Two weeks ago Charley Belch made a presentation regarding our 2012 Budget. Our weekly budget will be $9650, which is a very makeable goal. Recognizing the economic difficulties of our area, including some of our own families here at South Fork, our deacons and other ministry leaders were challenged by our shepherds to cut back on their budget needs for this year. I know the Lord will bless our work in 2012!

We have a special blessing this year—we have 53 Sundays. Maybe you don’t see that as much of a blessing, but I really hope that you do!! With our special Mission Contribution each November, we have been operating on a 51-week budget. We will continue that this year as well, and also continue our Mission Contribution, in which every cent paid on that Sunday will go toward our 2013 mission planning. With the extra Sunday we will have a special contribution to help fund our Benevolence ministry. Over these past several difficult years we have seen more and more requests for financial help, including from our own church family. 100% of the contribution given on March 25 will go toward funding these special requests for help, as well as assisting the Food Bank with their Backpack Program which sends needy children home for the weekend with food. You will hear more about this over the next several weeks.

This past Sunday Phil Stapp shared a message from our elders concerning our Shepherd Groups. As Phil reported the numbers and other response indicates that many are being encouraged and helped and are doing the same for others through this wonderful ministry. However there are some who prefer a more traditional Sunday night assembly, and so the elders announced that while we will continue our Shepherd Groups as they are through this Spring we will also have a Sunday evening assembly at 6:00 in the auditorium. That assembly will include one of our seven Shepherd Groups as well as any other folks that would like to attend. I began a sermon series on the Prophets this past Sunday evening, and will preach on the life and ministry of Samuel this Sunday evening in the auditorium.

This Sunday morning we begin another new series. I’ve entitled it, “What I Believe and Why.” We will examine some of our core beliefs and other particular doctrines. It’s entitled “What I Believe and Why” on purpose. While we will find that we share these basic beliefs, you must come to these beliefs yourself, and must answer for yourself what you belief, and why you believe those things. However, there is one more question that is absolutely critical that must follow. More on that in the message Sunday.

• “But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes on you; and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth.” (Acts 1:8)
• “Therefore let all Israel be assured of this: God has made this Jesus, whom you crucified, both Lord and Christ. When the people heard this, they were cut to the heart and said to Peter and the other apostles, “Brothers, what shall we do?” Peter replied, “Repent and be baptized, every one of you, in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins. And you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit”…Those who accepted his message were baptized, and about three thousand were added to their number that day. (Acts 2:36-28, 41)
• “Salvation is found in no one else, for there is no other name under heaven given to men by which we must be saved.” When they saw the courage of Peter and John and realized that they were unschooled, ordinary men, they were astonished and they took note that these men had been with Jesus.” (Acts 4:12-13)
• Those who had been scattered preached the word wherever they went. (Acts 8:4)
• Some of them, however, men from Cyprus and Cyrene, went to Antioch and began to speak to Greeks also, telling them the good news about the Lord Jesus. The Lord’s hand was with them, and a great number of people believed and turned to the Lord. (Acts 11:20-21)
• Now the Bereans were of more noble character than the Thessalonians, for they received the message with great eagerness and examined the Scriptures every day to see if what Paul said was true. (Acts 17:11)
• “God did this so that men would seek him and perhaps reach out for him and find him, though he is not far from each one of us. ‘For in him we live and move and have our being.’ As some of your own poets have said, ‘We are his offspring.’” (Acts 17:27-28)
• “Keep watch over yourselves and all the flock of which the Holy Spirit has made you overseers. Be shepherds of the church of God, which he bought with his own blood.” (Acts 20:28)
• “Brothers and fathers, listen now to my defense…About noon as I came near Damascus, suddenly a bright light from heaven flashed around me…” (Acts 22:1-3ff.)

It is therefore all the more important that we consider how we live, and what kind of heritage and impact we leave behind. The time to think about that is not when we are close to death; rather it is right now, today, as we live each day.

One of those in our church family who has experienced all of these feelings is Ed Harless. Ed’s mother, Lady Claire Harless, passed away this week at the age of 98 after a lifetime of faith in Christ. Most are unaware of Ed’s family’s connection with Lipscomb University in Nashville, going all the way back to David Lipscomb himself. I asked Ed to share some of this family history with me for this article.

Ed’s grandmother, Louise Lipscomb Neely, moved to Mississippi with her husband. When Ed’s grandfather died unexpectedly in 1917, his grandmother moved back to Nashville with seven daughters where she taught and served as librarian at David Lipscomb Elementary School for about five years.  Two of Ed’s grandmother’s brothers, Horace and A. B. Lipscomb, served as presidents of David Lipscomb College during the 1920s.  Ed’s great-grandfather, Granville Lipscomb, and David Lipscomb, were half-brothers.  The two brothers owned adjoining farms which are now part of Lipscomb University. A few years ago Ed’s mother and his aunt were honored as the closest living relatives of David Lipscomb by Lipscomb President Randy Lowry at the opening convocation of the school.

David Lipscomb (1831-1917) was a key figure in the Restoration Movement. He was educated by Tolbert Fanning at Franklin College, and was the editor of the Gospel Advocate for 46 years. David Lipscomb was the founder of Nashville Bible College, now Lipscomb University. Our Amy Cannon recently graduated from Lipscomb, and Kelsey Shipman is a current student there.

The apostle John wrote, “I have no greater joy than to hear that my children are walking in the truth.” (3 John 4) Is that not what each of us would also say to be our greatest joy? And just exactly how might that come about? Everyone of course is responsible for their own walk with God. But what kind of impact are you having on those around you, including your children and grandchildren? What kind of heritage of faith are you building?

I was given the ticket for Sir Cosmo Edmund Duff Gordon. He was a proficient fencer and had represented Great Britain at the 1908 Olympics. He of course was a first class passenger. Joyce also had a first class passenger. I figured her chances were good, being a woman in first class. I wasn’t too optimistic for myself, however, remembering “Women and children first,” and figuring that with limited lifeboats I probably didn’t make it.

I’ll share my (and Sir Cosmo’s) fate during the sermon Sunday morning as we speak from Acts 20 and talk about sacrifice, and especially the sacrifice Christ made for the church. Acts 20:28 calls on elders to “be shepherds of the church of God, which he bought with his own blood.”

What do you think about the church? Jesus felt strongly enough about it, loved it enough, that he bought the church, and paid for it with his own life. Are you sacrificing for the sake of others in Christ’s church? Our Lord, after Peter confessed that Jesus was the Christ, the Son of God, spoke of His upcoming death, and then added these words: “If anyone would come after me, he must deny himself and take up his cross and follow me. For whoever wants to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for me will find it.” (Matt. 16:24-25)

I think there’s a way to know how you would have reacted on that night in April, 1912. Are you trying to save your own life today? How do you spend your time and your money? Do you seek to get your own way, have things done according to your preferences, whether or not it will help others, even if it’s not what they need? Or do you sacrifice for their benefit? Do you love Christ and His church, more than you love yourself?

I believe that is certainly true of offering encouragement. We are blessed who encourage others, just as those who receive our encouragement are blessed. There is always someone that is better off than I am today, and there is always someone who is having a tougher time than I am today. The value of a word of encouragement cannot be overstated, especially when that encouragement is needed even more than we might know.

In a recent article in the Winston-Salem Journal Nigel Alston told the story of an episode in the life of Sherman Rogers. While working at a logging camp during his college years, Rogers was left in charge for a few days and was given the authority to fire anyone who refused to follow his orders. His superintendent realized he would consider firing Tony, an immigrant worker who grumbled and growled all day and pretty much just gave everyone a hard time. He told him to reconsider, saying that Tony was the most reliable worker he had ever had, is the first to arrive and last to leave each day, and is careful and accident free.

Instead of firing him the first day, Rogers went to Tony and told him what the superintendent had said. Alston writes, “When he finished, Tony dropped the shovelful of sand he had held and tears streamed down his face. He wanted to know why he wasn’t told that eight years ago. That day Tony worked harder than ever before — and he smiled! He later said to Rogers that he told his wife Rogers was the first foreman in America who ever said ‘Good work, Tony,’ and it made his wife feel like Christmas. Years later Tony would become a superintendent himself for one of the largest logging companies in the West, and said that little chat changed his whole life.

To me the most poignant—and sad—statement is the question, “Why wasn’t I told that eight years ago?

Perhaps you have noticed something positive about someone. Have you told them?

Who can you encourage today? Encouragement is a blessing to the giver and the receiver. I mentioned in the sermon last week that it’s not too late for a resolution: to deliberately encourage someone every single day. They need it. And so do you.

So we should not be too surprised when the apostle describes his state when he arrives in Corinth, saying he came to them “in weakness and fear, and with much trembling.” (1 Corinthians 2:3) However, God provided encouragement for Paul while in Corinth, including heartening words from the Lord Jesus Himself. (Acts 18:9)

Just as Paul did, we need one another. We need words of encouragement along the way as we go through life. We need people around us that will call us out in loving ways when we get off track, and will be there for us when we are discouraged. The Bible clearly views this as a purpose of the church, and addresses this aspect of church life and ministry in what you might call the “one another” passages. Here are a few.

• “Love one another. As I have loved you, so you must love one another. By this all men will know
  that you are my disciples, if you love one another.” (John 13:34-35)
• “Be kind and compassionate to one another, forgiving each other, just as in Christ God forgave you.” (Ephesians 4:32)
• “Carry each other’s burdens, and in this way you will fulfill the law of Christ.” (Galatians 6:2)
• “Therefore let us stop passing judgment on one another.” (Romans 14:15)
• “Accept one another, then, just as Christ accepted you, in order to bring praise to God.” (Romans 5:17)
• “Serve one another in love.” (Galatians 5:13)
• “Be completely humble and gentle; be patient, bearing with one another in love.” (Ephesians 4:2)
• “Submit to one another out of reverence for Christ.” (Ephesians 5:21)
• “Encourage one another daily.” (Hebrews 3:13)
• “Therefore confess your sins to each other and pray for each other so that you may be healed.” (James 5:16)
• “Speak to one another with psalms, hymns and spiritual songs.” (Ephesians 5:19)
• “And let us consider how we may spur one another on toward love and good deeds. Let us not
  give up meeting together, as some are in the habit of doing, but let us encourage one another—and all
  the more as you see the day approaching. (Hebrews 10:24-25)

The key is to read today’s reading first. If you are on a calendar schedule or using F. LaGard Smith’s The Daily Bible or some other regimen be sure you read today’s reading first, no matter how far behind you are. If you have a chance to read a few extra chapters to catch up, great! But read the reading scheduled for today first, then try to catch up or read ahead.

Last year I had really good intentions of reading through the Bible again. I started out strong, and actually made it through pretty consistently until the summer. For some reason I bogged down around then and didn’t catch up. But I did restart around October, with the time of the return of the Jews from the exile at the hands of the Babylonians. And I added in an extra reading through each of the four gospels. No, not as punishment! Please don’t have you (or your child, spouse, friend, etc) read the Bible for punishment! Just as an added reading. And I did keep up, and finished the readings as well as an extra round of Matthew, Mark, Luke and John.

All this is to say that you can do this. You can read through the Bible this year. There are several great ways to do it—The Daily Bible edited by F. LaGard Smith is the Bible I mentioned in the sermon Sunday.  You can probably find a copy in town at Barnes & Noble or any of the Christian bookstores (Lifeway, Family, etc.) or they can order it for you, or you can order it online. If you have trouble let us know and we’ll get it

If you want a Daily Bible Reading outline, you can Google search something like “Read through the Bible in one year” and it will give you some choices of web sites/plans to look at.  There is likely a daily Bible reading schedule in your study Bible. Another option is getting an app on your smart phone for daily Bible reading.  The one I use for the Bible on my phone is YouVersion but there are lots of options.
Some plans just go Genesis through Revelation, others go through the Bible in a more chronological order (which is what The Daily Bible does), and others combine Old and New Testament passages each day.  I would go ahead and start reading in Genesis, about three chapters a day, and you should be fine until you get on the track you want to follow.  If you start now, you won’t be that far behind—we haven’t made it out of Genesis yet!

Certainly Scripture affirms this great aspect of coming to Christ. Our Lord Jesus Himself spoke of conversion as being born again of water and the Spirit (John 3:3-5).

The apostle Paul recognized this as well. Perhaps alluding to Jesus’ words in John 3 and alluding to the conversion experience, including Christian baptism, Paul wrote this to his young protégé Titus:

“At one time we too were foolish, disobedient, deceived and enslaved by all kinds of passions and pleasures. We lived in malice and envy, being hated and hating one another. But when the kindness and love of God our Savior appeared, he saved us, not because of righteous things we had done, but because of his mercy. He saved us through the washing of rebirth and renewal by the Holy Spirit, whom he poured out on us generously through Jesus Christ our Savior, so that, having been justified by his grace, we might become heirs having the hope of eternal life. This is a trustworthy saying. And I want you to stress these things, so that those who have trusted in God may be careful to devote themselves to doing what is good. These things are excellent and profitable for everyone.” (Titus 3:3-8)

Perhaps no one understood and appreciated this great truth more than the former Saul of Tarsus, as he himself expresses on several occasions (1 Timothy 1:12-17; Philippians 3:4-14).

How about you? Have you been born again of water and the Spirit? Have you been saved—not by righteous things that you have done—but because of His mercy, through the washing of rebirth and renewal by the Holy Spirit? Have you now committed your life to doing what is good? It’s never too late to start, or to start over.

“If anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; the old has gone, the new has come!” (2 Corinthians 5:17)

Happy New Year!!

Happy new life!!

This is the first Christmas Joyce’s family will experience without the presence of her father, who died this past March. Over these past several months everyone in her family has seen how important he was to all of us and how much we miss his presence.

As I thought about that it caused me to reflect a bit on others we have lost. There were several in our church family who lost loved ones or friends. Here are the names of those of our South Fork members who have passed from this life over the past 18 months. As you read over this list, reflect on your own memories with them, and ask God to bring “comfort and joy” during the moments when their absence is especially visible.

Barbara Lowery     J. W. Athan      Bill Eldridge     Peggie Johnston

Polly Ballard     Betty Matthews     Janet Stewart

One of the things that Barbara Lowery and I said a lot to each other during her difficult battle was that each day, each moment, each breath, is a gift. Those are gifts we are not entitled to; gifts we are not owed; gifts we do not deserve. And so we are thankful and grateful for each one and view each as a gift of God’s grace.

And then there is the greatest gift of all, “the reason for the season.” While we of course do not know the exact day on which Jesus was born, like many in our society, we join the angels and shepherds and others rejoicing that such a gift was given, such a price was paid. “For God so loved the world that He gave His one and only Son…” (John 3:16) “God made Him who had no sin to be sin for us, so that in Him we might become the righteousness of God. (2 Corinthians 5:21) “Thanks be to God for His indescribable gift!” (2 Corinthians 9:15)

The first is obvious—our salvation. It is the sacrifice of Christ that saves us from our sins. Without the death, burial and resurrection of Jesus there would be no response of faith, and there would be no hope of forgiveness.

Perhaps the second application is something we don’t think about as much. Jesus’ death on the cross not only brings about our forgiveness of sins, it also provides us an example and a purpose in living our own lives.

Jesus challenges us with these words: “A new commandment I give you: Love one another. As I have loved you, so you must love one another. By this all men will know that you are my disciples, if you love one another.” (John 13:34-35) Perhaps the apostle John remembered these words of our Lord as he wrote years later of the practical application of the sacrifice of Christ.

“This is how we know what love is: Jesus Christ laid down his life for us. And we ought to lay down our lives for our brothers. If anyone has material possessions and sees his brother in need but has no pity on him, how can the love of God be in him? Dear children, let us not love with words or tongue but with actions and in truth…This is how God showed his love among us: He sent his one and only Son into the world that we might live through him. This is love: not that we loved God, but that he loved us and sent his Son as an atoning sacrifice for our sins. Dear friends, since God so loved us, we also ought to love one another. No one has ever seen God; but if we love one another, God lives in us and his love is made complete in us.” (1 John 3:16-18; 4:9-12)

Does Jesus’ death on the cross affect how you live your life? Does it shape how you treat others? Does Jesus’ death on the cross have an impact on your priorities and how you spend your money and your time?

If we look at the cross and see only our salvation—as important as that is—we have lost the other significant application, which Jesus Himself gave us before His life was taken: “If anyone would come after me, he must deny himself and take up his cross daily and follow me.” (Luke 9:23)