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DUE to the COVID-19 pandemic THANKSTO KARL MARCUSSEN for all the time and effort put into enabling us to meet on Zoom every Sunday. Karl has the service mostly “debugged” and it is great to see and hear everyone and to worship God together.. TO JIM HARASEWICZ for his work on the windows and doors at the building. They were in bad shape and Jim has been reworking them. TO BILL AND PATTY GIBSON for doing major work on the classrooms and hallways in the building. They have been hanging dry wall, painting, and repairing. TO LARRY BREWER for mowing and trimming the grass. TO TINA AND RICHARD HOYT for continuing to look after the food bank and the arrangements for the food delivery on May 26. Call 574-333-1177, if you can help. TO ROY SMOTHERMON for Sunday’s lesson on Zoom. TODAY’S LESSON
THE BACK PAGEHOW DO I WORSHIP DURING THE PANDEMIC?Are you feeling spiritually isolated by the pandemic? When the service on ZOOM has ended on Sunday morning, do you feel let down? If you have not been using ZOOM or any other worship that is made available online, are you feeling spiritually vulnerable? This is a whole new experience for all of us. We have no precedent for what we are in right now, and what we have done in the past does not work very well with the current situation. The first-century church faced a situation similar to this one. The Roman government and the Jewish establishment were both after Christians to put them into prison and/or to kill them. They could not meet publicly, did not have a building they could use, and had no legal protection from their enemies. This virus is very much the same, so we can learn from them. One thing the Church of Christ in the first century did was to meet in people's homes. In Acts 16, we read about the church meeting in the home of Lydia. In Philemon 2, Paul writes, “… to Apphia our sister and Archippus our fellow soldier — and to the church that meets in your house.” In 1 Cornthians 16:19, we read, “The churches in the province of Asia send you greetings. Aquila and Priscilla greet you warmly in the Lord, and so does the church that meets at their house.” We should be strengthened by this pandemic. This is a chance to have time to talk about spiritual things that affect your family and associates. We can use the lessons on Sunday morning as a basis for our private discussions. Brother Smothermon's points about prayer this past Sunday were wonderful ideas about how we can improve our prayer lives. Start a routine of prayer. Have a personal regular time with Jesus. Talk with those in your house about the subjects given on ZOOM. Use the sick list we mail to you for specific requests and needs. In your home you can have a song service. There are spiritual music presentations on TV and YouTube. If you need cassettes or CDs to play to help, let me (JC) know and I will get them to you. And have a communion service. Choose a time when it is quiet. If you do not have grape juice, squeeze a few grapes. I put some in a blender and then ran the mix through a sieve. Or get a small bottle of pure grape juice at a local grocery store. Any cracker without additives (leavening) can be used, such as, Triscuit (unflavored), Carr's Table Water Original (unflavored) crackers, Matzah/Matzo, or taco/tortilla/burrito shells. Spend time thinking about the amazing idea that the God of the universe stood by and watched his Son die a terrible death for YOU! Have some time to think through the idea that the blood of Christ is alive and active. Read 1 John 1:3-10 over and over. Believe that this action by the blood Jesus shed on the cross is continually cleansing us. Verse 7 is present tense (a continuing action), not ancient history. Read 1 Corinthians 11:23-30 a few times and think about why we may be sickly and asleep. This is a crisis for man-made religions and for those who have perverted the simple concept of worship that the Bible teaches. But, for us this is a time of change and special growth in our relationship to God and each other. Stay healthy and stay alert with a zeal for spiritual blessings. Praise God from whom all blessings flow! SOME HELP IN STAYING HOMELET ME MAKE SOME SUGGESTIONS if you are struggling with staying in your house to avoid the pandemic. Let me, first of all, encourage you to take this seriously. The politicians are making this a political football, and they are trying to get votes by taking public positions which their media outlets promote. They even have their own “experts,” so we need to practice some common sense, and God's practice of quarantine that goes back to the Old Testament still works. Here are some suggestions:
— John Clayton Our sign by the street! Scripture links/references are from BibleGateway.com. Unhighlighted scriptures can be looked up at their website. www.dowagiaccoc.org |
