Category: General

CWF Group 5 and BethCom are putting on a yard sale Saturday, 14 Sep, from 7 AM to noon. Furniture, household and miscellaneous items, as well as books and pocketbooks will be available.

Also, muffins, juice and coffee will be available for purchase! So come early, have your coffee and a muffin for breakfast, and find good deals!

Click here for the poster.

For we know that if the earthly tent we live in is destroyed, we have a building from God, a house not made with hands, eternal in the heavens. For in this tent we groan, longing to be clothed with our heavenly dwelling— if indeed, when we have taken it off we will not be found naked.  For while we are still in this tent, we groan under our burden, because we wish not to be unclothed but to be further clothed, so that what is mortal may be swallowed up by life.  He who has prepared us for this very thing is God, who has given us the Spirit as a guarantee. —2 Corinthians 5:1-5

We all have experienced moving into a home—unloading boxes, taking off our shoes so as not to scratch the floor. Most of us have places to live that we call “home.” Most of them are comfortable and familiar to us, and we feel “at home” in them.

But we all are travelers and what we think of as our homes really are just rest stops along the way. As believers in Jesus Christ, we travel through this life toward our real home, with Him. When we arrive, there will be no boxes to unload and unpack, no shoes to take off and probably no floors to scratch. But we will know, at last, that we are Home, Sweet Home!

 

The WordPress user agreement allows WordPress to insert ads in blogs and websites. We cannot change that. We would have to use another platform that would not be free, and would, in fact, involve a substantial expense. Communications is considering another option, however.

But for the time being, do not click on a highlighted word, like the ones highlighted in this post in blue. If your cursor hovers over the word, an ad will pop up. Do not click on that ad! Some ads will insert malware into your computer, and it will be hard to clean it, or eliminate it, if you do not have good anti-virus/anti-malware protection on your computer.

The best protection against any malware attack on your computer is a good anti-virus/anti-malware protection program. There are many available, some for free, like Malwarebytes.

The editor recommends Trend Micro Maximum Security, which, if you buy online from Trend Micro (you can purchase in stores, but the price for doing so is about 20% higher),  costs $49.95 for one year . Renewals each year are discounted. Trend Micro operates in the cloud, and doesn’t slow your computer.

Here is the link to Trend Micro.

http://bestantivirusoftware.com/trendmicro-antivirus.html?gclid=CjwKCAjwqNnqBRATEiwAkHm2BFdjKlOJGWbt6jnNnk2RAqiMXDbtBnQzR3gTs_1igxdhrlejET2ZPxoCMSAQAvD_BwE

But there are other good programs as well; just do something to protect your computer, if you do not currently have protection. And don’t click on ads.

Franklin Graham writes:

“As a North Carolina native, I’m troubled that secularism has spread across our state like it has across our country. Many in North Carolina are doing everything in their power to remove God’s truth and His Name from our government, our schools, our businesses—all parts of public life. Meanwhile, the number of people across the state who profess faith in Jesus Christ has dropped significant.y. What North Carolina—and America as a whole—needs is the transformation that comes when individuals surrender their lives to Jesus Christ. He is our only Hope.

The Lord has given me the opportunity to join with believers like you at free, one-night evangelistic events across our state this October. I want to tell our neighbors about the hope they can find through repentance and faith in Christ. Will you encourage your church members to bring their friends and family who need to hear about His love to the Decision America Tar Heel State Tour? Let’s come together to proclaim ‘the gospel of the glory of Christ, who is the image of God’ (2 Corinthians 4:4, NKJV).

Each event on the eight-city tour will also feature live music and prayer for our state and nation. Will you and your church join this life-changing outreach?

May God bless you—and may God bless America!”

After the concert, as I exited the sanctuary and listened to people’s comments, I heard several say, “This was even better than the concert last year!”

I agree with those comments, and look forward to next year’s performance. As the members of the orchestra were leaving, I asked them to come back next year, and they responded that they would, and that they looked forward to the performance as well.

Events like the performance of the NC Baroque Orchestra are enriching both to our congregation and to the community, and we are privileged to host such uplifting events that we can share with our community.

—Editor

The North Carolina Baroque Orchestra, Frances Blaker and Barbara Blaker Krumdieck, directors, will perform in concert Thursday, August 8, in the Bethany sanctuary.

The public is invited to the concert, The Enchanted Baroque, music of Vivaldi, Telemann, Rameau and others. It begins at 7 PM. Bethany is located at the crossroads in Arapahoe, 8126 NC Hwy 306 S.

This concert is a rare cultural event in rural Pamlico County. Those who have attended the performance in either of the two previous years will attest that it is worthy of any major orchestral venue.

Thanks to the hard work of many at the participating churches, the community Vacation Bible School, an event sponsored by four cooperating churches, held this year at Bethany July 15-19, averaged 27 children, and was both exciting and successful. It was, in fact, a Miraculous Mission.

Here are some photographs taken at the event (Photos by Melissa Watson):

 

 

 

 

 

 

This is the message we have heard from him and proclaim to you, that God is light, and in him is no darkness at all. If we say we have fellowship with him while we walk in darkness, we lie and do not practice the truth. But if we walk in the light, as he is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus his Son cleanses us from all sin. —1 John 1:5-7

When we walk with the Lord, it signifies that we know Him, love Him and rely on Him. Was that not our intention when we were baptized into Christ? Christ died to forgive our sins. Now we can walk with Him and not fear that His light, that shines on us, will reveal sin or darkness within us. If we stray from His light and walk in darkness, He will accept us back into the light if we confess, repent and ask His forgiveness. So let us walk with Him, for He is light, and in walking with Him, we will reflect His light so that others will want to walk with Him, too.

Trust and Obey

When we walk with the Lord in the light of his Word
What a glory he sheds on our way!
While we do his good will, he abides with us still,
And with all who will trust and obey.

Trust and obey, for there’s no other way
To be happy in Jesus, but to trust and obey.

—John H. Sammis, 1887

Editor’s Note: Advertisers are hijacking some of the words in these posts to mount ads. Those words will be highlighted so that if your cursor hovers over them, the ad will appear. We are working to find a way to end this annoying development.

But now that you have been set free from sin and have become slaves of God, the fruit you get leads to sanctification and its end, eternal life.  For the wages of sin is death, but the free gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord. —Romans 6:22 ESV

As we celebrate our nation’s independence and 243^rd birthday, the image of the Liberty Bell would be a symbolic image. But the header picture here is of Bethany’s bell from the church building that burned 11 years ago. A church bell is appropriate for our July theme, Let Freedom Ring! If we believe Jesus Christ is the Son of God, and our Savior, then He has set us free from sin. So, as people free from the slavery of sin, living in Christ’s Kingdom, a church bell is symbolic of the grace of Christ. Let Freedom Ring!

Bethany will hold its annual Sunday School Picnic at Camp Caroline tomorrow, 23 June, beginning at 2 PM! After fun at the pool and on the creek, supper will be served around 5 PM.

The Sunday School also is providing gluten-free buns, and Bubba Veggie Burgers to make our gluten- free and vegetarian people feel welcome!

While the Sunday School is providing hamburgers and hot dogs, those attending are invited to bring a side dish or dessert to the picnic so that there will be a variety of food available for everyone to share.

So, enjoy your time at Sunday School and worship tomorrow, then eat a light lunch, and go to Camp Caroline to enjoy fun, fellowship and supper with Bethany family and friends!