The Visitor » The Visitor – 12/09/07

Here and There
by Wes Price

We are deeply indebted to Joe Hancock for being with us following the delightful entertainment at our Holiday Party yesterday. I know we will be spiritually blessed by his message today and we can say we had a part in his preparation to this great work of preaching the gospel. We participated in his support while he was a student at the Brown Trail School of Preaching. He has been preaching for the Hallsville church since graduating and his work is complemented by his lovely wife Sharon.
And speaking of our holiday party, wasn’t that great. Help me thank our decorating crew, Charlie and Nadine Brown, Jack and Oleta Armstrong, James and Ann Schoolfield and my own wife, Alma Faye. Surely the sight of those beautiful decorations will set your mind on the coming holiday season.
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Let me share a few changes that the elders have set before us for the remainder of this year and into 2008. We will be limiting our singing sessions on Sunday to months that have 5 Sundays, hence the “fifth” Sunday singing. Our Wednesday evening singings will remain on the schedule for the second Wednesday of each month, beginning in January. We will use the Wednesday night sessions for working on learning new songs and overall improving our worship in song. Jacob and I will share that time in leading the songs.
The schedule for the remainder of this month will be as follows:
December 12, lessons 21 and 22 of Richard Rogers
December 19, the final lesson from the Richard Rogers series
December 26, we will have a devotional worship using songs from our hymn books that feature and highlight lessons from the Old Testament to complement our studies there.
Beginning in January, we will begin a study of the Parables of Jesus for our Wednesday evening sessions.
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The Brown Trail Church of Christ will be hosting their 31st Annual Ft Worth Lectures on January 13-16. Copies of the program are available from the table in the foyer.
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Join Mack Lyon for his message on Sunday morning on Channel 27, KDFI-TV at 7:00 a.m. Sunday, December 16. He will be speaking on “Will God Always Bless America? Mack writes: “Our program on November 18th, encouraged thanksgiving for God’s blessings on America. If we learn anything from the history of Israel in Old Testament Scriptures, we know that when they forsook Him, and worshiped other gods, He withdrew His blessings. So, we wonder, will He always bless America? How long?”
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MEN TO SERVE
Sunday, December 9, 2007
Morning Service
Prayers for Lord’s Supper & Giving – David Calvert
Tom Dipprey David Johnston
David Gonzales Richard Perkins
Jimmy Mooney Terry Crossland
Afternoon Service
James Schoolfield Ben Perkins

PARKING LOT MONITORS
Sunday, December 9, 2007
A.M. Steve Browning
P.M. David Calvert
Wednesday, December 12, 2007
David Johnston
Saying Versus Doing
Mark Brinkerhoff said, “There is no such thing as a born hard-worker, a born salesman, or a born genius. We are all born ignorant, with innate underdeveloped abilities. What we do with these underdeveloped abilities is up to us. You can’t afford to merely let things happen. If you want to be successful, you have to make things happen.”
One of the outstanding features of the Book of Acts is the fact that Luke did not record the good intentions of the New Testament church; but he did record many of their good acts. Instead of thinking about what should be done, and arguing about the best way to do it, they were motivated to put their thoughts to work. There can be no doubt that this was one of the primary reasons for the growth enjoyed by the early church.
A church that has put its intentions to work has little time for discord among brethren. Unconcern and lukewarmness are unable to get started. Trouble just does not have any place to start. Abilities used will bring more opportunities for service; unused, they soon lose their power.
An aqueduct was built in Segovia in A.D.09. For 1800 years, that aque-duct carried sparkling water to hot and dusty Segovians. About the turn of the century, thoughtful Spaniards decided that the aqueduct should be preserved for posterity and should be relieved of its age-old labor. So, they laid modern pipe-lines and stopped the flow that for all those years gushed and gurgled in the aqueduct. Soon after this the aqueduct began to fall apart. The blazing sun dried the mortar and made it crumble. Its stones sagged and fell; soon it lay in ruins. What ages of service could not destroy, idleness rapidly disintegrated.
“Doing” is continually stressed by the Lord. James declared: “But whoso looketh into the perfect law of liberty, and continueth therein, he being not a forgetful hearer, but a doer of the work, this man is blessed in his deed” (Jas. 1:25).
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PRAYER LIST
Mark Locke had back surgery Thursday, 12/06/07 at Baylor Hospital.
Kim Harrison’s surgery was postponed.
Oleta Landin’s Room Number and Direct Phone Number have changed.Her Room No.is 1021A – Direct Phone No.is 214-413-4046.
Doris Henry – Lynnwood – Room 604
Carmen McMillion’s Room Number at Grace Presbyterian has changed. Her Room Number is 220.
Morris Miller, brother-in-law of Fran Womelsdorff, is in poor condition at Hilltop Haven in Gunter.
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Mary Perkins, Catherine Coronado, Nancy Spurgeon, Urbanelle Cox, Ada Couch, Jo Morris, Sylvia McC. B. Henry, Lucille Reid, Marjorie Moore, Bonnie Hinton, Joe Benedick, Treva Traylor, Oleta Armstrong, Addie Bennett, Jennie Wright, Billie Morgan, Naomi Sanchez, Magdalena Gonzalez, Myrtle Brunton, Bea Dipprey, Ruby Faas, Laura Wood, Ed Horn, Nell Tubbs, Lois Rodriquez, John & Lillian Rowland, Ida Smith, Holly Lee, Weldon Siler, Mildred Sala, Catherine Jayroe, Faye Shuffield, Geraldine Hurley, Oleta Rogers, Dr. J & Dorothy Coats, Paul Tomaszewski.
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NEWS & NOTES
Remember the Friendspeak Program this evening.
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Men & Ladies’ Bible Classes – Tuesday, Dec. 11, 2007 Meet at 10:00 a.m.

Men & Ladies’ Bible Classes Will Resume January 8, 2008 @ 10:30 a.m.
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VITAL SIGNS: Dec.. 2
Bible Study 67
Morning Worship 89
Afternoon Worship 50
Offering $6,483.00
Budget $3,651.00
Wed. Nov. 28 39
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Congratulations to Madison and Lynette Flowers on the birth of their daughter, Kegan Flowers, born Wednesday, November 28, 2007. Parents and baby are all doing well.
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Sympathy to Charloise Jones and family. Her brother-in-law, Maj. Gen. James
Robert Jones of San Antonio passed away.
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REFLECTIONS
by Jack Armstrong

We had an unexpected surprise last Lord’s Day, 11/25/07. Our Mary Taylor was here for a visit, and as usual it was so good to see that pretty smiling face!
Lots of our folks were out for one reason or another and it is understandable with all the flu, allergies, and cold weather. We’re just glad for those that were there.
Wes had a good lesson on “Left-Overs” and “ThanksLiving.” We were glad to see Jacob back directing our song service.
Several of you came over and told me you had emphysema for several years, and I want to tell you it was a consolation to me to know I’m not alone in this dilemma. I guess if a man like the old Apostle Paul could live with all the problems he had to go through I can make it too! If we just look around, our problems are really nothing compared to what some folks have to endure. When I used to fuss to my dad about some small problem I was having, he told me the story about “the man who complained about having no shoes ’til he saw a man who had no feet.” Well as Tom Duvall says “’nough said”!
Looks as though the old cold weather is finally sneaking in on us, but since this is the end of November, guess it’s about time!
I sure hope my little young’uns’ on my bus have some warm coats. It almost takes an act of congress to get them to wear them. The boys think it’s macho to come out in the cold with no coat and the little girls come out fully clothed with coats and all, which proves once again who the smarter sex is! When I see some of those little ones come out in the bad weather with no coats, it just breaks my heart, but you just can’t do for all of them.
The bad weather kept our “Friendspeak” folks in on 11/25/07. We only had 2 show up, but as Bro. Wes or somebody there said, “we wouldn’t have had even 1, if we hadn’t been there.
Our good friend, Jean LaPine, is back home after a stay in the hospital and is doing better, and for this we are glad!
If any of you know where there is a magnifying glass that sits on a desk like Bro. Ramsey Wright used to have, please let us know. I checked with his nephew, Bill Werner and no one seems to know what happened to Bro. Ramsey’s magnifying glass.
We hope and pray all is well with all who can’t be with us for all the services. We love you and miss you! See the rest of you this week if you are able.
Remember Our Goal…
“When Duty Becomes Desire”
Semper Fidelis (Always Faithful)