^{Submitted by}

^{Beth Farrah, SMT Writer}

Women received back their dead, raised to life again. HEBREWS 11:35, NIV

One thing we painfully learn throughout life, either by direct experience or observation is that rebellious children can come from any type of home. But even as they run from God and from us, and even in our anguish and frustration, we must hold them before God in prayer, trusting Him to lead them home when we no longer are able to. 

One of the greatest examples of this is Monica, the mother of Saint Augustine. She watched him spend his teenage and young adult years rejecting her Christian faith while outdoing his friends in seeking sinful pleasures.

At one point she persuaded him to meet with an unnamed bishop from North Africa. The bishop refused to speak to Augustine because he considered him as yet un-teachable. Even though the meeting proved unsuccessful, the bishop comforted Monica in her distress, saying, “It is impossible that the son of so many tears should perish” (from Confessions, St. Augustine). You may well know the rest of the story: The Lord God dramatically converted Augustine in his Roman garden, urging him to “take and read” the words of the Scriptures that would open his eyes to the wickedness of sin and the promises of Christ. 

Only the mother of a prodigal can quite understand the joy in Monica’s heart when she held her now-grown son in her arms, rescued by God’s grace and a mother’s prayerful tears.

She died nine days later—her purpose in living fulfilled. And Augustine went on to become one of the most influential figures in Church history. 

Oh, how the grief that can well up inside of us when we watch a child push God away! 

If you have a child who is breaking your heart, share with one another your concern, disappointment and sorrow.

PRAY

Beg the Lord to redeem His wayward children, by whatever means that will get them back. And pray that you will have hearts whose hope is in God.

Proverbs 22:6 NKJV

(6)  Train up a child in the way he should go, And when he is old he will not depart from it.

You may say Pastor I didn’t raise my children the way I know that I should have.

Prayer still changes things and with God all things are possible!

Written by

Dee Loflin, SMT Manager/Writer

Dexter, Missouri – HOPE International, based in Bernie, Missouri will be driving a truck of supplies to the victims of the tornadoes in Oklahoma on Thursday, May 23rd. 

They need your help!  They are asking for donations for relief efforts and the items requested are hygiene products such as toothpaste, toothbrushes, soap, hand sanitizer, deodorant, and shampoo.  They are also collecting bottled water or bottled drinks, cots, and blankets.  Some other great items in need are mosquito wipes/sprays, baby wipes, and Chap Stick.

You may also make a monetary donation at their facility at 601 S. Walnut in Bernie or call 573-239-HOPE (4673) for more information. 

Please open your hearts and your pocketbooks and donate to those who have lost everything.  You may drop items off between the hours of 9 a.m. – 4 p.m. today and Wednesday.

The Lighthouse Church in Dexter will also serve as a drop-off location from now until Wednesday from 9 a.m. – 4 p.m. 

In Idalia, Missouri, the St. Joe Family Life Center located at 17527 State Hwy FF has also been designated as a drop-off site and will be open from 9 a.m. – 4 p.m. 

Once the truck leaves for Moore, Oklahoma, please continue to donate.  Once they get another truckload they will continue their efforts by delivering all the much-needed items.

Our prayers and thoughts are with the families who have suffered so much.

Submitted by

Beth Farrah, SMT Writer

Romans 12:1-5 NKJV (1)  I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that you present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable to God, which is your reasonable service.

(2)  And do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, that you may prove what is that good and acceptable and perfect will of God.

(3)  For I say, through the grace given to me, to everyone who is among you, not to think of himself more highly than he ought to think, but to think soberly, as God has dealt to each one a measure of faith.

(4)  For as we have many members in one body, but all the members do not have the same function,

(5)  so we, being many, are one body in Christ, and individually members of one another.

God's kindness to us is demonstrated by the fact that He doesn't leave us in the condition we were in before coming to faith. How tragic it would be if we still thought, felt, and acted the same way we did before receiving Christ as our Savior. Throughout our lives, the Lord uses His choice tools to shape us into the image of His Son.

Prayer. By talking to the Lord in open dialogue, we develop a relationship with Him. He becomes not just our Savior, but our friend, and as the intimacy grows, so will our passion to be with Him. Setting aside time for prayer each day will become a delight, not a duty.

God's Word. You can't grow in your Christian life if you keep the Bible closed all week long. No one lives on one meal a week, yet many Christians try to get by with just a Sunday dinner of the Word served up by their pastor. How can we expect God's truth to do its transforming work if we never let it into our minds and hearts?

The Church. Christ uses His body of believers as a place for transformation. That's where we rub against each other and have the rough edges of our character smoothed. It is a place of instruction, accountability, and encouragement.

Are you letting the Lord use His character-shaping tools in your life?

Our culture has no shortage of worldly voices and pressures that fill minds and influence behavior. Only when we intentionally schedule time for God, His Word, and His people can Christ do His transforming work in our lives.

Submitted by

Beth Farrah, SMT Writer

Why do you look at the speck of sawdust in your brother’s eye and pay no attention to the plank in your own eye? —Matthew 7:3

I read a story about a business owner who constantly complained about the dirty windows of his competitor’s store, directly across the street from his own. Perhaps it was just his pet peeve, but the store owner complained continually to other business owners in the community about how his competitor’s dirty windows were a disgrace to the community, and how it could reflect poorly on his own business.

Another local shopkeeper, tired of hearing the owner’s ongoing complaints, suggested that he set a good example and wash his own store windows. The storeowner took the shopkeeper’s advice and washed his own windows. The following day, the two met for coffee and the storeowner, remarked, “You were right. It worked! As soon as I washed my windows, my competitor must have washed their store windows also! This morning I noticed from my store that they were clean and shining!”

The storeowner had simply suffered from blurred vision. He judged his competitor wrongly! When he cleaned the windows of his own store, he was able to see that his competitor’s windows were also clean!

Sometimes, we look at others with blurred vision. We see things in other people’s lives that we don’t think are right or acceptable and find fault with them. We judge them. Sometimes, like the storeowner, we complain to others about the faults we think we see. But, too often when we find fault in others it is simply because our own vision is blurry. I know, for example, when I find fault in others it is often regarding issues I have in my own life. I find that I have a tendency to project real faults in myself – onto others – who most likely don’t have those faults at all. Jesus warns us not to judge others (Matthew 7:1) and addresses the issue saying, “...first take the plank out of your own eye, and then you will see clearly to remove the speck from your brother’s eye” (Matthew 7:5).

Today, when you are tempted to judge or complain about someone, take a moment first to see if it is only your own vision that is blurred.

GOING DEEPER:

1. Think of an example in your own life where you’ve recently judged someone about the “speck” in their eye, knowing that you have a “plank” in your own eye to deal with.

2. Why do you think it’s so easy to have “blurred vision” when it comes to other people? What can you do today to clear your vision – and not judge someone else?

FURTHER READING:

[Matthew 7:1-5; Romans 2:1; 1 Samuel 16:7]