Value the important things

This is a busy time of the year. The shopping, decorating, attending church functions, family gatherings can be both enjoyable and stressful. It is more so this year for many. The economic situation makes it difficult for many to spend as they have in the past on gifts for family and friends. Surviving to pay the bills and stay afloat is enough pressure, without the added guilt of not having enough money to buy the little ones or mom and dad Christmas gifts.

The holidays also are typically a time of added stress for those who are going through a crisis of some sort. You may have an aging parent whose health is deteriorating, a loved one battling a disease, or going through a separation or divorce. You may feel stressed, worried, all alone.

It is important in these times to remember the important things of life, and to value them. My aging father is battling cancer, and will have surgery in January. He says this may be his last Christmas. The fact is that none of us are guaranteed tomorrow. But when you are facing such things, you value the days you have. There are so many things we take for granted. Like family, friends, loved ones.

I remember hearing the song several months ago by Trace Adkins, "You're going to miss this." The song tells the story of a young lady going through several phases of her life, and the point of the story is to value the precious days. Days of growing up at home with mom and dad, of marriage, of raising the kids.

This year I need to remind myself to value the things that are important. No, I can't spend as I want to on the family as in the past. But I have them. I have a loving home, a wife who has stood with me through the years. The old Beatle song says "money can't buy me love." I have a wonderful church family. Most of all, I have the Lord in my life. He has saved me and given me a purpose. He has given me a hope and a future.

Remember us in your prayers. Continue to pray for my dad, and for my son in law, Michael. Michael has had some set backs from his stem cell transplant, and is going through some great difficulty. Please remember him and Tina, and encourage them.

Blessings,
Pastor Ronnie

ON THE LIGHTER SIDE

OK, I know how intense these days can be. Shopping to buy gifts for people you don't like, spending money you don't have, and worrying about the bills it will take next July to catch up on. If you are like me, you can probably use a little humor today. I share this blog to you, which comes from my blogging buddy, Pastor Manning Strickland. Here it is:
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Thanks....I Think! Dear All,

My thanks to all those who have sent me emails this
past year........

I must send my thanks to whoever sent me the one
about rat droppings in the glue on envelopes because I now have to use a wet towel
with every envelope that needs sealing.

Also,I now have to scrub the top of every can I open
for the same reason.

I no longer have any savings because I gave it to a
sick girl (Penny Brown); who is about to die in the hospital for the
1,387,258th time.

I no longer have any money at all, but that will
change once I receive the $15,000 that Bill Gates/Microsoft and AOL are sending me for participating in their special e-mail program .............

Or from the senior bank clerk in Nigeria who wants me
to split $7 million with me for pretending to be a
long-lost relative of
a customer who died intestate.

I no longer worry about my soul because I have
363,214 angels looking out for me, and St. Theresa's novena has granted my every wish.

I no longer use cancer-causing deodorants even though
I smell like a water buffalo on a hot day.

Thanks to you,

I have learned that my prayers only get answered if I
forward e-mail to seven of my friends and make a wish within five
minutes.

Because of your concern I no longer drink Coca-Cola
because it can remove toilet stains.

I no longer can buy gas without taking a friend along
to watch the car so a serial killer won't crawl in my back seat when I'm
filling up.

I no longer go to shopping malls because someone will
drug me with a aftershave sample and rob me.

I no longer answer the phone because someone will ask
me to dial a number for which I will get a phone bill with calls to
Jamaica ,
Uganda , Singapore and Uzbekistan .

Thanks to you, I can't use anyone's toilet but mine because a big brown African spider is lurking under the seat to cause me instant death when it
bites my bum.

And thanks to your great advice,

I can't even pick up the $5.00 I found dropped in the
car park because it probably was placed there by a sex molester waiting
underneath my car to grab my leg.

If you don't send this e-mail to at least 144,000 people in the next 70
minutes, a large dove with diarrhea will land on your head at 5:00pm this
afternoon and the fleas from 12 camels will infest your back, causing you
to grow a hairy hump.

I know this will occur because it actually happened to a friend of my next door neighbor's ex-mother-in-law's second husband's cousin's beauticians relative once removed.

By the way....a South American scientist after a
lengthy study has discovered that people with low IQ always read their e-mails with their hand on the mouse.

Don't bother taking it off now, it's too late!
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That's it for today. You can catch more of Pastor Manning's blogs at www.legacyoutreach.org


Blessings,
Pastor Ronnie

CHURCHES STRUGGLING FINANCIALLY

The economic struggles of the nation have affected pretty much every segment of society. I am an avid sports enthusiast, and have watched the news of NASCAR and the layoffs and folding of teams. With the uncertainty of the Big Three automakers, it will probably worsen. Even the mighty NFL has had some layoffs. Starbucks, the coffee giant, has downsized. It seems a $4 cup of coffee is not recession proof.

Churches and ministries across the nation are being affected. Focus on the Family cut 202 jobs last month. From the national ministries to local churches, there has been an impact.

Each year during the months of December and January, we have seen our tithes and offerings decrease. Sadly, some of the decrease in giving is due to the members of the church taking the money (or at least a portion of it) they give in tithes and offerings, and spending it on gifts for Christmas. What is a difficult situation for the church becomes even more difficult. Finding a way to manage when the funds are not there affects everything the local church does. Lights left on, heating an entire building for a group meeting of 20 people, buying needed goods, materials, all those things that you would normally do become an added burden to the budget.

I am a family man, and I understand the desire to buy your children and family gifts. I know all the traditions of the Christmas season. I just want to pass on to you that there are churches who depend on and need its people to be faithful in their giving. Even during the Christmas season.

We usually have a candlelight service during Christmas. It is always a beautiful thing. I don't want the candlelight service to be a necessity because we don't have the funds to pay the power bill. Thank you for supporting the church. It is a lighthouse to the community and world. Your gifts help it continue to do what it is purposed to do. Support it. That is the best Christmas gift you can give to your family. Where would you be without the church?

Blessings,
Pastor Ronnie

CHRISTMAS PARADE

New Harvest Church (and Kid's Zone Child Care) was in the Spindale Rutherfordton Christmas Parade this past Saturday. We had a group of about 30 including children, teens, and adults who participated in the event. The parade actually consisted of two parades in one setting. It first travelled through Spindale, and then moved on to Rutherfordton, a few miles away.

The theme was "Sweet on Jesus" Candyland.

DEALING WITH AN ISSUE?

Luke 8:43 says "And a woman having an issue of blood twelve years..."

The bible does not give us this woman's name, but we do have some history. Her history was one of pain and disappointment. She had suffered with a disease for twelve long years. She had invested all of her income on trying to get better. But nothing and no one was able to help her or provide the relief she needed. We have a saying here in the South that indicates how we feel sometimes when we find ourselves at rock bottom: "broke, busted, and disgusted." I am sure if we could ask the nameless woman how she felt during these years of sickness, she would have expressed something in that vein.

She was dealing with an issue. It was a blood hemorrhage. According to the Levitical law, she was unclean. Add that to her problems. Not only suffering, but religion and society called upon her to be cast as unclean. Restrictions were placed upon her life because of her condition. Her condition affected her position.

This woman was actually dealing with a number of "issues." The pain, sickness, and disease were one. The financial strain was another. The unclean issue was another. I am sure discouragement, fear, and worry crept in. And what about isolation? Isolation from family, friends, church, and community were also a real part of her life. Yes, she was dealing, not just with an issue, but with a number of them. But she had one dominant issue that was engine that propelled the others. Get rid of the one, and the others would be lifeless, or at least less effective.

Like the woman in the bible, most of us are dealing with issues. It may be a marriage breakdown, a financial crisis, a sickness or disease. It may be a struggle with drugs or alcohol. Your issue may be lust. You may have an issue of unforgiveness. You probably have one dominant issue that is your greatest weakness. Yes, I have an issue, and I have issues. No, I am not telling you mine. I am just stating that we all have them.

The good news is that there is ONE who is able to give us the victory over the issue. His name is Jesus. The sick woman heard of Him, and pressed through the crowd. She touched the hem of his garment, and was instantly made whole. Healed, delivered, free-- from every issue.

Some healings are instantaneous, and some are a process. This one thing I know. I just want to lay every issue in my life before Christ, who can do what none other can.

I encourage you today to lay your issue before Jesus!

Various News and Updates

Michael Armstrong, my son in law, is back in Duke Medical Center. He has been having some problems for the past couple of weeks. They have admitted him, and will be running some tests. Please pray for Michael and Tina in this continued battle with cancer.

Well, I got another computer, got the hardware programmed so that I could edit the website, and after a couple of days of making some changes, it stopped working. So here we are again with old info on the front page. Plus, when I brought the website back up, everything was messed up. It's going to take a while to get things back in order.

We are having our first service tonight in the Family Life Center. The work prior to making this transition has been overwhelming. To say that I am tired would be an understatement!

Blessings,
Pastor Ronnie

RECESSION DEPRESSION

The experts have finally figured out we are in a recession. The news came out that we have now been in this recession for a year. They also estimate it will be into 2010 before we will be through this economic downturn.

I am no expert, but I have known for over a year about this thing. My finances have decreased and my expenditures have increased. I have less now than I did 2 years ago. It didn't take me this long to figure it out.

As my grandson Zach says, "I told ya."

Blessings :)

Pastor Ronnie