MIDWEEK MESSAGE #193
Hello and welcome to Midweek Message #193, your “go to” place for all things OVCF. Okay…that is a slight exaggeration but it was nice to say it. 😊 Seriously, thanks for joining me for a few minutes.
Jo & I are leaving for Arizona tomorrow for a week’s vacation! 😊 After the weather of the past couple of days, it will be good to have a change of pace. Speaking of weather, would someone please tell me what that white stuff was that fell on Friday afternoon and evening? I thought we were going to get off easy this winter, but this one snowfall changed all of that. I should have known though. Tami looked at her Facebook memories and it has snowed the last 3 years on that date. In fact, one year ago school was canceled for snow. Maybe we can just leave out February 16th on next year’s calendar?? The only snow we may encounter is at the Grand Canyon, but our friend, Dave said that is supposed to be Wednesday, the 28th, and we will be gone. Dodged that bullet!
Remember to pray for our Educator of the Week, Aaron LaGrange. Aaron has been the Assistant Principal at SES for 3 years. He is married to Sarah and they have two boys, Sawyer and Walker. Aaron has served as Principal at OVMS, as a Sheriff’s deputy, and is involved in many programs serving the schools and Owen County, including Backpack Buddies. 😊
The Educator for the Week of the 25th is Brady Tragesser. Brady is the Director of the Special Education program in the S-OCS system. He and his wife, Elizabeth, have 7 children and also run the Cup of Joy food truck.
Pastor Ryan will be preaching this Sunday as he concludes the series on WELCOME HOME…where…
-
- The Gospel is Preached
- Jesus is Honored
- Grace is Offered
- Lives are Changed
- Obedience is Encouraged
These last two have been Part 1 and 2 of “Tough Challenges are Given.”
Starting Sunday, March 3rd, I will start a new series called Jesus Unfiltered. There are some (false) teachings about Jesus that are being heard and taught in the pulpit and media, so I thought it would be good to tackle them. It is a brief series that will take us through March. Here is a brief summary of the sermons:
-
-
- Jesus is Real. People are saying, “Jesus is Woke.” What in the world does that mean? Is it true? Who is Jesus? What is the truth we are supposed to believe?
- Scripture: I Cor. 15:1-9
- Jesus is God. There are some who believe that Jesus is not God. I have subtitled this The Ant-Man Heresy. I hope you will come to find out why it is called that.
- Scripture: Mt. 3:13-17; 26:36-46
- Jesus is Incomparable. His birth (Virgin Birth) and His life were like none other. People are trying to “dumb down” Jesus and do away with His uniqueness.
- Scripture: Is. 7:14; Luke 1:26-38; Jn. 20:30-31; 21:24-25
- Jesus is our Substitute. Did you know that Jesus suffering on the cross is being called Cosmic Child Abuse? What we need to ask is where would we be without the cross?
- Scripture: Isaiah 52:13-53:10
- Jesus is Alive. Rumor has it that the resurrection was a hoax. One progressive says Paul did not believe in a physical resurrection. We can only have one side-fact or fiction. What better topic to preach about than His resurrection on Resurrection Sunday?
- Scripture: I Cor. 15: 12-58
-
Those are my plans for March. The “loose” plan for April and May is to finish the series on Revelation…unless something else hits the radar. 😊 In all seriousness, I do owe it to you all to finish Revelation.
I’m going to close this edition of the MM. Jo and I have been looking forward to getting away for this week to visit friends and see some sights in Arizona. She loved going to Alaska because she had my undivided attention. I knew no one and that was nice for her. She has put up with a lot in our 50.8 years of marriage, and perhaps the greatest is having to share me and have her semi-workaholic husband be gone so much. I am grateful for the elders giving me the chance to get away. I am grateful to Pastor Ryan and Diana who will fill in the gaps while I am gone. I am grateful to my Route 66 class who graciously agreed to give me a two week reprieve from teaching. 😊 I am wondering if Tami will miss us, especially her dad who loves to bug her. Right Ms. Grandi? And I am grateful for you. I will miss you, but realize a change in the routine is good for all. My heart hurts for some of you, for life situations you find yourself in, but just know that even when gone I will be praying for you. Your prayers for our safe travel and relaxation would be appreciated.
There will be no MM next week!!
See you, Lord willing, Sunday, March 3rd, if not sooner. I love you all.
Pastor Bill
