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Contributing Writers: Mike Mills, Spring Hill Church | Doug Fincher | Pastor Randy and Sue Smith | Mike Belgard | Tim Perkins
Faith
February 22, 2016 - Sunday was the Second Sunday in Lent. The temperatures are so warm for winter. Even though I have enjoyed getting out and preparing the garden, I am not sure so many warm days in winter is really a good thing. Someone reminded me how often we get a freeze around Easter. But still, the call of spring is pretty strong!
The Gospel Lesson was Luke 13: 31-35. Those fateful days of Holy Week are fast approaching. Jesus must know the terrible danger he and his followers would face when they entered the Holy City. In our Gospel Lesson, Jesus laments that the religious leaders and others who wielded power were ignoring God’s call. Jesus wishes that he was a hen so he could gather all the chicks and protect them. There is a chapel in Jerusalem which could be the very spot that Jesus cried out to Jerusalem. This chapel has a beautiful window, and at first one would think it was stained glass—it isn’t. The window has clear glass where one can have the same view that Jesus did so many years ago: Underneath this window is a mosaic of a hen and her chicks.
Our Sunday school lesson once again comes from Leviticus. The scripture explains in detail all that is to be done on the Day of Atonement—Yom Kippur. All the sacrificing of animals and other details leave a modern reader kind of lost. But the themes—atonement, mercy, and reconciliation—are still true today, not only in the Jewish faith but also the Christian faith.
We had a wonderful surprise today. Lillie, Liz, and Mike were up this weekend and came to church! It was so wonderful to see them, and they put us in double digits once again. Mike has retired and hopes they will be able to come up more often, staying longer. We sure hope so.
Last Tuesday we had our Holiday Nursing Center ministry. We had a real small group to begin with, but more and more folks joined us. Nora read a poem and sang a song. Ms. Hilda played many songs that the residents requested. This week on Thursday at 2:00 we will go to Lakeside and visit, sing, tell stories, and read some scripture. All this month we have been collecting dried beans and rice for Community Christian Services. Sue and I will take those to Haslam Baptist this week.
“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!
February 22, 2016 - Please join us for Disciple Now, a weekend retreat for ages 7th-12th grade, at Lydia Missionary Baptist Church in Huxley, Tx! D-Now is designed to take students to a deeper level in their relationship with Christ and help them enjoy the fellowship of other believers.
We will begin at 6pm on Friday, February 26th and finish at 8am on Saturday, February 27th. This weekend will include praise & worship, devotionals, basketball & volleyball tournaments, Minute to Win It challenges & lots of other fun!!! Supper & breakfast will be provided. For questions call Will Parks (936-368-2838) or Bro.Wes Hall (936-368-2462)
February 22, 2016 - “And ye have forgotten the exhortation which speaketh unto you as unto children, My son, despise not thou the chastening of the Lord, nor faint when thou art rebuked of him: 6 For whom the Lord loveth he chasteneth, and scourgeth every son whom he receiveth” (Heb. 12:5-6).
The seeds of “God is love” paints God in color that He is not. Oh yes, God is love (1Jn. 4:9-11) and His love sent Jesus (Jn. 3:16). And it His love in our hearts that gives us hope to carry on (Rm. 5:5). But God is not love only. The love of God is not a free ticket to live like the devil and do what we want with who want and where we want. As the Hebrew writer said His love also brings a chastening or correction.
As parents we correct our children because we love them. When they begin to go in the wrong direction our love does not bridle our tongue or actions, instead we correct and discipline them. The Lord chastens and scourges us in order to keep us from the fires of hell. As Paul said, “Now the works of the flesh are manifest, which are these; Adultery, fornication, uncleanness, lasciviousness, 20 Idolatry, witchcraft, hatred, variance, emulations, wrath, strife, seditions, heresies, 21 Envyings, murders, drunkenness, revellings, and such like: of the which I tell you before, as I have also told you in time past, that they which do such things shall not inherit the kingdom of God” (Gal. 5:19-21).
It is the love of God that corrects us when we go astray. If God did not correct us He would not loves us. The next time you feel chastened by Scripture just remember it is because God loves you!
Church email: northsidecoccenter@gmail.com
If you would like to receive our weekly bulletin via email, just send us your request and we will be happy to put you on the list!
February 22, 2016 - “If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.” 1 John 1:9 When I enrolled in college in the 50’s, I chose Greek as my foreign language requirement for a B.A. Degree. And since The New Testament was originally written in Greek, (Greek was the world language in Jesus’ day), theological students commonly studied Greek to better understand the New Testament.
My Greek professor, Dr. C. E. Roark, was a Baptist pastor as well as a Professor at ETBU. At 64 years of age, he’d still begin his class every semester by doing a backflip in front of the class…a feat that amazed all of his fledgling students. After the backflip he began: “Young men, Greek is not an easy language to learn, so make sure you don’t miss any classes.” “Forty percent of you will either flunk out or drop out before the semester is over.” Then he’d tell this story:
“At a General Motors plant in Michigan, a car came to the end of the assembly line with nothing but a chassis. When asked what happened, the foreman replied, ‘someone must have dropped their wrench.’”
Then eyeing us intensely, Dr. Roark said, “Young men, you will not pass this course if you drop your wrench.”
Fortunately, I didn’t drop mine. I even bested my friend Tony Evans on the final test and finished first in the class. But I have dropped my wrench many times since those days but was always given a chance to pick it up again. When we Christians have “wrench dropping” experiences in our lives, God doesn’t kick us out of the class. Instead he says, “I see that you’ve dropped your wrench….”
“Now let me help you pick it up again.”
February 19, 2016 - Saturday, March 12, First Baptist Church will be hosting Tammy Whitehurst. For more information contact 598-5605 FBC. First Baptist Church is located at 117 Cora Street Center, TX 75935. Registration is currently open and will be $20 before the 26th of February and $30 after.
Tammy’s passion is to communicate the hope found in Nehemiah 8:10: “The joy of the Lord is your strength.” She wants women to experience the JOY that is a result of having a relationship with Jesus Christ. The goal for her ministry, “Joy for the Journey” is to encourage and inspire women of all ages and from all walks of life. Tammy speaks from the heart about what applies to the heart using laughter and life experiences. She feels that laughter is a tool to deal with the difficult times in life. Tammy states, “Having becoming a Christian at 25 years of age, I am still so amazed when I consider God’s love for me through the death of His Son, Christ Jesus. God guided me to be a teacher in the classroom for 16 years but after having heart surgery in my 30’s, I also became a much bolder speaker for God.” Tammy earned a Women’s Ministry certification from New Orleans Baptist Theological Seminary.
February 17, 2016 - As Valentine’s Week comes to a close, the members of St. John Missionary Baptist Church would like to send a special thanks to all that SHINED in our HEARTS at the Valentine’s Banquet. It is the monetary contributions of people, churches, and businesses like yours that made our event successful.
Please accept our warmest thanks for your generosity and compassion towards our Church. You are God’s greatest Blessings!
Thanks to all,
St. John Baptist Church Family
St. John Missionary Baptist Church
Valentines Banquet 2016
Center, Tx
Rev. Winston Kibbles Sr.- Pastor
February 16, 2016 - There are times when most men forget that they are only allowed to prosper by the goodness and grace of God.
Such was King Nebuchadnezzar. The forth chapter of Daniel deals with his failure to honor God and with the punishment from God for the consequences of his actions.
In Daniel 4:27; God sends a messenger to the king who tells him to heed God's advice, that he should; break off his sins by being righteous and his iniquities by showing mercy to the poor. That if he does so, God might lengthen his prosperity. The king had 12 months to change his ways, when he did not, God took his mind from him and made him crawl on all fours and eat grass with the cattle for 7 years. By the end of that time he had very long hair covering his body and his finger nails were as eagle's talons.
Daniel 4:34 shows that after 7 years Nebuchadnezzar looks to the sky and honors God and is restored to his former self. Finally, he saw the world in it's true light, understanding that God is sovereign and supreme over heaven and earth and there is none other than Him. We are confronted with 2 disputes over God today, the first being a moral issue; whether God or man's rule or will shall be done. The second intellectual, asking whether an intellectual and supreme God exercises continuous rule and providence in the world or whether all things happen according to either blind fate or the laws of nature.
Daniel 4:35 answers this saying that all the people of earth are reputed as nothing... So much for self worth or being overly proud of oneself.
Daniel 4:36 shows us that for honoring and praising God that Nebuchadnezzar had his entire kingdom reinstated to him with even more majesty being awarded to him than before. Finally, he saw the world as it really is and he then started trying to make certain that others found out about God and accepted Him as Lord and Savior too.
Daniel 4:37 gives God all praise and glory and offers a final word of warning to us all; "Now I, Nebuchadnezzar, praise and extol and honor the King of Heaven, all of whose works are truth, and His ways justice. And those who walk in pride, He is able to put down."
Pay attention America to these final words of warning, the good king can certainly testify to the power of our Lord and we would all do well to heed his advice.
Please feel free to join us on Wednesday evening at 6:00PM at Spring Hill Baptist Church for our weekly Bible Study. Call 936-615-1427 for more information.
May the Lord bless you and keep you and make His face to shine upon you every day...
February 16, 2016 - As a writer I suppose that it is normal that I love working with words. I love puns and jokes. Perhaps you are not familiar with the word “lexophile”. It means a person who loves words and word plays. They love to put words together that have dual meanings. Some people call them “puns”.
The following list of lexophiles was sent to me by a good friend, and I want to pass them along for other people to enjoy. I understand that an annual national competition is held to see who can come up with the best lexophiles. The following were some of the winners:
You can tune a piano, but you can’t tuna fish.
To write with a broken pencil is pointless.
When fish are in schools, they sometimes take debate.
A thief who stole a calendar got twelve months.
When the smog lifts in Los Angeles, U.C.L.A.
The batteries were given out free of charge.
A dentist and a manicurist married. The fought tooth and nail.
A will is a dead giveaway.
With her marriage, she got a new name and a dress.
A boiled egg is hard to beat.
When you’ve seen one shopping center, you’ve seen a mall.
Police were called to a day care center where a three year old was resisting a rest.
Did you hear about the fellow whose whole left side was cut off? He’s all right now.
A bicycle can’t stand alone; it is two tired.
When a clock is hungry it goes back four seconds.
The guy who fell onto an upholstery machine is now fully recovered.
He had a photographic memory which was never developed.
When he saw her first strands of grey hair, she thought she’d dye.
Acupuncture is a jab well done. That’s the point of it.
Those who get too big for their pants will be exposed in the end.
Time flies like an arrow; fruit flies like a banana.
A backward poet writes inverse.
A chicken crossing the road; poultry in motion.
If you don’t pay your exorcist, you can get repossessed.
You are stuck with your debt if you can’t budge it.
He broke into song because he couldn’t find the key.
Bakers trade bread recipes on a knead-to-know basis.
If you jump off a Paris bridge, you are in Seine.
A final thought:
Lord, give me a sense of humor,
Give me the grace to see a joke,
To get some humor out of life,
And pass it on to other folk.
February 15, 2016 - We have recorded for us a great example of a young man that went against the crowd, and it worked out to his benefit. As the Jews went off into captivity a young man named Daniel had decided to take a stand.
We read, “5 And the king appointed them a daily provision of the king's meat, and of the wine which he drank: so nourishing them three years, that at the end thereof they might stand before the king. ... 8 But Daniel purposed in his heart that he would not defile himself with the portion of the king's meat, nor with the wine which he drank: therefore he requested of the prince of the eunuchs that he might not defile himself” (Dan. 1:5,8).
Here we have a young man that has been taken by force away from his home. He is in a land with a foreign language. He has people of authority over him to do him harm if they wish. But in all these he decides that his standing before God is more important than giving into his immediate surroundings. Daniel was only one of a number of “youths” (Dan. 1:3-4). But he did not go along with the other young people of his day, he did not conform to his surroundings. And as a result the Lord blessed him (Dan. 1:9), and he was better off than the other youths from Jerusalem (Dan. 1:15).
Being different and going against the crowd or the masses (for the right things) always works out. As Solomon writes, “For the turning away of the simple shall slay them, and the prosperity of fools shall destroy them. 33 But whoso hearkeneth unto me shall dwell safely, and shall be quiet from fear of evil” (Pr. 1:32-33).
You see Daniel was not concerned with what his buddies thought nor was he fearful of the authorities in a foreign land. By Daniel going against the masses it worked out in his benefit. But he did not do so sarcasticly, for it is written, “...therefore he requested of the prince of the eunuchs that he might not defile himself” (Dan. 1:8).
Daniel is like the blind man of John 9. The man of John 9 was born blind and then Jesus healed him. But when he was faced with pressure from the authorities he said, “The man answered and said unto them, Why herein is a marvellous thing, that ye know not from whence he is, and yet he hath opened mine eyes. 31 Now we know that God heareth not sinners: but if any man be a worshipper of God, and doeth his will, him he heareth. 32 Since the world began was it not heard that any man opened the eyes of one that was born blind. 33 If this man were not of God, he could do nothing. 34 They answered and said unto him, Thou wast altogether born in sins, and dost thou teach us? And they cast him out” (Jn. 9:30-34).
Here we have two great examples of going against the crowd for what was right. Daniel in a foreign land and a man that had been healed with nothing fall back on except Jesus.
Church email: northsidecoccenter@gmail.com
If you would like to receive our weekly bulletin, just send us an email with your request and we will gladly put you on the list!
February 16, 2016 - I visited my crop-duster friend Wayne Smith in Edgerly, La. last week. I first saw Wayne back in the 80’s when he flew his Ag-Cat Crop-duster over a field where I was photographing birds. He was flying low enough for me to see the cigar in his mouth.
From that day when I heard his plane, I’d follow him in my pickup and photograph him as he sprayed insecticide over the rice fields. I was watching him spray Phil Rauser’s rice field one day when the body movements of his flagman down the field caught my eye.
As the young man moved closer to me, he’d wave his hands in the air while waiting for the plane’s next pass. When he got close enough for us to talk, I asked, “Why are you waving your hands?...is something wrong?” “Aw, naw, there aint nothing wrong”, he smiled. “I just been catching skeeter hawks”.
Some folks believe that only a lunatic would think of catching a dragon fly. To the contrary, its people who won’t do the useless things that have the mental problems. Lunatics are always serious…they don’t do “useless” things. But they’d likely get on the road to sanity if they’d just relax…get careless…
….and catch some “skeeter hawks”.
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