the Logos

Today was our monthly Youth Sunday and I'm thankful for the grace that I see God giving to our children as demonstrated by their leading up in singing, praying, and reading Scripture.  Minister Jae Smith delivered the message to the youth and all of us on the topic "You Ain't Got This" coming from 2 Cor. 12:7-9 .  He preached that we are unable to handle the trials and "torns" in our life but God's grace is sufficient. We must depend totally on Him. For those that missed yesterday's Theological Seminar on "Evangelism and Discipleship", I would highly advise you to watch the video from the archives of Zion Live . Our speaker, Josh Reed , gave us a couple of great tools that we can use to share our Gospel story & God's story.

Bereavement: Please continue to pray for the family of Philip Jackson (the grandson of Sis. Sarah Payne & nephew of Sis. Jennifer Allen) as they grieve his tragic death. Philip was 26. Let's surround the family with our love, compassion, and support. Do you believe it’s your responsibility to make disciples? All Christians have the duty and delight to make disciples. Disciple-making is a joy-filled, intentional, relationship that encompasses both evangelism and discipleship. Evangelism is the proclamation of the Gospel with the aim to persuade. Discipleship is the ongoing journey of becoming more like Jesus and helping others do the same. Join us for our upcoming Theological Seminar on Saturday, July 27th, at 9:00 am where Josh Reed from NC Baptists will be teaching on "Evangelism and Discipleship". You can register online . All members are asked to stay after the service on next Sunday, 7/28, for our Church Family Meeting on Sunday.

All parents and those interested are invited to attend our free "Train Them Up: Parents Digging Deeper" seminar on Saturday, July 20th, from 12:00pm-3:00pm. Topics include: "Seeking, Studying, and Sharing God’s Word" with your children. Registration for the Train Them Up Seminar is available at  https://2019trainthemup.eventbrite.com All Christians have the duty and delight to make disciples. Disciple-making is a joy-filled, intentional, relationship that encompasses both evangelism and discipleship. Register for our Theological Seminar on Evangelism and Discipleship scheduled for Saturday, July 27th from 9 to 11:15am. Mark your calendar for our next Church Family Meeting on Sunday, July 28th, following church service

We have a couple of great seminars coming up: A free "Train Them Up: Parents Digging Deeper" seminar on Saturday, July 20th, from 12:00pm-3:00pm. Topics include: "Seeking, Studying, and Sharing God’s Word" with your children. For more information, contact Tracy Dunn . Our next Theological Seminar will be on Saturday, July 27th from 9 to 11:15am. The topic will be on Evangelism and Discipleship. The speaker will be Josh Reed who is a senior consultant with the NC Baptists for Evangelism and Discipleship. Heres a short highlight video of our VBS this year. (email subscribers: click here if you can't see the video)

The next Church-Wide Prayer Gathering will be held on Tuesday, July 2nd, from 7 to 8 pm. Everyone is invited to join us as we focus on specific prayer needs. You can submit your prayer requests online . The Youth Summer Bible Study Series will begin on Wednesday, July 3rd. The class is open to school-aged youth. Our study explores "The Truth and the Way". The sessions continue through Wednesday, August 21st. Please see Sister Daureen Richards for more information. We'll return to our Job series, "Faithfulness in Suffering", on next Sunday. To prepare, please read Job chapters 15-17.

Thanks to all who participated in this year's VBS "Power Up: Raise Your Game".  We had great classes, games, a picnic at Pullen Park, and it all culminated with our Children and Youth Graduation Service today. Congrats to our 2019 High School Graduates: Christopher Banks Anitasheona Bell Jourdan Hunter CJ Smith This year's J. Allen Lewis Scholarship award recipient is CJ Smith! Sis. Destiny Spivey delivered a powerful message from Proverbs 3:5-6 on the topic "Trust God". And congrats to Zeb Merrill (age 10) on being baptized today! This week, my family and I are going on vacation. Keep us in your prayers and we'll see you when we get back.

Bereavement: Sis. Eva Utley went home to be with the Lord on Thursday morning. She was 92. The homegoing service will be on Wednesday at noon with the viewing at 11am. Happy Father's Day!! I know that Father's Day can be tough for many. Some of you have lost your father so I pray that God would comfort you. Some of you may not have had a good relationship with your father or none at all. At the Men's Conference, Pastor Chris Furr made two insightful statements: "Children are always looking for their father's approval" and "A father's approval is like immunization for our children against Satan's attacks". God has designed a father to have a huge influence on the lives of their children. I'm thankful that even when an earthly father fails in this regard, we have God's approval through Jesus Christ. I'm also thankful that we have MANY great fathers at Mt. Zion that are striving to raise their children in the admonition of ...

On Saturday, June 15th, we'll have our "Total Body Fair" from 9 am to 12 pm. Sessions will address the whole person from the Spiritual, Physical, Mental, to Financial aspects. Refreshments will be served. All are welcome. There are flyers at the Welcome Center with more information that you can share with others. The Men at Work Conference is almost here. It starts on Friday, June 7, at 7pm through Saturday, June 8 until 2pm. The conference will encourage men in their servant leadership at home, in the workplace and the importance of living out their calling. Register today for $35 which includes conference materials and meals. There are a couple of opportunities this week for corporate prayer. Join us on Tuesday from 7 to 8pm for our Church-Wide Prayer Gathering. Submit your prayer requests online . On Wednesday from 6 to 7pm, there's Prayer & Testimony service. Come out to share your testimony and pray for others.

Our next "Total Body Fair" will be on Saturday, June 15th, from 9:00am- 12:00pm. Sessions will focus on spiritual, physical, mental, and financial well-being. Refreshments will be served. All are welcome. Men, there's still time to register for the upcoming Men’s Conference on June 7-8. The conference will include praise & worship, panelists, and sessions on "Working for HIM at Work", "Servant Leadership at Home", and "Living Out the Call". Registration is $35 which includes conference materials and meals. Happy Memorial Day. As you celebrate tomorrow with a day off from work, let's remember to pray for the families of those who lost their lives in service to our country.

It's my solemn duty to announce that our dear brother Henry Boyd went home to be with the Lord on Thursday. He had gone into the hospital the Thursday before for pneumonia and then went on life support. Praise God for a faithful brother. We will miss him but we can rejoice in knowing that He was trusting in Christ. Please pray for his wife and daughter during this time of bereavement. I will share the details on arrangements once they have been made. Mark your calendars for our second "Total Body Fair" on Saturday, June 15th, from 9:00am- 12:00pm. Sessions will focus on the spiritual, physical, mental, and financial well-being. Refreshments will be served. All are welcome. Men, don't forget to register for the upcoming Men’s Conference on June 7-8 . The conference will include praise & worship, panelists, and sessions on "Working for HIM at Work", "Servant Leadership at Home", and "Living Out the Call". Registration is $35 which i...

Happy Mother's Day! Proverbs 31:28 says "Her children rise up and call her blessed; her husband also, and he praises her".  We honored all of the moms today at church.  But we also remember and pray for those who have lost their moms, those who lost children, those who desire to be moms but it hasn't happened, and those who have a strained relationship with their mothers. Thanks to all who attended yesterday's Theological Seminar. If you missed it, I would encourage you to watch the recording . It will change your perspective on work even working at a job that you might hate. All men are invited to the first fellowship of the new ImageBearers Men’s Group on May 18th at 8am in the MPR. Food and drinks will be provided. See Minister Jae Smith to reserve your spot. Men, register for the upcoming Men’s Conference on June 7-8 . The conference will include praise & worship, panelists, and sessions on "Working for HIM at Work", "Servant Leadersh...

In light of the recent bombings, shootings in synogagues, and the UNCC shooting , we corporately cried out to God in lament by praying Psalm 90 . The next Church-Wide Prayer Gathering will be held on Tuesday, May 7th, from 7:00pm to 8:00pm. Come out and let's pray together. You can submit your prayer requests online . Do you dread Mondays because you have to go back to work? Many people see working as a necessary evil to make an income. Would your view of your job change if you knew that your work matters to God. Join us for our Theological Seminar on the Doctrine of Vocation: the Theology of Work as we'll examine the distinction between vocation and work and how our faith integrates with both. Dr. Walter Strickland from Southeastern Baptist Theological Seminary will be our speaker. Register at http://bit.ly/2ZGm7Qh . The Theological Seminar is a good precursor to the upcoming Men at Work Conference being co-hosted by Mt. Zion and Heart Imprint Ministries on June ...

We praise God for all the youth that led us in worship for Youth Sunday. Young Bro. Darish Jacobs gave a wonderful message on the topic "No Matter the Age, Imitate Christ". Thanks to everyone who participated in Saturday's Spring Spruce Up. We had 36 members, 2 visitors, and 17 from leadership The Zone breakdown...Zone 1: 8; Zone 2: 6; Zone 3: 3; Zone 4: 17  A total of 70 hours and 8 minutes was spent cleaning  For a grand savings of $5,180.00 for our combined efforts to clean our church ourselves.  After the service, we had our Church Family Meeting. From the meeting... We welcomed new Deaconesses: Josephine Singleton, Junève Toche, and Theresa Vinson. The role of deaconess is open to any qualified woman. She does not have to be married to a deacon, minister, or elder to serve as a deaconess. If anyone does not feel comfortable asking a question or expressing a concern during the family meeting, please submit them to the elders. And everyone is welcome to ...

Join us and invite others to celebrate Easter this weekend: Good Friday service on 4/19 from 6:30-7:30pm  Egg Hunt on 4/20 at 2pm  Annual Easter Program on 4/20 at 3pm  Sunrise Easter & Communion Service on 4/21 at 6am (THIS WILL BE OUR ONLY SERVICE)  Don't forget that our Spring Spruce Up is on 4/27 from 9 am to 12 pm. Come out for any or all of the time to help us keep our facilities clean. On 4/28, I'll be speaking at New Dimensions (Pastor Wright) for their 15th church anniversary at 5pm. The service will be held at Apostolic House of Deliverance, 2806 Cheek Road, Durham. Everyone is invited to join me.

We have a lot happening in April! Men, we will begin the Brother 2 Brother: Real Talk Fellowship meetings on Saturday, 4/13, at 1:00 pm in Adult Classroom 3. This will be an opportunity for fathers, sons, uncles, and brothers to come together and discuss topics of today unfiltered and unfettered. We will talk to one another, listen to one another, support one another, and pray for one another. For questions, contact Brother Corey Smith and Brother Pat Wilson . Join us for our Easter celebration: Good Friday service on 4/19 from 6:30-7:30pm  Easter Egg Hunt on 4/20 at 2pm  Easter Program on 4/20 at 3pm  Sunrise Easter & Communion Service on 4/21 at 6am  We'll have our Spring Spruce Up on 4/27 from 9 am to 12 pm. Come out for part of or the whole time to help us keep our church facility clean. We save a lot of money by cleaning it ourselves. Mark your calendars for our next Church Family Meeting on 4/28 right after the church service. This month...

Join us for a wonderful time of corporate prayer at our next Church-Wide Prayer Gathering on Tuesday, April 2nd, from 7:00pm to 8:00pm. If you are not able to attend but have prayer requests, you can submit them online . Our newest Bible Study series on the book of Habakkuk will begin on Wednesday, April 3rd, at 7:00pm. Everyone is invited to join us for this 4-week series as we learn to wait and trust in God, who works out all things for His glory. Next Sunday, we will resume our series in Job called "Faithfulness in Suffering". Please read Job chapters 4 - 5 in preparation.

We live in a fallen world so we have much to pray for. Pray for those affected by the tornado outbreak earlier this month in the southeast that killed 23 people in Alabama. On Friday, at least 49 people were killed and 48 injured, in a terror attack targeting two mosques in the New Zealand city of Christchurch . Pray for the community and families grieving from this hate-filled attack. Just a reminder: We're asking for people to please not congregate in the hallway during service. Everyone should be in the service participating in worship anyway.  Also, this can cause a distraction to our Security ministry. We are taking a break from the book of Job but will be back in April. Next Sunday, my wife and I will not be here as we'll be out of town due to officiating the upcoming wedding of Wendell and Brittany .

Today was My Hope Sunday.  We are still in our Job series, Faithfulness in Suffering, and looked at Job 3 where Job is in deep despair.  So we focused on how to cultivate hope in the midst of despair with a sermon entitled, "My Hope in Despair". Noonday Prayer and Bible Study will be on Tuesday, March 12th.  MAPS (Mature Adults Praying and Studying) will meet on the 2nd Tuesday of every month at noon at the church. All are welcome to attend. To all married and engaged couples, today is the deadline to register for the Spring 2019 Couples Conference on March 23rd. Please register by sending an email to mtzioncouples@gmail.com. The cost is $20 per couple which includes breakfast and lunch. Childcare will be available. In the midst of all of our sufferings and hardships, let us contemplate if Jesus is worthy of our praise and devotion. Listen intently to the words of this beautiful song:   (Click here if you can't see the video)

The next Church-Wide Prayer Gathering will be held on Tuesday, March 5th, from 7 to 8 pm. Everyone is invited to join us as we focus on specific prayer needs. If you are not able to attend but have prayer requests, you can submit them online . This Wednesday is Ash Wednesday which is the start of Lent season. We will anoint with ashes after Bible Study around 8pm. We anoint with ashes as a symbol of our mourning and repentance over sin. If you'd like to be anointed with ashes but cannot make it that Wednesday evening, you can come to the church between 11 am and 1 pm to be anointed with ashes. I'm also calling for church-wide fasting and prayer during Lent. You can do a partial fast where you will give up certain foods, drinks, or activities. Lent is 40 days beginning on Ash Wednesday and will end on Easter Sunday, April 21, but does not count Sundays. My Hope Sunday is next Sunday, March 10th. This week, please follow-up with those that you invited to come to church...

I want to remind everyone that there's a difference between the umbrella stands and the trash cans. We've found trash in the umbrella stands...including lottery tickets (that's probably a subject to address at a later date)!! Thanks to all who attended yesterday's Theological Seminar on "How to Interpret the Bible". If you missed it, you can watch it from the archives on Zion Live . Also, you can download my presentation from here . Ladies, we need mentors for single mothers. There was a brief informational meeting after church service today for those who are interested in becoming a mentor. If you missed the meeting and are interested, please follow-up with Minister Jacquelyn Harrison. My Hope Sunday is 3/10. All of our members are asked to commit to inviting at least one unbeliever or unchurched person to join us at church on My Hope Sunday. During that service, we will share the hope we have in Jesus Christ. Take a commitment card and write down the n...