To say that Exmore Baptist Church is a busy church is an understatement. With new ministries being added to all of the existing ministries, the calendar is full and the Outreach Center is constantly being adjusted to the needs of the week. Just in the last few months, a Senior Saints ministry and a Women's Prayer Ministry have both started and the congregation voted to allow the newly-born Shore Community Bible Fellowship to use our facilities. 

 

While no one can attend every event or serve in every ministry, I encourage our members to take advantage of the opportunities that we have. Very few churches our size offer all of the ministries and events that we do. I am blessed to serve God's flock at Exmore Baptist that is active for JESUS. 
 

There is a word of caution I must give. Rather, it is the Lord who told the church in Ephesus that He was fully aware of "your works, your toil and your patient endurance...But I have this against you, that you have abandoned the love you had at first" (Rev. 2:2,4 ESV)

 

It's easy to be so caught up in the work of God that we neglect the God of work. In other words, our Work for God takes priority over our Worship of God. The classic example of this is Martha (sister of Lazarus) in Luke 10:38-42. She was overwhelmed with the tasks at hand and frustrated with the lack of help from her sister. Mary was sitting at Jesus' feet, hanging on His every word. 

 

A great message related to this is Richard Blackaby's "Iron Sharpens Iron." It can be found on YouTube and in that sermon he asks, "Are you enjoying God?" It's very easy for believers, ministry leaders and even pastors to get so busy in the details that we lose sigh of the big picture of why we do what we do. If we neglect our personal relationship with the Lord, this is sure to happen. The remedy is found in Rev. 2:5, Remember, Repent and Return to the things ("first works") you did in the beginning. 

                                                                                                                                                                                                   - Pastor Carpenter