we give thanks!

For Your wondrous works

declare that Your name is near.”

Psalm 75:1

Joshua and Paula Splane

Paula Splane asked that you put her nephew, Joshua Splane, age 22, on the prayer link.  He is in ICU at Tulane.  He has a shunt in his head and is having problems.

also, Paula fell last night a tore a tendon behind her knee and will be out of school this week and perhaps next week.  Please put her on link also.  Thanks,

Janet A. Hammons

Pray for Mrs. Catherine Yarborough as she continues to work to work to get pain relief.  She is hopefully on the road to improvement.

Joshua Reece

Thank you so much for praying for Joshua.  As you will read he is doing better but still has a ways to go in his recovery.

Melinda

“By grace you are saved through faith,

and this is not from yourselves;

it is God’s gift - not from works,

so that no one can boast.”

Jane Duncan asks us to pray for Donald’s cousin, Shira Easley.  Shira lives in Donald’s neighborhood and has cancer.

Joan Hagan asks for continued prayer for her cousin Kitty who has now developed a staph infection in addition to having the infection caused by the spider bite.  Kitty is facing additional surgery.

Holly K. begins travels to West Africa today.  Pray for her and her “new family” as they work together for the next two years.

MISSIONARY PERSONAL NEEDS. “Please remember the sister of a worker here in Southeast Asia. She just had a heart attack and will undergo heart catheterization on Wednesday morning. It is difficult enough going through the illness of a loved one when we are nearby, but when one has to be oceans away, there can be much concern. So when you pray for this dear sister and her heart, please also remember the heart of her sister here in Southeast Asia. Ask the Lord to give her peace and comfort while they are separated during this crucial time.”

Wilma Rimes Strickland
(June 20, 1915 - January 4, 2009)
Died at 7:05AM on Sunday, January 4, 2009 at Flannery Oaks Guest House in Baton Rouge, LA. She was a native of Magnolia, MS and a resident of Baton Rouge, LA. Age 93 years. She was a U. S. Army veteran of WWII and was a member of Stevendale Baptist Church, Baton Rouge, LA. Visitation at McKneely Funeral Home, Kentwood, from 10 a.m. on Tuesday until religious services at 1 p.m. Tuesday. Services conducted by Dr. Richard Wallace. Interment Spring Creek Cemetery, Spring Creek, LA. Survived by 2 daughters, June Ott, Denham Springs, Betty Gill, Amite, 1 sister, Wanza Burris, McComb, MS, 4 grandchildren, and 3 great-grandchildren. Preceded in death by husband, Willie W. Strickland, and a daughter, Patsy Strickland. Special thanks to Flannery Oaks Guest House and Alysia and Dee with Hospice In His Care. In lieu of flowers, memorial contributions may be made to Spring Creek Baptist Church Cemetery Fund, 61361 Highway 1057, Kentwood, LA 70444 or Hospice In His Care, 11715 Bricksome Ave., Suite, B6, Baton Rouge, LA 70816.

On Mission in Kentwood will be Saturday, January 10th.  There’s many yards in the area that need “picking up” after the snow.  If you are willing and able to help some people who cannot do this for themselves, please meet at the church at 8 A.M.  You’ll make a difference to others.  Mostly, you’ll be blessed as you minister to others.

I hope you were able to see the movie “Fireproof” last night.  It’s doubtful there were many dry eyes!  The lessons on marriage were very clear.  FBC, Kentwood will show the movie again in February in connection with a Valentine meal.  If you have not seen this movie, please make plans to see it somewhere.

Today is back-to-school day for teachers.  Tomorrow, student will begin the second semester of this year.  Pray for all as they return and get settled back into the routine.

WHEN EVERYTHING GOES WRONG

Here is a list of “Murphy’s Laws for Churches” (author unknown):

* Video projectors always work before the class meeting begins.

* The probability of the preacher tripping over the mike cord is greater on “Bring A Friend” Sunday than any other week.

* The largest Bible Class will show up when the teacher feels his/her worst.

* No matter how many bulletins you print, you’ll always need one more.

* A member living 15 miles away will be 15 minutes early; members living two blocks will be 15 minutes late.

* The shorter the agenda, the longer the business meeting.

* Saying “Let us pray” or singing “Just As I Am” causes babies to cry.

* When you answer the Bible teacher’s question right, nobody remembers; when you are wrong, nobody forgets.

* The furnace only fails when the outside temperature is more than 20 degrees below zero.  The air conditioner only fails when the outside temperature is 90 degrees or above.

* When the preacher misspeaks in a sermon, at least half of those taking notes will write the remark down as an important thought from the sermon.

Murphy’s Law (”Whatever can go wrong will go wrong”) manifests itself in a multitude of ways in our lives.  In fact, there are times when it seems that EVERYTHING is going wrong.  How we react to those situations says a lot about our character.

Do we react by saying, “Everything will turn out all right eventually”?  We may be living in a dream world.

Do we react by saying, “How could God do this to me”?  Our bitterness may cause us to turn away from God.

Or do we react by turning to God, praying for strength, trusting Him to see us through?

In Acts 4, the apostles were threatened by government officials and forbidden to preach in the name of Jesus.  They prayed, “Now, look on their threats, and grant to Your servants that with all boldness they may speak Your word….” (Acts 4:29)

Father, there may be those reading this message whose world has come crashing down around them.  May you bless them with strength; make them mindful of just how much they need your help.  May you use the times when things go wrong as opportunities to manifest your glory in a special way. In Jesus name, amen.

Have a great day!

Alan Smith
Helen Street Church of Christ
Fayetteville, North Carolina

Thank-you for praying each day.  You impact many lives!

Anna Lee

Virginia and Sue left the hospital this morning to come home for a bath.  They left Dennis and “Miss” Faye’s sister, “Miss” Betty, in charge along with one of their favorite nurses.  Virginia said her mother had been on a “roller coaster” ride - up and down and very unpredictable.

Judy Easley visited the hospital this afternoon.  “Miss” Faye was sitting up, had eaten Cheerios, and was enjoying having her company speak to her briefly.  We all know “Miss” Faye is appreciative of your prayers.  Keep praying for more “ups”!

and do not rely on your own understanding;

think about Him in all your ways,

and He will guide you on the right paths.

Proverbs 3:5-6

Below is an update on Bob and Margie Craig’s grandson, Joshua.
Thank you for praying for him.
Melinda

Subject: The latest news on Joshua Reece…..

Ethel B. Harvell Dunn
(January 24, 1911 - January 3, 2009)

KneEmail

“At the name of Jesus every knee should bow…” (Philippians 2:10).

Mike Benson, Editor

THOUGH LESS THAN an inch in length, the bombardier beetle is noted for its unique defense system…

When threatened, the insect sprays boiling, foul-smelling liquid and steam from its posterior, warding off spiders, birds, and even frogs.

Consider: This beetle is equipped with “a pair of glands which open at the tip of [its] abdomen.”  Each of these has a reservoir that stores an acidic compound and hydrogen peroxide as well as a reaction chamber filled with enzymes dissolved in water.  To protect itself, the insect can squeeze the solution from the reservoirs into the reaction chamber to trigger a chemical reaction.  The result?  Noxious chemicals, water, and steam–at a temperature of about 212 degrees Fahrenheit–are sprayed onto an attacker.  The chambers are less than sixteenth of an inch long, yet the beetle can change the speed, direction, and consistency of its toxic spray.

Researchers have studied the bombardier beetle to learn how to develop more effective and ecologically-sound mist systems.  They have discovered that the beetle not only used one-way inlet valves to allow chemicals into the reaction chambers but also has a pressure-relief valve to expel them.  Engineers hope to use spray technology based on the bombardier beetle in car engines and fire extinguishers, as well as in medial drug-delivery devices, such as inhalers.  Professor Andy McIntosh of the University of Leeds, England, says: “Nobody had studied the beetle from a physics and engineering perspective as we did–and we didn’t appreciate how much we would learn from it.”

What do you think?  Did the bombardier beetle’s complex system of valves, combustion, and explosion develop by chance?  Or was it designed?  (Awake)

“Then God said, “Let the earth bring forth the living creature according to its kind: cattle and creeping thing and beast of the earth, each according to its kind”; and it was so. And God made the beast of the earth according to its kind, cattle according to its kind, and everything that creeps on the earth according to its kind. And God saw that it was good” (Gen. 1:24-25).

God’s plan for creation is so involved we will never be able to comprehend all that He did, much less do something of that magnitude ourselves.  How can we not recognize that and serve Him daily?

Anna Lee

“Yours, O Lord, is the greatness,

the power and the glory,

the victory and the majesty;

for all that is in heaven and in earth is Yours;

Yours is the kingdom, O Lord,

and You are exalted as head over all.”

1 Chronicles 29:11

Pray for Holly K. as she makes final preparations for traveling in West Africa where she will be a MK teacher for the next two years.  Holly asks for your continued prayers as she makes this big change in her live.  Pray that not only will she be an effective teacher for the four MKs, but she will have an impact on the nationals around her.

Jared Prescott continues to improve at home.  His progress will take time.  Pray for him and his family during this time.

David Gullota is now in University Hospital in New Orleans.  He’s still in ICU where doctors are continuing to watch his liver.  Surgery may still be necessary.  If surgery is not done on the liver, doctors plant to set his leg Monday.  Continue to remember David, his family, and the medical staff in your prayers.

Mrs. Faye Price continues to slowly improve.  Continue to pray for her, her family, and the medical staff as they care for :Miss” Faye in ICU.

Tomorrow night, FBC, Kentwood will show the new movie “Fireproof”.  It is the story of a firefighter who is allowing his marriage to fall apart for a while.  The storyline is good, but the deeper meaning is that marriages are worth working on.  Bro. Butch said the movie is appropriate for anyone who is married, anyone who interested in being married one day, and for anyone who knows someone who is married.  I think that includes all of us.  The movie will be shown at 6 P.M. and is free.  Come and bring your famiy and friends.

FAILED RESOLUTIONS

At the beginning of a New Year, a high school principal decided to post his teachers’ New Year’s resolutions on the bulletin board.  As the teachers gathered around the bulletin board, a great commotion started.  One of the teachers was complaining. “Why weren’t my resolutions posted?”  She was throwing such a temper tantrum that the principal hurried to his office to see if he had overlooked her resolutions.  Sure enough, he had mislaid them on his desk.

As he read her resolutions he was astounded. This teacher’s first resolution was not to let little things upset her in the New Year.

It has been said that “nothing is certain but death and taxes.”  Perhaps we should add one more thing to that list of certainties — the breaking of New Year’s resolutions!  Looking back on 2008, you may be one of the fortunate ones who accomplished exactly what you hoped to accomplish during the year.  But, if you’re like most of us, you didn’t read all the way through the Bible like you intended to, you quit smoking but only for a while then picked up the habit again, or you lost a few pounds only to put them back on again when your diet failed.  After experiencing this failure year after year, a person tends to say to himself, “What’s the use?  Why even bother to try to make these changes?”

As an old Chinese proverb puts it, though, “Failure is not falling down.  Failure is not getting back up.”  Or as the Japanese put it, “Fall down seven times, get up eight.”  If there are areas of your life that you’ve tried to improve and failed, let this this be the month that you try again.  And if you fail this month, get up and try again next month.  Learn from your mistakes and become stronger.  God does not turn his back on the Christian who fails (if you question that, you need only look at the story of Peter’s denial of Christ).  However, He cannot help the Christian who refuses to try any longer.

“Therefore submit to God.  Resist the devil and he will flee from you.  Draw near to God and He will draw near to you.  Cleanse your hearts, you sinners, and purify your hearts, you double-minded….Humble yourselves in the sight of the Lord, and He will lift you up.” (James 4:7-8,10)

If you have made a resolution to develop a habit that will bring you closer to God or a resolution to get rid of a habit that is pulling you away from God, may God bless you with the strength to accomplish your goal.  And, if you should stumble on your journey, may He pick you up and dust you off so that you can continue on the long journey of becoming like Christ.

Have a great day!

Alan Smith
Helen Street Church of Christ
Fayetteville, North Carolina

Have a super Saturday!

Anna Lee

Revival in Jena

On Sept. 20 of last year, more than 20,000 people from across the nation gathered in small Jena, La., to protest an outbreak of racial tensions at the local high school, exposing old feelings of racism and hate. On Feb. 17, Midway Baptist Church in Jena began a revival meeting. It caught fire and swept through the small community. The Holy Spirit came into the hearts and souls of hundreds who attended over the course of the series of meetings that lasted nine weeks.

Hurricanes Gustav and Ike

Proving once again that it’s not always New Orleans, Hurricane Gustav roared north from Grand Isle, past Houma and Lafayette on north into Grant Parish. And let us not forget Baton Rouge!

Southern Baptist Disaster Relief feeding units were first on the scene, followed closely by chain saw units. New this year: assessment teams to determine the priority of work orders.

Top priority, of course: people. Sometimes the best help that can be given is a listening ear and a gentle, “oh, no,” as a tale of woe is shared.

Ike followed Gustav, pummeling areas just now recovering from 2005’s Rita, such as Holly Beach, Cameron, Grand Isle. But everywhere that trouble goes, Southern Baptist Disaster Relief is close at hand.

Louisiana Ag Missions

Our world is filled with hungry and hurting people, and upwards of 25,000 children die from hunger or hunger-related causes every single day.  People who have adequate food have many problems, but those who have no food have only one problem.

Louisiana Baptist Agricultural Missions Fellowship invites people who care about the hungry in the United States and around the world to join together in building awareness of not only what needs to be done but also how best to get it done, in such a way that the the people being helped learn self-sustaining agricultural methods and techniques.

The ag missions group has chosen to concentrate its efforts with the Zapotec Indians of southern Mexico, where a gift of $125 will provide for an egg incubation for a family, and $200, a rabbit project for a family.

Christian Governor

What drives Louisiana’s Governor Bobby Jindal? By all accounts it’s his Christian faith, his wife Supriya and their three children, and the calling of God for him to serve in the public realm.

Born six months after his parents immigrated to Louisiana from India, he converted from his parent’s Hindu faith as a college student after a Southern Baptist friend “intent on converting the world, first introduced me to Christianity by telling me ‘you and your parents are going to hell,’” Jindal wrote in a 1993 article in America magazine, a Catholic publication.

In the photo above, Louisiana Chief Justice Pascal Calogero administers the oath of office to governor-elect Bobby Jindal (The highlight of a summer mission trip by members of the University of Louisiana Monroe Baptist Collegiate Ministry was the baptism of a 97-year-old witch doctor, who made a public profession of faith in front of her entire village. Jeremy Babb of Monroe and Tyler Boyd of Katy, Texas, witnessed to the witch doctor and helped  lead her to Jesus Christ. enter) who is flanked by his wife Supriya Jindal, right, holding the Jindal’s well-used family Bible.

Recovery Continues

It was three years before Franklin Avenue Baptist Church (above) returned home after its structure was devastated by Hurricane Katrina,  but when more than 4,000 people swarmed the structure on re-opening day, they found it looked exactly the same. For Willie Walker,  pastor of Noah’s Ark Baptist Church (below) it was all brand new. His church had been selected by Extreme Makeover and was done in a week.000 people swarmed the structure on re-opening day, they found it looked exactly the same.

Special Baptism

The highlight of a summer mission trip by members of the University of Louisiana Monroe Baptist Collegiate Ministry was the baptism of a 97-year-old witch doctor, who made a public profession of faith in front of her entire village. Jeremy Babb of Monroe and Tyler Boyd of Katy, Texas, witnessed to the witch doctor and helped  lead her to Jesus Christ.

Christian Soldiers

All across Louisiana – all across the United States – there are thousands of Southern Baptists serving in our armed services or who have served in Iraq and Afghanistan as part of the global war on terror. Their only protection is a thin layer of body armor and a shield of prayers and love from their family and friends.

A Child at Christmas

Samuel hangs an ornament on the tree at Grace Cottage. “Christmas is a wonderful time for our children at the Children’s Home,” said Darrell Washam, LBCH’s director of public relations and development. “For many of our children, it’s a special time they’ve never experienced before.”

As the 2009  year begins, let’s look for the good around us.

Anna Lee

instead, pray about everything.

Tell God what you need,

and thank him for all he has done.

Philippians 4:6 (NLT)

As you pray for Joshua, please pray for these grandparents.

Please pray for Bob and Margie Craig’s grandson, Joshua.

Melinda

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Update from Emily Panter’s mom, Janis:

While we were at Jason’s, we put the pictures on our camera onto a disk so that we’d be sure to have room for more pictures and seeing this one of Sarah surprised me. I had taken pictures of Sarah just as soon as I got to Emily’s house on October 28 and had forgotten the pictures of the kids were still on the camera. Seeing Emily holding Sarah in the picture, it brought that day back very forcefully to me. I thought, “less than an hour later, everything changed!”. I thank and praise our Lord again for all that He did those closing months of 2008.

I was thankful yesterday as I talked to Emily for a long time on the

phone. She said she is really sore after sitting up so much over the

Christmas holidays. Food is beginning to taste “right” to her again,

and she said that she has figured out that now when she feels

nauseated it means she’s getting hungry. Of course, feeling

nauseated doesn’t make you feel like eating, but she forces herself

to eat a little. At her follow up visit with Dr. Spak last week, she

asked him when she could drive and he said the rule is usually 3

days for every day in ICU, so she figures she might be able to drive

in May!

We all know her recovery will be long and slow, but none of us mind!

Our plan is for me to return to Texas sometime soon to help.

I am so thankful that we were able to visit Jason, Cheryl and their

children in Germany. It was a trip of a lifetime for me!

Most of all, I am thankful that our Lord holds 2009 in His hand;

nothing that happens will surprise Him or catch Him off guard.

Our future is secure!