Shelby County Today

May 20, 2024 - Good Morning!  It's Monday, May 20.

Our pastor is preaching a sermon series through the mighty Twelfth Chapter of Romans.  It is a powerhouse passage where the Apostle Paul lays out a blueprint for living the Christian life.  Just like these Daily Devotions, you can read Romans 12 in about two minutes, and I encourage you to do that today.

But this morning, our focus, as our pastor's focus was yesterday, is on verse 13, where Paul gives a simple commandment - Practice Hospitality.  It reminded me of a woman that I had the pleasure to know 40 years ago.  I was a young minister, attending seminary, and working part time at a church in Dallas.  She was a respected member of that church, a senior adult, a widow, and very wealthy.  And she had a unique ministry . . . of hospitality.

Every couple of months, half a dozen times each year, she would host a dinner party at her palatial home.  The 12-person guest list would be carefully chosen by her from the church roll.  She would seat a brand-new believer next to a senior saint.  She would place a young couple across from a bank president and his wife.  At her dinner parties she would connect people who, otherwise, would have never been connected.

And so, in addition to providing her guests with an evening of fine dining, she was building up her church.  She was using the blessings that God had given her to bless others.  She was practicing hospitality.  And she made a lasting impression on that young couple, me and my wife.

Hospitality doesn't have to involve throwing a dinner party.  It happens when we take whatever God has given us - talents, experience, wisdom - and share it with another.  Practice hospitality today.  And read Romans 12!

Meet you back here tomorrow,
Bro. David
dmathis@fbccenter.org

May 16, 2024 - The wise man would write in Proverbs 10:18, “He that hideth hatred with lying lips, and he that uttereth a slander, is a fool”  Then we read in James 4:11 where James writes, “Speak not evil one of another, brethren.”  Yet, how often do we jump to conclusions and spread falsehoods and rumors that damage the character and reputation of another?

It reminds me of a story I read the other day of a lady who invited friends to a mushroom steak dinner at her home. When the mushroom can was opened, a light scum was on top. The guests were expected soon and the lady suggested, “Give the dog a little and if he eats it, it is probably all right.”  The dog liked it, and begged for more; so the dinner was completed and served.

After the main course, the maid hurriedly whispered to her employer, “Ma’am, the dog is dead.”  There was only one thing to do.  Sometime later the guests were reclining after the use of the stomach pumps.  The lady asked the maid, “Where is the dog now?”  She replied, “Out on the front steps where he fell when the car hit him.”

So, before we spread rumors, before we start spreading lies, falsehoods and half truths about others, perhaps we should investigate rumors and statements before we jump to conclusions!  

It’s something to think about. . . TBP

Join Us for Worship this coming Lord’s Day
Center Church of Christ
www.centerchurchofchrist.com

May 15, 2024 - St. John Baptist Church hosting it annual Pastor and Wife Appreciation for Rev. Winston Kibbles Sr. and 1st Lady Terri Kibbles on Sunday, June 2, 2024 at 2:30pm. Special guest is Rev. Ronderick Kirkendoll, Sr. from St. Luke Baptist Church of Logansport, LA.

You are invited to worship with us!

St. John Baptist Church is located at 2308 CR 2050, Center, Texas 75935.

May 13, 2024 - Good Morning! It's Monday, May 13.

On May 13, 1767, the composer, Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, wrote his first opera. He was eleven years old. He began writing music at the age of four. At four, I was learning to tie my shoes. When he was eight, Mozart finished his first symphony. I was doing a serious study of Saturday morning cartoons.

We mere mortals can't hope to accomplish what geniuses do. But we, like young Mozart, can make a start. You've heard the old saying, "A journey of a thousand miles begins with one step". And I'm reminded of the famous speech President John F. Kennedy gave at his inauguration in January 1961. After listing a series of lofty goals, he famously said, "All this will not be finished in the first one hundred days. Nor will it be finished in the first one thousand days, nor in the life of this Administration, nor even, perhaps, in our lifetime on this planet. But let us begin.

Is there something that God wants you to begin? Maybe He's leading you to reach out to mend a broken relationship. Perhaps He's placed it in your heart to start a daily quiet time of Bible study and prayer. Maybe there's a particular ministry that He's pointing you towards. Whatever it is, there's no time like the present.

Let us begin.

Meet you back here tomorrow,
Bro. David
dmathis@fbccenter.org