The Press-Dispatch
Issue link: https://www.ifoldsflip.com/i/1466134
The Press-Dispatch Wednesday, April 27, 2022 D-5 PAWS WEEK PAWS WEEK Pet of the RUDY "When the tea is brought at five o'clock, and all the neat curtains are drawn with care, the little black cat with bright green eyes is suddenly purring there"—Harold Monro. This week PAWS is fea- turing a feisty little fellow named Rudy, who is still in his playful kitten mode on most days, but on rainy days he likes to sleep all day in the kitty condos at PAWS. Rudy has a sweet personality, enjoys posing for the camera, has soft, shiny black fur with just a tuft of white fur on his chin. He can be adopted by call- ing 812-354-9894. Please, you may see things differently than I do. You have that right, but please have enough respect not to judge me for my thoughts on this matter. Next Saturday April 30, we have a seminar/fun day at our Flat Creek General Bap- tist youth camp and our sign in will be at 9:30 a.m. EST. We have four teachers who will share their expertise on teaching of kids, childen, adults and Dr Jim Pratt shar- ing about missions. Each of them will share their mes- sages twice so we can all get our choice of at least two of the presentations. We will have a lunch and then enter- tainment from the different churches. It promises to be a good day. I had some misfortune with blood tests and doctor appointments this past week. One of my tests couldn't be ran but they were able to run the other two from the sam- ple. I had to have more blood drawn to get the failed test. When I got to the doctor's of- fice we found out she was way behind so I could not make either appointment and had to reshedule the appoint- ments. It isn't easy gettin older more and more things want to quit working or start working too much. At Sunday school last Sun- day our teacher asked the question about what do you expect from God. If you re- ally stop to answer this ques- tion you will find you have a dependance on God even more than you thought. You always need God to supply you with what you need to be a good and wiling servant. One thing we have said be- fore is we are to be persistent in our prayers. Our Pastor seemed to fol- low suit with our lesson be- cause the big thing, I took from his sermon lesson was to stop complaining and mak- ing excuses. Instead ask God to help you to be a good and caring servant who joins in with the family of God and sees things work out to those who love God according to His purpose. That being said let's reach out to others and become a blessing to all. RAMBLINGS Continued from page 3 POINTS Continued from page 3 next to go. They had every reason to be afraid. You can bet their fear was real and terrifying. There was no torture- some agonizing, disgrace- ful and barbaric method of execution greater than cru- cifixion. Rome used it as an instrument of terror to keep the people subjugated. Mass crucifixions were common. Just the thought of a cross sent fear through the pop- ulace. Is it no wonder the Jews rejected Christianity because they killed our sav- ior on a cross? Jesus saw FUD up close and personal. It was so prev- alent in Palestine it confront- ed him daily. More than 30 times in the Gospels, Jesus finds people overwhelmed with sickness, disease, death, poverty, and reject- ed as social pariahs. When confronting FUD, Jesus uses phrases such as, "fear not," or "be not afraid," or "let not your hearts be troubled" or "be of good cheer" or "peace be with you." We find a most enlighten- ing encounter with FUD in Mat. 8, Mark 4, and Luke 8. Jesus and his disciples were in a boat traveling on the Sea of Galilee. It was night and a severe storm appeared and threatened to swamp the boat. The boat was taking on water, and the disciples were afraid the ship was sinking. Jesus spent these terrifying moments in the ship's rear, asleep on a pillow. Fright- ened and in fear, the disciples woke Jesus, saying, "Teach- er, do you not care that we are perishing? " He respond- ed by rebuking the wind and saying to the sea, "Peace! Be still! " and everything calmed down. Then he said to them, "Why are you so afraid? Have you still no faith? " His response to their fear is the solution and treatment for FUD. Jesus asked his disciples two questions. Why are you afraid? Where is your faith? To the first question, I would think fear is natu- ral when the boat is filling up with water. "We're go- ing down in a storm" is the worst probable fate for a sail- or. The outcome is grim. The US Coast Guard was not op- erating in Galilee, and they forgot the emergency radio. Not much hope in a rescue there. Any rescue would be a miracle. Miracles operate in the realm of hope and faith. It is difficult to be at peace when your life is in danger. Shortly before his arrest, Jesus had spoken of his peace. "Peace, I leave with you; my peace I give to you. Not as the world gives, do I give to you. Let not your hearts be troubled, neither let them be afraid." John 14:27. When Jesus appeared to his disciples that first Sunday, he knew they were afraid. His first spoken words were, "Peace be unto you." If we can keep our eyes fastened on Jesus, peace will flood our soul. Faith and peace in Christ are the only Christian response to FUD. Jesus' words took root in Peter. Years later, King Herod had Peter arrest- ed and thrown in jail under heavy guard. Herod had killed James to appease the Jewish rulers and planned on killing Peter in a public exe- cution. Was Peter afraid? We read Peter was "sleep- ing between two soldiers, bound with two chains, and sentries before the door were guarding the prison." Acts 12:6. Perhaps he remem- bered the boat tossed on the sea with Jesus sound asleep in the stern. He may have remembered Jesus' words, "Why are you so afraid? Have you still no faith? " When challenged by FUD, the best prescription and an- tidote is found in Php 4: "And the peace of God, which sur- passes all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus." Christ has risen indeed! Presbyterian Wesleyan a man of unclean lips, and I dwell in the midst of a people of unclean lips" (vs. 5). People of old had a far greater reverence for the Lord. King David described his great God by saying, "The Lord reigneth, He is clothed with majesty; the Lord is clothed with strength…Thy throne is established of old: Thou art from everlasting" (Psalms 93:1-2). He contin- ued, "God sitteth upon the throne of His holiness" as He reigns over all men (Psalms 47:8). He's not just a co-pilot or a buddy. Balak declared, "God is not a man, that He should lie" (Numbers 23:19). The Lord tells us this is be- cause, "…My thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways My ways… For as the heavens are high- er than the earth, so are My ways higher than your ways, and My thoughts than your thoughts" (Isaiah 55:8 -9). In the context of all this infor- mation, the Lord Jesus said of the Father, "Hallowed [meaning holy or sacred] be Thy name" (Matthew 6:9). It would be appropriate to lovingly share articles such as this with lost souls who lack understanding of God's holiness and magnificence. More importantly, in humili- ty, we believers need always to show great reverence to the Lord and to His name. MINUTES Continued from page 3 MAIN STREET PRESBYTERIAN CHURCH 10th and Main Streets, Petersburg 812-354-6844 Sunday worship 10 :30 a.m. Come visit us, our doors are always open to you. A life-filled prayer A high school senior in Washington, D.C., offered this graduation prayer, which applies to people of all ages: "Dear God, grant us one thing before we leave the sheltered reassurance of our childhood. Show us life. Not an empty, shallow world of shallow peo- ple and shallow dreams, but real life. For we have known the bliss of childhood as well as the passion of adolescence. "We want to make the world a better place, but we don't know how. We want to throw our arms around our brothers and our sisters, but our hands cannot reach. We want to break the cycle of vi- olence and the bonds of injus- tice in our society, but we're not strong. "Smile on us when we drink from the waters of truth. When we are old, reassure us that our struggle helped make the world a kinder, gen- tler and more peaceful place. And please, God, don't let us die without ever having lived." Office hours: 9 a.m.-noon, Monday-Friday. Amy Melhiser, Secretary OTWELL WESLEYAN CHURCH 2277 N. Mechanics Street Otwell Pastor 812.354.3028 Sunday school at 9:30 a.m.; morning worship at 10 :30 a.m.; 6:30 p.m. Sunday eve- ning worship service. God's Cake A daughter is telling her Mother how everything is go- ing wrong. She's failing alge- bra, her boyfriend broke up with her, and her best friend is moving away. Meanwhile, her Mother is baking a cake and asks her daughter if she would like a snack. The daughter says, "Absolutely Mom, I love your cake." "Here, have some cooking oil," her Mother of- fers. "Yuck" says her daugh- ter. "How about a couple raw eggs? " "Gross, Mom." "Would you like some flour then? Or maybe baking soda? " "Mom, those are all yucky." To which the mother replies, "Yes, all those things seem bad all by themselves, but when they are put together in the right way, they make a wonderfully deli- cious cake." God works the same way. Many times, we wonder why He would let us go through such bad and difficult times, but God knows that when He puts these things all in His order, they always work for good. We just have to trust Him and, eventually, they will all make something won- derful. Hope your day is a "piece of cake." We invite all of you to come and worship with us. Roy Stilwell, Pastor Pam Lemond, Reporter INCREASE BEAT the New Subscription Rates Start May 1, 2022 476 or 477 zip codes LOCAL SUBSCRIBERS' PRICE $ 35 35 812-354-8500 812-354-8500 / YR One-Year Subscriptions Local ������������������������������$35 State ������������������������������$38 Out-of-State ������������������$55 Online Only �������������������$35 Senior Local rate ��������� $32 Senior State ������������������$35 Senior Out of State ������$52 NEW RATES BEGIN MAY 1