December 28, 2009

Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year!

Social Stuff!
I am not going to write much here this week because with the Holiday Season there is just too much good stuff to write in this space. Suffice it for me to encourage everyone to enjoy your Life with as many loved ones as you can and go into the New Year with a goal (not necessarily a resolution) of making the lives of ones you encounter better than if they had not encountered you. You probably remember the old Boy Scout adage of always leaving a campsite better than when you found it? Well I think the same principle applies to "lives" we encounter. We should always strive to make the lives we encounter better because of our presence. Let's give it a try and see how it works!

Koinonia Sunday School Class!

Attendees: Bill Nichols, Betty Caswell, Alan and Teresa Schlobohm, Josh Schlobohm, Cindie Jones, Suzanne Lyons (pastor), Jane and Terry Pursley.

Prayers were requested for:

1. Safe journeys for all those traveling during this holiday season.
2. The ability of Bill's brother and wife to celebrate Christmas in their new home.
3. Suzanne's family being together in their new home (parsonage) with the joy and love they are able to experience there.
4. Betty's daughter - Micky and family - as they enjoy the holiday's in Tulsa and prepare to return to Africa in January.

Class Material: Book of Acts - Chapter 16

In this Chapter we find four (4) distinct sections -

First - In verses 1 thru 5, we see Paul and Silas pick-up Timothy to join them on their missionary journeys and Timothy is circumcised out of deference to the Jews in the area. We remembered The Church in Jerusalem had just issued their decree that circumcision was not necessary for the Gentiles to receive the Lord, but obviously Paul, and of course Timothy, found this act was a means of helping the Jews to accept Christ and so Timothy elected to participate in this act. This tells us the receipt of Christ into peoples hearts is more important than any rituals we may in our worship process.

Second - In verses 6 thru 10 We also find the Holy Spirit leads Paul to take his missionary work into Macedonia (Greece).

Third - In verses 11 thru 15, we find the disciples, encountering a woman in Macedonia named Lydia who is described as a "merchant of expensive purple cloth". The result of this encounter is Lydia accepts what Paul is saying and is baptized. She then makes the unusual statement "If you agree that I am a true believer in the Lord come and stay at my home." Paul and his troop then agree to come to her home. The significance of this story is multi-faceted. Paul's first recorded encounters while in Macedonia is with a wealthy woman involved in an evidently lucrative trade of "purple cloth". From this I ascertain, this person is Greek, Gentile, wealthy, influential with her trade contacts, and a woman. The other aspect I discern is that normally such traveling preachers such as Paul would not have been invited into the home of such a person and Paul's presence in Lydia's home may have had more ramifications than we might think. I say this because Luke (writer of Acts) goes out of his way to report that Paul accepted Lydia's invitation after some "urging" takes place. What I see here is a reluctance on the part of Paul (who hasn't been afraid to go anywhere including into towns where he will likely be stoned) to enter Lydia's home but then decides to do so, which Luke finds significant enough to report. Thus we see Paul's message being brought to, and accepted by, people, in this case Lydia, and thus opening "doors" into parts of the Greek society not previously thought to be approachable. The lesson to be learned is we should bring God's word into those places, and to those people we are led to, even when would otherwise think it not appropriate to do so.

Fourth - In verses 16 thru 40, we find Paul and Silas being thrown into jail because they, in the name of Jesus Christ, were able to remove a demon from a slave girl who had been a fortune-teller. Once the demon was removed, the slave girl evidently lost her ability to tell fortunes and so her owner's became upset to the point of dragging Paul and Silas to the local "authorities" who upon hearing the charges had Paul and Silas whipped and thrown into a secure jail situation. That night an earthquake occurs of such magnitude that the jails doors and shackle locks are released setting Paul and Silas free; however, they did not flee. The next morning the jail's captain saw the doors opened and assumed the prisoners had escaped and was about to kill himself out of anxiety when Paul yelled for him to stop. The jailer then provided assistance for Paul and Silas, became a believer, and was baptized. The next morning the authorities, who had Paul and Silas imprisoned, sent a note to have Paul and Silas released, but Paul refused to leave until the authorities came to him and released him in person. The authorities agreed to do this, especially when they learned Paul was a Roman citizen, and even begged Paul and Silas to leave their town. The lesson I learn here is that Paul does not waiver in his Faith of God/Jesus even when circumstances could dictate otherwise. Paul continues to sincerely worship God/Jesus without regards to what Paul will get out of it. Paul worships God/Jesus because Paul loves God/Jesus so much that Paul is willing to accept whatever events occur as a result of Paul following God/Jesus' direction.

Next Week we will be studying Chapter 17 of Acts where Paul and Silas continue their missionary work in Macedonia/Greece with an eventual encounter in Athens and the idols worshiped therein.

Have a Great Week and Enjoy Life!

Terry

Note: As always, the above thoughts are mine and mine alone, and are not reviewed by or necessarly agreed to by our pastor, Salem Church, the United Methodist Church, or any other intelligent party. I encourage all to read the subject verses on their own and come to your own understandings.

T

December 21, 2009

Good Afternoon!

Social Stuff!

Jane and I just returned from a visit with our daughter Rebecca in Columbia, Missouri, and we had a very nice time. We got to see Rebecca's new cedar Christmas tree and it was very nice. We also watched two movies Sunday afternoon - We tend to do that sort of thing from time to time just because we can! We first saw "The Princes and the Frog"! Its a nice Disney animation feature good for all ages although there is a lead character who is cast as a not-so-nice Vodoo magician. Jane and I thought this character might be a little too intense for those 5 years and younger. There is a song in this movie I liked very much entitled "Dig a Little Deeper!" written by academy award winner Randy Neuman. You have to pay attention to the fastly spoken words but its a great message and appropriate for us Christians. The second movie was "Avatar" which we both really liked. Its a 3D action flick with a good story line. The 3D effects are well done and don't "overwhelm" the movie. You should go see it if you have the chance and desire to do so.

Saturday night Jane and I along with 11 other Salem members attended a Koinonia Christmas dinner at Mama Campisi's on "The Hill", and it was a very good experience. The waiter was excellent, the food was great, and everyone agreed we really enjoyed the evening.

Salem Church Cantata!

On Sunday our choir sang our Christmas Cantata and Jane and I both thought it was excellent. We received a lot of very good reviews for the congregation and we thought we were able to convey well the message of Christmas! It is a great pleasure for us to sing with such great people as those we have in the choir and to be led by Bob Mienz. Bob is an excellent organizer, manager, and leader of the choir. It was his excellent leadership that we thought allowed the choir to perform and convey the message at a high level of quality. We are very happy to be a part of this group.

Koinonia Sunday School Class:

Attendees: Ginny Maas, Betty Caswell, Bill Nichols, Denise Kelly, Cindie Jones, Suzanne Lyons (pastor), Alan and Teresa Schlobohm, Jane and Terry Pursley.

Prayers were requested for:

1. Terry Pursley's mom (Opal Pursley) who was just diagnosed with "shingles" at the Delmar Gardens Nursing Home in Fenton, Mo.
2. Continued prayers for Mickey and Paul Prince (Betty's daughter and son-in-law) who are missionaries that will soon be returning to Africa.
3. Teresa's friend (David) who was seriously injured in a sky diving accident several months ago.
4. Safe travels for all who are traveling this coming Holiday Season.

Class Material Discussed - Chapter 15 of the Book of Acts.

In summary, Chapter 15 discusses a significant decision made by the newly developing Christian Church. The issue is the inclusion of Gentiles into God's salvation and specifically the need for all Christians to be circumcised.

As we saw in Chapter 10 and 11, Peter had been given a "vision" from God, to include the Gentiles in God's salvation plan as evidence by the Gentiles receiving the Holy Spirit after being baptized by Peter. The Christian leaders had accepted Peter's message that Gentiles were part of God's plan of salvation. The question in Chapter 15 was whether the "Gentile Christians" had to be physically circumcised, per the Jewish tradition, in order to receive Christ. Paul and Barnabas had been preaching that circumcision was not required of the Gentiles and evidently this point was "hotly" debated and was a significant reason why Paul and Barnabas were called in to Jerusalem to discuss this topic. Verse 7 indicates a "long discussion" was held until Peter stands up and reminds everyone of Peter's previous vision and actions, and reaffirms two very important facets of Peter's "vision" experience".

First - In Verse 9 Peter says - "He (God) made no distinction between us (Jews) and them (Gentiles), for he (God) cleansed their hearts through FAITH." (Note: Bold type, statements in parentheses, as well as larger print are my additions for emphasis purposes.)

Second - In Verse 11 Peter says - "We believe that we are ALL saved the same way, by the undeserved grace of the Lord Jesus."
(Note: Bold type and larger print, and italics, are my additions for emphasis purposes.)

Peter clearly lays down here the basic Christian principles that people, regardless of their background, are saved by God's Grace thru Faith. This is a fundamental principle of the Christian Faith and one we must all remember incorporate into our Christian Life.

Chapter 15 indicates a letter is written by the Jerusalem Church leaders confirming their agreement that Gentiles did not have to be circumcised to be saved, and this letter was taken back to Antioch of Syria by Paul, Barnabas, and two other "church leaders", as a way of confirming the Christian leaders decision on this point of circumcision.

As Chapter 15 closes, we see Barnabas and Paul separate overall a personnel decision and as we begin Chapter 16 next week we will be following the exploits of Paul and Silas as they start Paul's second missionary journey.

Jane and I hope each and everyone of you have a very Merry Christmas and keep in your hearts that Jesus is God's Gift to Us out of God's Grace so that through our Faith we may be saved and have eternal life with God.

Merry Christmas!

Terry

PS - As always, the above thoughts are mine and mine alone. Neither our pastor, Salem Church, the United Methodist Church or any other intelligent oversight group has contributed to, or commented upon, my thoughts. Please us your own judgement when considering what I have presented.

T

December 14, 2009

Good Morning - Sort-Of!

Its actually Tuesday December 15, 2009 and not Monday December 14 as today's blog title would suggest, but I have had dificulty getting time to up-date my blog, so my apologizes to those who read my musing!

Social Stuff:

Well last week I sang in two different chorus presentations with the St. Luke's Hospital chorus, practiced with Salem's choir on Wednesday, and then Jane and I traveld to Madison, Wisconsin on Thursday afternoon/evening. We traveled to Madison to help our Daughter Amy and her husband Todd, along with their three children, move from an apartment to their new home in Madison. This was very exciting but we had to leave Saturday afternoon so we could be back at Salem on Sunday morning. On Sunday morning we enjoyed both Sunday School and Church and then went to visit my mom at Delmar Gardens in Fenton for their Christmas party. After this party we met with two of our long time friends and we went to the FOX theatre to see the play "Christmas Story" and it was very enjoyable. Monday morning I got up to work on my blog when I receved a call from Delmar Gardens saying my mom had fallen out of her bed and was on her way to the Emergency Room, by ambulance, to St. Clare Hospital. So I stopped what I was doing and spent a majority of the day at St. Clare supporting mom thru her ordeal. She had rolled out of bed and basically hit head first on a carpeted floor with the result being abrasions from the rug and a cut upper lip which required 5 stitches to close. As most of us know, a hospital emergency room is not a place where you normally find expedited service so we didn't get out of there until about 4:00 PM. Mom was pretty tired and looked "rough" but her spirits were good and I am sure she went to sleep shortly after I left. When I got home from helping mom I had to change and then Jane and I went to the Christmas Party at Salem where we again had a very good time. Thanks to the Methodist Men for doing a great job!

While all the above activities were taking place we had the Hardcastle contrcution team remodling our home's den from which I am writing this blog. We removed everything from the room and the Hardcastle team of Phyllis, Rob, and Michael, repaired celing damage, painted both the ceiling and the walls, and then replaced the room's carpet with wood flooring. They did a very good job and at a reasonable price. Jane and I would recommend their work to anyone interested in any such similar remodelinlg efforts. In any event, the Hardcastles finished yesterday (12-14-09) and last night, after the Christmas Party we started moving back into the den and made sufficient progress to allow me to do this blog and other work this morning. Of course I had to restart my computer and given my "IT" skills this is no small feat and it took about 2 hours to get all the bugs worked out but it looks like we have made adequate progress.

Sunday's Sermon: This past Sunday Pastor Lyons'presented another excellent sermon and normally I wouldn't comment, but her message resonated with me in a particular way and I wanted to breifly comment on her discussion of Joseph. As Suzanne stated, verses 19 of Mathew Chapter 1 reads "Joseph, her fiance, was a good man and did not want to disgrace her publicly, so he decided to break the engagement quietly." This verse struck me as being very meaningful, Using my words this verse says - Joseph was a good (righteous) man who loved God and thus was driven to obey God's Law, and thus needed to separate himself from Mary for her apparent transgressions; but because he also loved Mary, Joseph did not want to hurt Mary while obeying God's Law; thus Joseph was willing to quietly break the engagement in order to minimze the impact upon Mary. I reflected that far to many times in our modern times people, out of some misguided concept of God's love, are willing to punish other people for these other people's sins. This is not what God's teaches us in his story of Joseph. At the time, Joseph thought Mary had slept with another man, and had become pregnant with another man's child, even while being engaged to Joseph. BUT JOSEPH DID NOT TURN BITTER AND ATTEMPT TO PUNISH MARY! In fact while Joseph sought to follow the Law he also intended to protect Mary. What a wonderful example, of rejecting the sin but not the sinner, for all of us to follow, and what a wonderful earthly father Joseph would be for raising God's son - Jesus.

Koinonia Sunday School Class:

Attendees: Bill Nichols, Ginny Maas, Alan and Teresa Schlobohm, Cindie Jones, Suzanne Lyons (pastor), Betty Caswell.

Prayers were requested for:
1. Cyndie's uncle Forest Boden whos struggling with Alzhiemers, and a staff infection.
2. Teresa's 78 year old uncle, John Krampf, who was just laid off from work!
3. Catie Aderack who is an 86 year old neighbor of Bill Nichols who is recovering from injuries from a fall she recently experienced.
4. Josh Scholobohm who is pursing his engineering degree - Way to Go Josh!

Class Material : The Book of Acts, Chapter 14.

In Chapter 14 we read more about the adventures of Paul and Barnabas in the towns of Iconium, Lystra and Derbe.

In Iconium, Paul and Barnabas brought a great number of Jews and Gentiles to become believers in the Good News. The degree of their success was measured by the fact that some fo the town leaders became jealous and incited many of the town's people to riot and they attempted to stone Paul and Barnabas, who fled for their safety.

They fled to Lystra and here the crowd became such huge followers of Paul and Barnabas that the crowd attempted to sacrafice animals as if Paul and Barnabas were Gods. This caused Paul and Barnabas tremendous mental anguish and they attempetd to let the people know that Paul and Barnabas were only humans, just like everyone else, and that it was God, who sent them, that should be worshiped, and not by sacraficing animals but by believing ing the Lord Jesus Chirst. Even with these exortations the people still wanted to sacrafice animals and then certain Jewish leaders again incited the crowd to stone Paul and this time they almost killed Paul. Paul was saved however and traveled to Derbe where he and Barnabas continued to preach the Good News. Then the most amazing thing happened, Paul traveld back to Lystra, where he had almost been killed, to continue preaching the Good News, and in fact began to stregthen the faith of the believers. Those of us in the Koinonia Class said - Wow! To be stroung enough to go into a town and get "stoned" is one thing but to return and continue the same preaching is something else. All of this is evidence that Paul and Barnabas were not performing this preaching for their own self gratification, but because they loved God and were following God's plan.

How many of us are willing to stand up for Jesus when ever we are in a social situation where Jesus is being defamed? How many of us are willing to take a stand for Jesus even when the situation is tough? Next time lets think of Paul and his commitment and let our Christian views be known!

Next week we will be studing Chapter 15 in the Book of Acts and here we will see where Paul gets called into the "Mother Church" at Jeusalem to expalin what he has been preaching!

Until then - Have a Great Week and Enjoy Life!

Terry

PS - One closing thought - In all of my blog messages, the words and thoughts are mine and mine alone. They have not been reviewed are accepted by Pastor Lyons, Salem Church, the United Methodist Church or any other intelligent oversight group. Anyone reading my words should feel free to exercise their own intelligence and relationship with God and to consider or reject my musings as they determine is best.

T

December 7, 2009

Good Morning!

Social Stuff!

Very busy week! I have joined a volunteer chorus group and participated in about 4 of their concerts. Its primarily Christmas music at this time and we are singing at various nursing and assisted living venues. I hadn't met any of the chorus members, except the one person who invited me, and thus I have met a whole new set of friends I didn't know I had!!! In addition, our church choir sang in a special presentation at a local church displaying a very large number of high quality nativity scenes from around the world. Our choir was one of several that provided Christmas music as a background for the event and it was much fun. I love to sing but because of my reduced talent level I have to adhere to the "herd" principle which says - the larger the herd the better I sound! I sing with great groups and enjoy it very much.

Our Koinonia Sunday School Class is sponsoring a Christmas Dinner at Mama Campisi's in The Hill district of St. Louis on December 19, 2009 at 5:30 PM and so please let me know if you are able to join us.

Jane and I also attended a "End of the Year Celebration" put on by the Multiple Sclerosis Society with the emphasis on this years 2009 Bike Ride Event. We learned there had been over 3,100 bike riders on the event and together we raised over $2.3 million for the MS Society. I enjoy riding in the event and simultaneously helping to raise money for people stricken with MS. If you are like-minded please join or support me in the 2010 ride as I have registered to ride once again.

Koinonia Sunday School Class:

This week's attendees were: Bill Nichols, Ginny Maas, Cindie Jones, Suzanne Lyons (Pastor), Joyce Unruh, Betty Caswell, Jane and Terry Pursley.

Prayers were requested for the following:

1. Chris Jenkerson's family since Chris died this past week.
2. Charollet Michelle whose grand daughter died this past week.
3. John Moore, a cousin of Denise Kelly's, who is experiencing family difficulties.
4. Billie Montgomery who is recovering from a painful episode associated with shingles.
5. Meridith Jones who is doing well in school and just needs our prayerful support as she continues.
6. Betty Caswell's daughter Mickey who is dealing with a potential case of melanoma and who also will be returning the Africa as a missionary on January 5, 2009.
7. Joyce's aunt Mary Ann who is dealing with a health issue dealing with her lungs.

Class Material: The Book of Acts, Chapter 13

In Chapter 13, the Book of Acts transitions from a focus on the ministry of Peter to that of Paul. In verses 1 thru 3 we see the Holy Spirit directing the believers to dedicate Barnabas and Saul/Paul to begin the work God had called them to accomplish. After receiving this dedication, Barnabas and Saul/Paul began their work.

Barnabas and Saul/Paul began preaching in various synagogues until they reached the town of Paphos, where they encountered a false prophet named "Bar-Jesus" who had considerable influence with the local governor. Bar-Jesus attempted to keep Barnabas and Saul/Paul from talking with the governor and when this happened the Holy Spirit filled Saul/Paul who in turn spoke words that caused Bar-Jesus to go blind. Obviously this caused Bar-Jesus much turmoil and affected the governor to the extent the governor became vary interested in what both Barnabas and Saul/Paul had to say.

After speaking with the governor, Barnabas and Saul/Paul traveled to Antioch of Pisidia. (Note: It is in this section of scripture where the Book of Acts begins to refer to Saul as Paul.) Here Barnabas and Paul were listening in a synagogue when those in charge of the service asked Barnabas and Paul to to speak. Paul rises up and presents a very concise but detailed description of the history of the Jewish nation from the time God chose Israel as his people until the current time. Paul concludes by telling both the Jewish people in the synagogue as well as the Gentiles, who were outside listening, that "the message of salvation has been sent to us! Paul says in Vere's 38 and 39 "Brothers, listen! We are here to proclaim that through this man Jesus there is forgiveness for your sings. Everyone who believes in him is declared right with God - something the law of Moses could never do."

As Paul and Barnabas left the synagogue they were begged to return and preach more and so Paul and Barnabas did return a week later, but this time almost the entire city turned out to hear them preach. The Jewish leaders were jealous of this public response to Paul so they began to speak badly of Paul but in response Paul and Barnabas spoke out bodly saying that, because the Jews rejected God's outreach, the Good News was being extended to the Gentiles. Verse 48 and 49 says "When the Gentiles heard this, they were very glad and thanked the Lord for his message; and all who were chosen for eternal life became believers. So the Lord's message spread throughout that region."

We can only imagine what spiritual and emotional impact this message of Paul's had upon the large crowd. The Jewish leaders were obviously scared of the excitement of the crowd because they immediately begin stirring up the influential religious women and leaders of the city who in turn incited a riot against Paul and Barnabas. This riot caused Paul and Barnabas to run from the town and "shake the dust of the city from their shoes". This "running from the town" would seem to be a significant negative for Paul and Barnabas but Chapter 13 ends with this wording in Verse 52 - "And the believers were filled with joy and with the Holy Spirit."

Next week we will continue with Chapter 14 but as we leave Chapter 13 we should remember at least two items of interest from Chapter 13.

1. Paul begins to spread the Good News about Jesus Christ and THAT THIS GOOD NEWS IS MADE AVAILABLE TO ALL PEOPLE WHETHER THEY ARE JEWISH OR GENTILE, and

2. Never discount how much your Christian outreach affects others. Even when we seem to receive nothing but negative feedback, Paul and Barnabas' Chapter 13 story tells us we can be filling people's hearts with Joy even if the external response is negative.

Next week we will study Chapter 14 of Acts as Paul and Barnabas continue their journey and this time the negative response becomes more intense than just angry words!

Until then have a Great Week and Enjoy Life!

Terry

November 30, 2009

Good Morning Everyone!

Social Stuff:

I hope each of you had a great Thanksgiving weekend with friends and family. Jane and I certainly did. We hosted our families at our home on Thanksgiving Day with about 34 people attending our home. It was a little crowded but we had a great time as usual. On Friday our daughter Amy, husband Todd, and their kids Audra, Ryne, and Wendy came to our home and stayed with us thru Sunday morning. Our other daughter Rebecca also joined us Friday and also stayed thru Sunday morning. On Saturday we decorated our Christmas Tree and it was a great time. Audra and I made home made oatmeal cookies while Ryne and Jane made chocolate cookies. After decorating the tree Amy and Todd went shopping with Wendy while Jane and I played with Audra and Ryne - Great Great Fun.



Jane and I went to the Rams Football game Sunday afternoon and witnessed the Rams come in second - again!



Koinonia Sunday School Class:

Attendees: Alan and Teresa Schlobohm, Bill Nichols, and Terry Pursley

Prayers were requested for:

1. A friend of Josh Schlobohm (John Magob - sp?) who has gone missing now for over a week.

2. Safe travels for all people traveling during this holiday season.

Class Material Studied: The Book of Acts - Chapters 11 and 12

In Chapter 11 we read about Peter explaining his act of baptizing the gentile Cornelius to the Jewish believers. Peter explained his vision of the sheet with unclean food items and the fact that as he baptised the gentiles the Holy Spirit came upon them. This appeared to convince the Jewish believers because they stated "We can see that God has also given the Gentiles the privilege of repenting of their sins and receiving eternal life."

In our class we came to understand that the conversion of Cornelius (a Italian Regiment Captain) and the explanation of the event to the Jewish believers was the bilateral means by which God began to spread the word of Jesus Christ to Rome and to the Jewish Believers. We therefore see the Christian church begin to grow simultaneously in both political Rome and religious Israel.

In Chapter 12 we read about the death of James (vs 2) and the subsequent arrest of Peter by King Herod Agrippa. For whatever reason King Herod Agrippa decided to begin a persecution of the new religious order of believers called Christians. We do not know why the King decided to do this but we do read were King Agrippa saw how much the killing of James pleased the Jewish leaders and how this recognition led to the arrest of Peter. We therefore assume Peter's anticipated fate would have been similar to James. In Peter's case however God intervene by the use of and angel who set Peter free even though there was a party of some 16 guards set by King Agrippa to watch over Peter.

King Agrippa was evidently furious over this escape of Peter and the King had all 16 guards condemned to death. King Agrippa then leaves Judea and goes to Caesarea (which is the area Cornelius lived) and King Agrippa gives a powerful speech which led those who heard the speech proclaim "It's the voice of a god, and not of a man!" King Agrippa" accepted the peoples' worship and immediately King Agrippa was killed by and angel of the Lord.

Therefore in Chapter 10 thru 12 of the Book of Acts we see God opening up the forgiveness of sins and the gift of eternal life thru a man in Caesarea (Cornelius) and we see the life of another man (King Herod Agrippa) taken from him in Caesarea when he begins to believe he is God.

The Lessons Learned - God's Gift of Grace is given to all people, and no man is God!

Next week we will begin with Chapter 13 of the Book of Acts where we will begin to follow the pilgramage of Paul in a much more detailed manner.

In the meantime - Have a Great Day and Enjoy Life!

Terry

November 23, 2009

Good Morning All!

I am a day late (and a dollar short?) in posting my blog this week so I apologize for this tardiness!

Social Stuff:

This last weekend was Salem Church's Community Thanksgiving Dinner and it was another big success! We served a traditional Thanksgiving dinner to approximately 180 people this year and we tried something new. This year our Pastor conducted a Holy Communion service near the end of the meal time for anyone who wanted to join us. We had about 40 people attend this new function. Many people in the new service were Salem worshipers but there were between 10 and 15 non-Salem attendees and I thought the service was productive and well received. There are a lot of people to thank for their help with both the meal and service but identifying a few of them here would be unfair to all. Therefore; I will simply say thanks to all who physically, financially, or spiritually supported us in this meaningful event.

Koinonia Sunday School Class:

Attendees: Alan and Teresa Scholobohm, Cyndie Jones, Bill Nichols, Joyce Unruh, Suzanne Lyons, Betty Caswell, Denise Kelly, Jane and Terry Pursley.

Prayers were requested for:

1. Amanda Vogt for cancer related issues.
2. Mickey (Betty Caswell's daughter who, along with her husband, is returning to Africa as a misionay) and who also is fighting cancer issues.
3. Carol Chisohm (Cyndies' friend) who is battling cancer.
4. Lourie Doyle (Jane's first cousin) who is dealing with breast cancer.
5. Chris Jenkerson (Cyndies's friend) who is struggling with seizures.
6. Esther Smith who has now moved into a new home.
7. Genny Mass who called in with a sore throat.
8. Billie Montgomery who is struggling with pain as a result of "shingles".
9. Safe travel for all who are visiting various people over the Thanksgiving Holiday.
10. Wendy Koerber who continues to do well with her spina bifada issues.
11. Josh Scholobohm who has now turned 20 years old!

Class Material Studied Acts Chapter 10 (Watched DVD and Discussed):

Chapter 10 of Acts is about and encounter between Peter and a Roman army office named Cornelius. We first see Cornelius is the captain of "the" Italian Regiment who is visited by an angle from God who tells Cornelius to send people to Joppa and ask for a man named "Simon Peter to be sent to Cornelius. The rational given for the angel requesting Cornelius to do this is Cornelius is "Your prayers and gifts to the poor have been received by God as and offering."

We learned from these introductory verses that:

1) Cornelius was a "devout, God-fearing man" even though he would have not been a Jew and therefore had no apparent expectations from the Covenants God had given to Israel, and
2) Cornelius would have been from Italy (Rome) since he is identified as being in charge of the Italian Regiment.

Because of these characteristics of Cornelius we have the first indications that this section of Acts is concerning the spread of the "Good News" to Gentiles and Rome.

As the story continues we see Peter receives a vision/dream of a sheet filled with all sorts of previously identified unclean animals and a "voice" instructs Peter to kill and eat of these animals. Peter immediately objects because of the "unclean" nature of these animals and the "voice" replies "Do not call something unclean if God as made it clean."

After this vision the messengers arrive and take Peter to Cornelius. Upon Peter's arrival Peter goes into the home of Cornelius, which Peter understood violated the currently understood religious law of not entering the home of a Gentile or to associate with Gentiles. Peter explained his violation of the "Law" by referring to his vision of the "unclean food". Peter tells Cornelius and his family about the "Good New" of Jesus Christ and as Peter tells his story the Holy Spirit descends upon all who were listening to Peter's message and then Peter baptised the entire group in the name of Jesus Christ.

This Chapter 10 is important to us at Salem Church because it is this recorded "out-reach" by God thru Peter that brings the Gentiles and thus us into the the Covenant with God. Because of this act by God we all can now know that we are also God's chosen people! As I mentioned earlier, this event involved a Roman army Captain who was a God Fearing man and so we see the "seed message" of Jesus Christ beginning to enter the mainstream of Roman society and, after a string of multiple events, will lead to the spread of Christianity to the entire world; including those of us along Manchester Road!

Next week we will see Peter reporting this event to the apostles in Jerusalem and how the ripple effects begin to occur.

Jane and I hope everyone has a safe and blessed Thanksgiving Holiday this week and as always -

Have a Great Week and Enjoy Life!

Terry

November 9, 2009

Good Morning!

Social Stuff!

This past week was a beautiful weather week; and with Jane up in Madison, Wisconsin visiting Amy and her family, it was pretty quite around our home. I mulched leaves a couple of times but this afternoon it looked like I hadn't done anything what with leaves falling at a great pace. Jane had a good visit to Madison, and Amy's family is doing well. This past week they received a contract on their House in Freeburg, Illinois and made an offer on a house in Madison so things are moving along on that front. Audra and Ryne are doing well as is Wendy Jane who received a good report for a visiting nurse. Our other daughter Rebecca seems to be doing fine and happy in Columbia with her interpreting work.

Koinonia Sunday School Class:

Attendees: Genny Maas, Betty Caswell, Alan and Teresa Schlobohm, Pator Suzanne Lyons, and Terry Pursley

Prayers were requested for:

1. The Nicewonger family who has and is experiencing very terrible health and death issues in their immediate family.
2. Amanda Vogt's continued battle against cancer.
3. Betty Caswell's continue good health experience.

Special Note: It was suggested and agreed upon to work with Pastor Lyons to coordinate a worship service with this year's Thanksgiving Dinner. The thought being that we could offer the service to all attendees; including our guests, and perhaps provide an aspect of "Spiritual Feeding" that we have not previously provided. We will work with Pastor Lyons to see how this might be best implemented.

Class Material Studied:

We viewed Chapter 9 of the Book of Acts and found it to be very interesting. After watching the DVD we discussed the following points.

In verses 1 thru 31 we read about the conversion of Saul (Paul) and noted the following.

1. Saul sincerely loved God with all his heart. Saul was a very well educated man and read the scriptures very intently; but even though he loved God and knew the scriptures well, he still missed the true message. Saul honestly believed the early Christians were evil because of their faith in Jesus, and Saul thought it was his rightful task to punish (persecute) these people. It took direct action by God/Jesus on Saul's journey to Damascus to change Saul's thinking and to understand Jesus was indeed the Son of God. This point emphasized for us that we as modern day Christians must not assume we have 100% proper understanding of the scriptures even though we may have studied them for years/decades.

2. Once Saul understood his understanding of God's Word was wrong, Saul did not spend time defending himself. He simply began preaching the revealed Good News and did not need to defend his previous pistons. Saul was more interested in preaching God's Word rather than defending himself. This is a lesson all of us should take to heart.

In verses 32 thru 42 we read about Peter performing great miracles; including raising people from the dead. The importance of these verses seemed to be that:

1. Peter's actions are described in Chapter 9, along with Saul (Paul's) conversion because it would appear it was important to communicate to us that God was working in very strong ways in the lives of both Saul (Paul) and Peter.

2. God was working in Peter's life to such a strong extent that Peter could bring the lady Tabitha (Dorcas) back from the dead.

These scriptures are telling us that both Saul (Paul's) conversion; along with the subsequent preaching, as well as Peter's many great miracles were all happening during the same time period; thus the people were being exposed to the great power of God thru these two men. The relationship between God and Humans was undergoing a dramatic change and these two men are the leaders through which God is implementing these changes. Our "lesson learned" is to be prepared to respond to God as he leads rather than in a way we "think" he will lead us. We must listen, move forward in faith, and be prepared to adjust as God illuminates our thinking.

Next week we will study Chapter 10 of the Book of Acts and we will see how Peter continues to work miracles and bring people to Christ. Until then -

Have a Great Week and Enjoy Life!

Terry

November 2, 2009

Good Morning!

Glad to see the rain stop and the sun shine!

Social Stuff!

A rather wet week to say the least but at least it stopped in time for a great Halloween! Amy, Todd and their children, Audra, Ryne, and Wendy traveled from Madison, Wisconsin this past Wednesday to visit us as well as Todd's family for the Halloween weekend. We had a very good time with our Grandkids and Wendy is doing well. She smiles a lot at both her grandma and grandpa and leaves her exposed to a significant amount of "spoiling" behaviour on our part. Jane and I figure this is our job and we dare not "shrink" from this responsibility. Saturday night we went to Freeburg, Illinois so we could go out with the grandkids for "trick or treating" and it was special. A very good time was had by all.

Koinonia Sunday School Class!

Attendees: Genny Maas, Josh Schlobohm, Alan and Teresa Schlobohm, Bill Nichols, Betty Caswell, Bob Hardcastle, Jane and Terry Pursley.

Prayers were requested for:

1. The Nicewonger family who continue to grieve for the loss of their daughter, and the injury (broken back) incurred by their son.
2. David Heartsock continued recovery from his sky diving accident.
3. Amanda Vogt who continues to deal with cancer concerns after her recent surgery.

Material Studied:

Today we watch the DVD of the Book of Acts Chapter 8 which had three basic sections.

Chapter 8 verses 1 thru 3: In these verses we see the young christian believers experiencing a great wave of persecution that began at the stoning of Stephen and which is being led to a large extent by Saul (soon to be Paul). The believers are scattered over the whole areas of Judea and Samaria.

(Special Note: From a Men's Bible Study I am involved with, I learned that the people of Samaria were descendant from people who were transported into the region during the reign of Assyria and took the place of Jews who had been relocated out of the area. These new Samarian's were of various cultures and worshiped multiple Gods. If is for these reasons (foreigners and believers of multiple Gods) that Jews had little or nothing to do with these new "Samarians". This helped me better understand why the Samarians are always portrayed in the Bible as people despised by the Jews and why the people were so surprised when Jesus was found talking with the Samarian woman at the well, in another Bible passage.)

Chapter 8 verses 4 thru 25: In these verses we see where the apostle Philip was in the city of Samaria preaching the Good News of Jesus Christ and drawing large crowds. Simultaneously, there was a sorcerer named Simon who had lived in Samaria for a number of years and who could and was performing many amazing acts and thus who was known by many Samarians as "the Great One-the Power of God". Even as great as Simon was, he was also impressed by the words and message of Phillip to the point where Simon asked to be baptized along with a great number of other Samarians. When Peter and John, who were in Jerusalem, heard of the large number of people in Samaria being baptized they decided to travel to Samaria. Until the arrival of Peter and John, the scriptures tells us the people were being baptized in the name of the Lord Jesus, but after their arrival, Peter and John "laid their hands" on the people and the people received the "Holy Spirit". When Simon experienced this receipt of the "Holy Spirit" he asked if he could purchase this power of giving the "Holy Spirit" This angered Peter and he chastised Simon for saying and thinking the "Holy Spirit" could be purchased. Simon asked Peter to pray for him and the scripture narrative stops here without us knowing if Peter did or did not pray for Simon. The "lesson learned" here is the presence of the "Holy Spirit" in our lives is not something that can be bought or even earned. The "Holy Spirit" is a gift that is given by God to those who truly believe in Jesus Christ.

Chapter 8 verses 26 thru 40: In these verses we are told of a meeting between an Ethiopian eunuch and Phillip. Phillip is told by God to go meet this eunuch who is a very high ranking official of Ethiopia returning to Ethiopia from Jerusalem where the eunuch had been worshiping. While traveling the eunuch is reading from the book of Isaiah and Phillip asks the eunuch if the eunuch understands what the eunuch is reading. The eunuch replies that he cannot understand unless the meaning is explained to him. With this opening Phillip explains the Good News of Jesus Christ. After hearing this explanation the eunuch declares he wants to be baptized and since there is some water nearby they stop and Phillip does indeed baptize the eunuch. Immediately upon the completion of the baptism Phillip is taken away by God and the eunuch never saw Phillip again, but the eunuch continued his rejoicing as he continued his travel. There are probably several lessons to be learned in this story but one Lesson Learned is the Good News of Jesus Christ is provided for all people regardless of their nationality or their sexual condition. It is important that we understand it is the "content of a person's heart" that determines their acceptability to God. The eunuch accepted the Good News without reservation, and God accepted the eunuch with the Holy Spirit in the same way. We as Christians must learn that as we continue in what ever travels God sends us upon that we must be prepared to provide the Good News message to all those we encountered without reservation.

Next week in Chapter 9 we will see how God deals with Saul (Paul) and how this life is turned from a one of destruction to one of construction! In the meantime -

Have a Great Week and Enjoy Life!

Terry

October 26, 2009

Gooooood Morning!

I hope all is well with you this morning and that you will have a Great Week!

SOCIAL STUFF!

Well this past week I turned 62 years old! It doesn't feel much different than 61 but it sure feels a heck of a lot different than 22! I did sign up for Social Security on Friday and the experience went pretty smooth.

Jane took me to dinner at Red Lobster on Thursday the 22nd, which is my birthday, and we then went to see the play "Sleuth" at the Repertory Theater in Webster Groves. I enjoy going to such things as plays and concerts. I enjoyed the play very much and we had a great evening.

On Friday night, Jane and I joined a few of the senior folks by going to a fish fry at the Ballwin VFW hall and enjoyed an excellent meal and time. If you like fried fish this was a very good experience. Either the VFW or the American Legion has these fish fries every Friday night and so I am thinking Jane and I will be trying these again.

On Saturday, Jane and I went to a birthday party for one of our nieces' children and had a good time.

Yesterday, we went to the Rams football game and saw the Rams get edged out 43-6 by the Indianapolis Colts. It was a pretty close game until the coin toss, which the Rams lost, but then it went downhill from there.

Koinonia Sunday School Class

Attendees: Bill Nichols, Genny Maas, Cindie Jones, Josh Schlobohm, Jane and Terry Pursley:

Prayers were requested for:

1. Ester Smith who is experiencing some aging issues that are always tough.

2. A friend of Cyndie Jones by the name of Carol who has been diagnosed with two types of breast cancer.

3. Cory and Jessica Mack whose pregnancy seems to be going well this time while Cory is in Irag.
4. Amanda Vogt who is having to deal with another issue related to cancer.

5. The Ernie Nicewonger family whose 36 year old daughter, Karen, died this past week from cancer.

6. Jimmy and Samantha Pursley (relatives of Terry) who are two good young unmarried people with a young son and who for the first time have started attending a Church with Jimmy's parents. Good kids who just need a little spiritual guidance to help make the road of life a little easier to navigate.

Class Material:

This Sunday we studied Chapters 6 and 7 of the Book of Acts. We studied these two chapters since Chapter 6 is fairly short and the message of the two Chapters are closely united.

At the beginning of Chapter 6 we see the number of "Believers" is growing rapidly and as a result the social issues are also growing. Apparently the sharing of food was becoming complicated because of a language barrier between the Greeks and Hebrews. As a result "hard feelings" were being generated because of the language barrier. This issue was beginning to consume much of the Apostles time so they decided to develop a committee of lay persons to help with the distribution of the food. Seven faithful members where selected to lead this effort. The main point of this section would seem to be that we are witnessing the beginning in the Church of a need for the pastoral and lay members of the Church to work together to create an effective ministry. This symbiotic relationship still exists today and remains just as important.

In Chapter 6 verse 8 we begin reading the story of Stephen, who is the man who will be stoned to death. In verse 8 we find Stephen described as "a man full of God's grace and Power" and who is performing amazing miracles and signs among the people. Of course under the philosophy that "no good deed goes unpunished" two members of a group called "Synagogue of Freed Slaves" challenge Stephen's efforts and evidently they lose their debate with Stephen. Because they lose their debate with Stephen they elect to use the "tried and true" method of lying and wrongly accusing Stephen of blaspheming Moses and even God. These deceitful efforts are effective and Stephen is brought before the "high council" where Stephen was asked "Are these accusations true?"

In Chapter 7 we find Stephen's response to the "high council's" question. Stephen's response is not a simple "No" but rather Stephen spends the bulk of Chapter 7 providing an excellent verbal record of the history of the relationship between God and Israel. Stephen starts with Abraham and moves through the Jewish history up through David, and up to this point Stephen has not caused much anxiety with the high council, but then things take a nasty turn.

Stephen uses this history to accuse the high council and the people by saying:

You are heathen at heart and deaf to the truth. Must you forever resist the Holy Spirit? That's what your ancestors did, and so do you! Name one prophet your ancestors didn't persecute! They even killed the ones who predicted the coming of the Righteous One - the Messiah whom you betrayed and murdered. You deliberately disobeyed God's law, even though you received it from the hands of angels."

This condemnation by Stephen infuriated the high council members and the listening crowd to the point where they dragged Stephen out of the city and then stoned Stephen to death!

The lesson I find interesting here is the "church's" ability to "resist" the Holy Spirit. Stephen's message tells us the Holy Spirit is constantly "talking" to us and in return we have the tendency to "resist" the Holy Spirit's message. The "church" of Stephen's day as well as the "church" that existed before and after Stephen, was and is comprised of people who want to love God but only if God conforms to the "church's" visage of who God should be. Stephen doesn't accuse the "Church" of not "Hearing" the message of the "Holy Spirit" but rather he accuses them of "Resisting" the message. BIG DIFFERENCE! I suggest we each need to assess our own "faith experience" and determine if we are doing what the "Holy Spirit" tells us to do, or are we "resisting" the message by altering the message so it fits better with what we, in our opinion, believe the message should be. This is what Stephen challenge the high council members to do and their response was to continue their "resistance" by getting rid of the messenger.

Next week we will study Chapter 8 which starts out with the following sentence in reference to the stoning of Stephen - "Saul was one of the witnesses, and he agreed completely with the killing of Stephen." As you know Saul will eventually have his name changed to Paul and will become one of the great leaders of the Christian faith. Next week our study will begin to see how this transformation of Saul/Paul takes place.

Have a Great Week and Enjoy Life!

Terry

October 19, 2009

Good Morning to you all!

Well, I am back again and I hope I haven't lost to many readers due to my lack of activity on this blog site. Last weekend I was at the Lake Ozark area on a retreat with my male relatives and so I missed both Church and Sunday School class; thus I didn't do a Blog last week. I am back now and I'll try to be a little more dependable with publishing my blog on a weekly basis.

Social Stuff:

Since I last "blogged" I have

A. Joined and started attending a Men's Bible Study on Tuesday evenings.
B. Attended the family's men's retreat at Lake Ozark.
C. Watched the Rams loose two tough games.
D. Attended the St. Louis Symphony performance of Tchaikovsky's 1812 Overture.
E. Sang a solo during a Sunday church service.
F. Attended a celebration dinner for the Monsanto MS- 150 Bicycle team
H. Played golf with the Salem senior men's team.
I. Attended a Fall Festival/Wurst Mart at a Catawissa Church.
J. Bought a new lawn mower!
K. Tried to figure out how to purchase new health insure (Ugh!)
L. Watched the Baseball Cardinals "pack it in" for the season.

I won't go into any details regarding the above adventures, but I'll just simply say its been a busy and interesting two weeks.

Koinonia Sunday School Class:

I want to thank Alan and Josh Schlobohm for leading the Koinonia Sunday School last week while I was off doing the "wild thing" at Lake Ozark!

This past Sunday (10-18-09) we experience the following in the Koinonia Sunday School Class.

Attendance: Genny Mass. Bill Nichols, Denise Kelly, Allan, Teresa, and Josh Scholobohm, Jane and Terry Pursley.

Prayers were requested and raised for:

1. Safe travel for Denise Kelly and her sister Donna as they journey to visit relataives.
2. David Hartsock who is recovering from a sky diving accident.
3. Karen and David Nicewonger (Alan and Teresa's friends) who are experiencing very difficult and life threatening health issues.
4. Jane Pursley's sore throat and cold.

Thank you's were requested to be sent to:

The United Methodist District Superintendent for our new pastor Suzanne Lyons.

Material Studied: Book of Acts - Chapter 5

Chapter 5 incoproates 3 distict sections.

First: In verses 1 thru 11 we read about the death of Ananias and Sapphria because they lied to the Holy Spirit about money they earned from selling their property. They sold the property for a certain sum but lied about this amount when they turned it in as an offering to the church. Both Annias and Sapphria fell dead when Peter confronted them with this truth. This is a difficult section to lead a discussion upon becasue of the severity of the punshishment for something we all do - not telling (confessing) God the truth. I (Terry Pursley) am not qualified to explain this section but I did offer the following thoughts for consideration. Since God exists on both sides of the "barrier" we we call death, the death experience is not as big an issue for God as it is to those of us created humans on the "life side" of this "barrier". Thus for God, Annias and Sapphria simply transition, in God's reality, from life to death; whereas for us Annias and Sapphria are taken from our reality of "life" to something we cannot understand called "Death". In other words, the death separates us from Annias and Sapphria, but it does not necessarily separate them from God. Thus; the lesson in the death of Annias and Sapphria, for those of us living, is not how creul or just God is but rather how important it is for us to be truthful with God. The scriptures tell us in verse 11 that after the death of Annias and Sapphria, "Great fear gripped the entire church and everyone else who heard what had happened." Therefore; I suggest the importance of this passage is to heighten in each of us the critical importance of our being truthful with God, and raising the "possible" impact that un-truthfullness" can have, either physically or spiritually.

Second: In verses 12 thru 16 we have the chance to see how great God's power was working thru the apostles and especially Peter. People were lining up just so Peter's shadow might pass over them, because evidently many people were healed by Peter's presence and the faith of the people. It is important to note these verses clearly indicate people were linining up to receive physical healing and there is no record in these verses of anyone asking for their sins to be forgiven. I would ask each of us to reflect upon the prayer requests we raise in our Church services or Sunday School classes. Almost without exception we hear ourselves lifting prayer requests for some type of physical healing but very seldom do we hear people asking for their sins to be forgiven. I'd ask each of us to reflect on this point and perhaps see if we need to adjust our thinking or approach on this point.

Third: In verses 17 thru 42 (end of the Chapter) we see the "Church Leadership" begin to respond negatively to the preaching of the apostles and especially Peter. I use the phrase "Church Leadership" becasue I often paint these leadership people in a more positive light than other do, in large part because perhaps I am more like them than I would like to admit. In these verses the "Church Leadership" is telling the apostles to stop their preaching about Jesus. Peter responds saying he cannot becasue God has told him to preach the Good News of Jesus Christ. Peter cannot and will not stop doing what God has told him to do simply because the "Church Leadership" tells him to do so. This puts the "Church Leadership" between the proverbial "Rock and a Hard Place". What are they to do? They have tried jailing this group but the group just keeps escaping, with God's help. One "Church Leader" (Gamaliel) provides the rational that helps resolve the issue. Gamaliel says to let this group go becaues, based upon history, if this group is false they will die and their movement go away; however, if what this group is saying is true then the "Church Leaders" would find themselves opposing God if the "Church Leaders" attempt to punish the group. Gamaliel's arument "wins the day" and Peter and the apostles are set free after being "flogged", which I suppose was given "just for good measure"! The result however was Peter and the "boys" just kept preaching as they had been and the number of believers continued to grow. Next week we will see what happens next!

Conclusion:

Next week we will read and discus Chapter 6 of the Book of Acts which discuses the ministry of Stephen and begins a series of events that leads to the rise and preaching of Paul!

In the meantime -

Have a Great Week and Enjoy Life

Terry

October 5, 2009

Good Morning Everyone!

Another weekend has come and gone and I hope you had a chance to enjoy it.

Social Stuff:

This past Saturday (10-3-09) Jane and I hosted a garage sale at our home for two of our nephews who live south of Pacific, Mo. They live out in the country with thier parents and thier home location is not conducive to holding a garage sale. Jane helped them set everything up and we had a full day Saturday managing the garage sale. Didn't have that much business and our nephews wound up taking back home much of what they brought, but they seemed to enjoy the process. Both Jane and I were pretty tired at the end of the day.

Last week I played golf twice with some of the senior men from Salem Church and we had a very nice time. We have some pretty good golfers in our senior men and I can learn a lot from them. Since I am the newest member I am also the youngest member and this is nice since I find it harder and harder to find a group of men that fit this category.

I thought both of today's (10-4-09) Church services went well. I was liturgist at the first service and then a choir member during the second service. I sang a solo at both services and as usual I was nervous prior to each service but it seems I did OK and it was enjoyable. I thought the entire service went well. Bob Meinz does a tremendous job with our music and Pastor Lyons does a great job with the service. There are a lot of great people at Salem and both Jane and I are happy to be members there.

Koinonia Sunday School Class:

Today's Attendees were: Denise Kelley, Bill Nichols, Cyndie Jones, Alan Scholobohm, Teresa Scholobohm, Josh Scholobohm, Genny Maas, Jane Pursley and Terry Pursley.

Prayers were requested for:
1. Thanks for Genny's granddaughter arriving safely in Australia.
2. Andrew Jones being accepted at Mizzou for next year's fall semester.
3. Continued sever health issues for Cindies friend Chris Jenkerson.
4. Thanks for a "near-miss" of a deer not hitting Alan Scholobohm's car.
5. Teresa's good friend David Heartsock who was badly injured in a skydiving accident.
6. Denise's brother Dough who continues to experience some very difficult personal issues.

A Thank You Card was suggested for:
Helen Ralston for all her work and intgrity with the Church's finances and the card will be sent Monday.

A Thank You card will also be sent to Josh Shlobohm for his outstanding work with the video and audio systems used for the Book of Acts DVD presentation. Josh did a great job setting up the system with a larger screen and louder sound system which made the presentation much better than what was previously used.

Material Studied Today:

We viewed the Book of Acts Chapter 3 today on the DVD and then discussed it during thte class session. The primary action of Chapter 3 is Peter healing a man who had been crippled since birth and then Peter preaching to the resulting crowd about the relationships between the people and Jesus Christ. The DVD did a good job of presenting the scenes and action of healing the crippled man as well as Peter's subsequent message.

A key message occurs in verse 19 when Peter says "Now repent of your sins and turn to God, so that your sins may be wiped away." This is a timely message for not only the people listening to Peter but to us who are reading Peter's words. We often find ourselves as a "church community", as well as individuals, attempting to achieve justification from a "sin" by rationalizing that what we are doing is in fact not a sin. This strategy is contrary to what Jesus and Peter are telling us. We are told to confess the sin and seek God's forgiveness, and if we do this sincerely then God will "wipe our sins clean" through Jesus Christ. We ought not waste time trying to ratinalize our sins even though we think we or others will feel better about us if our rationalization is compelling. The fact is, a sin is a sin, is a sin, is a sin, etc. and we cannot resolve it though a rationalization process. We can resolve it however if we simply confess it to God and ask for his forgivenss. I realize this confession process for resolving sin sounds to simple and in fact it is, becasue Jesus did have to die and be resurected to allow this process to work, but die he did and thru his resurection our salvation can be accomplished, if we simply confess and ask for forgiveness.

Closing:

Next week neither Jane nor I will be present at Salem becaue I will be attending a retreat at Lake Ozark for the men in our families, and Jane will be in Wisconsin visiting our daughter Amy and grandchildren. While we are away, Alan and Josh Scholobom will be handling the Sunday School class, and Helen and Larry Ralston will be handling my donut responsibilities. I hope everyone does well and as always -

Have a Great Week and Enjoy Life!

Terry

September 28, 2009

Good Morning - I hope you have all had a good week!

I did!

Social Stuff!

This past Wednesday I played golf with some of our Salem Church senior men and we had a great day. The more I play golf the more I realize I'm just no good at it. Given this realization I simply go out and enjoy myself whenever I play and I stop worrying about when I am going to join the PGA Tour!

On Friday the 25th I joined my brother for a trip to Herin Illinois, and a two day retreat with the men from "No Greater Love". This is a group of Christian men whose main purpose is to spread the word of God to people who do not know Christ or do not want to hear about Christ. One of the major "outreach" programs of the "No Greater Lover" group is to go to New Orleans during Marti Gra and preach the Word of God in the streets during the height of the Marti Gra celebration. Its a very tough, but evidently very fulfilling mission experience. The "No Greater Love" group conducts this yearly "retreat" so they may come together and fellowship in a peaceful Christian setting. I went because my brother is an active member of the group and invited me to come along. It was a very good weekend and I enjoyed being with the group and listening to their messages.


Koinonia Sunday School Class:

Attendees: Cyndie Jones, Alan and Teresa Schlobohm, Josh Schlobohm, Bill Nichols, Ginny Maas, Bob Hardcastle, Denise Kelly, Pastor Suzanne, and Jane and Terry Pursley.

Administrative Promotion: Josh Schlobohm has been promoted to Vice President of the Koinonia Sunday School's IT department. Because of Josh's success in turning on and off the room lights during the DVD presentation it was determined he was best qualified to help improve the DVD's video and audio presentations; therefore, Josh will be looking into means of increasing the DVD sound system as well as a potentially larger video screen. Thanks to Josh for looking into this improvement possibility. (Note: While Josh's dad was skeptical about Josh taking on this added responsibility, Josh's mom was "proud as punch" to see her boy begin to move up the corporate ladder!)

Prayers were requested for:

1. All teenagers as they meet and interact with all the various influences in their lives.
2. Chris Jenkerson who continues to deal with severe cancer issues.
3. Ginny's grand daughter who is traveling in Australia for an extended time period.
4. Betty Caswell as she travels in South Africa.
5. Terry Pursley's mother, Opal Pursley, who continues to struggle with her nursing home situation.
6. Terry Pursley with just how best to support his mother while she struggles in the nursing home.
7. Bill Vallalie who continues to deal with his deteriorating lung health.
8. Praise was given by Cyndie whose mom is improving from her struggles with cancer, as well as Cyndie's step father who is sight is failing and is having to deal with driving issues.

Thank Yous

Each week the Koinonia Sunday School Class identifies people in the church who they determine should be thanked for their service to the church or individual people. Once these people are identified, and Thank You card is sent to these identified people simply to express appreciation for what and/or how these people support us.

This week's identified recipients of our Thank You cards are:

Robert and Rebecca Lyons. I was mentioned in class that our Pastor has been recognized by people outside our Church for helping people in need. The Koinonia Class recognizes this service provided by our pastor takes away from the time she has available to be with her children - Robert and Rebecca, and so the class thought it was appropriate to send a Thank You card to the children just to let them know how much we appreciate them sharing their mom with us.

Janet Carr: It was identified that Janet Carr is resigning from the Trustees have many years of service with this group and the Koinonia Class wanted to tell Janet Thank You for her many years of service.

Class Material:

Today we watched the DVD presentation of Chapter 2 of the Book of Acts. Chapter 2 records the coming of the Holy Spirit to those goatherd together during Pentecost as well as Peter beginning to preach the Good News of Jesus Christ. The DVD is well done using professional actors and follows word-for-word the "New International Version" of the scriptures.

After watching the DVD some of our class members said they better understood what it meant when the scripture says the people of different languages all spoke and could understand each other.

Another member of the class mentioned how the DVD helped them better understand how Peter was transformed from a fisherman to a person who could speak to crowds with authority about Jesus Christ. The class then broadened this understanding of Peter's growth to understanding how each of us become different, more empowered, people after we accept Christ into our lives. Almost all of us could related to being different after we accepted Christ. It was also pointed out however that even more important than Peter having gained the ability to speak with authority to crowds of people, that he in fact did speak with authority to crowds of people. The point being that the Church did not grow only because the early Christians received the Holy Spirit, but the Church grew because these changed people did things with the Holy Spirit to help the Church grow. Therefore; while it is impressive and important that we receive Christ into our lives, this event has limited value if we do not go forth and share it with others in a meaningful way as led by the Holy Spirit. It is with this knowledge of the importance of "sharing the Good News about Christ" that we will continue to study the Book of Acts and see how the main characters actually went forth and LIVED THE LIFE in the early days of the Church.

Next week we will view Chapter 3 of the Book of Acts and see more of Peter's preaching and healing ministry.

That is it for today's Blog and I hope you enjoy it. I again encourage feedback regarding this Blog so I may improvement it. It is difficult to improve if people do not give me feedback so please feel free to let me know how I can improve.

Thanks and as always -

Have a Great Week and Enjoy Life!

Terry Pursley

September 21, 2009

Good Morning to Everyone!

I hope you had a wonderful week this past week.

This past Saturday Jane and I helped with her family's celebration of her dad's 80th birthday and it was a very good time. Jane's dad is in excellent health and we believe we had nearly 90 people came to the party who came and joined in with the celebration. Great Time!

Another milestone for me this past week was I joined "facebook". Not sure why I joined but I joined nonetheless and I am now learning how to use this social networking tool.

Koinonia Sunday School Class:

This week we had 8 people attend our class - Cindy Jones, Bill Nichols, Alan and Theresa Schlobohm, Josh Schlobohm, Ginny Maas, Betty Caswell, and Terry Pursley.

This past Sunday we began the study of the Book of Acts and this time we are using a DVD to help with the study. Cindy Jones had suggested a DVD that narrates the book of Acts on a word per word basis while professional actors play out the various scenes. It is a very well done DVD and your class members seemed to enjoy the DVD very much. We listened to the First Chapter of ACTS and then spent the remaining portion of the class discussing the Chapter. We invite anyone to join our class and participate in the study on Acts. This week we viewed and then discussed the Chapter 1 of the Acts and we reflected upon how the viewing of the DVD helped in our visualization of what it may have been like during these first days of the Christian Church. It was also interested to see how Judas' replacement as an apostle was selected and we wondered if Mathis was happy or not to have been chosen to join the "team". We also reflected on how Judas died and wondered about his relationship with God after having given up Jesus to the Romans. Per Acts it is clear that Judas died a very horrible death but we were not so sure about Judas' spirit. We speculated it may very well have been the case that God used Judas to accomplish the betrayal and eventual death of Jesus and that Judas had little or no choice in the matter. In this case it could well be that God welcomed Judas back into God's presence once Judas paid his own death price. Of course the scriptures are silent on this point and thus our class could not come to any scripturally based resolution on this issue.

At the beginning of our class the following prayers were requested for the noted people.

- Betty Caswell as she will be starting her 3 week trip to South Africa this week.
- Bill Vallelie who continues to deal with his lung health issues
- Michelle & Eric Clabaugh (Daughter and Son-in-law of Bill and Dianne Vallelie) with the birth of their twin girls.
- Chris Jenkers with post-cancer treatment issues.
- Corey Mack and his wife Jessica who is stationed in Irag and whose wife back in the states is expecting a baby.
- Niswonger family who are experiencing some very difficult times related to health issues. The daughter Karen has very serious cancer issues and the son David has experienced multiple problems with aneurysm's.

This completes my blog for this week and I again extent invitations to all to provide comments as to how I can improve this site. My goal is to help stay in touch with people who are unable to attend our class and I hope you find it helpful. It remains vitally important however for people to join our class and participate in the discussion for it is by our participation together that we truly reap the benefits of the unique gifts and experiences that God gives to each and everyone of us.

Until next Monday, I wish all of you good fortune and as always -

Have a Great Day and Enjoy Life!

Terry

September 19, 2009

Good Morning and I'm back!

I have spend the time since my last posting just being out and recharging the "old batteries". I has been a great summer and I am looking foward to the Autumn Season. The Koinonia Sunday School Class will begin studying the book of Acts, using a DVD to aument the class, on September 20, 2009 and I will be posting my weekly message once again on Monday's. Eveyone is invited to look in and see what we are doing.

I hope you have all had a good summer and I look foward to restarting by blog once again, and as always -

Have a Great Day and Enjoy Life!

Terry

July 20, 2009

Good Morning!

I am actually writing this blog on Tuesday (July 21, 2009) because I was experiencing computer problems yesterday when I first attempted to up-date my blog. I'm not sure what the problem was and/or is but I'll give it another "go" this morning.

Social Stuff:

Wendy Jane Koerber had her shunt surgically installed last week and is home doing well. She seems to have gotten by most of here surgical issues and should be able to live a reasonably normal life for the time being.

Jane and I went to the Cardinal baseball game this past Sunday with some long time friends of ours. We saw the Cardinals win 2-1 over the Diamondbacks and it was a great weather day.

I continued my bike ride training this past week with riding 40 miles at 66 Park on Thursday and then 18 miles at Babler State Park on Saturday. While the 66 park ride is a flat course the Babler State Park is a very hilly course. I need this hill training to help prepare me for September's MS Bike Ride in September but it sure is hard to accomplish. I was riding the Bable Ride with the "Monsanto Mavericks" which is a bike team I have joined for the singular purpose of the MS Bike Ride. They are a nice group and it was very helpful to ride with them.

Koinonia Sunday School Class:

Attendees: Denise Kelly, Cindy Jones, Bill Nichols, Genny Maas, Betty Caswell, and Terry Pursley.

Prayers were requested for:

1. Betty Caswell's brother who is now home.
2. Bill Nichols relative - Drew Geison - who continues to struggle with cancer issues all thought recent improvements are encouraging.
3. Denise Kelly's co-worker Rosilyn is experience multiple health issues.
4, Denise's son, John, is going through a tough court custody battle.

Material Studied: "I Peter Chapter 3 Verses 1 thru 22

In Verses 1 thru 7 Peter advises wives to accept the authority of their husbands and for husbands to give honor to their wives. Obviously conflicts between husbands and wives existed at Peter's time to much the same extent as they do today; otherwise, the relationships would not have warranted a comment from Peter. Peter does not discuss consequences for either the husbands or wives who violate their covenants with one another. Peter simply reinforces that married people are to respect and honor each other.

In Verses 8 thru 12 Peter encourages us Christians to sympathize and love one another as brothers and sisters. We ought not pass by this point with little notice. We must understand that sympathy and love are two aspects of the Christian Faith that are fundamental aspects of our lives. These aspects did not occur by accident. They are fundamental principles of God that have been passed on to us when God breathed his Spirit into us Genesis Chapter 2. Peter's reinforcement is provided to counter that deceptive actions of Satin to put our selfish interests above others.

In Verses 13 thru 22 Peter acknowledges the sympathetic and love principles of Christianity will many times cause us to suffer, but Peter encourages us to remember that Christ suffered for us so we will be rewarded for our faith and persistence. We must therefore stay committed to unselfish behavior with each other out of our Love for God and each other.

Neither Jane nor I will be in church or Sunday school this next Sunday. Bill Nichols will be providing the refreshments after the first service and the Koinonia members will shepard the class in our absence. Jane and I will be at Montawk State Park with members of my side of the family for some fishing, good times and "tales of daring do"! We will see each of you in two weeks and in the meantime

Have a Great Day and Enjoy Life!



Terry Pursley

July 13, 2009

Good Morning!

Social Stuff!

Its Tuesday Morning the 14Th so I'm a day late with this week's post but Jane and I had a busy day yesterday and I stayed up to late watching the All Star Home Run Derby on TV last night.

I also missed Sunday School Class this last Sunday because I was riding my bicycle on a training ride in Collinsville, Illinois. I belong to the Trailnet club and they hoist various bicycle rides about 2 or 3 times per month. Unfortunately their club sponsored rides are primarily scheduled for Sunday morning because of the light traffic on the back rodes upon which the rides are conducted. This last Sunday's ride was one that included some hilly sections and I needed this training experience in my preparation for the MS Bike Ride this coming September. I rode 35 miles on this particular training session and it was a good ride for me. I averaged a little less than 13 miles per hour which is slow but for me it was a great training experience. I was able to get into a consistent rhythm and finished strong. This ride gave me confidence that I should be able to complete the 40 mile per day MS Bike Ride in September.

Our Granddaughter, Wendy Jane Koerber, did undergo her surgery yesterday (7-13-09) and appears to be doing well. The surgery was to install a shunt in her head which will allow moisture in the brain cavity to drain into the body cavity. This draining function is a normal one for most of us but in a very few cases, such as Wendy's, this draining function is impeded and thus moisture can build in the brain cavity. Amy reported that after Wendy's surgery the slight swelling in Wendy's head was visibly reduced and thus the shunt was working. The surgeon was optimistic that this is likely a once in a lifetime surgery but it is also a very simply procedure if the shunt needs to be replaced. So while we were hoping the shunt would not be needed at all the fact that it has been accomplished and is working well is very comforting. God does work his miracles thru the hands of his kids!

Jane and I did go downtown to the All Star Festivities just to experience the event. We don't have any tickets to the Derby or the Game but it was fun to walk around and experience the event. We ate at Mike Shannon's restaurant on his patio and enjoyed the outdoor ambiance. We did have a funny experience while eating. While sitting there we noted a fairly large group eating next to us and we noted one of the people had a "Ryan Franklin" look-a-like beard. We both commented to ourselves about how we didn't like the look of the beard. We soon realized however that it was NOT a "look-a-like" beard but it was in fact Ryan Franklin and his family. It was a nice looking group with Ryan, his wife, kids, brothers, parents and others. Jane and I both laughed at ourselves for our beard assessment process.

Downtown did look great and we did enjoy the new "City Garden". Its a great place or kids and we would encourage anyone to go down and enjoy the experience.

Koinonia Sunday School Class:

As I mentioned earlier, I did not attend this past Sunday's class and Jane was gracious enough to take over for me.

Members Present: Alan and Teresa Schlobohm, Cindy Jones, Genny Maas, and Jane Pursley.

Prayer Requests: Prayers were requested for

1. Steve Gregory - Heart ailment recovery.
2. Wendy Jane Koerber
3. Pastor Suzanne Lyons
4. Cindy's family - Dad, his wife, brothers.
5. Terry Schmieder - A friend of Alan and Teresa's whose wife has died.
6. Diana Childer's family whose son (19 years old) died in a motorcycle accident.
7. Joshe Scholobohm's friend - Amanda.
8. Meridith Jones in her transistion from college to work.
9. A joy for Genny's safe trip to and from South Dakata.

Material Studied: I Peter Chapter 2 vs 13 thru 25.

In verses 13 thru 17 Peter encourages us to respect people in authority. It is important to understand while reading these verses to understand there is a difference between the term respect and agreement. Peter is telling his contemporaries and us that it is important to respect the people in authority, or more specifically the civil government, because this is the system(s)God has established to provide an orderly society. Peter is not saying that any government system established by "humans" is perfect and thus Peter is not saying we should worship or agree with the practices of a government but rather we as Christians must participate actively in our governmental systems, while respecting the protocols established therein.

In verses 18 thru 25 Peter speaks to slaves and suggests slaves should accept the authority of their masters. Again, and similar to Peter's discussion of respecting governments, Peter is suggesting slaves need to respect their masters. This is not to say Peter was condoning a "slave society" but Peter is addressing how people should exist within am established "slave society". The focus is on respecting those people in positions of responsibility rather than focusing on the systems that exists.

I personally suggest to all reading this narrative that slavery was eventually eliminated from almost all contemporary societies because people, working within the systems, eventually determined slavery was wrong and abolished it. Even in the United States, our Civil War was fought primarily for economic reasons since slavery had been gradually falling in to disfavor since the time we declared our Independence. I suggest the Civil War was fought in large part more out of a last ditch effort to save an economic system rather than moral issues.

In summary, Peter suggests we as Christians need to respect the political and economic systems we find ourselves and work to address those issues which we find objectionable.

This completes my report of this week and as always

Have a Great Day and Enjoy Life!

Terry Pursley

July 6, 2009

Good Morning!

I hope you had a great Fourth of July weekend and let us all remember how great it is to live in the United States and enjoy all the freedoms we have.

Social Stuff:

Last Tuesday (6-30-09) our (Jane and Terry's) granddaughter Wendy Jane Koerber went home! She is doing well and enjoying life!

On Thursday (7-2-09) Jane and I took our other two grandchildren to the Magic House in Kirkwood along with two of our nephews. The kids had a great time and Jane and I got a good workout! Watching the four kids was a little like watching 4 new born chicks in a flock of bout 50 similar chicks. Jane and I used a series of hand signals and panicked looks to keep track of and communicate the whereabouts of the kids. It was a great time and the Magic House is a great place for the kids.

On Friday, we took our grandkids to the swimming pool and then took them to their parents in Freeburg, Illinois. The kids were glad to be home with their new sister and it was nice to see the whole family back together.

On Saturday, we went to Jane's sister's home in Webster Groves to eat and watch fireworks . It turned out to be a very nice evening and we enjoyed the entire evening. The Koerber family joined us so Wendy Jane attended her first 4Th of July celebration. I am not to sure how much of it she will remember but she was there none the less!

Koinonia Sunday School Class:

Attendees: Bill Nichols, Cindy Jones, Jane and Terry Pursley

Prayer Requests: Prayers were requested for:

1. The Koerber family including young Wendy Jane.
2. Cindy Jones' mother Esther who is recovering well from surgery to her hand.
3. Mark Nichol's (Bill's nephew) continued physical issues.
4. Bill Nichol's neighbor, Kattie, who is 88 years old and beginning to show signs of aging.
6. Suzanne Lyons as she begins her pastoral work for Salem.
7. Julie Callaghan as she begins her next phase in life.

Material Studied:

Again we were running short of time between the two services so we didn't cover much material. We did read and discuss I Peter Chapter 1 vs 7 thru 10.

In verse 7 and 8 we read the poem that identified Christ as "The stone that the builder's rejected" and "He is the stone that makes people stumble." We developed the analogy with the "Law" that also "trips" us when we fail to comply with its demands. Similarly we call ourselves "Christians" which to many means to follow and live like Christ but none of us can meet this demanding requirement. We all fall short of the "Law" and we stumble " in our attempts to be "Christ-like". However; Verse 9 tells us we are "a chosen people. You are royal priests, a holy nation, God's very own possession."

Another word for our unmerited selection by God is - Grace! Because of this selection by God Verse 9 concludes by saying - "As a result, you can show others the goodness of God, for he called you out of the darkness into his wonderful light." In other words, we will all stumble and fall short of our goal, but God thru his Grace saves us and therefore we can humbly live our lives as examples to others so they may also come to realize the power and love of God.

This completed our class for this week. Next week we will begin at Chapter 2 vs 11 and go as far as God determines is best. As of this writing I am intending to ride in a practice bike ride next Sunday and thus I may not be able to lead the class. I will make sure someone is able to lead the class if I am not there.

Have a Great Day and Enjoy Life!

Terry

June 29, 2009

Good Monday Morning!

Its a great weather day today, especially after all the heat of last week!

Social Stuff:

Jane and I became grandparents for the third time this past week! Ms. Wendy Jane Koerber was born on June 23, 2009 at 8 lbs and 5 oz and 21" long. She had a few complications with Spina Bifada but otherwise she was a healthy and beautiful little girl. As a result Jane and I spent a lot of time this past week helping the parents - Amy and Todd - with the new baby and the current siblings - Audra and Ryne. Wendy even gave me an excuse to cancel a golf game which was welcomed due to the heat that we experienced. Jane and I are watching Audra and Ryne in our home this week even though it is possible Wendy will be released to go home the middle of this week.

I was privileged to represent Salem Church by thanking Julie Callaghan for her five years of service and presenting her with a cash gift given from the congregation. I thought Julie's last service went well and I. along with the rest of the congregation, wish she and her family good fortune in all her future endeavors.

It is worth noting here that with respect to my MS Bike Ride scheduled for September 12 and 13, 2009, the various church members and organizations have contributed $515 towards MS which will be donated in Julie's name. I think this is great stuff and I thank everyone for helping.

As you know, this coming Saturday is the Fourth of July when we celebrate the birth of our Nation. I would encourage everyone to find a way to celebrate this event. I know Jane and I will be spending the evening at Jane's sister's home in Webster enjoying a great outdoor barbecue and the fireworks display that Webster Groves puts on. I would encourage everyone to get out and do something similar. I know some people who like to just stay home and not get caught up in all the crowds, but I look at it a little differently. I see it as a time to get out and be with other Americans as we celebrate this "Freedom" that we live in. I recommend getting out and enjoying the whole atmosphere and maybe shaking another American's hand and saying "God Bless America". I think you will find it very therapeutic.

Koinonia Sunday School Class:

Members Present: Bill Nichols, Genny Maas, Denise Kelly, Jane and Terry Pursley.

Prayers requested for:

1. Wendy Jane Koerber and her parents Todd and Amy.
2. Bill Vallely
3. John Kelly - Son of Denise Kelly
4. Mark Nichols - Nephew of Bill Nichols.
5. Linda Buermann

We didn't have much time to spend in Sunday School Class this past Sunday because the first service ran a little long and the choir needed a little extra practice time before the second service as a result of Sunday being Julie's last Sunday as our pastor. Thus I am afraid we didn't cover much material, but here is what we did discuss.

We read I Peter Chapter 2 vs 4 thru 6. We read in verse 5 these words (New Living Translation version) - "And you are living stones that God is building into his spiritual temple. What's more you are his holy priests. Through the mediation of Jesus Christ, you offer spiritual sacrifices that please God."

We understood the term "living stones" to mean that God is using us as active members of his church on earth. This term active members is reinforced in the next sentence where we are called "holy priests". We determined that "priests" do not just sit in Church and worship but rather they are actively involved in the life of the Church. They DO things for the Church and more importantly for people! Therefore Peter is telling us that as "living Stones" of God's Church ("Spiritual Temple") we are to be actively involved in the life of the Church, WHEREVER WE FIND OURSELVES! Each of us has special gifts and are placed by God in our unique positions. We are to use these gifts in whatever situation God has placed us. We don't whine about not hiving other gifts and we don't complain about the location God has placed us. Rather we take the gift(s) we have and use them in the situation we find ourselves.

This completed our discussion this week and hopefully we will move further along next week but as always we will let God determine what and how much he wants us to cover.

Have a Great Week and Enjoy Life!



Terry