Praising God in Difficult Times

MESSAGE.

“I will praise the Lord at all times; his praise is always on my lips.” (Ps. 34:1) When dark clouds cover the sky we pray for help; we cry for safety. Prayers of praise seem to be more appropriate when we get a pay raise, when our children are well and safe, when surgery went well. This was not David’s perspective. He was attacked by his family; surrounded by enemies, betrayed by friends, but he was determined to praise the Lord “at all times”! Praising God through pain and in moments of darkness requires strong faith and an intimate relationship with Christ. Don’t allow your mind to be sucked into the sewers of the media propaganda. Open the Word of God and allow praise to be always on your lips.

MINISTRY.

Worship Service on August 29 will be held outside @ 9 AM. There will be no 11:30 AM service. The weather forecast is not very supportive of our outdoor service plans, but per the Church Board vote there will be no indoor service on August 29 or September 5. If you are brave enough to join the outdoor 9 AM service tomorrow morning you may want to bring an umbrella. Chairs will be set under the carport by the sanctuary entrance. Possible COVID19 exposure may keep us outside for two weeks, but no weather will keep us from worshiping the Lord this Sabbath morning. Thank you for your understanding. Clouds will pass, Coronavirus will die, but we’ll stay together united by the Blessed Hope! If you haven’t received my email sent on Tuesday here is a link to that communication: Tuesday Letter from pastor Peter

Sabbath school classes are available on ZOOM and YouTube. Please contact your Sabbath school class leader to receive a ZOOM meeting ID and password. YouTube Sabbath school class can be accessed via church website http://www.ooltewahchurch.org or on the church YouTube channel. Here is the link https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCn7JBKBbM_ulSpseE11zWdw

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No natural disasters or political battles can keep men of our church from serving people in the community. Here is the latest update with pictures from Edymar Penagos:

” Love in Action:
Thank you John, Edwin, Rick, Lucas, Aaron, Edwin, Kevin and David for your help. Your love in action made a big difference at the house but more importantly demonstrated God’s love to our brother. With all the growing self interest in the world, your selflessness helped mend a hurting heart. (see attached photos)
Also, if you or anyone you know have been impacted by COVID19, PLEASE let me know what we can do to help. IF one part suffers, every part suffers with it; if one part is honored, every part rejoices with it. 1 Corinthians 12:26
Request for assistance: Our brother Luis Rivera needs ourt help! They are moving out of their friends basement and into their new home in Cleveland! If you would like to help, we are planning to meet this Sunday in the morning. Please call, email or text me for the details.  
Mens SS Class tomorrow: Due to possible COVID exposure, we will not be meeting in our normal class this sabbath or the next. And because of the weather predictions for this Saturday, we will not have class outside. This means that the official mens class is cancelled. With that said, some of the guys from our class are gathering at Kevin Hicks house to watch the video and talk . If you would like to join, please reach out to me, my cell number is below. 
We will be finishing up the 2nd volume of the 33 series called “A Man and His Story”. We are on session #6 titled, Heart. This is the last session of this volume. (available to watch beforehand on RightNow media) Continued prayers for you all, your brother in Christ, Edymar Penagos 813-541-2184″

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PRAYERS.

Betty Chastain fell again this week. She is at Erlanger hospital downtown. Prayers are needed and appreciated.

Prayers for a church family overcoming COVID19.

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RESOURCES.

STEWARDSHIP – “Every good thing of earth was placed here by the bountiful hand of God as an expression of His love to man. The poor are His, and the cause of religion is His. The gold and the silver are the Lord’s; and He could rain them from heaven if He chose. But instead of this He has made man His steward, entrusting him with means, not to be hoarded, but to be used in benefiting others. He thus makes man the medium through which to distribute His blessings on earth. God planned the system of beneficence, in order that man might become like his Creator, benevolent and unselfish in character, and finally be a partaker with Christ of the eternal, glorious reward.” (CS 15.2)

~ Steve Bremner

Weekly church bulletin: bulletin

Online Giving: tithe and offerings

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Have a blessed Sabbath day. See you tomorrow.

Pastor Peter