The BIBLICAL MESSENGER

9th & Main
CHURCH OF CHRIST
San Angelo, Texas

ASSEMBLIES
SUNDAY

Bible Classes	9:30 am
Morning Worship	10:30 am
Evening Worship	5:00 pm

WEDNESDAY

Bible Classes

7:00 pm

ELDERS

John Mayfield	Benny Rogers
Ed Roper	Jim Vinson

DEACONS

Don Cheek

Dennis Reed

MINISTER

John Hobbs

A CARING COWBOY

       A family, all nine of them, loaded all their earthly possessions into a covered wagon and set out to join other families leaving Arkansas headed for Texas and the promise of a new land. Rolling through all kinds of weather and fighting off insects, they rolled across the plains of what is now Oklahoma.
       One afternoon a cloud of dust appeared on the horizon behind them, and the wagonmaster halted the column and drew them into a circle. The men reached for rifles while the women gathered the children into the center of the wagons. In a few minutes it became apparent that the dust was being raised by a LONE rider, carrying a parcel across his saddle.
The man approached, calling out that he meant no harm. He dismounted and lowered the parcel to the ground. He unwrapped it, and it was a small child, no more than two years old.
       A cry of recognition tore from the throat of the child's mother when she saw her seventh child standing beside the strange man. The child had not been missed, but had fallen from the wagon and the cowboy had found him sitting in the dirt, waiting for someone to come back for him.
How many of us are on life's "wagon train" headed for the promised land, and so intent on our own journey that we do not miss those of God's children who fall off along the way.

(Copied)

Answer to our last BIBLE question:

It was the Scribes and Pharisees who Jesus compared to whitewashed tombs. (Matthew 23:27) [What people did Jesus compare to ]

This weeks question:

What ancient city (mentioned often in the Bible) is also called "the city of palms"?

Answer next week.

Do you remember when. . . . . .

The attendance here at 9th & Main was so large, they had to have two sermons with Bible classes wedged in between, to accommodate everyone on Sunday mornings?

Do you believe. . . . . .

That we an do that again?

Let's try!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Do you have a pleasant memory of an occasion or an event that occurred here at 9th & Main that you would like to share?
If so, jot it down on paper and give it to Ed. We will include it in a future bulletin as space permits.

COMING EVENTS

May 31 - "Cherokee Day". Cherokee Children's Home will have their annual food/fund drive. Everyone is welcome. The Mayfields will be going to this event. We look forward to having their Executive Director speak to us later in the year.

June 1 - Bi-Montly potluck friendship meal. Come and bring somebody with you. Good food, Good fun, good fellowship and a good outreach program for our church.

June 1 - Men's business meeting immediately following the potluck meal.

June 2 - Elder and Deacon meeting here at the building. 7:00 P.M.

WHAT IF. . . . . .

        God couldn't take the time to bless us today because we couldn't take the time to thank Him yesterday?
        God took the Bible away tomorrow because we would not read it today?
        God stopped loving and caring for us because we failed to love and care for others?
        God decided to quit leading us tomorrow because we didn't follow Him today?
        God would not hear us today because we would not listen to Him?

We know that God will always be there for us. Can we say that we will always be there for Him?

From the pen of John Hobbs:

What Can We Learn From Kristy?

Kristy is a student of mine in geometry and algebra I this year. She sits in front of my desk and on the front row in both of those classes. She is cute and sweet and I would adopt her in a heartbeat. However, she is not a good student. At the end of each six weeks, she has asked me what was her grade! Many times I have informed her that she has failed. Every time her response has been to yell, "NO!"

She did not want to make a failing grade, but at the same time she did not want to put in the effort to pass the class. She never came to math help for free tutoring. Therefore, she is simply reaping what she has sown. Paul said, "Be not deceived, God is not mocked, for whatsoever a man soweth that shall he also reap". (Galatians 6:7)

Every one of us will reap what we have sown. I encouraged Kristy to sow "effort" and "hard work" in my class. She did not! As a result, failure was her only option. If she did not want to fail, she should have put more work in the class.

If we want to go to heaven, we must sow righteousness, faith and obedience in this life. We are "saved by grace through faith". (Galatians 2:8) But James 2:24-26 tells us that faith without works is dead. Let us learn from Kristy that we cannot expect to go to heaven without living a life of faithful obedience.

In Christian Love,
John Hobbs