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Contributing Writers: David Mathis | Tim Perkins
Past Contributing Writers: Mike Mills, Spring Hill Church | Doug Fincher | Pastor Randy and Sue Smith | Mike Belgard
Faith
September 28, 2016 - Young or old, rich or poor, red or yellow, black or white, no matter, it's faith and faith alone that lifts the soul to a more perfect relationship with God. That is perfectly explained by Paul in this Bible scripture.
"For you are all sons of God through faith in Jesus Christ. For as many of you as were baptized into Christ have put on Christ. There is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither slave nor free, there is neither male nor female; for you are all one in Christ Jesus. And if you are Christ's then you are Abraham's seed, and heirs according to the promise." (Galatians 3:26-29)
Once a person accepts Jesus as Lord and Master, giving his/her life to the service of the Lord, that person then becomes changed. Removed from the penalty of sin, which we know as spiritual death.
Removed from this world and into citizenship in heaven, yes, I know we are still here, living in the evils of this world, but, removed from it nonetheless.
As God's children we can count on Him to deliver our daily needs, enough for our daily existence here while we wait on the greater gift to come, eternal life with Him.
As Jesus states in Matthew 24:35; "Heaven and earth will pass away, but My words shall by no means pass away." Our true rewards will come, our time spent here is only temporary and not to even be considered. Our eye must remain on the inheritance to come.
Our days here should be spent in dealing justly with others, in showing mercy to those who are less fortunate than we are, and in walking humbly with our Lord; doing His will each day and not our own, setting an example of Christ-like-living for others to see.
Regardless of our status in this world, we all have the same privilege of going before His throne at any time, making petitions to Him through prayer. As His children we are blessed to be able to walk worthy of our profession of faith and our calling of service to Him.
If we are faithful and true to God, we are as the scripture says; "heirs according to the promise", meaning our inheritance in heaven is incorruptible, undefiled, and fades not away. It is reserved, in heaven, for us the instant we accept Christ Jesus as Lord and is kept for us by the power of God through faith.
Here, our bodies may be wracked with pain, we may be ridiculed and persecuted for our faith, no matter, each of us will have a new, perfect body and live in perfect harmony when we come into His presence, into His Kingdom. Our minds cannot comprehend today, the glory we will see in heaven.
To those who ridicule and persecute Christians today, I say; "repent and accept the free gift of eternal life before it's too late, come into the family of God before the door is closed, to be opened no more".
May the love of God bless you each day.
October 3, 2016 - Short Community Methodist Church will be hosting their Homecoming October 9th at 12:00 noon. Singing will start at 1:00pm, with the Shelby County Singers. Come by and enjoy some food and fellowship!
October 3, 2016 - “Encourage one another…build each other up…” I Thess. 5:11
While living in Amarillo, I shopped often at the local Wal-Mart Store. One of their employees, Becky, was the store’s most inhospitable clerk. I avoided her like the plague because I didn’t want her “doom and gloom” rubbing off on me.
I’d bought some fishing baits there one afternoon and …sure enough…wound up at Becky’s register again! I figured I’d get through the line as quickly as possible, but when I saw the bright purple scarf around her neck, I exclaimed, “My, what a beautiful scarf!” Her eyes flashed like lightening and she gasped, “Oh, thank you!” “My sister gave it to me for my birthday last week.” “This is the first time I’ve worn it.” From that day on, I always had Becky, the store’s friendliest clerk, check me out. This simple complement not only changed her attitude that day.
It improved mine, too.
October 3, 2016 - Sunday was the 20th Sunday after Pentecost and the first Sunday in October. At Paxton we celebrated communion using the liturgy called “Table of Plenty.” Sunday was World Communion Sunday: The idea of a billion or more Christians celebrating communion Sunday morning is cool! During the month of October we will be collecting peanut butter and jelly for Community Christian Services. For my sermon I used the Old Testament Lesson from Lamentations 1: 1-6 and the Epistle Lesson from 2 Timothy 1: 3-14. Lamentations is made up of five lyric poems that bemoan the destruction of Jerusalem and all that the Jews knew about life. The poet speaks of groaning, weeping, and the inability to be comforted. Paul praises Timothy for his “honest and rich” faith that had been handed down from his grandmother Lois and his mother Eunice. Paul speaks of death defeated and life vindicated in the steady blaze of light that is the Christ.
No one likes suffering. Unfortunately, it is part of our human condition. We believe that humans have a soul—a spark of the divine within us—but the trade-off is that we live in the shadow of death. This reality becomes even more real as we age, with more aches and pains and the truth of our mortality. But Paul speaks of a different suffering: for the cause—to promote the Kingdom here on earth that Jesus envisioned.
Our Sunday school lesson was from Hebrews 1 and spoke so poetically about Jesus being the “light of God’s glory and the imprint of God’s being.” I have really enjoyed this writer’s way of seeing and explaining scripture in a new, expanded way.
When he speaks of hearing God’s voice in all of creation, he enables me to see the sacred in the ordinary as well as extraordinary times of life. He talks of renewing the ancient spiritual practice of contemplation, which used to be a major part of our faith but isn’t stressed much today.
I spent a good part of this week in Dallas, having quality time with my kids. Megan showed us her new home now that all the renovations are completed—but she is still waiting for that final inspection. My brother and sister-in-law had driven to North Dakota for our Aunt Phyllis’ funeral. Her husband Art was the only one of the ten siblings who stayed in North Dakota to farm. All my city cousins and I loved to go for family get-togethers on the old family farm.
On Monday the crew will head to Green Acres for our monthly ministry. However, I will be in Nacogdoches having cataract surgery. I am so ready to be able to see well again. I have three other doctors’ appointments later in the week. I always thought that when I retired I would do some traveling but didn’t realize most of the traveling would be to doctors’ offices.
“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 9:30 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!
October 1, 2016 - Pastor Jeremy Moore and the members of the Friendship Missionary Baptist church in Bo Bo Texas invite you to Fellowship with them on October 9, 2016 for the Friends and Family Day service.
Guest Speaker will be Pastor Climeteen Thomas III of the Second Street Baptist Church in Shreveport, La. Services will begin at 3:00pm.
September 30, 2016 - Patch Activities in October at First United Methodist Church in Center.
October 1st:
• Grand Opening of the Patch at 10:00 a.m.
• Movie Night at 6:00 p.m.-Charlie Brown and the Great Pumpkin
October 12th:
• Family Night: Pumpkin painting and activities for the family at 5:30 p.m. (Pumpkins and paint will be provided)
October 14th:
• Cider Sipping Senior Day from 3:00 p.m.- 5:00 p.m.
October 22nd:
• Blessing of the Animals at 10:00 a.m.
October 23rd:
• Bake Sale during Coffee Fellowship at 9:30 a.m.
(All proceeds go towards covering the cost of the pumpkin patch.)
Hours of operation:
- Thursdays 3:00 p.m.- 6:00 p.m.
- Saturdays 10:00 a.m.- 4 p.m.
- Sundays 1:00 p.m.- 3:00 p.m.
*If you want to buy a pumpkin when the patch is unattended, please come to the church office or call 936-598-2707*
September 29, 2016 - October 1 - Prayer Brunch & Balloon Release 11 am @ the ALM
October 9 – Man Cave (Men will watch a Dallas Cowboys game with Pastor @ Bro. Bobby Watts home in Nacogdoches, TX) 3 PM
October 10 – Style Show (ALM Women will style the latest fashions) 6:30 PM @ ALM
October 22 – Appreciation Musical 6 PM @ ALM
October 23 – Pastor and Wife’s Appreciation 2:30 PM @ ALM
October 29 - Pastor and Wife’s Appreciation Awards 6 PM @ John D. Windham Civic Center – Red Carpet Event
October 30 – Candle Lighting Ceremony 12 Noon @ ALM
September 29, 2016 - St. John Missionary Baptist Church will be Celebrating our 127th Church Anniversary Sunday, October 16, 2016 at 2:30p.m. Special Guest will be Rev. Freddie Wilson, Pastor of the St. Paul Missionary Baptist Church, Center Tx. Theme: “A strong Foundation, Built to Last” 1 Corinthians 3:9-15.
The community is invited to fellowship with us!
September 28, 2016 - Triumph the Church and Kingdom of God in Christ San Augustine, Texas Elder. Delphine Thompson-Pastor presents 100 Women in Red Sunday October 16, 2016.
The event will start at 3pm and Rev. Elegena Weaver & Mt. Zion CME Church Center, Texas will be our guest.
Everyone is invited.
September 27, 2016 - This week we look at the book of 2 Corinthians at the special assignment given to Titus by the Apostle Paul.
The church at Corinth had pledged a certain amount of money to Paul for the needy in the church in Jerusalem. They had pledged, but not delivered, and Paul is trying to get them to hold true to their word as he had used them as an example of generous giving to get other churches to help to supply funds for the needy in Jerusalem.
Since they have refused to honor their pledge Paul decides to send Titus to Corinth to persuade the Corinthians to honor their word to him.
The following scriptures answer any questions the Corinthians may have concerning the authority and authenticity of Titus to speak on Paul's behalf.
"Therefore we have been comforted in your comfort. And we rejoiced exceedingly more for the joy of Titus, because his spirit has been refreshed by you all. For if in anything I have boasted to him about you, I am not ashamed. But as we spoke all things to you in truth, even so our boasting to Titus was found true." (2 Cor. 7:13-14)
"So we urged Titus, that as he had begun, so he would also complete this grace in you as well." "But thanks be to God who puts the same earnest care for you into the heart of Titus." "If anyone inquires about Titus, he is my partner and fellow worker concerning you. Or if our brethren are inquired about, they are messengers of the churches, the glory of Christ." 2 Cor. 8:6,16,23) "I urged Titus and sent our Brother with him. Did Titus take advantage of you? Did we not walk in the same spirit? Did we not walk in the same steps?" (2 Cor 12:18)
While Paul was the "senior pastor" for the gospel of Christ, he needed helpers. Pastors today are no different, they too need helpers, people who will help labor together with God.
Paul used Titus on many special assignment trips, some of which had been to Corinth and Titus had worked well with the Corinthians and had comforted them. He was the natural choice to send to try and collect their debts owed to Paul's ministry.
The Lord put into Titus the same earnest care which Paul had. He excepted Paul's exhortation, but, of his own accord, went to Corinth. While he couldn't force the church members to give, he could state the urgent need and make an earnest appeal for their support. What Titus did sprang from his heart of love for the Lord's cause.
Neither Paul, Titus, nor any other leader used his position for personal gain among the Corinthians. Paul even labored as a tent maker while he was among them so no one could think he was charging his needs to them.
God-called ministers, like Paul and Titus, have a woe ringing in their hearts when they fail to preach the gospel and those who preach the gospel are to live by the gospel.
Paul and Titus both showed that willingness to live what they preached, that was their special assignment for the Lord.
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