We were privileged to host many missionaries at our conference. The McGovern family has been serving the Lord is Papua New Guinea for many years. They have started several churches and are currently training young, native men to pastor those churches. Bro. Terry McGovern was the key note speaker of the conference, and he repeatedly challenged our church to remain faithful to local and foreign missions efforts.

The Bolticoff family, another missionary family in attendance, is currently on deputation raising support for their future ministry in Brazil. Bro. Scott Bolticoff along with his wife, Erica, and their children are excited about the work to which the Lord has called them. As they presented their burden for the Brazilian people, a grave sense of urgency was evident. There are millions of people in need of Christ in Brazil. We are praying that God will hasten their journey so the Bolticoff family can begin to plant churches in a very needy country.

Additionally, Bethany Homan, missionary to Peru, was invited to our conference. She has served as a missionary to Peru for almost 4 years, and will be returning in May to work with Jonathan and Becky Earnheart in Tacna, Peru. Southside Baptist has supported the Earnhearts’ labors in Peru, and we’re excited to further our support by assisting Bethany. Upon her return to Peru, Bethany will assist in the start of a new Christian school in Tacna and become its director. She will contribute to the soul winning and Sunday school ministries. Bethany also has the unique ability to minister to the deaf through her sign language ministry. During the conference, Bethany presented her testimony and burden for Peru with courage and conviction. The need for the Gospel in Peru was so evident, that one young person surrendered to the calling of God to likewise become a missionary to Peru. Truly, God was working in the hearts of His people during this conference.

Also, the Adams family is starting Lighthouse Baptist Church in Gulf Breeze, Florida. As the saying goes, “The light that shines the farthest shines the brightest at home.” Without strong churches to shine the light of the Gospel in our homeland, we cannot expect to strongly support missionaries who minister abroad. Bro. Adams declared the need for the Gospel all throughout the world and called upon us to continue steadfastly in prayer for missions. In the tone of the apostle Paul, he beseeched the church to “pray for us.” In just the coming months, the first service of their church is to be conducted. We, along with the Adams family, are praying that God will save souls and add members to the church in Gulf Breeze. I believe they are due for some very exciting moments in ministry in the coming years.

Southside Baptist Church was blessed to have these missionaries attend our Missions Conference. By the end of the conference, it was clear that the cost of inactivity was unacceptable. Resoundingly, the church concluded that we must give our greatest efforts to sending and supporting missions through faithfully going to reach the lost in Tampa and financially giving to God’s work of saving lost souls around the world. The conference was a time of revival and recommitment to the work of evangelism. It will be exciting to see all that the Lord does as Southside Baptist faithfully fulfills the call to the Commission.

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Every New Year should be a year of New Beginnings in a teenager’s life. Everyone plans to accomplish goals but many times we don’t finish or we fall short of where we desire to be in our spiritual life.

That is why God gives us New Beginnings. Don’t focus on what you didn’t finish or where you failed last year, but start your New Beginning in the right direction by participating in the Teen Afterglow Sunday Evening, January 15th, at 8:30.

We’ll kick off our “Minute to Win It” Tournament, and Evangelist Dave Somerdorf will be bringing a challenging message. Come expecting God to do great things in your life.

The choir of Southside Baptist Church was pleased to perform this year’s Christmas Cantata, “The Promised One.” 

The story was set in the days surrounding the birth of the Messiah, the Promised One.  Seen from the perspective of two fathers and their sons, the play portrays two contrasting views of the person of the Jesus Christ.  One father is a humble shepherd who teaches his son to look diligently for the coming of the Lord; the other father is a greedy inn keeper teaching his sanguine son the “important things in life” despite the questioning of the father’s cynicism. 

The play was creatively interposed with Christmas coral arrangements performed by the choir as the drama unfolded with the news that Christ was born in a manger behind the inn keeper’s stable.  The shepherds rejoice with celebration as they share the news, but the inn keeper recoils in confusion as he wonders how the King of kings could be born so lowly in a manger.  The shepherd’s son determined to “make room” in his heart for Jesus Christ, but the inn keeper’s son continued to question, “but what of Christ?” 

What will you do with Christ this Christmas?  Have you received Him as your personal Lord and Savior?  Have you asked Him to forgive you of your sins?  It is my prayer that we will all take time to “make room” in our hearts for Jesus, and not take the position of the inn keeper and state, “there is no room here for Him!” 

Please take time to view our musical celebration of the birth of Christ in our performance of “The Promised One”.

It was a blast watching the teens on their knees around the ping-pong table, ready to pass out from laughing hysterically and blowing at the ping-pong ball all at the same time (the girls beat the boys). It was a joy to see our group of Christian young people enjoying each other’s fellowship. The highlight of the evening was the Chinese gift exchange – the wildest gift exchange ever! All forty-six of our teenagers squeezed themselves into the largest room in our house to begin the fun.

The evening ended with a challenging message by Bro. Charlie entitled, “Born with a Purpose”. He encouraged the teens to seek and find the one purpose they were born on this earth as Christ was born to die on the cross. He finished by equipping them to die to self as Christ did by saying “Father not my will but thine be done”.

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The biblical narrative of Joseph and Mary’s story of travel and travail was sweetly portrayed by the little children. The story was filled with the singing of angels, the discovery of Christ by the shepherds, and the presentation of gifts by the wise men. The kids did a great job of not just capturing the heart of the story, but also of capturing our hearts. The excitement of discovering the Christ child laying in swaddling clothes in a manger remind us that Jesus was born to die on Calvary for the sins of humanity. The glorious story of delivery and deliverance warms my heart and fills it with gratitude as I recall that Jesus came to die for me.

The children put on a great show and cheered us as we prepare for more festivities with family and friends during this time of year. I hope that we can capture their spirit of excitement as we all remember the real meaning of Christmas this year. After all, the heavenly messengers brought a message of joy which shall be to all people. May we all find rest and peace in the person of Jesus Christ this Christmas.

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There is always an air of expectation at the Christmas party. The food and fellowship are always enjoyable, but the main event is the gift exchange. Southside does a “white elephant” style gift exchange. Each person will randomly choose a number out of a bowl and then get to choose a gift from the gift table in numerical order. The best rule of the game is that any gift that has been opened is fair game to be taken away. Instead of going to table to unwrap a new gift, someone can take a gift from someone else if they really want it.

Things get really funny when the same gifts go from one person to the next. At this party we had adult children taking gifts from their parents on a couple occasions, accompanied by threats of a loss of dinner when they got home! It seemed like Jeruel, one of the members of Southside, always got the best gifts because people kept taking them away from him! The antics were abundant as gift after gift got stolen, er, I mean passed around the room. Some people ended up with the silliest gifts, such as Michael who ended up with an soothing face mask and eye cream (though, he did look well rested the next day!). The evening was full of exuberance. When it was time for food, folks had to sing for their dinner, “name that Christmas carol,” or name a random reindeer.

Finally, “Santa” showed up to pass out gag gifts to some of the “special” members of the church. Suffice it to say, the whole party was just a riot of laughter. It’s great knowing that a Christian can have good, clean fun with other Christians. I can’t wait until next year’s Christmas party. Each year it seems to just keep getting better!

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Southside Baptist Church came together on Sunday to celebrate 8 years as a lighthouse in South Tampa.  It was a festive and exciting day in which God was honored for His faithfulness to this church over the years.  The people of the church were filled with joy and thanks as we recalled all that God had done beginning eight years ago.

There were many visitors who came to celebrate the occasion with us, which was a very special treat.  As the special service concluded, lunch was served on the grounds.  People were enjoying great food and fellowship all over the campus, from inside the fellowship hall and even under some large shady trees where tables were set up.  The weather was spectacular as cool breezes swept through the area.  The food was bountiful and the fellowship was a blessing to all.  After the meal, an afternoon service commenced.  Both our bellies and our hearts were full by the conclusion of the day.

While it has been a blessing to see the great faithfulness of God over the last several years, it is a special joy to know that the future of Southside Baptist will be very exciting as well.  It’s easy to allow the mind to wander and dream about what the Lord is doing in the people of Southside.  All that He has done has been preparing us for what lies on the horizon.  There are more people to reach, more Christians to encourage, more homes to help, more love to share.

I hope that more folks will come to share in our excitement as we continue to view the faithfulness of God in growing us spiritually over the coming years!

Here is a short History of the Ministry in Southside Baptist Church

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It is an honor to live in a country where freedom is protected by some of the most valiant and dedicated members of the U.S. armed services.  On Sunday, Southside Baptist Church recognized the bravery of these committed service members of the past and present.  We are thankful for the sacrifices of Marines, Sailors, Soldiers, Airmen, and Coast Guards, who are all committed to ensuring the liberty of our nation and assisting nations around the globe.  Not to be forgotten are the strong, supportive families that give up so much as their loved ones deploy abroad to accomplish their mission.  Southside Baptist took some moments to recognize each veteran from their respective branch of service.  Each veteran was presented with a gift to show our appreciation for their selfless service to our country.  We must never take for granted the gift of freedom that we have in this country, nor should we fail to recognize the persons who stand to secure those freedoms.   May God continue to bless our nation with young men and women who are willing to support this great country.

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