Dear Church Family and Friends,
In my morning devotions, I was reading 2 Peter and I believe this little letter, written to the Christians of his day, could have as easily been written to us. His purpose in writing this letter was threefold. In chapter 1 he wrote to stimulate Christian growth. In chapter 2 he focused on how to combat false teaching and then in chapter 3 he encouraged watchfulness in view of the Lords certain return. Peter knew the hard times the Christians of his day we’re going through. They were in great need of the truth, someone they could believe, a hero to rescue them, because they were being bombarded by faults information. Does this sound familiar to what’s happening in our world today. They needed to be reminded, as we are, of how God rescued us in the past.
Right smack dab in the middle of the letter Peter writes, “The Lord knows how to rescue the godly from trials (2 Peter 2:9). If you’re like me, usually at the end of the day, I’ll sit down to relax, turn on the news and quickly tire of all the differing opinions and commentaries of what’s happening in the world. Then I’ll begin to channel surf, hoping to find something to uplift and inspire me. A little hope for the future.
Whether it’s the latest Star Wars installment, or another superhero flick, a fictional mother searching for her child, or the true story of a prisoner of war, I love to see the good guys win. In a messed-up world where injustice and senseless violence assault us daily, I suspect we all enjoy seeing a next-to-impossible situation resolved so that good triumphs over evil. The galaxy gets saved, the world restored to order, the kid gets home safely, and the prisoners are set free. Even if we can’t see it yet in our own lives, there’s hope for the future. These movies and stories also inspire us and encourage us to be strong and resilient, unstoppable, and undefeated. We can also be those heroes who refuse to give up and somehow make it happen. A lot of the times we’re told we can do it by ourselves. But no matter how strong we are, ultimately, we all face limitations. There’s only one source for true, limitless power: faith in our God. Jesus left the glory of heaven and the presence of his Father to go “under cover” on earth and live and die as a man. He rescued us from the greatest evil in existence and overcame the power of sin in our lives once and for all.
Take heart in the knowledge that you have been rescued and redeemed by the love of your Father and the sacrifice of his Son. With their power, you can overcome anything! I’ll close this letter as Peter closed his letter. “Therefore, dear friends, since you already know this, be on your guard so that you may not be carried away by the error of lawless men and fall from your secure position. But grow in the grace and knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. To him be glory both now and forever! Amen”(2 Peter 3:17,18).
In His Service,
Pastor Joe
**********************************************************************************************
Be Still (and silent)
We need to find God, and he cannot be found in noise and restlessness. God is the friend of silence. See how nature — trees, flowers, grass — grow in silence; see the stars, the moon, the sun, how they move in silence. … The more we receive in silent prayer, the more we can give in our active life. We need silence to be able to touch souls. The essential thing is not what we say, but what God says to us and through us. All our words will be useless unless they come from within — words which do not give the light of Christ increase the darkness. —Mother Teresa
ANNOUNCEMENTS
Sunday School – 8:15 AM in the Community Building
Choir Practice Every Thursday at 1:00pm
You may reach Pastor Joe at 570-465-7303 or his cell #570-267-4570
Every Thursday Pastor Joe will be at the church from 2-4pm if you need him
Monday, September 6th – Happy Labor Day!
Thursday, September 9th – Presbyterian Women meeting – 11am
Wednesday, September 15th – Men’s Action Group Meeting – 8am
Saturday, September 11th – Patriot Day
Sunday, September 12th – National Grandparent’s Day!
Wednesday, September 22nd – First Day of Autumn
Tuesday, September 28th – Newsletter Deadline
Please sign up to host one of the social hours on the Sunday after Communion Service on the first Sunday of the month. Hosting only means setting out what is brought and cleaning up afterward. It does not mean bringing everything to share.
The PW is selling Franklin Hill Presbyterian Cookbooks called “Recipes From The Hill” at $10.00 each. All proceeds go to missions. Please purchase one for you and a friend. See Debbie Stalker.
Mark your calendars for Friday October 1st 9am to 2pm and Saturday October 2nd 9am to 2pm for our Soup & Bake Sale! There will be sandwiches, sloppy joes and Walking Tacos. If you would like to donate baked goods for the sale, that would be great!
Don’t forget to check out our Website – we now have a Donate Button through PayPal – just click on the button on the home page and make your donation!
Don’t Forget to check your mailbox – as you enter the vestibule on the wall to the left.
Plastic Grocery Bags – Please give bags to Bonne Travis – these are used to crochet sleep mats for the homeless.
Rev. Malaho has had repeated obstacles to keeping his school running. , Covid has been a serious issue in the community, and his son, Emmanuel, had been hospitalized. In their culture, they do not have nurses taking care of patients. so family members must take care of all the patients needs, so Silvanus answered that call. During the olympics, Emmanuel organized a marathon run to raise money for their schools sports program and stationary. Their school continues to grow. They now have 200 learners, 11 teachers, and 7 caregivers. Then the police found 2 more orphans and delivered them to him for safekeeping. The school continues to grow in size and respectability, but it causes him great stress and headaches. Our financial support is his main source of support for this school, but it is not enough. He hired a motorcycle taxi and the cycle crashed on the roadway. He had head injuries and lost several teeth. He has sustained dental problems and he needs some kind of dental stabilizers, (false teeth) to help him heal. This week he reports that the school water pump is not working and needs attention. He is always very very grateful for the financial support that we send to him along with our prayers. I always get the feeling that he gets a lot of mileage from the small amount of money that we send him. By Jim Kessler
Men’s Action Group ***For help with small projects for church family and neighborhood, please call Pastor Joe Travis at #570-465-7303 or email him at joe.s.travis@gmail.com
Loose Change Offerings ( coins and bills)
1st Sunday – Local Missions
2nd Sunday – General Fund
3rd Sunday – Kenya/Rev. Malabo
4th Sunday – General Fund
5th Sunday – Trehab Local Food Bank (whenever there is a 5th Sunday)
