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Contributing Writers: David Mathis | Tim Perkins
Past Contributing Writers: Mike Mills, Spring Hill Church | Doug Fincher | Pastor Randy and Sue Smith | Mike Belgard
Faith
“This know also, that in the last days perilous times shall come.” 2 Timothy 3:1
March 22, 2021 - Mother accomplished a near impossible task when she raised her ten children on so little ... no car, no telephone and often no food. Sometimes our food consisted of only what we could get hunting and fishing. We picked peas on the halves and cotton for two cents a pound, but were fortunate enough to have some better-off-than-we-were relatives that kept us in hand-me-down clothes.
But those hard times were also happy times. My brothers (Bill, John, Joe) and I spent most of our time exploring every patch of woods and every fishing hole within walking distance of our house. Leaving early in the morning, we’d pack our Sledge overall pockets with smooth rocks from the gravel pit, grab our sling shots and go hunting.
Mother always told us the exact same thing when we left: “You boys be careful”. Many times we were gone from daylight until dark while making the rounds down to Weaver’s Pond, Dellinger's pasture and sometimes we walked the four mile walk down the railroad tracks to Mill Creek, our favorite paradise.
We roasted crawfish tails and perch and grazed on possum grapes and wild plums to make it through the day. On good days we had watermelon, sugar cane and eggs borrowed from the neighbor’s henhouses. I have often wondered why Mother didn’t worry about our being gone all day. I guess it was because those days weren’t like these days. They were simple days and safe days. We never locked the doors at our house and rarely heard of rape, murder or bawdy house stories. We’d didn’t have drugs, drive-by shootings, gangsta-rap or X-Rated movies. Sunday was a special day of rest and prayer and the pledge of allegiance was a part of our daily school activities. The Gideons visited our school every year to hand out New Testaments.
If Mother was raising her boys in our present days, I wonder what she’d say if we told her we’d be gone all day and be home before dark. Would she tell us go ahead and “just be careful?"
No ... not in these days.
March 22, 2021 - Grace and peace from our brother Jesus. Sunday was the 5th Sunday of Lent. We are reaching the end of this Christian time of reflection, with next Sunday being Palm Sunday. Over half of each of the Gospels deals with that last week of Jesus’ life between Palm Sunday and Easter morning. Life, death, and new life is at the heart of Christianity, so it is Easter—not Christmas—that is the most important Christian celebration. But the events of Maundy Thursday and Good Friday make it the saddest time also.
Spring has sprung as of last Saturday! The weather has been dry, but a few days have been jacket-wearing time because of the north wind. My two best four-legged friends, Gunter and Sam, join me each morning for a two-mile hike at the park. Later in the day we take another walk around downtown Joaquin. Sam and Gunter are always ready to go. I have also enjoyed working in the garden. Amazingly, most of my perennial plants are coming back after February’s near-zero temperatures. This rebirth is awe-inspiring and makes me think of Easter.
Our daughter came in for a visit this weekend: It was so nice to visit with her and her little dog too—not Toto but Stella! We went Friday afternoon to Mimi’s Nursery on Highway 7 in Joaquin; Melissa has some really nice plants and hanging baskets at good prices. The next morning I went down to Haslam where the Bravos have plants set up, including a tree I bought that grows black apples with yellow meat! On our way to Nacogdoches on Saturday, we went to the Lily Farm on Highway 7, where Megan filled a wagon with plants to take back to Dallas. Gardening with flowers, vegetables, and trees is always my therapy, but especially during the pandemic quarantining, and it seems my daughter has inherited that love.
In Nacogdoches we visited Sue’s mother, along with our nephew. It’s good to see Dixie so lively and perky at 93! After picking up his daughter and his girlfriend, our nephew took us to meet his dad—my former roommate and brother-in-law Dave—for dinner (wood-baked pizza, yum) and live music at a Pineywoods outdoor venue.
Our Sunday School lesson emphasized that living a holy life requires spiritual, mental, and physical commitment. The text for the lesson was 1 Corinthians 6: 12-20. Paul really stressed that the community in Corinth was the living body of the Christ, and they should do nothing that would tarnish that perfect image.
My sermon focus was the Gospel, John 12: 20-28, but I started out talking about the Old Testament lesson from Jeremiah. Jeremiah was certainly one of the angriest prophets, and he characterized God as angry too. Today’s lesson, though, had a ring of hope as Jeremiah said God was going to make a new covenant, written directly on the human heart.
Since we resumed in-person worship, our music has been on CD. We can hum the song under our masks but no vigorous singing! The two songs we used during worship were from CDs, one a favorite and the other a new one for Paxton. “Hymn of Promise” was our first one, a song Brother Billy called The Methodist Anthem. Our Hymn of Joy was the “Prayer of St. Francis.” We have this famous prayer in the hymnal, but I don’t remember hearing it set to music before.
All during March, Paxton Methodist has been collecting cans of chili for Community Christian Services. Next month we will be collecting toothpaste and tooth- brushes. This week Community Christian Services had two giveaway days, one a program from the federal government that helps farmers as well as those who need food. During this time of pandemic, economic crisis, and high unemployment, the need is greater than ever.
Paxton Methodist is having in-person worship; we respect each other by wearing masks and keeping socially distant. Scientists and medical professionals, who know more than politicians about this subject, say that we can do three simple things to curtail the spread of Covid-19: wash our hands regularly, stay at least six feet apart—social distancing, and yes, wear a mask—or maybe two masks—mask-wearing is the patriotic thing to do. It is also the Christian thing to do, loving your neighbor as you love yourself. And get that vaccine!
Whoever you are, in whatever faith you were born, whatever creed you profess; if you come to this house to find God you are welcome here. Paxton United Methodist Church is an inviting church that takes to heart the idea of “Open Doors, Open Hearts, and Open Minds.” Worship begins at 10:00. Our email address is paxtonumc@yahoo.com. If you would like the weekly email newsletter about Paxton Methodist, you can send your email address to the Paxton email address, and I will add you to the list. God’s Speed.
March 21, 2021 - A "drive-by" community event at First Baptist Church of Center will be held on Saturday, April 3 from 10am until 11am. Come get some eggs, candy and get your photo taken with the Easter Bunny! First Baptist Church of Center is located across the street from the Historic Courthouse. For more information, please call (936) 598-5605.
March 18, 2021 - If you come to our home and look in the refrigerator for the margarine, you won’t find any. You will, however, find real, sweet cream butter in both salted and unsalted varieties. We use butter at our house, lots of butter and I have the waistline to prove it! This morning, as I applied a generous amount of butter to my biscuits, I watched it turn into a beautiful golden liquid as it soaked into that dry biscuit. That beautiful golden liquid made me think of the words of Jesus in Matthew 7:12, you know, the passage we call the “golden rule.”
Jesus said, “whatsoever ye would that men should do to you, do ye even so to them”. Have you ever thought what a difference that would make in our world if we put that into practice in our lives? Some of the luster of that passage has been lost because it is tossed about so glibly and has been used on so many “plaques” that we hang on the wall. Yet, just like generous application of golden butter enriches a biscuit (or anything else!) every relationship in our lives could be improved and enriched by a generous application of Jesus’ “golden rule.”
If we would take a moment and remember these words of Jesus, it would drastically change our disposition, our words, and our actions. Take a look at life from the other person’s point of view. Let us make sure we use a portion of the golden rule in our lives as generously as the portion of butter we want on our biscuits!
It’s something to think about ... tbp
Center Church of Christ
110 Hurst Street, Center, Texas
March 14, 2021 - Grace and peace from our brother Jesus. Sunday was the 4th Sunday of Lent. In the United Church of Canada, today is also Laughter Sunday. Lent is such a solemn time for people of the Christian faith, but we must never forget laughter and humor. An old proverb says, “If you don’t laugh, you don’t take life seriously enough.” During my sermon I told some of the “humorous” tricks the Joaquin high school seniors played on me, their first-year teacher who wasn’t much older than they were.
Ms. Fannie had another good Sunday School lesson for us today. Gene read the scripture that served as the focus of the lesson—1 Peter 2:1-10. Our writer says that this letter was written to the many new Gentile Jesus Followers. They must have seemed out of the loop, not knowing all the Jewish spiritual stories, commandments, and special celebrations. Peter tells them that they need only to remember two things—love God and love your neighbor. Pretty good advice for everyone.
Since we resumed in-person worship, our music has been on CD. We can hum the song under our masks but no vigorous singing! The two songs we used during worship were from a CD that Fannie loaned me. Our first hymn was “Just a Closer Walk with Thee,” soothing and melodic. Later, we enjoyed a lively banjo version of “Where the Soul Never Dies.”
The Gospel lesson for this Sunday includes John 3:16. The writer of the John Gospel refers back to what was the Old Testament lesson today: Moses crafts a bronze snake on a pole so all the Israelites who had been bitten by God-sent snakes could look upon the idol and be saved. The Gospel writer says that the Son of God must be raised up just like Moses raised up the bronze snake. In case comparing Jesus to a snake sounds strange, I reminded the congregation that Hebrews viewed snakes as a symbols of wisdom, not just as sneaky evildoers like the serpent in the Garden of Eden.
Paxton Methodist is having in-person worship; we respect each other by wearing masks and keeping socially distant. Scientists and medical professionals, who know more than politicians about this subject, say that we can do three simple things to curtail the spread of Covid-19: wash our hands regularly, stay at least six feet apart—social distancing, and yes, wear a mask—or maybe two masks--mask-wearing is the patriotic thing to do. It is also the Christian thing to do, loving your neighbor as you love yourself. And get that vaccine!
Whoever you are, in whatever faith you were born, whatever creed you profess; if you come to this house to find God you are welcome here. Paxton United Methodist Church is an inviting church that takes to heart the idea of “Open Doors, Open Hearts, and Open Minds.” Worship begins at 10:00. Our email address is paxtonumc@yahoo.com. If you would like the weekly email newsletter about Paxton Methodist, you can send your email address to the Paxton email address, and I will add you to the list. God’s Speed.
March 11, 2021 - One of the things I miss from my childhood is the fireplace we had in our home. I can remember many cold, dreary winter mornings laying in bed, pulling the covers up tight and hearing the sound of my father chopping kindling to get a fire going. It was still dark outside, there were coals in the fireplace from the fire during the night, but dad wanted to make sure there was a big fire going before my mom and I would get up in the mornings. Those roaring fires he built would fill the room with cheer and brightness as their radiant warmth pushed away the frigid winter dreariness.
The love that Jesus taught and demonstrated has that same transforming quality. When Paul wrote the First Corinthian letter, he would tell us in that great chapter on love in verse 13, “but the greatest of these is love.” Love is our greatest weapon against the cold selfishness and deep despair of the world around us. Just like the old family fireplace was central to the warmth of our home in the winter, so love is central to our Christian faith. Without love, there is no Christian. With love, the Christian has need of little else.
They tell the story that when John became too old to preach, and too weak to walk to worship services, his friends would carry him on a stretcher. They would place his stretcher on the floor and he would say over and over to those who passed by, “little children, love one another.” Some finally grew weary of his ceaseless repetition and asked why he always said the same thing. “Because” he replied, “it is the Lord’s command, and if only this is done, it is enough”.
It’s something to think about…..TBP
March 10, 2021 - Huxley Helping Hands drive thru food pantry, Saturday, March 13 at 9 am, at Hillcrest Baptist Church, Center, TX. Only (1) box per household, must show your ID and be in line by 9:30 am to receive a box.
March 10, 2021 - On behalf of the McWilliams-Rather Cemetery Association, we invite you to attend and participate in our Fundraising Drive and Annual Meeting to be held on Sunday, March 28th at 3:00pm at Todd Spring Baptist Church.
“In this world, who can do a thing, will not; And who would do it, cannot, I perceive.” (Browning)
Read the story of “The Good Samaritan” Luke 10:25-37
March 8, 2021 - On the day before the Texas great Snow-Ice Storm of 2021, Pam and I drove to Atwoods in Nacogdoches to buy bird food. We parked in front of a stack of bundled firewood about five sticks to a bundle and I waited in the car while Pam was in the store. Suddenly as if they knew that we were about to be hit by a winter storm the next day, a large number of husky, young men drove up and feverishly began to snatch up these small bundles of oak.
Then through my window I saw an elderly white-haired woman slowly stumbling to the wood. Her steps were short and unsure, and she trembled as she bent over and tried to lift a bundle that she could not hold. Meanwhile, the steady flow of men walked around her as if she were invisible. There I sat, unable to get out of the car without my walker. My shouts of “Help her!” went unheard as she stumbled away with a bundle of wood.
When Pam came back, I tearfully told her what I had seen, and the old lady slowly disappeared in the parking lot behind us. “I was Browning’s man that “would do a thing but could not’” I said. “And all those thoughtless men could have done a thing but would not.” Where did this lady go with her bundle of wood and did her five sticks keep her warm when the massive storm brought the temperature to three degrees in Nacogdoches? That eighty-year-old lady was very unfortunate. The Levite and Priest passed her by and could have helped her.
But the Good Samaritan was in the car ... and could not.
March 8,2021 - Grace and peace from our brother Jesus. Sunday was the 3rd Sunday of Lent. Paxton Methodist is having in-person worship; we respect each other by wearing masks and keeping socially distant. Scientists and medical professionals, who know more than politicians about this subject, say that we can do three simple things: To curtail the spread of Covid-19, we should wash our hands regularly, stay at least six feet apart—social distancing, and yes, wear a mask—or maybe two masks. Things are so dire that mask-wearing is the patriotic thing to do. It is also the Christian thing to do, loving your neighbor as you love yourself.
As soon as you can, get vaccinated against this scourge—twice. Sue and I got our second dose of the Covid vaccine last week. We both felt achy for a few days but were really happy about getting vaccinated. Even with the vaccine, we’ll need to observe precautions. This isn’t a time to let our guard down. The District Superintendent of the Methodist East District, Dr. White, sent a memo to all the churches, asking us to continue our safety procedures. He ended with this: “We are not over this pandemic, so continue to be vigilant in all you do.”
Since we resumed in-person worship, our music has been on CD. We can hum the song under our masks but no vigorous singing! I took today’s songs from the CD of 25 Gospel songs that my wife ordered for me. Listening to “Count Your Blessings” and “I Saw the Light,” sounded like one of our nursing home programs! I like Hank Williams’ version of “I Saw the Light” better, but both were still toe-tapping.
Our Sunday School lesson from last Sunday was the Gospel Lesson for today, the 3rd Sunday in Lent. Jesus turning over tables and chasing money changers out of the Temple is found in all four Gospels. Last week in Sunday School the Matthew Gospel was the focus, and this week it was John’s telling of the story. I learned so much last week that I used some of it in my sermon.
We began a new quarter this week in Sunday School, which meant we had new literature and met a new author. The focus of our lesson was Leviticus 19: 1-18, one of the places in the Jewish Testament where you can read the Ten Commandments. These instructions told the ancient people how to conduct their relationships with God and with other people. The author said that when we treat others with kindness and respect, we are following God’s instructions.
The Gospel Lesson for the 3rd Sunday in Lent comes from John 2:13-22. All four of the Gospels that made it into the Christian Testament tell this story, so we know that it was important to the early Jesus followers. In John’s telling of this story, Jesus made a whip from ropes and chased people out of the Temple. Unlike the other three gospels, this cleansing of the Temple occurred at the beginning of Jesus’ ministry. Jesus, a devout Jew, felt strongly that the Temple should be a holy place—a place of prayer—where people came from all over the known world to be closer to God. Also, in his reply to the temple leaders, Jesus prophesied his death and resurrection, the focus of our Christian Lenten/Easter season.
Whoever you are, in whatever faith you were born, whatever creed you profess; if you come to this house to find God you are welcome here. Paxton United Methodist Church is an inviting church that takes to heart the idea of “Open Doors, Open Hearts, and Open Minds.” Worship begins at 10:00. Our email address is paxtonumc@yahoo.com. If you would like the weekly email newsletter about Paxton Methodist, you can send your email address to the Paxton email address, and I will add you to the list. God’s Speed.
Randy & Sue Smith/Paxton United Methodist Church
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