Hannah Gibson is 7 years old and the oldest of three siblings.

She is a quiet, kind-hearted

and imaginative girl. Our home is frequently overflowing with her colorful drawings, paintings and
sculptures. She also enjoys playing with her
stuffed animals and
dolls.
When Hannah was four
years old we memorized
John 3:16,17. During
our time working on the
verse, she asked what
the word condemned
means which led to a
conversation about what it means to be saved.
Our discussion ended with her praying to receive
salvation. Since that time we have seen her love
for God and others grow and seen the fruit of the
Spirit develop in her life. This past January, she
followed Jesus in baptism. Like the apostle John,
we can say, I have no greater joy than to hear
that my children are walking in the truth.
When asked what she likes most about
church, she says, Singing and worship. She
loves Sunday School, Childrens Church and Junior Bible Quiz (JBQ). JBQ has been both challenging and exciting for her. Being extremely competitive, she has worked hard and thrived within the
competition. This past year she finished 5th in
her league.
We are incredibly thankful for this young
girl and are so blessed by her heart for the Lord.
We know that her future is bright because she is
following Jesus!

Hi Everyone! My name
is Jackson Cunningham and
I am going to be in the 5th
grade at Rolla Middle School
this fall! I am almost 11
years old, and I have been
coming to Rolla First Assembly since I was five. I love
Childrens Church, and helping Pastor Brian with the
sound on Sunday mornings
in Kids Church. Pastor Brians son Jacob taught me all
about how to work the sound
board. I really like being a helper and I like to
hear Pastor Brians funny stories every week! I
have four older brothers---and while its not always easy being the youngest---I really like to play
sports with them and go places with them! Some
of my favorite things are helping at Church, riding
my bike and swimming, playing with my friends
and brothers, and also playing sports and Legos.
I am so glad that I have made many friends at
Rolla First Assembly. All the Pastors have been
good to me and have taught me many things
about God! I am excited to be growing up, but I
will always remember my fun times in Childrens
Church!

KRISTEN SCHMID: CHILDRENS MINISTER

For as long as I can remember, I have wanted

to work with children. In fact, my parents have a video of me playing with my new toys the Christmas
right before I turned four, and I was pretending to
help out in the church nursery and teach my dads
class at the university. I have always loved children,
and thought for many years that I
wanted to be a teacher. I enjoyed
working in childrens ministry at my
church, though. I started working in
the nursery at the age of 10 1/2 , childrens church at 11, and that churchs
childrens worship ministry at 12, as
well as being the unofficial babysitter
for church activities. At the time, I was
attending a Christian school, and
thats where I wanted to teach. When I
was 14 the church and school closed
and my family began attending First
Assembly. Four months after we began attending
First Assembly I began helping in the childrens
ministry here. I helped with VBS, Kids Camp, Sunday School, Childrens Church, etc. If it was possible to be involved in a childrens ministry event, I
was. At this point, I didnt exactly know what I wanted to do vocationally. I still wanted to be a teacher,
but I didnt feel like the public school was the right
place for me. My mom was homeschooling my
brother and me, and I had decided that I wanted to

do the same whenever I grew up, got married, and

had kids, but I would need/want a job until then. I
thought, and prayed, and thought, and prayed
some more, but wasnt really sure of anything beyond wanting to teach. In October 2009, I went on
youth retreat with our youth group. It was during
that retreat that I began feeling God
speak to me about vocational ministry.
At first, I didnt know what to think. I
was going to obey God, but I also felt
like He was taking away my dream of
teaching, a dream I believed was from
Him. One day I realized that my
dream wasnt being taken away, it
was being refined. God was answering my prayers asking for His direction. I went to Central Bible College/
Evangel University and graduated with
a B.S. in Childrens Ministries. I have
remained involved in childrens ministry, both here
in Rolla and in Springfield while I was attending
school. I am currently a substitute teacher and looking for a full-time Childrens Pastor position. The
last year has been a bit difficult, not knowing what
was going to happen or when I would find a job, but
I know that God is in control and He is using my
time back here in Rolla to prepare me for whatever
it is He has planned for me.
Kristen Schmid

Summers come and summers go. Too quick, most times. One of the great opportunities that summer offers us is time
spent on vacation. I remember so many times as a child being on long car rides to see some of the most obscure things you
could ever imagine. If we were driving, and it was just off to the side of the road, chances were we would be stopping along the
way to see it! From alligator farms, to Indian ruins, to the worlds largest ball of used gum (you get the idea). Ive taken a few
trips like this myself with my own children.
But if we arent careful, our summers can too quickly become full of so many activities that we have to let something fall
through the cracks and that thing can easily become our time in church with other believers. We all need a break from the busyness of work that we have to do most of the year, and I believe that God wants us to take time to rest. In Mark 6:30-31 when
Jesus addresses the apostles? The apostles gathered around Jesus and reported to him all they had done and taught. Then,
because so many people were coming and going that they did not even have a chance to eat, he said to them, Come with me
by yourselves to a quiet place and get some rest. Of course, this led up to them feeding the 5,000. No rest for the weary,
right?
But I dont think that means that we need to take a break from God. As a matter of fact, the Bible tells us many times
that our rest is to be in Him. Matthew 11:28 says, Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest.
Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. Psalm
62:5 states, Yes, my soul, find rest in God: my hope comes from him. Getting rest doesnt mean excluding God from your
plans. While it may not be convenient to come to your church on Sunday while traveling, make time to find a church body to be
a part of! You never know what God may speak to you in a place that isnt your comfortable norm. Plus, you get to be a part of
the church universal! You get to meet fellow believers in a new place! The where you fellowship isnt as important as the
Who you fellowship with. Be sure to include God in your summer plans, no matter where you may be!

The Socialist worldview, based on the ideas of

Karl Marx, is an economic system based upon governmental or communal ownership of the means of production and distribution of goods and services, and
the abolition of private property. It is contrasted with
capitalism, an economic system in which capital assets are privately owned, and the prices, production,
and distribution of goods and services are determined
by competition within a free market. [Myers, Noebel,
100]
Atheism (there is no god) and Evolution (only
matter exists; there is nothing supernatural) are central
tenets to Marxism. This foundation of godlessness in
Marxism is identical with Secular Humanism discussed
in last months article. The difference? In The Communist Manifesto, Marx and Engels openly promote violence and the forcible overthrow of all existing social
conditions to eliminate those who own the means of
production. [Myers, Noebel, 101] Marxism declares
that the problem in this world is the rich. It promotes
antagonism and hatred instead of joint appreciation
between employers and employees. It is publicly sanctioned stealing from those who have, controlled by a
select few. Psalms 14:1 declares that any philosophy
whose basis of belief is that there is no god, will end
up corrupt and vile. We see the bloody reality of that
because those who followed Marxs philosophy in the
20th century such as Lenin, Stalin, Mao and Pol Pot,
were responsible for the slaughter of well over 100 million people. [Myers, Noebel, 101] This does not sound
like the workers paradise Marxism promised. Ideas
have consequences!
It is estimated that there are several thousand
Marxist professors on American campuses teaching
their Socialist/Marxist worldview.
Beware of those
who speak of social justice, a euphemism for redistributing wealth. Watch for the promotion of state cap-

italism which is the practice of federal governments

taking ownership and management control of private
businesses. [Myers, Noebel, 103, 104] Yes, God commands us to share with the poor, but this is to be a voluntary, not a coerced action. (Proverbs 22:9; Proverbs
31:20)
What does Gods Word say in response to Socialism/Marxism? Is it wrong to own things? To grow
wealthy from hard work? To own a business and have
employees? None of these are wrong according to
Scripture.
The 8th Commandment states, You shall not
steal. (Exodus 20:15) This indicates that private ownership of goods is allowed. The Bible instructs us to be
wise stewards of our possessions as well. (Proverbs
24:3, 4)
God ordained work; He also designed us to be
motivated by rewards. Lazy hands make a man poor,
but diligent hands bring wealth. (Proverbs 10:4) From
the fruit of his lips a man is filled with good things as
surely as the work of his hands rewards him. (Proverbs
12:14) Abraham, Job, David and Solomon were all
wealthy. There is no Scriptural prohibition against
wealth, only against setting our hopes on it instead of
on God. See I Timothy 6:17.
Ephesians 6:5-9 and Colossians 3:22 4:1 outline Gods design for the positive working relationship
between employers and employees. God hates a man
who stirs up dissension among brothers (Proverbs
6:19) as Marxism does in the workplace. We must
guard against being taken captive through [the] hollow
and deceptive philosophy (Colossians 2:8) of Socialism
and Marxism.
Secularism and Communism are
the same. Theyre godless. So spoke Franklin Graham
at the Decision America Rally in Jefferson City, MO on
May 17, 2016.
Beverly Flori

Happy Summer everyone! Kids Ministries is in

full swing and have we got a lot going on. Every
Wednesday night we have Spark! led by Kristen
Schmid happening in the gym at 6:30pm. If your child
is Preschool age through 5thGrade, they are welcome
to come join her for fun, games and Gods Word. And
speaking of Gods Word, over the next few months on
Sunday mornings in Kids BLAST we will be finishing
up Faith Case: Investigating the Truth where we
have been learning about what we believe and why
we believe it. Next we will be diving into the lesson
series David: How to be a Leader. In a world full of
followers, we want to see our kids take charge and
lead the way for all of their friends to know Christ.
In addition to all of those things, we are in
need of some help starting this August. We have a
desperate need for people to teach our Preschool

class every other Sunday morning during first service,

and a full time
teacher
during
second
service.
We are also looking for women
who feel called to
teach our girls on
Wednesday nights
about what it is to
be Godly through
our Girls Ministry
Clubs. If you have felt God tugging at your heart to
step up and serve in a ministry, this may be the place
for you! For more information about any of these
needs, please contact Ms. Beverly or myself.
Pastor Brian

How would you like to take a vacation that

was not only relaxing, but spiritually refreshing as
well? A vacation that helped you and your family to
cement your faith in the truthfulness of Gods Word
and delight yourself once more in our awesome Creator! Here are four places to visit:
1) The Creation Museum in Petersburg, Kentucky (seven miles west of the Cincinnati, Ohio air-

port) This world class museum is designed to honor

our Creator and the authority of Gods Word. It refutes Darwinian Evolution and contrasts human reason with Gods Word. The Museum includes the Creation Walk, the Wonders Room, the Biblical Authority
Room, a Special Effects Theatre, the Stargazer Planetarium, animatronic dinosaurs, botanical gardens, a
petting zoo, a zip line and much more. Tickets are
good for two consecutive days; thats good, because
you will need two days to see and do everything. Go
to creationmuseum.org or call 800-721-2298.
2) The Ark Encounter in Williamstown, Kentucky (about 40 minutes south of the Creation Museum right off I-75) This full-size wooden reconstruction
of Noahs Ark will open July 7, 2016. According to
the website, arkencounter.com, This marvel of engineering is seven stories tall and is a football field and
a half long. It is the largest timber frame structure in
the world, full of world-class exhibits designed to an(Vacation continued on page 5)

Have your kids thought about participating in Junior Bible Quiz this fall? JBQ is a
fun, challenging way to increase their knowledge of the Bible and commit over 90 verses
to memory! Now is the time to begin preparations for the upcoming season. Study Books
can be purchased for $11. We also have a JBQ Summer Bucket-List Challenge available to
help with summer studying. All students who complete the Bucket-List Challenge by August 14th will receive an ice cream gift card! Please contact Erin Gibson at joyfullyerin@gmail.com or 573-647-0840 for a Study Book, Bucket-List or any questions.
Erin Gibson
(Vacation continued from page 4)

swer your questions about the biblical account of Noahs Ark. Combination tickets to visit both the Ark
Encounter and the Creation Museum are available.
Go to arkencounter.com or call 855-284-3275.
3) Grand Canyon Tours Russ Miller, of Creation, Evolution & Science Ministries near Flagstaff,
Arizona, leads tours along the Grand Canyon and in
the surrounding area called the Grand Staircase. He
shows the geologic evidence on site for the global
flood of Noahs Day which wipes out the millions of
years that secular geology teaches and explains how
this eliminates Darwinian Evolution as well. Russ is
passionate about upholding the Word of God, word
for word and cover to cover. He leads One Day Rim
Group Tours along the Grand Canyon, Two-Day Group
Rim & Raft Tours and a Six Day Grand Staircase
Group Tour. See creationministies.org. The latter tour
is coordinated by Wayne Barber of Purpose Driven

Tours, Jackson, Mississippi. Go to purposedriventours.org. Also check out Canyon Ministries for their biblically based Rim Tours and River
Tours. Go to canyonministries.org.
4) Mount St. Helens Creation Center, Silverlake, Washington (about 72 miles north of the Portland, Oregon airport) The Mount St. Helens volcanic
eruption in Washington State in 1980 demonstrated
that catastrophe can cause massive geologic change
in a short time, such as what occurred with the Genesis Flood. (Once again, millions of years are not
needed!) The motto of the Mount St. Helens Creation
Center is Teaching the truth of Scripture, from the
foot of the mountain. Excursions are led to the east
side, south side and west side of the volcano, with
many points of interest defined. Go to mshcreationcenter.org or call 360-274-5737.
Beverly Flori

I know that summer isnt over yet, but it is

never too early to remind everyone about the great
things we have to offer at school! If you have a student attending the Middle School in the fall, might I
suggest Club 360? Club 360 happens each week of
the school year on Thursday morning at 7:30am. Its
a time that students can come together, have a little
something to eat, share Gods Word with each other
and pray. What better way to start the day? Club 360
is sponsored by Dr. Bickford in her classroom at the
school, and overseen by Pastor Brian. This past year
we saw our attendance peak at 70 students!
Next, if you have students attending the Junior High, why not check out AMPED!, our Bible study
held there each Tuesday morning at 7:15-7:45am?
Gods Word and topics that affect our Junior High students are discussed in an open and honest conversation that allows us to show them that Gods Word is
still relevant today. Pastor Brian, Pastor Jason and
Sam Parker each take turns leading this group to
give our students different perspectives, but to also
help smooth out the transitions from Middle School
to Junior High and then on into High School.
And finally, each week at the High School is a
student-led Bible study called Youth Alive! that
brings together students who love Christ in one place
to praise, to pray and to share Gods Word with each

other and how He is moving in and changing their

lives. Pastor Jason helps oversee this group in what is
a most important time in the spiritual development of
our students. Details are still being worked out for
this coming school year, so keep an eye out for meeting day and time!
God has given us great favor within our public
school system, so why not have your students take
advantage of showing their love of Jesus to those
around them? Contact any staff pastor or the church
office with any questions you may have.
-Brian Feller

Do you, your children, and grandchildren

know the Christian history and heritage of the
USA? Do you know the stories of the many
times that God intervened in times of crisis in
our nation's history in miraculous ways? Join
us on Sundays at 10:45am beginning July 3
in Room 107 for a look at the true national
treasures of America. You'll be inspired!
Beverly Flori

OUR PASTORS

Jason Gibson
Youth Pastor

pastorjason@rollafirstassembly.org

Sam Parker

After School &

Missions Director
kcatsc@rollafirstassembly.org

Brian Feller

Childrens Pastor
pastorbrian@rollafirstassembly.org

Ray Cook

Associate Pastor
fireguy@rollafirstassembly.org

Chuck Whitmire
Lead Pastor

pastor_chuck@rollafirstassembly.org

ADDITIONAL STAFF MEMBERS

Karen Turner, Administrative Assistant office@rolla-firstassembly.org
Mark Berry, Facility Manager office@rolla-firstassembly.org
Stephanie Bingham, Business Administrator stephanie@rolla-firstassembly.org
Abby Swearingen, Media Assistant media@rolla-firstassembly.org

NON-PROFIT
ORGANIZATION
U.S. POSTAGE PAID
PERMIT #116
ROLLA, MO

1608 N Oak St
Rolla MO 65401-2342

BRIAN FELLER
Pastors Corner

SOCIALISM AND MARXISM

Worldview FAQs

CHILDRENS MINISTRY
Pages 4 & 5

HANNAH GIBSON, JACKSON CUNNINGHAM

Spotlight