Sunday School Teacher Appreciation

Wednesday, April 19th, 2023

What can you do as a class member?

· Plan to attend family night as we honor each teacher.

· Think about someone you can invite on April 28th to
Sunday School to help grow your class.

· Think of ways you as a class can encourage your teacher, show your appreciation, and support the ministry of your class.

7 FOR 7 PRAYER CARDS

Remember to continue praying for your seven different people or families. Remember, each week, we desire for you to pick a different person or family and pray for them leading up to Easter. Of course, we hope you always remember your church family in prayers, but we desire you to pray for someone who does not attend church regularly or a member who has become inactive. Please commit to praying for this person or family every day.

Besides putting the seven people or families down on your prayer list, fill out the yellow prospect referral cards in your Sunday School class and turn them in. There are extra prayer cards outside Nikki’s office and on the back table of the sanctuary.

Don’t forget to invite them to church.

Giving as of March 28, 2023

Budget for 2023 . . . . . . . .  $348,707.00
Tithes Needed to Date . . . . . $87,176.83
Received to Date . . . . . . . . . $58,300.12
Needed for weekly budget . . .  $6,705.91
Tithes Received this week . . . . $3,894.00

MID-WEEK DEVOTION

Don’t forget to check out Brother David’s Mid-Week Devotion in the book of Psalms. They are uploaded each Wednesday on the sermon page.

From Our Family and Music Minister

Over the years, I have attended many youth rallies and worship services.  These events can be great times of teaching and worship for young people; however, many of the youth just get caught up in the emotion of the event.  As a result, they will come down during the invitation, be attentive during Bible study, and even show up for Sunday School the following Sunday for the first time in a year.  Unfortunately, this change usually passes within a few days because they were caught up in the emotion of the whole event and honestly had not made a heart change.

When Jesus entered Jerusalem, He knew some of the very people shouting praises would soon be screaming “crucify Him”. Because those people never honestly had a heart change, they were simply caught up in the emotion of the celebration.  In Luke 19:41-44, we see that as Jesus entered Jerusalem for His final Passover celebration, this caused Him to weep.  Even though Jesus could hear the shouts of Hosanna, He truly knew that He would soon be rejected.

Jerusalem’s rejection would soon lead to destruction.  The nation of Israel had revelations from God Himself throughout the past centuries.  They had also had messengers, prophets, and scriptures from the Old Testament.  They even had the Messiah Himself coming into the city, but they could not see the truth.  Jesus wept because they were blind and did not see that their true Salvation had arrived in Jerusalem.  Many people that day saw Jesus as a momentary celebrity, not a Savior.

How many times are we guilty of having this same attitude?  We have so much access to resources and teaching about our Savior; do we take advantage of these resources to help us grow as Christians?  Are we guilty of being caught up in the emotion of the worship on Sunday but refuse to let the teaching control our lives the other six days of the week?  Do we sing songs of praise on Sunday with the very mouths that during the week speak dishonoring words that cause Jesus to weep?

In the Gospel of John, we have another account of Jesus’ grief due to disbelief.  In John 12:42, Jesus also grieved for those who did believe, but were too afraid to live out the truth because of what it might cost them.  Even though they believed in Jesus, John wrote, “for they loved the glory that comes from man more than the glory that comes from God.” If we make an accurate accounting of our lives, do we seek the approval of man over the approval of God?