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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
December 11, 2017 - The Pastor and members of Carroll Chapel CME Church in Shelbyville, would like to invite you to our Annual Harvest Drive Program on Sunday, December 17 at 3:00pm. Everyone is invited.
December 8, 2017 - “First Christmas!” a Gift from the First Baptist Church Family to the Families of our Community! A production of music and drama, of choirs and bells, of comedy and candlelight! A cast of 150 children, youth, and adults from First Baptist Church will present this production. This is a great opportunity for Sharing the Joy of the holidays and the Reason for the Season.
Two performances – Saturday, December 9th at 6:00 p.m. and Sunday, December 10th at 6 p.m. in the Sanctuary of First Baptist Church, 117 Cora Street, Center, Texas.
Free Admission. Call 936-598-5605 for more information.
December 5, 2017 - Sunday was the First Sunday of Advent. Paxton Methodist Church looked so nice when I walked in. The Christmas tree was up and the sanctuary was decorated. The Advent candles were beautiful, and my mother’s nativity scene looked right at home. Everything is ready—thanks to various Paxton elves—for the Paxton Community Christmas Party Tuesday at 6:00.
We had our usual crowd—not really a crowd! We started our new series of Sunday school lessons, dealing with the early Jesus movement and their faith in Jesus. The scripture was Acts 3:11-21, about a man who is healed. Peter and John want every one to know that it is not them but Jesus who healed this man. They call Jesus the “author of life,” and we see that quite early in the development of the Jesus movement, Jesus is so much more than a prophet or teacher or healer.
Joe and Hilda teamed up to lead us on two Fannie Crosby songs. Carolyn gave Sue some readings for the days of Advent, and Fannie lit the Hope candle. Our scripture was from Isaiah 64, where we heard that the people were excited about the coming of the Lord into their lives. Sunday was the first Sunday of the month, so we celebrated Communion. Because our church was so decorated, our Communion “table” had to be the middle of our circle as we stood near the altar.
Sunday was the beginning of a new Christian year, a year in which the Gospel of Mark will be stressed. This provides a problem for the Christmas season since the Mark Gospel has no birth story, unlike Matthew and Luke. The reading from Mark 13:24-27 is an apocalyptic writing that urges Jesus followers to be ready when the Human One of God will return again. Advent is a time of waiting and preparing; our human nature often sees us becoming restless—we tend not to be a patient people!
Paxton Methodist decided to send a $500 check to CASA for their work with foster children. In the Methodist system, our church gives to the missions and programs of the world-wide Methodist Church and our Texas conference each month through our “apportionments.” But our small church also helps out with many local needs: providing scholarships, supporting the Gideons, relief to victims of natural disasters, funds for local food banks, assisting with school needs, and so on. We are also helping out with Joaquin’s Community Christian Services to provide Christmas gifts to young people. In a week I have a meeting with our new District Superintendent, Rev. White. At our Charge Conference, we met him for the first time—he seems a genuinely nice person.
Because of the Thanksgiving holiday, our Lakeside ministry was moved to the last Thursday of the month. No one seemed confused, though: Mrs. Fannie commented that she believed we had more people than she’d ever seen there! Minnie and Hilda handled the piano duties for congregational singing and some specials. Gene, Carolyn Hooker, and Nora all sang specials, so we had some fine talent. Pastor Matt, temporarily on holiday from SMU, was able to be there; his devotional was heartfelt, dealing with his own family’s recent loss. Maggie and Sue let Pastor Matt off from emcee responsibilities, continuing their trade-off running of the show. Readings were from Fannie and Ollie, with Sue telling a joke. We jumped in the Christmas season a little with “Joy to the World,” “Silent Night,” and Nora’s two—“Up on the Housetop” and “Jolly Old St. Nicholas.” With so many people, our congregational singing was strong, including Jo and Margie, who are kind enough to join us.
“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, Open Minds.” Sunday School starts at 9:30 and 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 me your email address to the Paxton email address and I will add you to the list. Godspeed.
December 5, 2017 - I am always amazed at the effectiveness of simplicity. It seems that the more simple something is, the better it is, and more enduring it is over time. God has always used simple things to change the world. Any simple thing done with love, God takes and turns into a great thing.
Take for instance the Christmas carol "Silent Night". In 1818 on Christmas eve an Austrian priest Joseph Mohr asked the church organist Franz Gruber to write music for a poem that Mohr had written earlier. The challenge was that Mohr wanted it done for the evening service and the church organ was broken. But Gruber was able to come up with a simple tune that he could play on a guitar. That night the two sat on the stage and sang for the first time, the simple, but probably most sang carol of all times, "Silent Night". Never could they have imagined how popular and enduring of a song it would be.
You see that is how God has always worked. He takes what is simple and does great things with it. People try and make the Gospel of Christ complex but it is really simple. John 3:16 simply put says; that God loves you and me so much that He sent His Son to pay the price for our sins, and that anyone who truly believes that, will not die, but live with Him forever. Jesus preached a simple gospel of "repent and be saved for the kingdom of God is near." Its not hard to understand. Its just hard to believe that something so simple could bring about such an eternal change in your life. But that's just how God works. As the angel told Mary that night, "With God all things are possible."
Remember, that baby being born in simple and humble surroundings on that first Christmas night, happen because God loved you and wanted you to have a chance to live with Him in eternity. Simple as that. Don't try to make it more complex. Just trust Him, and He will give you the gift of eternal life for Christmas.
I'm Just Sayin
Mike Belgard
December 5, 2017 - The First United Methodist Church of Center will be having their annual Sacred Sounds of the Season. We invite everyone to come hear the beautiful sounds of Christmas at 6:00 PM on Thursday, December 7th in our Sanctuary.
November 27, 2017 - Sunday was Christ the King Sunday. The Gospel Lesson for the last Sunday on the Christian Calendar was Matthew 25:31-46. Jesus is dividing the sheep from the goats—those who will live in the Kingdom and those who will wander lost. And what was the test—did you feed the hungry, give a drink to the thirsty, welcome a stranger, clothe the naked, visit the sick and those in prison? That is how Jesus judged those seeking entry into the Kingdom of God. Christ the King Sunday is a day to reaffirm the centrality of Christ in our lives. I read that the Swedish Lutheran Church calls this Sunday the Sunday of Doom because the scriptures for this day all deal with judgment. I’m pretty sure most of us prefer Christ the King over Doom!
We were in double digits Sunday, which is always exciting at Paxton Methodist. Gene and Joy’s son Chuck and his family came and worshipped with us before heading back to Houston. Everyone said they had a very nice Thanksgiving. Sue and I went to our daughter’s in Dallas and had a good time visiting family and, of course, eating too much! It was especially good to have my brother there; last Thanksgiving he was in the hospital, but by this holiday, he’s had a successful lung transplant and is back out and about.
We completed our Sunday school quarter where all the lessons dealt with covenant. Next Sunday is the beginning of a new religious year and the start of Advent; as such, we will start a new course of study. Our Paxton Community Christmas Program and Dinner will be Tuesday, December 5th starting at 6:00. After worship we loaded up my truck with rice and beans that I will take to Community Christian Services this week. In December, we will be collecting cans of soup.
Last week was our program at Holiday Nursing Home. Sue, Fannie, Nora, Jo, and Hilda did the honors and reported having a fine time. Hilda, as usual, gave lively renditions of traditional songs. Fannie told the true, historical story of earlier Thanksgivings, and Nora sang “Over the River and Through the Woods,” a Thanksgiving song. Who knew? Nora also shared her “Thank You for Giving to the Lord” and promises to sing it at Paxton’s Christmas party. Sue read a funny kids’ book called Dog Breath about a dog named Hally Tosis (get it?). And Jo made the mistake of mentioning that she used to do nursing home programs in costume—like a pilgrim and an Indian. Uh oh! We will have plans for her! Our ministry at Lakeside Assisted Living will be this Thursday at 2:00, a postponement because of the Thanksgiving holiday.
“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, Open Minds.” Sunday School starts at 9:30 and 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 me your email address to the Paxton email address and I will add you to the list. Godspeed.
Randy & Sue Smith
Paxton Methodist Church
November 27, 2017 - Super Group String Orchestra and Piney Woods Youth Orchestra of Nacogdoches in concert under the direction of Leonard Kacenjar, conductor for Project String Power, Inc. will perform at First Baptist Church of Carthage at 7 p.m. on December 18. Everyone is invited to attend. There is no admission charge.
November 21, 2017 - Roberts Baptist Church will be serving Thanksgiving dinner on Thanksgiving day, Thursday, November 23 from 11am to 2pm.
If anybody that's shut-in or just don't wanna cook can call Dennis at 936-275-5420 or 596-6025. You can also call the church at 936-275-9961 and we will deliver your lunch, or you can come to the church and eat.
Roberts Baptist Church is located at 1535 FM 2213 in San Augustine.
November 21, 2017 - The Todd Spring Baptist Church will celebrate 139 years of existence on Sunday, November 26, 2017 at 11:30am.
Pastor Frankie Cooper and the Gates Chapel Baptist Church will be the special guest. Everyone is invited to attend. Lunch will be provided.
Pastor Wilbert Simmons, Jr. is the pastor.
November 13, 2017 - Entertaining, uplifting, and ministry-minded” are words often used to describe a Paul’s Journey event. Paul’s Journey, a Chapel Valley Music Recording Artist on the “Inspire” label, is an award-winning group based in Houston, TX. The ministry of Paul’s Journey is in its 38th year now, and they have garnered many Top 40 Radio hits and earned many awards down through the years such as the 2007 ‘SGM FanFair Group of the Year”. In 2012 Paul’s Journey was nominated for “Horizon Group of The Year and in 2013, 2014, and 2015 the group was chosen by Southern Gospel Music fans as one of the “Top New Traditional Quartets” in the country. Throughout time, this powerhouse group has quickly become known for their unique style and blend. The group travels some 200 dates per year all across the USA and abroad.
Paul’s Journey is comprised of Rod Treme, Matthew Esquivel, Brad Davis, and Jamie Streetman. From up-tempo songs to heart-felt ballads, audiences of all generations, denominations and walks of life are recognizing the refreshing sound of Paul’s Journey. Their high-energy performances and enthusiasm is captivating, contagious, and spiritually uplifting.
Do NOT miss this opportunity to experience the ministry of Paul’s Journey on Friday, December 8th at 7:00 PM. They will be performing at Toledo Bend Cowboy Church, located at 2543 FM 3172, in Huxley, TX. The concert will be preceded by a Covered Dish Dinner at 6:00 PM at the church. For more information regarding this performance, feel free to contact Lynda Huebel at 936-368-2547 or Bro. Jeff Spring at 936-488-9091.
For more information about Paul’s Journey or their ministry, check them out at www.paulsjourneymusic.com or contact The Victory Agency at 936-689-1732.
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