Shelby County Today

August 18, 2022 - The story is told that one evening, a man lit a taper and began to climb a long, winding stairway. “Where are you going?” inquired the taper. “I am going up higher than a house to show ships the way to the harbor!”

“But no ship in the harbor could ever see my light” said the taper. “It is so very small.” “If your light is small”, the man responded, “keep burning brightly, and leave the rest to me.”

When the man reached the top of the long steps, he came to a great lamp. Then he took the little taper and lit the lamp. Soon the great polished reflectors behind the lamp sent bright beams of light many, many miles out to sea!

The legend of the taper is but a suggestion of how God can use His light in our lives. Our job is to keep His light glowing. The effectiveness is in His hands.

No wonder we have such language from Jesus: “Ye are the light of the world. A city that is set on a hill cannot be hid. Neither do men light a candle and put it under a bushel but on a candle-stick; and it giveth light unto all that are in the house. Let your light so shine among men, that they may see your good works, and glorify your father which is in heaven.” (Matthew 5:14-14)

So, how brightly is your light for Jesus shining?

It’s something to think about... tbp

Join Us for Worship this coming Lord’s Day at Center Church of Christ or online at www.centerchurchofchrist.com

August 16, 2022 - Good Morning! It's Tuesday, August 16.

The Bible is, first and foremost, a book about God - His personality, His purpose, His plan. But, it's also a book about people - people who, because of their relationship with God, changed their world. Some of these people are major Bible characters. You know their names well, because they are often spoken about, preached about, and included in these Daily Devotions. People like Abraham, Noah, Moses, David, Peter, John, and Paul. But then there are the hundreds and hundreds of characters who play a smaller part in The Word. Perhaps they're only mentioned in one story. Perhaps in just one verse. And perhaps we don't even know them by name.

There was a man in 1st Century Jerusalem, a man who played a part in one of the most important moments in history, a man who gave us an inspiring example of faith. And, yet, we don't know his name. In the Bible he is just called "a thief" - the thief who hung on the cross beside Jesus. The crucifixion story is featured, of course, in all four gospels, but each story is unique. Matthew and Mark speak of the "two thieves" and John just says "two others". Luke describes them as "criminals" and is the only gospel writer to include their conversation with Jesus. After one thief hurled insults at Christ, the other said - "Don't you fear God, since you are under the same sentence? We are punished justly, for we are getting what our deeds deserve. But this man has done nothing wrong. Jesus, remember me when you come into your kingdom." (Luke 23:39-42)

This story of this nameless man reminds us of several things. First, challenging circumstances can either bring out the worst in us, or the best. Second, the opportunity to have relationship with God is a never-ending opportunity. And last, if we have a repentant heart, God is faithful to forgive. The Bible doesn't tell us the thief's name, but, perhaps, we'll learn what it is... when we meet him in heaven!

Meet you back here tomorrow,
Bro. David
dmathis@fbccenter.org

August 15, 2022 - Grace and peace from our brother, Jesus. School buses are running, and kids are back in school. It is a hot August with temperatures maybe reaching 105 this week. So things are back to normal. Sue and I only got a fraction of an inch of rain this past week, but maybe we will be luckier this coming week—and even that fraction had us celebrating. I had my 70th birthday Friday. That idea seems so strange until I look in the mirror, and an old guy looks back. I had a really nice birthday with all kinds of cool presents and calls from my kids. I can now accurately say that those who attend Paxton Methodist are in their 70s, 80s, and 90s. We are a “mature” congregation. We send our wishes for healing to Fred and Keith. I also want to wish my dear friend, Susan Whiddon, a happy upcoming birthday.

During the month of August we are collecting children’s underwear and socks, since the school year is just beginning. Kids ought to have some new clothes. Underclothes are not the most exciting but are comforting and needed. Community Christian Services is such a great help to folks in our part of East Texas. A big thank you to all the volunteers who give their time to keep this ministry humming. The Blessing Box in downtown Joaquin continues to be a help to so many people. When I walk my dogs in the morning and evening, it is very heartening to see how many people stop by with groceries to fill the Blessing Box. Sue also checks the next-door Little Library, adding books as needed.

Our Sunday School lesson was an exceptionally good one. But before we got into our class, we all spoke frankly about the issues that have caused the split in the United Methodist Church. So many times Jesus will quote a law from the Old Testament and then say, “But I say to you…”

Our Sunday School text today was Matthew 5: 9, 38-48, helping us discover that peacemaking happens when we obey Jesus’ law of love. Our writer told us that to be happy or blessed, we must work on living out Christ’s ideas. He said our world desperately needs peacemakers, not peacebreakers. We may be slowed down thinking that showing love toward others can be an opportunity by which they can take advantage of our kindness. But we should do the right thing regardless of the result.

We began our worship Sunday with words based on the Psalter Lesson, Psalm 80. We used the traditional Apostles’ Creed as our affirmation. We sang the Gloria Patri, the Doxology and added the Methodist anthem, “O For a Thousand Tongues to Sing” by Charles Wesley. Our Hymn of Joy was “Holy, Holy, Holy.” Our quotes in the bulletin came from someone we don’t know and someone very familiar to us. From Nithya Shanti, an Indian educator, we had this philosophy: “When we are interested, we do what is convenient. When we are committed, we do whatever it takes.” On a similar topic, Amelia Earhart said, “The most difficult thing is the decision to act. The rest is merely tenacity.”

I titled my sermon, “Oh My” even before I started writing it because when I read the Gospel I exclaimed, “Oh my!” I really have a hard time with Sunday’s Gospel lesson from Luke 12. Jesus says that he has come to bring fire and to set family members against each other. Some years I take the coward’s way out and select one of the other scripture lessons to preach on. But not this year. Jesus was acting as a prophet when he uttered these harsh words. A prophet in the Jewish tradition isn’t a fortuneteller but someone who speaks of God’s ways and urges people to follow them. Often, those words aren’t soft and comfortable but harsh and unrelenting.

There is no doubt that Jesus’ message, lifting up the poor and marginalized at the expense of the wealthy and the well-connected, was going to bring division. You can’t be a radical like Jesus and not expect push-back. When he seemed to snub the home folks while preaching in Nazareth, his neighbors were ready to throw him off a cliff. Jesus encountered jeers along with cheers as he headed to Jerusalem. And he certainly upset the Powers that Be in the temple and the government. Truth-tellers do that.

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, and Open Minds.” 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 your email address to the Paxton email address, and I will add you to the list. God’s Speed.

August 8, 2022 - “This know also, that in the last days perilous times shall come.”  2 Timothy 3:1

Mother accomplished a near impossible task when she raised her ten children on so little…no car, no telephone… and often no food.  Sometimes our food consisted of only what we could get hunting and fishing. We picked peas on the halves and cotton for 2 cents a pound… but were fortunate enough to have some better-off-than-we-were relatives that kept us in hand-me-down clothes. 

But those hard times were also happy times. My brothers (Bill, John, Joe) and I spent most of our time exploring every patch of woods and every fishing hole within walking distance of our house. Leaving early in the morning, we’d pack our Sledge overall pockets with smooth rocks from the gravel pit, grab our sling shots and go hunting. 

Mother always told us the exact same thing when we left:  “You boys be careful”.   Many times we were gone from daylight until dark while making the rounds down to Weaver’s Pond¸ Dellingers pasture…and sometimes we walked the four mile walk down the railroad tracks to Mill Creek, our favorite paradise.

We roasted crawfish tails and perch and grazed on possum grapes and wild plums to make it through the day. On good days we had watermelon, sugar cane and eggs borrowed from the neighbor’s henhouses. I have often wondered why Mother didn’t worry about our being gone all day. I guess it was because those days weren’t like these days. They were simple days and safe days. We never locked the doors at our house and rarely heard of rape, murder or bawdy house stories. We’d didn’t have drugs, drive-by shootings, gangsta- rap or X Rated movies. Sunday was a special day of rest and prayer and the pledge of allegiance was a part of our daily school activities. The Gideons visited our school every year to hand out New Testaments.

If Mother was raising her boys in our present days, I wonder what she’d say if we told her we’d be gone all day and be home before dark.  Would she tell us go ahead and “just be careful”? 

No… not in these days.