In Matthew 6:9, our Lord Jesus says, “Pray then like this” (ESV).
Of course, you immediately recognize this passage as the place where Jesus teaches the disciples how to pray. And this is that most familiar and beloved part of the Sermon on the Mount we call the ‘Lord’s Prayer.’ On Sunday we will consider this passage in view of our recent studies in the Epistle of James, and most importantly chapter 5 of James where the Lord’s brother also speaks of prayer.
You will remember that last week we examined that controversial passage where James calls upon those who are seriously ill to summon the elders of the Church, who should then come to their side and pray for their deliverance from affliction (5:14-15). And in that larger section of the epistle (5:7-18), James refers to prayer no less than 7 times, which is equal to the number of times he refers to suffering. His purpose is to promote fervent and faithful prayer among God’s people.
But before we look at the balance of James 5, we will journey once more to the model prayer of Matthew 6 to see what else we may learn from the older brother of James that will assist and encourage us in our praying.
As you prepare for worship, take some time to read once again the inspired words of our Lord in Matthew 6:1-13.
I love you all with all my heart!
Mike
Upcoming Events:
March 19, 4:30 PM – Youth Group Meeting
March 20, 7 PM– VBS Leaders Meeting at Church
March 21, 6 PM– Women’s Evening Bible Study
March 21, 7:30 PM– Senior Fellows visit to Von Braun Planetarium
March 22, 9 AM – Women’s Morning Bible Study
March 26, 4:45 PM – Men’s Bible Study
April 5, 6 PM – Bags of Blessings Packing at The CARE Center
April 10 – Snacks for RUF
Connecting with the Catechism:
Connecting with the Catechism:
Q. 33. What is justification?
Ans. Justification is an act of God’s free grace, wherein he pardoneth all our sins, and accepteth us as righteous in his sight, only for the righteousness of Christ imputed to us, and received by faith alone.Rom. 3:24-25; 4:6-8.
II Cor. 5:19, 21.
Rom. 5:17-19.
Gal. 2:16; Phil. 3:9.
Q. 34. What is adoption?
Ans. Adoption is an act of God’s free grace, whereby we are received into the number, and have a right to all the privileges of the Sons of God.
I John 3:1.
John 1:12; Rom. 8:17.
Q. 35. What is sanctification?
Ans. Sanctification is the work of God’s free grace, whereby we are renewed in the whole man after the image of God, and are enabled more and more to die unto sin, and live unto righteousness.
II Thess. 2:13.
Eph. 4:23-24.
Rom. 6:4, 6.
Announcements:
Meals for Bob and Ramona Edwards:
Ramona and Bob would benefit from some yummy meals as they settle in back home from the hospital. If you would like to sign up, you can access the meal schedule by clicking here. If you have any questions please contact Heather Olson at 256-924-5930.
New Adult Sunday School Class Begins This Sunday:
For the Spring Adult Sunday School semester beginning on March 19, we will be studying the Doctrines of Grace, also known as ‘Calvinism.’ Calvinism is the Biblical teaching that we are saved in a monergistic, God-centered way, i.e. God alone accomplishes the salvation of his elect, without any help from man. In contrast, ‘Arminianism’ is the understanding that man cooperates with God in salvation; its chief presupposition being a belief in the autonomous free will of man that Calvinism rejects. In the course of our study we will investigate the TULIP acronym that includes Total depravity, Unconditional election, Limited atonement, Irresistible grace, and Perseverance of the saints.
The book we will be using is entitled For Calvinism by Dr. Michael Horton. Here’s the Amazon link:
Greeter/Usher Ministry:
Christ Presbyterian is growing and is now in need of Usher/Greeters. Our initial plan is to have 4-6 teams with 7 people in each team to accomplish this new requirement. The reason for having many teams is to allow more of us who have been called to serve at Christ Pres the opportunity to serve while not overburdening anyone. Each team would only have to serve 2 weeks a quarter. The initial plan is to have 3 greeters and 4 ushers per week serving each Sunday from 10:10 to 10:40. If we have the numbers willing to assist, we can have each team serve for a two week rotation. To run this as smoothly as possible, we would like each team to have a lead. Presently, we have 3 individuals who are lead to lead a team and another 7 willing to serve on an Usher/Greater team. This is open to all, but would prefer no one younger high school age.
If you are interested in helping with this important ministry, please contact Steve Profozich at steveprofozich@gmail.com. Please get in touch with him soon, as we would like to move forward with this starting March 10. Thanks.
VBS Leaders Meeting:
We are now starting to plan for Vacation Bible School 2017. This year, our theme is Upward Bound: Following Christ to the Summit! The first volunteers’ meeting is Monday, March 20th at 7:00 pm at the church. Please sign up using my Sign-up Genius page so that I will have a list of those wishing to be involved and you will be able to receive a reminder! This will be a time for us to go over our theme, areas of service and timeline for planning. It will be short & sweet!
Senior Fellows:
On Tuesday, March 21, the Senior Fellows will visit the Von Braun Planetarium located within Monte Sano State Park. Visitors are welcome. Plan to arrive at 7:30 PM and finish about 10:00 PM. For directions or more information send email to seniorfellows@christpreshamptoncove.org. Plan to bring the whole family. Joe Fikes, our guide, says kids will love this adventure. Atmospheric conditions may dictate a change of the date/day of the event.
Congregational Meeting:
Following worship on Sunday March 26, there will be a Called Meeting of the Congregation to hear a brief report from the Session.
Men’s Bible Study:
Be sure to put the following dates on your calendars: Sunday March 26, and Sunday April 9. On these three Sundays, from 4:45-6:30 PM, we will be having our Men’s Spring Bible Study. We will be studying the lives of two important New Testament men, Timothy and Titus. More information will follow.
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).
Bags of Blessings:
Our church has volunteered to help April 5th with the Bags of Blessings ministry at the Care Center in New Hope. Packing begins at 6:00 PM and lasts around 1.5 hours. We need 25-30 volunteers. Please contact Norman Dean, ndeaniv@gmail.com, if you would like to help or want more information.
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, Leon Galecki, Gannon Miles, Sam Johnson, and Sondra Behmer. Expecting parents: Please pray for the Wightman family who is due in March, the Lancaster family (April), and for the McCool family (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, Jennifer Kent (RUF UAH); Ken and Angie Burnett (FCA); Franky
Garcia (seminary student).