I came to the US in August

of 2010 as a transfer student

with the Department of Mining

Engineering at Missouri S&T.

When I first got here, it was a

challenge finding a church

since I did not know anyone,

but I needed to find a living and

supportive church family that

would help me grow in the Lord.

It seemed too hard to find a

place I could call home, but af-

ter several months

of search-

i n g , a

friend of a

friend invit-

ed me to

First As-

sembly of

God one Sunday morning. That

was the beginning of the great-

est spiritual journey in my life. I

met a church community that

loves and shares its own fami-

(Brendarh continued on page 4)

G r o w i n g

up in a small

town is just one

of those things

that, if given

that chance,

one cannot deny

as a blessing. Sometimes it may be consid-

ered as one in disguise, but one none the

less. It’s to growing up in the small town of

Warsaw, MO, that I credit much of the man I

am today. It was in that small town of 2,000

on Truman Lake that I learned the things

most dear to my heart, including my passion

for God and community. Growing up, I al-

ways succeeded in school, and was always

that kind of kid that nobody had any beef

with and a surrounding of friends who would

give anything just to see the other happy.

My family, although slightly dysfunctional at

times, always had the best motives at heart,

and were as supporting as can possibly be.

These were blessings that I never truly real-

ized until my high school years. I came to

know Christ as my personal savior during

July following my seventh grade year at a

youth rally at the Ozark Tabernacle church,

(Starks continued on page 5)

All Nations Christian

Fellowship (ANCF) is a

campus Christian organi-

zation that seeks to serve

the student community

at Missouri University of

Science and Technology.

It is a ministry of pres-

ence for students of

many nations. Students

from all continents have

come together to provide

a place to call home, and

a place to find together-

(ANCF continued on page 2)

ALL NATIONS

CHRISTIAN

FELLOWSHIP

We are looking forward to welcoming Rob-

ert Martin to First Assembly for Spiritual Empha-

sis Week, with nightly services August 16-19.

Evangelist Robert Martin is a 6th generation

Pentecostal. He was profoundly influenced by

this unique heritage, especially through his child-

hood pastor and grandfather, Rev. Walter C. Car-

away. These ingredients were the catalysts of

Robert experiencing God’s grace and answering

the call to preach at the age of fourteen.

Transitioning from a small town of less than

300 to a public school in Orlando of several thou-

sand, he was introduced to a whole new culture

of ministry. In 1998 he became a member at

Faith Assembly and began to serve under Pastor

Johnnie Wilson in a cutting-edge youth ministry

that now sees an attendance of over 1,500 stu-

dents weekly.

This synthesis of fervent Pentecostalism

and innovative evangelism has shaped the DNA

SPIRITUAL EMPHASIS WEEK COMING THIS MONTH of Robert’s life and pulpit ministry.

Since graduating Bible college in 2006, his

preaching ministry has

taken him throughout the

United States as well as

24 countries around the

world sharing the full gos-

pel message of Christ as

Savior, Healer, Spirit Bap-

tizer, and soon-coming

King!

His singular passion

is to see a fresh awaken-

ing of Pentecost in this

generation.

When Robert is

home, he continues to serve his on the leadership

team of Mainstream Youth Ministry and by teach-

ing and preaching throughout the various minis-

tries of Faith Assembly.

ness. We join hands with

the nations to worship

Jesus, to encourage one

another in our faith, and

to share the hope we

have been given with oth-

ers on campus.

The vision of ANCF

is to take hold of the op-

portunity to reach out to

the nations and share

the Word of God with

them. Our activities are geared toward fellowship,

discipleship and evangelism. Prayer and Bible

study are key elements of the weekly meetings.

The fellowship is open for everyone who

(ANCF continued from page 1) would like to be a part of a grow-

ing ministry that reaches across

many nations in a single night of

worship and fellowship. ANCF is

currently ministering to every con-

tinent in the furtherance of the

Gospel of Jesus. The meetings are

every Thursday at Havener Center

in the Meramec/Gasconade room,

from 7:00 pm to 8:30 pm. We

come together to worship, to pray

and to share God’s word.

Every third Thursday of each

month we meet in the home of our host family to

have what we call “Love Feast.” We bring in food

from our own tradition to share, and enjoy a shar-

ing of traditions, songs, dances, writings and

more. We usually do this as an open mic event.

The Love Feast is a night of laughter, and song

and great fun. At one Love Feast gathering we

had thirteen nations represented, and we hope

this new semester will bring more.

Whether you are a student looking for fel-

lowship or someone who wants to be a part of a

great ministry, we welcome you, and hope you

will join us.

Carol Hudler

Why is Job in the middle of the Bible if it

was written at the time of Genesis? Where was

the garden of Eden? Who was Obadiah? We'll

get answers to these questions while building a

foundation of basic Bible knowledge. We'll talk

about the structure of the Bible and types of writ-

ing, look at the geography, and construct a time-

line of major events.

Join Alhesha Lane on Sundays at 10:45 AM,

starting September 6th in Women's Christian Ed-

ucation class, room 103 or Wednesdays at 6:30,

starting Sept 9th in room 200. No tools neces-

sary.

Saturday, August 15, First Assembly will host a youth rally for youth groups in the Sullivan section.

The service will begin at 7:30 p.m. in the sanctuary with special speaker Robert Martin. An after party

and concert will be held in the gym after the youth rally with rapper D Breezy.

SECTIONAL YOUTH RALLY TO BE HELD AT FIRST ASSEMBLY

I AM A MARRIED FATHER OF TWO FROM METRO EAST ST. LOUIS. I

ATTEND AN AG CHURCH; HOWEVER, MY MUSIC FOCUSES ON THE

HEART CHANGE AND GROWTH MORE THAN DOCTRINE. I HAVE BEEN

WORKING IN RAP MINISTRY SINCE 2013, BUT I HAVE WORKED

YOUTH MINISTRY SINCE 2010. AMONG FAMILY, WORK, AND MUSIC

RESPONSIBILITIES, I AM WORKING TOWARDS A DEGREE IN YOUTH

MINISTRY THROUGH GLOBAL UNIVERSITY. RAP HAS BECOME SUCH A

BEATIFUL FORM OF EXPRESSION TO ME. IT GIVES ME THE OPPOR-

TUNITY TO REACH A POPULATION THAT I MAY NOT OTHERWISE HAVE

BEEN ABLE TO IMPACT, IN A WAY THAT I NEVER THOUGHT POSSIBLE.

GOD HAS GIVEN ME THE CHANCE TO MINISTER TO KIDS WHO ARE

STRUGGLING ALONG PATHS THAT I HAVE ALREADY WALKED. IT IS A

BLESSING TO BE ABLE TO SHARE WITH OTHERS ABOUT MY WALK

WITH DRUG ABUSE, THEFT, ANGER AND FIGHTING, SEXUAL PROMISCUITY, SUICIDE

AND DEPRESSION, AND LOSING FRIENDS TO DRUGS AND ALCOHOL. MY STORY AND

MESSAGE IS UNIVERSAL FOR ALL AGES, ETHNICITIES, SEXES, AND RELIGIONS.

–BREEZY

CHRISTIAN EDUCATION CLASSES FOR STUDENTS

BIBLE BASICS: BUILDING A STRONG FOUNDATION

CALC COLLEGE CLASS High School Senior and College Students join us

for fruitful and nourishing discussion regarding

relevant happenings both around campus and

the outside world. We can help you find your bib-

lical stance on important issues so that you, as a

Christian student, can defend your faith in an of-

ten challenging and ever-changing environment.

We are often open to discussion and teaching

topics, so feel free to bring any questions or top-

ics, and find your place in God’s world. Our goal is

to equip and reinforce student’s faith, while

maintaining a healthy and rich discussion envi-

ronment. CALC Class is held in room 110, near

the bottom of the office side stairs following first

“College and Career” has joined forces with Carol

Hudler’s “Making a Ready Defense”. As we move

into the new school term, we will be about 1/3 of the

way through our current study. However, anyone can

join the class at any time. The class is a good mix of

young and middle-aged people, creating a lot of good

discussion in the class! College and Career meets at

10:45 in the classroom off the overflow.

COLLEGE AND CAREER CLASS

service.

Backpack. Filler Paper. Notebooks. Fold-

ers. 3-ring Binders. Pencils. Pens. Crayons.

Scissors. Erasers. Glue. Glue Sticks. Dry Erase

Markers. Graph Paper. Sketch Book. Calcula-

tor. Ruler. Pencil Box. Facial Tissues. Storage

Bags. The list goes on and on. Did your Back

to School list look anything like this? It looks a

bit overwhelming, doesn’t it? For many strug-

gling families, the thought of purchasing all

the needed supplies can be crushing. Every

student likes to start off the year with new

school supplies. It feels a bit like Christmas!

What can we do to help all students experi-

ence the joy of a new school year?

The Benevolence Department is grateful

we have been able to provide backpacks filled

with school supplies to families from our

church and our community the past four

years. Over these years we have filled and dis-

tributed nearly 200 backpacks with the num-

ber of backpacks shared growing each suc-

cessive year.

If you would like to help with this minis-

try, you may bring in any of the needed items

or even pack a backpack yourself. (School

supply lists are available at most retail stores

o r o n schools’ websites.) Please

drop off supplies

in the designated

box in the foy-

er on or before

August 5th. If

you would ra-

ther not have to

hassle with shopping, you may designate a

gift on your offering envelope and we will do

the shopping for you. If you are in need of a

backpack with school supplies for your child

or children, please complete the form found

in the foyer and return it to the office on or be-

fore August 5th. (Please complete one form

per child.) Backpacks will be distributed on

Saturday, August 8th from 8:30-10:30 a.m. in

the Roberts’ Family Life Center.

If you have any questions or would like to

volunteer for this ministry, please contact

Lyndon and April Bartle at 341-3087.

Thank you so much for your support of

this program! April Bartle

lies with the people they barely know. I felt

like a part of the church family from the very

first day. Most importantly, God gave me peace

and joy. Since joining I have had the opportuni-

ty to do mission work with First Assembly;

building a church in Springfield and working at

the teen challenge center in Minden, LA. I have

also been a part of a campus fellowship (All Na-

tions Christian Fellowship), that serves the stu-

dent community at MS&T. We have weekly

meetings where we do bible studies, praise and

worship, evangelism, and love feast. Being

around other believers gave me the chance to

learn and to grow in my faith, and also the

chance to be a witness to those who do not

know the Lord. 1 Peter 3:15. Lebogang Brendarh Pharithi

(Brendarh continued from page 1)

S C HOOL SU P PL I ES F O R S UC C ES S

just outside of Cole Camp, MO. However, my faith soon became

brittle and malnourished as I was beaten down by the world and

temptation. I began to chase down what seemed like an ever-

lasting path of sin, constantly in pursuit of what would make me

happy, and in turn, I threw my heavenly Father to the wayside. I

didn’t care what came, I always figured I could handle it myself,

and that I wasn’t “clean” enough to go back to God yet.

It wasn’t until my sophomore year of high school that one

of my close friends invited me to the Back to School Bash at the

First Baptist Church of Warsaw. That night, I realized that my

attempts to save myself were futile. I sat there in a room full of

friends, yet I felt all alone. Everything I had done to them, my

twisted motives that overwhelmed my everyday actions came to

the forefront of my mind. I just couldn’t take it anymore, and it

was then that I truly laid down my selfish desire and took up my

cross in its place. I became an active member in the youth min-

istry, and was led to serve the Lord and the community that had

given me so much. I was baptized the summer following my first

(Starks continued from page 1)

(Starks continued on page 6)

We are gearing up for a new season of Junior

Bible Quiz! Practices will begin Sunday, September 6,

during first service. Maybe you’ve heard about JBQ

and are wondering whether or not your child should

be involved. Here are four good reasons to consider

making the commitment.

Quizzing Teaches Proper Competition. The quiz

material contains information on having proper atti-

tudes toward others, including the Golden Rule. JBQ

has a strong emphasis on teaching children to live

what they are learning. We will focus on good sports-

manship and working cooperatively.

Quizzing Allows Families to Spend Quality Time

Together. Parental support is as essential in JBQ as it

is in competitive sports. Often the whole family learns

the material through family devotions. Learning the

material is a great springboard for spiritual conversa-

tions as a family.

Quizzing Teaches Valuable Discipline. The com-

JUNIOR BIBLE QUIZ BENEFITS CHILDREN mitment needed for quizzing is a valuable form of dis-

cipline for children. Many parents of quizzers have

seen marked improvement in their children’s school-

work, behavior, and relationship with peers.

Quizzing Keeps God’s Word Alive in the Hearts

of Children. The memorization and repetition needed

for quizzing keeps God’s Word fresh in boys’ and girls’

hearts and minds. JBQ helps ground children in the

doctrinal beliefs of the Church.

I hope these four reasons encourage you to con-

sider committing to JBQ. Every family planning to par-

ticipate, as well as anyone interested in more infor-

mation, is asked to attend a kick-off

meeting Sunday, August 30. We will

have a luncheon after second service

in the gym. I am looking forward to hid-

ing God’s word in our hearts as we ex-

perience a fun and exciting quizzing sea-

son! Erin Gibson

S C HOOL SU P PL I ES F O R S UC C ES S

There will be an auction of Phil and Carin Al-

len’s estate on Saturday, August 29, starting at

10:00 a.m. at their home located at 10891

Breeden Drive in Rolla. Phil and Carin had

many quality items including lots of Phil's

tools. All the proceeds will go towards the es-

tablishment of an endowment fund for KidCare

America/Thrive Student Center, the after-school

mentoring program at First Assembly of God -

Rolla. Sam Parker

ESTATE AUCTION

mission trip, and felt truly on fire for God.

A few years later, I drew the attention of recruiters from

around the nation. I was given the opportunity to enlist in the

Navy and become a member of the nuclear engineering pro-

gram. Of course the opportunity was appealing to me, as they

offered $1.2 million of training, and over $125,000 enlistment

bonuses, in addition to being the best nuclear engineering pro-

gram in the world by many. I had never considered the possibil-

ity of being a nuclear engineer, and was easily taken up by the

offer. Weeks went by, and my enlistment date was quickly ap-

proaching and the pressure began to mount. Concerns of my

family, my friends, and community came to the forefront, and I

began to realize that not once had I considered what God want-

ed for me. I was ready to sign away my life, and yet, I hadn’t

even spent a moment in prayer. This revelation stunned me; I

couldn’t breathe. I couldn’t believe that I had believed to come

so far in God, yet when it came to it, I didn’t even ask for what

He had to say. So I did the only thing I could do: I prayed. I

pleaded that God show me the path that He wanted me to take,

and as I did so, my desire to enlist began to subside. It was only

a few weeks later that I was contacted by representatives of the

Missouri University of Science and Technology, as well as Dr.

Dan Hagan, the Chairman of the Board of the Hagan Scholar-

ship Committee.

I began the rigorous processes of gearing myself toward

college. I attended interviews, workshops, and filed what

seems like mountains of the most tedious paperwork imagina-

ble to meet my financial needs. All the while, I continued to

pray, and all the while, God led me further down the path to

college. The defining moment for me came on April 15, 2014.

It was the day that I took my first visit to Rolla. I immediately

fell in love with both the town and the university. I didn’t think it

was possible to maintain that small town feeling, yet not have

to drive over an hour to go to a store other than Wal-Mart. For

the first time, I could see another place than Warsaw that I

could call home. However, it wasn’t until I got home that day

and checked my mailbox that I knew God’s plan for me. It was

that day that I found out that I could come to S&T, but that I

could do it for free thanks to the gift of a full-ride scholarship

from Dr. Hagan. My heart was filled with joy and thankfulness

for what God had done for me, and I couldn’t wait to begin my

(Starks continued from page 5) journey in Rolla.

My first weeks in Rolla came and went, and I knew it was

time to begin to solidify myself in the community surrounding

me. I received an email regarding a position as a Thrive Mentor

for First Assembly, and decided to apply. I was hired and

placed in charge of the high school boys group. As I was still

church hunting at the time, I decided that it would be a good

idea to try out the church that was signing my checks. What I

was greeted with was a church that radiated the feeling of

home. It was the first church that I had been to since arriving in

Rolla that I could truly feel God move and work in every aspect

of the church body, and it was from that point that I knew that

this where God needed me to be. It wasn’t long until I began to

get involved with the youth group as a result of the relation-

ships and friendships I had made with many of the youth

through my service as a Thrive mentor. I soon became a Youth

Adult Leader under Pastor Jason and took to playing bass gui-

tar in the Youth Worship Team. For me though, it was only a

matter of time before I had to return home for the summer. I

wanted to stay here in Rolla with my new friends and continue

my ministry through First Assembly; however, it appeared that

God had other plans. I was asked to step up and take over as

an interim Youth Pastor at my former church, First Baptist of

Warsaw. I began to pray, and I pleaded to God. “If I am to go

back to Warsaw and lead, give me the strength and desire, but

Lord, if you want me to stay, give me a sign.” I poured my heart

into that prayer, night after night. Then, the same day that I was

to accept the job as a youth pastor, I received my sign. I had

been blessed with employment by the university’s Residential

Life department as a Summer Residential Assistant, which al-

lowed me to reside in Rolla for the summer months and contin-

ue to further explore God’s plan for me here. I was overjoyed, I

got to stay here! It was only another few weeks before I was

blessed once more and I was given the opportunity to begin

teaching the CALC College Christian Education Class following

first services on Sundays in addition to my service with the

Youth on Wednesdays.

It wasn’t even a year ago that I came to Rolla, and it has

been the will of God and this church, as well as many of the

amazing workers and fellow classmates at the university that I

am now able to call Rolla home. I can’t help but to feel a sense

of awe when I take a step back to see all the pieces that God

has worked in my life to be where I’m at here today. It’s honest-

ly the most rewarding, and yet humbling position I have ever

had the privilege to be in, and I have nothing other than the

grace and divine plan of God to thank for that. In many ways,

I’m left speechless when I think about how God has moved in

me, and how far I’ve come with Him, and I simply cannot ex-

plain the joy I have in Him and what things may await me in the

future as an instrument of His plan. So I will leave you with this:

never give up on God. Just when you think He may be done with

your life, or you are too far gone to receive His grace, He is

working hardest to win your heart, and has a truly intricate and

inspiring plan for your own life.

James Starks

PA

ST

OR

S &

ST

AF

F

Sam Parker After School Ministries &

Missions Director kcatsc@rolla-firstassembly.org

Karen Turner Administrative Assistant

office@rolla-firstassembly.org

Mark Berry Facility Manager

Pansy Bingham Business Administrator

pansy@rolla-firstassembly.org

Abby Swearingen Media Assistant

media@rolla-firstassembly.org

Chuck Whitmire Lead Pastor

pastor_chuck@rolla-firstassembly.org

Ray Cook Associate Pastor

fireguy@rolla-firstassembly.org

Brian Feller Children’s Pastor

pastorbrian@rolla-firstassembly.org

Jason Gibson Youth Pastor

pastorjason@rolla-firstassembly.org

1608 N Oak St Rolla MO 65401-2342

NON-PROFIT ORGANIZATION

U.S. POSTAGE PAID PERMIT #116 ROLLA, MO

SUPPLIES FOR SUCCESS A Back-to-School Program

ALL NATIONS CHRISTIAN FELLOWSHIP Love Feast

JUNIOR BIBLE QUIZ Benefits for Participants

SPIRITUAL EMPHASIS WEEK With Special Speaker Robert Martin