Previous "A Word from Charles" Articles
Just Another Day In Paradise
I'm With You Through Thick
Are You Saved?
House Groups
Compliments of
Loved or Needed?
A Time for Prayer
Are You An Optimist?
A Mission Spirit
Why Have a Youth Director?
Where We Could Be
From A Teacher
What Shapes Your Life?
One Year Ago — June 19, 2005
You Have Been Chosen
Grace
I Don't Do...
Just Another Day In Paradise
It's funny how much difference perspective can make. What's the difference between being in prison and going to work? Here's one perspective:
- •IN PRISON you are in an 8 x 10 cell AT WORK you are in a 6 x 8 cubicle!
- •IN PRISON you get 3 meals a day. AT WORK you get a break for 1 meal... and, you get to pay for it... and, it taste like prison food!
- •IN PRISON you get time off for good behavior. AT WORK you get rewarded for good work with more work!
- •IN PRISON you watch TV and play games. AT WORK you get fired for watching TV and playing games!
- •IN PRISON you get your own toilet. AT WORK you have to share!
- •IN PRISON you are paid by taxpayers with no work required. AT WORK you get to pay all the expenses to go to work and they deduct taxes from your salary to pay for prisoners.
There's a neat song out, Just Another Day In Paradise. In the song, it describes all the things that can go wrong in life - car gets a flat, kids spill and make a mess, the hot water heater goes and there is water everywhere - all those little annoyances that we are more than familiar with because they happen to us. Those little things that make us scream, Why me? And yet, as the song goes, because he has a job... a home... a loving wife... a family... he describes his situation with all the bad stuff going on about him as just another day in paradise!
Dave Ramsey always responds when asked how he is doing with, Better than I deserve! Next time when someone asks you how things are going, even when things seem to be falling apart, answer, Oh, it's just another day in paradise! A job, a home, a mate, family, a church, friends, salvation... there are many reasons to be thankful. Paul wrote years ago: I have learned, in whatever state I am, to be content. For Paul, every day was just another day in paradise!
I'm With You Through Thick
...The song goes, What a friend we have in Jesus. Perhaps the most sweetest words in the Bible are the words of Jesus in John 15:12, You are my friends... Jesus defines friendship for us in that same chapter, he is the man that would lay down his life for you. Later he says, I have called you friends.
We also sing, "Jesus is all the world to me". Each verse ends with the words "He's my Friend". The song describes all the reasons Jesus is our friend. The last verse says, Jesus is all the world to me: I want no better friend. Not only do we want no better friend it is impossible to find a better friend. There's not a friend like the lowly Jesus, No not one! No not one!
The way we know there is no better friend is we compare His friendship with the friends we have in this world. Friends let us down... we let our friends down. I'm not really sure I have a friend who has not at some point let me down. I'm not sure I have a friend who would die for me. It is refreshing to look to the cross and realize that the hope of heaven is mine because a friend died for me.
When George Bush was elected to office he had a friend tell him, I'm with you through thick and thick. President Bush said, You mean thick and thin. The man responded, No, I'm with you through thick and thick. If the going got rough, he would be gone. We all have had friends who are with us through thick and thick! They are with us as long as we help them, but when the going gets tough, they get going!
Maybe the sweetest part of the friendship discussion is where Jesus tells his disciples, I chose you... I would like to think that not only Jesus is my friend, but I am his friend because he chose me. Generally, we choose our friends. A faithful friend is hard to find! Choose those who will stick with you through thick and thin.
A thought for November 25, 2001
It has been about 2 ½ months since
911 in New York and Washington. How many people died in the World Trade Center collapse?When the news broke that day it was reported that about 10,000 people work at the WTC each day. Then, the number dropped to 9000. Evidently not everyone went to work that day as the number dropped to
more than 5000. Over the past couple of months the number is now down to about 4000+. The number has changed constantly - some thought to be there, weren't. Some who didn't work there, were there as visitors. There was confusion as to how many police and firemen were there adding to the number? There were foreign workers whose families did not immediately report their missing relatives to authorities. There were confusion as to who managed to escape. There were some on the sidewalks below who were killed in the falling debris. Then there was duplication, some names on the lists two or three times - was Jim Smith and James Smith and Jay Smith - one person, two or three? We may not yet have the final number.The closest comparison to
the list is a progressive dinner at church. In the past several have asked me, How many's coming? The only answer I can give is, There are xx signed up! Some sign to come and don't. Some come and don't sign up. Some sign, cross their name out, then come. Some miss the appetizer and jump in for the salad - do they count as a whole person? It is a never ending list.An oft asked religious question is,
Am I saved? Or, How do I know that I am saved? Several times throughout the Bible there is reference to The Book of Life. Those who are saved are those whose names are written in the book of life. The Bible speaks of God blotting out names from the book of life. The Bible also speaks of those lost being saved - bringing joy to the angels in Heaven. It even speaks of bringing a brother back from the error of his ways. God's list must look like the WTC's list. Is your name there?
A thought for March 10, 2002
Since January, the church here at SouthSide has periodically been meeting in homes. We will soon be sorted into more groups and meet more frequently. The single purpose of these
HOUSE groups is threefold: 1) to glorify God, 2) to edify one another, and 3) to evangelize. This is also the whole purpose of the church, but what is special about the HOUSE groups? What can you get there that you can't get anywhere else? The H.O.U.S.E. groups stand for five things.The
"H" is for "hospitality." Hospitality includes opening your home, but it does not end there. It means sharing what you have with others, even those you do not know.The
"O" is for "openness." It means we value the opinions of others. It also means we are open to God's word in our lives.The
"U" is for "unity." But unity does not mean uniformity. The HOUSE groups offer a unique opportunity to learn about our differences while, at the same time, strengthening our unity.The
"S" is for "service." Service means encouraging each other. And we can serve and encourage each other better if we take the time to get to know each other's needs.The
"E" is for "evangelism." Evangelism simply means telling the good news. Telling about Jesus is the kind of gossip we can all be involved in. How will the lost hear unless someone tells them the good news (Rom. 10:14-15)?All these are biblical concepts that are essential to the health of not only the church, but also each individual Christian. Everyone is invited to participate in these groups and grow in the Lord. Consequently, I cannot get around to personally invite everyone to these meetings. If you are reading this right now, consider this your personal invitation to join in. Above all, remember what our HOUSE groups stand for. When you hear about the HOUSE groups, think about Hospitality, Openness, Unity, Service and Evangelism.
--Keith Stanglin
A small boy wanted to give his grandmother a special gift one Christmas. He noticed her Bible was worn... loose pages, which occasionally fell out... He decided the perfect gift would be a new Bible. He saved his money for several months, but came up a bit short of the Bible he wanted to buy. His parents learned of his planned and supplied the amount that was lacking. He bought the new Bible.
As he prepared to wrap it he decided he wanted to write something special inside. He had seen other Bibles with a special dedication. As he had the Bible on table and pen in hand, he couldn't think of what to write. He found a book on their bookshelf that had been given to his father by a friend, in fact, the friend had written the book. He copied the message from his father's book.
Christmas day arrived and grandma was thrilled with the new Bible. As she opened it she saw the inscription from her grandson, which read: To Grandma, compliments of the author!
Out of the mouth of babes... The small boy didn't understand the message or what he had done, but what he wrote could not have been truer. As we open our Bibles... as we worship... as we come to Bible study... we read a message from the Author! It is a complimentary gift - it's free! It is a loving gift - it is given because God esteems us and wants our friendship. It is given for our good! He wants us to read it and enjoy it.
All God's gifts are complimentary and given out of love. God's gifts are meant to be received and enjoyed. What makes the gifts special, are not just the gifts themselves, but the compliments of the Author!
I read a novel recently entitled, The Bride. The story was set in Scotland during the times when marriages were arranged. The first day this couple met each other was their wedding day. The book describes their experience of getting to know each other - not always a joyful experience. She was adopted when very young and raised by her "father", to whom she became very close even though he was not her biological father. She had 3 sisters in this adopted family but she was the more mature and ran the house for her father.
One day her things arrived at her new home after she had married and been carried away by her new husband. One of the things that came was a rocking chair. She was explaining to her new husband how much the chair meant to her. How she would watch her father rock her 3 sisters when they were young. Rocking 3 girls with two knees was no easy task!! As the picture sunk in he asked her, Where were you? Her answer was busy, taking care of things. She never got to rock with her father and sisters. It was then it dawned on him that she had worked her way into the family by being needed, not by being loved... she was never loved. Her father hated to see her go, not because he loved her, but because he needed her.
It reminded me of Paul on Mars Hills explaining to the idol worshipers there why they should worship the One, true God. Paul explains he is not a God that needed anything, but a God who gives... gives life and breath and everything. He is not a God who needed to be served, but a God who serves us through His generous gifts to us!
Have you ever felt needed, but not loved? Like the girl working her way into the family by making herself needed, we often try to work our way into Heaven by making ourselves needed by God. The Lord doesn't need us - he loves us!
I've always thought one of the great things about being a Christian is that it doesn't take a lot to practice it. Meaning??? You don't need a building. Wherever two or three are gathered in His name, can create worship situation. The Lord's Supper to remember His death does not require a monument erected in His honor. It does not require a pilgrimage to get there. With a piece of unleaven bread and fruit of the vine in a cup and you can have a touching and moving experience. A great lifter of spirits is singing. Churches of Christ practice acapella music because we know from history the early church did not use musical instruments in their assemblies. To worship God one does not need an organ... he does not need someone who knows how to play it. All he needs is his voice - and it doesn't even have to be a good one!!!
Perhaps the greatest blessing is prayer. One doesn't need a memorized script, just express what is in your heart! One doesn't need a place, you can pray in a crowd and no one know it. You don't even need a calling card - it's free! You don't need a cell phone or have to find a phone booth. Cellular prayer was invented by God years before cellular phones, and you are always in range - there are no dead spots.
There is no doubt 911 changed our world. Maybe it has created a greater need for prayer. It's a time to pray for peace. It's a time to pray for our economy - jobs are scarce and many families are suffering. It's a time to pray for people who are lost - tough times often turn people to the Lord. It's a time to pray for SouthSide - we need to find committed families and grow. This has been a tough year for me, a lot of struggles, maybe intensified by post-camp depression. I solicit your prayers as I struggle to find my ax head. It is great to know that as Christians we have the power of prayer at our disposal.
Are you an optimist or a realist? Do you see the glass as being half full or half empty or do you just see a half a glass. Someone has said that a realist is more correct about things in life than an optimist. But, the optimist seems to have more friends and much more fun! I guess if I could be anything I'd like to be an optimistic realist! Someone with the wisdom to see life as it is, but thinks, hopes and wishes that the best will happen!!! Someone who, no matter what happens, can enjoy life, have fun, and enjoy the pleasures of friendship.
In our study Wednesday night Mike Armour listed four signs of a healthy church:
- A healthy church is a united church.
We added a few more. A healthy church is one in which love abounds. A healthy church is one in which there is joy and a lot of fun. Certainly, church should be fun!!!
An optimist is one who instills fun. He has more fun and more friends. He can see a situation and he sees the good in it. The optimist laughs more. The optimist criticizes less. The optimist uses adjectives like magnificent, wonderful, beautiful, fantastic, thank you. You read about the optimist in Phil. 4:8: "Finally, brethren, whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is just, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is gracious, if there is any excellence, if there is anything worthy of praise, think about these things." The optimist thinks," I can do all things through him who strengthens me." Phil. 4:13. It's in Philippians that you read," Rejoice in the Lord always; again I will say, Rejoice."
A Mission Spirit -- June 29, 2003
As we meet this morning a small group from
SouthSide is beginning a work in Memphis. This week they will be assisting an inner city program that is trying to reach inner city children. The church they are working with was planted by the Highland church in Memphis where Harold Shank works. Harold Shank has a wonderful love for children. I have shared his story. He grew up 6 houses from a church of Christ building. He attended VBS and finally a teacher asked him to come to Bible Class. He went... he was baptized... and today is a preacher.He has emphasized the importance of
asking! If the VBS teacher had never asked him to come... he would not be a member... not be a peacher... and our group would not be in Memphis today! Today is an important day in SouthSide's history. It is the first mission trip that we have taken as a group that I am aware of. Hopefully, there will be a greater emphasis on missions in the weeks, months and years ahead. Growing churches are mission churches. Every member is a missionary. Every area in the world is a mission area - our neighborhood... the people we work with... the people we pass in the market... the kids who come to VBS... Missionaries are people who ask. Missionaries invite people to services. Missionaries attend services. Missionaries are warm and friendly to visitors.We are laying plans to send a small team to Brazil next year. My prayer is that it will come to pass. Also, that it will awaken a mission spirit and mission zeal in us. It is important to go
and it is important to send. If you cannot go, you can help send... you can help by praying... Harold Shank's story is inspiring because it shows that we never know what small deeds will lead to! Pray that we will continue to grow and reach out for the Lord through this church!
Why Have a Youth Director? -- August 17, 2003
It was great to have Rob Long visit with us last weekend. He had a good lesson and left us with a lot of good impressions. We still want to look at a few other resumes we have and make more contacts. Our experience with Mike Reed this summer was on the whole positive.
Why have a youth director?
Every day in the United States...
- 2795 teens get pregnant
Any more questions?
The above was from an article by Michael Mazzolongo in
Church & Family magazine published by Harding University. It does make you think!God has blessed us with growth the past couple of years and has put us in a position to hire such a man. The man power is needed at
SouthSide. We do not have an abundance of men and families willing to teach and work with our young people. If you want to help - there are sign-up sheets on the bulletin board. Those of us, like myself, who grew up in a congregation that had a youth minister know the value. I remember him well. Years later he financially support me doing campaign work, though he and I had moved on to different churches. The influence can last a life time! Think of SouthSide's youth from the past who are no longer faithful - having a youth minister might have made a difference? Having such a man might make a difference for our youth of today?
November 2, 2003
I heard a commercial on the radio the other day that said,
Small businesses do not see where they are, but where they could be! It was advertising a service that small businesses could use to make them like the big companies. Last week we had our largest crowd of the year - 168! Our largest contribution of the year - $3600+. It gave us a glimpse of where we could be. It makes our planning for next year that much more important.One of the things Joanne Howe said to Trish and I was that churches with a strong youth program are churches that grow. It is one of the reasons we have begun to put a stronger emphasis on our young people and want to hire a youth minister to work with them. Last Sunday, not only did we have our largest crowd of the year, I had my largest class of the year - 16 kids - 17 counting me. If you know the classroom we meet in, you know that 17 in that room is pushing it. With a youth minister working full time, it should only grow! This is such a vital step we are taking in hiring a youth minister, I hope that you will give it your full support and prayer. Next week we will interview Aaron & Jennifer Sparks.
If we grow to a congregation of 200, which last week suggests we can
in 2004, we will need to make some changes. We will need more and more to be involved. We will need additional leadership. We will need to grow our Sunday evening and Wednesday evening programs. We will need more teachers. Each of us will need to catch the spirit that a strong and growing church should have. We will need to be more evangelistic. It is great to have a mission plan for 2004 and seeing, not only our youth, but our members becoming involved in - not just going, but helping to send those going. I hope to begin plans for a 2005 trip and involve even more.Close your eyes... see
not where we are, but where we could be!
1 Corinthians 13 - from a teacher — January 16, 2005
If I could explain everything perfectly to my students but did not love each one of them, I might as well be talking to an empty room.
If I could find all the answers to educational problems and did not have love, my efforts would be futile.
If I could buy every kind of educational aid, and sacrificed to do so, but did not have love for my students, it would be a complete waste.
Love is patient when it is necessary to repeat a concept over and over to a student who is having difficulty.
Love is kind when students or other teachers falsely accuse me.
Love is not jealous when another teacher has mature, motivated students, and mine are just average.
Love is not proud and boastful when my students improve greatly and really want to come to my class.
Love does not cause my students to lose face when they fail to do their assignments or turn them in late, but seeks to help them understand the importance of self-discipline.
Love does not broadcast my students’ problems and misdeeds to others.
Love keeps trying even when it seems a student will never understand why the Lord’s kingdom should take priority over all else.
Teaching methods and textbooks will eventually be discarded, but love is everlasting.
These three things I have learned through teaching: endurance, patience and love, but the greatest of these is love.
—Source unknown
Never underestimate the power of Bible class and the teachers who teach
those class. Be thankful that every Sunday you enter the building there is a
teacher with material in every class ready to teach.
|
I remember last year as being one of the best years
ever at SS. Do you remember one year ago???
And, on this very day one year ago, 20 of our members were in Brazil working with Ken & Terri Graves. The trip sent 10 of our young people and 10 of our adults who wanted to go on one of our more ambitious undertakings. They returned later that week on June 24th. I remember an emotional meeting at the airport. 20 tired, zombie-like people filled with joy and what seemed to me a spiritual high. I thought about last year’s mission trip because it has been one year. And, because last Sunday night we were treated to a special look at our grads in a show put together by Aaron. On the slide show we saw them grow up before our eyes. Memories! But that was 2004, this is 2005. Jesus told the church at Thyatira your latter works exceed your first. It’s a great compliment. The church was not looking back, but doing greater things. Looking back is to inspire, looking forward is a must. When your best is in the past, you begin to die. |
You Have Been Chosen... March 5, 2006
|
I have been chosen! Actually, I have been chosen a couple of times. I have eaten at Applebee’s or Fazoli’s or whatever. I am told by my server that my bill was chosen to do a survey as to how my meal was. I call a number, give them the special number on my bill, and take the survey. They will give me a code that will entitled me to anything from a free coke, free appetizer, $3 off my next visit.Companies do that because surveys often offer important insight into how they are doing. One man tells of being chosen to do a survey following his flight on United Airlines. The airline wanted to know how he enjoyed his flight. He decided to fill it out. The survey asked questions like...
Well, you get the idea. By the way, I made the last one up! But there were two more thought provoking questions...
What if we did the following survey for visitors to our service this morning?
And, the BIG questions...
|
What’s unique about Christianity? Jesus was often caught in debate with the Jewish leadership. A lot of question like, Which was the greatest commandment?... If a woman marries 7 men, who will be her husband in the afterlife?... Where is the right place to worship?... Should we pay taxes to Caesar?...
The story is told of modern day scholars who were in a debate over what was unique about the Christian faith. One argued it was the fact that God appeared in human form, the Incarnation. Another argued that it was the resurrection - death is not the final word. Many religious leaders have started religions, but Jesus’ is the only one with an empty grave. It made for a lively discussion. If you were there, what would you have argued?
As the story goes CS Lewis walked in... tweed jacket and an arm full of papers from a previous presentation. He sat down and took in the conversation, which now had evolved into a heated discussion. He did not know what the original question was. When there was a lull in the action he finally asked, What’s all this rumpus about? Eyes turned and someone spoke, We’re debating what’s unique about Christianity? Lewis answered, Oh, that’s easy - it’s grace!
Well, there are probably a lot of things unique about Christianity. Lewis may be right, grace may be the most unique thing about Christianity. Grace is that quality that says if we goof up, God still loves us. It is the gift of do-overs... it is the gift of second chances... Paul writes that though he blasphemed... persecuted... insulted... Jesus and his church: I received mercy... and the grace of our Lord overflowed for me... What if we fired members for not measuring up... not giving... not attending... not producing... not praying... not... It has often been said, The church is for sinners. Lewis would probably add, Ahhh - that’s where grace is!
I Don’t Do Windows —
July 16, 2006
•
Noah: I don’t do arks
• David: I don’t do giants
• Moses: I don’t do crossing seas
• Jonah: I don’t do Nineveh
• Paul: I don’t write letters
• Amos: I don’t do speeches
• Mary: I don’t do virgin births
• Peter: I don’t do Gentiles
•
?????: I don’t do...
In truth, God had an answer to reluctance. He told Moses, Ok, take Aaron, but get going. He told Jonah, Think about it. Go on this cruise and see if you don’t change your mind. He told Peter: What I have cleansed, don’t call common. But, for whatever job He called on individuals to do He always empowered them to do it! Even as He told them to go into all the world and preach the gospel He told them, Lo, I am with you always, to the close of the age. Often, we are tempted to say, I don’t do... And, in truth God has given to us different talents and abilities and none of us can do any and everything we are asked to do. On the other hand, maybe we just need to adjust our thinking every once in awhile and get busy.
Internet
Services Provided by Iserv.