Prayer for Today, Sunday, June 19

Loving God,

We are moved and touched by the ministry of Jesus of Nazareth. His compassion, his healing, his turning the social order upside down, his concern for the marginalized. . .all of this speaks to the depths of our souls. He showed You to the world. Forgive us, O Lord, when we overlook His message. Forgive us, Eternal Presence, when we let the creeds, doctrines and priorities of the church cloud our image of the example He gave for living the life You call us to live. May He be present to us now as the Risen Lord as we open our hearts to Him. May we seek to accept His love and follow His teachings. We pray in His name, AMEN.
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Today is Father’s Day. May all our father’s be blessed.

Tomorrow evening the Seekers/Young Adult Class is having a cookout and swim party at Pat and Gail Novak’s house beginning at 6:30 p.m. All class members and young adults are encouraged to attend and bring a friend. They will also talk about small group, Bible study and other class options.

Next Sunday, June 26th , all current and new elders will meet in the Fellowship Hall at 5:30 p.m.

On Saturday, July 16th, all 2011-2012 Board Members and Committee Chairpersons will meet at Christian Church of the Covenant from 9:00 a.m. until 1:00 p.m. for a “Church Board Retreat”. Please mark your calendars now and plan to attend. More information will follow.

The memorial service for Gailene Squires, Mae Clark’s daughter, will be tomorrow at 11:00 a.m. in the chapel. Please pray for her family as they travel from Virginia, Indiana, Florida and Arizona.

The scripture for today is 2 Chronicles 36:15-23:
The LORD, the God of their ancestors, sent persistently to them by his messengers, because he had compassion on his people and on his dwelling place; but they kept mocking the messengers of God, despising his words, and scoffing at his prophets, until the wrath of the LORD against his people became so great that there was no remedy. Therefore he brought up against them the king of the Chaldeans, who killed their youths with the sword in the house of their sanctuary, and had no compassion on young man or young woman, the aged or the feeble; he gave them all into his hand. All the vessels of the house of God, large and small, and the treasures of the house of the LORD, and the treasures of the king and of his officials, all these he brought to Babylon. They burned the house of God, broke down the wall of Jerusalem, burned all its palaces with fire, and destroyed all its precious vessels. He took into exile in Babylon those who had escaped from the sword, and they became servants to him and to his sons until the establishment of the kingdom of Persia, to fulfill the word of the LORD by the mouth of Jeremiah, until the land had made up for its sabbaths. All the days that it lay desolate it kept sabbath, to fulfill seventy years.
In the first year of King Cyrus of Persia, in fulfillment of the word of the LORD spoken by Jeremiah, the LORD stirred up the spirit of King Cyrus of Persia so that he sent a herald throughout all his kingdom and also declared in a written edict:“Thus says King Cyrus of Persia: The LORD, the God of heaven, has given me all the kingdoms of the earth, and he has charged me to build him a house at Jerusalem, which is in Judah. Whoever is among you of all his people, may the LORD his God be with him! Let him go up.”

The psalm for this week is Psalm 148:

Praise the LORD! Praise the LORD from the heavens; praise him in the heights!
Praise him, all his angels; praise him, all his host!
Praise him, sun and moon; praise him, all you shining stars!
Praise him, you highest heavens, and you waters above the heavens!
Let them praise the name of the LORD, for he commanded and they were created.
He established them forever and ever; he fixed their bounds, which cannot be passed.
Praise the LORD from the earth, you sea monsters and all deeps,
fire and hail, snow and frost, stormy wind fulfilling his command!
Mountains and all hills, fruit trees and all cedars!
Wild animals and all cattle, creeping things and flying birds!
Kings of the earth and all peoples, princes and all rulers of the earth!
Young men and women alike, old and young together!
Let them praise the name of the LORD, for his name alone is exalted; his glory is above earth and heaven.
He has raised up a horn for his people, praise for all his faithful, for the people of Israel who are close to him. Praise the LORD!

Grace and peace,

John McLemore