Woodland Hills Church of Christ

 

Sunday, August 27, 2006 Volume 50, Issue 33

BACK TO SCHOOL

      This past week I went through the dreaded process of walking my first little girl to her first day of school. I have no doubt that Sydney was much more prepared for this day than I was. This process caused me to think about helping our children succeed in school. The following thoughts may not help them to receive straight A’s, but they will go a long way in helping our children to make the most of their educational experiences.

      First, we need to teach our children the importance of school. By attending school they are preparing themselves to be better servants of the Lord. They are learning to read and write, and learning social skills that will aid them in leading others to Christ.

      Second, we need to teach them the importance of being honest. Our children have a great deal of pressure on them to succeed. We can teach our children to do their best and never to cheat. Honesty is always the best policy (Proverbs 12:22)

      Third, we can teach our children to have respect for their teachers. This will help them to appreciate their instructors and in turn will help the teachers to appreciate our children.

      Fourth, we can instruct our children about the importance of the friends they choose. Our children need friends who will help them to stay out of trouble, rather than lead them into it (1 Corinthians 15:33).

      Fifth, we can teach our children about the dangers of drugs like tobacco and alcohol. We need to set the proper example for them and then let them know they must say no (1 Corinthians 6:19).

      Finally, we need to encourage our children to check what they learn in school against the word of God. There is the possibility that our children will hear things that are not in accord with the Bible. We need to give our children the opportunity to talk to us about these things. We need to help our children in comparing what a text book might say and what is written in the Bible. We can help our children in learning that the Bible is always right (Acts 17:11).

      I hope and pray that this school year will be a great experience for all our young ones!

See You in Bible Class Sunday,
Bobby O’Dell  

JOIN US FOR A
WEDNESDAY NIGHT SUMMER SERIES

THE PARABLES OF JESUS

Week #12 - August 30th

"The Sower"

(See The Bulletin Board For More Details)

TAFT AYERS
We are more than conquerors through Him who loved us.

R.U.S.H.

We will be heading to Freed Hardeman for this weekend on September 15th. We are set to return on September 17th from this event. The price will be $35 and you need to sign up on my office door by the 8th of September.

CHILI BOWL 6

I say this each year, but I cannot believe that this is the sixth year for this annual event. It is going to be a great weekend of fun, fellowship and football for everyone that can attend. We will be going on Friday night for a devotional, followed by a Jacob Evans show. On Saturday, there are classes, speakers, flag football, and of course....CHILI. We will also be worshipping at the Rosemark congregation on Sunday morning for the concluding service and the potluck meal afterwards. There is no cost at all for this weekend. Make sure that you sign up on my office door. There is no deadline for this event, it would just help us out very much if we could get an idea of how many we will be carrying.

WHITE WATER RAFTING

Our excursion to the Ocoee river is approaching yet again. We will be leaving for this trip on Saturday morning, the 30th of September. We will return on Sunday night, the 1st of October right before our PM services. This year we will be making the trip with Rosemark, North Jackson and Quail Ridge. Check the youth board for details about this trip.

Much Love,
T

FAMILY NEWS

OUR SICK/HOMEBOUND
Remember in Prayer: Mary Glenn; Edd Marie Agnew; Mary Evelyn King; Marvin Allison; Margaret Wilkinson; Renee O’Dell
Friends/Relatives: LaRae Nichols (sister of Louise VanSickel); Melanie Beatty (sister of Ron Barker); Edwin Hill (father of Erica Hill); William Wilson (James Wilson’s brother)
Out-of-Town: Mary Billingsley (1134 Shell Harbor Rd., Pierson, FL, 32180); Aileen King (Dyersburg Manor, Rm. 206, 1900 Parr Ave., Dyersburg, TN, 38024, mother of Robert King); Bobbie Ann Ridgeway (Lenoir, NC, sister of Kathy Betty); Roy Nichols (San Antonia, TX, brother of Louise VanSickel); J. Jaye VanSickel (daughter-in-law of Louise Vansickel); Chris Sangster (24231 Baxter Dr., Malibu, CA 90265, brother of Dennis Sangster)
Nursing/Assisted Living Homes: Ernestine Barron, Mary Mullinaux, Essie Brown, Clemmie Allison (1325 McIngvale Rd., Apt. 408, Hernando MS 38632)

WEEKLY ASSIGNMENTS
Sunday, August 27, 2006
AM Opening Prayer: Jim Brown
AM Closing Prayer: Rhea Miller
PM Opening Prayer: Jerry Brown
PM Closing Prayer: James Dacus
Pick Up Attendance Cards: Jackson Cobb, Tyler Robison
Nursery Volunteers: A.M. - Jenny Miller, Carol Spellings; P.M. - Debbie Westbrook, Janice Doerflein

WEEKLY ASSIGNMENTS
Service Group #4 will meet following the evening service to pick up their assignments.

Service Group #3, please turn in your assignments from last week.

FLU SHOT CLINIC
Maxim Health Care will be at Woodland Hills on Sunday, November 12th following the morning service to give flu shots. This year Medicare Part B will pay for shots for those who are qualified. All others will cost $25.00 per person. They will accept cash, checks or Medicare Part B.

Please remember our military men and women in your prayers wherever they may be.

BRIDAL SHOWER
The ladies of the congregation are invited to a wedding shower for Christy Golden, bride-elect of David Mars, from 3:00 - 5:00 P.M. on Sunday, September 3rd in the Fellowship Hall. The couple is registered at Dillard’s and Target.

BRIDAL SHOWER
The ladies of the congregation are invited to a wedding shower for Angela Linette Britt from 3:00 - 5:00 P.M. on Sunday, September 10th in the Fellowship Hall. She is registered at Macy’s Dillard’s, Target and Bed, Bath and Beyond.

RECYCLING PROGRAM
A reminder to everyone to save your empty inkjet cartridges and old cell phone for recycling.

TUESDAY CLASS RESUMES
The Tuesday Bible Class will resume in September. The date will be announced later. Bobby O’Dell will lead the class in a study of the book of John. The class will meet in Rooms 11 and 12. 

OUR THOUGHTS
Admiral Richard E. Byrd, after being isolated in a shack near the South Pole alone for seven long months on one of his expeditions to Antarctica, related how this experience had taught him one of life’s great lessons–the mastering of our thoughts before they master and controls us. He said, "It was then I discovered how much a man’s world can be a world of the mind. And that a man himself determines or makes his world, which to a degree is a reflection of his inner self." Over 3000 years ago Solomon gave us this same truth in the form of a proverb when he said, "For as he thinketh in his heart, so is he." (Prov. 23:7) So, we must control our thinking, Dr. Carl Jung, the great psychologist, once said, "All the old, primitive sins are not dead but are crouching in the dark corners of our human hearts." The heart is not just a reservoir, but a fountain. It is imperative that we keep the fountain as free of impurities as possible. The importance and effectiveness of pure thinking cannot be overrated. "Finally brethren, whatsoever things are true, whatsoever things are honest, whatsoever things are just, whatsoever things are pure, whatsoever things are lovely, whatsoever things are of good report; if there be any virtue, and if there be any praise, think on these things." (Phil. 4:8) Paul said, "Casting down imaginations, and every high thing that exalteth itself against the knowledge of God, and bringing into captivity every though to the obedience of Christ." (2 Cor. 10:5)

–Charles Cash, Siloam Springs, AR

EDIFICATION
 FROM OUR
ELDERS

MOTIVES

Motives can be defined as some inner drive, impulse or intention that causes a person to do something or act in a certain way. It can be an incentive to reach a good that we would like to achieve. Motives within ourselves make us do what we do, and guides our conduct.

      Our greatest motive should be to have God’s approval in all we do. If we just seek the approval of men in religious matters we find ourselves in deep trouble. This is a part of our nature with which we need to be on guard.

      Beware of practicing your righteousness before men to be noticed by them, otherwise you have no reward with your father who is in heaven. When you give alms, do not sound a trumpet before you, as the hypocrites do in the synagogues and in the streets that they may be honored by men. Truly I say to you, they have their rewards in full. (Matt. 6:1-2)

      The desire for man’s approval is good when kept in proper bounds, but our relationship to God is the one thing that really matters. May we always be on the alert that our motives are pleasing to Him.

      Rejoice and be glad for your reward in heaven is great (Matt. 5:12). These words were taken from the sermon on the mount. This sermon has a practical bearing upon life. The beatitudes are the blueprint for Christian living. They are designed to remove loneliness, despair, and discouragement from those who serve God.

      Jesus had favorite sayings which he repeated over and over. He often spoke of God’s love and guidance of His people.

      May our motives for Christian living always be just and proper in His sight. One day every secret thing about our lives will be recognized for what we really are. God’s approval in all we do is what really counts. 

For the Elders, Charles Mars

A STRANGE QUESTION

There are many questions in the Bible. Jesus asked and answered several questions. One of the strangest questions in all the Bible was the question Jesus asked the man who had an infirmity for 38 years. "When Jesus saw him lying there, and knew that he already had been in that condition a long time, He said to him, Do you want to be made well?" (John 5:6) How strange! "Do you want to be made well?" Sadly, many who struggle with emotional, physical and even spiritual sickness do not want to be made well.

If you are in sin do you want to be made well? God has a simple prescription whereby the sinner may be made well. To become a Christian you must hear the gospel (Romans 10:17), believe in Jesus (Mark 16:16), repent of sins (Acts 2:38), confess Jesus as Lord and Christ (Romans 10:9-10), and be baptized into Christ. (Acts 22:16, 1 Peter 3:21) If you are lost, "Do you want to be made well?"

If you are an unfaithful member of the body of Christ do you want to be made well? A child of God can become unfaithful by having an evil heart of unbelief (Hebrews 3:12). A child of God can fall away from Grace (Galatians 5:4). If the unfaithful do not repent they will be lost! "For if, after they have escaped the pollutions of the world through the knowledge of the Lord and Savior Jesus Christ, they are again entangled in them and overcome, the latter end is worse for them than the beginning. For it would have been better for them not to have known the way of righteousness, than having known it, to turn from the holy commandment delivered to them..." (2 Peter 2:20-22) If you are unfaithful, "Do you want to be made well?"

If you are struggling with some sin in attitude, thought, word or deed, do you want to be made well? Many are struggling with sinful, attitudes, thoughts, words, or deeds. They fail to be kind (Ephesians 4:32), have evil thoughts (Matthew 5:28), speak evil (Ephesians 4:29), or do wrong things. (Galatians 5:19-21) Whether the sin is attitude or action, "Do you want to be made well?"

The man in John 5 was made well by Jesus. And Jesus is the only one who can make us well. "Come to Me, all you who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest." (Matthew 11:28)