Bethsalem Baptist Church

Bro. Bobby opened our day of worship with ministry opportunities and welcoming everyone. Great songs were sung by the congregation. We honored and recognized our veterans. Special music by celebration choir was “His Life For Mine.”

Bro. Bobby preached from John 14:1-6. “A Grateful Heart Is a Confident Heart” was the title of his sermon.

For the evening message, Bro. Cleve preached from Luke 10:25-29. The title of his sermon was “The Good Samaritan.”

We were blessed by hearing Kendell Roper playing his guitar on these songs: “I Am Trading My Sorrow,” “Yes Lord,” “Lord I Lift Your Name on High” and “Savior He Can Move a Mountain.” We all sang as he played. Bro. Cleve directed our singing. It was a great service.

Wednesday supper begins at 5:30 p.m. Prayer meeting for adults will be at 6:30 p.m. We will have Team Kids for children and Student’s Outlet.

Happy Birthday this week to Brenda Lyster, Brad Eubank, Frankie Smith, Tony Smitherman, Roger Yeargan, Steven Bice, Jermy Headley, Adelyn Fulmer, William Thomas and Peyton Blalock.

Pray for Kenneth Moats Hazle Boswell,  Lane and Kathy Toler, Keith Kelley, Sid Griner, Rebecca Martin,  Debbie Burch, Hayley Boyd,  Charles Bryant, the Hunt family’s adoption, our shut-ins, our Pastor Search Committee, Pete Barber,  Hunter Moore, Lillianna Thompson, Kathy Fitzgeral, Jennifer and Brandon Teel, George and Diane Williams, Betty McGee, Kathy Headley, Raymond Griner’s family, Charlotte Thrasher, Renee Dobbins, Pete Burnett, Wendy Spigner, Johnny McMlaim, Jason Kelley, Eric Myers and Harold Patterson.

The Golden Agers luncheon will be held next Sunday, Nov. 17.

Come worship with us on Sundays.

Mars Hill Baptist Church

Do you love to be in control of your world? Do you think you are in control? A coach has control of his team, calling the plays and making changes to give his team the best chance to win. A mother has control of her children, at least for a little while. She makes sure they go to bed on time, get the right foods, have clean clothes to wear and make the right kinds of friends. Your boss at the office may have control of you for eight hours a day. But who is in control of your life? Not just a few hours a day, a few ball games or a few years, but your whole life? The truth is that none of us are in control of our lives; we are controlled by God or by Satan. If you want to be able to stand with Jesus on the last days, choose God, my friend.

Bro. William Short’s message this week was taken from Nahum 1: 1-6. These passages clearly tell us that God is in control of this universe. He controls everything. Verse 3 tells us God has control in the whirlwind and in the storm; the clouds are the dust of his feet. Verse 4: He rebukes the sea and makes it dry and dries up all the rivers. Verse 5: The mountains quake before him, the hills melt and the earth heaves at his presence, the world and all who dwell in it. Verse 6: Who can stand before his indignation? And who can endure the fierceness of his anger? His fury is poured out like fire, and the rocks are thrown down by him. My friend, this is real power, real control. What control we think we have is only in our own minds. With all his power, he gives man, which is his creation, free will to choose him or to reject him. I implore you to accept Jesus. Turn from Satan who hates you, and turn to Jesus who loves you. He gave his very life for you and me.

I hear people say that when they can live a pure, holy life for God, then they will attend church and accept Jesus. Well, that’s not going to happen. Noah followed God and built the ark at God’s command, but Noah was not a perfect man. He had faults. Lot was a good man who followed God, but he was not perfect either. He wound up in Sodom and Gomorrah, and his wife turned to a pillar of salt when fleeing the city for their lives. She looked back when God told them not to look back. How many times do we look back at our lives and wish for another chance to do things over, do them right? King David followed God; he did many things for his people, yet he was not a perfect man either. He was an adulterer and a murderer, yet he turned back to God. In Psalm 51, he begged God to clean his heart, to restore in him a new spirit. Saint Paul, the writer of most of the New Testament books, was a true man of God, but before his change, he was a murderer.

All of these great men of the Bible were still just fleshly men. They had the same temptations that you and I have today, but Noah, David, Lot, Paul, and many other men and women of the Bible turned control of their life over to God. They got “back in the game,” repented of their sins, and they will be standing at heaven’s gate with Jesus in the last days! Do you want to stand with Jesus? If you do, then get on your knees now and repent. Now is the day of salvation. Tomorrow may be too late, friend. Don’t look back at “what might have been,” but look forward to the “standing with Jesus” in this world, and the one that is coming soon!

Jesus is the only way to heaven; he is the way, the truth and the life. Jesus; no other name will do. No other will love you and care for you like he does. When you are at your lowest, look up toward heaven, fall on your knees and ask him into your heart and life. Give him control; follow him and his directions that are written clearly in God’s Word, the Holy Bible.

No, we are not perfect—we never will be—but Jesus is, and he cleans us up daily when we ask him to. Jesus tells us in his word that his yoke is easy and his burden is light. We need his will to be done in our lives, not our own. His will is right, just and noble; our will leads to destruction. Don’t look back, but look ahead. God is in control of the storms of this life, and if we are his children and we live for him, we will come through the storms stronger in our faith and our daily walk with him.

Stephanie Leavins was with us Sunday night, singing and sharing her testimony. She is a true blessing. We love her and look forward to her next visit with us.

I cannot close this message without asking everyone to thank a veteran this week. They are the heroes of our country, giving their all so that we can have all that we have, including the freedom of religion that makes it possible for us to write our weekly church messages in this paper. We are thankful for all veterans and those still in service to this great country. God bless the U.S.A.!

Please remember to bring your Operation Christmas Child shoeboxes next Sunday, Nov. 17. Share Jesus with a child in need this year.

Our Thanksgiving meal will be November 20. If you send Christmas cards, think of sending one to our brave men and women serving our country. We have names and addresses in our church bulletin if you choose to do this.

Please continue to pray for our church, our pastor, the sick, the lost, the hurting, our children, our troops, our country and our government. God is good, all the time! Amen.