Please continue to pray for Ora Lee Wilson and Shirley Frazier as they try to feel better.
CaringBridge: Logan Watts (2 new journal entries)
http://www.caringbridge.org/visit/loganwatts
THE VALUE OF SERMONS
The following story has been around for quite a while, but continues to make a good point. It is supposed to have begun with a letter to the editor of “The British Weekly.”
“Dear Sir:
I notice that ministers seem to set a great deal of importance on their sermons and spend a great deal of time in preparing them. I have been attending services quite regularly for the past thirty years and during that time, if I estimate correctly, I have listened to no less than 3,000 sermons, but, to my consternation, I discover I cannot remember a single one of them. I wonder if a minister’s time might be more profitably spent on something else? Sincerely….”
That letter triggered an avalanche of angry responses for weeks. Sermons were castigated and defended, but eventually a single letter closed the debate:
“Dear Sir:
I have been married for 30 years, during that time I have eaten 32,580 meals — mostly of my wife’s cooking. Suddenly, I have discovered that I cannot remember the menu of a single meal. And yet, I have received nourishment from every single one of them. I have the distinct impression that without them, I would have starved to death long ago. Sincerely….”
There is a great deal of wisdom in that letter. I have heard countless sermons over my lifetime — many were memorable, many more were not. The truth is, I can’t even remember everything that I have preached (that’s why God created databases)! But I know that many of the sermons which I heard have made an impact in my life, and I pray that the sermons I deliver do the same for others.
“And my speech and my preaching
were not with persuasive words of human wisdom,
but in demonstration of the Spirit and of power,
that your faith should not be in the wisdom of men
but in the power of God.”
~1 Cor. 2:4-5~
Have a great day!
Alan Smith
Helen Street Church of Christ
Fayetteville, North Carolina
Baptist Press Stories for May. 27 2011
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MEMORIAL DAY: ‘Band of brothers’ gathers at Arlington http://www.bpnews.net/BPnews.asp?ID=35404
MEMORIAL DAY: Flag film comes to TV http://www.bpnews.net/BPnews.asp?ID=35405
Porn’s destruction is infiltrating the church http://www.bpnews.net/BPnews.asp?ID=35406
FIRST-PERSON (Russell D. Moore): Dealing with porn addiction, biblically
http://www.bpnews.net/BPnews.asp?ID=35407
FIRST PERSON (Donna Rice Hughes): Porn — in your public library? http://www.bpnews.net/BPnews.asp?ID=35408
NAMB offers $15M for church plant loans http://www.bpnews.net/BPnews.asp?ID=35409
Ivory Coast refugees finally get water http://www.bpnews.net/BPnews.asp?ID=35410
They followed Harold Camping <br>when he was mainstream http://www.bpnews.net/BPnews.asp?ID=35411
NEWS BRIEFS: Warren, Piper talk doctrine http://www.bpnews.net/BPnews.asp?ID=35412
‘Webcam’ abortions? 4 states ban them http://www.bpnews.net/BPnews.asp?ID=35413
BIBLE STORYING, Article 9: Telling the story http://www.bpnews.net/BPnews.asp?ID=35414
FIRST-PERSON: Gay diversity lessons, for 4th graders http://www.bpnews.net/BPnews.asp?ID=35415
EDITORIAL: Las HerejÌas de Harold Camping http://www.bpnews.net/BPnews.asp?ID=35416
Be a blessing to someone today! Get prepared for the Lord’s Day!
Anna Lee
The Prayer Link 