Hear My Worship!

Jeremiah 7:2 "Stand at the gate of the Lord's house and there proclaim this message: " 'Hear the word of the Lord, all you people of Judah who come through these gates to worship the Lord.

When I read these words that were to the people of Judah... to hear the word of the Lord and to go through the gates to worship the Lord, I think of how our people come into our church sanctuary to hear the word of the Lord and worship each Sunday morning. We have been so blessed from the Lord to be able to have the freedom to do this. I pray that we as Christians would not just limit our worship to Sunday mornings. We ought to worship our Lord each and everyday. We cannot lose sight of our Lord Jesus Christ.

On the same hand, when we gather together in worship and fellowship as 1st "B", let's give up our best worship that we possibly can. As we sing a new song this Sunday called "Hear My Worship", and as we sing some of the other songs, let's truly ask the Lord that He may really hear our worship! As we worship God, we can call out to Him, we can cry out to Him, we can lift up our hands....LORD HEAR OUR WORSHIP! We worship the Rock of our salvation.

WOW! Busy Weekend!

This was a good weekend, but a busy one! It started out by having our boys having friends over and being at friends' houses...making sure they got where they needed to be and back on Friday night. Saturday morning was an early start making sure that Caleb and Jacob got on their way to Riverton and Thermopolis for their "away" track meets. Of course Sandra and I took care of yard work for most of the day.

The highlight of Sunday was being part of a huge ministry day! The Lord is so good. Of course we were blessed to be a part of the early service and the second service. Pastor Shaun did an excellent job of teaching from Romans 9 in the early service and about Rejection in the second service for his "Survivor" series. The church was packed, and it was wonderful hearing so many people lifting up the Name of the Lord in worship and song. The worship team introduced a new song that we are looking forward to singing again next Sunday. It's called..."Hear My Worship". You can listen to a version of the song on my playlist below on this page.

After a quick lunch downstairs at church, Pastor Shaun, Ben McMillan, Kaleb Craft, my son Caleb Garza, and I loaded up and headed out to the Wyoming Boys' School to present the Gospel message and worship the Lord with the kids out there. Everything was well received. The Lord did some mighty work out there. Please pray that this door of opportunity stays open for our team.

When we were done at the boys' school, we then headed back to the church, of course after a quick "pop" break at the local Cenex Station.....Thanks Pastor Shaun! My son and I then got ready and set up equipment to have some local teenagers rehearse for the upcoming Baccalaureate. The kids were a little nervous going over the music, but it's going to work out well for the service.

I wonder what the Lord has in store for us this week? Anyhow....busy but great weekend! God bless all of you! Have a great week!

Is this the year for the Cubbies?

Okay, Chicago Cubs! I have been waiting for a long time! Is this the year that you go all the way to the World Series and win it? Baseball 2009 is just a young season, but the Chicago Cubs are showing some promise to have a great season. Will I be able to wear my Cubs hat without hanging my head this year? Well....I guess I'm just glad that it's baseball season!

Also....I'm praying that Worland will have a legion team this year! Go Worland Indians! IT'S BASEBALL SEASON!!!

What a Weekend!

Hey Everyone....What a fun weekend we had with several church members. Friday night was the greatest. Jess and Heather had Sandra and me help with the youth "Bunko" Night. What a fun rotating dice game to play with the group. I wasn't too sure about playing it at first, but once we got started...it was a blast! We were laughing so much along with the kids as we played....we almost forgot that we were the adults. Those that were winning rolls of the dice were being wrapped with toilet paper. We had all kinds of snacks....and the winners and "not so winners" received prizes. I can't wait to play again.

Saturday evening was great too. If you are not a part of our church's 4X4 fellowship, you need to get connected. We had some folks from our church and their children over for a Bar-B-Q. You should have seen Ben McMillan sporting his basketball skills with the kids! It was a riot! The kids were climbing all over the playset. We adults enjoyed each other's company while the kids ate their dinners outside at the picnic table. We can't wait to get together again soon!

Sunday, after a wonderful worship service at First "B", Sandra and I finally got to rest at home while the boys went and spent time with their friends. It wasn't long, though, because it was off to Jess and Heather's house for a Student Ministries meeting and fellowship with the team, The Rollemas, Andersons, and the Garzas. Great barbequed bacon burgers Jess! Food, fellowship with friends, a meeting in there for a little bit, and playing a word game, it was a great Sunday evening to wrap up the weekend. Thanks Jess, Heather, and Kyston for having all of us over for a great time.

If you are looking for great fellowship with fellow Christians, First Baptist is a wonderful church family.

We All Need Prayer!

What a Blessed Easter!

What a wonderful Easter we had last Sunday! I am so happy about how many people were in church and a part of our worship service, especially the 3rd service! I truly believe that the Lord was pleased with our worship to Him, celebrating the resurrection of our Lord Jesus Christ! It was great to hear all of the voices as we lifted them up in song.

I want to thank our 1st Praise Worship Team. They did an incredible job covering both services. I was so proud of Kaleb Craft and my son Caleb Garza for stepping up and adding an extra special touch to the worship by being able and willing to play guitar and harmonica solos. I was truly blessed and so were many others.

Pastor Shaun had an incredible message with the Gospel clearly taught! Thank you Pastor for all of your hard work and also encouragement. My wife Sandra and Shaun's wife Jodie worked hard in preparation for our kids at church...I'm proud of them too! Also...thank you Pastor Jess for all your hard work, backing up the praise team, getting prepared for it all.

After the Sunday services we raced home had a scavenger hunt for the Easter baskets and had a quick lunch. Then my job for the State of Wyoming sent me to Casper for a conference. I just got back last night, Tuesday. I am just so glad that I could celebrate Easter with Sandra and the kids and with my church family!

Sharing With a Worland Kindergarten!

Getting out in the community was fun for my son Jacob and me yesterday. My boss, Steve Wake, wanted to know if we could take some of our dairy goats over to South Side Elementary to show to his daughter's kindergarten class (Mrs. Tidemann). It all worked out that I could leave the boys school, pick up Jacob from school, and load up the animals.

Right before we started to load the animals I noticed that we had a flat tire on our horse trailer, so we really had to scramble for time! We finally got the tire fixed up, and we were on our way.

After we got to South Side, we unloaded the animals, took them out to the playground and waited for the little kindergartners to join us. The children were so cute petting the animals and asking all of their questions. They asked everything from, "What are their names?" to "How much milk do you get every day?".

We had a great time. Thank you God that we were able to share with those little ones. Thanks for the great weather that we had for it too.

Last Sunday's Worship!

I personally want to thank Rod and Cassie Woodbury for being the guest worship team leaders for last Sunday morning. I heard that they did a terrific job! Of course...I can't wait to lead again with the rest of the worship team this Easter Sunday, but it is just so nice to know that the Lord is bringing in new talented people that are humble and willing to serve in the areas of need. It was nice to receive a break.

If you are wondering where I was....I was downstairs helping my wife in the nursery. The little ones were so cute singing hosanna with palm branches and making cross magnets with the leaders. I have not helped in the nursery with my wife in years! We had a good time. I have to say...I am proud of my wife, Sandra, for all of the hard work that she does for our kids. She is making sure that even the wee little ones hear about Jesus and the teachings of the Bible. I actually got to lead worship singing "The B-I-B-L-E", "Ho. Ho. Ho. Hosanna", "Jesus Loves the Little Children", "Jesus Loves Me", and others. Thanks Anita Carver for helping with the singing of some of the songs I hadn't heard since I was a kid.

Speaking of the Carvers....Dale and Anita Carver are great with the kids! You should have seen them working and playing with the kids! Dale is also great with the puppets!

Anyway....God bless you, and I will see you in worship this Easter Sunday. We will have three services as followed: Traditional, Blended, and Contemporary....all in the Name of the Lord!