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May 25, 2014

WELCOME!
WE'RE GLAD YOU'RE HERE

We are a group of believers who simply try to follow the Bible as a guide for all we do. Everything done in our worship service is something for which we have a Bible basis. You are welcome to participate as much or as little as you wish. We will sing hymns together and we will observe the Lord's Supper or Communion together. We will also have an opportunity to give to the work of God in this area. This collection is for the members here, and if you are visiting you should not feel and pressure to give. Our lesson time will be divided into two groups. The young children will go to our classroom area in the basement where they will be taught the Bible at a level they can understand. The adults will stay in the auditorium for a lesson at an adult level. We do try to serve the community, and if you have some needs that we can help you with, mention it to one of the members. Thank you for worshipping with us.

FAMILY NEWS

POTLUCK NEXT SUNDAY: Next Sunday is the first Sunday in June, so we will enjoy a fellowship meal together. Bring a dish and enjoy good food, good folks, and time to visit and enjoy the prospect of summer after such a long winter.

CAMP SESSIONS: Most of our kids were at Camp Indogan last Sunday after several days of being a part of that great Christian camp. Our thanks to those who provided transportation and made sure the kids had everything they needed. There are other camp sessions at Indogan. If you are interested in that work and in what is available, see Karl or Julie Marcussen.

LOTS TO BE THANKFUL FOR: Richard Hoyt's son is back from Nigeria where he served our country for the past several years. We have prayed for his safe return and we are thankful he is back on American soil safe and sound. Keep Gatwech in your prayers as he travels back to his family, who are in Ethiopia now after escaping the South Sudan. So far he and his family are safe, but they lost everything when their home was invaded in the South Sudan. Hearing his story should make us all so thankful that we live in relative safety and security in the United States.

TODAY'S LESSON

MEMORIAL DAY

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John Clayton
THE HISTORY
A. June 3, 1861 — Civil War graves, Warrenton, Virginia
B. May 1, 1865 — Memorial Day, Charleston, South Carolina
C. May 30, 1868 — Decoration Day, Michigan
D. Title in 1967 — Last Monday in May in 1971
E. Not to confuse Memorial Day with Veterans Day
F. God calls us to participate in memorials
I. WE SHOW WHAT WE VALUE BY OBSERVING MEMORIALS.
A. Acts 10:4
B. God knows our priorities by what we honor.
C. The current diva or Jesus Christ?
II. THE VALUE WE ATTACH IS RADIATED BY WHAT WE GIVE.
A. Matthew 26:6 –13
B. Next verse Judas sells Christ.
III. RECALLING VERSUS REMEMBERING VERSUS RECOLLECTING
A. Mneia — recalling
1. Philippians 1:3
2. 1 Thessalonians 3:6
3. 2 Timothy 1:3
4. 2 Peter 1:15
B. Anamnesis — a remembering again
1. Luke 22:19
2. 1 Corinthians 11:24-25
C. Hupomnesis — recollecting
1. 2 Timothy 1:5
2. 2 Peter 1:13, 15, and 3:1
3. Memorial Day is to recollect — stir our minds
IV. GOD — “HONOR THE RIGHT THINGS THE R1GHTWAY.”
A. Doxa — honor —  John 5:40
1. We are not to engage in a praise hunt.
2. Revelation 19:1 — This is what we honor.
B. Timao — weight kind of honor
1. John 4:44
2. Matthew 15:4
3. Ephesians 6:24
4. 1 Timothy 5:3
5. 1 Peter 3:7
6. Romans 13:7
C. Entimos — honorable — to be exhalted
1. Luke 14:7 –11
2. This we do as a country for those who died for us.
V. WE AS CHRISTIANS REMEMBER GOD DAILY.
A. This is why we sing and why we give.
B. This is what communion is about.
C. How we live reflects our appreciation.
D. God makes the tools available to us to do this.

THE BACK PAGE

MEMORIAL DAY — AN EVOLUTION

It began as Decoration Day when immediately after the Civil War people designated a special day to decorate the graves of those who died in the Civil War. By the end of the 19th century, people were putting an American flag on every grave in the national cemeteries. In the early 20th century the name was changed to Memorial Day because people were visiting the graves of relatives in church cemeteries whether they had served in the military or not. The gradual change of the purpose of Memorial Day was considered to be a good thing, to bring people in touch with the modern times in which we live.

As the 20th century rolled along, a day was added to the weekend when people did not have to work because people needed time to reflect on the sacrifices that had been made in the past to allow Americans to enjoy the freedom we have. Gradually that was forgotten and the day became a day for family gatherings, and events were added to facilitate family activities — the most notable being the Indianapolis 500 race which was added in 1911. With that success other events have been added and the tourist industry has designated the day as the beginning of the summer tourist season. The Coca-Cola 600 stock car race was started in 1961, the Memorial Tournament golf event in 1976.

As a country we have moved from a day that began as a solemn reminder of the tragedy of civil war and the incredible pain and loss that it brought, to a day that features barbecues, events with massive use of alcohol and an emphasis on pleasure and entertainment, and virtually no mention of its original purpose.

The same evolutionary process is happening with Sunday. Sunday was the day the Christians came together to give (1 Corinthians 16:1), to engage in the Lord's Supper, and to have God's word preached to them (Acts 20:7). It has turned into a day of secular entertainment, special events, and recreation. Where will you be tonight? Are we as a body evolving into something better, or de-evolving into the world?

— John Clayton