VISION MISSION

The Adults4Christ Sunday School Class voted today to take on the mission project of providing reading glasses for Room In The Inn. This Christ-like project came about when our class provided food and fellowship on Monday 12/16. The need became apparent as the class members worked with the 12 homeless men as part of their annual church responsibility. We can't heal the blind like Jesus did many times in the bible, but in a Christ-like manner we can provide aid to the men who are visually impaired. On the same day, we presented to the Room In The Inn Staff, on behalf of our class, a case with 51 pairs of reading glasses and the testing material necessary to properly match the correct lens with each person. The staff will let Brenda know when additional glasses are needed. The Sunday School Class will respond by using some of the extra funds collected on the first of each month for our Ethiopian / Beletech mission project to make the purchase. We will then provide the glasses to the staff before the next group of men are scheduled to arrive.

Matthew 25:40
‘Truly I say to you, to the extent that you did it to one of these brothers of Mine, even the least of them, you did it to Me.’

 

THE GOSPEL PROJECT

God has always had a plan.

The Gospel Project for Adults takes the story of Jesus — the gospel — the entire Bible, from Genesis to Revelation, and points to the one story that infuses Scripture from cover to cover — God’s redemptive plan to rescue us from sin and death. Because the entire Bible points to Jesus, it is important to examine the theology and mission within the text, as all of it is an important part of understanding the awesome depth and power of the gospel. 

Join us on Sunday at 9:00AM and be part of our fellowship and study, as our teacher, Joe Steakley delivers the message in chapter 6, "THE LAND.

WE SHALL ALL GIVE AN ACCOUNT SOMEDAY

When Paul wrote to the Romans, he told them in 14:12 that “each of us shall give account of himself to God.” We will have to “settle up” with the Lord some day. That’s why II Corinthians 5:10 reminds us that “we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ, that each one may receive the things done in the body, according to what he has done, whether good or bad.” God owns everything, He entrusts to each of us a portion of what He owns so that we can manage it, and someday we’ll each have to give an accounting for our actions. As stewards, we should expect nothing less.

 

BELETECH's BIRTHDAY GIFT

Beletech used part of the birthday money that she received from our class to purchase two chickens.  Hopefully they will provide eggs for the family for a long time. It may seem strange to us that a little 7 year old girl would choose that as a birthday gift, but I'm sure she is happy helping her family. They will probably serve as her pets also.

PHOTO WILL BE POSTED IN SUNDAYS HANDOUT

DUSTY SHOES

Ask yourself, “Am I willing to get my own shoes dusty on the streets of this world in order to make the love of Jesus Christ available to those who don’t know Him?” If I am going to be like my Savior, the answer can only be “Yes.”

If ever there was an example of someone whose feet were dusty in the service of the kingdom of God, it was Jesus himself. In fact, He specifically said on one occasion that “Foxes have holes and birds of the air have nests, but the Son of Man has nowhere to lay His head” (Matthew 8:20). Jesus lived and ministered in the highways and byways of this world among people with whom the religious elite of His day would have nothing to do. He was often criticized for eating with “tax collectors and sinners” (Matthew 9:11).

Jesus was happy to socialize with those with whom He disagreed. The time that a woman with a sinful past washed Jesus’ feet with her own tears and hair was when He was eating a meal in the home of a Pharisee. Jesus made it clear that He came to help those who knew they needed help, not those who didn’t (Mark 2:17). And in order to reach them, he lived His life where they were. He went to them — He didn’t force them to come to Him.

John 20:21 summarizes what Jesus did and what He expects us to do: “As the Father has sent Me, I also send you.” Jesus lived His life with dusty feet because He lived in obedience to His father. If our feet aren’t equally “dusty,” it calls into question our obedience to His command to “Go therefore and make disciples...” (Matthew 28:19).

SORROW REMOVED

“He will swallow up death forever. The Sovereign LORD will wipe away the tears from all faces; He will remove the disgrace of His people from all the earth. The LORD has spoken.” Isaiah 25:8
Sorrow is the fruit of sin in a fallen world; it has the liberty to inflict pain. No one is immune from sorrow. Sorrow is created by sin, death, divorce, selfishness, poverty, rejection, loss, and fear. Sorrow is all around, circling its prey like vultures around a carcass, ready to pick away at the meat of your soul. Sorrow does not discriminate among races, gender, social class, or stage of life. It causes a weepy heart and a weary mind. It never goes away in this lifetime. Your sorrow may be overwhelming to the point of anguish and despair. The hurt is about to drive you crazy. You feel you can’t handle it. You have lost perspective and God seems a million miles away.

Things have gone from bad to worse; you have nowhere to turn. You have hit a brick wall and life seems to be crumbling around you. Sorrow is like a ball and chain around your joy and you live in the regret of the past rather than the hope of the future. Your current circumstances and worries are crushing down on you to the point of claustrophobia. However, you do not have to stay in this state of perpetual sadness. There is a way out, there is hope. There is a balm for your scarred soul; you can be rescued from drowning in your sorrows.

Jesus is the Savior; He will save you from your sorrows. He was a man acquainted with grief. Sorrow is not foreign to Him. He was a man of many sorrows. He was inflicted with, not just one, but multiple sorrows. He is a sympathetic Savior waiting to soothe your pain. He wants to gently wipe away your tears. So, ask Him to dive in and rescue you from thrashing about in the deep waters of your sorrows. He, at the very least, will be with you. He wants to walk with you during this dark night of your soul. He does not want you to battle sorrow alone.

Others may not understand, but He does. You may not know how to put your sorrow into words, but He still comprehends. Nothing is beyond the omniscience of your Sovereign Lord. His resources are limitless and always just what you need. Tap into a miniscule fraction of His grace, and you will find peace and forgiveness. He comforts and caresses your heart, and He can break the chains of sorrow that grip your soul.

So, take the medication of His grace. Administer larger doses in the beginning to stop the spread of sorrow’s infection. He wants you to experience His abundant life in Christ. He wipes away your tears in heaven and on earth. Sorrow removal is His specialty. Let God remove your points of sorrow one by one as if they were trees downed by a storm’s horrific winds. He will lift them individually from the objects they have crushed. He will replace hurt with healing. Sorrow is temporary with God; His joy is permanent. Let Him remove your sorrow, and you will be glad you did. So will the many others who love you and pray for you. He is the Savior of your sorrows. The Scripture is majestic: “…and the ransomed of the LORD will return. They will enter Zion with singing; everlasting joy will crown their heads. Gladness and joy will overtake them, and sorrow and sighing will flee away” (Isaiah 35:10).