NORTH CAROLINA CHURCH OF CHRIST
May 11, 2025
Home: Gerald Clemmons, Barbara Smith
Please add Chris Stewart to your prayer list. He is the
son-n-law of a friend of Phillip’s. He has been diagnosed
with colon cancer and will have surgery very soon.
Also, please add Amy Weems to your Prayer List. She has
Recently been diagnosed with liver cancer and is undergoing
Treatment. She is a friend of Janelle Perry.
Cedar View: Barbara Parker
LCNH: Prue Kelley/1
SHUT INS: Freddie Davis, Jennifer Davis, Stacy McCormack,
Betty Scott, Vicki Wright.
Please remember those in the nursing homes and our
Shut-Ins
ISAIAH’S CALL: Please continue to bring Hamburger
Helper Meals or give your donations to Amy, Ann, or
Pat.
Lesson #8, for the Auditorium Class, is on the table in
the foyer.
The lesson for our Wednesday night class on Isaiah is on
the table in the foyer.
Please check the Bulletin Board for cards, etc.
Please bring your old House to House/Heart to Heart papers
and give them to Tom.
The Activity Bldg. is booked for May 18th (Homecoming), and
the 21st and 22nd.
The April Financial Report is on the table in the Library.
REMEMBER IN PRAYER
Please keep these folks in your thoughts and
prayers.
Michelle Bernstein, Sherry Box, Alma Butler, Billy Bryant, Vicki Burbank, Haley Bugg, Donnie Carroll, Tom Childers, Jane Clark, Coltley Clemmons, Gerald Clemmons, Mitch Clemmons, Jim Clemmons, Brandon Cody, Jennifer Davis, Thomas Davis, Caitlyn Dennis, Tammy Dial, Kevin Dillon, Dakota Garner, Bridgett Gattis, Carter Glascock, Kayla Hamner, Lori Hargett, Shirley Harmon, Cypress Hayes, Taylor Hendrix, Charles and Joyce Hester, Lana Hines, Christine Holden, Cindy James, Josh Hones, Brock Killen, Don Lakey, Madalyn Littrell, Brenda McDonald, Porter Mitchell, Peggy Montgomery, Luke Oliver, Tracy Pace, Ethan Pennington, Kenzie Perkins, Dennis Phillips, Tamika Powell, Jeremy Prestage, Mike Prince, Amy Richey, Linda Rickard, Ricky Rogers, Lazaro Ruiz, Susan Schmidlkofer, Kim Sharp, Steve Shelton, Kristi Shollenberger, Barbara Smith, Betty Sparkman, Kevin Springer, Chris Stewart. Jean Symore, Earl Tank, Brad Tank, Patrice Tucker, Rene Voser, Amy Weems,
Luke White, Donna Wilkerson, Vicki Wright
WHAT THOUGHTS AND PRAYERS CAN DO
We’ve seen it more times than we can count. A great public tragedy will strike our nation, and we don’t know what to say but we want others to know that we care. Often, we fall back on a phrase that is tried and true: “Thoughts and prayers.” In an instant, we communicate our sympathy and faith that God is watching over the situation.
However, these days, such a post is likely to produce as much ridicule as it does solidarity. Critics would much rather chastise you for stating what they see as a trite sentiment and not making a political statement that they agree with. How is it that a phrase like “thoughts and prayers” becomes divisive?
We need to realize that those who criticize this kind of thing do so from an atheistic mindset. To them, saying you are praying about something holds no tangible value because there is no God to answer. At best, they see these words as the futile exercise of a superstitious simpleton. At worst, they assume you lack any real compassion and accuse you of self-righteousness. If only they understood what the power of prayer truly is.
Each Wednesday, we gather as a congregation to pray about things that are on our minds. We pray for sick family members and coworkers, wayward brothers and sisters in Christ, and those mourning deaths. After reading each name, we bow our heads and ask our Lord in heaven in one accord to hear these prayers. We do not spend all this time in prayer just because it makes feel warm and fuzzy. We pray because there is a God who has the power to answer.
The Bible tells us over and over that God answers the prayers of faithful Christians. James 5:16 famously tells us, “The effective, fervent prayer of a righteous man avails much.” Jesus says in John 15:7, “If you abide in Me, and My words abide in you, you will ask what you desire, and it shall be done for you.” All we must do is truly believe it. Mark 11:24 states, “…whatever things you ask when you pray, believe that you receive them, and you will have them.” What an amazing privilege we have!
But what happens if we don’t really believe it? What if we let “thoughts and prayers” become nothing more than a empty slogan or a copout because we can’t think of “anything better to say”? Then we prove the cynics right. Brethren, if we type “thoughts and prayers” and never take the time to actually pray it, then we become exactly who they say we are: hypocrites.
Prayer was not given to us to generate likes and virtual pats on the back. Prayer changes the world!
Via: Robert Lupo
Palm Beach Lakes Church of Christ
Palm Beach Gardens, FL