FAMILY NEWS AND NOTES
Volume 10 20 April 2008 Issue No. 08
Barbara (Tina) Brown had gallbladder surgery on Wednesday. Everything went smoothly and she is already out of the hospital and back home. Please keep her in your prayers.
Ben McCain has been ailing since his trip to Alabama. He has seen the doctor and ruled out any viruses. If he is not better he was scheduled to start a new medication.
Alice O’Neal, George O’Neal’s mother, is doing a little better. She is taking nourishment. She still has Hospice.
. C. Grissom is in Mother Francis Hospital in Tyler, where they are trying to give him some relief for his chronic back pain. When he comes back home next week, he will be going to Pleasant Springs Nursing Home for additional care. Please remember him and Myrtice in your prayers.
Paul Unger, brother-in-law of Weldon and JoAnn Miller, is undergoing tests at Mother Francis Hospital in Tyler for loss of blood. His cancer has returned and he and his family need our prayers.
Mike Edwards, local plumber, is on life support in ICU at ETMC in Tyler with a ruptured spleen. The family requests our prayers on his behalf.
Many thanks to the men who helped Ettie Wright move a week or so ago. Helping were Jerry Freeman, Chuck Kyle and Ronnie Stewart.
Bible Bowl Final Report Congratulations to our Bible Bowl team who garnered 1st Place honors at the final monthly competition last Monday evening. They took 2nd place honors for the 2007/2008 BBNET Charter Season! Special thanks to three couples who spent many hours working with our teas as coaches: Royce & Cindy Armstrong, Rance & Cathy Robison and Daniel & Keely McCary! We appreciate your timeless efforts in working with our team. Be sure to see the nice 2nd Place Plaque that was awarded to our team, which is displayed on the table in the foyer.
The 3rd Sunday Youth Devotional will be hosted by Daniel & Keely McCary this evening after services, in the Multi-purpose Room. Those who come please bring a drink or dessert.
Sunday, May 18, 2008, following the evening service a reception honoring Ben McCain, a graduating senior. Everyone is invited to attend. The event will be held in the Multi-purpose Room.
Gospel Meeting this week at both Mount Vernon with David Baker and at New Boston with Mike Hisaw. Check the Bulletin Board for days and times.
UPCOMING EVENTS:
Fri. & Sat. April 25th & 26th — 22nd Annual Mabank Bible Lectures & Youth Trip—talk with David McCain about the trip.
Wed. April 30th—9:30 AM to Noon—Ladies Day at Johnson Street church in Greenville.
Friday May 9th—there is going to be a PROM ALTERNATIVE BANQUET for all 9th grade thru 12th grade at the First National Bank Century Room in Mount Vernon. See Janice or David McCain for more information.
Fri. & Sat. May 16th & 17th—Boy’s & Men’s Retreat—Beaver Bend State Park—hosted by Broken Bow, OK church of Christ.
Monday June 2nd Kick off for Summer Your Series of Northeast Texas (SYBSNET)—here at North Jefferson. Tyler Young will be guest speaker. Then every Monday night from June thru part of August.
Sunday June 8th—Friends & Family Day. Each one bring a friend, as we try to double our attendance that day! Combined class will be in the auditorium at Bible Class hour for Introduction to VBS.
Monday—June 9th thru Friday— June 13th—V.B.S. here at North Jefferson. Theme: “Great Women of the Old Testament.” 9:00 AM to 11:00 AM daily—2-year-old thru 6th Grade.
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PRAYER LIST
Justin Barker, Rachel Barker, Doris Bell, Louis & Nona Bell, Winell Blackard, Tina Brown, Billye Campbell, Patsy Duncan, Joyce Lee, Georgia Lide, Ben McCain, Rebecca Tippitt
ALSO: Larry Clifton, Wesley DuBose, Mike Edwards, Dana Morton, Betty Newman, Alice O’Neal, Whayln Payne, Don Shuette, Paul Unger
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Service Arrangements
COMMUNION FOR APRIL 2008
SOUTH SIDE NORTH SIDE
AM Wayne Pickrel Rance Robison
Rodney Cook Darrell Cooper
Austin Neal Ron Traughber
PM Frankie Sargent Tim Jones
ANNOUNCEMENTS ….…..……… Gene Campbell
SONG LEADER (AM) ……..…......Rance Robison
(PM) ……..….......Rance Robison
Wednesday Nite ……...…..... Wade Miller
PRAYERS —– Sunday.
AM First Prayer …...…................George O’Neal
AM Closing…………......................Rodney Cook
PM First Prayer……...................Rance Robison
PM Closing……………..…...............Charles Kyle
PRAYERS — Wednesday Nite
First Prayer………...…..................Daniel McCary
Closing…………………..…................Bob Hedges
OFFERING INVITATION ON WEDNESDAY NITE:
Ronnie Stewart
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Starving In Sight Of The Banquet Table
When you hear or read names like Bangladesh, Ethiopia, or Somalia, what picture immediately comes to your mind? My guess is your mind produces a memory of those horribly sad pictures we've all seen on television, of little children who are dying of starvation. Physical malnourishment is not a pretty sight to behold. It causes compassionate people to be willing to risk their own lives, in order to help feed the starving masses.
As ugly as physical malnourishment is, there is something far worse: that is, "spiritual malnourishment." Millions in our world are starving to death spiritually, and their emaciated lives are not a pretty sight to behold. That reality of "spiritual starvation" caused our compassionate heavenly Father, and His precious Son, Jesus, to be willing to make the ultimate sacrifice, in order to provide salvation for the spiritually starving masses of this world.
Sometimes American soldiers are sent into famine-stricken and war-torn areas of the world to bring either food to the starving population, or freedom to the masses. Often, though, the savage people of such places don’t appreciate our soldiers risking their own lives to bring assistance and aid to them. If ever there was a case of the proverbial "biting the hand that feeds you," the hatred and abuse which is often heaped upon our troops in such far flung places must surely be it. Our country is wealthy enough, compassionate enough, and charitable enough to provide a literal banquet feast of freedom for the oppressed, and food for the starving masses, but often it seems as if they are willing to starve to death in sight of the feast, because they are too ungrateful to come to the table. Considering their lack of appreciation for our generosity, is our government not justified in saying, "if that's the way they're going to treat our soldiers, let 'em starve!"
With that thought in mind, how do you think God must feel toward us, when He offers us access to a veritable banquet feast of spiritual food, but we choose to starve to death in sight of the feast, because we are too lazy, complacent, or ungrateful to come to the table? Sadly, lots of "Christians" are starving to death spiritually, because they will not take advantage of the spiritual nourishment which God so richly provides for us each week. Their lives are in various stages of physical, emotional, and spiritual disarray and decay, because they aren't eating well spiritually.
We hear of Russians who beg for Bibles, and who will stay up all night discussing the Scriptures with a visiting preacher, and yet we can't get many of our own members to even open their Bibles, or attend a few extra services of our own Gospel Meeting. We hear of people in Africa, who will walk many miles in order to sit on a dirt floor, in a hut, for hours on end, to hear a missionary teach the Bible, and yet we can't get some of our members to ride across town in a luxury automobile, in order to sit in a climate controlled building, on a padded chair, for 45 minutes of Bible study. Lots of "Christians" may wonder why their lives are a wreck, not realizing that the problem may be spiritual malnourishment (I Cor. 3:1-3, Heb. 5:12-14).
It's not my place to judge the validity of the excuses brethren offer for not faithfully attending all of the services of the church. Thankfully, God is the only one who is perfectly knowledgeable of all the extenuating circumstances, and thus He is the only One, Who is perfectly capable of rendering a fair judgment about the legitimacy of our excuses. However, when I see some of my brethren starving to death spiritually, simply because they refuse to come to the table, I sometimes wonder if God ever thinks to Himself, "if that's the way they're going to act, let 'em starve!" David McCain
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