Month: April 2017
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Announcements – April 28 2017
Sermon Preview
Dear Brothers and Sisters in the Lord,
On Sunday we will continue our new sermon series on the Epistle of 2 John. And our text for the message will come from 2 John 1:1-2. As you read this brief passage you will immediately note the connection between “love” and “truth” that John makes explicit. Obviously, these are two of the more important terms in the Christian faith. Yet, they often go misunderstood and misapplied.
Not all definitions of ‘love’ or ‘truth’ are valid, especially in light of the way Scripture deploys and utilizes these words. As you can see in these verses, they go together. They are in what we might call a symbiotic relationship. One viewed in isolation from the other leads to a distortion of both. And furthermore, in the Bible both “love” and “truth” are defined properly only in reference to God, and especially to His work of redemption accomplished in and by His Beloved Son. That is, neither “love” nor “truth” are abstract ideas or concepts. Both find their identity, source, supply, and motivation in our Triune God, who has loved us despite our sins and redeemed us by the blood of the Incarnate Son.
With that said, we must understand these blessed graces in a distinctive way as guided by Scripture. This Sunday with John’s help we will probe the uniqueness and beauty of “love” and “truth,” and we will ask the Lord to show us how each has been marvelously embodied in our Redeemer and King.
I love you all so much . . . and that’s the truth!
Mike
Upcoming Events:
April 30, 4:30 PM – Youth Group Meeting
May 2, 6 PM – Women’s Evening Bible Study
May 3, 9 AM – Women’s Morning Bible Study
May 5, 5 PM – Parents’ Night Out – Wild Wild Wild West
May 7, 4 PM – Church Picnic at Monte Sano Lodge
May 20, 11 AM – Women’s Ministry Spring Luncheon
Connecting with the Catechism:
Q. 55. What is forbidden in the third commandment?
A. The third commandment forbiddeth all profaning or abusing of anything whereby God maketh himself known.Lev. 19:12; Matt. 5:33-37; Jas. 5:12
Q. 56. What is the reason annexed to the third commandment?
A. The reason annexed to the third commandment is, that however the breakers of this commandment may escape punishment from men, yet the Lord our God will not suffer them to escape his righteous judgment.Deut. 28:58-59; I Sam. 3:13; 4:11
Q. 57. Which is the fourth commandment?
A. The fourth commandment is, Remember the sabbath day, to keep it holy. Six days shalt thou labor, and do all thy work; but the seventh day is the sabbath of the Lord thy God: in it thou shalt not do any work, thou, nor thy son, nor thy daughter, thy manservant, nor thy maidservant, nor thy cattle, nor thy stranger that is within thy gates. For in six days the Lord made heaven and earth, the sea, and all that in them is, and rested the seventh day: wherefore the Lord blessed the sabbath day, and hallowed it.Ex. 20:8-11; Deut. 5:12-15
Announcements:
RUF Shrimp Boil:
Tonight at 6 PM there will be a Shrimp Boil at The Lodge at Southwood celebrating 10 years of RUF at UAH.Parents’ Night Out:
The next Parents’ Night Out will be on May 5th at the church. The theme is Wanted: Children After God’s Own Heart. Please contact Meg Wohleber if you would like to sign up your children or if you would like to volunteer to help.Church Picnic:
Come enjoy a time of fellowship at Monte Sano State Park (the large pavilion) for our spring Church picnic! The church will be providing the BBQ and drinks. If you would like to bring a side dish or dessert please click here. In the past our church body has shown that we have many members who are expert ice cream makers! This is always a hit and we would love for some of you to bring your favorite homemade ice cream creations again!There is always plenty of food, so if you can’t bring something do not let that keep you from coming! There will be a playground for the kids, and picnic tables but if you would like to bring a lawn game, and lawn chairs (horseshoes etc.) there is open space to accommodate that kind of fun!
Date: May 7th 2017
Time: 4pm–6pm
Where: Monte Sano State Park (the large pavilion).The pavilion reservation includes admissions for all our attendees. Just identify your purpose/destination at the park entrance.
Looking forward to our time of fellowship! If you have any questions let us know!
Paul Matheny
paul@mathenygoldmon.comHospitality contact:
Erica McNeese
256-468-6951Prayer Requests:
Healing: Please pray for the health of the following individuals: Chris Smotherman, Elizabeth Holton, Janet Chou, Ramona Edwards, Katie Dyer, Rebecca Berry, Jenan Nuwayhid, Ned Nuwayhid, Zig Jastrebski, Leon Galecki, Patti Carter, Jane Owens, Anna Stafford, Dona Sims, and Sondra Behmer.
Expecting parents: Please pray for the McCool family, due in June.
Ministries: Please pray for the following missionaries and ministries: Seth and Jessica Lewis (Ireland); Steve and Rita Williams (New Zealand); Reid and Kelli Jones; Ken and Angie Burnett (FCA); Franky
Garcia (seminary student). -
Announcements – April 21 2017
Sermon Preview
Dear Brothers and Sisters in the Lord,
This coming Sunday morning we are beginning a brief (spring–summer) series of messages on the shortest books in the New Testament—the Second and Third of the three inspired Epistles written by the “disciple whom Jesus loved,” John.
These little letters contain less than three-hundred words each, and together they are affectionately known by some as ‘New Testament post-cards.’ 2 John has just 13 verses in all, while 3 John has only 15. But we should not be misled by their brevity. As we shall see, these are important and powerful letters authored by the very Apostle who also penned 1 John, the Fourth Gospel, and the Book of Revelation.
John wrote these books some sixty years after the death and resurrection of Jesus. So we will be studying two letters that were authored and sent during the turbulent second half of the first Christian century, somewhere between 90 and 95 AD. And, most authorities agree that John wrote these letters from the ancient city of Ephesus, in what was then called ‘Asia Minor,’ or what we now know as modern Turkey.
On Sunday we will take up 2 John and begin our study with verses 1-2. If you would like to read a good commentary on these Epistles as we study them together, then I would recommend The Message of John’s Letters, by David Jackman. The Amazon link is:
And you will also benefit from reading through 1 John as well. In fact, some New Testament scholars have suggested that 2 John is a summary of 1 John as it addresses similar concerns that moved the Apostle to write to his friends living in and around Ephesus.
May our Lord bless you all as we prepare our hearts to come to worship. And I can’t wait to see you on Sunday!
In His eternal grace,
Mike
Upcoming Events:
April 23, 4:30 PM – Youth Group Meeting
April 25, 8 AM – Senior Fellows Fishing trip to Green Mountain
April 25, 6 PM – Women’s Evening Bible Study
April 26, 9 AM – Women’s Morning Bible Study
April 26, 9 AM – Senior Fellows – Bags of Blessings at The CARE Center
May 5, 5 PM – Parents’ Night Out – Wild Wild Wild West
May 7, 4 PM – Church Picnic at Monte Sano Lodge
Connecting with the Catechism:
Q. 52. What are the reasons annexed to the second commandment?
A. The reasons annexed to the second commandment are, God’s sovereignty over us, his propriety in us, and the zeal he hath to his own worship.Ps. 95:2-3, 6-7; 96:9-10
Ex. 19:5; Ps. 45:11; Isa. 54:5
Ex. 34:14; I Cor. 10:22Q. 53. Which is the third commandment?
A. The third commandment is, “Thou shalt not take the name of the Lord thy God in vain; for the Lord will not hold him guiltless that taketh his name in vain.”Ex. 20:7; Deut. 5:11
Q. 54. What is required in the third commandment?
A. The third commandment requireth the holy and reverent use of God’s names, titles, attributes, ordinances, Word, and works.Deut. 10:20; Ps. 29:2; Matt. 6:9
I Chron. 29:10-13; Rev. 15:3-4
Acts 2:42; I Cor. 11:27-28
Ps. 138:2; Rev. 22:18-19
Ps. 107:21-22; Rev. 4:11Announcements:
Senior Fellows Fishing Trip:
On Tuesday, April 25, the Senior Fellows are going fishing at the Green Mountain Nature Park. Come with us, and bring your children and grandchildren!
We should catch fish (bass, bream, crappie, catfish). We will surely catch good fellowship. Meet at the pavilion inside the park on Green Mountain at 8 AM. Check in at the park entry shack and pay a $2.00 fishing fee.
Car pools will leave from the Church at 7:30 AM. Bring your fishing tackle and bait (worms, artificial, other) and a picnic lunch.
The lake is located on the Green Mountain Road/ S. Shawdee Road crossing the mountain; can be accessed from the West (Bailey Cove Road) or East (Old Big Cove Road) sides of the mountain.Parents’ Night Out:
The next Parents’ Night Out will be on May 5th at the church. The theme is Wanted: Children After God’s Own Heart. Please contact Meg Wohleber if you would like to sign up your children or if you would like to volunteer to help.Church Picnic:
Come enjoy a time of fellowship at Monte Sano State Park (the large pavilion) for our spring Church picnic! The church will be providing the BBQ and drinks. If you would like to bring a side dish or dessert please click here. In the past our church body has shown that we have many members who are expert ice cream makers! This is always a hit and we would love for some of you to bring your favorite homemade ice cream creations again!There is always plenty of food, so if you can’t bring something do not let that keep you from coming! There will be a playground for the kids, and picnic tables but if you would like to bring a lawn game, and lawn chairs (horseshoes etc.) there is open space to accommodate that kind of fun!
Date: May 7th 2017
Time: 4pm–6pm
Where: Monte Sano State Park (the large pavilion).The pavilion reservation includes admissions for all our attendees. Just identify your purpose/destination at the park entrance.
Looking forward to our time of fellowship! If you have any questions let us know!
Paul Matheny
paul@mathenygoldmon.comHospitality contact:
Erica McNeese
256-468-6951Prayer Requests:
Healing: Please pray for the health of the following individuals: Chris Smotherman, Elizabeth Holton, Janet Chou, Ramona Edwards, Katie Dyer, Rebecca Berry, Jenan Nuwayhid, Ned Nuwayhid, Zig Jastrebski, Leon Galecki, Patti Carter, Jane Owens, Anna Stafford, Dona Sims, and Sondra Behmer.
Expecting parents: Please pray for the McCool family, due in June.
Ministries: Please pray for the following missionaries and ministries: Seth and Jessica Lewis (Ireland); Steve and Rita Williams (New Zealand); Reid and Kelli Jones; Ken and Angie Burnett (FCA); Franky
Garcia (seminary student). -
Announcements – April 14 2017
Sermon Preview
Brothers and Sisters in the Lord,
Tonight we continue our celebration of Easter Week with our Good Friday Service of Worship at 6:00 PM. Our sermon passage for this evening is Mark 15:33-39 where Mark provides us with the account of our Lord’s death upon the cross. One remarkable feature of this passage is the way it concludes with the testimony of the Roman centurion who was there at the cross when Jesus died: “Truly this man was the Son of God!” (v. 39).
Then, on Easter Sunday morning we will consider Mark’s record of the resurrection of our Savior in Mark 16:1-8. Mark’s account is unique for its description of the way the first eye-witnesses to the resurrection—Mary Magdalene, Mary the mother of James, and Salome—quickly fled from the empty tomb in great fear, and “said nothing to anyone” (v. 8).
I look forward to our sharing in these blessed times of worship and proclamation, and I know that our Lord will bring His encouragement and peace to all of us.
I love you with all my heart,
Mike
Upcoming Events:
April 14, 6 PM – Good Friday Service
April 18, 6 PM – Women’s Evening Bible Study
April 19, 9 AM – Women’s Morning Bible Study
April 19, 6 PM – Diaconate Meeting
April 23, 4:30 PM – Youth Group Meeting
April 25, 8 AM – Senior Fellows Fishing trip to Green Mountain
May 5, 5 PM – Parents’ Night Out – Wild Wild Wild West
May 7, 4 PM – Church Picnic at Monte Sano Lodge
Connecting with the Catechism:
Q. 49. Which is the second commandment?
A. The second commandment is, “Thou shalt not make unto thee any graven image, or any likeness of anything that is in heaven above, or that is in the earth beneath, or that is in the water under the earth: thou shalt not bow down thy self to them, nor serve them: for I the Lord thy God am a jealous God, visiting the iniquity of the fathers upon the children unto the third and fourth generation of them that hate me; and showing mercy unto thousands of them that love me, and keep my commandments.”Ex. 20:4-6; Deut. 5:8-10Q. 50. What is required in the second commandment?
A. The second commandment requireth the receiving, observing, and keeping pure and entire, all such religious worship and ordinances as God hath appointed in his Word.Deut. 12:32; Matt. 28:20Q. 51. What is forbidden in the second commandment?
A. The second commandment forbiddeth the worshiping of God by images or any other way not appointed in his Word.Deut. 4:15-19; Rom. 1:22-23
Lev. 10:1-2; Jer. 19:4-5; Col. 2:18-23Announcements:
Senior Fellows Fishing Trip:
On Tuesday, April 25, the Senior Fellows are going fishing at the Green Mountain Nature Park. Come with us, and bring your children and grandchildren!
We should catch fish (bass, bream, crappie, catfish). We will surely catch good fellowship. Meet at the pavilion inside the park on Green Mountain at 8 AM. Check in at the park entry shack and pay a $2.00 fishing fee.
Car pools will leave from the Church at 7:30 AM. Bring your fishing tackle and bait (worms, artificial, other) and a picnic lunch.
The lake is located on the Green Mountain Road/ S. Shawdee Road crossing the mountain; can be accessed from the West (Bailey Cove Road) or East (Old Big Cove Road) sides of the mountain.Parents’ Night Out:
The next Parents’ Night Out will be on May 5th at the church. The theme is Wanted: Children After God’s Own Heart. Please contact Meg Wohleber if you would like to sign up your children or if you would like to volunteer to help.Church Picnic:
Come enjoy a time of fellowship at Monte Sano State Park (the large pavilion) for our spring Church picnic! The church will be providing the BBQ and drinks. If you would like to bring a side dish or dessert please click here. In the past our church body has shown that we have many members who are expert ice cream makers! This is always a hit and we would love for some of you to bring your favorite homemade ice cream creations again!There is always plenty of food, so if you can’t bring something do not let that keep you from coming! There will be a playground for the kids, and picnic tables but if you would like to bring a lawn game, and lawn chairs (horseshoes etc.) there is open space to accommodate that kind of fun!
Date: May 7th 2017
Time: 4pm-6pm
Where: Monte Sano State Park (the large pavilion).The pavilion reservation includes admissions for all our attendees. Just identify your purpose/destination at the park entrance.
Looking forward to our time of fellowship! If you have any questions let us know!
Paul Matheny
paul@mathenygoldmon.comHospitality contact:
Erica McNeese
256-468-6951Men’s Bible Study:
Sunday evening from 4:45-6:30 PM is the final edition of the Men’s Spring Bible Study. We will be studying the lives of two important New Testament men, Timothy and Titus.Snacks for RUF:
Christ Presbyterian has committed to providing snacks for the RUF at UAH Large Group meeting on Monday, April 10th.Some information below:
- We are providing snacks (chips, trail mix, granola bars, fruit) and/or desserts (brownies, cookies, donuts, etc) for UAH students at the RUF “Large Group” meeting – between 75-100 students.
- We are asking 4 people to sign up for each night with each person preparing a snack/dessert to serve 25-30 people.
- If possible, bring your food in containers/bags that do not need to be returned.
- DROP-OFF: If possible, bring your contributions to the UAH Nursing Building on the Monday you sign up at 6:45pm. Come into the lobby of the ‘newer-looking’ Nursing Building and you will find RUF students setting up. If you are unable to drop off at that time contact Norman for pickup (334-313-1298, ndeaniv@
gmail.com). - If you have any questions please contact Norman
Please use this link to sign up for a slot: http://www.signupgenius.
com/go/4090444a9a92ca7ff2- provide Prayer Requests:
Healing: Please pray for the health of the following individuals: Chris Smotherman, Elizabeth Holton, Janet Chou, Ramona Edwards, Katie Dyer, Rebecca Berry, Jenan Nuwayhid, Ned Nuwayhid, Zig Jastrebski, Leon Galecki, Patti Carter, and Sondra Behmer.
Expecting parents: Please pray for the McCool family, due in June.
Ministries: Please pray for the following missionaries and ministries: Seth and Jessica Lewis (Ireland); Steve and Rita Williams (New Zealand); Reid and Kelli Jones; Ken and Angie Burnett (FCA); Franky
Garcia (seminary student). -
Announcement – Maundy Thursday and Good Friday
Church Family,As you prepare for our Easter Week Services of Worship, let me encourage you to prayerfully read our sermon texts for Maundy Thursday and Good Friday.Tomorrow night our sermon will come from Mark 14:53-65. Then on Friday night we will consider Mark 15:33-39.Both services start at 6:00 PM and will last one hour. A nursery is provided as well.May our Lord bless you richly, and I look forward to seeing you all tomorrow night.Mike -
Announcements – April 7 2017
Sermon Preview
Dear Brothers and Sisters in Christ,
This coming Lord’s Day begins our week-long celebration of the resurrection of Jesus, culminating in our worship on Easter Sunday morning April 16. This year we will be tracing our Lord’s journey to the cross and empty tomb through the lens of Mark’s Gospel. As you know, the Second Gospel is the shortest, and moves in rapid fashion as it recounts the story of our Savior’s life and earthly ministry. Mark’s passion narrative begins with chapter 11 and our Lord’s triumphal entry into Jerusalem, and concludes in chapter 16 with the record of the bodily resurrection of Jesus and the commissioning of the Disciples.
This Sunday is Palm Sunday, and our sermon will come from Mark 11:1-11. Then, next Thursday April 13 we will gather at 6:00 PM for our celebration of Maundy Thursday—the service that commemorates our Lord’s command to love and serve one another (John 13:14), and the establishment of the Lord’s Supper (Mark 14:12-26). Our sermon text will be taken from Mark 14:53-65. Then, on Friday April 14 we will gather again at 6:00 PM for our celebration of Good Friday. Our message that night will come from Mark 15:33-39. Then, on Sunday morning April 16 we will be preaching from Mark 16:1-8 where we discover Mark’s succinct and stirring account of the resurrection of Jesus.
As you prepare for this special week of worship, let me encourage you to read and meditate upon Mark 11:1-16:20. Then, let’s pray that the Spirit of God will empower the preaching of the Word, and that the truth of our Savior’s resurrection will fill our hearts with hope and love.
I love you all so very much!
Mike
Upcoming Events:
April 9, 1 PM – Farewell lunch for Jennifer Kent
April 9, 4:45 PM – Men’s Bible Study
April 10 – Snacks for RUF
April 11, 6 PM – Women’s Evening Bible Study
April 12, 9 AM – Women’s Morning Bible Study
April 13, 6 PM – Maundy Thursday Service
April 14, 6 PM – Good Friday Service
April 19, 6 PM – Diaconate Meeting
April 23, 4:30 PM – Youth Group Meeting
May 5, 5 PM – Parents’ Night Out – Wild Wild Wild West
May 7, 4 PM – Church Picnic at Monte Sano Lodge
Connecting with the Catechism:
Q 46. What is required in the first commandment?A. The first commandment requireth us to know and acknowledge God to be the only true God, and our God; and to worship and glorify him accordingly.I Chron. 28:9; Deut. 26:17.
Matt. 4:10; Ps. 29:2.
Q 47. What is forbidden in the first commandment?
A. The first commandment forbiddeth the denying or not worshipping and glorifying the true God as God, and our God; and the giving of that worship and glory to any other, which is due to him alone.
Ps. 14:1.Rom. 1:21.
Ps. 81:10-11.
Rom. 1:25-26.
Q 48. What are we specially taught by these words, before me in the first commandment?
A. These words before me in the first commandment teach us, That God, who seeth all things, taketh notice of, and is much displeased with, the sin of having any other God.
Ezek. 8:5-18.
Announcements:
Birth news, and meals for Jonathan and Shelly Lancaster:
Congratulations to Jonathan and Shelly Lancaster, who welcomed their daughter Lillie into the world this week. If you would like to bless the Lancaster’s with a meal during this time of mourning and celebration click here. Thank you in advance for loving this sweet family in this way!
If you have any questions let Erica McNeese know!Jennifer Kent:
Sunday afternoon at 1 PM at the Timbers Edge clubhouse there will be an event honoring Jennifer Kent as she prepares to leave Huntsville for her next assignment! Please be praying for Jennifer in her transition, and make plans to attend the event!Click HERE to see details and RSVP.
Parents’ Night Out:
The next Parents’ Night Out will be on May 5th at the church. The theme is Wanted: Children After God’s Own Heart. Please contact Meg Wohleber if you would like to sign up your children or if you would like to volunteer to help.Church Picnic:
Come enjoy a time of fellowship at Monte Sano State Park (the large pavilion) for our spring Church picnic! The church will be providing the BBQ and drinks. If you would like to bring a side dish or dessert please click here. In the past our church body has shown that we have many members who are expert ice cream makers! This is always a hit and we would love for some of you to bring your favorite homemade ice cream creations again!There is always plenty of food, so if you can’t bring something do not let that keep you from coming! There will be a playground for the kids, and picnic tables but if you would like to bring a lawn game, and lawn chairs (horseshoes etc.) there is open space to accommodate that kind of fun!
Date: May 7th 2017
Time: 4pm-6pm
Where: Monte Sano State Park (the large pavilion).The pavilion reservation includes admissions for all our attendees. Just identify your purpose/destination at the park entrance.
Looking forward to our time of fellowship! If you have any questions let us know!
Paul Matheny
paul@mathenygoldmon.comHospitality contact:
Erica McNeese
256-468-6951Men’s Bible Study:
Sunday evening from 4:45-6:30 PM is the final edition of the Men’s Spring Bible Study. We will be studying the lives of two important New Testament men, Timothy and Titus.Snacks for RUF:
Christ Presbyterian has committed to providing snacks for the RUF at UAH Large Group meeting on Monday, April 10th.Some information below:
- We are providing snacks (chips, trail mix, granola bars, fruit) and/or desserts (brownies, cookies, donuts, etc) for UAH students at the RUF “Large Group” meeting – between 75-100 students.
- We are asking 4 people to sign up for each night with each person preparing a snack/dessert to serve 25-30 people.
- If possible, bring your food in containers/bags that do not need to be returned.
- DROP-OFF: If possible, bring your contributions to the UAH Nursing Building on the Monday you sign up at 6:45pm. Come into the lobby of the ‘newer-looking’ Nursing Building and you will find RUF students setting up. If you are unable to drop off at that time contact Norman for pickup (334-313-1298, ndeaniv@
gmail.com). - If you have any questions please contact Norman
Please use this link to sign up for a slot: http://www.signupgenius.
com/go/4090444a9a92ca7ff2- provide Prayer Requests:
Healing: Please pray for the health of the following individuals: Chris
Smotherman, Elizabeth Holton, Janet Chou, Ramona Edwards, Katie Dyer,
Rebecca Berry, Jenan Nuwayhid, Bill Dent, Zig Jastrebski, Bill and Mitzi
Cowley, Leon Galecki, Sondra Behmer, and Suzanne Nimon.
Expecting parents: Please pray for the McCool family who is due in June.
Ministries: Please pray for the following missionaries and ministries: Seth and
Jessica Lewis (Ireland); Steve and Rita Williams (New Zealand); Reid and
Kelli Jones (RUF); Ken and Angie Burnett (FCA); Franky Garcia (seminary student).