Individually, we needn’t look any further than the disciples request to Jesus in the book of Luke, chapter 11, to see the importance of daily prayer. The disciples could’ve asked Jesus to teach them just about anything, but their request was, “Lord, teach us to pray, as John also taught his disciples.” (Luke 11:1). No relationship is fulfilling if there is no communication.

Prayer is communication between us and God. If you never speak to the ones you love, you can not develop a deep relationship. If you never spend time simply talking and listening to God, you can not develop the type of relationship He desires and benefits you the most!

How do you pray?

There are many “models” of prayer. However, Christ laid out the manner of prayer in Luke 11. It is often called “The Lord’s Prayer” but in reality, The Lord is giving this to the disciples.

An acknowledgement of God and His perfection.
An invitation for His purpose and plan to be enacted in your life.
A request for provision.
A purposeful recognition of our failings and need for His perfection.
An acknowledgement that we also have the power of forgiveness and must walk in forgiveness.
An acknowledgement that we are tempted and need God to rescue us.
An acknowledgement of an enemy.

Not every prayer will contain every element of “The Lord’s Prayer”. However, every prayer should be prayed with the expectation of an answer.

Personal Bible Study

Why

Much like prayer, studying the Bible is an avenue of communication between God and His creation. We are told in John 1 that Jesus is the Word. Studying the Bible is an action that leads us to knowing Jesus, knowing God, better than we did before studying. Christ told His disciples in John 8:31-32, “Then Jesus said to those Jews who believed Him, “If you abide in My word, you are My disciples indeed. 32 And you shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free.” Jesus also said, “I am the way, the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through Me.” John 14:6. So if knowing the truth sets you free, and Jesus is both the Word (Jn. 1:1-4) and the Truth (Jn. 14:6), we can see the importance of reading the Bible and knowing the Bible. It will bring us truth and freedom!

How

We encourage each believer to have a set time of Bible reading. When anything becomes part of our lives, we are more intentional about completing that “task”. We also miss those things when we do not do them. Setting a time to read stresses the importance of reading and places value on the Bible. When reading, we encourage everyone to use a Bible that is comfortable to them.

There are 3 types of Bibles available today:

*Word for Word Translations: Bibles that use the early manuscripts and translate the Hebrew, Greek and Aramaic words into the same English word. King James Version, New King James Version, New

American Standard Bible and English Standard Version are all word for word translations. *Thought for Thought Translations: Bibles that use the early manuscripts and translate the Hebrew, Greek and Aramaic words into an English word that conveys the “thought” behind the original documents. New International Version, New Living Translation are examples of the Thought for Thought Translation.

*Paraphrase Versions: Bibles that are written by an individual or group of individuals that put the Bible into their own interpretation. Often these versions are much easier to read, but not as accurate as Word for Word or Thought for Thought translations. We advise that a Paraphrase version be used only as a compliment in Bible study. The Message and The Living Bible are examples of a Paraphrase Version.

Discipleship

Christ commanded His first disciples to “go into all the world and make disciples.” Matthew 28:19. If we follow the model of Christ in making disciples we find that one of the keys to making a disciple is having a relationship with that person.

Once a relationship is started, influence is gained and a disciple is born/made. Discipleship isn’t a one time event or a one time meeting, it takes time and is usually a life long endeavor.

There are opportunities in the church setting for discipleship to take place, teaching on Sunday mornings and Wednesday Nights are excellent times of discipleship. We also have Men’s Meeting, Women’s Fellowship and Children and Youth discipleship groups.

Godly Men

Our men meet once a month for fellowship and devotions. Throughout the year we have multiple opportunities to reach out in the community and help the less fortunate. We minister to those in the church that have needs as well.

Godly Women

Our Hendersonville Church of God Women meet once of a month for fellowship and devotions. Throughout the year there are multiple opportunities to reach out in the community. The Ladies also support our Girls Clubs Ministry. Girls Clubs take place each Wednesday night and focus on teaching the scriptures through practical application for girls ages 6-12.

Children & Youth

Our children’s ministry focuses on elementary age children. Each Sunday, Karen Cooper and her assistants teach our children during Children’s Church. This teaching takes place during our morning service. The only exception is the first Sunday of each month when everyone remains in the sanctuary. We believe in families and love seeing everyone together during this service each month.

Wednesday nights our elementary age girls participate in Girls Clubs. Judy Price and Shelly Morrison teach classes specifically designed to help girls learn the Word of God in applicable ways. They also participate in service projects that help the local church and our Home for Children throughout the year.

Thrive Youth is led by Lyle and Misty Watkins. Thrive is our teenage ministry and focuses on learning God’s Word and becoming better followers of Christ. Thrive is heavily involved in the church through assisting with music on Sunday’s and helping serve at dinners hosted by the church. Thrive also participates in various service projects and youth events throughout the year.