Samaria Baptist Church

Special music was brought by Jeannie Mims and Floyd Collins, singing “How Long Has It Been” and Stacy Wyatt sang “Praise the King.” We all received a blessing from these beautiful songs.

We welcome Bro. Shane back with us after his bout with the flu. Bro. Shane’s message was “Where Are We Spiritually?” Our Bible text came from Revelation 2:1-7.

We find in these verses that God commends those who serve him and do the deeds that a church family should do. However, we need to remember that if we do things out of habit, we can become complacent and not get the blessing our Lord intends for us.

Return to your first love, to the joy of your new life in Christ. This was what Jesus wanted the church at Ephesus to understand. Their works were blessed and he was pleased with them, but the joy of salvation and the lack of spirituality showed that they had left their first love. We are all capable of this too, so we have to have a constant attitude of prayer and faith in order to please God.

Whatever it is that creates distance between us and our Savior is not his fault. He doesn’t move and he doesn’t leave us. We are responsible for leaving our first love.

We must never be a fence-straddler. We should have a greater desire for more of him in every facet of our lives. God wants us to be close to him. Whatever is going on in our lives, we need more of Jesus today than we will tomorrow. Don’t wait for a tragedy or disaster to cry out, “Lord, Lord.” Make Jesus the Lord of your life today, and maintain a closeness with him.

Prayer concerns are for Jeannie Driver with her present illness and for the bereaved in our community.

Join us at Samaria for a wonderful blessing. May God bless and keep you safe is our prayer.

Rocky Mount UMC

The powerful name of Jesus! That is what we studied about Sunday as we read the scripture from Acts 3:1-16.

Peter and John went to the temple for their time of worship. As they arrived, they encountered the poor lame beggar who had been moved to his place near the door of the temple where many people would be passing. Peter began speaking to the man, and then proclaimed his healing in the name of Jesus. The key part there is that he proclaimed the healing in the name of Jesus. Peter took the hand of the man to help him up. He not only stood for the first time in his life, but he also began to leap about. What a powerful statement was made at that time!

Can you imagine what must have been going through the minds of all those who had watched for years as this crippled person lay on the streets begging, and now he is leaping around? What a miracle! Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, there’s just something about that name. We must all appreciate the power of the name of Jesus. That name is the pathway to perfect peace and the light that can break the fog of despair. With Jesus, you can experience the restoration of your life.

What are you doing on Sunday mornings? Have you been at home or about, thinking how you need to get back in church? Please come join us and see what we have to offer. We would love to welcome you into our warm, loving church.