Saturday was a busy day for us. We had bunches of students from Centenary joining us to help around the center for their Big Event happening. Some walked the neighborhood picking up trash. Others painted the center and sanctuary. Some hung clothes. A few bag groceries. We had some in the kitchen wrapping bread. And some in the garden. Later in the morning Benny and Matt led Bible study. Good times were had by all.
Scott and Dawn made our last outdoor friends visit. Some drama in the camps but for the most part all went well. Starting this Saturday, April 5th, Tim will take over the leadership roll in this area. All walks will begin at the Hope House starting at 9 am and then another walk around noon. Tim has been preparing for this ministry for many months and we are blessed to have him take this role. If it's been awhile since you have been on a walk, try to go by and support Tim and the Hope House.
Monday and Wednesday, we continue to have great success in helping our children with their homework. Amazing to see the lvoe being shown to our children through those who come and help out. We can always use more help if you want to come and join in.
Monday, one of our friends, following God's calling and left us for awhile. Dawn is now in Florida, gone but not forgotten. She will be with us through email. You never know, one day we may see her again!
Tuesday morning, Lomax left us for his adventure in Lebanon. He will be gone for a month, traveling and seeing things we have no clue what is going on in that part of the world. He will be mainly supporting a new friend in a school based environment. But knowing Lomax, he might venture off into un chartered waters?! Please keep him in your prayers this month.
Tuesday evening, another special night of the men of the community coming together sharing their hearts on how God is changing their lives. Ricky led us in reading from 1st Samuel chapter 15: 19-24. God talking to Samuel about it is more important to be obedient in the eyes of the Lord, than to make sacrifices. Are we following the will of God in our lives or are we trying to "look good" in the eyes of others?
Thursday in chapel, we were treated to songs and words from our friends, Heather, Derek and Richard. They always tell us, being with us in chapel is the highlight of their week. We are blessed by their faithfulness. Benny and Shelly treated us to barbeque chicken for our meal, with the help of Ms Abbie and her kitchen crew helping with the sides. A good size crowd for the evening, enjoying everything God had to offer.
For the next few months, Lisa will have a Board meeting on the first Thursday after our meals. If you want to bring anything up to her, send an email to her before the meeting so she can share it with the Board. Highlights of the meeting. We are working towards a fundraiser for sometime in September at Centenary. Plans are still being worked out. Plans are underway for housing our interns for the summer. Isn't that cool! New floors have been sealed and waxed. Ricky did a great job. Discussions about opening up the sanctuary. Safety concerns were brought up to address before we can move forward.
As Hat reported, William is back on his medication and doing better, moving to Dallas for the moment. Continued prayers for him. Saw on Face book, Sarah and Scott will become parents in the near future. Prayers for them and their little one. Continued prayers for my wife. Her first check up was good, still a ways to go for full recovery.
"To obey is better than sacrifice, and to heed is better than the fat of the rams". Samuel told Saul this in verse 22. Why do we do what we do? Why do we go to church on the weekends? Why do we go to Common Ground during the week? Do we "do" religion because that is what we have always done? Have we become complacent in our attitudes and our actions? Are we obeying God's will or showing up because we want to look good?
We talked about folks this time of year making sacrifices for the Lenten season. I gave up brussel sprouts for lent. What a sacrifice! I did it to look good, not because I was obeying God's will. Many folks make New Years resolutions. Why, not because they are obeying the will of God but because that is what you do in January. God wants us to obey His will, not to make a sacrifice to look good.
Why do you do what you are doing for the Kingdom? A hard question. In verse 23 . . . arrogance like the evil of idolatry. You start doing things out of the ordinary and your friends say to you, man you sure are doing great stuff. Or they might say, sure wish I had time to do what you are doing. Our chests start to puff out, our egos start to inflate and before you know it, it becomes about us and not about God.
We have to constantly work on our pride and remember it is not about us but about God. We need to check our hearts. We need to check our egos. We need to check our pride and ask ourselves, what are we doing and why are we doing it.
The last part of verse 22, says . . . to heed is better than the fat of rams. God wants us to follow His will, obey His commandments. We will blessed beyond our imagination if we do. Even though we might not see those blessings today or tomorrow, but He says they will come. And if God says they will come, they will come! Amen.
Hope you have a great week. Hope you are able to get out in the sunshine and enjoy the majesty of God's canvas. May we all obey His will in our lives this week and enjoy the blessings of His Kingdom.
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