|
Weekly Church Page for April 9-15, 2000
|
|
|
THE SMILE.
|
By Rev. Jodi Davidson
Webster says that a smile is "to look or regard with amusement or ridicule; to bestow approval; to appear pleasant or agreeable." He has another definition that I will mention later.
All of you that know me, Jodi Davidson, aka: pastor; aka: pastor's wife (Figure that one out! Ha!); aka: resident nut, know that laughter is my daily doing. I love to laugh, smile, giggle, guffaw (I read about that one somewhere, I think it's when you really laugh out loud, I mean REALLY out loud), and all that good stuff.
I frown on frowns, always have. Seems like a waste of time and facial muscles. When I look in the mirror and see the laugh wrinkles, I don't get all bent out of shape. The making of each one of them was delightful, full of happy times. So come on, laugh wrinkles, I won't Oil of Olay you to death! You can find a happy home on the plains of my face.
But consider the smile for just a moment. Do you do much smiling? Do people associate you with a smile and happy times or do they dread to see you coming? Ugh! There's nothing worse than a rain cloud walking everywhere, just waiting to rain on somebody's parade and happiness.
I have a sneaking suspicion that the smile came about when the breath of life had been breathed in the first man, Adam. When he opened his eyes for the very first time in history, he must have seen the Creator, God. I just feel like the smile just suddenly framed his face and I can just see the Creator smiling back at him. Doesn't that make sense to you? God said, "This is good!"
But we all know there are smiles, then there are SMILES. Hence, the second definition Webster has for smile. It's "a change of facial expression in which the eyes brighten and the corners of the mouth curve slightly upward and which expresses amusement." Don't you feel like smiling over that one?
Have you ever seen someone "smile," but you could see that the smile didn't reach the eyes? That the smile wasn't real, just something that was done with the face and not the heart? Aw, c'mon now, you've all seen it. Maybe even done it, thinking no one would really know the difference. But they do, they really do.
So if you haven't smiled lately, try it, you will find that you like it. Let the corners of the mouth turn up, the eyes brighten and smile big at someone that isn't smiling at all. See what reaction you get. Of course, it's easier if Jesus is working the gears inside. He gives joy and a smile where you would least expect to find it. He's really the greatest. He invented the smile, so use it. O.K.
________________________________________
ATTENTION!
A Christian facility for women recovering from drug and/or alcohol addiction is seeking to find one (and possibly two) born-again Christian women to be a live-in housemother(s). This position is one of ministry.
This woman must be a woman of prayer. She must be able to lovingly and firmly administer the rules of the facility.
Understading and knowing how to deal with the problems associated with drug and alcohol abuse would be a plus. A good working knowledge of scripture would also be plus.
We require a recommendation from your pastor, former employer, and at least three character references. A background search will be done on those who fit the criteria above.
This facility is in a relaxed country setting on a small pond. You will have your own room, free meals, and a modest salary. The starting salary will be increased according to your leadership abilities.
Candidates accepted for this portion will first come on a trial basis to see if they fit into the program. This is to the benefit of the candidate, the facility, and to the young women that we serve.
If you are interested and would like more information - please write to our director - Ms. Donna Ashworth, Rt. 2 - Box 170 A-1, Metter, GA 30439.
|
|
|
|
|
HELP FOR YOUR SOUL.
|
ANGER IS OUR WORST ADVERSARY
By Dr. Charles Traylor
"Not him, Lord; that's impossible. He could never become a Christian!"
In essence, that's what Ananias said in Acts 9 when God told him of Paul's conversion. After all, Paul had pursued believers to the death. He had set out to destroy Christianity by destroying Christians. He had witnessed and approved Stephen's stoning. At the time of his conversion, he was on his way to Damascus carrying letters from Caiphas, the high priest, giving him authority to capture Christians and bring them in chains back to Jerusalem. Paul may have thought he was persecuting heretics of Judaism, but in reality he was persecuting Jesus himself.
As far as Ananias was concerned, Paul was the enemy. And he was shocked and horrified that God would ask him to embrace the man who was trying to kill him and everyone precious to him.
And yet, despite these understandable feelings, Ananias, whose name means 'the Lord is gracious' or 'the Lord shows,' obeyed God. He found Paul, as he had been instructed, and greeted him as 'Brother Paul.'
Ananias was scared of this meeting, but he greeted Paul lovingly. It's hard to love your enemies, especially when you're afraid of them and doubt their motives. Ananias resisted but God said to him, "This man (Paul) is my chosen instrument." So he did what Jesus commanded: He loved Paul as Jesus told him he must if he was to be Jesus' disciple.
Although we may not risk death daily for our faith, as Ananias did, and as millions of Christians around the world do today, we still feel persecuted for our faith. Whenever we hear of biblical mandates being relativized, Christian symbols being banned from public buildings or courtrooms, our right of free assembly to worship restricted by zoning laws, we become afraid. And fear is most easily translated into anger and hatred, directed at an enemy.
Our fear, anger and hatred are perhaps more dangerous to us than what we see as attacks on our faith because fear and anger and hatred threaten to separate us from Jesus' principal commandment - to love one another. The real danger before Christians, before the church, is from within. Not loving others, even our enemies, as Jesus loved us.
Pray for your enemies and embrace your enemies in the name of Jesus Christ and in obedience to the command of Jesus Christ. Or you may just realize, with our friend Pogo that "we have seen the enemy, and he is us."
|
|
|
|
|
INTERCESSORS ANONYMOUS AND HALLELUJAH CORNER.
|
Please pray for Wynette Newsome, healing; Amoz Frazier, healing; Fraces Gross, healing; Annie Henry, healing; Roger Shaw, cancer; Martha MacGahee, prayer ministry; Bruce Davidson, healing; Darrel Dukes, Dewitt Cullars, strength and healing; Nell Cullars, strength; Norman and Donna Ashworth, ministry; Rev. Sarah Purdy, healing; Heather Hannah, migraine headaches; Shannon Wilcher, strength; Sharon Scott, strength; our Outreach minstry and area churches.
Last Updated: April 9, 2000
If you have your own prayer requests that you want us to pray for, please send them to us at: [email protected]
JESUS LOVES YOU, AND, SO DO WE!!!
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
