volume 29 issue 11 west side church of christ...
TRANSCRIPT
Dan ’ s Desk 2
With A Kingdom Heartbeat 5
Hymn Formation
Prayer Matters
5
6
Prayer List
Faith, Fun & Fellowship
5
7
November Serving
Schedule
9
West Side Church of
Christ CALLER
November 2014
Volume 29 Issue 11
Inside this issue:
Senior Fun Bunch
November 11
Olive Garden
Rt. 4, Fairfield
Leave church at 11:00 am.
Sign up sheet on bulletin
board.
Jay Henry
Speaking at the
morning service
November 9
Church
1190 Stahlheber Rd
Hamilton, OH 45013
Phone
513-863-7553
Fax
513-863-7552
Office Hours
Tuesday-Friday
9:30— 2:30
From Dan’s Desk
Church Staff
Dan Knisley
Senior Minister
MIsty Jordan
Worship Leader/ Teen
Ministry Director
Ellen Sippel
Secretary
Page 2 West Side Church of Christ CALLER
Redeeming Time
The first weekend of November we turn back our clocks
and regain the hour we lost in Spring when we went on daylight
savings time. In a sense we “redeemed” that hour by receiving it
back.
Be we know of course in actuality that we cannot really
take back any time that has past– not a single minute. This is why
the Bible tells us in Ephesians 5:16 to “redeem the time, because
the days are evil.” Each of us are given 168 hours or 10,080 min-
utes each week. Not one can be regained after it has gone by.
This sobers us not only about the brevity of life but also about the
importance of making every minute count for God.
So when we are tempted to say “I just don’t have time
for ______________.” Let’s ask ourselves a couple of things:
1.) Do I really not have the time?
2.) Is what I’m doing now really going to make a difference in
the eternal scheme of things?
Every moment of time, once past, is gone forever. Time is our
most precious commodity, for it is the stuff of life. As someone once
wrote:
Only one life, twill soon be past,
Only What’s done for Christ will last.
For Him, Dan
Page 3 Volume 29 Issue 11
Mt. Healthy Christian Village Auxiliary Meeting
October 13, 2014
Reports:
Sherry Williams, Treasurer reported a balance of $13, 988.54 after giving $1,000 to the activities
department. $4,400 of this balance is committed. (was $5,400 deduct $1,000 for swing Ed was
unable to purchase.)
Ed Wilson, Maintenance, reported Assisted Living received a perfect survey from the state. The
special Thanksgiving Dinner for residents/families and friends will be November 13th with seat-
ings at noon and 5pm. The cost for guest is $15 or $18—reservations required. Work begins on
15 private rehab rooms in early spring.
Julie Price, Marketing/Admin. Director reported MHCV was voted Best of North in Cincinnati
Magazine. A lasagna luncheon featuring the MHCV Resident Choir will be held Dec. 13 requiring
advance ticket purchase. Save the dates 2-19-15 for Bless Your Heart a heart healthy luncheon
and 4-16-15 “Sing in Spring” Both of these are open to the community and churches.
Jon Underwood, Chaplain, expressed the need to update the sound system and to provide a
large screen for use in the chapel. More information forthcoming. He requested $500 for a bet-
ter projector and the Motion was made and approved by the group.
Unfinished Business
The Dewey painting selections purchased by the Auxiliary for the residents are “Ye Are The Light
Of The World” and “Light and Truth.”
New Business
None
Save the Date
Auxiliary Meetings at 10:15 a.m. on 1/12/15, 4/13/15, 7/13/15 and 10/12/15
Reminder
Supplies needed for crafts at MHCV. If you have yarn, fabric, or other craft items you are not
using, the Activities Department can use them. Please leave them at the desk labeled Activities
department. Thank you.
Page 4 Volume 29 Issue 11
With A Kingdom Heartbeat
Things Christians Should Know About Depression And Anxiety (From Relevant Magazine) Here’s something you may not know about me: I have clinical depression. As someone who has been a member and a servant of the church for all of my young adult life, it has become clear to me that depression and anxiety are some of those touchy subjects that are tough to tackle from a Christian perspective and are often misunderstood in the church. This is because the illness is so complex, manifesting itself in ways that are difficult to grasp. Since I have experienced this and because our youth group is about to attend a play about this and other tough issues that teens face in society to-day, I wanted to share a few pieces of one of my favorite articles from Relevant Magazine. Of course, there is way more information than what can be summed up in one article, but here are a few things we should know about depression and anxiety:
1. Depression isn't what the Church sometimes makes it out to be. It's not a character defect, a spiritual disorder or an emotional dysfunction. And chief of all, it's not a choice. Asking someone to “try” not being depressed is tantamount to asking someone who's been shot to try and stop bleeding. Such an attitude can dangerously appear in the Church as, “if only you had enough faith.” While I'm convinced that there's definitely a spiritual element—the enemy will ex-ploit any weakness—medical science holds that major depressive disorder is real and the causes are manifold. 2. Mental illness is not a sin. What happens when mental illness is treated as an unconfessed, unaddressed sin is alienation. It also ignores the fact that many Christians may respond to depression in unhealthy ways if the root cause is ignored or misunderstood. 3. The Bible doesn't provide “easy answers.” The Word is full of wisdom and encouragement for those suffering from depression and anxiety disor-ders, but it doesn't come in one-verse doses. “Be anxious for nothing” and “do not worry about your life” can easily be taken out of context, which is problematic. Doing so fails to appropriately handle Scripture, carelessly misconstruing the larger intent of the passages. Another really scary thing this does is it can convince a person in the worst throes of their illness that they're not obeying God. Add that to what feels like the inability just to be – every shaky breath hurts and getting out of bed is im-possible – and you've thrown gasoline onto the fire. 4. Anxiety and depression don't look how we often think. When I've opened up to Christian friends about my own depression and anxiety disorders, they're of-ten surprised. “You seem so happy all the time!” Depressed people become really good at hiding their symptoms…because of the stigma attached to the illness. Churches often don't address mental illness, which gives the worship team guitarist or the elder even more incentive to keep it hidden away. Fur-thermore, the symptoms of depression often tend to contradict each other, which makes it really diffi-cult for a person suffering from depression to recognize it for what it is—let alone for the Church to recognize it. Most churches probably have the very best intentions when dealing with issues of mental illness. Like the rest of society, however, the Church may misinterpret these clinical conditions and respond to them in ways that exacerbate them and as a result, demoralize those suffering. It may just be people you never expected.
Page 5 Volume 29 Issue 11
Bible Trivia
In which book is the passage
found, “His compassions fail
not, They are new every
morning, great is Thy
faithfulness?
SFC Michael P. Norton Attn: Any Solider HHC 34th ID DIVENG Unit # 117 APO, AE 09374
PVT Owens, Saxton T. 1/6 WPNS co. CAAT1 Unit 73145 FPO AEO9510-3145
LCPL Siegle, Jeremy
CLB-46, SEC. Co. Unit 72022 EPO-AE09509-2022
Which tribes settled
east of the Jordan
River?
Rueben & Gad
Numbers 32
REQUESTS
FOR PRAYER
**************************
Dorothy Ander-
son
Sam Baker
Steve Baker
Alvin Bolser
Sophie
Bovenizer
Jack Crouch
Marilyn Curry
Richard Free-
man
Francis Johnson
Mae Lasley
John Layman
Nilah Layman
Mary Rose Long
Brandon North-
Dana Pointer-
Phyllis Richard-
son
Vickie Robb
Sue Robbins
Mark Robinson
Eddie Sapp
Diane Scarth
Del Schanie
Richard Schupp
Bob Sizemore
Kathy Spaulding
Robby Stephens
Mike Steward
Sam Welch
Orville Wilson
Jane Wright
All with health
concerns
************************** Dorothy Anderson
Sophie Bovenizer
Mae Lasley
Dale Richter
Ruby Singleton
Mag Thacker
Ruby Wyatt
homebound
*************
Lamentations.
Lamentations
3:22-23
Frederick W. Lehman, an Iowa evangelist, was attending a camp meeting in the early
1900s. During one of the services, the preacher concluded his sermon with an inspira-
tional quote. The quote so moved Lehman that he wrote it down, not only for inspira-
tion but for the purpose of creating a hymn based on these words:
“Could we with ink the oceans fill, And were the skies of parchment made,
Were every stalk on earth a quill, And every man a scribe by trade;
To write the love of God above, Would drain the ocean dry;
Nor could the scroll contain the whole, Though stretched from sky to sky.”
Lehman was born Aug. 7, 1868 in Mecklenburg, Germany. The family emigrated to
the USA when he was 4 and settled in Iowa. Young Frederick came to Christ when
he was 11. Eventually, he studied for the ministry at Northwestern College in Napier-
ville, Ill. After graduation, he served in pulpits in several Midwestern churches.
He wrote his first song in 1898 while serving a church in Kingsley, Iowa. Many of
his songs expressed a faith in Christ even during difficult times. He had experienced
many of these as many of his side business ventures failed. After moving his family
to California, he had to find a “day job” to support his family.
One of those jobs was in a fruit-packing plant. Even while packing lemons and or-
anges, his thoughts turned to the Lord and music. One day while doing this repeti-
tious chore, he removed a card with those inspirational words from his pocket. In-
spired, he began writing the words down on scrap wood from the packing crates. He
transcribed the words to paper. When he got home, he headed to the piano and fin-
ished his hymn. “The Love of God” became the most famous of his many songs.
In 1948, Lehman wrote a pamphlet, “History of the Song: The Love of God.” In it, he
talked about the origin of the words he used for the third verse. “The lines (of the
third verse) had been found penciled on the wall of a patient’s room in an insane
asylum. The general opinion was that this inmate had written them in moments of
sanity.” (TanBible.com)
Lehman died Feb. 20, 1953 in Pasadena, CA. However, he may not have known “The
Rest of the Story,” as Paul Harvey used to say.
The inmate’s words were not original. The quote was from a 90-couplet epic poem,
“The Haddamut,“ by a German rabbi in the 11th Century. Although written in Ara-
maic, it has been translated into many languages. Because the first section discusses
God giving the Ten Commandments to Moses, it is read during the service for the
Feast of Shauvout before the reading of the Ten Commandments from the Torah.
Perhaps the inmate had heard them during one such service. He remembered them
long enough to scribble them on one of the walls when he returned to his cell. The
obviously comforted him during difficult times.
Although “The Love of God” was published in 1917, there has been a renewed inter-
est in the hymn. George Beverly Shea often performed it during the Billy Graham
Crusades and recorded it several times. In later years, he sang it on the Bill Gaither’s
Homecoming Friends video series. The Gaither Vocal Band learned the song and has
Performed it on recordings and videos.
“O Love of God, how rich and pure!
How measureless and strong!
It shall forevermore endure,
The saints and sinners song.”
FWL, 1917
Richard Heckel
Bereavement
Page 6 Volume 29 Issue 11
PRAYER MATTERS from the Prayer Ministry Team
Adapted from Desperate for Change: 40 Days of Prayer for America
by David Butts
Let us fix our eyes on Jesus, the author and perfecter of our faith, who for the joy set before him
endured the cross, scorning its shame, and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God.” –
Hebrews 12:2
We often forget that it was the politics of His day that were the immediate cause of Jesus’ death.
The Roman occupation of Israel, coupled with the jockeying for power among several Jewish
sects, created a tension that simply couldn’t allow for a popular miracle-working preacher who
offended all of the powers that were present. Much of Jesus’ teaching dealt with how to live in
such a politically tense situation.
So in our day, as we struggle sometimes with even knowing how to pray for our nation, this is a
critical command to embrace: Fix your eyes on Jesus. We don’t have to do this on our own. Jesus
understands political and national situations and struggles. As we pray for our nation, we keep
our eyes fixed on Him.
As we look at the rest of Hebrews 12:2, we are reminded how hard it was for Jesus as He strug-
gled with the political system of His day. It led to a cross. We aren’t assuming that because we
are praying for our nation that everything will immediately get better and we will all live happily
ever after. Our prayers can make a difference! But we may pay a price. Jesus endured the cross
because He saw beyond it to the fulfillment of the Father’s purposes. We fix our eyes on Jesus,
praying for our nation, committed to enduring whatever may come, in order to see the fulfillment
of the Lord’s purposes in our day.
Prayer Points
Thank the Lord for enduring the cross on our behalf.
In prayer, fix your eyes on Jesus. Ask Him to show you how to pray for our nation.
Commit to enduring whatever it takes to see the fulfillment of God’s purposes in our nation.
PRAYER: Lord, today and always we choose to fix our eyes upon You. You lived in a land of politi-
cal tensions and struggles and overcame, though at a great cost. Teach us how to pray and how
to live in the midst of the battles we are facing as a nation. Give us the courage that You had to
endure whatever comes in order to please the Father and see His purposes fulfilled.
Please make sure you exercise your right to vote--your vote can make a difference!
Page 7 Volume 29 Issue 11
FAITH: Thanksgiving--copied
Be thankful that you don’t already have everything you desire. If you did, what would there be to look
forward to?
Be thankful when you don’t know something, for it gives you opportunity to learn.
Be thankful for the difficult times, during those times you grow.
Be thankful for you limitations, because they give you opportunities for improvement.
Be thankful for each new challenge, because it will build your strength and character.
Be thankful for your mistakes, they will teach you valuable lessons.
Be thankful when you’re tired and weary, because it means you’ve made a difference.
It’s easy to be thankful for the good things. A life of rich fulfillment comes to those who are thankful for
the setbacks.
Gratitude can turn a negative into a positive.
BE JOYOUS ALWAYS, PRAY CONTINUALLY; GIVE THANKS IN ALL CIRCUMSTANCES, FOR THIS IS GOD’S
WILL FOR YOU IN CHRIST JESUS. I Thessalonians 5:16 (NIV)
Have a Happy Thanksgiving!
FUN: Thanks to Dorothy Thomas for this cute story.
Dorothy’s daughter recently went back to work as a nurse. She would work, come home, cook, do
dishes and wash. Dorothy’s granddaughter asked her mom why she worked. “Well, I went to school
for that.” ” Why do you clean, do dishes and the wash?” she asked. “Well, that’s just what mommies
do,” she replied, to which her granddaughter stated, “When I grow up, I want to be a dad.”
FELLLOWSHIP: Pilgrim Feast with the Youth. See Misty for details. We’re going to party like it’s 1620!
Volume 29 Issue 11 Page 8
Women’s Bible Study Tuesdays at 9:30 am
Small Groups are on hiatus.
Seniors on the Go – November 11th .Olive garden Rt. 4 Fairfield. Sign up sheet on the bulletin
board. Hosts Neil & Beebee Geyer. Leave the church at 11:30 am
*****************************************************************************************
Sherri Kremis has consented to being the new treasurer. She will be in training the rest of the year
and will begin in January.
********************************************************************
Volunteer needed for the Welcome Center. Please see anyone at the Welcome Center for more
information.
********************************************************************************
A ladies ring was found at the church. Please contact Sharon or Dan to claim it if you are missing
it.
********************************************************************************
Party like it’s 1620 with the youth’s Pilgrim’s feast. See Misty Jordon for details.
********************************************************************************
Please join us Sunday, November 9, as Jay Henry will be here speaking during the morning service.
West Side Church of Christ has supported his missionary work in India for years.
********************************************************************************
Services
Sunday:
Bible School 9:30 am
Worship Service 10:30 am
Evening Worship 6:00 pm
Wednesday:
Evening Bible Study 6:30 pm
Worship Team Practice 7:30 pm
November 2 Daylight Savings Time Ends
November 4 Women’s Bible Study
November 4 Trail Life
November 9 Jay Henry Morning Service
November 11 Women’s Bible Study
November 11 Fun Bunch Olive Garden
November 11 American Heritage Girls
November 14 Trail Life Lock-In
November 15 Trail Life Lock-In
November 17 Caller Deadline
November 18 Women’s Bible Study
November 18 Trail Life
November 25 Women’s Bible Study
November 25 American Heritage Girls
November 27 Thanks giving Church office
Closed
EVENTS AT A GLANCE