July 3^rd, 2016

9:30 am ________________________________________A Man Sent From God – John 1:6-8

10:00 am __________________________________As Many As Received HIM – John 1:10-13

Lord willing, we will have a church get-together (cook-out) on July 17^th (after services) at Waid Park. The church will provide drinks, ice, plates and utensils; talk to Mary Parks about what you should bring.

Nursery Today: Second Service: Mary P. , Alt. -- Lauren P.

Cleaning Schedule: This week - Dan & Jill , Next Week: Stan & Cherrie

Birthdays: July: 6^th – Henry Sword & Winna Groover, 9^th – Margaret Torrence, 11^th – Stan Anderson

Regarding Our Youths In This Perilous Time – By Daniel Parks, missionary in St. Croix, U.S.V.I.

Recent problems involving the youths of our island are a hot topic in the news media and in conversations of the citizenry. Many young people are said to be resorting to violence and other illegal acts. The situation has become so serious that some folks have called for the church to get involved in remedying it. (I note with interest that the hue and cry for “separation of church and state” wanes in times of moral crises. It should not surprise us that attempts to have a Godless society result in an ungodly society.)

I do not share the confidence many express in the “church” to provide a moral compass. I find in that institution far too many cads and rogues masquerading in the cloth of “holy men” who have perpetrated horrendous acts against youths for ages. Those miscreants have sexually molested both boys and girls, instructed them regarding rigging explosive devices to their bodies in order to commit suicide-murder in crowded public places, forced girls as young as twelve years old to marry against their will men who are half a century older, used little children as props in their demonstrations for their “family values”, et cetera ad nauseam. I do not want such people anywhere near my family, particularly my children and grandchildren.

I pray for divine intervention rather than church involvement and moral reformation. Christ turns the violent into nurturers, as He did to Saul of Tarsus (Acts 8:3 & 9:1-31).

And Christ uses godly parents to bless society with exemplary children. I am blessed to witness this in our own congregation. We do not expect perfection of our children. That would be far too much to ask of any member of Adam’s fallen race, and of the immediate offspring of parents who are quite imperfect themselves. But, to the best of my knowledge, none of our youths are engaged in the misconduct being reported in the media. I rejoice to see them sitting with their parents during the worship services and attentively listening to the gospel being preached. I appreciate the good manners they exhibit in my personal conversations with them, the willing obedience they render publicly to their parents, and their diligence in pursuing their studies in school and in preparing for their futures.

I thank Christ the Lord for His manifest blessings to our children. He in His mercy has restrained them from being as bad as they could be. He in His providence has given to them far more than they deserve, and thankfully distinguished them from the afore-cited delinquents. He in His grace has evidently already saved some of them. I pray that His grace will be bestowed unto all of them.

I exhort us all to obey the command and to expect the blessing promised in Proverb 22:6: “Train up a child in the way he should go, and when he is old he will not depart from it.” Christ is that “way” (John 14:6). He says, “Let the little children come to Me, and do not forbid them; for of such is the kingdom of heaven” (Matthew 19:14). Christ never mistreated anyone who came to Him. And never was anyone who came to Him afterward sorry for having done so.

If you truly love your children, you will do all within your power to ascertain that they are regularly hearing the gospel of Jesus Christ. If I truly love your children, I will ascertain that they hear the gospel every time you bring them to a worship service.

And I want all our children – and their parents – to know that I will gladly be of any help to them that I can be.

“ For Whosoever shall call upon the Name of the Lord shall be saved.” -- Romans 10:13