I was talking to a friend several years ago about investing in the stock market. It was a new venture for him, so he was understandably nervous. “This is a big step for me,” he said, “so I don’t want to rush into anything. I’m waiting for just the right moment.” He was trying to do what investment gurus call “time the market.” When certain stocks dropped enough to his liking he would dive in, banking on their resurgence.

Posted October 13, 2008

Education Pastor Jack Fiscus is always looking for ways to help parents strengthen their parenting skills. First Orlando’s newest educational tool, “Familycast,” does just that. “Familycast allows us to utilize new technology so that we can make available very pertinent information to families at all times,” Jack said.

Posted October 8, 2008

Things don’t always go according to plans. Sometimes, they go even better than planned. That was the case on Saturday, October 4, when a community outreach didn’t exactly get off to a great start. Spearheaded by a group of First Orlando volunteers, Saturday’s assignment was to work with an organization called Soles4Souls to hand out free flip-flops to the needy of Orlando. Those needing footwear were to come to the Amp’d Student Center between 10 a.m. and 2 p.m. The volunteers showed up, however, because of a communications breakdown, hardly anyone from the community came — word never got out.

Posted October 7, 2008

When it comes to the issue of Iraq — especially that nation’s future — Dan Hayden has done his homework. “For a long time, I have been very interested in what the Bible has to say about Iraq — not just its past, but also its future,” said Hayden, a longtime member of First Orlando, one of the church’s most popular ACTS class teachers, published author and host of the popular radio program, A Word From the Word. “That got me on a track to studying and showed me that there is an enormous amount of information in the Bible about that part of the world.”

Posted October 7, 2008

Before my father died, at age 92, I asked him what his favorite Bible story was. Having been in full-time Christian work since he was saved at age 16, he had an enviable grasp of God’s Word. He had always leaned toward the Old Testament, and his immediate response was, “The story of the four lepers, in 2 Kings 6-7.”

Posted October 6, 2008

First Orlando is gearing up for another outdoor baptism celebration in the Atlantic Ocean. The Cocoa Beach celebrations have grown in popularity since First Orlando’s initial one back in October of 2006. That first event saw 38 people baptized. Just a year and half later, that number has almost tripled as back on May 18 of this year, 102 people ranging in age from 82 to 6 were baptized. So far, First Baptist has seen a total of 363 people baptized in the Atlantic Ocean over the course of four celebration services.

Posted Tuesday, September 30, 2009

If you have a heart to see people come to know Christ, then The Greater Orlando Christian Film Festival is an outreach you want to be a part of. Last year, the eight-day event drew 13,152 viewers of whom 649 came forward to give their lives to Christ following individual movies. This year’s Festival, which is October 16-23 at the Winter Park Village 20, is hoping to exceed those impressive numbers.

Posted Monday, September 29, 2008

I was having a discussion with a non-Christian once over what the Bible has to say about a certain topic. As I recall, it had something to do with capital punishment. After pointing him to several Old Testament and New Testament verses, he turned to me and said, “Well, it seems that you’ve made a pretty good case. But the problem is that I really have doubts about the Bible. In fact, isn’t it just a lot of fanciful myths?”

Posted September 29, 2008

Considering The First Academy is a Christian School, it wouldn’t be too surprising if many of their students took prayer for granted. Fortunately, that is not the case. On Wednesday morning, September 24 at 7:15, TFA students gathered around the flagpole for a nationwide time of prayer. It was part of “See You At the Pole,” which is all about students coming together to connect with God in prayer and connect with fellow Christians in unity around the flagpole. This annual gathering began in Burleson, Texas, in 1990, as a response to a Disciple Now weekend with a handful of Christian students. It has grown by word of mouth, announcements at youth rallies and churches, and the Internet. It has since gone international.

Posted September 24, 2008

Watching a child engaging in destructive behavior is one of the most painful experiences a parent can go through. “Parents of prodigal children are looking for answers on what to do when their children wander away from God,” said John Westcott, Executive Director of Exchange Ministries. “Basically, we’ll be instructing people on how to deal with their wayward kids.”

Posted September 23, 2008