MORROW FAMILY

The Morrow Family suffered a tremendous loss Monday night losing Kenny's father and brother when their home burned. Kenny's sister survived the fire.

Please pray for the Morrow Family as they have the service in Mississippi this weekend and deal with this loss. A card or a note of sympathy would be nice for them upon arrival back home also. I plan on sending flowers from our class.

This photo was made by a firefighter of the remains of Kenny's homestead!
In Christ, Brenda

NEW BOOK LISTINGS

For those avid readers who are in need of something new, or for those who have missed out on Bro. Roger's Bible Study, or for just anyone who would like to skim over Bro. Roger's book, you have come to the right place. As long as this posting is available all you have to do is click on the book to the right, you can also go down the column on the right to the "Sites of Interest" section and click on "Bro. Roger's Book" where it will remain as a regular item. Enjoy!



The same goes for Jill's book, "No Evil Lost".
If you need something new to stir your interest this may just be the ticket for you. Remember you also will be supporting a friend and classmate. Released Sept. 5th. as an ebook @ only $4.99. Just go down the column on the right of this page to the "Sites of Interest" section and click on "Brooks on Books". then just follow the directions for downloading. I know you will be glad you did!

REMEMBER THE THREE P's

Plan, Pray, and Promote in your class  "Friend Day" for Sunday September 29th. Let's have 400 here for Bible Study in Sunday School for the blessings of people working together and give all the glory to God!
Bro. Roger

Two are better than one, because they have a good return for their work; If one falls down, his friend can help him up. But pity the man who falls and has no one to help him up!
Ecclesiastes 4:9-10 NIV

Oil and perfume rejoice the heart; so does the sweetness of a friend's counsel that comes from the heart.

BE A MATTHEW

9 As Jesus went on from there, he saw a man named Matthew sitting at the tax collector’s booth. “Follow me,” he told him, and Matthew got up and followed him.
10 While Jesus was having dinner at Matthew’s house, many tax collectors and sinners came and ate with him and his disciples. Matthew 9:9-10


On October 13th, the church will be providing lunch and training for everyone interested in being a Matthew and hosting some friends in your home. My Hope America with Billy Graham. See the display to sign up today!

 

GOD"S PLAN

“‘For I know the plans I have for you,’ declares the Lord, ‘plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future’” (Jeremiah 29:11).

 God’s plan is what is best. It is a good plan. It may not seem like a good plan right now, but God’s plan is good. This apparent contradiction is where it gets confusing. A messy life is not always a fun life. Currently you may be experiencing heartache and hard times. His plan does not seem good in your current circumstance, but God is still good.

Perhaps your spouse has been unfaithful. God’s plan seems to have taken a detour down a road of disappointment. You lost your home. God’s plan seems wrong. You were asked to resign. God’s plan does not seem fair. Your health is withering away. God’s plan seems premature with its invitation for your homecoming. Every step you take, every choice you make, and every place you go seem to lead toward more confusion and chaos.

So how can God’s plan be good, prosperous, and not harmful? This is a fair question. To answer this question accurately and fairly, we need to consider God’s long-term plan. To walk wisely today requires a reminder of hope tomorrow. It is our future hope with God that inspires us to live for Him today. Wherever Jesus is, there hope resides. When we have Jesus, we have hope. Hope is heaven’s righteous rope that lifts us out of our despair. 

“Oh, that I might have my request, that God would grant what I hope for” (Job 6:8).

DEACON ORDINATION TESTIMONY

Sunday June 2nd, started out as a normal church day, but that changed quickly right after Sunday School. The day ended up being very special and one our class won't soon forget. Joe with Brenda by his side, was ordained as a Deacon of Grace Baptist Church. If you missed the service I have attached a video copy of his testimony for you to enjoy. It was an emotional event. One of the more touching moments came when Bill Ragan walked down front with his oxygen bottle in one hand and his cane in the other and waited in a long line of deacons for his turn to pray over them. If you wish to see the ordination in its entirety please go to the church website where you can view the complete Sunday service.

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PLEASE CLICK ON PHOTO TO VIEW THE VIDEO

REMEMBER TO PRAY FOR CLASS SPEAKER

 

CLICK ON PHOTO TO ENLARGE

THE GREATEST PROMISE EVER KEPT!

ARE YOU WILLING?

Are emotional reactions driving your decisions, or do you prayerfully process the facts clearly and objectively with wise input from others you trust? Do you need to give up something—your house, your car, your career, your travel, or your expectations? What is the Lord asking you to give up so that you can gain Him and His peace? Acceptance requires action.

Furthermore, some people require additional patience and grace to accept. Have others wronged you to the point that your resentment is blocking your acceptance of them? You may justify your rejection of them because of their rejection of you. For example, children and parents can let us down, devastating us, but Christians do not have the option of not accepting them for who they are. Love accepts even unworthy recipients.

Do you find yourself in a situation where you do not feel accepted—a new job, in-laws, a new school, a new city, a new relationship? You can stew in self-pity, or you can take the initiative to reach out to your rejectors. Kindness reaches out and rejects rejection. “A man who has friends must himself be friendly” (Proverbs 18:24 nkjv).

Above all, are you willing to accept God’s call on your life? When His will is uncomfortable and uncertain, will you still follow in trust? Start by accepting Christ by faith as your Savior and Lord, and then continue to accept His commands as evidence that you are His disciple. Acceptance of the Lord allows you to love Him and other people. Acceptance cannot continue alone but is accelerated and accompanied by the Almighty’s grace and love.

ARE YOU LIVING A LIFE WORTH JESUS DYING FOR???

A RICH MAN'S QUESTION

Luke 18:18-25

¹⁸ A certain leader asked Jesus, “Good Teacher, what must I do to have life forever?”

¹⁹ Jesus said to him, “Why do you call me good? Only God is good.

²⁰ You know the commands: ‘You must not be guilty of adultery. You must not murder anyone. You must not steal. You must not tell lies about your neighbor. Honor your father and mother.’ ” 

²¹ But the leader said, “I have obeyed all these commands since I was a boy.”

²² When Jesus heard this, he said to him, “There is still one more thing you need to do. Sell everything you have and give it to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven. Then come and follow me.”

²³ But when the man heard this, he became very sad, because he was very rich.

²⁴ Jesus looked at him and said, “It is very hard for rich people to enter the kingdom of God.

²⁵ It is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for a rich person to enter the kingdom of God.”

 

LADIES NIGHT OUT

Kim Morrow has put together plans for our class ladies to have a nice evening out. Each of these events in the past have always turned out great! Please mark Thursday 2/28 on your calendar, 6pm for dinner and then a movie.

GOD OR MONEY?

“No one can serve two masters. Either he will hate the one and love the other, or he will be devoted to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve both God and Money” (Matthew 6:24).

 How do you know if you love God or money more? Ask yourself if you worry more about missing your prayer time or missing your paycheck. Are you more anxious about what the Almighty thinks, or do you obsess over the opinion of others? Are you driven to seek God’s kingdom first or to blindly build your own kingdom? Devotion to the eternal or the temporal is a choice. It cannot be to both. Only one really captures your worship.

Money makes promises it cannot keep, like security, peace, and prosperity. But the Lord makes promises He does keep, like grace, forgiveness, joy, and contentment. When the commands of these two contradict, will you follow Christ or cash? Decide now, so when you are in the emotion of the moment you do not give in to glittering gold.

What keeps you up at night? Is it how to make more money or how to make more of Jesus? Set your affections above, and you will be more effective below. The Lord is looking for His children with whom He can entrust more of His blessings. He longs for the faithful who use their finances to draw lost souls to salvation, hurting people to healing, and who boldly pray, “Your kingdom come…on earth as it is in heaven” (Matthew 6:10). 

 Perhaps you take your family on a mission trip to see how the masses live with little money but with a lot of the Lord. It is revolutionary for a soul that has been seduced by the mistress of money to see how believers without stuff affectionately embrace their Lord and Savior Jesus. Expose your faith to the poor, so you are liberated from wealth.

This is a heart issue. Who captures your affections—your Savior or your stuff? What does your life reflect to other people - Stuff or God? Money makes a poor master but a useful servant. Indeed, Jesus is the trustworthy Master with whom you can place your faith and devotion. Money tries to maneuver itself into a place of priority, but by faith you can relegate it to serve righteous causes. Love Him, not it.

“Do not love the world or anything in the world. If anyone loves the world, the love of the Father is not in him” (1 John 2:15).

CLASSMATE BIBLE STUDY

Kevin and Leanne Hale
have announced they will be starting a small group bible study on Sunday evenings effective on February 10th. It will be conducted at their home but they are open to other locations as well.
More Information will follow.

 

2 TIMOTHY 3:16-17
16 All Scripture is inspired by God and is useful to teach us what is true and to make us realize what is wrong in our lives. It straightens us out and teaches us to do what is right.
 

17 It is God's way of preparing us in every way, fully equipped for every good thing God wants us to do.

NEW CLASS CARD

HAPPY NEW YEAR

May 2013 be the year  we turn the page and increase our best efforts to reflect God's Grace in our lives. We have the privilege as followers of Christ to invite people to come and see Jesus, who lives in each of us. When the lost encounter Christ they find their way in life more clearly. By God's grace,  seekers can see His work of grace in our speech and in our unspoken words. They see our kindness in the face of unkindness. They  see our respect when we are disrespected. They see our love when we are unloved. They see us forgive when we are rejected. They see our strength and confidence when they see how we handle adversity and illness. How we live with Christ in us, is a window into the wonders of God's grace for all to see. 

"You show that you are a letter from Christ, the result of our ministry, written not with ink but with the Spirit of the living God, not on tablets of stone but on tablets of human hearts."
 2 Corinthians 3:3

click on photo