For I resolved to know nothing
while I was with you except
Jesus Christ and him crucified.
1 Corinthians 2:2 (NIV)
Barbara Bennett Gaines got a good report. There is no evidence of
cancer. Join Barbara in rejoicing over this news. Thank God for this
good report.
Barbara’s cousin, Kitty, learned the doctors have decided to try to hold off
on additional surgery. Kitty’s condition calls for much prayer,
Jared Prescott is home. The family is appreciative of your prayers. God
still has plans for Jared and David Gullotta! David’s liver issues are still
a serious concern. Please continue to pray for both of these young men as
they heal.
Update on Don Denton
Don update:
Don is still in the hospital at Cox South. He is doing
much better. His headache pain is gone. The tests
reveal thatthe pressure from the Spinal Tap is slightly
elivated. This is nothing to be concerned about as it
is the lowest that it has been since Don has been sick
three months ago. That is a good thing.
The doctor believes that Dons steroids were being
tapered off too soon. So we are going to be more
purposeful in how we go about that.
Don does not have a secondary infection, nor does
he have a reoccurrence of this disease. These are all
good reports. We are hoping the doctor will let him
come home ina few days. My brother Steve and his
wife Lynn flew in very latelast night. I am so thankful
for them. Joshua loves them so much and is happy
they are here to help out and of course play with him.
We will be celebrating New Years Day at the hospital
tomorrow with Don.
We are giving thanks to God again for his mercy to us.
We are very tired so please pray that we will be able to
get the rest we need.
Thank you again for your love and care for us.
Happy New Year
Blessings to you our family and friends.
Diane
Jo Ann James
(April 12, 1938 – December 30, 2008)
Died at 1:40PM on Tuesday, December 30, 2008 at King’s Daughter’s
Hospital in Brookhaven, MS. She was a native of Kentwood, LA and a
resident of Brookhaven, MS. Age 70 years. Visitation at McKneely
Funeral Home, Kentwood, from 5 p.m. until 8 p.m. on Thursday and
from 11 a.m. until religious services at 2 p.m. Friday. Services conducted
by Rev. Ben Wayne Blackwell. Interment Woodland Cemetery, Kentwood,
LA. Survived by 4 daughters, Lisa Francis, Baton Rouge, LA, Leigh Ann
Wrather, Smurna, TN, Joni Spears, McComb, MS, Shy Ann James,
Brookhaven, MS, 2 sons, Joseph Francis, Pickins, MS, John Mark Spears,
Osyka, MS, 10 grandchildren. Preceded in death by mother, Ruby Lee
McDaniel Blackwell, father, Benjamin Blackwell, 2 brothers, Arlan Ray
Blackwell, Carl Blackwell.
Luther Ray Reynolds
(August 31, 1961 – December 21, 2008)
Luther Ray Reynolds was born on August 31, 1961 and passed away on
December 21, 2008 at the Port Allen Care Center, Port Allen, LA. He was
47, a native of Chicago, IL, and a resident of Port Allen. Luther was the
son of the late Harold & Virginia Speed Reynolds.
He is survived by his brother Wilbern “Will” Reynolds and wife Telena,
Southhaven, MS; a half- brother, Jack Speed and wife, Dawn, Chatawa,
MS; nieces and nephews, Dan Speed and wife, Brooke, June Speed
Gatlin and husband, Patrick, Jesse Reynolds, Nicole Reynolds Jones,
and husband, Jason, & Hunter Reynolds.
Luther was a member of the First Baptist Church of Greensburg.
A Memorial Service will be at later date.
An on-line Guestbook is available at http://www.mckneelyvaughnfh.com
McKneely & Vaughn Funeral Home, Amite, in charge of arrangements.
|
| Rev. F. Ory Miller |
|
|
| Retired minister Ory Miller died Tuesday, Dec. 30, 2008, at Golden
Age Nursing Home in Denham Springs. He was 89, born June 15,
1919, in Walker, where he graduated from high school in 1936.
He was a member of the U.S. Army Air Forces and served in the
European Theater. After working 14 years in the banking
business, he entered the ministry in 1950 and graduated from
Louisiana College in 1953 and the New Orleans Baptist
Theological Seminary in 1956. He pastored Baptist churches
for 23 years before joining the Southern Methodist
denomination for 35 years. Rev. Miller served churches in
Louisiana and South Carolina. Some of the churches he pastored
in the area are First Baptist Church in Livingston, Line Creek
Baptist Church in Kentwood, First Baptist Church in Greensburg,
Eden Baptist Church in Denham Springs, Spring Creek Baptist
Church, and First Southern Methodist Church in Hammond. For
the past nine years, he was the resident minister at La
Plantation Retirement Center in Denham Springs. An active
member of the Denham Springs Masonic Lodge F&AM, he was
also a member of the Eastern Star. Rev. Miller is survived by
his wife of almost 69 years, Ethel Laird Miller; a daughter, Judy
Miller Lytle; two sons, Wendell Ory “Yogi” Miller and wife Karen
McBride and Jim Miller and wife Adele; seven grandchildren,
Troy Miller and wife Julie, Chris Miller, Robyn Atkinson and
husband Bradley, Bill Miller, Jay Miller and wife Daphne, Leslie
Schmidt and husband Adam, and Hilory Lytle; nine great-
grandchildren and several nieces and nephews, with special
mention of Sandra Ecoles, his very caring, loving and
dependable niece. He was preceded in death by his parents,
William Christopher Miller and Martha Geneva McNabb Miller;
and three sisters and brothers-in-law, Lorraine and Bentley
Rheams, Thelma and Cecil Eccles, and Vergie and Carl Eccles;
and a son-in-law, Terry Lytle. Visitation at Seale Funeral Home,
Denham Springs, on Friday, Jan. 2, from 6 p.m. to 9 p.m.
Visitation at Hebron Baptist Church, Denham Springs, on
Saturday, Jan. 3, from 10 a.m. until funeral service at 1 p.m.,
followed by a Masonic service at the cemetery. The services wil
l be led by the Rev. Olan McLaren of Davis Springs Southern
Methodist Church, with assistance by the Rev. Jim Efferson of
Indian Mound Baptist Church, and the Rev. Joe Alain of Hebron
Baptist Church. In lieu of flowers, donations may be made to
your local church or your favorite charity. Ory Miller reveled in
his grandchildren and enjoyed playing puzzle games and memory
skills games with them to sharpen their logic skills as well as
making it fun to remember Bible facts. He was a faithful servant
and evangelist of the Lord, always striving to lighten the load of
his family and fellow man. He lived his life as a Christian. |
|
Prayer Requests
Prayer requests
“Let the little children come to Me, and don’t stop them, because the
kingdom of God belongs to such as these,” Luke 18:16b
THE FAITH OF A CHILD
A 4-year-old Chinese boy in Canada was punished by his
parents. He was really upset and wanted to talk to his Sunday
School teacher. Miss E is his teacher, so the parents called her
on the phone. She talked with the little boy and let him tell
his side of the story. Then she asked, “Would you like to pray?”
He said, “Yes.” Miss E waited for the little boy to start praying
but she didn’t hear anything. Maybe he wanted her to pray.
After a little while, the boy’s daddy picked up the phone. He
told Miss E that the 4-year-old was doing just what she
suggested. He had put down the phone to kneel and fold his
hands. He was praying!
This 4-year-old was upset with his parents, but he knew what
to do. He talked to someone he trusted, his teacher. His
teacher helped calm him down then asked him to talk to God.
This little boy learned a lot that day, but he also showed his
mommy and daddy how much he loves and trusts Jesus.
MORE PRAYER REQUESTS FROM MISSIONARY KIDS
Pray that I’ll have courage to be an empowered witness…that
the people will see Christ in me and They may come to know
Him. KARRINGTON, age 15, (Central, Eastern and Southern
Africa)
Please pray for me that I will love others. I want to be loved
by them too, so please pray for me to be a good friend. TIM,
age 11 (Pacific Rim)
Pray for people affected by the earthquake in China, that God
will help them to rebuild their homes. Michael, age 6 (East
Asia)
Pray for our family (especially my parents) to pick up the
language. AMANDA, age 14, (Central, Eastern and Southern
Africa)
Please pray for my family. We need visas to get into our
country and they are very hard to get. Pray for my national
friends too. One of my friends has a heart problem. She has
to go to the doctor almost every day after school. My friend
in my ballet class does not know Jesus. She is a good friend.
Please pray that I will be able to share to her about Him.
ABIGAIL, age 12 (Central Asia)
Thank God for God’s people, God’s wonder, and God’s
kindness. Please pray for missionaries. RUTH, age 7 (South
Asia)
Please pray for the Senegalese people, as many of them
are Muslims. Also, I have a friend who comes over to play
with me a lot. She is a Muslim and her father says that won’t
change. I’ve told her about Jesus and his many miracles
before, but she tries to not listen to me. Please pray for her
and her family. Thank you! HANNAH, age 11 (West Africa)
Please pray for my family’s budget. We get paid in dollars,
but we spend it in a country that uses a different kind of
money. So, we have to change the dollars into the local
money. When the dollar went down, our dollars weren’t worth
as much. It’s kind of like what happened in the US when the
price of gas went up. One day you pay $20 for a tank of gas;
a few weeks later it’s $40 for the same amount of gas.
Please pray we spend our money wisely. Also please pray for
the people where we live, they are all Islamic and need Christ.
DAVID, age 11 (Northern Africa and the Middle East)
Please pray for my family by praying that we won’t get sick
and for God to take care of us. TANIALL, age 8 (Pacific Rim)
Please pray that God will keep my family safe since we
moved and that I won’t miss my cat that much. And please
pray that my mom and dad will let me watch a movie and
let Joy come over for a sleep over. CHLOE, age 8, (Central,
Eastern and Southern Africa)
4 Resolutions Worth Making
By Kelly Boggs
ALEXANDRIA, La. (BP)–While researching the subject of New
Year’s resolutions I came across the following quote: “He who
breaks a resolution is a weakling; He who makes one is a fool.”
The person from whom this quote flowed is obviously as much
a pessimist as a cynic when it comes to making a fresh start
on Jan. 1st.
“The object of a New Year is not that we should have a new
year. It is that we should have a new soul and a new nose;
new feet, a new backbone, new ears, and new eyes,” wrote
English author G.K. Chesterton. “Unless a particular man
made New Year resolutions, he would make no resolutions.
Unless a man starts afresh about things, he will certainly do
nothing effective.”
In recent years, the making of New Year’s resolutions — or
rather the breaking of them -– has become fodder for late-
night comics. That said, I agree with Chesterton that there
is something noble about seeking to better oneself with the
making of resolutions.
Once a person reaches the point that he or she sees no value
in seeking to become better by resolving to change, that
person has given up on living life and has settled on simply
existing. This, if you think about it, is in and of itself a
resolution –- a resolution to settle for mediocrity.
The problem with too many resolutions is they lack
imagination. It seems everyone makes the same resolutions
and some make them year after year. According to a federal
government website the following are some of the most
popular New Year’s resolutions:
— Lose weight.
— Eat right.
— Manage debt.
— Save money.
— Get a better job.
— Quit smoking.
When it comes to making New Year’s resolutions, I have found
that less is more. By making only a few resolutions, I am able
to concentrate on two or three aspects of my life that I really
want to change. As a result, I give myself a much better
opportunity to follow through.
Trying to make wholesale changes to your life in a year’s time
is difficult at best. However, making only one or two changes
annually, over time, you can change almost every aspect of
your life. If you altered two things a year for 10 years, you will
have changed 20 aspects of your life. And that, my friend, is
significant change.
I recently came across something titled “Wisdom for Life”
written by business and ministry consultant Bobb Biehl. It is
short and to the point. In it, he quotes author Stephen R.
Covey.
“I have … found that by making four simple assumptions in
our lives we can immediately begin leading a more balanced,
integrated, powerful life,” Covey wrote.
What are these four assumptions? They are as follows:
1. “For the body, assume you have had a heart attack;
now live accordingly.”
I found the first assumption sobering, because if I don’t
change certain aspects of my life, I could well be a candidate
for a coronary. So by assuming, or pretending, I have had
one, I simply need to ask, “Will this help or hurt my health?
2. “For the mind, assume the half-life of your profession
is two years; now prepare accordingly.”
Being an editor of what currently is primarily a print publication,
this is not a difficult assumption for me. As a result, I must
constantly be looking to the future to not only seek to retool
my publication, but also my own knowledge base and skill set.
3. “For the heart, assume everything you say about
another, they can overhear; now speak accordingly.”
The third assumption also is a sobering one and reminiscent
of Jesus’ words, “Do unto others as you would have them do
unto you.” Enough said.
4. “For the spirit, assume you have a one-on-one visit
withyour Creator every quarter; now live accordingly.”
As a believer, I don’t have to wait three months to visit with
God. I can, and should meet with Him constantly. However,
the thought of scheduling a regular “performance review”
with the Lord could and should have an impact on my daily
decisions and thus my life.
As a result of Covey’s wisdom, I have resolved this year to
make four “New Year’s assumptions.” And while I likely will
fail from time to time, I believe the effort will pay off and I
will be better for it this time next year — which makes me
no weakling and certainly no fool.
(Kelly Boggs is a weekly columnist for Baptist Press and editor
of the Baptist Message (www.baptistmessage.com),
newsjournal of the Louisiana Baptist Convention.)
I pray 2009 will be an especially good year for you and
yours.
Anna Lee
Died at 5:58 p.m. on Sunday, December 28, 2008 at Baton Rouge
The Prayer Link 
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