December 15, 2019

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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 any pressure to give. Our lesson time will be divided into two groups. The young children can go to our classroom area in the basement where they will be taught the Bible at a level they can understand, while the adults stay in the auditorium for a lesson at their level. We do try to serve the community, and if you have some needs that we can provide, mention it to one of the members. Thank you for worshipping with us.

FAMILY NEWS

PERSONAL: Cynthia and I have had a lot going on since we were last with you on November 17. We had planned to spend Thanksgiving with my daughters in Grapevine, Texas, near Fort Worth and in Abilene. My youngest daughter's husband, Jay, has been on our prayer list for quite a while as he is battling bone cancer. Holistic treatments and alternative medical practices based on marijuana have not worked. He has lost 45 pounds and has a baseball sized tumor on his brain, and he is not expected to survive much longer. We spent many hours trying to counsel and help both Jay, his three boys, and my daughter. We spent Thanksgiving with my other daughter in Abilene, Texas, and then returned to Grapevine for more counseling and working through the family struggles of losing a father and husband who is 57 years old. Thank you for your thoughts and prayers. John and Cynthia Clayton.

YOU ARE INVITED to the Claytons' this Tuesday for our annual Christmas party. Bring a salad, dessert, or covered dish, and a white elephant gift for each person. Turkey, ham, and drinks are provided, and we will eat at 6:00 P.M. The address is 1555 Echo Valley Dr., Niles. Call 269-687-9426, if you get lost or have a question.

NO CLASSES DECEMBER 25 AND JANUARY 1: We all need to be with family and friends on these two days, so our normal evening class at 7:00 P.M will not be held. This Wednesday we will continue our study of 2 Timothy, but our next Wednesday night class session will be January 8. We will have our normal worship times and our normal classes on the 22nd and 29th.

CHRISTMAS PARADE THANKS: Our float in the 2019 Dowagiac city Christmas parade was a huge success! What a wonderful thing it is to live in a place where this kind of event can be held without protests and violence. Many cities in the U.S. are so dominated by people opposed to God and to the teachings of Christ that having 100 floats which espoused faith in God and in Jesus as God's Son would be impossible. Our thanks to Bill and Patty Gibson for providing the float and straw, and to Lana Fox for the animal heads. We also want to thank everyone who came out on a cold night and represented the church as a part of the community. Just hearing the introduction of our congregation and all we do to those in the grandstand area is always a thrill for me. Thanks everyone, for making this work.

TODAY'S LESSON

RESENTMENT
John Clayton

INTRODUCTION: GOD WANTS EVERYONE TO REPENT.

A. Definition — a behavior based on does and don't.

1. Things done to you that you want revenge for.
2. Things not done that should have been done.
3. They all hurt — do you want revenge?

B. Do you want to hurt them as much as they hurt you?

1. Not a distant memory — fresh in our minds.
2. Holidays are likely to rekindle resentment.

C. Christ calls us to live resent free lives (read Matthew 5-7 — mostly deals with avoiding resentment).

I. DAVID'S WORST DAY GIVES US A LESSON — 2 SAMUEL 16:5-8.

A.David's son Absalom takes the throne.
B. David flees to Jordan as Absalom moves in
C. A family member of Saul, named Shimei, comes after David.

1. Curses David with heavy abuse.
2. David's friend Abishai offers instant revenge (2 Samuel 16:9).
3. David refuses revenge and cursing continues (2 Samuel 16:13-14).
4. You will face a Shimei in your life.

D. When it turns around David still controls his resentment.

1. 2 Samuel 19:16-23
2. David's pain still exists — 1 Kings 2:8.
3. God's Spirit gives you power most do not have.

II. THE ANSWER FOR US LIVING IN THE 21ST CENTURY:

A. 1 Corinthians 3:4-5 — You cannot carry resentment with you.

Specific help is given in God's Word.

B. Let go because God has forgiven you unconditionally — Ephesians 4:31-32.
C. Turn it over to God — Hebrews 10:30; Romans 12:19.

It is a matter of obedience, not feeling.

D. God has built into you an impulse delay to prevent resentment.

1. ¼ second lag between brain signal and action. Use it!
2. Acts 7:59 — what did Steven do? The Spirit gave him the power.

III. ANOTHER EXAMPLE. WHAT WOULD YOU DO?

A. Genesis 37-44 — the story of Joseph.
B. How much resentment should Joseph have had?
C. What did Joseph do to control his resentment?
D. Genesis 45:4-8

IV. WHAT DO YOU RESENT GOING INTO THIS SEASON?

A. Prepare to control your resentment — ask for God's Spirit.

1. Pray about it. Profit by David and Joseph's response.
2. Think about how God can cause good to come out of it — Romans 8:28.

B. Realize that only those in Christ can control resentment.

THE BACK PAGE

THE CRAZY HOLIDAY SEASON

The next two weeks have to rank as 14 days of shear nonsense. All kinds of things are being concluded as people rush not to only take care of the Christmas obligations, but also rush to settle end of the year obligations. We see the politicians going crazy trying to establish their political agendas. We see the stores and merchants desperately trying to finish the year on a high note, and for some this holiday season is the time when they make most of their money. The entertainment business also is in a frenzy with Christmas special TV programs, special movies, and all kinds of show business efforts in everything from sports to parades to stage shows. Many of our denominational friends have made this season one of the most important religious holidays of the year, even though there is no biblical command or example to do so. Romans 14:5-8 makes it clear that God is more concerned with our motives and what is in our heart, so we respect those who take time in a busy season to remember our Lord.

So what should we as Christians who try to follow the Bible as closely as we can be doing? I would suggest to you that we should rejoice that our fellow Americans are paying some attention to God and to the fact that he sent his Son to Earth to redeem mankind. We should enjoy the creative abilities of our friends and neighbors as they compose and play beautiful music, create wonderful works of art, and decorate their homes and businesses. We should not be sitting around grousing and pouting because Christmas is not what we are told to do in worship. We celebrate the birth of Jesus regularly as well as his death and resurrection. Paul said it well, “Why do you judge your brother? Or why do you criticize your brother, for we shall all stand before the judgement seat of Christ … so then everyone of us shall give an account of himself to God.” (Romans 14:10-12, Clayton paraphrase).

This is a great time for us as a congregation to be overflowing with thankfulness. We are so blessed! The construction problems have been completed and our building is in the best shape it has been in for at least 25 years. Hard work has blessed us with great connections in the community. The Christmas parade was a great success and we thank those who got it all ready, got the animal heads, and came out on a cold night and greeted the community. Our food pantry continues to grow and we have been able to serve nearly 100 people in recent months. Our work with the sick and those who are struggling with problems in life continues to grow, and our card ministry is second to none.

Thanks to God and our thanks to those who consistently spend hours, money, and energy to glorify God and make a positive inroad to the area in which we serve.

— John Clayton

Our sign by the street!

Tis the season, take time to be holy!

Scripture links/references are from BibleGateway.com. Unhighlighted scriptures can be looked up at their website.