FAITH BAPTIST CHURCH - Elizabeth City, North Carolina - December 30th

After shoveling out from the 12 inches of snow we got overnight last Wednesday, we made our way to Moyock, North Carolina to visit with Stacie's parents.  We made a small pit stop in Bath, New York to have lunch with Pastor Greg Ferguson's (Buck Settlement Baptist Church) daughter and her husband on the way. Pastor and Mrs. Ferguson were originally supposed to join us but they were still digging out from the snow!  We spent the night in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania at the same hotel we stayed at on our Hurricane Sandy vacation.  See the November 5th post about that fun adventure.  We arrived safely Friday afternoon.

Stacie's brother and one of her sisters live in the area.  Another one of her sisters and her family drove over from the Hillsborough area for the weekend. We had nice family meal to celebrate Stacie's, her brother's, her sister's and my birthday on Saturday afternoon.  Now don't get worried - you haven't missed my birthday - it's in January.  I am sure you would like to know that so you can send lots of cards and expensive gifts!  Cash is preferred.  JUST KIDDING!!! (Well - kind of - anyways, never mind - I'll change the subject!)

Yesterday we went to church with Stacie's mom and dad to their church - Faith Baptist Church in Elizabeth City.  Their pastor - Bryan Pease - called me last week and asked me if I would teach his Sunday School class for the adults.  It went well and it sounded like the Lord used the message.  Pastor Pease has invited me back for the future and I am thankful.

We are spending New Year's eve and day here and then head to Cape Coral, Florida on Wednesday for our next meeting.

Faith Baptist Church - Elizabeth, City, North Carolina

Faith Baptist Church - Elizabeth, City, North Carolina

Faith Baptist Church - Elizabeth, City, North Carolina

OLD TIME BAPTIST CHURCH - Hamburg, New York - December 23rd

A week ago I had the privilege of preaching at my home church - Old Time Baptist Church in Hamburg, New York.  I was waiting for a couple of pictures so that is why I haven't posted anything on the blog about it.

On Sunday morning before I preached, Pastor Guadagno gave me a very nice, heartfelt introduction that I greatly appreciated.  He said some very kind words and told the folks we were having a "Cobb Day".  The Lord really blessed me with great liberty to preach in both the morning and evening services.

On Sunday morning a dear, precious lady trusted Christ.  She is the mother of one of our ladies in the church and has been coming for a while.  Her father was saved some time ago and so they've been praying for the mother.  It was a real time of rejoicing for the family.

Please be in prayer for the upcoming revival I will be preaching at Old Time - February 10-13, 2013.  I have already been in much prayer for this since June.

Evangelist Craig Cobb preaching at Old Time Baptist Church in Hamburg, New York

Evangelist Craig Cobb preaching at Old Time Baptist Church in Hamburg, New York

ON THE ROAD AGAIN...North Carolina, Florida and Alabama

We have been home for a little over two weeks and it is now time to hit the road again.  We have had a great time home spending Christmas with our family and friends.  When we got home I had one preaching engagement on the schedule (Cornerstone Bible Baptist Church in Sanborn, New York).  By and by I ended up speaking three additional times: at a funeral for a dear lady in our church, our Christmas cantata and then this past Sunday at Old Time.

We had a great Christmas day.  We started off by opening presents at home and then went to church for our Christmas day service.  After church we went to my sister's house for lunch with her family and had a great time.  We came home early in the evening and had a relaxing night playing games and snacking.

Today was spent doing some running around in preparation for leaving tomorrow.  There was the usual trip to Wally World, the store and then I went to get a hair cut (aren't you glad you know that?!).  We wanted to get the van packed early (which we just finished) because of a big snow storm that is being forecast.  The local news said it was supposed to start snowing around 3:00pm.  For once, they nailed it - the first flakes started falling at 2:50 - amazing!  The roads are now covered and it is getting pretty bad out.  The forecast is for up to 16 inches of snow - YES!!!!

The view from off our side porch this afternoon

NORTH CAROLINA...We head out tomorrow morning (weather permitting) for our first meeting of 2013.  We will stop in North Carolina to spend a few days with Stacie's mom and dad.  One of her sisters and her brother live in the area and another one of her sisters will be in town as well.  We have not seen them at all this year so it will be good to be there.  Their pastor (Bryan Pease from Faith Baptist Church in Elizabeth City) called me this afternoon and asked me to preach the Sunday School hour this coming Sunday.  I am looking forward to this opportunity as it will be the first time I have preached there.

FLORIDA...We will leave Florida next week and head to Cape Coral, Florida to be at New Testament Baptist Church (Pastor Bill Roan) for their annual camp meeting.  We had a great meeting there last year and have been earnestly praying for another visitation from the Lord!  The dates of this meeting are January 6-13, 2013.

ALABAMA...After Florida we will head north to Piedmont, Alabama for some time there with our friends - Evangelist David Evans and his family.  We will be visiting some churches around there as well as being at his home church (Central Baptist Church in Lanett - Pastor Jeff Thorn).

THEN HOME AGAIN...We will be making it home in time to start a revival meeting at Old Time Baptist Church (February 10-13, 2013).

Moyock, NC - Cape Coral, FL - Piedmont, AL

Merry Christmas from the Cobb's

Stacie and I want to wish you all a very Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year!

PREACHING TOMORROW AT OLD TIME BAPTIST CHURCH

Pastor Guadagno asked me a week and a half ago if I would preach the morning and evening services tomorrow.  This will be my second opportunity preaching in the new building.  I am looking forward to a good day in church and am praying the messages will be a help to those in attendance.  What a blessing to be at home and see our church family.

Old Time Baptist Church website - CLICK HERE

Old Time Baptist Church - Hamburg, New York

CHRISTMAS CANTATA live streaming reminder

Just a reminder: the Christmas Cantata "The Richest Family In Town" at Old Time Baptist Church will be live streamed on the internet tonight beginning at 7:00pm.  To watch, just click on the icon anytime after 7:00pm.  If you enjoyed the program, please leave a comment on the blog.

Click on the icon to watch the cantata beginning at 7:00pm on Friday, December 21st.

***If you have any trouble with the link, try CLICKING HERE.

OLD TIME BAPTIST CHURCH CHRISTMAS CANTATA - "The Richest Family In Town"

Tomorrow night at 7:00pm is the annual Christmas Cantata at Old Time Baptist Church.  The program will feature a readers theater as well as a children's choir, adult choir and live orchestra.  This yearly event is always a blessing because it involves several area churches working together, not just our church:

• Old Time Baptist Church - Hamburg - Pastor Lou Guadagno
• Faith Bible Baptist Church - Eden - Pastor Art Kohl
• Faith Baptist Church - Springville - Pastor Kevin Friedman
• New Hope Baptist Church - Collins - Pastor Jack Seiler
• Evangelical Baptist Church - Buffalo - Pastor Jim Donath

The name of the cantata this year is "The Richest Family In Town" and is set in the little town of Caldwell, New Jersey in the 1940's.  It has a wonderful story about the true meaning of Christmas.  You can click on the picture below to get more details about the cantata.

IMPORTANT PRAYER REQUEST:  Please pray for me as I will be taking a few minutes at the end of the cantata and presenting the gospel.  It is our desire for the lost to hear the truth and trust Christ as their Saviour. 

LIVE STREAMING: We will be live streaming the cantata over the internet on the church's website beginning at 7:00pm on Friday.  To view the webcast, click on the icon below...

LOCAL CHURCH BIBLE PUBLISHERS

If you have been keeping up with the blog you know that we recently were at Parker Memorial Baptist Church in Lansing, Michigan.  One of the ministries of this church is Local Church Bible Publishers. 

They have the highest quality Bibles you will ever find.  I know people who have spent up to $400 on a Bible from the best-known publishers only to have it fall apart on them.  The problem is that they are purchasing Bibles from BUSINESSES instead of MINISTRIES.  Local Church Publishers does not make any money on the Word of God.  I have known Bro. Deneau for 11 years and he is a good man who desires to get the Bible into the hands of people.

I have in my library probably 13 or 14 of their Bibles.  My preaching Bibles are from Local Church.  They have not asked me to promote them but I am doing this on my own.  Please know that I do not get any compensation whatsoever from them either.  I tell people everywhere I go about their Bibles.  If you visit their online bookstore (link is below) you can browse their Bibles and you will notice they also have other books, 1828 Noah Webster dictionaries, and many other items to chose from.

The church also has a printing ministry - Calvary Publishing - available to print books, church stationary, offering envelopes, missionary/evangelist prayer cards and much more.  Their link is also listed below.

I would encourage you to check out their websites and consider them for your future Bible and printing needs.

Local Church Bible Publishers website - CLICK HERE.
Calvary Publishing website - CLICK HERE.

CORNERSTONE BIBLE BAPTIST CHURCH - Sanborn, New York

Every year in June we are in Sanborn, New York (about an hour north of Hamburg) at Cornerstone Bible Baptist Church, where Jack Britt is the pastor, for their tent revival.  We have been there for the last 10 consecutive years.  Many years ago Pastor Britt invited us up for a Sunday in December and that now has become an annual thing as well.

Yesterday was our time to be there and it was good to see everybody again.  The Lord really gave us a great day in church and he helped me to preach with much liberty.  The services were filled with good congregational singing and special music.  While there were some folks out with sickness there was still a very good crowd.

Pastor Britt and I have known each other for over twenty years.  We served in similar capacities at our respective churches so we would talk often and try to help and encourage each other in our work.  Now that he is a pastor and I am an evangelist, we still continue to do just that.  Mrs. Britt and Stacie are great friends as well and so we had a very enjoyable time together.

If you would like to visit their church's website you can do so by CLICKING HERE.

Cornerstone Bible Baptist Church in Sanborn, New Yrok

The Gospel

Evangelist Craig Cobb preaching at Cornerstone Bible Baptist Church in Sabnborn, New York

 

Pastor Jack Britt and Evangelist Craig Cobb (From the June meeting)

NEXT STOP: Cornerstone Bible Baptist Church in Sanborn, New York

Tomorrow we will be at Cornerstone Bible Baptist Church in Sanborn, New York (Pastor Jack Britt).  This has become a December tradition for the past several years.  We are praying for a life-changing day in church!

You can visit Cornerstone's website by CLICKING HERE.

SCHEDULE UPDATE

This past Wednesday night we were home at Old Time Baptist Church and it was a blessing to get to see the "home crowd" again.  Our church family always make us feel so welcome when we get back from a trip.  I was asked to preach two times over the Christmas weekend that I wanted to share with you...

CHRISTMAS CANTATA
First, our annual Christmas Cantata is one week from today - next Friday, December 21st.  This year we are having this event at our building.  The public is invited and we hope to see folks from other area churches there.  Please pray for me as I present the gospel after the readers theater and choir are finished.  For information on the cantata, please click on the graphic below...

SUNDAY NIGHT
Pastor Guadagno asked me to preach Sunday, December 23rd during the evening service.  I am always excited to preach at Old Time - something that has become a rarity because of our busy travel on the road.  I appreciate the invitation and am praying the message will be a help.

THE BAPTIST FLAG

I mentioned yesterday about preaching for Pastor Don Green.  One of the many things he is noted for is creating the Baptist Flag.  Others may have seen this flag before but not realized it originated with Bro. Green.

Baptist Flag created by Dr. Don Green - pastor of Parker Memorial Baptist Church in Lansing, Michigan

The following article is from the website www.baptistflag.org...
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History of the Baptist Flag

The Baptist Flag originated in the heart and mind of Dr. D. L. Green, pastor of the Parker Memorial Baptist Church in Lansing, Michigan. Desiring a flag with which to identify, yet reluctant to embrace the Christian Flag because of its adoption by a broad scope of religious groups which have blurred its distinctiveness, Dr. Green set out to design a flag which would be attractive in its appearance and distinct in its message.

After sketching a variety of designs and rejecting them as insufficient to express his thoughts, Dr. Green settled on the theme "The Tie That Binds." With this thought in mind, Dr. Green soon developed a flag that embodied the three-fold cord which binds Baptists around the world. As Baptists, we hold to the Book, the Word of God, as our rule for faith and practice; the Blood shed by Christ for the remission of sin; and the Blessed Hope of the return of Christ to unite us together in Heaven with Him for all eternity. The colors are also symbolic and significant in their message. Red is symbolic of the blood of Christ by which we are redeemed, white for His purity and the robe of righteousness of the saints.
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You can order a variety of Baptist Flag products by CLICKING HERE.

PARKER MEMORIAL BAPTIST CHURCH - Lansing, Michigan

I had the privilege this past Sunday (December 9, 2012) to preach for one of my heroes - Pastor Don Green of Parker Memorial Baptist Church in Lansing, Michigan.  Bro. Green came to our church's new building dedication back in May and he invited me to come preach for him.  By and by we established the date for Sunday.  I have known Dr. Green for many years and he is a great man of God.  He is known as a man of prayer and deep convictions. He is 84 years old and has been the pastor at Parker Memorial for an amazing 57 years.

Outside of seeing the Green's at our camp meeting and a little fellowship there, Stacie and I have never really spent any extended time with them.  When we arrived in town they picked us up and we went to a local restaurant and enjoyed a nice meal.  On Sunday we went over to their home and had lunch.  A family who has been visiting the church for a few weeks also came over.  Then again after the evening service we went over to the house and enjoyed some more fellowship with Bro. & Mrs. Green as well as his son, Steve, and his family.  Bro. Steve has been the associate pastor and song leader at his dad's church for 41 years.

This was our first time ever being at this church and I preached in the morning and evening services.  To be honest I was a little nervous (more so than usual) because of Bro. Green and his, literally, world-wide notoriety.  There really was no need for this because honestly he is such a gracious gentleman.  Both he and his wife are down-to-earth folks who love God and love people.  There was good liberty in the services and all of the AMEN's were encouraging.  The invitations in the morning and evening were well responded to.

You will notice in the pictures below a picture of a bridge with Bro. Green's name on it.  The city of Lansing (Michigan's capital), in honor of his 56th year of pastoring the church named this bridge after him.  It is located about 1/8th of a mile from the church on the same street.

Much could be said here about Dr. Don Green - his noted prayer life; his convictions of holiness; the legacy of his children, grand children and great grand children serving God and so on.  Tomorrow I will post a bit about the BAPTIST FLAG - created by Bro. Green...stay tuned...

You can visit the church's website by CLICKING HERE.

Dr. Don Green (Pastor, Parker Memorial Baptist Church) and Evangelist Craig Cobb

Evangelist Craig and Stacie Cobb with Pastor Don Green

Evangelist Craig Cobb and his wife, Stacie

Parker Memorial Baptist Church in Lansing, Michigan

Parker Memorial Baptist Church in Lansing, Michigan

Lansing, Michigan honored Pastor Don Green by naming this bridge on East Cavanaugh Road after him

VICTORY BAPTIST CHURCH - Clarkston, Michigan - WINTER REVIVAL

DECEMBER 2-7, 2012
It was good to be back at Victory Baptist Church in Clarkston, Michigan where Bob Nogalski is the pastor.  It has been a number of years since our last visit and the Lord gave us a great meeting!

I had the privilege of preaching all day on the first Sunday.  It was the home-folks and there was good liberty to preach which happened all week long.  Monday thru Wednesday Evangelist Robert Foltz and I preached each night.  Bro. Foltz is out of Hope Baptist Church in Toledo, Ohio.  This is the first time I had ever met him and it was a blessing getting to preach with him. Several area pastors and people from their churches came out and supported the meeting which was a blessing.

Thursday and Friday we heard from Evangelists Mark McGuaghey (Alabama) and Charlie Tenney (West Virginia).  They both did a fantastic job and there was a good response in the invitations each and every service.

There was lots of wonderful special music from the church people.  On Friday night the Evans Family from Northern Michigan came down and they did a good job singing as well.  Two things that this church enjoys is music and preaching. Pastor Nogalski was happy with the meeting and how things went so that is always encouraging.

Some associated links you may be interested in:

Photo Gallery from the meeting
One of Bro. Cobb's sermons from the meeting on YouTube
Victory Baptist Church's YouTube channel
Victory Baptist Church website

Every preacher's favorite clock!

The Duty Family Singing

The Nogalski Kids singing

Evangelist Robert Fotlz - Toledo, Ohio

Pastor Bob Nogalski - Victory Baptist Church - Clarkston, Michigan

Evangelist Craig Cobb

Evangelist Craig Cobb, Evangelist Robert Foltz, Pastor Bob Nogalski

Evangelist Charlie Tenney from West Virginia

Evangelist Mark McGaughey from Alabama

Celebrating 400 years of the King James Bible

2013 SCHEDULE

The first quarter schedule of 2013 is now updated and posted.  The Lord has really blessed our calendar and we are thankful to the Lord for it.  We look forward to seeing many of you as we travel around the country and into Canada.  Please pray for the meetings and for safety on the road.

You can click on the "SCHEDULE" tab at the top of the home page or by CLICKING HERE.

OCTOBER / NOVEMBER Prayer Letter

The most recent prayer letter (October and November) is now posted.  You can read it by clicking on the "CURRENT PRAYER LETTER" tab at the top of the home page or by CLICKING HERE.

CURRENTLY - Victory Baptist Church - Clarkston, MI

We are currently in Clarkston, Michigan at Victory Baptist Church for their Winter Revival meeting.  I will update the blog after it is over.  It has been a good week and we still have two more nights to go.  Stay tuned...

OVERDUE UPDATE #2 - First Mt. Pleasant Baptist Church - Franklin, Indiana

After our visit in Columbus we headed to to Franklin, Indiana to be at First Mt. Pleasant Baptist Church.  Back in August, Pastor Kent Kirchmeyer called me and asked what we were doing in November.  At that point there was nothing on the schedule so he asked us to come and be with them for a few weeks.

The plan was for us to split up the preaching a bit.  We ended up being there for three weeks and I had the privilege of preaching the adult Sunday school times, the Wednesday services, one of the Sunday mornings and then one of the weekly men's Bible studies.  The Lord gave us some good services and the people at First Mt. Pleasant are always so kind to us each and every time we are there.  They really go out of their way to make us feel loved and comfortable.

It was a blessing to be here and we enjoyed our time of fellowship with Bro. Kirchmeyer, his family and the people of the church.  We spent Thanksgiving with the preacher and his family and it was a very good day.

We will be back there in June for their summer revival and are already praying for that meeting.

Evangelist Craig Cobb and Pastor Kent Kirchmeyer (First Mt. Pleasant Baptist Church in Franklin, Indiana)

Evangelist Craig Cobb preaching at First Mt. Pleasant Baptist Church in Franklin, Indiana

First Mt. Pleasant Baptist Church in Franklin, Indiana

OVERDUE UPDATE #1 - Amazing Grace Baptist Church - Columbus, Ohio

It has been a month since the blog has been updated and I apologize.  On our way to Indiana back in the beginning of November we stopped in to see Pastor Jimmy Hood and the folks at Amazing Baptist Grace Baptist Church in Columbus, Ohio.  Both Pastor and Mrs. Hood have been going thru an extremely difficult time physically and so we wanted to see them.

We got to church early and it was good to see the folks again.  The last time we were here was for their annual tent revival back in July.  When Bro. Hood came in he was surprised and happy to see us and immediately asked me if I would preach the service.  We had a good time and there is always a great spirit at Amazing Grace.  The Lord blessed with a good response during the invitation.

After church Stacie and I enjoyed some good fellowship with the Hoods at their home.  Please pray for these precious people and the work in Columbus.

Pastor Jimmy Hood - Amazing Grace Baptist Church in Columbus, Ohio

Amazing Grace Baptist Church - Columbus, Ohio