By Nell Dobbs
“This is the day that the Lord hath made. We will rejoice and be glad in it.” A quote: “Someone is looking up to you. Don’t let that person down.”
Beautiful flowers were placed in church Sunday in loving memory of Mack and Jeannette Hadden by Jan, Bern and John Mack Smith. Times eases some of the loss.
The Three B’s sang, “Jesus Saves.” Ronnie Ragans prayed the offertory prayer. The Worship Choir sang “Crown of Life.” The message was again by Pastor Loy W. Reed. The Hymn of Commitment was “Turn Your Eyes Upon Jesus.”
Geoff Hill gave the evening message.
I was sorry to miss Sunday School and church again and appreciated Sue (Quick) for giving me her bulletin. When I talked to Hilda, she said Jimmy and she had gone to Barbara Memorial Church of the Nazarene homecoming and what a different message on the Prodigal Son. It was the Jewish custom that, if the younger son asked for his inheritance, the father must give it to him, even though it meant the father would likely have to liquidate all or part of his land and property. It was also the custom that the father must get to the son first or else the son could never come on the land again for her had squandered the goods that belonged to the Jews among the Gentiles. The Beacon Commentary said that “the fact that the father should give a younger son his inheritance before his own death was by no means uncommon in Jewish history. Abraham gave Isaac and his other son their inheritance before his own death (Gen. 25:5-6). But it was highly irregular for the son to ask for it. Whenever such a favor was shown, it was a free gift of the father.”
A very thought-provoking parable and I will be thinking more on it. Why did the younger son want his part? Was he unhappy at home? Did he want to see what the world offered? Where was the far country? How had he wasted his substance? Because it was both misused and used up. Riotous living is wrong and it is expensive. But thank the Lord he came to his senses and went home where his dad was waiting for him. There are many stories about parents waiting and waiting for sons (and daughters) to come home. In Marjell’s poem, the night of his mother’s death, he wrote, “Please burn a beacon or light a candle for me, in a window of your cabin built by the Carpenter from Galilee.”
We are continuing our “Season of Refreshing – Toward a New Start with New Hearts: A 30-Day Season of Prayer.”
We continue collecting money through the baby bottles for the Pregnancy Center.
Sunday noon on the 30th, there is to be a youth fundraiser lunch of chicken and rice for a special spring event.
SAM group’s challenge is to fill the back of a pickup truck with items for the Florida Baptist Children’s Home to be delivered Feb. 9.
On Feb. 6, at 6 p.m., there is to be a “Souper Bowl Family Night.”
On Feb. 13, at 6 p.m., a Friendship Banquet is being sponsored by the youth – at no cost but donations will be accepted for help with summer camp.
I Thessalonians 5:25: “Brethren, pray for us.” That is our plea. We pray in different ways. Our prayer list is long. Some pray over the whole list at one time; others pray over each name. Our need is to remember to pray. A song says, “We need the prayers of those we love” and that is so true.
Amen!
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