A Very Windy Day!

The wind has blowing non-stop today. The winds outside can be much like the winds in our lives. There will be days when the wind will blow as a gentle breeze, then there will be days that it will blow with such strength you will think you have stepped directly into a wind tunnel. There are times when I hear people say "God is really testing me today." To them my usual response is "God isn't allowing those things into your life to cause hardship and turmoil." He uses those times in hopes that we would draw nearer to Him. Not farther away.

It is during two seasons that most people seem to enjoy the commercial way of celebrating these events. Christmas and Easter. Now, some people say they aren't going to teach their children about Santa Claus, the Easter bunny, or any of the other "commercially acceptable" characters that line the shelves of stores. That's fine. That's your choice. One important piece of advice though, you can't protect them from life. It's bound to happen. Would you rather be the source of the correct information or have them find out in other ways not acceptable to the manner in which you would have them exposed to such things? Santa Claus is a symbol of love and giving. The bunny is a cute and furry animal who hops around and isn't intended to cause harm. It is up to us as parents, teachers, friends, grandparents, aunts, uncles, etc; but most importantly as Christians to teach children the true meaning of Christmas and Easter. As long as a child has a strong foundation in the home and in church, the commercial representatives remain in place, but they take on a different tone when their true meaning/place has been told to a child old enough to understand the difference. When we embark on these notions of not telling them about Santa, the Easter bunny, etc.......they will see it on tv, in stores, advertisments in the newspaper and they will hear it from their friends at school and yes, even at church.

As the Bible puts it, "Teach a child the way they should go and they will not part from it". In other words, if they do stray for a short amount of time or even for a long amount of time, if they have the basic Biblical principles taught to them by God-fearing (which means respecting God, not fearing Him) parents and those same parents live their lives in a way that is pleasing to God, that same child will remember those principles when the time calls for it.

God Himself knew we would stray from time to time. Being the faithful and loving "parent" that He is, He always welcomes us with open arms. Never judging or saying "I told you so" just "I am glad to have you back and I love you. Welcome home, my child."

The month of March has much activity in store. God's hope would be for us to participate in the upcoming events in order to bring honor and glory to Him. If people are attending things just to be seen, you are attending for the wrong reasons. And while I haven't been faithful in my attendance over these past months, rest assured that my faith is still strong and the passion I have for various things still remains.

First off, don't forget to "spring" forward one hour tonight before going to bed. If you don't, you will be late for church in the morning!

Wed., March 12th will be the monthly birthday celebration for March. All those celebrating a birthday this month are invited to be in attendance.

The XYZ will have their monthly gathering Friday, March 14th in the fellowship hall at 6:30pm. The guest speaker will be Delores Zeigler.

Men's breakfast will be Sunday, March 16th (which is also Palm Sunday).

Wed., March 19th will be the monthly meeting of the Women on Mission organization. All ladies are invited and encourage to attend.

Thursday, March 20th will be the first official day of spring!

Friday, March 21st will be Good Friday. And on Sunday, March 23rd, we will celebrate Jesus' resurrection as it will be Easter Sunday! The annual Easter Sunrise Service will be held at North FBC this year at 7am. Family and friends in and around our community are invited to attend! Breakfast will be served in the fellowship hall at 8am. There will NOT be a change in the times of the regular morning services Easter Sunday. There will be NO evening services Easter Sunday though.

I hope none reading this blog entry found this particular entry too harsh, etc. I get very tired of other people who try to force their opinions onto other people. Everyone is entitled to his or her own opinion. You have that right, it doesn't make your opinion the correct one by any means. The only perfect being is Jesus Christ and His word is true!

Until next time, take care and God bless!

In Christian Love,

Tina :-)