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| First Church of God of Jackson,Ky. Inc. 3-1-05
Pastor Bobby Hollon News from the Ladies missionary. By Peggy Shepherd The Ladies Missionary had a very successful year, thanks be to God! During the past year the Active Ladies of the Missionary group have been involved in many activities. The attendance has been better than we had hoped. God has placed a need to help others on hearts and we have been so pleased with the additional help. The work and dedication these ladies give freely is phenomenal. Most of the ladies spend long hours planning and helping others in the church and community. Over the years we have lost some of our precious members, such as Jewell Carpenter, Margaret Strong, Hazel Hatton, and Jane Gilbert. These ladies are not forgotten, they are and will always be a part of what makes this group so close to each other. We also have several members who are not in the best of health and we want to express our love and prayers for Henrietta Watkins and Hazel Hatton . We ask God to give her comfort in her time of need and to help heal her body. We also want to say how much we miss Brigitte Taulbee. Brigitte has been a big help to the Ladies Missionary. We miss her beautiful singing voice and her sweet smile. always makes one feel good We also miss Angie Carico and Kim Carpenter, You are important to us. And you are a big help to all. We also want to welcome some new members, Debbie Neace, Liz Deaton and Julie Fuller. We are so thankful for all of you ladies and you add so much to our Christian work. In May of 2004 we had several things on the agenda to accomplish . 1. We were able to give five graduates gifts, 2. We had a special Mother’s day service where the women worked very hard to made it a day to remember. 3. Flowers grown by the class of Sherrie Stewart were given to each Mother and special recognition was given to the youngest and the oldest Mother present. 4.A bucket drive was started to help with the rest rooms in the new church building. This has been a very successful endeavor. I believe the pink buckets are ahead at this writing. 5. Food was provided to the families of Bess Gross and Reed Thomas, due to the death of their beloved family members June 1.A Father’s Day service and a cook-out was given by the Ladies Missionary. A special skit .“Armour of God” was performed by several of the ladies.. 2. Family photographs were taken by Janie Griffith. 3. Food was provided to the Robert Stewart family, during the death of Robert’s father. 4.Pastor’s birthday and party, special dinner and gift. July 1. Vacation Bible School August 1. Welcome to Ky. and homecoming for our Pastor and his family. 2. Nursing home birthday party, and gifts for each person having a birthday. 3. Fifth Sunday hymn sing and refreshments provided. 4.Suprise visit to LBJ School. Gift to the new Principal, Robert Stewart, and special prayers for the upcoming year. September 1. Fundraiser gave $7,ooo dollars to go on building fund. 2. Made quilt for fund raiser. 3. Birthday party for Hazel Hatton, at her house. 4. Started candle sales, thanks to, Debbie Neace. October 1. Shower for Sam Johnson and Brenda Brewer 2. Hollon’s Anniversary gift 3. Homecoming dinner November 1. Veteran’s day program 2. Luncheon for nursing home people December 1.Collected money from each member and gave a love gift to members of our families in need. Some of the activities planned for January 2005 will include; Working on packages for the Soldiers who are in Iraq. Getting a quilt underway Bible study prayer meetings. If you would like to come to our meeting and fellowship with other ladies the time is ; the Tuesday of every month at 6pm. Come and join us . Serving Two masters 10-28-04 Matthew 6: 24-34 No one can serve two masters, for he will hate the one and love the other or he will be devoted to one and despise the other. You cannot serve God and man. Therefore, I tell you, do not be anxious about your life, what you shall eat or what you shall drink, nor about your body or what you put on. Is not life more than food? The body more than clothing? Look at the birds of the air, they neither sow or reap or gather into barns. And yet our heavenly father feeds them. Are we not of more value than them? And which one of you by being anxious can add one second to the span of his life? And are you anxious about clothing? Consider the Lilies of the Field, how they grow; they neither toil nor spin Yet even Solomon in all his glory was not arrayed like them. But if God clothes the grass of the field, which today is alive --and tomorrow thrown into the oven, will He not clothe us? So why do we say, what do we eat or what do we wear or what do we drink? Our heavenly Father knows what we need. If we seek the kingdom of heaven first, He will supply all our needs as well. So don’t be anxious about tomorrow. So let the days own trouble be sufficient for the day. Jesus used this illustration of nature as a vision so that we can see what peace and contentment means, all of us here can identify with these things. --the birds in the air,-- the lilies turning a face toward heaven. -These things show the natural order of His creation. The peace of nature and the innocent creatures of God seem to be secure and safe. But only so long as the presence of man and his restless spirit are not there to trouble its sanctity. Anxiety can come happen in your back yard, as well as the deep green forest. Yesterday morning, an event in our garden made me think that I had unknowingly troubled its sanctity, changed the order of God’s creation, so to speak. Bill and I like to feed the little birds on our deck;. It seemed like a safe place for them to perch . We were soon to realize that even under the protection of our deck the enemy can charge --. Accidents in nature do happen; for, there will always be the broken wing of a butterfly and a faded rose petal trampled on the ground , that is to be expected. And… Trouble will come to all things if they live long enough. . In my case it came from two direction , by two different species. This particular morning was hot and humid, as I took my little dog out for his morning constitutional. I could almost see the moisture in the air and my bronchial cavities began to resist the pollen and mold as I began sneezing. Birds were singing in the trees, some flying to and fro, eating from the feeders on the deck. Just about then, Willie- Boy signaled that he was finished with his duty and -- As I turned to go back into the house, I heard a flapping of wings. A strange whimpering -- a sound that was not natural to the peaceful scene. Under the large Japanese tree the neighbors cat had a small sparrow in the grips of death. The cat was crouching, getting ready for the final kill. I screamed as loud as I could --“get away from the bird.” The cat ran under some shrubs, all the while peeping out, reluctant to leave his meal.. Instantly, I ran to the bird, with Willie- Boy close behind, he knew the bird was in trouble as he put his nose to the birds wing .He stopped and looked up at me with his big brown eyes, as if to say, I need some help here. I picked up the little brown piece of feathers, one little leg had already began to stiffen, as the claws on its feet were drawing up into a ball. I knew it would die of fright if I did not do something quickly. It’s eyes were wide open, staring at nothing-ness,. I slowly cupped my other hand over the baby bird. I could feel it relax. The darkness was comforting to it. I held it very quite for a few minutes as I sat on the porch. The heart of this small thing was beating so hard I could feel it through my hand. After awhile I felt it was safe to take my hand away. What I saw was encouraging, the bird was alert and moving it’s eyes, the feet had resumed a normal position, so I took the bird and put it in a flower box. I felt it would be safe there, until it‘s strength returned. Being busy I soon forgot about the bird until my Mother came running into the house, she was sitting on the deck-- “Come fast she says, a big snake is trying to get the bird.” A large black snake had managed to crawl up the limbs of a Lilac bush , next to the deck to reach the small helpless bird. As I ran out to the deck, the snake dropped to the ground, and the bird was gone. I couldn’t help but wonder if things would have turned out differently if I had not disturbed the order of things. Maybe it was in the order of creation for the cat to eat the bird, By changing that order, I had brought another element into the equation. One which was in my opinion, even more threatening. It brought on a feeling of anxiety, a feeling that --“if” I had done this and “if” I had done that. After much thought, I came to the conclusion that, When God said, ”Give us this day our daily bread” He will provide that daily bread. I had taken into my hands the ability to provide. My anxiety over a natural action had caused a reaction. In my case it was neither helpful nor necessary. The reaction had caused me to have anxiety about doing a good deed. Anxiety will rob us of our faith and confidence in God’s help and it will sap our energy for doing good. What does “serving two masters” and “anxiety” have in common? They both have the same root problem. An anxious person is tossed two and fro. Paralyzed by indecisions. A Fear that some bad will come . It’s the case when someone wants to submit to God, but live according to the world’s standards of success and fulfillments. Who is the Master in Charge of our lives? Our Master is who we let control and govern our lives . It is the Master which governs our thought- life, shapes our ideals, controls the value of our hearts and the values we choose to live by. Let us start by leaving all that anxiety in God’s hands. Let us be overflowing with confidence that He will provide for our needs. He took care of that old ugly snake, didn't‘to He? I am not going to question why He gave an innocent bird to that old black snake. I think it was to show me that I was not to question His way of creation. I leave this thought with you, “Lord, free me from needless worries and help me to put my trust in you. Make my first concern be for you,. Help me to live each day with trust that you will provide for us”. How People Change 10-13-04 Just to show all of you how much a person can change, just listen to me . When I first started reading the Bible I found a person in there that I admired very much. That person was King David. The more I read, the more David became a real person to me. I always admired the way he ran to God every time he let himself get into trouble. Sometimes it was his fault and at other times it was not his fault. Many times he just got in the way of someone more powerful than himself. But each time God was by his side. After many heart aches and many lessons learned, David finally found contentment. Forty years later, I have found a new person whom I greatly admire. I love reading about this man. The more I read about this man , the more I found out how to be content.. In Philippians 4 Paul said,” Not that I was ever in need, for I have learned how to get along happily whether I have much or little. I know how to live on almost nothing, or with everything. I have learned the secret of contentment in every situation, whether it be a full stomach or hunger ,or plenty or want. For I can do everything God asks of me, with the help of Christ. who gives me the strength and power. What a Godly man! What contentment!. Paul --denied of every comfort, wrote these words to all the Christians in the city of Philippi, while he was imprisoned in a dungeon. These verses remind me of a story I once read when I was a child. It seems that a king went into his garden one morning and found everything withered and dying. He asked the oak which stood by the gate what the trouble was. The oak told him that he was sick of life and determined to die because he was not tall and beautiful like the pine tree. The pine tree was out of heart because it could not bear grapes, like the vine. The vine was going to throw its life away because it could not stand erect like the peach. The geranium was fretting because it was not tall and fragrant like the Lilac, and so on all through the garden he went. Finally, he came upon the violet, he found its bright face lifted as cheery as ever. “Well Violet” the king said “ I’m glad among all this discouragement to find one brave little flower, you do not seem to be the least disheartened!’ “No , I am not of much account, but I thought that, if you wanted an oak or a pine, or a peach tree, you would have planted one., But I knew you wanted a Violet, and I am determined to be the best little Violet you have ever seen.’ Others may do a greater work But you have your part to do And no one in all God’s heritage Can do it as well as you. They who are God’s without reserve, are in every state content, for they will do only what he wills and desires for Him. They will strip themselves of everything and in this nakedness find all things restored a hundred fold. Let your heart become a valley low and God will rain on it till it will overflow. |