In light of our studies from 1 Corinthians, we are taking a slight detour for a few weeks to discuss miracles. In addition to the Bible, we will refer to brief observations made by Tim Archer.
This class meets at 10;00 AM in room 15 at the church building on the 2nd, 4th, & 5th Wednesday; at Centrie Mayberry’s house on the 1st & 3rd Wednesday.
Hope to see you there!
James
Churches of Christ have been known for using what is referred to as the law of silence to abstain from various activities. Sometimes this law is called the law of exclusion. In a nutshell, it insists that if God was silent about a practice then he did not authorize it.
Along with our Bibles, we will use excellent material authored by Wayne Jackson, Bebe Isrel, Travis Quertermous, and John Carroll Brown. This is a fascinating study that opens your eyes to why we do what we do.
“FEAR: False Evidence Appearing Real.” ~Unknown
Hey, here is the deal…we don’t have to believe the stories Fear tells us. Write them down, and then bring those stories to the Light of Truth. Find evidence to the contrary, and attach your faith on this evidence rather than Fear’s stories. If you do this…
You will do things you never thought possible.
You will be bold and enthusiastic about life.
You will find passion in life and seize opportunities never before dreamed.
Want to take the sting out of Fear? Do these three things..
1. Isolate one fear at a time.
Start with one that really interferes with your growth. For me it was fear of abandonment. That was my biggie. What’s yours? You might fail? You might not be loved? You might disappoint someone?
2. Ask yourself why you have this fear.
This is a question you should ask until you run out of answers. Write down every reason you can think of, starting with the main one that probably occurred when you were small. Write these reasons down so you don’t forget them.
3. Finally, start undermining these reasons with evidence to the contrary.
You might feel a certain way about yourself, but that doesn’t make it true. And even if there were truth in the original belief and feelings, you have lived a lot of life since then.
There are hundreds of reasons why you are capable, intelligent, lovable, drawing, etc. Write those down too.
With practice, you will escape the box and firmly place Fear within it.
“Do not be afraid, God is with you every step of the way.” Joshua 1:9
Read more by David Lewis on his website: www.davidklewis.com
Why Did God Kill My Mom? is a timely and sensitive article by Tyler Ellis. You can read it by following the link below:
http://www.btylerellis.com/?p=1139
May it bless you as it has me.
I received a nice e-mail from Andrew Brown (CRF). In it, he made me aware of their media efforts they hope to accomplish in Kenya. It sounds like a great idea, and I wanted to share it with you. If you have any questions, feel free to ask.
(If you would like a pdf attachment of CRF’s request, I will be glad to send one to you. E-mail me at coffeedrinkingpreacher@gmail.com)
We are so grateful for you and your church and the work you are doing through CRF.
I know your members have helped a lot in Kenya and have even helped purchase some items for the Ringroad Clinic.
In July, we’re going on a trip to Kenya to see the clinic and many of our other works. We’re hoping to send a professional photographer and videographer to shoot promotional and documentary video of the great work your church is supporting through CRF.
I think the video would be really awesome to show to all the donors and to gain many more donors.
It can take place in something as simple as an e-mail forward passing along half-truths or false information about someone you don’t like. It occurs when you take every opportunity to share the worst about someone. It is evidenced when you support an action that will hurt your enemy. Its influence is apparent when you feel proud you’re your enemy has difficulty and hurt by hard times. It is a friend of hate. This terrible character is called envy, and sometimes called jealousy.
Envy has an agenda. It is usually ignited when someone or something interferes with what you want or need. If you are familiar with the story of Joseph and his coat of many colors, then you are familiar with a biblical story filled with the work of envy. Joseph’s brothers resented him so much they wouldn’t speak nicely to him (Genesis 37:4). Their envy, or jealousy, resulted in selling Joseph as a slave just to be rid of him (Acts 7:9). They preferred doing that regardless of how much it hurt the heart of their father.
A mob was formed to hurt the apostle Paul in Thessalonica by Jews that were jealous (Acts 17:5). The jealous men started a riot and recruited very shady individuals to cause trouble for Paul and the other Christians. In order to hurt their enemy, they were willing to break their religious rules. When jealousy grows, it can influence you to do things contrary to the values you profess. If you want to witness prime examples of envy today, watch political news or most reality shows. Envy produces stories that will keep an audience coming back for more. Envy will stir the emotions of others and it is not always positive.
What of the people who are hurt by it? Do the people who are affected by envy matter to God? Does God want your enemies hurt by actions prompted by envy and jealousy? Does envy belong in the life of a Christian? Paul wrote that love does not envy (1 Corinthians 13:4). If you love, you do not allow envy to control your actions. If you do, you will hurt other people! Remember, love does no harm to a neighbor (Romans 13:10)! If you go out of your way to share negative information about someone without equally trying to see any positives, then envy may have your heart. If you would rather not see the good in someone else, then envy may have your heart. If you would rather hear a negative story, read a negative email and have a negative chat about someone, then envy may have your heart. This is true about people you know, complete strangers or people in the media. Envy is a powerful force for evil and creeps in the heart. Take the time to evaluate whether envy is influencing you.
“Above all, love each other deeply, because love covers over a multitude of sins.” 1 Peter 4:8
Continuing the film of George Muller’s ministry.
by Paula Harrington
You can read this article from the original source here: http://forthright.net/2012/03/01/the-church/
Church isn’t what we do or where we go, it’s who we are. So isn’t it time to stop complaining about or viewing it as a man-made establishment that meets once a week, a country club, if you will, that exists to cater to and entertain us?
Church isn’t about fire & brimstone or seeing how many people we can send to Hell.
Church isn’t about politics.
It’s not about a podium or a preacher or a song leader who may or may not sing the songs we like.
It’s not a place we check into on Sundays out of guilt or tradition.
It has its problems & faults because it has its humans. We will disappoint each other. We will, at times, discourage each other but Christ won’t fail us. It’s him, we must cling to him.
Church is a family of followers who fail, backslide, and don’t always love like they should or forgive like they could. It’s a group of believers who may not always agree on every single issue but it’s a group of believers who are headed to the same destination.
Don’t get so caught up in your own journey that you fail to assist others in theirs.
If you want a better church, then be better. The world needs a revolution and it will start in and through the church. No excuses, whether you’re in or out of the building, be the church.
