Senior Pastor David Uth is encouraging every First Orlando household to download the “Bible Explorer” program, now available for free. The Bible Explorer Program was purchased and provided by David’s father-in-law for the church leadership last year. The reason why Pastor David is so enthusiastic about Bible Explorer is the wealth of Bible resources it provides:
• 5 Bibles, including the King James Version, New King James Version and more.
• 25 reference and study books including commentaries, devotionals, dictionaries, Greek and Hebrew helps, history and culture resources, works of literature and topical/cross reference helps.

Posted March 11, 2008

Without a doubt, all of us need as much prayer as we can get. That’s especially true for students. “The things that kids [teenagers] are doing today are not the things they were doing 20 years ago,” Student Pastor Keith Harmon said. “One reason kids need prayer today more than ever is because of the temptations they face now as compared to the past. As a generation they are hurting — from parents being divorced, which is at an all-time high; drug use, which is at an all-time high; and the temptations of sex and Internet porn, also at an all-time high. It’s very scary.” These are just some of the reasons why Keith has started the Praying for Students Ministry. Volunteers with a heart for teenagers and their problems are asked to contribute their time on Wednesday nights from 5-6 p.m. in the Student Center.

Posted March 7, 2008

Brad spends much of his time in school with his head down. He hopes that neither his teacher nor his classmates will notice him and, for the most part, they don’t. He is rarely called upon, and he never volunteers. Usually, to spare himself peer ridicule, Brad waits until everyone has left the classroom before asking his teacher a question. If anyone compliments him, he has difficulty accepting it. At PE, Brad will likely be found off by himself. When he returns to school after being absent, no one tells him that they missed him, because they didn’t. Shunned by his classmates, Brad may cling to his teacher, knowing that at least she will accept him. Rejects are easy to pick out of a crowd. Lots of Christian families have a Brad. These are kids who are unnoticed, unimpressive, uninvolved and even unloved. As parents, we know that a God who notices the sparrow fall surely values and appreciates our child, but the issue here is what these kids think of themselves.

Posted March 10, 2008

According to Pastor David Uth, First Orlando’s new Saturday night worship service will be really laid back — but how laid back? “It’s going to feel like you’re sitting in your living room listening to God speak,” he said. “It will be an environment that won’t have the trappings of religion.” However, he was quick to add, the relaxed atmosphere doesn’t mean the message is relaxed. “I will be sharing the same message on Saturday night that I will be sharing on Sunday mornings,” he assured. “Therefore, people who attend on Saturday night won’t be missing out on a thing.”

Posted March 6, 2008

Brock Gill is into some tricky stuff. A renowned illusionist, Gill performs regularly on television’s top live entertainment shows including Criss Angel’s Mindfreak. He has also appeared on the morning news show Fox & Friends and hosted his own $10 million Discovery Channel special, an investigation into the miracles of Jesus Christ. But for this talented artist, there’s no balancing act between his professional and spiritual life. Gill is 100 percent sold out for Christ. In fact, he tours frequently, speaking to thousands of spectators about the difference between spiritual reality and perception. On Monday night, March 3 at First Orlando, Gill spoke candidly to more than 800 students who packed out the Student Center. It was a presentation truly beyond the extraordinary and one that reached its diverse teen audience.

Posted March 5, 2008

Praying for pastors is a passion for First Orlando member JoAnne Delph. “I have always prayed for the pastors, but then I saw a need at the church for an actual ministry,” she said. “I went to [Senior] Pastor David [Uth] and told him that I prayed for him on a regular basis, and he was appreciative.” That’s why JoAnne formed Women Praying For Pastors, which meets Wednesday nights from 6 to 7 p.m. in the Prayer Room (WC-107). What really showed JoAnne the need for such a ministry was the recent tragic death of Jeremy Knott, son of Jimmy Knott, First Orlando’s Teaching Pastor of Assimilation and Development. “After that happened, I spoke to Pastors John Harris [Prayer Ministry] and [Pastoral Care Pastor] Greg Brooks and told them I wanted them to know that I pray for them on a regular basis. They were also very appreciative.”

Posted March 3, 2008

Dr. Proverbs, God’s answer to Dr. Spock, has a lot to say about the kind of friends our sons and daughters keep. In fact, the kind of company they keep seems to be a major theme of his book. He talks endlessly, especially in the first few chapters, about how selective young people should be when it comes to who they hang with. In the first chapter, for instance, he warns, “My son, do not walk in the way with [sinners],” then adds — and I’m paraphrasing — “don’t even set foot in their house.” Similar warning flares are sent aloft a few chapters later: “Do not enter the path of the wicked, and do not walk in the way of the evil.”

Posted March 3, 2008

One of the lessons First Orlando’s teenagers will learn on their mission trip to Los Angeles is that life is hard. “I want our students to see that there is life outside of Orlando and that there is a hurting world out there,” said Student Ministry Pastor Keith Harmon. “Sometimes it’s good for us to just get out and see what’s going on in other places.” And that’s exactly what the Student Ministry will be doing. A total of about 100 of our youth — in addition to Student Ministry Pastors Keith, Chad Reeves, Staffon Bunn and Colby Weaver — will be heading to Los Angeles in two separate groups. The first group will be in L.A. March 15-22 and the second will be there March 29-April 5. The separate dates were scheduled to coincide with Central Florida’s two different weeks of Spring Break.

Posted February 28, 2008

The Preschool Ministry at First Orlando is looking for 300 good men and women and you can certainly be one of them. With Easter services on both Saturday evening, March 22, and Sunday morning, March 23, we are looking for volunteers to meet the need we have for childcare workers. “We need 300 adults who have had background checks [from the church],” said Stacy Holman, First Orlando’s Preschool Ministry Director. “If you have not had a background check, we will give you one at the Preschool desk.”

Posted February 27, 2008

First Orlando will usher in the Easter season with the spectacular production of “Saviour.” “Saviour” will be shown one night only, Friday, March 14 at 7:30 p.m. in the Worship Center. Doors open 45 minutes before the concert. “’Saviour’ is a modern-day oratorio—chorus, soloists . . . think Handel’s Messiah—dealing with God’s passion for His people,” said Jeff Lawrence, First Orlando’s Pastor of Music and Worship. “It will involve our full choir and orchestra.”

Posted February 26, 2008