Our_Bulletin_3_7

Family News and Notes

Another reminder today you may contribute to the Building Fund as this is the first day of the new month. (Of course you may contribute anytime but this is a special day for that purpose.)

You have all been very gracious in your giving to this purpose and you are to be commended, and thank you very much.

Men, mark your calendar for next Sunday Men's Business Meeting following the evening services. Please make plans to attend as your presence is important.

Ladies There seems to be some question as to whether ALL the ladies in this congregation are invited to the LADIES DAY on Saturday, April 3 at 10:00 AM. The answer is a resounding YES! We thought that was an "understood." So, please make your plans to attend.

The speaker will be Cindy Miller Armstrong (daughter of Weldon and JoAnn Miller). Topic will be "Inspirational Beauty Tips." We need every lady to prepare a salad for the luncheon. Also, remember, if you have not already done so, please turn in your salad recipe to Janice McCain today so she will have time to put those into a booklet form for our Ladies Day guests.

Visitation Team No. 2 (Jerry & Lee's team) are reminded, once again, that you will be meeting after services this morning and will have a luncheon with sandwiches, chips & dips, and desserts. Won't you please try to attend?

Perhaps it is because we are all getting a little older but it seems we have lots of sick folks. Please place all those you know of on your prayer list if they are not already included in this bulletin. Perhaps you would like to offer up a special prayer for our Bill Jones (and his wife Amy). And, do not forget to send Bill a card. (If you don't have one, check the tract rack on the north side of the foyer. These are free for your taking.)

In an effort to try to avoid overlooking someone's birthday each month (perhaps by oversight or because I have not been furnished the name and date) I have included into this bulletin an insert for the entire year. Please tape this to your refrigerator or your home bulletin board as a reminder if you are inclined to send birthday cards to folks. These are the names and dates that have been furnished to me. Thanks... your Editor

New mailing address: Ronnie & Connie Stewart

27 CR 3350

Cookville, Texas 75558

THANK YOU . "With great appreciation for your kindness thanks to all of you for the many years of kindness you showed our Mom. We appreciate your fixing lunch for us, the singers, prayers, visits, and cards. And we especially thank you for the beautiful flowers. May God bless each and every one of you.

Corine Hudson Family,

Bart, June & Kenneth"

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PRAYER LIST

Justin Barker, Louis Bell, Winell Blackard, Sue Browning,

Josephine Cooper, Perry Cooper, Barbara Duncan, Nelda Dunn,

Howard Horton, Bill Jones, & Amy, David Neal, Elna O'Neal,

Jeanette Parham, Winnie Patton, Alva Mae Sheets, Ola Mae Simpson

ALSO: Judy Betts, Diane Johnson, Velma Lucky, Larry McCain,

Kelsey Meyers, Delaney Upchurch

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Rhodney's "Funny Bone"

Do not hesitate to give out advice.

It passes time, and nobody will notice it anyhow.

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Cleaning Out The Closets (# 3)

By David McCain

I promise, this will be the final segment of the ongoing saga of the "McCain's Great Closet Cleaning Adventure." I hope you have found the pointed parallels I have attempted to draw from this monumental event, both interesting and spiritually informative, if not downright thought-provoking.

There are two final spiritual applications from our closet- cleaning project, which I would like to offer for your consideration, and then, as preachers often like to say, "the lesson will be yours!" The first has to do with the "drudgery" involved in such a monumental cleaning project. During the five years we spent at Mabank, if we had only taken a little time each week to straighten up the closets, they would never have gotten so messy that the task of cleaning them became a literal drudgery. I alluded to the spiritual application of this problem in last week's article, when I cited Hebrews 6:4-6, in reference to the urgency we should exercise in eradicating the "besetting sins" of our lives, lest the task become such a drudgery that it seems almost impossible to accomplish.

The author of Hebrews refers to the "Christian," who has "fallen away" from Christ, and who has once again become so ungodly as to be "impossible to renew again unto repentance." How can that be, especially in light of so many other passages which clearly indicate there is no sin so great that God cannot forgive it, so long as one truly repents and seeks forgiveness in the way God prescribes (I Jn. 1:9-2:2, etc.)? We are forced to conclude that the reference in Hebrews is to a fallen Christian who has become so wrapped up in the trap of sin, that he has lost the "desire" to repent, to seek the Lord's forgiveness, and to change. If I understand the psychology, the fallen individual, who has delayed repentance, looks at the task of changing his life back into conformity with God's will, as a "drudgery," which would be all but impossible to accomplish. Therefore he remains caught in the trap of sin, because he did not act quickly enough to "straighten up his spiritual closet," while the task was still manageable. Brethren, if we wait too long to deal with the sin in our lives, we may truly "wait too long," to the point where we'll never find the will power to deal with the project. The point is, we must not let repentance become drudgery! We must nip sin in the bud today, for indeed, "...now is the accepted time; behold, today is the day of salvation" (II Cor. 6:2). As the old song penned by Palmer Wheeler says, "tomorrow may be too late."

The final spiritual application concerns the necessity of keeping the closets clean on a regular basis, by implementing a plan of tidy organization. Thus, we read Paul's inspired counsel to "examine ourselves in regard to faithfulness to Christ; by eradicating evil, by accentuating good, and by continually striving for perfection" (McCain's paraphrase of II Cor. 13:5-9). Jesus once made reference to the individual who cleans the evil spirit out of his life, but does not replace the evil with positive goodness. Ultimately, the evil spirit returns to find the house swept and clean, but spiritually empty. So, he finds seven other spirits more wicked than himself, and they return to inhabit the man's life, making his last state worse than the first (Lk. 11:24-26).

Once you get the closets clean, you must formulate a plan of organization and regular cleaning, in order to keep them clean. If not, the clutter will soon return and the last state will be worse than the first. May God help us to keep our spiritual closets clean through regular self-examination and positive faithfulness. See you Sunday at the weekly self-examination and cleaning service (I Cor. 11:23-31).

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According to Moses

Lee Moses, that is!

It is already March, and spring is drawing nigh. Spring has many different connotations for different peopleit is the time for "spring cleaning"; the time "when a young man's fancy lightly turns to thoughts of love." However, at North Jefferson it is the time when we open up full throttle to prepare for our upcoming evangelistic efforts!

Our spring Gospel meeting with brother Michael Light is scheduled for Sunday April 25 through Wednesday April 28. Jesus commands us, "Go ye therefore, and teach all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost: Teaching them to observe all things whatsoever I have commanded you" (Matthew 28:19-20). Gospel meetings have proven over the years to be a very effective means of carrying out this command.

Brother Light is a very faithful and capable proclaimer of God's word, as many of you already know. He spoke at our summer youth series on "Slaying Giants," from I Samuel 17, and has roots at Mount Pleasant and North Jefferson. He currently preaches with the Lord's church in Bangs, Texas. We know that he will be well prepared to preach the Gospel to all in attendance for this wonderful event.

However, the work of holding a Gospel meeting neither begins nor ends with the work of the preacher. It is up to each of us to see that souls in need of the Gospel are in attendance for the meetingand that includes ourselves. The saved need the Gospel, too (I Thess. 5:11; Heb. 3:13; 10:24-25; I Pet. 2:2). We each need to make plans to ensure that we are in town for that week and capable of making every session, if at all possible. We must also see that the lost have an opportunity to hear what their souls need. Be thinking of those whom you will particularly want to invite, and begin mentioning our meeting to them now. And it is certainly not too early to begin praying for the success of our meeting, which depends on God (I Cor. 3:5-7).

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Our brethren at Talco are holding their Gospel meeting beginning next Sunday, March 14 through Wednesday. Brother Larry Black, the regular preacher, will be proclaiming the Gospel. Let's show our support for their effort to reach lost souls in their community.

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Don't forget about our Ladies' Day on Saturday, April 3!

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It is already time to begin preparing for our Vacation Bible School! Any and all who can and are willing to help we can use you! We will need teachers and teaching assistants, as well as members to help with decorations and refreshments. Please let me know how you would like to help. Last year was a great success in all areas, with good attendance. With the Lord's blessing and your help, we can have another successful VBS!

Lee Moses

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