

Healing Angels
by Mark & Jennifer Gribble
The Lord is near to the brokenhearted and saves the crushed in spirit. Psalm 34:18
Count the Miracles
By Sue Olds
LENTEN DEVOTION Tuesday, March 30, 2021 Comfort Food By J Hill I can't really separate the notion of healing from that of nourishment.
LENTEN DEVOTION Saturday, March 27, 2021 Home for Hope and Healing By Sally Reed Gracewood rescues children and their single mothers, ensuring a bright future by providing home, hope, and healing.
LENTEN DEVOTION Thursday, March 25, 2021 An Inconvenient Hurt By Angela Bell When I was in eighth grade, I broke my toe. I’ll spare you the details, but it involved a 25-pound weight and a drop from about three feet.
For the first time in our Church’s history we will celebrate from the front lawn Resurrection Sunday, praising from the depths of our souls Christ who died and rose again. Choir, brass, percussion, and strings will usher in the Procession of Joy as shouts of Alleluia are heard reflecting off the facade of our Sanctuary and onto the streets of our city.
Who Shall Separate Us from the Love of Christ? By Dr. Luis Campos We first visited South Main Baptist Church in 1972, when Ruth and I came to Houston for me to start my Cardiology Fellowship at Baylor College of Medicine.
LENTEN DEVOTION Saturday, March 20, 2021 Healing Brings Hope By Dan Masterson It was 2004 and I was not in a good relationship with the Lord.
In Darkness, There is Light Terrifying fear, numbness, and heart-wrenching sadness are a few of the emotions I experienced the day Johnny received his diagnosis of End Stage Renal Disease.
LENTEN DEVOTION Tuesday, March 16, 2021 Prayer for Healing By Kristy Wade-Carroll Psalm 77 4 You kept my eyes from closing; I was too troubled to speak.
LENTEN DEVOTION, Saturday, March 13, 2021 Peace that Passes Understanding, By Dr. Larissa Fletcher I read all these “uplifting” posts about how people are finding the “silver linings” in 2020/2021.
They closed the Rodeo. It’s Wednesday night, the Fellowship Hall is full of people and the room is filled with the smell of Ms. Sherrie’s cooking. All the kids line up because they’re heading to handbells and choir. As they leave the room, the Fellowship Hall is noticeably quieter and Greg starts trivia and prayer time.
suffering under loads of imposed inferiority, we strain to understand why us, shackled by burdens of superiority, we refuse to accept that we, too, are other
I’m a planner. And in 2017 I planned to get married and start a journey towards building a family. That is, until my then-girlfriend Nancy received an unusual phone call, “Please come to the doctor’s office for an immediate in-person consultation.”
LENTEN DEVOTION
Saturday, March 6, 2021
LENTEN DEVOTION
Thursday, March 4, 2021
LENTEN DEVOTION
Tuesday, March 2, 2021
When it comes to healing, I think most would agree it’s a good thing to do. We like to associate healing with positive words: Hope. Resilience. Strength. Wellness. People who have been healed from something often use positive words: Restored. Repaired. Renewed.
LENTEN DEVOTION
Thursday, February 25, 2021
LENTEN DEVOTION
Tuesday, February 23, 2021
When I became a minister at South Main, I shadowed Gene Vickrey around for some time. Gene was the pastoral care minister at our church for many years. The first graveside service I attended with Gene was at Forest Park Lawndale, one of the most beautiful cemeteries in the city.
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Deploy
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Tactics for Racing
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The Best Medicine
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Climbing from Disaster
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REFLECTIONS ON ADVENT: SANCTUARY
Advent Wreaths, a Virtual Carol Sing, a Mini-Journey to the Baby, the
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Windfall
$103,234 If you are going to give online today and want to take a deduction for that gift on your 2020 taxes, please give using smbc.org/giving.
$122,618
$362,530 Let’s start here — thank you. Really. Between the time you read this and the close of books on December 31, we need to give $362,530 in order to give what we spent in 2020. That is a little more than $120,000 per day. And, I believe we will do it.
A Sanctuary With Wings
My Spiritual Escape of Sanctuary: Memories
A Recipe for Sanctuary
For years I've loved to loath the New England Patriots. How many times was Tom Brady down by two or more touchdowns with less than two minutes to play only to lead his team to victory?
Without doubt, 2020 has been a year of pivotal change for people and organizations around the world. Earlier this year an OSA Team began a long-awaited project to rebuild and update our website, and we are pleased to announce: it is ready!
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Reflection on Psalm 16
Finding Sanctuary in 2020
By Doug Durand
Take a minute to think back over the past year. Don’t think about what you’ve lost or what was frustratingly different. Think about the ways the church was with you in these strange days. Did you connect on Zoom with your Sunday School? Were you able to be “in” worship from home? Or while you were away from Houston? Were your children or grandchildren blessed by a video of Little Church?
Sanctuary from a Child’s PerspectiveBy Charlie Funderburk
Christmas Quilt
Childbirth in Sanctuary
FOR CHRISTMAS DELIVERY, ORDER BY SATURDAY AT NOON
ADVENT DEVOTION
Tuesday, December 8, 2020
It was Christmas Eve, 2004. The Sanctuary was filled with the sounds of the season — Luke’s account of Jesus’ birth and carols gladly reminding us of Christmas joy. We were bathed in the warm light of candles.
ADVENT DEVOTION
Saturday, December 5, 2020
ADVENT DEVOTION
Thursday, December 3, 2020
The Family of God for Me in this Place
ADVENT DEVOTION Tuesday, December 1, 2020 Finding Sanctuary Through Music By Kathryn Oliver
What an utterly strange year this has been. The Oxford English Dictionary reported that use of the word “pandemic” increased 57,000% in 2020. That storied publication also added to its lexicon some new words, including “blursday” (the sense that all the days are the same and blur into one another) and “covidiots” (self-explanatory).
Need new ideas for the holidays? Mary Corban and South Main panelists Mark Gribble, Claire Hein-Blanton, J Hill, and Henry Williams virtually shared cooking tips, recipes, and laughter in preparation for Thanksgiving.
Watch the video here.
Here are the recipes discussed:
Need some Words of Encouragement? Weltschmerz & Hoffnung When my ancestors came to America in the 1800s, their impressive and regal-sounding name, ‘Vonderburg,’ was somehow changed to the somewhat unwieldy ‘Funderburk.’ At family reunions as a kid, in the midst of seeing cousins and playing basketball and dominoes, I’d peruse a book on display about our family’s heritage.
In June of 2018, we welcomed Brandyn Adney as the inaugural member of the newly formed Youth Ministry residency program at South Main. The program was set up to provide practical, hands-on work, mentoring, and development opportunities in the first two years. Then in the third year, the focus turns to clarifying a call and transition into full-time ministry for the resident.
Need a Word of Encouragement? Durability The first significant purchase I ever made with my own money was the baseball glove I'm holding right now. I was thirteen. It’s a Rawlings. Basket web. Wing tip. Heart of the Hide. American-made. Brooks Robinson model.
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We held our church's Quarterly Business Meeting via Zoom on Sunday, October 25 and in addition to voting to put in place our slate of committee members and church officers for 2021, we received updates from the Re-opening Task Force and the Finance Committee, as well as from our pastoral team regarding our small groups and the church in general.
Main/Stream brings us a look into the art of quilting, as a panelist of South Main quilters walks us through their inspiration and the work that goes in to quilting.
From deep in the heart of one Texan, Bob Fowler shares his background and thoughts on being a follower of Christ in the marketplace. Read his article in the Baptist Standard here.
I came because the opportunity was offered. Supposedly the crucifixion window caught the last rays of daylight, so 6:00 PM seemed a good time. I found a row all my own and settled in with my journal, in case I needed to write, and my Bible, after all I was coming to church. Two deep breaths. I focused on a thankful list as the appropriate start to 45 minutes of private worship.
The COVID-19 Advisory Task Force is pleased to recommend that South Main moves to Reopening Phase Four on Sunday, October 11, which includes the resumption of in-person worship.
Though our campus has been closed, nothing evidences the continued ongoing nature of the work of our church like our August and September Family Ministry’s effort we called, Curbside Service.
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The COVID-19 Advisory Task Force continues our work, and we are happy to announce that on Sunday, September 20, SMBC will move to Phase 3 of our reopening plan. Phase 3 expands the maximum attendee numbers for gatherings. For adult groups and Tribe/Youth, this means gatherings of 50 or fewer outdoors, and 25 or fewer indoors, with all participants wearing masks and socially distanced.
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What ways have you found to serve others in your community? By Phyllis Waggoner: We moved to NC in January and visited a few churches, but never joined one before the pandemic hit everyone. We live around the corner from our daughter and her family, but they are the only people we know in Charlotte...because of the pandemic, we’ve not met any of our neighbors. I’m not sure our daughter and her husband knew they were going to become our new BFFs, but because of the way things have been the past 6 months, it’s sort of turned out that way.
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COVID-19 Advisory Task Force Update: August 6, 2020 Being together safely as a church is our goal, and while we need to remain agile as conditions continue to develop in our community, we are happy to announce that on August 12, SMBC will move to Phase 2 of our reopening plan.
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Harpooners
The South Main COVID-19 Advisory Task Force continues to discuss plans and protocols for our eventual return to in-person gatherings. Unfortunately, as you know, the COVID-19 situation in the Houston region has continued to deteriorate since the Task Force’s June 27 update.
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By Tim Madison Wearing a mask all these weeks has made me the recipient of not a few suspicious glances, even some unsympathetic laughter. But that's okay. I know why I wear a mask. It is not based on legal obligation or political affiliation. It is because I don't enjoy the luxury of denial. My profession is hospital Chaplaincy and I serve one of the health systems that towers above the Houston horizon.
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Jeremiah 29:7
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Comfort. Wonder. Sunlight. Family.
It’s been remarkable to see how interconnected the world has become as the COVID-19 crisis took hold. A tiny virus has made its way around the world in just a few months on the breath of people. Interdependencies in the world economy have come to light from the collective response to the tiny virus. The usual supply/demand balances have been radically altered worldwide.
By Susan Torn Young
The Covid-19 pandemic has been easy on me. I have a husband, a family, grandchildren I don’t have to home school, I have friends, I have facetime. But most of all, I have real time. Time to reflect, time to catch up on business things and legal things, and time to do projects that I would have never done.
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I’ve been watching my mother for years. I’ve watched her love on her mother, love on our family, and most recently, I have watched her love on our church family. A few Sundays ago, in the church parking lot, I got to watch that love put to action with the Lane family.
Pastor Remus Wright and Co-Pastor Mia Wright, family: I am humbled to be asked to be here today.
The Apostle John, whom Jesus called the “beloved Apostle,” wrote in his first epistle:
Over the past several months, as our family has hunkered down and socially distanced, like every other family, we found ourselves faced with more together time than we’ve ever had.
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Spending time with loved ones is an important family value in our house. For us, that looks like game nights or dinners with friends on the weekends, spending Sundays and Wednesday nights at SMBC, or soaking up beautiful days with the family at our farm in Brenham.
This has been an especially tumultuous week in our country. The murder of George Floyd again exposed the glaring injustices experienced by our neighbors and brothers and sisters in Christ of color throughout our nation’s history. If you and your Sunday School Communities found yourselves hurting, angry, exasperated, or unsure of what to do, you are not alone.
Back in April, South Main received a request from Houston Responds asking area churches to provide masks to underserved and under-resourced communities. The goal was a thousand churches each producing a thousand masks. We knew that time was critical, so we got to work right away.
When the quarantine began, I made a list of everything I wanted to accomplish with my extra time at home. In addition to basic daily duties of cooking, cleaning, laundry, etc., I wanted to address my own list of “honey do” tasks that had gone untouched for months. You know that list, right?
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First, what is faith? The textbook definition of faith is confidence or trust in a person or thing. In our case, our person is God. We can show our faith by trusting in God and not giving up. For example, let’s look at Joseph in the Bible. Joseph had a great life. He was a favorite son and his family was wealthy.
The 23rd Psalm is one of our most familiar scriptures. But there’s a line in that passage which had me confused for a long time. It says, “…though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil.” What does that even mean? How can you NOT fear evil? Evil is mean and hateful and ugly and painful!
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Kim and I live here in Houston and only about 15 minutes from our daughter, Heidi Slay and her husband, David (first responder – Firefighter), and three children, Brodie, 10, Dillon, 6 (almost 7) and Finley, 5. We also have family on the east coast that we miss very much as well. Who knows when we’ll be getting with them any time in the near future.*
I’ve always been a worrier. My parents worried something bad might happen to me every time I left the house. I worried they might be right. I worried what my peers and others thought about me. Did I say or do the wrong thing? Looking back, I spent a lot of my youth worrying. As an adult, I’ve channeled worrying into a desire to be prepared for any possibility.
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“Blessed are the Pure in Heart, for they will see God” – Matthew 5:5 Like a lot of you, since the stay-at-home order was given, we haven’t seen as much of our kids and grandkids.
I have turned my alarm clock off. The sun starts to come in through the bedroom window and I wake up, haphazardly looking at my watch to see if it’s actually time to start the day. For a second I try to remember what day it is.
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Beauty. Awareness. Momentum.
Mustard Seed
…I tell you the truth, if you have faith as small as a mustard seed you can say to this mountain, “move from here to there” and it will move. Nothing will be impossible for you. – Matthew 17:20
Something that has been a great help to me during this strange season is a “mindful pause.” If I take a moment to notice my present state, I find I am quite often a bit tense and stressed. Of course this makes sense given our current situation. But what I also notice is if I take a deep breath, my shoulders relax. I scan my body internally for other signs of tension.
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“Don’t forget my birthday tomorrow, miss!” a sweet student shouted as I walked down the hall back to my room. I replied, “No way. See you tomorrow!” Two hours after that short, now bittersweet encounter, the news broke about school closure. Soon after, the decision to close school until April 13 was announced. Now, we are here: school closed for the rest of the year.
“Then, the word of the LORD came to Elijah” – I Kings 17:2
“Go, sit in your cell, and your cell will teach you everything.” – Abba Moses
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Three days after Jesus was crucified, two disciples are walking the road to Emmaus. Why? I think perhaps they’re walking because it’s the only thing they know to do. I think they’re heading for the familiar – going home. They’re disciples of Jesus. They’ve followed Him, worked with Him, witnessed the miracles He has performed, and learned from Him.
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By Michael Shirl
"Now from the sixth hour until the ninth hour there was darkness over all the land." Matthew 27:45
"I will make that time like mourning for an only son and the end of it like a bitter day." Amos 8:10
My Forgiving Heart
By Angel Parades
I will greet this day with love in my heart. So begins the scroll marked two from Og Mandino's best selling work The Greatest Salesman in the World. It is my favorite scroll of the 10 because it reminds me of what is important. I was originally introduced to this little book 20 years ago when I first dipped my toe in the world of insurance.
Why forgive - what's in it for me?
I was taught as a child to "...pray for them that persecute you" (Matthew 5:44) and to "...forgive seventy times seven." (Matthew 18:21-22) but it did not seem to be a very practical way to live. I had to learn the power of these principles as an adult through painful personal experience.
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Holy Week Prayer
The fall through spring of 2001-2002 turned out to be a time in my life that tested my faith to the fullest. My 86-year-old mother had been living in a retirement facility, but was having trouble with mobility. We went through the trauma of moving her into an assisted care facility in early September. Shortly thereafter my wife, Lecia, was scheduled for abdominal surgery.
Sticks and Stones...
Acid words rend my face,
my ears deaf with pain,
my blue eyes burned beyond recognition.
I am not.
When I read my Bible, I end up asking a lot of questions: "What does that mean?" "What's the context?" "How does this apply to me?" or even, "That didn't make sense; what’d he just say?" Sometimes things feel ambiguous or just a little too abnormal to be applicable to my life. Even so, there’s at least one thing where there’s no ambiguity.
I forgive you; three little words with such power and yet sometimes they feel hollow. I can’t count the number of times, in the aftermath of a disagreement, hearing these words signals the end of the argument. Yet, I long for an instant healing that we all know isn’t coming. The hurt is still there, and it lingers.
In a sermon to His followers, Jesus instructed, “Forgive, and you will be forgiven.” (Luke 6:37, NIV). This makes forgiveness seem transactional somehow. We “buy” forgiveness for ourselves and our sins by forgiving others. It could leave the impression that we must attain some master-level ability to forgive if we wish to receive forgiveness.
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Are you a list-maker? I am. I work on lists daily. Long term goals. Short term goals. Daily and weekly to-do’s. Pro/Con lists. Cost/Benefit lists. Lists of calls to return. Things I’m grateful for. Books I want to read. Notes I need to write. It’s quite a list of lists.
As I contemplate Lent this year, one thought comes to mind. Perception is everything! How we perceive the world around us, how we perceive others' actions, and especially how we perceive ourselves can make all of the difference.
Unforgivable?
Excerpt from White Nights by Angela Holder writing as Elana Brooks
In the past six months, I’ve said goodbye to three close friends. All of them lived in a different state than me. I hadn’t talked to any of them in the weeks or months before they passed, but at one time in my life, I would have called each of them either my best friend or one of my very closest.
Then I let it all out;
I said, "I'll make a clean breast of my failures to God."
Suddenly the pressure was gone—
my guilt dissolved,
my sin disappeared.
Psalm 32:5, The Message
I lost my husband to cancer in 2016. I heard words like how “brave” I was and how “proud” people were of me…I felt the exact opposite. I felt like a fraud. The months leading up to his diagnosis were some of the toughest in our marriage. He stopped helping me out around the house and stopped helping with our infant – which made me resentful and angry. We argued daily.
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Prudence & Patience.
Mercy & Grace.
Fortitude & Love
As we forge ahead into this unusual season, I've been thinking about the power of words to elevate and encourage us.
Perhaps say them aloud. Just the sound of these words have some real "lift" to them:
By Jan Barkley
By David Corban
Forgiveness, whether given or received, is always personal. It also is always a story. Here’s mine.
By Tate Shannon, South Main member
When I think of forgiveness I think of the sacrifice that Jesus made for us. I could not imagine what it would have been like to live under the old law if Jesus never came! It would seem that what you did or thought would be a sin and would necessarily require reconciliation and sacrifice. I am very grateful not to have to live like that.
By Diane Dillard
Get rid of all bitterness, rage, and anger, brawling and slander, along with every form of malice. Be kind and compassionate to one another, forgiving each other, just as in Christ God forgave you. –Ephesians 4:31-32
By Caroline Mays
Dear South Mainers—
Grace and Peace to you.
Be kind to one another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, as God in Christ forgave you. –Ephesians 4:32
As I considered the theme of forgiveness for South Main’s Lenten devotionals, I immediately connected the concept of forgiveness with First They Killed My Father by Loung Ung. I wondered how Loung and her siblings could ever forgive the Khmer Rouge soldiers who were responsible for the deaths of four Ung family members.
...And forgive us our debts, as we forgive our debtors. –Matthew 6:12
“Lord, I believe; help my unbelief!” -- Mark 9:24
It used to seem pretty easy to follow Jesus’ words on forgiveness and judging others:
Most people in the church know that when they have been wronged, the right thing to do is forgive that person. But we could benefit from intentional reflection on this act that is the basis for God's relationship with each of us. What does it mean to forgive? To forgive is to give up the desire to punish.
By Chandler Vaughn
The Lenten Season invites those of us on this particular walk of faith - on this journey of seeking to comprehend the Christ - to contemplate deeply upon the meaning of His sacrifice and the mysteries of the intersection of divinity into human history.
By Doug Durand
“The LORD said to me, ‘Go, show your love to your wife again, though she is loved by another man and is an adulteress. Love her as the LORD loves the Israelites, though they turn to other gods and love the sacred raisin cakes.’ So I bought her for fifteen shekels of silver and about a homer and a lethek of barley.” -- Hosea 3:1-2
As children, my brother and I had different jobs we were to do separately and sometimes together. The jobs or chores ranged from simple to more involved as we got older and changed from being focused on Saturday to whenever we were needed to help out.
By Seth Humble
Forgiveness.
What an absolute mess.
What Shall I Give…Up
I grew up Presbyterian and only knew about Lent through my Catholic friends and neighbors. What I remember is they talked about what they were ‘giving up’ for Lent. That usually involved meat, candy, soda pop, or some other simple pleasure.
“Love is patient, love is kind. Love does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud. It does not dishonor others, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs. Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth. It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres.
By Jonathan Moore, South Main Member
Beginning a regimen of giving can be a difficult thing. 10% seems like an awful lot of income to lose right off the top, and sometimes it can be hard to see the tangible results of your gifts. At the most recent business meeting, however, two statements led me to begin my own monthly auto-draft donation to South Main Baptist Church.
There are lots of reasons not to turn in a commitment card to the church on PLEDGE SUNDAY, February 16. Let’s look at some of them:
Reason Number 1:
I MAY GIVE A LITTLE FROM TIME TO TIME, BUT I DON’T FILL OUT A COMMITMENT CARD BECAUSE THE NUMBER I WOULD PUT IN WOULD BE SMALL. SUCH A SMALL GIFT DOESN’T REALLY DO ANYTHING, RIGHT?
By Greg Funderburk, Minister for Pastoral Care
All over the world there are good people who don’t give generously to their local places of worship. It’s a common word for people of good will to say that they want their energies and their resources to go to the truly needy, not a big organization which requires a myriad of administration and property costs.
By Greg Funderburk, Minister for Pastoral Care
You probably make dozens of money decisions everyday: Should I save more? Pay off debts? What about these expenses for the kids? How should I invest? Have I paid the bills on time?
By Greg Funderburk, Minister of Pastoral Care
Greek philosophers like Aristotle wrote of the idea of a virtuous life, using the word, Eudaimonia, translated as living well or flourishing. Living a virtuous life, Aristotle argued, led to flourishing in human beings.
Sometimes we need to look back in order to see clearly. We need to remember. When we remember, we perceive our present circumstances with a redeemed clarity. The hymn, “O God, Our Help in Ages Past” reminds us that the God who has helped in the past is the hope of all our years to come. The Psalms are replete with songs that urged God’s people to look back and remember.
After his conversion, Paul became a good example of having the more abundant life. One of his experiences portrays this beautifully. While shackled in the dark depths of a Roman dungeon, he prayed, he sang, and he was delivered. As a result, the jailer and his family accepted Jesus Christ. Then he washed Paul and Silas’s wounds and set a meal before them.
One of the great joys of Christmas when working in the SMILE program is seeing the blessed season every year as if it were for the first time through the eyes of some young Japanese women who have never before heard the glorious story.
Romans 5:1-5
The busy, hurried days before Christmas are over. The shopping has been done and the packages wrapped. The Christmas tree has been decorated. Around the house there are symbols of Christmas, ornaments, and decorations. The Christmas baking has been done. Pre-Christmas parties have been attended and given. The choirs have sung inspiring Christmas music.
2 Corinthians 1:3-4
Christmas of 1991 lives in my memory as a world pulled asunder. We were in the first crushing weeks following the December 1 accidental death of our 17-year-old son, David. With a sharpness that I thought was gone, David’s death had brought back the memory of our daughter, Cathy, who died two days after Christmas many years before.
Luke 2:11
Psalm 46:10
Matthew 2:2b
The verse popped into my thoughts as I read the invitation to write one of the Advent devotionals this year. Since I haven’t been able to forget it, I reflected on it more seriously.
Matthew 18:3-4
As we go through the Christmas season, we need only to look at children and see how excited they become as all the events unfold. That enthusiasm becomes infectious. Before long, entire families, including adults, are excited too! Most of us can remember our childhood being enhanced with the coming of Christmas. The Christmas season brings out the child in all of us.
“Did you talk to Jesus?” When our oldest grandson was just two years old, as he was playing he passed through the room where his mother was making a telephone call, and naturally he wanted to know whom she was calling.
She answered, “I’m calling the church.”
As I was thinking about Christmas and the Advent season, I was trying to find a brief way to express what Christmas means to me. What one word best expresses my feelings about Christmas? Is it Giving? God gave me the greatest gift I will ever receive when He came to earth to live among men. So joyfully we give gifts at Christmas; and I give and give and love every minute of giving.
Luke 2:10
A few years ago, at a family gathering, someone dragged out the old videos of Christmases past. At first there were giggles and grins at how young everyone looked, how much they had changed, and how pretty everything looked in our house...especially the Christmas tree.
It was a week before Christmas in 1979, and I was visiting my friends at M.D. Anderson Hospital. The decorations were all up, and a high school choir was singing carols in the hallway. Even old Santa Claus was ringing his little bell as he went into each room, where a Polaroid picture would be taken of the patient with Santa. It was a “fun” time for even terminally ill cancer patients.
Christmas is a very special time of the year for everyone. There is so much color and music and laughter and festivity. At South Main Baptist Church there are so many enjoyable activities during Christmas sponsored by a host of various groups.
Psalm 100:1-5
Herod feared the coming of the Christ Child, for it posed a threat to his own earthly power. To counter the threat, Herod ordered the massacre of children in Bethlehem.
Until 1975, I thought today’s world was more civilized, but soon learned that satanic forces will use any means to combat the truth of Jesus Christ.
Matthew 2:7-12
Elaine is at Camp Ozark; Mary Neil is packing to go to San Antonio for the Convention; Kenneth is measuring shelves for his most recent dwelling; I am “on call” this weekend; and Martha is bugging me for this devotional - now about two weeks overdue.
I remember as a boy shaking the presents under the tree, trying to guess what was in the packages.
I remember the Christmas I got a new bicycle.
I remember the cold snowy night that I got up my courage and proposed to Alberta.
I remember the interest in reaching the goal for our World Mission offering every Christmas.
2 Corinthians 5:15 Curled up on the big iron double bed watching my mother brush her luxurious dark hair, I was nervously trying to ask the BIG QUESTION as casually as possible. (I guess I was almost six).
Matthew 2:11
Luke 2:15
A few miles may have separated these shepherds from the Event which would change the world! Wisely, they decided to travel those miles, check it out, and look into the face of history for themselves.
John 3:16
The Constitution of the United States of America guarantees to Americans the right to “pursuit of happiness.” The Bible informs the Christian how to attain happiness. In the Sermon on the Mount, Jesus gave to us the Beatitudes which are the original “Happiness is ___” series. One of the most basic characteristics that God wants His children to seek is good basic motivations.
For I was hungry and you gave me nothing to eat, I was thirsty and you gave me nothing to drink, I was a stranger and you did not invite me in, I needed clothes and you did not clothe me, I was sick and in prison and you did not look after me.
From the Houston Chronicle, October 24, 2019
Ending the stigma of dementia is what drives Amazing Place, a non-profit run by a consortium of churches. And the importance of this goal is only growing, executive director Tracey Brown said. Already, one out of three individuals over the age of 85 has dementia, and there are 5.7 million living with Alzheimer’
I was recently introduced to a new medical term, or maybe, it’d be more appropriate to call it a “quasi-medical” term. I was told about ODTAA Syndrome. “What’s ODTAA Syndrome?” I asked. I’ve never heard of it. The person telling me this shook his head and said, you know, it’s just “One Darn Thing After Another.”
Please continue to pray for our mission partner, Operacion San Andres (OSA), and for those on the mission trip to Collique, Peru this week. OSA is committed to combat the effects of poverty in the community in a holistic (spiritual, emotional, and physical) and sustainable manner by demonstrating the love of Christ in practical ways.
By Jeannie Chambers
SMILE starts in 2 weeks and I am excited to reconnect with friends after a long, hot summer.
By Dolores Rader, Adapted from a prayer by Carrie Harris, 2017
To read the first part of the library transformation, click here.
Desmond Tutu famously said “When you are pulling drowning people out of the river, there comes a time when you must look upstream and see why they are falling in.”
By Lucas Tirado
By Kiran Harper
By Allison Kolter
“She is clothed in dignity and strength and she laughs without fear of the future.” Proverbs 31:25
By Stephanie Donson
When I was asked to write about my experience here in Peru, I didn't know what to write. What comes to mind first is my experience working with the kids at OSA and the time I've spent bonding with the other youth.
By Cameron Elliott
When getting ready for the trip to Peru, I was nervous. I knew very little about what I was getting myself into. I was mainly worried about being able to interact with the kids. Then the first day came around and every worry went away. Interacting with the kids was a lot of fun; they all had great attitudes and never let the disadvantages bring them down.
By Chase McKnight
By Gareth Holder
It was my first day with the OSA kids. I don’t remember a lot of specifics from my last trip three years ago but I remember the kids’ enthusiasm. Being around children always puts a smile on my face. This year, their energy is infectious as ever, and it made me realize something I want to share.
By Brad Jernberg, Minister of Administration for Operations
We want to make our church family aware of a change to the library space.
Abigail Rader
“My Church Family,
We journeyed through the Wilderness together during Lent encountering God in various settings. While wilderness can look and feel different for each of us, we corporately submitted our hearts for cleansing, our spirits for repair, and our lives for formation.
By Steve Wells, Pastor
John 20:15
By, Dolores Rader, Minister to Families
Job 14:1-14; Matthew 27:57-66
It is Saturday. The evening before, Nicodemus and Joseph of Arimathea took Jesus’ body down from the cross and laid it in a tomb cut out of rock. The despair and anguish of those who believed must have created a palpable, near-suffocating heaviness. Hope was lost. All was lost.
By Matt Walton, Minister for Discipleship
Psalm 22; John 18:1-40; 19:1-37
Remember
By Carey Cannon, Minister of Music
Exodus 12:1-14a; Luke 22:14-30
The Last Days of Judas Iscariot
By Greg Funderburk, Minister for Pastoral Care
John 13:21-35; Matthew 27:1-10
The despair of Judas is an event in Holy Week that often evades deeper scrutiny. His is a wilderness that often escapes our sympathy. Are there some barren wilderness places from which there is no return?
He Leadeth Me...But do I follow?
By Susan Moore, Minister of Administration for Communications
John 12: 27-38, 42-50
Take Hold
By Brad Jernberg, Minister of Administration for Operations
Mark 14:1-9; Isaiah 42:1-9
Palm Sunday
By Steve Wells, Pastor
Matthew 26:35–27:54; Psalm 118 and Psalm 22
In the last few years, I have experienced a wilderness, which at the time seemed unbearable. The darkness covered any glimmer of hope and the pain seemed to swallow me up. I have experienced the wilderness of addiction followed by the light of recovery, of loneliness followed by loving community, and of loss followed by abundance.
By Alice Ketchand
The wilderness times in my life, whether triggered by outside challenges or not, were marked by a deep sense of inner emptiness or lack, a sense of something of God being deeper and beyond me. This sense has motivated my spiritual seeking throughout my life.
By Trey Westerburg
By Jessica Horton
"But those who hope in the Lord will renew their strength. They will soar on wings like eagles; they will run and not grow weary, they will walk and not be faint." -Isaiah 40:31
Four summers ago I had reached a point in my battle with addiction that I needed to get help. I checked into wilderness therapy, a forty-day treatment program that required complete immersion into wilderness living. This could not have been further from my comfort zone. Growing up, my family never went camping. My outdoor skills and experience were exactly zero.
By Everett DuBroc
"To know the dark, go dark. Go without sight, and find that the dark too, blooms and sings." – Wendell Berry
By Jane Benesh
The Wilderness of our Everyday Life
Living in the Weeds
By Krystol Wheeler
By Tate Shannon
By Josie Adney
Hope for Dry Bones
Wilderness. Living in the wilderness. Wandering in the wilderness. For many years I felt I was wandering aimlessly in the wilderness. I lost my career and calling due to deteriorating eyesight. I struggled pursuing other artistic outlets. I gave myself shingles and then descended into depression, all because of a simple genetic disorder.
By Mollie Musgrove
In the Highways, In the Hedges
By Nick Woolley
By Anna Bernal
Be strong and courageous; do not be frightened or dismayed, for the Lord your God is with you wherever you go. Joshua 1:9
Still the Wilderness?
Occasionally, weep deeply over the life you hoped would be. Grieve the losses. Then wash your face. Trust God. And embrace the life you have. --John Piper
I don't remember the last time I was physically lost. It had to have been at some point driving in Houston before the introduction of GPS on cell phones. I remember having to carry a set of maps in my car to get around in the city. Now, all I need to do is speak where I want to go and the phone plots my path.
My mom's parents lived in a small town called Lazbuddie, about an hour and a half northwest of Lubbock where I attended Texas Tech University. God led me to Texas Tech so that I would have 4 years with my Granna and Papa. The weekend I graduated from college in December of 2012 was the last weekend I spent with my maternal grandmother. She passed away a few weeks later.
By Nathan Moeller
My own road through the wilderness deals not so much with sin and straying from God, but a life torn apart and forged into something new. At the outset of this journey, I stepped into the unknown with a few close friends and family by my side, but God knew I needed more. Much, much more.
Mustard-Seed Faith
Luke 13:18-19: "What is the kingdom of God like? What shall I compare it to? It is like a mustard seed, which a man took and planted in his garden. It grew and became a tree, and the birds perched in its branches."
Abundance in the Wilderness
Over the past several years I've had the privilege to visit the Middle East, much of it the same wilderness where the children of Israel likely wandered. I can't even imagine what that would have been like. You are in the middle of nowhere. You can look for miles in every direction and see nothing but desert. It is desolate - hot, barren, dry.
By Daniela George
By Louis Gomez
“Then Jesus was led by the Spirit into the wilderness…” Matthew 4:1.
Finding your way through the wilderness isn't hard if you have a good map and compass (or smartphone). However, orienteering skills are not always perfect metaphors for life. I know my family and SMBC blessed me with a good guide and a firm foundation in setting a plan for my life. I was given every navigational tool necessary.
Known
By Angela Bell
When I was growing up, I didn't know what I wanted to be, but I knew who I was. I got a lot of "You seem to know yourself very well" comments.
It's true. I did. I still do.
John 14:5-6
Thomas said to him, "Lord, we don't know where you are going, so how can we know the way?"
Jesus answered, "I am the way and the truth and the life."
By Susan Moore, Minister of Administration for Communications
By Dave McNiel, Operations Committee Chair during the Generations Campaign
It's never one or the other and, for me, that's especially true of the recent renovation of our worship and fellowship space.
Whether it's the unseen things such as:
Although we recognize that the church is, at its core, its people, the improvements that were made possible by the capital campaign provide a place where we can bring our family each week to play, laugh, learn, and serve with our family of God. Because of the work done in the kitchen and the Fellowship Hall, our family can comfortably and reliably have meals with our family of faith, enriching
By Mark Jones
Growing up at South Main in the '60s and '70s, I have vivid memories of being in the sanctuary and worshipping with people of different ethnicities. I never remember a time when there were not people of a variety of cultures actively involved in our church. Our church was open to people from different backgrounds in a time when it was not popular to be so.
Serving on the Building Committee was an honor for me. My business has been in the management and construction side of commercial real estate, and to be able to use these skills to serve the Kingdom of God was a true blessing.
In October, 2019, South Main Baptist Church will celebrate 60 years of having a television/broadcast ministry. South Main was the first church to be on television in Houston, and we were on Channel 2, KPRC until 1995. The broadcast ministry has evolved over the years to our present day, state-of-the-art facility, as a result of our recent capital campaign.
By Daryl Robinson, Former SMBC Organist & Artist-in-Residence
Three steps up, three steps down, three steps up, three steps down. It may not seem like much, but when you do that over and over again during the course of a meal service carrying full, steaming hot pans of food from the kitchen to the serving line, it is an exhausting task.
By Carey Cannon, Minister of Music
There have been instances in worship at South Main when our congregation has offered up applause. Moments such asthe announcement of a newly married couple, the end of a moving testimony, or a musical offering by choir and orchestra have lent themselves to a just and worshipful response of applause. But is it right for us to do so?
By Brad Jernberg, Minister of Administration for Operations
Some of the moments of greatest clarity in ministry for me were in response to a simple and unassuming conversation which collided with my understanding of the inherent value God sees in each of us and the overwhelming desire He has for us to live beautiful lives filled with joy and blessing.
The number one conversation on this list goes like this:
By Vlad and Eunice Davidiuk
By, Matt Walton, Minister for Discipleship
By Randy, Penny, and Joe Taylor
I visited a vintage clothes shop with my son, Hank, a couple of weeks ago. He needed some shoes and a matching belt.
“The Buffalo Exchange” was hopping on Friday night around 8 PM — a diverse array of folks weaving through tightly packed racks and rows of colorful clothes, holding up cool shirts, trying on stylish pants, gauging their fit and look.
By: Charles Grant, Ph.D.
By Josie Adney
In all things I have shown you that by working hard in this way we must help the weak and remember the words of the Lord Jesus, how He himself said, “It is more blessed to give than to receive.”
Acts 20:35
Fourth Sunday of Advent
I pray that God, the source of hope, will fill you completely with joy and peace because you trust in Him. Then you will overflow with confident hope through the power of the Holy Spirit.
Romans 15:13
By Stephen Fox
After Jesus was born in Bethlehem, during the time of King Herod, Magi from the East came to Jerusalem and asked, “Where is the one who has been born king of the Jews? We saw His star when it rose and have come to worship Him.”
Matthew 2:1-2
You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all
They entered the house and saw the child in the arms of Mary, His mother. Overcome, they kneeled and worshiped Him, then opened their luggage and presented gifts: gold, frankincense, and myrrh.
Matthew 2:11 (The Message)
This year I have already received a gift more precious than gold, or frankincense, or myrrh. My health was restored.
By Pat Gray
On coming to the house, they saw the young child with Mary, His mother, and fell down, and worshiped Him: and when they had opened their treasures, they presented unto Him gifts; gold, and frankincense, and myrrh. And being warned of God in a dream that they should not return to Herod, they departed into their own country another way.
By Chase McKnight
An angel of the Lord appeared to them, and the glory of the Lord shone around them, and they were terrified. But the angel said to them, “Do not be afraid. I bring you good news that will cause great joy for all the people.”
Luke 2:9-10
If I speak in the tongues of men and of angels, but have not love, I am only a resounding gong or a clanging cymbal.
I Corinthians 13:1
For a child has been born for us, a Son given to us; authority rest upon His shoulders; and He is named Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace.
Isaiah 9:6
By Jeri Kuhleman Heath
I will sing of the Lord’s great love forever; with my mouth, I will make your faithfulness known through all generations. I will declare that your love stands firm forever, that you have established your faithfulness in heaven itself.
By Matt Walton
Whoever is patient has great understanding, but one who is quick-tempered displays folly.
Proverbs 14:29
By Charlie Funderburk
When His mother Mary had been betrothed to Joseph, before they came together, she was found to be with child of the Holy Spirit and her husband Joseph, being a just man and unwilling to put her to shame, resolved to divorce her quietly.
Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding.
Proverbs 3:5
It was December 2008, and we were days from welcoming Duncan into the world. One of the final scheduled church events was a Wednesday night carol sing. It was our first Christmas with the new Celebrating Grace Hymnal when a curious youth requested the carol “The Hands That First Held Mary’s Child.” As we sang through these verses, I found myself overcome with emotion and incapable of singing.
Always be joyful.
I Thessalonians 5:16
But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control. Since we live by the Spirit, let us keep in step with the Spirit. Galatians 5:22, 25 NIV
By Bill Anderson
All this took place to fulfill what the Lord had spoken by the prophet: “Behold, a virgin shall conceive and bear a Son, and His name shall be called Emmanuel” (which means, God with us). Matthew 1:22-23
By Angie Durand
Fix your thoughts on what is true and good and right. Think about things that are pure and lovely, and dwell on the fine, good things. Philippians 4:8
And there were shepherds living out in the fields nearby, keeping watch over their flocks by night. An angel of the Lord appeared to them, and the glory of the Lord shone around them, and they were terrified.
Luke 2:8-9
The Word became flesh and made His dwelling among us. We have seen His glory, the glory of the One and Only, who came from the Father, full of grace and truth.
John 1:14
By Phyllis Waggoner
Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace to all men.
Luke 2:14
By Pastor Steve Wells
Advent is the season in which we wait for - and then celebrate God‘s gift of Christ and of salvation. But waiting for Christmas morning is different for us than it was for those who awaited the Messiah in ancient times - they did not know when He would come.
In September, a group from South Main went on a mission trip to Maua, Kenya, the home of our mission partner, Sodzo International. Many of the participants were first-timers with respect to this particular mission site and, as with any new adventure, they went with a certain picture in their heads of what might come.
By Hannah Rollins
By Steve Wells, Pastor
For All the Saints, who from their labors rest, who Thee, by faith, before the world confessed, Thy name, O Jesus, be forever blessed, Hallelujah!
By Carey Cannon, Minister of Music/Worship
By Brandyn Adney, Youth Ministry Resident
By Dolores Rader, Minister to Families I invite you to look ahead with me to a Sunday morning on May 20th in the year 2029.
Minister of Administration for Communications is my title at South Main Baptist Church. I, along with my Communications Team, facilitate timely, accurate communication being provided and heard. On a good day, my job supports all other ministries.
Our recent Kenya adventures led us to the villages of Linjoka, Tiira, and Gekka to hear first hand the stories of success with the family strengthening programs that have begun in these rural villages. The value of the family strengthening program is that it is a prevention method to help keep boys from going to the streets.
What a difference a year makes in the lives of the Children of Promise at the Watoto Wa Ahadi Rescue Center.
Before I gave the conductor's score one last glance, I turned around to catch a glimpse of who had shown for that evening’s performance - and I saw something. I saw two couples sitting next to each other, the Mooneys, longtime members of South Main who now live out of town and the Perrys, who have joined South Main in recent years. They shook hands and began chatting it up.
THANK YOU TO ANDREA HOXIE FOR HER GIFT OF THIS SONG TO OUR CONGREGATION. CLICK HERE TO SEE IT SHARED IN WORSHIP SUNDAY, JULY 15, 2018.
ALLELUIA FOR THE ACTS
The Spirit came and fell on men
And then He stayed to dwell in them
The church was born with so much great excitement so many heard and they believed
I never thought my parents would let me go to Mississippi by myself. But they did and I’m glad they let me go! I learned a lot from the work and people I met in Shaw. When I first got on the bus, I wasn’t too excited. I knew it would be a long drive. It turned out to be very fun! When we reached Mississippi, we stopped for dinner in Vicksburg.
In many ministry circles that’s an average stint. At South Main however, it’s only a drop in the bucket as both of my predecessors Thomas Coker and Thad Roberts combined served almost 60 years.
"What I loved most about the trip was working with the people and helping. It's cool to take fun trips, but we were really able to make a difference in Shaw."-Lily Gribble, age 11
Are you looking for some enriching reading for the summer? South Main's Discipleship Committee has polled our ministers and some fellow congregants to collect this terrific list of books for the upcoming vacation season. You’ll find all sorts of picks from the spiritually edifying and deeply educational to the pleasantly amusing and simply entertaining.
I first walked through the doors at South Main 29 years ago this fall. 18 years old, just a few weeks into my freshman year at Rice, I walked up to the third floor of the Loessner building, where the church offices are now - then education space: painted concrete block walls, tile floors - and into Toni Richerson’s Sunday freshman-sophomore Sunday School class.
In April of 2016 thirty-four boys, ages 7-13, who had been orphaned and living on the streets of Kenya moved to the rescue center established by one of South Main Baptist Church’s missions partner Sodzo International. The rescue center is called Watoto wa Ahadi Rescue Center which translates to The Children of Promise Rescue Center.
Nathan Benesh, Kendra Skipworth, Ruben Jarrin, Blake Wilson, Robbie and Ally Matteson, Carla Brown, Catrice Mays, and Alan Wilson are the Family Group Leaders in the Youth Center every Sunday who teach, listen, mentor, and love on our 8th - 12th graders. They are amazing small group leaders, and we are grateful for their faithfulness and openness with our Youth.
Cindy Hippel, Lynda McKnight, Bobbye Kolter, Ryan Lane, and Greg Taylor are the Sunday School teachers for the boys and girls of The 527 Tribe. These leaders are intentional about figuring out exactly what our 5th-7thgraders need intellectually, emotionally, and spiritually during this time in their lives.
Charis Smith, Jim Flynt, Sara Tirado, Julie White, Cleavy McKnight, Becky Humble, Ginger and Jerry Hamilton, Clarence Bell, and Mitch Cutsinger serve each Sunday as our wonderful MainKids Sunday school small group teachers. First through fourth graders have an intense need to engage in the church and the word of God. Our teachers do just that by not only connecting with our children o
By Heather Ballard
By Linda Gardner
I still remember the first time I entered the South Main sanctuary on a Sunday morning about 35 years ago. I was in awe of the beauty and grandeur, and the worship experience touched me. This was followed by warm interactions with ministers and others, and Spencer and I soon felt right at home in this special place.
By Rob Jefferies
By Margie Ehlers
By Kristy Wade-Carroll
Are you waiting for God to do something in your life? Scripture is full of God’s promises. We read and hear them, and sometimes wonder, “How long do I have to wait, God, for you to act?” I encourage you to read the book of Habakkuk this Lenten season. The prophet asks that very question. The answer he gets is not what anyone wants to hear.
By Greg Funderburk …when you least expect it. God finds me more readily than it can be said I find God. Having said that, I feel God’s spirit sometimes ripple through my heart with a fleeting, yet very real sense of presence when I least expect it.
By Cleavy McKnight
By Anne Tulek
Finding God can come at the most unusual of times. I have a lifetime history of undiagnosed Attention Deficit and Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD). Any readers who were also my childhood Sunday School teachers are shaking your heads, thinking about how obvious this was to you 40 years ago. It’s OK.
By JD Walther
By Larissa Fletcher
By J Hill
By Bobbye Lott
Throughout the Bible are many instances where God was revealed to individuals. One of my favorites is told in 1 Kings 19. Elijah, a powerful prophet, was afraid and depressed. He went out into the desert alone, wanting to die.
By Katy Rudisill
By Drew Philpot
One thing that always leads me to find God is seeing Christ-like behavior from my non-Christian friends. It can come in many different forms, such as sharing words of wisdom, showing love to someone who is hurting, or forgiving a past transgression. They become the visible representation of God to me.
By Andrea Hoxie
By Michael Raimer Goodman
God, where are you in these children’s lives? I know you are loving, and I know you are powerful – but these children are suffering. Where are you?
By Lauren Engle
By Seth Humble
By Jeanne Ludemann
By Thomas Coker
Three quotes immediately come to mind when I ponder this question:
“Be still and know that I am God”
“Open my eyes that I may see glimpses of truth you have for me”
“Trust and obey, for there is no other way to be happy in Jesus.”
By Jamie Negrete
Romans 12:2 Do not be conformed to this world but be transformed by the renewing of your minds, so that you may discern what is the will of God—what is good and acceptable and perfect.
By Kathy Bernal
By Rique Carson
Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways submit to Him, and he will direct your paths. Proverbs 3:5-6
By Al Moore
By Linda Brupbacher
Trust in the LORD with all your heart, and do not lean on your own understanding. In all your ways acknowledge him, and he will make straight your paths. Proverbs 3: 5&6
By Sarah Villasenor
I can admit it, I am lazy about looking for God. What’s worse is, he isn’t very hard to find in the first place. I try to use lent as an opportunity to reflect and thank God for his faithfulness to me, despite my shortcomings.
By Jane Jefferies
By Ethan Gwaltney
When "I am rich, I have prospered, and I need nothing," and I feast in good health, he "stand[s] at the door and knock[s]," and waits for my invitation to enter. (Rev. 3)
When I am poor, weak, and losing hope, and I quake under the weight of my sin, then is his "power made perfect" (2 Cor. 12) and he "restore[s] me to the joy of [his] salvation" (Psalm 51).
By Jeanette Stokes
GOD IS LOVE. Whoever lives in love lives in God, and God in Him. 1 John 4:16b
By Kyle Barsch
"You will seek me and find me, when you seek me with all of your heart" Jeremiah 29:13
By Angie Fox
By Steve Rader
By Helen Hoover
By Brandon Wheeler
By Shannon Dove
How Do I Find God is an interesting question. And a sometimes troubling one for me. My whole life I have heard stories of how God revealed Himself to various friends and family members, sometimes in bold fashion, sometimes in quiet, personal ways.
By Byron Keeling
By Mark Gribble
By Claire Hein Blanton
By Charles Williams
By Ann Sullivan
Love each other as I have loved you. John 15:12
A few years ago, Father James Martin edited a collection of compelling essays. Martin, day by day, one by one, asked a group of writers, cultural leaders, and other interesting people, both famous and not so famous, to prayerfully consider, then answer this quintessential question: “How Do I Find God?”
For we are co-workers in God’s service; you are God’s field, God’s building. 1 Corinthians 3:9 (NIV)
...He who began a good work in you will carry it on to completion... -Philippians 1:6b
Dear South Mainer,
A phone call, an email, a notification—there are lots of reasons we drop one thing and move on to others dozens of times each day. It's sort of a way of life now, but there's real satisfaction in not just starting, but in completing a task.
I am beyond excited to share a little about The King’s Singers performing live in the Sanctuary of South Main Baptist Church on Thursday, January 25 at 7:00 p.m. As of this writing, there are still tickets available, so purchase them here.
Many people know that I am the Marketing Coordinator for South Main. But, whether or not I am on staff at the church, it has always been my ministry passion to tell people about this church.
In the mid-1800’s, a 40-year-old man named Elisha Otis was called upon to convert an abandoned Yonkers, New York sawmill into a factory which made bed frames. The work required laborers to walk up and down multiple staircases many times a day.
What a blessing! On December 1st of this year, we needed more money than we have ever needed - and more money than we have ever given in December - if we were to make the budget. For that matter, on December 17th, we needed more money than we have ever needed in December - and more money than we have ever given in December - to make the budget, just over $891,000.
I have come into the world as light, so that no one who believes in me should stay in darkness. John 12:46 valeriehoman.png
Therefore, prepare your minds for action, keep sober in spirit, and fix your hope completely on the grace to be brought to you at the revelation of Jesus Christ. 1 Peter 1:13B
The beginning of the good news about Jesus the Messiah, the Son of God, as it is written in Isaiah the prophet: “I will send my messenger ahead of you, who will prepare your way” — “a voice of one calling in the wilderness, ‘Prepare the way for the Lord, make straight paths for him.’ ” Mark 1:1-3
And suddenly there was with the angel a multitude of the heavenly host praising God, and saying, “Glory to God in the highest, and peace on earth, good will toward men.” Luke 2:13-14
Dear South Main Family,
As our Advent journey continues and 2018 approaches, we each have an opportunity to reflect on the year and find the many ways God has worked in our lives. Despite the remarkably challenging events of 2017 in Houston, Texas, our faith encourages each of us to dwell in gratitude, and to continue to grow.
“But the angel said, ‘do not be afraid. I bring you good news that will cause great joy for all the people’." Luke 2:10 marthadoolittle.png
On a rustic farm outside Maua, Kenya, 35 boys have been freed from a life of addiction and welcomed back into life in faith, family, and with the promise of a bright future.
In Collique, Peru, 3,000 patients this year were treated by a physician or dentist; 120 children received hot and healthy meals five days per week; and a church is growing in the middle of the community.
And Mary said: “My soul glorifies the Lord and my spirit rejoices in God my Savior, for he has been mindful of the humble state of his servant.
Blessed is she who believed, for there will be a fulfillment of those things which were told her from the Lord. Luke 1:45 livoniaglaves.png
For nothing will be impossible with God. Luke 1:37 lindagardner.png
For God so loved the world, He gave His only begotten Son, that whosoever believes in Him should not perish, but have everlasting life. John 3:16
By Larissa Fletcher
Stewardship from the mind of a 4-year-old...
UPDATE 2 (December 22, 2017): Our new total is down to $396,494. We're getting closer and closer, one bite at a time.
And he said,“These are they who have come out of the great tribulation; they have washed their robes and made them white in the blood of the Lamb… For the Lamb at the center of the throne will be their shepherd; he will lead them to springs of living water.
By Dolores Rader, Minister to Families
What parent isn't filled with dread and instantly inflicted with sweaty palms at the very thought of the day when the question inevitably comes..."Why did you lie to me?" Oh, Santa why must parenting be so challenging?
Two are better than one, because they have a good return for their labor: if either of them falls down, one can help the other up. But pity anyone who falls and has no one to help pick them up. Ecclesiastes 4:9-10
I lift up my eyes to the hills, from where does my help come? My help comes from the Lord who made heaven and Earth. Psalm 121
We all saw a great picture of giving in worship in each of the last two weeks. On Sunday, December 3, we had 160 singers - 75 in the adult choir and 85 in the children, tribe, and youth choirs - all join together to make a beautiful offering to God. Some sang louder, some sang more quietly.
Therefore, Israel will be abandoned until the time when she who was in labor gives birth and the rest of his brothers return to join the Israelites. Micah 5:3
Have I not commanded you? Be strong and courageous. Do not be terrified, do not be discouraged, for the Lord your God is with you wherever you go. Joshua 1:9
And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, and we beheld His glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father, full of grace and truth. John 1:14
SECOND SUNDAY OF ADVENT
Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways submit to Him, and He will direct your paths. -Proverbs 3:5-6 Anne Tulek
By Carey Cannon, Minister of Music
In Him was life, and that life was the light of all mankind. The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome it... The true light that gives life to everyone was coming into the world. --John 1:4-5, 9
Jesus said, “Let the little children come to me, and do not hinder them, for the kingdom of heaven belongs to such as these.” --Matthew 19:14
“After Jesus was born in Bethlehem in Judea, during the time of King Herod, Magi from the east came to Jerusalem and asked, “Where is the one who has been born king of the Jews? We saw his star when it rose and have come to worship him.” --Matthew 2: 1-2
Glory to God in the highest Heaven, and on earth peace to those on whom his favor rests. -Luke 2:14 Amy Graham-Carlson
He [Joseph] took with him Mary, his fiancée, who was now obviously pregnant. And while they were there, the time came for her baby to be born. She gave birth to her first child, a son.
And suddenly there appeared with the angel a multitude of the heavenly host praising God and saying, "Glory to God in the highest, And on Earth peace among men with whom He is pleased."
Luke 2:13-14
Advent Devotionals Foreword
The Advent Book is one of my favorite South Main traditions, because it affords us the opportunity to peek into the developing stories of church family members we might not typically meet on Sunday mornings.
Whether it’s catching up on your annual pledge or making an additional gift on this occasion, we hope that you will consider giving to your church today.
What is church? Reflecting on our individual and shared experiences as we prepare to launch our new website—a virtual, but perfectly real, place of authenticity and grace.
Dave Wottle was a string bean of a kid growing up in Ohio in the late 1950s and early 1960s. He was so feeble that his doctor suggested he should do something to increase his athleticism in order to stay healthy. So Dave began to run. And he ran, and ran, and ran...
It was Edward Everett Hale, Sr., who said, "I am only one, but still I am one."
We are called to remember and pass along the story of God's saving work in the world. But how?
We have so much to be grateful for.
Faithful living often comes down to whether we are willing to cross over into the Promised Land.
By Jan Barkley — One day, Michael Goodman said off-handedly, “Hey, Jan, we need to figure out how to bake fruit breads with our excess produce. Do you think as a side project you could figure out how to bake some banana bread or something? And by the way, we don’t have an oven and the only heat source is a wood fire.” I love a good challenge.
Today is National Heroes Day in Kenya, and that means the kids did not have to go to school today. Instead, the staff scheduled a soccer tournament with the Laarei Catholic School boys, a private institution similar to Sodzo International.
When I think of Africa, I visualize hot, desert land with wild animals running around, like what one would see at Walt Disney World’s Animal Kingdom exhibit. I was pleasantly surprised on my journey to Maua to discover lush vegetation along the base of Mt. Kenya. Reality was nothing at all like what I visualized Africa to be like.
We’re here in Kenya, halfway around the world in a place that’s full of beauty, contradictions, and surprises. It’s a place that feels both totally foreign and completely familiar.
By Patti Peymann Romeril — What is your vehicle? How do you serve others, share the love of the Lord, and fulfill spiritual needs in your worldly tasks?
By Charis Smith — Lunch making has its own spiritual lessons. This year I’ve learned: “Pieces of bread are not alike.”
It's important to remember that you do what you can do each day, and understand that while you will not solve every problem, you are making a difference.
By Larry Carroll — This is my first trip to Peru with Operación San Andres, so there is a lot that is new to me.
By Brian Chambers — Visiting the Cathedral of Lima
By David McKnight — The power of music is so mysterious and awesome, and today was filled with it.
By Isabella Baar-Hill — As a member of the music and dance team, I teach kids songs and dances to perform at the end of the week. Their joyful willingness to master a foreign language is a gift I will carry home with me.
By Drew Barkley — Day one of Vacation Bible School at Collique
By Anna Rader — Today, we got the opportunity to visit OSA’s new church, Luz de Esperanza, and meet some of their youth as well as participate in their worship service.
The millennial generation grew up in noise. How can we hear those voices that want to still us, calm us, and bring us back into communion with one another and with God?
By Avery Cate — Manna is church. It is community. It’s an accepting place, where I don’t have to fit into any sort of mold or feel like I have my life under control.
By Kyle Barsch — My wife, Kelly, and I had the privilege of participating in Discovery Day this month. To be honest, I wasn’t sure exactly why I should attend.
South Main Baptist Church broke the Guinness World Record for the Longest Chain of Shoes, and the outpouring of generosity was overwhelming.