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First Sunday of Pentecost-B-June 8
04
Jun
Organizing For Ministry–We often think that the church cares for its members and decades ago that was true in small churches but today, even small churches have problems ministering to their members. Previously, small churches usually drew from a small area and everyone knew each other outside church as well as in the church. In addition, many members were active in a lot of church activities. As a result, they felt free to call on each other in times of need. Now churches draw from a wide area and few know each other outside church. In addition, because of the distance, few members are active in church outside of Sunday morning. As a result, many do not feel they know other members enough to call on them in times of need. The church needs to group its people by area and provide activities in the small groups where members can socialize outside Sunday morning.
First Sunday of Pentecost-A-June 8
04
Jun
Not just for Pastors-Many people think that only preachers can lead people to Christ, but Jesus said to His disciples, “Come, follow me and I will make you fishers of men. While there have been times when evangelists like George Whitefield and Billy Graham have risen to call God’s people to repentance, the main response has come mainly from within the body of believers. Few outside the church responded until revival had swept through the church and unbelievers saw the change in the life of believers and wanted that life. When the church has had a highly trained and highly paid clergy, the church has generally not been very effective in reaching the lost because members leave evangelism to the clergy. The greatest inflow of unchurched people occurred during the early church before they had paid clergy, during the Wesleyan revival when Wesley organized small groups of converts under lay pastor’s, and in the American wilderness when believers gathered to pray and study the Bible while waiting for the Lord to send them a pastor. Although John Wesley and George Whitfield preached extensively and circuit riders rode throughout the American wilderness establishing churches, members of those churches continued to reach out to those around them, inviting unbelievers to hear the traveling preachers. It has been said that church isn’t a haven for saints but one beggar telling another where to find bread.
Senior Citizen Issues-L
04
Jun
L-Liberals continue to yell about how Social Security is running out of money and they will need to cut benefits or raise Social Security taxes that workers pay. There would have been plenty of money for the future if liberals had not raided the Social Security fund to fund their social welfare programs. Seniors should demand that there be no more cuts in benefits or raises in Social Security taxes until every cent taken out is returned to Social Security along with the interest it would have earned. They are not cutting benefits to those on welfare and are in fact expanding them, even though those on welfare did not pay into the system. The Democrat’s main interest is in increasing those who are dependent on the government though receiving welfare payments and through expanding the number of those employed by the government. They claim that Republicans are going to cut welfare, cut Social Security, and reduce the number working for the government, to get the recipients to vote for Democrats. They showed where their priorities lay when they passed the Fairness Act that benefited government workers by allowing them to double dip and receive both Social Security and government pensions while further depleting the Social Security fund. Doing so will result in reducing time before Social Security payments will have to be cut due to the shortfall that will be created when Social Security payments exceed the amount taken in in Social Security taxes. Seniors worked their whole life to put that money aside and if there are any cuts, the cuts should be to those who haven’t paid into the system before they cut benefits to those who have paid in. While Republicans will cut benefits, it will be to those that are not eligible, not to those actually in need. Though Republicans will cut some off Social Security, it will be those in the country illegally who did not pay into the system. Though Republicans will cut government workers, they will cut those who are not really needed. Our bloated government bureaucracy wastes millions of dollars a year which needs to be stopped.
Ascension Sunday -June 1
02
Jun
(B) Sunday before Pentecost- Dedicating Our Talents-The seventh Sunday of Eastertide is Ascension Sunday when we celebrate Christ’s return to heaven. When Christ finished giving His disciples their assignment, He ascended into heaven, leaving them to carry on the work until He returns (Acts1:7-11). In the parable of the talents (Math. 25:14-30) Jesus makes it clear that He was leaving His disciples and entrusting them to carry on His work. He indicates that He has given everyone talents to help build His kingdom. Some have many talents, some have very few. He indicated that one day He is coming back and those who are in Christ will stand before Him to give an account of how we used the talents He gave us. How we use those talents will determine our eventual reward. If we use those talents abundantly, He will reward us abundantly but if we squander them, we will receive little or no reward when He returns. Eastertide should have been a time when members sought their talents and the church sought ways to use those talents. If so, Ascension Sunday should be a time when they commit themselves to the summer evangelistic work so that Pentecost can be a fruitful time of winning souls.
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May
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Fifth Sunday of Eastertide-May 25
22
May
Develop new ministries Our society glorifies personal accomplishments, but we are limited as we try to accomplish things alone. The church needs to take this time to help members discover where they can use their gifts in current ministries and survey the community to discover the needs around it so it can develop new ways to minister to those in need and use the gifts of those who don’t fit in current ministries. Many churches continue to put their effort into the same old ministries it has always carried out and fail to take advantage of newly discovered gifts and the changing needs around it. The church also needs to introduce its members to Christian Social Service agencies that may have need of their talents.
Politics-AB-AY
22
May
The Democratic party has always been autocratic. While they call themselves Democrats, they do not support the vote by the general population. It was founded by the Aristocrats in the South to protect slavery. They felt they knew better than the slaves and poor Whites what was best for them. The party was formed with a strong central leadership that has frequently overruled the will of their members. It has continued to be run by the leadership but has become more dictatorial in recent years. The Democratic Party now has a large number of delegates at large which includes former Presidents, major donors, and other important people. In the national convention, after the vote by the delegates elected by the States, the delegates at large add their votes. There are enough of them to alter a close vote. Both Hillary Clinton and Joe Biden were eventually nominated to be the Democrat candidate, yet both complained that they had been passed over in the nomination for president in previous elections, even though they won the Democratic primaries. It was evident in the vote for Obamacare. Several pro-life Democrats in Congress refused to vote for the abortion amendment. They were called to the White and later voted for the amendment. Apparently President Obama threatened to withhold support from the Democrat party and Planned Parenthood which would have crippled their reelection campaigns. The Republican Party was formed to oppose slavery and has usually been responsive to the will of their members. They have very few members at large and they generally support the candidate elected in the primaries. While they encourage their members to vote for certain legislation, they don’t blackmail them to get them to comply.