Highland Lakes church of Christ

Don’t we all wish that everyone would be a better person? Do we not hope that some bad people would turn their lives around and start doing good? Do we wish our neighbor would treat us better than before‘? Do we hope that the people we meet each day would show us respect and treat us fairly? If we expect others to be nicer and fairer, should we not make the effort as well? The Golden Rule is that we should treat others the way we would want them to treat us.

Be a better person now. Do not wait until next year and make a resolution about it. Do not put it off until next week or even tomorrow. Start right now. Look at the person closest to you and show them love. Pick up the phone and call someone who would appreciate a thoughtful consideration. Help someone who needs it, and even if they do not need help, help them anyway. Perhaps they will return the favor and help someone else. If we would just try, we could turn our society around and make it a pleasant adventure each day to interact with others. Smile. Wish someone a nice day. Be courteous. Encourage others to be good. Tell people about God and His promises. Read 1 John 3:17 and meditate upon it.

“My little children, let us not love in word or in tongue, but with actions and in truth” (1 John 3:18). Don’t just talk the talk, but walk the walk. Show your love to others.

“If someone says, ‘I love God,’ and hates his brother, he is a liar; for he who does not love his brother whom he has seen, how can he love God whom he has not seen?” (1 John 4:20).

One way to turn your life around is to change your focus. When you focus upon God you become a better person. When you focus upon helping others, you become a better person. Our goal is to get people focused upon God and become people that are better. Our community would be much better if more people were better. – Carey Scott, via Findlay church of Christ — Sparta, TN

It was Sunday afternoon. The phone rang. The voice on the line was that of a man who had been a member of this church in times past. He now lives in another city, but had returned to Little Rock for a visit.

“I want to talk to you about my baptism,” he said. (I assumed that through the years he had learned more about baptism and thus was beginning to question whether his knowledge had been sufficient at the time he was immersed into Christ). “I suppose you are questioning your baptism because you now know more about the subject than you did when you were baptized?”

“‘No. I’m questioning my repentance. For some time now, I have been making a study of the kingdom of God, and I see that repentance is always linked to entering the kingdom. I don’t think I ever repented. When I was baptized, I didn’t change my life. I kept on doing all of the things I had done before.”

I wonder how many people think that there is something magical in baptism. In truth, baptism— done by rote—is meaningless. Repentance and baptism go together like love and marriage, or a horse and carriage. One without the other isn’t sufficient.

It is the day of Pentecost in Jerusalem. Peter is addressing those who have crucified the Lord and Christ. What will he tell them? In answer to their cry, “Brethren, what shall we do?” Peter says, “Repent, and be baptized every one of you … ” (Acts 2:38). Repentance and baptism! They go together and must not be separated.

John the Baptist knew that mere washing without repentance would avail nothing. In fact, he even refused baptism to a group of religious leaders who requested it (a rather bold thing for any preacher to do). Instead of baptizing them, he said, “You brood of vipers! Who warned you to flee from the wrath to come? Bear fruit that befits repentance… ” (Matthew 3:7, 8).

What is baptism but a mere washing away of the filth of the flesh unless it is accompanied by repentance? I will tell you. It is nothing.

– John Gipson via Preacher Stuff, Harding University

2018 APPRECIATION BREAKFAST FOR TEACHERS’ AND FIRST RESPONDERS !

Tuesday, August 14th has been selected as the time for our Annual Appreciation Breakfast. We will begin serving food that morning at 7 AM and continue until 9 AM.

For those of us who also work in the Pantry, this will be a challenging schedule — but I am confident we can do it! On the back table in the auditorium are sign-up sheets for those who are willing to work in the breakfast ministry. As usual, we will need home cooks to prepare the bacon & sausage at home and bring it to the building that morning. We also need cooks at the building to prepare pancakes, eggs and biscuits, etc. There will also be jobs for host & hostess and for eater/greeters as well.

Please sign up and help us make this Appreciation Breakfast a great one!

A THANK YOU NOTE
Dear Church Family,
The monogrammed afghan is so perfect! We love it! Thank you all so much, it will be treasured and it is on display in our living area. Our move has been hard and not without problems, but, our son Bob and daughter-in-law, Penny, have worked all weekend to get us unpacked. They brought her sister and brother-in-law over on the 4th of July, and they all worked, unpacking kitchen stuff, arranging furniture, hanging pictures etc. and fed us also. I’m sure we will get settled one of these days and pray all goes well. We already miss you all! There is a group of Church of Christ folks that meet in the Library and we plan on making that our new church home. Hope and pray that all is well there and will be keeping in touch. We will be going back to Marble Falls for John’s treatment.
Thanks so much, we love you all.
In Christian love,
Ida & John
P.S. I have a “fat” finger on my left hand —— HUSH —— “broke it”.

WITH SYMPATHY
Sherry Wills aunt, Sally Vanden Bosch, passed away at home on Saturday, July 7th. A Memorial Service was held on Saturday, July 14th, at the Cherry Hill Presbyterian Church in Dearborn, Michigan. Our prayers, love and sympathy go out to Sherry and all in the family. May God be the greatest comfort to all.

ICE CREAM FELLOWSHIP
Today, Sunday, July 15th, after our evening worship time, we will have this annual get-together. Home-made ice-cream seems to be the favorite version, but there are also some good-tasting store bought varieties. Whatever goes well with ice-cream includes brownies, other kinds of cookies, cakes, sprinkles, etc. These things are very well accepted. We hope that all have made plans to join in on this cool and cooling fellowship this evening!

VISITING FOR THE MASTER (VISITATION PROGRAM)
The Team, led by Cary & Brenda Miller, will meet on Wednesday July 18th, at 6:30 pm in the library for their assignments.

HELPING HANDS PANTRY
Needs – Shampoo
Thank you!

FOR YOUR INFORMATION
The Highland Lakes church of Christ financial information is always available for the congregation members upon request. Please ask the elders and they will make sure to get a copy to you or answer your questions.

BEAUTIFUL FOOTNOTES
Please pray on behalf of the Welches and the work in Cambodia. For the elders, Ken D

Mission Cambodia News & Update 30 June, 2018 (Part Two of Two)
Thank you for praying with us…
• “Every great move of God started with a movement of prayer.” (unknown) Thank you for your prayers!!! “Therefore pray earnestly to the Lord of the harvest to send out laborers into His harvest.” – Matthew 9:38
Other news and highlights…
• Learning a new language is an ongoing task. The longer we live in Cambodia (10 years now) we realize we still have so much to learn in order to listen, communicate and understand culture. Over the last few months we have started some new language classes focusing on discipleship. This course will better equip us with the language used in the Cambodian Bible, as well as culturally appropriate ways to share and study God’s Word.
• PEACE School has completed another year. It has been a rich blessing for Sharon to participate with the students and school staff serving in the library. It’s great seeing the students continue to be more and more interested in reading and improving their skills. Please pray for continual spiritual growth for the students, and teachers!
• The ministry of Prayer Circles Cambodia (PCC) continues to do ministry throughout Cambodia. On the most recent ride one of our Cambodian brothers said; “I joined with the Prayer Circle to explore the rural area where the gospel has not reached yet. In there I learned there are many lost souls as I share Gods Word with three old ladies and one of them said, she had never heard anyone sharing and teaching Jesus to people in her village yet. I’m really praying for the sower to keep sowing the seed into that village and the many more villages around.” We praise God for the power of prayer!
• More individuals have been asking about joining the PPC ministry. A major factor for prayer rides includes experience for riding in difficult terrain. Therefore, Dennis has been very helpful in training a number of individuals for future prayer rides.

We are grateful to be back home, refreshed and excited to see what God has in store for us and our long-term future in Cambodia. Thank you for being a faithful part of the work here and the difference you are making in our lives and the lives in Cambodia. We love you and appreciate you beyond measure.
Grace, Peace, Love & Blessings, Dennis and Sharon

I read a story recently about an amazing dog. He’s been trained to sniff out the unique chemical compounds found in electronic items like memory cards, flash drives, and other storage media that might have criminal evidence on them. He’s only 18 months old, but this was the second time he’d been adopted from the pound. The first owners returned him because he was “untrainable.” This “untrainable” dog went through intense training and was sold to a Narcotics Strike Force for $10,000. What made the difference? What caused the shift from worthless to valuable? He got a new master. In the right hands, the dog’s true value and potential were realized.

You may have been called worthless by others. You may think of yourself as worthless. But no one is worthless when they’re adopted by the Father. When we’re in His hands, we have a future. When we’re in His hands, we have worth. We’re children of the King. And like any good father, He takes the training of his children seriously.

“For they disciplined us for a short time as it seemed best to them, but He disciplines us for our good, that we may share His holiness. For the moment all discipline seems painful rather than pleasant, but later it yields the peaceful fruit of righteousness to those who have been trained by it” (Heb. 12:10-11).

When you look at the lost in the world, don’t see worthlessness. See the need for a new Master who can restore the priceless value of a soul. – Kevin Hahn via Brown Trail church of Christ

It was during the time known as the Pax Romana – Roman Peace – established by Caesar Augustus. Jerusalem had been under Roman rule since the fall of the Seleucids and the final end of the former Greek empire established by Alexander the Great. The Roman Senate appointed Herod as king over Jerusalem in 37 BC until his death. While Herod was a brutal man who killed a great many rabbis and suppressed all dissention with violence, he was also responsible for large-scale building projects, including the re-building of the Temple. The former temple had been desecrated and plundered. The Temple became the focus of Israelite life once again. This new, larger temple was not only the place for the Jewish worship of God, but also the place where the Holy Scriptures and other national literature were kept. Within its gates the Sanhedrin, the highest court of Jewish law, met. After Herod’s death, Roman governors were appointed over Jerusalem. Judaism was recognized by the Roman government as an approved religion and the Jews were free to practice their beliefs. While no one could argue life was a picnic under Roman rule, things had calmed down and the city prospered. Into this relative peace came the son of a priest and his wife. Born of a mother and father well advanced in years, he came out of the wilderness wearing the clothes of a prophet proclaiming the time of the promised messiah was at hand. John the Baptist, or John the Immerser as I like to call him, was preparing the people for Jesus. Things were about to get very interesting. The world was about to be shaken up. It just didn’t know it, yet.

John was a bold man. He had the courage of his beliefs and was not shy about speaking the words of GOD. When we first meet John as an adult he stands up against the Pharisees and the Sadducees, the two most influential groups within Jewish religious society. He calls them a “brood of vipers” (Matthew 3: 7). John did not hesitate to stand up to sin, no matter where he saw it. Herod Antipater was the son of Herod the Great. Herod Antipas (as he was known, also as Herod Tetrarch) ruled over Jerusalem by the authority of Rome. John did not hesitate to condemn Herod’s divorce of his wife so he could marry his half-brother’s wife. For this, John paid with his life.

John knew what his role was. He was to prepare the way for the messiah and then diminish (John 3: 28-30). Throughout John’s adult life, he stood for what he knew to be the will of GOD.

Jesus, the messiah, begins His work. I will not even attempt to cover all the ways Jesus stood true to the will of GOD. The inspired gospel writers have done that. I will note, however, that Jesus stood up to the Pharisees, Sadducees, and high priest without sinning. He lived his life in obedience to Roman law as long as it did not contradict the will of GOD.

As planned by GOD, Jesus died by the hands of men for the sins of all. The religious leaders thought to put an end to Jesus’ teachings by having the Roman government execute Him (the Sanhedrin lost the authority to order an execution in 30 AD). After Jesus’ resurrection and ascension, His apostles and other disciples carried on teaching the good news of salvation. They did not teach revolution but the world was changed by their teachings. More than wars, politicians, or anything else, the true faith in Jesus, the messiah, has fundamentally changed the course of human history and the world. When men and women of faith, grounded in the true Word of GOD, the Holy Bible, stand for the truth in all areas of their lives, the world is changed. We shake up the world when we don’t follow the teachings of this world and those who would have us compromise ourselves and our GOD.

At times it’s not easy, but it’s always worth it. C’mon, let’s go shake the up the world!

~~ George Stewart, Creekside church of Christ, Franklin, IN