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BulletinGold
#138
|
June
2012
|
Vol.
12
Num.
4
|
Editors:
|
David
Bragg
|
Edward
Thomason
|
| BulletinGold |
BulletinGold
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In This
Issue:
|
Articles
|
Nuggets
|
Poems
|
Quotes
|
- The Power of
Forgiveness…, by Bryan Kirby
- Complaints
- Have
We Left
Off Part of the Armor? by Clifton
Angel
- We
Were
Forewarned! by Ron
Bartanen |
- Wisdom
- THE
TRUTH
- Empty!
by
Steve Higginbotham
- A Spark |
- It’s
In the Valleys We Grow
- When
Sorrow
Walked With Me, by Robert Browning
- Waste
Not a
Single Hour, by Clay Harrison
- Falling From Grace |
quotes & sayings for
bulletins and signs
|
| Editorial by
David Bragg |
Welcome to the June issue of
BulletinGold!
Thank you to all our contributors and
subscribers for
your great support.
David
Bragg
http://davebragg.blog.com/
|
| Panning
for Gold Feature
Articles: |
|
The Power of Forgiveness…
By Bryan
Kirby
Since I have
been working as a
minister, I have by necessity become a
student of human
nature. During this time, I have been
amazed by the
amount of time and energy people put
into staying mad at
others for extended periods of time.
This grudge holding
marathon that some will pursue, however,
has a very
nasty habit of pursuing them in the end.
The problems
that this course of life ends up causing
with the
relationships in their lives can hardly
be overstated.
So what do
grudges actually do
to those that hold them? First and
foremost, holding a
grudge and nursing anger opens up a
place for the devil
in our lives. Ephesians 4:26-27 says,
―"Be angry and do
not sin; do not let the sun go down on
your anger, and
give no opportunity to the devil." When
we allow anger
to fester for any period of time, we are
giving the
devil an opportunity to come into our
hearts and set up
shop. As we know from 1 Peter 5:8, Satan
is that roaring
lion that is seeking someone to devour
and anger is an
easy way to accomplish that task.
We also see
that carrying anger
(or holding a grudge) does a lot of
damage to the
relationships around us. When our lives
are dictated by
a grudge, we lose sight of others. We
fail to treat them
with the dignity and respect that all
other people
deserve. In particular, the person with
whom we are
angry suffers the most. We are also apt
to direct our
frustration and anger at that person in
ways that are
unbecoming and inappropriate for a
Christian. I am
ashamed at the number of times I have
witnessed
Christians "letting each other have it"
in the most
unchristian like fashion in the middle
of the church
building! This is something that should
never, ever
happen, but when we carry our grudges,
we fail to put
our mouths and hands under the LORD’s
control.
All of these
things clearly
violate the commands of the New
Testament. Jesus Himself
pointed out that the second greatest
command in the Law
was for one to love their neighbor as
his or herself.
Paul tells us in Romans 13:8-11 that
loving our neighbor
is required for us to fulfill the law of
Christ.
Blasting one another or holding grudges
for long past
offenses is a far cry from fulfilling
the law of loving
our neighbor. However bad and pervasive
anger may seem,
it does not have to be the end of our
relationships with
one another or with God. There is
something that is more
powerful than anger, but a little harder
to come by.
That thing is forgiveness. Forgiveness
is something that
we all desire – we don’t want people to
stay mad when we
mess up. Forgiveness is something that
Jesus Himself
said is required from us – we don’t gain
God’s
forgiveness without giving it ourselves
(Matthew
6:14-15). Forgiveness is something that
we find
ourselves so very unwilling to give – it
is hard to let
go of the offenses that others have
committed against
us. Once we do forgive, we will find
that our lives will
be filled with fewer burdens, less
stress and more
fulfilling relationships. Forgiveness
opens
communication and helps us all grow
stronger. That way,
we can fight together to overcome
problems instead of
fighting with one another. With
forgiveness in our
hearts, we can lift one another up and
help each other
make it to heaven.
- Bryan Kirby preaches for the Goodwood
Boulevard church
of Christ in Baton Rouge, LA. He may be
contacted
through the congregation's website at http://www..goodwoodchurch.org
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Complaints
Never once did our
Lord have a path
free from trouble.
When He went into the
wilderness, He
was tempted of the Devil.
When He tried to
rest, the multitudes
followed Him.
When He taught in the
synagogue, the
hearers became angry and sought to throw
Him off the
brow of the hill.
When He gave others
rest for their
souls, He had no place to lay His head.
When He sought peace
in the garden,
they came with swords and staves and led
Him away to the
halls of judgment.
When He did His best
to be kind and
loving in face of mockery, they took Him
as a sheep to
the slaughter and drenched Calvary with
His precious
blood. And yet, in spite of it all, He
never grumbled
about His burden. Jesus did not complain
at all! He just
went about doing good. Let us be like
Him! The busiest
are the happiest.
Cheerful, active
labor is a blessing.
The busy, the active, the happy, the
cheerful—don’t have
time to complain.
- Borrowed, author unknown; via The
Contender, the
weekly bulletin published by the Walnut
Grove church of
Christ in Benton, KY. Kevin
Williams preaches for
the congregation. He may be
contacted through the
church's website: http://walnutgrovechurchofchrist.org/
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Have We Left Off Part of
the Armor?
By
Clifton Angel
In a recent
study concerning
the very popular “armor of God” of
Ephesians 6,
something caught my eye in a way that it
never has
before. In verses 11 and 13, the Apostle
Paul
emphatically states that we, as
Christians, must put on
“the whole armor of God”. In verse 12,
he reminds the
brethren at Ephesus that we are in a
spiritual battle,
and that the ONLY possibility of
standing against the
“wiles” (Greek--schemes, methods) of
Satan requires the
whole armor of God. He continues in the
text by defining
the very familiar armor:
Stand therefore, having
your loins girt about with truth, and
having on the
breastplate of righteousness; And your
feet shod with
the preparation of the gospel of
peace; Above all,
taking the shield of faith, wherewith
ye shall be able
to quench all the fiery darts of the
wicked. And take
the helmet of salvation, and the sword
of the Spirit,
which is the word of God: (Eph.
6:14-17).
If we are going
to stand
against our “adversary, the devil” (1
Pet. 5:8), we must
put on the girdle of truth, the
breastplate of
righteousness, the foot protection of
the preparation of
the gospel of peace, the shield of
faith, the helmet of
salvation, and the sword of the Spirit.
However, is
this the whole
armor of God? Is this truly where Paul
ends the
spiritual armor? I encourage you to
thoughtfully
consider my next statement: If we end at
verse 17 with
the armor of God, we are going to be
leaving off a most
important part of the spiritual armor.
Remember, Paul
said we are in a
spiritual battle (v. 12), and that we
must put on “the
whole armor of God” (vv. 11, 13).
Furthermore, several
Greek texts, and the standard English
translations do
not end Paul’s sentence at the end of
verse 17. Rather,
the sentence continues past, and
includes “praying
always with all prayer and supplication
in the Spirit”.
Dear friends, if we leave prayer out of
our preparation
for warfare “against principalities,
against powers,
against the rulers of the darkness of
this world” (v.
12), we will NOT have the whole armor of
God. As we put
on our girdles, breastplates, foot
protection, and
helmets, and pick up our swords and
shields, let us not
forget to guard our hearts and minds by
praying always
(v. 18).
- Clifton Angel preaches for the
Coldwater church of
Christ in Coldwater, MS. He may be
contacted through
that congregation's website: http://www.coldwatercofc.com/
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We Were Forewarned!
By Ron Bartanen
Charles
Francis Potter
famously wrote already in 1930:
“Education is thus a
most powerful ally of humanism, and
every American
school is a school of humanism.
What can a
theistic Sunday school’s meeting for an
hour once a week
and teaching only a fraction of the
children do to stem
the tide of the five-day program of
humanistic
teaching?”
Thus we were
forewarned. The
schools of our nation were first
promoted by
Christians. When they were taken
over then by
government and secular humanists, young
minds have since
been fed with philosophies and theories
that have
eliminated God. Once evolution was
allowed to
stand alongside creation as a
theoretical explanation
for the origin of all things, it soon
proved to be the
Trojan horse, from which has emerged an
army of
faith-destroying dogmas of
humanism. Sadly,
most were ignorant of Satan’s
devices!
- Ronald Bartanen preaches for Arthur
church of Christ,
Arthur, IL. He may be contacted
through the
congregation's website: http://www.arthurchurchofchrist.com
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| Nuggets
&
Quick
Riches
-
misc. goodies |
|
Wisdom
*True wisdom comes when we learn to
discern the
difference between the passing and the
eternal in our
lives.
*The worst thing about wisdom is that it
can only be
acquired on the installment plan.
*As a man grows older and wiser, he
talks less and says
more.
*A wise man is not as certain of
anything as a fool is
of everything.
*Knowledge is knowing a fact. Wisdom is
knowing what to
do with that fact.
*To know what to do with what you know
is the essence of
true wisdom.
*Many people might have attained to
wisdom had they not
assumed that they already had it.
*Wisdom is knowing when to speak your
mind and when to
mind your speech.
Psalm 111:10 The fear of the Lord is the
beginning of
wisdom;
- Copied from the Pottsville church of
Christ bulletin;
via The
Central
Message, the weekly bulletin of
the Central
church of Christ in Paducah KY.
Jim Faughn serves
as an elder and preacher for the
congregation. He
may be contacted through the
congregation's website at:
http://www.centralchurchofchrist.org
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THE
TRUTH
* KNOW IT (John 8:32)
* LOVE IT (2 Thess. 2:10)
* BELIEVE IT (2 Thess. 2:12)
* OBEY IT (1 Pet. 1:22)
* TELL IT (Eph. 4:15)
* HELP IT (3 John 8)
- Selected; via the weekly bulletin of
the Harrisburg
church of Christ in Harrisburg,
IL. You may visit
their website at http://www.harrisburgchurchofchrist.org
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Empty!
By Steve
Higginbotham
This past week, a
friend of mine (who
will remain nameless) had some car
trouble more than 500
miles from his home. If you've ever been
in that
situation, it is certainly disconcerting
to say the
least. What do you do? Who do you call?
How much will it
cost? All these questions rush through
your mind. In my
friend's case, after paying a tow truck,
it was just a
matter of putting gas in the gas tank
(now do you see
why he will remain nameless?)
But in his defense,
while he ran out
of gas, his gas gauge was showing that
he still had a
quarter of a tank of gas remaining. Of
course, I
couldn't help but see a spiritual
application in this
event.
How many people do
you suppose are
trusting in a "fallible gauge?" How many
people do you
think are being told they're alright,
but their "tank is
empty?" I do know that on the day of
judgment, there
will be some who stand before Christ,
surprised that
they are not saved (Matthew 7:21-23).
To avoid such a fate,
we must trust
in the only "gauge" that will never fail
and never
mislead us...the word of God. Friends,
spend time in
God's word so that you can make your
calling and
election sure.
- Steve Higginbotham preaches for the
Karns Church of
Christ in Knoxville, TN. He may be
contacted through the
congregation's website at http://www.karnschurch.org
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A Spark
Our lives are not determined by what
happens to us but
by how we react to what happens, not by
what life brings
to us, but by the attitude that causes a
chain reaction
of positive thoughts, events and
outcomes. It is a
catalyst, a spark that creates
extraordinary results.
- Author unknown; Taken from Briensburg
church of Christ
bulletin via The Central Message,
the weekly
bulletin of the Central church of Christ
in Paducah
KY. Jim Faughn serves as an elder
and preacher for
the congregation. He may be
contacted through the
congregation's website at: http://www.centralchurchofchrist.org |
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| Hearts
of Gold
- poetry |
It’s
In the Valleys We Grow
Sometimes life seems hard to bear,
Full of sorrow, trouble and woe.
It’s then we have to remember,
That it’s in the valleys we grow.
If we always stayed on the mountain top,
And never experienced pain,
We would never appreciate God’s love
And would be living in vain.
We have so much to learn,
And our growth is very slow;
Sometimes we need the mountain tops,
But it’s in the valleys we grow.
We do not always understand
Why things happen as they do,
But I am very sure of one thing—
My Lord will see me through.
The little valleys are nothing
When we picture Christ on the cross;
He went through the valley of death;
His victory was Satan’s loss.
Forgive me, Lord, for complaining
When I’m feeling so very low.
Just give me a gentle reminder
That it’s in the valleys I grow.
Continue to strengthen me, Lord
And use my life each day
To share your love with others
And help them find their way.
Thank you for the valleys, Lord,
For this one thing I know,
The mountain tops are glorious,
But it’s in the valleys I grow.
- Unknown, via THE
SOWER, a weekly publication of
the Arthur
church of Christ, Arthur, IL. Ron
Bartanen, who serves
as minister and editor, may be contacted
through the
congregation's website: http://www.arthurchurchofchrist.com
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When Sorrow
Walked With Me
By Robert
Browning
I walked a mile with Pleasure,
She chattered all the way,
But she left me none the wiser
For all she had to say.
I walked a mile with Sorrow,
And ne’er a word said she;
But, oh, the things I learned from her
When Sorrow walked with me!
- via THE
SOWER,
a weekly publication of the Arthur
church of Christ,
Arthur, IL. Ron Bartanen, who serves as
minister and
editor, may be contacted through the
congregation's
website: http://www.arthurchurchofchrist.com
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Waste
Not a Single Hour
By
Clay Harrison
Yesterday is a reminder
of days both good and bad,
The trials that taught us lessons
and good times we have had.
The future still is waiting
as a dream awaits the night
To become a reality
before the morning light.
The past may bring us memories
to treasure through the
years,
And the future keeps the dream alive
despite our doubts and
fears.
But, oh, my friend, we have today
to live, and laugh and
cry...
A day our Lord has given
that soon will pass us by.
- Clay Harrison; Submitted by Mark
McWhorter. Mark
may be contacted at mtmcvb@concentric.net
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Falling
From Grace
We are often told that a Christian can't
fall,
That once he is saved there's no danger
at all:
No matter how far he may lapse into sin,
The gates will swing open and let him
pass in.
But let it be stated in language that's
terse,
That no one can cite the Book, chapter
or verse
Which teach the Christian cannot fall
away,
And lose his soul in the great judgment
day.
His body Paul tried to keep under sway
Lest he be rejected and be cast away,
And thus he has set the example for all,
That we may be warned not to stumble and
fall.
And then he harks back to the
Israelites' day,
Then twenty-three thousand had fallen
away.
He issues this sobering warning to all,
"If one think he standeth, take heed
lest he fall."
In writing to Timothy, Paul boldly
saith,
That some had already made shipwreck of
faith;
And Peter said Christians should watch
every hour,
For Satan is seeking whom he may devour.
'Tis plain to be seen from what we have
just learned
That Christians today from the Lord may
be turned;
And those who still think that a
Christian can't fall,
Are not in agreement with Peter and
Paul.
- Author Unknown; via the weekly
bulletin of the Lebanon
Road church of Christ in Nashville, TN.
Adam Faughn
serves as the pulpit minister for the
congregation, and
he may be contacted through the
congregation’s website
at: http://www.lebanonroadchurchofchrist.org
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| Gold Mines ---- quotes,
sayings & sign messages |
“IT TAKES
COURAGE to stand up and be counted, but
to keep on
standing after being counted is the real
test.”
“Youth would be an ideal state if it
came a little later
in life.” (Henry Asquith)
“Rely on our dear Savior. He will
be the Father of
the fatherless and husband to the
widow. Trust in
the mercy and goodness of Christ, and
always be ready to
say with heartfelt resignation, ‘May the
Lord’s will be
done.’” (Andrew Jackson)
“For my part,
whatever anguish
of spirit it may cost, I am willing to
know the whole
truth, to know the worst, and to provide
for it.
(Patrick Henry, March 28, 1775)
One good thing about egotists—they don’t
talk about
other people.
Be careful of half-truths. You may
have the wrong
half.
- via THE
SOWER,
a weekly publication of the Arthur
church of Christ,
Arthur, IL. Ron Bartanen, who serves as
minister and
editor, may be contacted through the
congregation's
website: http://www.arthurchurchofchrist.com
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| BulletinGold
Extra ---- recent
postings
on
our
Blogsite |
- A
World Gone Gray, by Dalton Key
- Facing
the
Inevitability of Death, by David R.
Ferguson
- The
Spirit
of Involvement, by Dennis Gulledge
- Preaching
the
Gospel, by Harrell Davidson
- Humorous
Labeling
- Procrastination
- “Beautiful
Abbeys” by Kyle Moses
- The
Battle
in the Pews Trenches, by Mark Ray
- Grace
At
Work
- Why
Should
I Go To Church? by John Telgren
- SANITY
CHECK
- The Lamb of God
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