Announcements
THANK YOU: for all the prayers, cards, calls, and visits at the homegoing of our sister-in-law, Teri. Our family has been encouraged, comforted, and greatly blessed by each of you! In Christ, Buck & Cheryl Bowers
PIE FELLOWSHIP: Bring a pie to share for tonight's fellowship! Pies can be dropped off in the kitchen before the evening service for the King’s Messenger/College & Career Class to slice and serve.
WANTED: Soldiers, Sailors, Airmen, and Marines, in uniform, to participate in the Church of the Open Door’s Veterans Day Program on Sunday, November 12, during the morning service. If you are able to volunteer, please contact Pastor Brian Jung at 410-876-3838, ext. 312.
SURE FOUNDATIONS: will begin a new session on Sunday, October 8, at 5:00 p.m. in Baker. The class is designed for new members, new Christians, or current members who just want to grow more in their personal ministry for Christ. To attend, please register online or at the Welcome Desk.
DEACONS: Please pick up your packets at the Welcome Desk.
From My Heart
I want to thank our church family for all the birthday cards and gifts you gave me two weeks ago! As I have said many times in the past, several folks in our church have a very strange sense of humor! I certainly appreciate everything though, and it all makes growing old a little more tolerable.
One of our church members sent this little piece to me, and I wanted to share it with you this morning. It has no name connected to it, but it is a wonderful analogy! It goes like this: “When God wanted to create a fish, He spoke to the sea. When God wanted to create trees, He spoke to the earth. But when God wanted to create man, He turned to Himself. God said to Himself, “Let US make man in OUR image and in our likeness.”
“If you take a fish out of water, it will die; and when you remove a tree from the soil it will also die. Likewise, when man is disconnected from God, he dies. God is our natural environment. We were created to live in His presence. We must be connected to Him because it is only in Him that life exists. Thus, we can see the importance of staying connected with God.”
In Acts 17, the Apostle Paul was preaching on Mars Hill, in Athens, Greece, and he noticed they had an idol for every false god they could dream up in their imaginations. In v. 23, Paul said he passed by an altar they called, “TO THE UNKNOWN GOD.” In other words, all over Mars Hill were man-made altars and shrines built to give some sort of identity to all the deities of Greek Mythology. And Paul said, “I found an altar that had no identity connected to it, so I take it this altar is there in case there is some God somewhere that you might have missed in your search for truth.”
And Paul said, “This God that you have missed, is the One and only True God of creation.” In v. 27-28, Paul told the Athenians they should seek the Lord and then told them why they should seek Him. Verse 28, “For in Him we live, and move, and have our being; as certain also of your own poets have said, For we are also his offspring.”
In other words, each one of us has been given life because of the grace and mercy of God. We would not be here if it was not for God giving us life. In v. 29, Paul said, “Forasmuch then as we are the offspring of God, we ought not to think that the Godhead is like unto gold, or silver, or stone, graven by art and man’s device.”
Oh, how we need to stay connected to the Lord. “For in Him we live, and move, and have our being” because we are His offspring. A man without a relationship with God is like a fish out of water, or like a tree blown over by the wind with its roots pulled out of the ground. Let’s stay connected to our God who gives us life.
Have a great day!
Pastor Norris