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Contributing Writers: Mike Mills, Spring Hill Church | Doug Fincher | Pastor Randy and Sue Smith | Mike Belgard | Tim Perkins
Faith
April 1, 2025 - St. John Missionary Baptist Church, Africa Community, is hosting a Family and Friends Day at 2pm on Sunday, April 6, 2025. The day’s theme is “Count on Me" John 15:12-17.
Rev. Johnny Jones is the guest pastor from Pleasant Grove Baptist Church. O' Come Let Us Exalt His Name Together!! Invite your Family and Friends to come Worship with us. The church is located at 2308 Co Rd 2050, Center, Texas 75935.
Rev. Winston Kibbles- Pastor
March 31, 2025 - Truitt Cemetery Homecoming is scheduled for Saturday, April 26, 2025 from 11am until 1:30pm. A brief meeting will be held at 11am and a covered dish luncheon will follow.
Truitt Cemetery is located 6 miles southwest of Joaquin off of Highway 7. Signs on Highway 7 indicate the turn off to the cemetery.
If anyone would like to donate to the Truitt Cemetery you can mail a check to the treasurer at the address below. All money goes to the maintenance of the cemetery and is greatly appreciated.
Tina DuBoise
PO Box 558
San Augustine, TX 75972
In case of inclement weather the Truitt Homecoming will be at The First Methodist Church, 105 Faulkville Road, Joaquin, TX 75954.
March 31, 2025 - Triumph the Church and Kingdom of God in Christ in Center, TX cordially invite you to our Bi-Annual Conference 2025 hosted by Presider Archie Thompson and County Mother Sharon Thompson on April 3rd thru April 5th 2025. Bishop Howard Cloudy Sr.
Thursday night Joint session at 7pm
Friday Day at 12pm
Friday night at 7pm
Saturday Day at 12pm
March 31, 2025 - Good Morning! It’s Monday, March 31.
Today is the 340th birthday of my favorite musician. On March 31, 1685, Johann Sebastian Bach was born. Bach is on the shortlist of the greatest composers in the history of Western civilization - along with famous names like Mozart, Beethoven, Brahms, Bernstein. But that’s not the reason he’s my favorite.
During his lifetime, Bach’s music was largely unknown or ignored. He was famous, not for composing, but for being a performer, an organist. And his skill as a keyboardist, especially in the technique of improvisation, was said to have been nothing less than amazing. But that’s not the reason he’s my favorite.
Bach’s music went unplayed and largely forgotten for almost a hundred years after his death in 1750. The “Bach Revival” of the 19th century introduced his work to a new generation, and he’s been on the Mount Rushmore of musicians ever since. But, with all that fame and skill and genius, he’s my favorite for another reason - he’s my favorite because he was a church musician - like me. For his entire working life, which spanned half a century, he made his living and supported his big family (20 kids!) by serving as a director of music at Lutheran churches.
And so, considering that career choice, that “calling”, it’s not surprising that Bach said -
“I play the notes as they are written, but it is God who makes the music.”
“The aim and final end of all music should be none other than the glory of God.”
And on his deathbed, Johann Sebastian Bach, said - “Do not cry for me, I am going where music was born.”
Meet you back here tomorrow,
David
cindertex50@yahoo.com
March 27, 2025 - One of the great inventions of the 20th century was the washing machine. It totally changed the back-breaking way that laundry had to be done. With the washing machine, you can put the clothes in, turn it on, come back in a few minutes and clean clothes are ready to be put in the dryer or hung on the clothesline (yes, some folks still do that!)
Yet, have you ever noticed how clothes sometimes come out of the washing machine? Often the shirts come out with the sleeves all twisted. Aprons come out with the strings tied in knots. This is caused by the outward pressure as the clothes are squeezed dry on the tub of the machine.
If you think about it, the spin of the washing machine often illustrates the way we live our lives. We spend our lives in a whirlwind of activity. Consequently, we often feel like we have been through the spin cycle and come out all tied in knots.
God never intended for us to live like that. Remember, Paul would write; “Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known unto God. And the peace of God, which passeth all understanding shall keep your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus.” (Philippians 4:6). Let’s stop living our lives in the spin cycle.
It’s something to think about... tbp
Come join us for worship at Center Church of Christ or online at www.centerchurchofchrist.com.
March 27, 2025 - Good Morning! It’s Thursday, March 27.
First of all, let me say thank you to all the faithful readers who reached out yesterday with celebratory messages on the occasion of the 5th anniversary of the Daily Devotions. I appreciate your encouragement, and I’m blessed that these little thoughts have been a blessing to you.
And now... the first devotion of Year Six!
A new king was crowned in Egypt around this time of year in 198 B.C, - about two hundred years before Bethlehem. Ptolemy V was just thirteen years old, and, in his honor, a message of praise was etched into a stone, transcribed three times using three languages - Ancient Greek, Egyptian cursive, and hieroglyphics. After several centuries, the young king was forgotten, and his stone disappeared. Then, in 1779, Napoleon conquered Egypt, and his soldiers, while building a fort, discovered the ancient stone, near a little town named Rosetta.
By that time, the meaning of hieroglyphics had faded into the past. Linguists had long attempted to decipher them, but with very little success. But with the Rosetta Stone, they had the key that would unlock the mystery. The hieroglyphics could be compared to the better known texts in Greek and Egyptian cursive. The door had been opened to understanding 3000 years of Egyptian culture. It remains one of the greatest discoveries in history.
Speaking of stones with writing etched on them, this leads us to an intriguing question. What language was used to write the Ten Commandments? Historians know, that at the time of Moses (1500 B.C.), the Hebrew alphabet did not yet exist. We also know that Moses was raised in the royal court, a prince of Egypt, and would have certainly been taught to read and write the Egyptian language. The Israelites had lived in Egypt for over 400 years, so it is safe to assume that they were familiar with the language, as well. And so, it is quite possible that the tablets that Moses brought down from Mt. Sinai were filled with those little picture symbols - hieroglyphics.
But, this is a theory that will never be proven, since the actual Ten Commandments have been lost to history. We cannot go to the British Museum in London and view them - as we can the Rosetta Stone. But, we can be thankful that those ancient words have been preserved in His Word, and in our native language. Thankful that the Ten Commandments continue to be our spiritual Rosetta Stone - guiding us to God.
Meet you back here tomorrow,
David
cindertex50@yahoo.com
March 25, 2025 - New Prospect Missionary Baptist Church in Timpson, Texas will be having Pastor and Wife's appreciation (Pastor Rayford and Sis. Judie Caraway) on Sunday, March 30, 2025 at 2:30pm. Guest Speaker is Pastor Byron Coutee, Jr., Blount Chapel Baptist Church, Center, Texas and Unity Baptist Church in Grapeland, Texas. Everyone is invited to attend.
March 24, 2025 - Good Morning. It’s Monday, March 24.
Social Distancing - Hand Sanitizer - Zoom Meetings - SuperSpreaders - Elbow Shakes - Quarantine - Face Masks - Work From Home - Supply Chains - Nasal Swabs - Forehead Thermometers - Home Test Kits - Etc - Etc - Etc! Every major event and historical era has its own specific vocabulary. These terms take us back to March of 2020, as we “celebrate” a dubious five-year anniversary. Today we recall the Coronavirus pandemic. Today we remember... when the world changed.
Added to that list of words is a list of numbers. 70 million, the number of worldwide confirmed deaths from Covid. 700 million cases across the globe. 1 million fatalities in the United States - the most of any country. You probably knew someone who was a victim of the virus. I lost three friends. And still today, 400 million people deal with a litany of chronic symptoms, a syndrome called Long Covid.
Five years ago we saw schools shut down, businesses closed, sports leagues suspended, travel halted. Patients in hospitals and nursing homes were shut off from their own families. Churches were part of this “lockdown”, too. Almost all of them cancelled public worship services. Most services returned in the fall, but most churches still haven’t seen a return to pre-pandemic attendance numbers. The “Covid gap” in education continues to negatively affect student test scores. Remote jobs remain the new normal for many adult workers. Things changed in the spring of 2020, and many of those changes are still with us.
There has also been a pandemic of loneliness and isolation. Millions seek connection mainly through social media, but find that all those “Facebook friends” are a poor substitute for real personal contact. During the worst of the pandemic we were denied basic human touch - handshakes, hugs. When we lost that, we came to realize how much we needed it. We remembered how much we need family, friends, people. Much has changed in our world, but some things never change.
Meet you back here tomorrow,
David
cindertex50@yahoo.com
March 20, 2025 - There is a passage about God’s presence and God’s work that we need at this critical time in our experience. In the Old Testament book of Zephaniah God says that He is present with His people (3:14-20). Then He promises to do some specific things for His people. He comes to His people. Zephaniah emphasizes that as God’s people we ought to be praising, singing, worshipping and rejoicing with gladness. “You shall see disaster no more” (3:15). This is what happens when God is in our midst. This is revival, God working in, through and for His people. Verse 17 is a grand statement regarding God. We are encouraged not to be weak or feeble because God is in us. He isn’t just with us, He lives in us.
“The Lord your God in your midst, the Mighty One, will save; He will rejoice over you with gladness, He will quiet you with His love, He will rejoice over you with singing” (3:17).
There is in this passage some very important things. We need them.
First, there is a conscious command, a clear order given to us in verse 14. We are to sing and shout, be glad and rejoice. This isn’t whistling in the dark. It is clearly tied to some real work of God and to His dynamic presence in our lives. Worship is important in our personal and corporate lives as God’s people. God is at work. That should cause such a joyous response.
We need to learn how to praise God, even when we don’t feel like praising Him. We need to learn how to express ourselves in worship, even when we don’t want to. We need to sing. We ought to shout. We certainly need to show forth gladness and rejoicing as God’s people. This is the first thing that we need to recognize in this passage.
Second, there is the presence of God explained in this passage. This is a message about “The God Who is Here.” God is here! God is at work. God is speaking. God does some things for His people. He is with His people. He lives in His people.
First, He deals with judgments. It says here, “The Lord has taken away your judgments….” God is in control and no one can do anything that He does not permit. He is sovereign.
Then, as to His presence, second, it says here, “He has cast out your enemy.” God takes care of His people. He protects, provides, and preserves His own. He deals with our enemies. We need to be careful about enmity and enemies. Leave them in God’s hands. He will take care of them.
As to God’s presence, third, He says, “The King of Israel, the Lord, is in your midst.” God is with His people. He is in their midst. When God is present we can be confident that He will provide and protect. We can trust Him.
Fourth, because God is present, in the midst of His people, He promises, “You shall see disaster no more.” What a promise. What a blessing. What a statement of confident assurance.
This lays the basis for considering what this means; what the presence and reality of God with us and in our midst means. The prophet here tells us the meaning of God being with His people.
- There is no need to fear, God is here!
- There need be no weakness. “Let not your hands be weak” (3:16b).
- There is salvation. Wherever God is there is salvation available. “The Mighy One, will save” (3:17).
- God rejoices in His people. As another says, “God inhabits the praises of His people” (Psalm 22:3).
- He expresses His love in real and substantial, often tangible, ways.
There are some who qualify and manifest a demeanor that attracts God, draws Him to them, even as there are often things that repel and impede His presence in our lives. God responds to some specific kinds of people.
God says here, “I will gather those who sorrow over the appointed assembly, who are among you, to whom its reproach is a burden” (3:18). God longs for the repentance, sorrow, assembled and burdened people. This is a glimpse into what God desires and what He will do for those who seek Him. He loves those who humble themselves and those who seek Him earnestly.
God gathers like-minded, God-loving, grace-filled, burdened people together. Indeed, this is His body, the church, called and commanded. This is more than a spiritual club, it is an organic body. “I will gather those…,” God says. Then He makes some specific and amazing promises to these whom He will gather.
Consider what God promises to these people who have been rejected, abused, misused, afflicted, shamed, demeaned and defeated. He will do some specific and amazing things for them. We can claim these things under similar circumstances as God’s people. Note the use of the words “I will” in this passage. This is God talking.
- “I will gather these” (3:18).
- “I will deal with all who afflict you” (3:19a).
- “I will save the lame” (3:19b).
- “I will… gather those who were driven out” (3:19c)
- “I will appoint them for praise and fame in every land where they were put to shame” (3:19d).
- “I will bring you back” (3:20).
What a list of promises and assurances from God to His people. We need to be sure that we are His people and then we need to claim these promises in that confidence assurance.
God is real. He exists. He comes to His people. He works in and through His people. We have here in Zephaniah a marvelous and miraculous picture of what God’s presence means for His people.
This is who we need to become as God’s people. We need the Lord. We must have Jesus with us, in us and working through us. When we come together we must sense of God’s presence and understand He has called us together.
We need to be filled with God. It is the Holy Spirit, sent by God, who indwells God’s people. He is God living in us. He is God binding us together as His people. In this we need to be careful that we do not “quench the spirit,” that we be led and guided by God’s Spirit.
With this real truth we can deal with Covid-19 and any other attack that might come to us. As I have said before, there is hope for those who love God and seek to honor Him. We must remember that God is the key. We need to rely on Jesus.
Dr. Jerry Hopkins is a historian and retired university professor.
March 21, 2025 - Clever Creek Baptist Church will host Evangelist Dwayne Williams, who is known as “the Texas Teddy Bear” from Woden, Texas, for a special gospel concert, singing and preaching event at 7pm on Friday, April 4, 2025.
Evangelist Williams travels all across the United States singing, preaching and witnessing.
Clever Creek Baptist Church is located at 199 CR 1042 at FM 417 West, Center, Texas 75935. For more information call 936-591-1936.
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