The family of God here at Dowagiac Church of Christ wishes to extend to you a warm welcome. If you have questions about our worship services and why we do what we do, we will be glad to give you a biblical answer. The uniqueness of the church of Christ is that we are trying to restore to the best of our ability those things that we see the first century church doing. We are also working hard at building the spirit, unity, and love that Jesus taught and prayed for. We have no clergy, but are working together as equal co-workers trying to serve one another and the area in which we live. Come study with us, grow with us, and serve with us as we strive to do God’s will in all things.


FATHER'S DAY BRUNCH: Our thanks to the ladies ofthe Church for the wonderful Father's Day brunch yesterday morning. It is a wonderful thing to be able to enjoy being together, to honor one another, and to give thanks for those special people who have blessed our lives. Yesterday was a special blessing to us men, and we thank the ladies for a wonderful feast and a happy time together .

FAIR EXHIBIT: August 2-8 this congregation will have an exhibit at the Cass County Fair. Larry Fox is building the structure and the banners and signs are in process. We will begin to set up the exhibit here in the auditorium, and we are collecting the free materials we will distribute and getting them ready. What we REALLY need is for you to plan to work the booth during that week. EVERYONE needs to be involved, because one or two people cannot be there the whole time the booth is open. There is a sign up sheet in the lobby on the bulletin board. You do not have to know anything except how to smile and welcome people. We will be serving and giving to the community, trying to be what the first century Church was. On Sunday August 2nd after our potluck we will have a very short instruction meeting to tell you what to do and how to do it. We will also get materials on entering the fair to you.

AUGUST 10-14: Also mark your calendar for the next week when we will have a Does God Exist? summer seminar and evening series at Michiana Christian Service Camp on highway M-140. You can attend the day sessions, night sessions, or both. This is an opportunity to see what this ministry is about and how it functions.

One of the most endangered roles of our culture today is the role of the father. A father is not someone who impregnates a woman. In today's technical world a woman can be artificially inseminated or a baby can even be conceived in a test tube. Webster defines a father as "To adopt as one's own; to profess or acknowledge oneself to be the author of or responsible for." Our culture is full of single moms who are raising children without a father being involved. It is hard, and there are many reasons for the absence of fathers, but the primary reason is that being a father is hard.

God has placed large responsibilities on men who choose to be fathers. The father is to be the religious leader of the house (Ephesians 5:21-23). The father is to be able to love his wife unselfishly and fully (Ephesians 5:28-33). The father is charged with raising his children so they are spiritually rich and mature (Ephesians 6:4). These are huge requirements, and all of us as men find times when we doubt our capacity to do these things as fully as we ought. Relying upon God to give us the wisdom and strength to be what God calls us to be is something men have to learn to do.

In the world today men have been too weak to do these things. Marriage is becoming an outdated fad, and the primary reason is that men today are terrified of commitment. Our culture has come to view marriage as a tool to obtain what an individual wants. The gay marriage issue has not revolved around a desire that people have to serve or to give of themselves sacrificially to bring joy and happiness to others. The discussion has been about tax advantages, death benefits, insurance benefits, spousal advantages, and inheritance.

We thank God for the fathers who are a part of this congregation. We have men who are not afraid of commitment. We have men who love their wives faithfully and who are concerned about their children and work to bring peace and understanding and a closeness to God to their families. We honor you gentlemen, and praise God that He has servents in the Church who strive to do what God has called them to do. You are a blessing to the Lord, to the community, to your families, and to this congregation.

For many in the world, the word "father" brings fear. Because our culture is drifting away from God, many men have brought babies into the world but have then abandoned and/or abused them and their mothers and not loved and cared for them. If you have suffered this kind of abuse, our thoughts and prayers are with you.