WITNESS ~ INSTRUCT ~ NURTURE / Volume 1 Issue 29
Nov 2, 2005
Hi !
In this issue, you'll read:
THE BOOK OF 1st CORINTHIANS - PART FOUR
BABY'S HUG
A WORD FROM THE EDITOR - TWENTY NINTH EDITION These are questions we should all be asking ourselves as this year draws to a close. Our New Year's resolution should be to tell someone about Jesus each day of the coming year and also to prepare our hearts in case we are called on to lead them to His saving Grace. Remember, we are all called to minister. 2 Corinthians 3:5-6; " Until next time...God bless you in all that you undertake! In Jesus Name, All editions of The W.I.N. E-Mail Newsletter are available on the Internet. To find them, navigate to www.fcgm.org and click on the "Newsletter" link. Feel free to copy as many as you want and pass them out to family and friends. If you would like to be added to our mailing list, send an e-mail containing your name and e-mail address to winsubscribe@fcgm.org. Each morning, read a Scripture passage of your choice. Talk with the Lord as you read His Word. When you are finished, go back and select one or two verses and meditate thoughtfully and prayerfully on what He is saying to you. II. Bible Study In the last lesson, we read through the second section of Paul's first letter to the Corinthians - chapters 7-10. Now we will begin to look at this section more closely. These four chapters can be divided into four subsections and we will take each of these subsections separately. In this lesson, we will read the first sub-section - 1 Corinthians 7:1-40 - and answer for yourself the questions associated with it. Type out your answers (or jot them down on a piece of paper) and place in your Bible for further meditation and study. Read 1 Corinthians 7:1-16 1. What did Paul say was the answer to immorality? (7:1-9). Read 1 Corinthians 7:17-24 1. What was the rule Paul laid down in all the churches? (7:17-18). Read 1 Corinthians 7:25-40 1. Why did Paul say it was good for the Corinthians to remain in whatever situation of life they were in? (7:25-35). III. Memory Verse 1. Ask the Lord to help you remember his Word (see John 14:26). 2. Use the version of the Bible you are most familiar with. What you normally read in your Bible is what you need to be memorizing. 3. Don't just memorize the contents of the verse; memorize its "address" (the verse reference) as well. You can do this by following this pattern: Step 1: reference; Step 2: verse content; Step 3: reference. Then repeat steps 1-3. Note that you are quoting the reference twice as many times as you quote the actual verse content. This gives the verse a clear "reference tag." 4. After you have read your memory verse out aloud several times, try going through your memory verse without reading your computer screen. 5. Look up your memory verse in your Bible. Look at its immediate context and read the verses that come before and after your memory verse. 6. Print out your memory verse or jot it down on a piece of paper. Take this paper with you when you go to work or do other daily activities. Meditate on the meaning of the verse throughout the day. 7. During your noon appointment with the Lord, take out your memory verse and go over it again. Talk to the Lord about what this verse means to you personally. 8. In the evening (at either your evening study or your evening devotions), see if you can quote your memory verse from memory. Then, without looking at the memory verse itself, see if you can find it in your Bible. 9. The next day, before you begin committing a new verse to memory, rehearse your previous day's memory verse and see if you can remember it (without cheating!). 10. Finally, at the end of the week (possibly on Sunday), collect all your week's memory verses, rehearse them and see if you can recall them without reading them. Spend a little extra time on any verses you have difficulty recalling. 11. Remember: Don't just memorize a verse. Put it into practice (James 1:22). It is not being able to quote a verse from memory that counts. It is His Word abiding in your heart that counts (John 15:7). When you actually apply a verse consistently to your daily life; that is when you truly know that verse! This article is Copyright © 1999, The Online Bible College. It is used by permission and formatted for presentation in this newsletter. Bishop Sam T. Leigh, Editor BABY'S HUG We were the only family with children in the restaurant. I sat Erik in a highchair and noticed everyone was quietly sitting and talking. Suddenly, Erik squealed with glee and said, "Hi." He pounded his fat baby hands on the high chair tray. His eyes were crinkled in laughter and his mouth was bared in a toothless grin, as he wriggled and giggled with merriment. I looked around and saw the source of his merriment. It was a man whose pants were baggy with a zipper at half-mast and his toes poked out of would-be shoes. His shirt was dirty and his hair was uncombed and unwashed. His whiskers were too short to be called a beard and his nose was so varicose it looked like a road map. We were too far from him to smell, but I was sure he smelled. His hands waved and flapped on loose wrists. "Hi there, baby. Hi there, big boy. I see ya, buster," the man said to Erik. My husband and I exchanged looks, "What do we do?" Erik continued to laugh and answer, "Hi." Everyone in the restaurant noticed and looked at us and then at the man. The old geezer was creating a nuisance with my beautiful baby. Our meal came and the man began shouting from across the room, "Do ya patty cake? Do you know peek-a-boo? Hey, look, he knows peek-a-boo." Nobody thought the old man was cute. He was obviously drunk. My husband and I were embarrassed. We ate in silence; all except for Erik, who was running through his repertoire for the admiring skid row bum, who in turn, reciprocated with his cute comments. We finally got through the meal and headed for the door. My husband went to pay the check and told me to meet him in the parking lot. The old man sat poised between me and the door. "Lord, just let me out of here before he speaks to me or Erik," I prayed. As I drew closer to the man, I turned my back trying to sidestep him and avoid any air he might be breathing. As I did, Erik leaned over my arm, reaching with both arms in a baby's "pick-me-up" position. Before I could stop him, Erik had propelled himself from my arms to the man's. Suddenly a very old smelly man and a very young baby consummated their love and kinship. Erik in an act of total trust, love, and submission laid his tiny head upon the man's ragged shoulder. The man's eyes closed, and I saw tears hover beneath his lashes. His aged hands full of grime, pain, and hard labor, cradled my baby's bottom and stroked his back. No two beings have ever loved so deeply for so short a The old man rocked and cradled Erik in his arm and his eyes opened and set squarely on mine. He said in a firm commanding voice, "You take care of this baby." Somehow I managed, "I will," from a throat that contained a stone. He pried Erik from his chest, lovingly and longingly, as though he were in pain. I received my baby, and the man said, "God bless you, ma'am, you've given me my Christmas gift." I said nothing more than a muttered thanks. With Erik in my arms, I ran for the car. My husband was wondering why I was crying and holding Erik so tightly, and why I was saying, "My God, my God, forgive me." I had just witnessed Christ's love shown through the innocence of a tiny child who saw no sin, who made no judgment; a child who saw a soul, and a mother who saw a suit of clothes. I was a Christian who was blind, holding a child who was not. I felt it was God asking, "Are you willing to share your son for a moment when He shared His for all eternity. The ragged old man, unwittingly, had reminded me, "To enter the Kingdom of God, we must become as little children." Author Unknown Unless otherwise noted: All Scripture is taken from the New King James Version. Copyright © 1979, 1980, 1982 by Thomas Nelson, Inc. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
Welcome to the twenty ninth edition of the W.I.N. E-Mail Newsletter. The year is winding down, with Thanksgiving just around the corner, followed by Christmas and then New Year. My oh my, where has all the time gone? The good news is that we are closer to seeing the return of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ! The sad news is that there is still a multitude of lost and dying people wandering around in the darkness of this world. What are you doing to throw any of them a lifeline? Are you working for Him as you should?
Rev. Sam T. Leigh
Presiding Bishop
Freedom Covenant Global Ministries
E-mail:
Website: www.fcgm.org
Bishop's eCorner: www.fcgm.org/ecorner/
Back to top
THE BOOK OF 1st CORINTHIANS - PART FOUR
I. Devotional Reading
2. What effect does a believer have on their unbelieving spouse? (7:10-14).
3. In what circumstances is the believing man or woman not bound? (7:15-16).
2. What does Paul say is the thing that counts? (7:19).
3. What should be the Christian's focus in the situations of life they find themselves? (7:20-24).
2. Why was Paul encouraging the Corinthians to remain unmarried if they could?(7:29-38).
3. If a widow remarries, what is the qualification Paul says is most important in her husband-to-be? (7:39-40).
1 Corinthians 1:30; "But of Him you are in Christ Jesus, who became for us wisdom from God and righteousness and sanctification and redemption."
Back to top
BABY'S HUG
EDITOR'S NOTE: The following story touched my heart so much that I wanted to share it with all of you. Our general rule at the W.I.N. E-Mail Newsletter is that we do not publish any articles unless we know the author. In this case, I have elected to make an exception, but I need to make it perfectly clear that neither myself nor anyone with FCGM has knowledge as to who wrote this story. We do not know if it is a true story or just a story; we are simply publishing it as an anonymous story with author unknown. However, the reason for the exception should become apparent to the reader as the true message within unfolds. May God bless you one and all with the kind of unconditional love displayed through the baby in this story.
time. I stood awestruck.
Back to top
This newsletter Copyright © 2005 Freedom Covenant Global Ministries. All Rights Reserved. Individual articles displaying copyrights from other ministries are used by permission, have been formatted for use in this publication, and remain the property of respective ministry. Permission is granted to copy, print, and distribute this newsletter for ministry purposes, whether whole or in part, so long as ALL copyrights remain in place and no copies are printed or distributed for sale or commercial purposes.
Back to top