Bulletin / Prayer List 4-15-18

Prayer List
A.C. Quinn’s granddaughter, Laura Jean Morris needs our prayers.
Kathy Hill is recovering at home.
Florene Griffin is in Woodland Nursing Home room 423. It is behind TMC.
Frank Rhoden’s son is home recovering from a staph infection.

James Griffin, Jimmy Griffin, Jerry and Betty Harris, Billie Phillips, Billie Bradford, Betty Clark, Eddie Hickerson, Gary Hickerson, Dorothy Hodges, Bobbi King, Audrey McKin, Beryl Miller, Della Price, Eddie Rolens, Brian Scott and, Della Skerkis

Serving in the military; 
Faith Balzen, 
Cody Blomstedt, and 
Chris Johnson. All are in the U.S. at this time. 
Tyler Davies has been deployed to Guam. 
Josh Van Deren is scheduled to be deployed to Africa in July. 

Let us pray for our country and government leaders and those who are in harms way, military and civilian personnel. 
The effectual fervent prayer of a righteous man availeth much… 

Our sympathy and prayers go out to the Counts’ families in the lost Charles brother Dale. Let us pray for all of them traveling back from Arkansas

Beginning Sunday May 6thwe will change our Sunday evening service time from 6:00pm to 5:00pm. The change is to assist those who have trouble driving at night.

Pantry Item:

April 22 Prayers: Morning: Robert Embry – Robert Courtney
Evening: Alex Miller – Kerry King
Scripture Reading: Don Harrington





GRUDGE”
By Jim Bailey

Grudge not, that ye be not grudged.” This statement is obviously a paraphrase of Christ’s command on judging with some license in grammar. (Mt 7:1 KJV) Very early in the Old Testament there were warnings against grudging. (Lev 19:18) Webster’s defines it as, “a feeling of ill will or resentment because of some real or fancied wrong.” It is further explained as, “resenting or envying the good fortune of; and being reluctant to give, grant or allow (credit).” The Holy Spirit in both Peter and James gives instructions not to partake of this sin. (1 Pet 4: 9)(Jas 5: 9) Paul adds resentful giving to the list. (2 Cor. 9:7) 

Some of the helping verbs we use with grudge help us to better understand the nature of grudging. We can: hold, bear, nurse and harbor it. All of these and others show a tendency to cling to a problem that should have been forgiven and allowed to fade away. Harbor is especially descriptive. It is a place of shelter or refuge for anchoring a ship free from winds, waves and currents. When we do this with grudges, we make sure that they will be there when we want to use them. It implies that we mothball them in a safe, handy place in the back of our minds. Nursing has a similar protective meaning. 

When grudges are carried for a short or long time they can build up feelings of hate so intense that they can result in attempted or actual murder. Consider the cases of Cain and Abel, (Gen 4:5-8) King Saul and David, (1 Sam 19:10) (1 Sam 18:8) and Saul’s cousin Abner and Joab. (2 Sam 3: 22-39) The last scripture involved a long-time family feud. Nevertheless, God is the only one who can mete out revenge. (Rom 12:19).

When one carries a grudge, I think of keeping a needed document in my wallet for some future use. We can train the brain to bury such feelings by looking to Christ’s teachings. He tells us about the “renewal of our minds.” (Rom 12:2) As we fix our eyes on Jesus (Heb 12:2) we understand more and more the meaning of forgiveness. (Mk 11:25) (Lk 6:37) (Col 3:13) Grudges eat away at our faith and hurt us much more than those against whom they are held.