In this category, you will find many inspirational stories to be used for your Church Bulletins, Church Newsletters and/or Inspirational E-mails.
One of the more difficult things for someone on a weekly basis is to prepare content for the church bulletin or newsletter.
Usually, it’s a tug-of-war trying to get information from department or ministry leaders concerning the events taking place soon. Plus, the attempt to get an article from the Pastor can be an adventure due to the busy-ness of their schedule.
We want to do our part by adding a new category called “Church Bulletin Articles”. These will be brief and inspirational and may be used within the context of the church communications to the congregation via e-mail, bulletin or newsletter.
Perhaps some of them would even work as Sermon Illustrations! Stop back often as we plan to build the selection in the weeks and months ahead.
In reality, all our letters can be easily modified for that purpose. So, some of the content will be similar to our letters, while most of it will be new stories.
The most difficult part of being a Christian may very well be learning to forgive those who have sinned against us. Especially painful is when we are hurt by someone close to us. How does one bear it? David says in Psalm 55, ” If an enemy were insulting me, I could endure it; if a foe were rising against me, I could hide. But it is you, a man like myself, my companion, my close friend.” Ouch! Worse than the offense is the bitterness that comes when we are not able to let go. But how does one release it?
Face it, it's a challenge. So, let's be logical and look at some of the really good reasons to forgive.
Colossians 3:13 says, “Bear with each other and forgive one another if any of you has a grievance against someone. Forgive as the Lord forgave you.” So we are commanded to forgive.
A couple of years ago, a man from Colorado published a large ad in the Times of London, claiming to be the rightful King of England. He boldly stated that after the death of Queen Elizabeth he would take the throne and the royal historic estate! There are many people throughout history who have claimed to have rights to many thrones yet were lying or mistaken. This makes me think of the universe that we live in. There is a crisis today: Who is the King of the Universe? Today there is someone claiming to be king. Man claims to be the king. Man claims the freedom to do whatever pleases him without rules or regulations other than his own. He claims to have the ability to succeed at whatever he puts his mind to.
Have you seen the coffee mugs that say, “I don’t need Google, my father knows everything”? Well, our earthly fathers may know a lot, but they know next to nothing in comparison to our heavenly Father.
God knows every minor detail. In Matt. 10:30 Jesus said, “even the hairs of your head are all numbered.” Wow, every hair on our heads – numbered! He knows the shape of every snowflake, the number of raindrops in every storm, the color of each feather on each peacock, every detail of the complexities of human DNA, every whisper, and every heartbeat. God knows the future. In Isaiah 46 the prophet Isaiah shows how God is fundamentally distinct from the idols of their day because he only knows the future. This is demonstrated by prophecy.
Henry Francis Lyte was a 19th century Anglican priest. He suffered from bad health his whole life and when he was 54 he developed tuberculosis which brought him near the end of his life. As his days were nearing the end, he preached one last time to his people and that evening placed in the hands of a relative the little hymn, “Abide With Me”. Weeks later Mr. Lyte went to be with Christ. One of the lines of this great hymn reads, “Swift to its close ebbs out life’s little day; Earth’s joys grow dim; its glories pass away; Change and decay in all around I see; O Thou who changest not, abide with me.”
Whips cracking, sun scorching, sweat pouring – sounds like a day as a Hebrew slave in Egypt. It was miserable. They must have wondered whether or not God had forgotten his promises to them. One day the Lord raised up a deliverer named Moses. He told Moses that he would deliver his people by his hand. Moses became fearful and asked the Lord, “If I come to the people of Israel and say to them, ‘The God of your fathers has sent me to you,’ and they ask me, ‘What is his name?’ what shall I say to them?”
