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Contributing Writers: Mike Mills, Spring Hill Church | Doug Fincher | Pastor Randy and Sue Smith | Mike Belgard | Tim Perkins
Faith
May 24, 2016 - Pastor Marlin Cloudy, Sr. and the Abundant Love Ministries family invite you to join us for Family and Friends Day, on Sunday, May 29th at 2:30 pm.
Our guest pastor is Elder Norris Cloudy and Divine Faith Ministries from Houston, TX.
Abundant Love Ministries is located at 1426 Shelbyville St., Center, TX 75935.
May 24, 2016 - Seven churches, seven letters all in the book of Revelation, seven letters letting the seven churches of Asia Minor know how they stood with the Lord.
Today we look at the seventh church, the church at Laodicea. The people at the church at Laodicea had become comfortable and self righteous, feeling that they were maybe just a little better than everyone else, a little richer, and a little more righteous.
Actually, according to the Bible, they even said; "I am rich, have become wealthy and have need of nothing" but instead the Lord said they were; "wretched, miserable, poor, blind and naked" (Rev 3:17)
The comfortable church was just that, it's members were comfortable in their lives, they had plenty, their daily needs were adequately filled, they were probably comfortable in their worship as well.
They probably did the same things from week to week feeling that they were being "good Christians" and I suspect they really had no idea that they had become so disconnected from the Lord.
The church was satisfied, with their level of effort and respectability. The people were comfortable with their easy going way of doing things, they were satisfied with "good enough".
The Lord did not rebuke this church for it's doctrine or organization, no His compliant was against it's lukewarm, half-hearted attitude and lack of effort. No one there had any zeal for the gospel and that was the complaint against them.
In verse 15 God says; "I could wish you were cold or hot". In the next verse He says; "So then, because you are lukewarm, and neither cold nor hot, I will vomit you out of My mouth."
Self-satisfaction ate the heart out of the church. She was rich in worldly goods, every year the people had increases and felt they had need of nothing, all the while being destitute in the Lord.
The people thought worldly prosperity was a sign of God's favor on them. Many times this is not so and worldly prosperity is a sign of future torment, much as Jesus told the Pharisees that they should enjoy their life on earth for that was their reward and would be all they ever got.
This church and it's membership was on the same path to destruction as were those Pharisees.
Yet, God had not given up on Laodicea, no, in His great love he offered them the opportunity to change and redeem themselves as He does for the churches of today.
"As many as I love, I rebuke and chasten. Therefore, be zealous and repent." (Rev. 3:19)
God gives everyone a chance to serve Him, a chance each day to be zealous for the gospel, a chance to work each day living and walking in the light of Christ so others will be drawn, by our lives, to Christ. Let's work to never be lukewarm, but always be alive-for-Christ. May God bless you and keep you, please feel welcome to join us any Wednesday evening for Bible Study. More more info call: 936-615-1427...
May 23, 2016 - Sunday was Peace with Justice Sunday in Methodist churches. Our focus this Sunday was on Paul’s letter to the Romans. It is the longest of Paul’s letters, so it comes first in the New Testament, right after the Acts of the Apostles. It is the first letter in the New Testament but was probably the last written of the genuine Pauline letters. Most of Paul’s letters were written to communities that Paul had founded and knew very well. That was not true about this letter: Paul had never been to Rome but wanted to visit and pass the hat for a mission trip to Spain. That never happened because Paul was arrested. Tradition tells us that Paul was executed in Rome.
Paul’s letter to the Romans was very important to Luther and the Protestant Reformation. In reading this letter, Luther came to believe that people are justified by faith alone. Luther didn’t believe that good works would save you, only faith. When the word faith or belief is used in the New Testament, a better translation would actually be trust. Paul believes that this trust in Christ is what transforms and saves us.
We were in double digits Sunday morning. Joy and Gene had their good friends, Larry and Bart, visiting from Houston. The Huttos brought them to Sunday school and church. They were such nice people, and we so enjoyed visiting with them. Evie and Liz were at church this morning; it is so nice to hear Liz’s pretty voice singing the hymns. Joe was feeling really weak, so he sat up front to lead our singing. Joe and Hilda picked popular hymns, and we sang pretty well. Thanks, Hilda and Joe! Sam Watson, Fannie’s grandson, graduated from high school last week, and Liz’s daughter Kayce will graduate from Joaquin this week.
Fannie’s Sunday school lesson was based on Luke 18: 15-17. In these verses Jesus told the disciples to let the children come to him, although the Common English Bible uses the word “babies” instead of “children.” Paul isn’t saying that we should have a childish faith but that our trust should be like a child’s. Children feel secure, trusting that their parents and other adults will take care of things. Paul will later remind his readers in 1 Corinthians that we are to give up childish ideas as we mature in faith.
“Whoever you are, in whatever faith you were born, whatever creed you profess; if you come to this house to find God you are welcome here.” Paxton United Methodist Church is an inviting church that takes to heart the idea of “Open Doors, Open Hearts, Open Minds.” Sunday School starts at 9:15 and Worship begins at 10:00. Our email address is paxtonumc@yahoo.com. If you would like the weekly email newsletter about Paxton Methodist you can send me your email address to the Paxton email address and I will add you to the list. God’s Speed!
Cave Quest VBS: Following Jesus, the Light of the World!
May 23, 2016 - A summer kids’ event called Cave Quest VBS will be hosted at First Baptist Church from June 12 to June 15.
At Cave Quest, kids explore what it means to follow Jesus through dark times. Kids participate in memorable Bible-learning activities, sing catchy songs, play teamwork-building games, make and dig into yummy treats, experience one-of-a-kind Bible adventures, collect Bible Memory Buddies to remind them of Jesus’ love, and test out Sciency-Fun Gizmos they’ll take home and play with all summer long. Plus, kids will learn to look for evidence of God all around them through something called God Sightings. Each day concludes with a Cave Quest Closing that gets everyone involved in living what they’ve learned. Family members and friends are encouraged to join in daily for this special time at 8:30.
Kids at Cave Quest VBS will join a missions effort to repair homes for families in the United States.
Cave Quest is for kids from Entering kindergarten to completed 6th grade and will run from 6:00pm to 8:50pm each day. For more information, call 936-248-3206.
May 23, 2016 - We read, “Behold, I will send you Elijah the prophet before the coming of the great and dreadful day of the LORD: 6 And he shall turn the heart of the fathers to the children, and the heart of the children to their fathers, lest I come and smite the earth with a curse” (Mal. 4:5-6). This Old Testament prophecy tells of a great day that was to come.
Not only was it going to be great but also dreadful. This day was marked by the coming of Elijah. In some or most religious circles they believe that this event and the coming of Elijah is yet future in its completion.
Just as with any text we must let the Bible itself explain it to us. In reference to John the Baptist we read, “And many of the children of Israel shall he turn to the Lord their God. 17 And he shall go before him in the spirit and power of Elias, to turn the hearts of the fathers to the children, and the disobedient to the wisdom of the just; to make ready a people prepared for the Lord” (Lk. 1:16-17).
As the angel speaks with Zacharias about the birth of the child he specifically refers to the words of Malachi. So according to the Bible Malachi speaks of the birth and coming of John the Baptist. Jesus also explains and clarifies this. As Jesus along with Peter, James and John were coming down from the mount of transfiguration we read, “And his disciples asked him, saying, Why then say the scribes that Elias must first come? 11 And Jesus answered and said unto them, Elias truly shall first come, and restore all things. 12 But I say unto you, That Elias is come already, and they knew him not, but have done unto him whatsoever they listed. Likewise shall also the Son of man suffer of them. 13 Then the disciples understood that he spake unto them of John the Baptist” (Matt. 17:10-13).
So according to the angel in Luke 1 and to Jesus the words of Malachi have already been fulfilled. They are not yet future. Now why will this be a great and dreadful day? When John came on the scene he was telling people to repent. To repent to avoid wrath, (Lk. 3:7) bear fruit according to repentance (Lk. 3:8) because the ax was already laid at the root (Lk. 3:9).
Repentance indicates that men can no longer live and do what they want because a day of accountability is coming or has come. And when Jesus came on the scene that great and dreadful day came, men could no longer do as they please.
Paul said, “And the times of this ignorance God winked at; but now commandeth all men every where to repent: 31 Because he hath appointed a day, in the which he will judge the world in righteousness by that man whom he hath ordained; whereof he hath given assurance unto all men, in that he hath raised him from the dead” (Ac. 17:30-31).
The great and dreadful day of the Lord of Malachi has come and men are no longer allowed to do and live as they please. Jesus has all authority (Matt. 28:18), been given judgment (Jn. 5:22) and it will be based on His word (Jn. 12:48). When we consider that we are no longer left to our devices it certainly would be a dreadful day.
Church email: northsidecoccenter@gmail.com
If you would like to receive our weekly bulletin then email us your request and we will be happy to put you on the list!
A dog doesn’t care if you’re rich or poor, smart or dumb. Give him your heart…and he’ll give you his.
—Milo Gathema
May 23, 2016 - Garland Wood, one of our Calvary Baptist Church members, has two treasured Chihuahua dogs, “Dee Dee” and her brother, “Dexter”. They’re 12 years old but you’d never know it by looking at them. When I arrived at church last week, everyone was gathered around Gar. He had driven to Shelbyville the day before (Saturday) and had taken Dee Dee and Dexter with him. When he returned home, he couldn’t believe his eyes when he discovered that Dee Dee was no longer in the truck. Gar hastily drove back to Shelbyville…looking and calling… but saw no sign of his little dog. “I couldn’t sleep last night because of the storm we had… she’s horrified of bad weather and will shiver and shake when it thunders…I could just see her cold and huddled up along some dark road somewhere”. Pam said, “Gar, don’t be surprised if she finds her way home”. “That would surprise me”, he replied. Gar made two trips every day back to Shelbyville asking questions and placing pics in the stores but saw no signs of Dee Dee.
Monday morning Pam sent pics of Dee Dee to local papers and Facebook with the hope that someone might see her and we finally got a call on Tuesday morning. A lady from Tenaha, Texas said she saw a little dog that looked a lot like Dee Dee near her home that morning. “Let’s go”, I told Pam. “We can be there in thirty minutes.” As we raced out to the car, Pam shouted out, “Wait….Look!” …. And to our total surprise, walking up our driveway was Gar…with Dee Dee embraced safely in his arms! “I was driving to the Post Office a while ago,” he smiled, “and met her heading straight for home!” “I would have loved to have seen the look on your face when you saw her”. I replied. “You should have seen her eyes when she saw me”, Gar laughed. “She almost licked me to death!”. She looked good considering her four day ordeal and made little joyful sounds as if she was trying to tell us what had happened. We called Gar later that evening and he said things were already back to normal. “The dogs are playing together and went with me for my walk in the woods as they do every day”.
Dee Dee was gone four days. How did she find her way home from a place 17 miles away and one she’d ever been? Did she follow the paved roads or did she make her way through woods and fields? Did she rest at night? Since she can’t talk, none of us will ever know the answer to those questions.. But Dee Dee knows…
…….and it will always be her little secret.
It’s known that animals have the ability to make a sort of “map” in their mind of landmarks, scents, sounds and familiar territory. It’s believed pets are sensitive to the earth’s magnetic fields and this gives them the ability to know which direction they’re going by using an inner compass. But the question still remains, how do they know which way to go? No one knows, t researchers do know if magnets are attached to a dog or cat, the homing ability is taken away.
May 19, 2016 - Bennett Chapel Missionary Baptist Church family cordially invite all to the 30th Pastor and Wife Anniversary, honoring Bishop W.C. & Lady Donna Martin, Sunday, May 22nd during the 2:30pm hour.
Bishop R.L Brazzel, pastor of Bible Teaching Ministries in Longview TX, will be the guest speaker.
Please join us in fellowship as we overwhelm such great leaders with appreciation and love!!!
Church location: 674 CR 2582 Shelbyville, TX 75973
May 17, 2016 - Sounds of Joy in concert Sunday, June 5th, 2016 at 6pm at First Pentecostal Church of Joaquin, Texas.
Sound of Joy is a Southern Gospel Quartet, based out of Southeast, Texas signing and proclaiming the gospel of Jesus Christ through Southern Gospel music. Sound of Joy are, Rusty Ferguson, Bridge City, Texas Timothy P. Manuel, Vidor, Texas.
If you enjoy good old time Southern gospel singing you will not want to miss this concert. Please come and join us for a great time of worship and fellowship, you will truly be blessed.
May 17, 2016 - Sunday was the Day of Pentecost. Pentecost’s meaning “50” is because it’s 50 days after Easter. For Christians, Pentecost is seen as the birth of the church, but it was also an ancient Jewish religious day. Originally it was an agricultural celebration in which the first fruits of the harvest would be given at the Temple. After many conquests and Jews being taken far from their homeland, Pentecost became a day to celebrate the Torah—which was instrumental in keeping the Jews together, at least in faith. The second chapter of Acts describes the situation that morning as the Jesus followers coming alive with hope and joy. Only a month or so earlier, they were fearful and hopeless after Jesus’ death.
Outside the early Christian writings and letters, the only mention of Jesus is in Josephus’ history of the Jewish people. He wrote one paragraph about Jesus and his followers, ending with: “And up until this very day, the tribe of Christians has not died out.” That was written in the first century of the Common Era, and two thousand years later is still true.
Fannie was back this morning after a quick trip to Austin to see family. She had a good Sunday School lesson, stressing the importance of humility. Most of us, I am sure, consider ourselves humble but I imagine we all have our moments—maybe being proud of our humbleness! We need to remember that humility is one of those human traits pleasing to God.
We had our usual crowd (not very crowded) Sunday morning for worship. Joy and Gene Hutto have an anniversary this week, so we sang to them in honor of this special day. Joe and Hilda organized our music this morning, and Liz helps us sound pretty good! Evie is a big one-year-old now, busy clapping at everything and so alert. Everyone sure enjoys making a fuss over her! During the month of May we are collecting cans of fruit for Community Christian Services. On Tuesday this week at 2:00 we will head off to Holiday Nursing Center for our monthly ministry.
“Whoever you are, in whatever faith you were born, whatever creed you profess; if you come to this house to find God you are welcome here.” Paxton United Methodist Church is an inviting church that takes to heart the idea of “Open Doors, Open Hearts, Open Minds.” Sunday School starts at 9:15 and Worship begins at 10:00. Our email address is paxtonumc@yahoo.com. If you would like the weekly email newsletter about Paxton Methodist you can send me your email address to the Paxton email address and I will add you to the list. God’s Speed!
May 17, 2016 - The future, how shall you face it? In this wicked, twisted world that we must live in there is no much to fear, so much to run away from each day.
As Christians, though we are no longer of this world we must still live in this world and endure it's persecutions every day as we stand up for the gospel of Christ our Lord.
Let me show you in the scriptures what we have to look forward to, let's look to Isaiah Chapter 35 for our answers to this question.
The future is bright for those who do follow Jesus, as the scriptures say, the desert shall rejoice, it shall blossom as the rose. It shall blossom abundantly. This is the dry, arid desert the Lord is speaking of here, saying it will blossom abundantly as if it were a rose. "The wilderness and the wasteland shall be glad for them and the desert shall rejoice and blossom as the rose. It shall blossom abundantly and rejoice." (Isaiah 35:1-2)
Verse 4 tells us to be strong and not to fear for our God will come with a vengeance and He will save us with His recompense (reward for service). (VS 4) "Behold, your God will come with vengeance, with the recompense of God; He will come and save you." Verses 6 & 7 say streams shall burst forth in the desert and the parched ground shall become a pool. There shall be grass where before the jackets lay and there was nothing. (VS 6) "For waters shall burst forth in the wilderness, and streams in the desert. (VS 7) "The parched ground shall become a pool and the thirsty land springs of water, In the habitation of jackets, where each lay, there shall be grass."
Verses 8 & 9 speak of a road there, a highway called the "Highway of Holiness", a place where the non-believer cannot pass. (VS 8) "A highway shall be there and a road, and it shall be called the Highway of Holiness. The unclean shall shall not pass over it, it shall be for others." Only those who do not go astray will be able to walk there, no lion or other animal will be there, it will be a safe place of travel. (VS 9) "No lion shall be there, now shall any ravenous beast go up on it. It shall not be found there. But the redeemed shall walk there."
At the end of our journey through this world a new time will come, a new age will begin as the temple of Christ is set up in Jerusalem and He rules there for 1000 years. The redeemed will be there, living with Him, serving Him each day, what a time of blessing and rejoicing that will be.
(VS 10) "And the ransomed of the Lord shall return, and come to Zion with singing, with everlasting joy on their heads. They shall obtain joy and gladness, and sorrows and sighing shall flee away." AMEN
So you see, we have so much to look forward to IF we are saved. We need not worry about the sufferings we may have to endure here, the rewards for faithful perseverance are so much greater than our trials it should be a joy for those who are redeemed to endure for Christ.
Keep your eye on Isaiah Chapter 35; knowing our rewards in the future will strengthen us for the trials of the present. May God bless you and keep you..
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