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Family
Lines Newsletter, March 25,
2004
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**May God's Hand Be With Us!**
David
Chadwell
Acts 2:46,47 Day by day continuing with one
mind in the temple, and breaking bread from house to house, they were taking
their meals together with gladness and sincerity of heart, praising God and
having favor with all the people. And the Lord was adding to their number day by
day those who were being saved.
Acts 8:1-3 And on that day a great persecution
began against the church in Jerusalem, and they were all scattered throughout
the regions of Judea and Samaria, except the apostles. Some devout men buried
Stephen, and made loud lamentation over him. But Saul began ravaging the church,
entering house after house, and dragging off men and women, he would put them in
prison.
Acts 11:22 The news about them reached the ears of
the church at Jerusalem, and they sent Barnabas off to Antioch.
One of the things I stress to us is this fact: the
New Testament church was a community. Christians depended on each other,
formed deep relationships with each other, identified through Christ with each
other, rejoiced together, and supported each other in times of pain and
suffering. They were not perfect or ideal. Yet, because of Christ,
they had an incredible bond that was (1) real and (2) sustained by the
resurrected Jesus Christ. Because they were devoted to God, they were
devoted to each other.
I want personally to thank all of you for
continuing to move us in the direction of a personal community of believers
rather than an impersonal institution. Are we perfect? No. Do
we have lots of flaws? Yes. Are we growing in the ability to care
and bond? Yes--in so many ways!
Thank you, ladies, for your example as you often
lead the way in closeness and caring! I frequently am amazed at the
outreach and closeness in WINGS classes. The spirit of unselfish caring is
obvious among the quilting ladies. So many ladies are unselfishly active
in the education program. Ladies do so much to make Care Groups and Life
Groups possible.
When I hear young ladies affirm in troubling
moments that help "is there for them"; when I see how responsive our ladies are
to special needs; when I know how much studying ladies do on a weekly basis;
when I hear about how much praying ladies do for specific needs and situations,
I am deeply encouraged. Why? These are expressions of
community! They exist because the concern and bonding are
genuine!
I am encouraged by many of the men as well.
So much happens to express caring, to address needs, to extend helpfulness to
people, and to encourage those with struggles.
We live in an evil world and an uncertain
society. Common values seem to stress money, pleasure, success, exploiting
the dependent, and selfishness. May it be increasingly obvious that we are
a people guided by God, and God's influence centers us on people. Faith in
God results in caring about people! "By this all men will know that you
are My disciples, if you have love for one another" (John 13:35).
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**LTC Practices (March 28)**
* 1:30 Senior High Chorus
* 2:30 Junior High
Chorus
* 4:00 Junior High Bible Bowl
* 4:45 Elementary Drama
* 5:00
Junior High Drama
* 6:00 All Puppets
**LTC Christian Art**
Christian Art, bring all
items to the FLC immediately after morning services.
**Important LTC Dates**
Wednesday, March 31
*
6:30 p.m. Family meeting in FLC (Tulsa packets and T-shirts handed out).
*
7:00 p.m. Event presentations in FLC (No Gateway classes so everyone can
attend).
Friday, April 2
* 6:00 - 8:30 p.m. Drama, Puppet
Practice and pizza in the FLC.
April 9-10
* Convention in Tulsa. Leave church
parking lot Friday at 12:00 p.m.
April 11
* Pizza - Awards Presentations in FLC
following evening service.
**You are Not Alone**
By Derrick Jones
Have
you ever thought you were alone? In I Kings 19, Elijah thought he was all alone
in this world and standing for God. Look around, others have or are facing what
we do. Jesus knew even with being deserted by the apostles, He wasn't alone.
There are times when we feel that we are, but we are not. We are not alone in
facing temptation (James 1:2); we are not alone when it comes to sin (I John
1:8); finally, we shall not be alone in eternity (John 5:28-29). Loneliness is
usually a feeling and not a fact. Let's accept the Lord's offer of
companionship, His continual presence! (Matthew 28:20).
**Deacon Resigns**
Chuck Combs has resigned as a
deacon for personal reasons. We appreciate his past service as a deacon.
The
Elders
**CURE Work Night**
Monday, March 29th
7:00
p.m. at Windsor Gym
Help CURE 'get gone'
from the Windsor
facility.
Contact Bob Fisher, Kevin Vaught, or Jim Selig if you have
questions.
**Happy Birthday**
March 28
Glenda Lewis
Melissa
Myers
March 30
Taylor Anders
Alyssia
Beneux
March 31
Nancy Beneux
Chuck Combs
Harold
Gouty
Lauren Hankins
Ken Hollomon
April 3
Sherrell Buchanan
Harold
Steward
April 4
Helen Blackman
Carolyn
Johnson
Wade Pressley
Belated Birthday Wishes to Courtney Griffin, March
21st
**Sunday in Worship**
Morning: "Why Do You Embrace Your Cross?"
Chris
Benjamin, Speaker
Evening: Singing and devotional followed by
Fellowship Meal in the FLC.
Please bring desserts!
**"Peak of the Week"**
Wednesday, March
31
Pinnacle Peak
(Combined adult & youth class)
7:00 p.m. in the
FLC.
**WE CARE Campaign**
Caring Crusade with Willy
Tolison
Valley View Church of Christ
March 28 - April 4
Each evening at
7:00 p.m.
**Ladies' Day**
Poteau Church of
Christ
Saturday, April 3rd
Registration begins at 8:45
Guest Speaker:
Billie Buchanan
of Waxahachie, Texas
Brunch will be served.
Dismissal
at 12:30 p.m.
**Annual Spring Golf Tournament**
Sponsored by
Valley View Church of Christ
Saturday, May 1
Tee time is 1:00
p.m.
Ben Geren Golf Course
4-man scramble
Call Niketa
Stinchcomb
(996-3001) to register.
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**Remember in Prayer**
* Toka Beall has been in
the hospital with pneumonia and was dismissed Tuesday.
* Helen Branum was in
the hospital this week and is now home.
* Joe Jones was diagnosed with
lymphoma on Monday and has already begun chemotherapy treatments.
* Oneta
Love is in Methodist Nursing Home, room 5. She is greatly improved.
*
Gloria Jones (mother of Derrick) was in the hospital last week and will have
additional tests on Friday. She lives in Clovis, NM.
* Judi Green is doing
well following her surgery.
* Odessa Wright (mother of Doyle)
* Christy
Hesslen and Family (please read "Being Community") in next column.
* Maile
McDonald
**Bereaved**
Our love and sympathy is extended
to Edith Embry in the recent death of her sister, Mildred Tuttle, of Grand
Junction, Colorado.
**New Address**
Josh and Kim Bice
535 North
40th
Fort Smith, AR 72903
Josh's cell 353-1175
Kim's cell
353-0534
**Prayers for Missions**
* Jerry Canfield in
Ghana and Nigeria.
* Jim & Deborah Wilson in Ethiopia.
**Bridal Shower**
A shower honoring Danyelle
Lusby is planned for Sunday, March 28, from 1:30 to 3:30 p.m. in the Annex.
Danyelle is registered at Penneys, Dillards, and Linens and Things.
**Congratulations**
Bruce and Joann Davenport
are now grandparents! Isaac Allen Dean Rine was born March 17 to Casey &
Kellie (Davenport) Rine in Little Rock. He weighed 7 lbs., 4 ozs. And was 20
inches long.
**Note of Thanks**
Several people have
remembered that it has been a year since Virg passed on. Thank you so much for
thinking of me. West-Ark will always be family to
me.
Love,
Dorotha Kirchner
**Being Community**
Kevin and Christy Hesslen
deeply appreciate the congregation's concerns, encouragements, and prayers.
Their recent visit to Little Rock confirms the diagnosis that their unborn child
suffers from the terminal disease of Potter's Syndrome. It is quite
possible that Christy will carry their child for nine months.
Kevin
and Christy value their life in this community of disciples. They want to
continue as an active, involved part of this community. They want you to
understand that the condition of Potter's Syndrome will not change. They want to
affirm their love for and commitment to God. They want to draw from our
faith and support as a community committed to affirming a loving God's
rule. They want your closeness, your prayers, and your affirmation of
love. They share this with you to inform you of the situation and make
constant explanations unnecessary. They ask your help in sharing this situation
with others. If you have questions, ask Chris Benjamin or David Chadwell. Kevin
& Christy just ask you to love their family and let them love you as we
together honor God.
**Sunday Morning Adult Bible Classes**
April,
May, June, 2004
Location Teacher(s)
Subject
Auditorium Roy
Dunavin
Philippians and Colossians
Room
100 Tom Benincosa, Mat Griffin Repentance
Room 200 Michael Cole, Jeannie Cole
Prayerfully Practicing Proverbs (for young married)
Room
203 David Chadwell
Repentance
Room 206A K. Roberts, S. Breedlove
The Minor Prophets
Room 210 Jerry Canfield, Gary
Brown Romans
Room 211 Larry Roper, Bob
Fisher Repentance
Library Bill
Dickey
Matthew
Annex Larry Armstrong
"Strengthening Your Service"
(College)
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**Family Life Ministry**
By Brad
Pistole
Ever so often, you come across something that
REALLY gets your attention. That has recently happened to me. Chris Benjamin
handed me a book one Friday afternoon and said, "Here. I haven't had a chance to
read this, but you might find it interesting."
Little did he know what he was sending my way.
Simply put, this is one of the most eye-opening books I have ever read. Every
single adult who has children or grandchildren should read this book. What is
it, you ask?
The title alone should get your attention. The book
is entitled "Branded: The Buying and Selling of Teenagers" and it was written in
2003 by 33 year old author, Alissa Quart.
Some of my favorite "eye opening" chapters include:
"From the Mall to the Fall: The Teen Consultants;" "The Great Tween Marketing
Machine;" "More Than a Video Game;" "Body Branding: Cosmetic Surgery;" "X-Large
and X-Small" and "Schools for Sale."
There are simply way too many noteworthy quotes in
the book to pick from as a sample for you, so instead, I will share what one
famous author said about it. David Elkind, Ph.D. and author of "The Hurried
Child" and "All Grown Up and No Place to Go" said, "An excellent book. Hopefully it will be a heads up
for parents, schools, and government agencies to exercise some moral, if not
legal, pressure on these institutions to use some restraint and common sense
when marketing to young people."
This book helped me realize just how REAL Satan is.
He wants you and more importantly, HE WANTS YOUR CHILDREN. He will start with
any age and he will do anything to sidetrack them. Will you be ready? Maybe you
should read this book and let it help prepare you for the battle described in
Ephesians 6.
**Fourth Sunday Nursery**
A.M. Nursery
Berniece Rogers
Sharon
Faries
Tracy Risley
Larry and Donna Roper
P.M. Nursery
Marjorie Blake
Angela Dunavant
**Attendance and Contribution Count**
Sunday A.
M. 637
Bible Classes 419
Sunday P.M.
340
Small Groups 16
Wednesday P.M.
253
Contribution $14,112
Children's Home
$235
The Way 52
Hispanic Attendance 45
Hispanic Contribution
$201
Laotian Attendance 31
Laotian Contribution
$135
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