September 2011 Pastor's Newsletter Article

Yea!! School is back in Session!! J LJ

2 Timothy 2:15 (KJV) - ¹⁵ Study to shew thyself approved unto God, a workman that needeth not to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth.

2 Timothy 2:15 & 16 (The Message): Concentrate on doing your best for God, work you won’t be ashamed of, laying out the truth plain and simple. Stay clear of pious talk that is only talk. Words are not mere words, you know. If they’re not backed by a godly life, they accumulate as poison in the soul.

May God bless our students and teachers.

May this school year be your best ever.

Remember what you learn will help you earn later.

High school geometry allowed me to get and keep a good job with Brown & Root estimating how much concrete was needed for a pipe footer.

What you don’t pay attention to will hold you back later in life. Two large companies recruited me for executive sales positions until they found out I hadn’t finished college.

Gentex, Zeeland, Mi needs 2,000 new employees in the next 2 years. They are having trouble finding people with the skills/knowledge/training to fill the openings.

Can you say technical college?

Enjoy your school years!! You are being blessed with some of the most memorable days of your life.

Remember if you are in grade school, high school, or college or whether you are a student or teacher, as a believer in Jesus Christ as your savior, you are expected by Him to be a witness for Him in and out of school.

The best witness is a simple, heartfelt witness.

Have a great school Year!!

Be blessed & share the blessing!!                                    Pastor Richard

July 2011 Pastor's Newsletter Article

I have fallen in love with the Message!!

Introduction
Galatians

When men and women get their hands on religion, one of the first things they often do is turn it into an instrument for controlling others, either putting or keeping them “in their place.” The history of such religious manipulation and coercion is long and tedious. It is little wonder that people who have only known religion on such terms experience release or escape from it as freedom. The problem is that the freedom turns out to be short-lived.

Paul of Tarsus was doing his diligent best to add yet another chapter to this dreary history when he was converted by Jesus to something radically and entirely different—a free life in God. Through Jesus, Paul learned that God was not an impersonal force to be used to make people behave in certain prescribed ways, but a personal Savior who set us free to live a free life. God did not coerce us from without, but set us free from within.

Gal 3:5-6 ⁵Answer this question: Does the God who lavishly provides you with his own presence, his Holy Spirit, working things in your lives you could never do for yourselves, does he do these things because of your strenuous moral striving or because you trust him to do them in you? ⁶Don’t these things happen among you just as they happened with Abraham? He believed God, and that act of belief was turned into a life that was right with God.

Gal 3:13-14 ¹³Christ redeemed us from that self-defeating, cursed life by absorbing it completely into himself. Do you remember the Scripture that says, “Cursed is everyone who hangs on a tree”? That is what happened when Jesus was nailed to the Cross: He became a curse, and at the same time dissolved the curse. ¹⁴And now, because of that, the air is cleared and we can see that Abraham’s blessing is present and available for non-Jews, too. We are all able to receive God’s life, his Spirit, in and with us by believing—just the way Abraham received it.

We live rightly (righteously) by accepting Jesus Christ the Lord as our Savior and Master by loving the Lord, our God with everything we are and have. If we do this we will do a pretty good job of fulfilling the law through love and not fear or coercion…but just by loving Him who loved us first. We demonstrate our love for Him through worship and by loving our fellow human beings..being quick to introduce them to our Jesus at every opportunity.

Be blessed & share the blessing!!                                    Pastor Richard

June 2011 Pastor's Newsletter Article

Psalm 15

A David psalm

¹God, who gets invited

to dinner at your place?

How do we get on your guest list?

²“Walk straight,

act right,

tell the truth.

³“Don’t hurt your friend,

don’t blame your neighbor;

⁴despise the despicable.

“Keep your word even when it costs you,

⁵make an honest living,

never take a bribe.

“You’ll never get

blacklisted

if you live like this.”

Source: The Message

MAJOR BUILDING RENOVATIONS ARE COMPLETED!!

WE AT CENTRE AVENUE CHURCH OF GOD PORTAGE MICHIGAN HAVE FINALIZED CONSTRUCTION MODERNIZING OUR RESTROOMS (HANDICAP ACCESSIBLE) AND ADDING A MODERN KITCHEN!!

WE WILL SOON BEGIN ENLARGING THE SEATING CAPACITY OF OUR FELLOWSHIP HALL...SO EVEN MORE FOLKS CAN COME TO OUR POT LUCKS!! We may even have to enlarge the pots!!

STAY TUNED!! DETAILS AND DRAWINGS TO FOLLOW!!

Thank you Centre Avenue Church of God congregational family for your faithfulness and love!!

January 28, 2007

I was just wondering this morning what we were ever going to place in this NEWS page of ours. The following is a very good use, I think.

Christians, especially American Christians should oppose slavery of any and every kind all the  time.

May this find you and yours well and blessed.

RDH

PETITION TO END MODERN-DAY SLAVERY

Please return all petitions to:

Walden Media,

Please sign the petition to abolish slavery. Signatures will be

presented to government officials to demonstrate the voice of

the people regarding slavery. You can also visit

theamazingchange.com to learn more about how you can help.

Please note that we will not sell, rent or give your email address to any third

party other than to The Amazing Change or Walden Media. Thank you for your

support.

We, the undersigned, affirm the inherent dignity and worth of all people and the right of every child and

adult to live free from slavery and involuntary servitude. We call upon world leaders to commit

themselves to the abolition of slavery around the world. Let our signatures demonstrate our desire to

see the emancipation of slaves and accountability for slave masters and others who benefit from the

enslavement of people.

SIGNATURE                                                EMAIL ADDRESS (Please Print)

1.______________________________________________________

2.______________________________________________________

3.______________________________________________________

4.______________________________________________________

5.______________________________________________________

6.______________________________________________________

7.______________________________________________________

8.______________________________________________________

9.______________________________________________________

10._____________________________________________________

11.______________________________________________________

12.______________________________________________________

13.______________________________________________________

14.______________________________________________________

15.______________________________________________________

16.______________________________________________________

17.______________________________________________________

18._____________________________________________________

19.______________________________________________________

20._____________________________________________________

Note from Pastor Richard:

Maybe instead of signing this one you might copy it and get it completed in your congregation. Then send it to the place listed at the top of the page.

You may find another version of this at sermoncentral.com.

Regards,  RDH

Under Construction

Which generally means we need time to make stuff up to put in here!