OHNAZ News

Archives

Recent Posts

Categories

  • May11Tue

    To Grow Wise, Examine Your Life

    May 11, 2021
    Filed Under:
    From the Pastor
    “Examine yourselves to see if your faith is genuine. Test yourselves. Surely you know that Jesus Christ is among you; if not, you have failed the test of genuine faith.” 2 Corinthians 13:5 (NLT)

    An unexamined experience is worthless.

    There are people who are 50 years old who haven’t truly lived 50 years. Instead, they’ve lived one year 50 times. They make the same mistakes over and over again because they never stop and extract the lessons. They never ask, “What happened in this last year? What can I do differently so that I can live life better going forward?”

    The Bible says you should take time to review your life: “Examine yourselves to see if your faith is genuine. Test yourselves. Surely you know that Jesus Christ is among you; if not, you have failed the test of genuine faith” (2 Corinthians 13:5 NLT).

    When you examine your life experiences, look for two things:

    Look for benefits. What have you really enjoyed in your life? Don’t just say, “I really enjoyed that job.” Ask, “What was it about that job that I really loved?” Don’t just say, “I really liked that class.” Ask, “What exactly about that class did I like? Why was it so fulfilling to me?” You’ll get little clues about where you should be headed with your life.

    Look for patterns. Particularly, look for patterns in your failure. When you fail, you tend to do it the same way every time. So, look and ask, “Where have I failed in the past? What patterns do I keep repeating?” Don’t look for patterns so you can beat yourself up but because you want to be different.

    If you ignore the mistakes of your past, you’re likely to repeat them. This was the problem with the Israelites when Moses led them out of Egypt. Their trip to the Promised Land should have taken only a few weeks, but instead it took 40 years because they refused to learn from their experiences and from the tests God put before them. Each failed test meant one more lap around the desert.

    The Bible says in Job 32:7, “The longer you live, the wiser you become” (The Message).

    That verse is a possibility, not a promise. There are people who are old and foolish. Wisdom does not automatically come with age.

    But wisdom is possible for anyone. No matter your age, maturity comes as you let God teach you through the everyday experiences of life.

    Talk It Over
    • We have lived through an extraordinary year. What are some specific experiences from the past year that you have learned from? How have you seen God work through your circumstances?
    • How has failure helped you mature spiritually, emotionally, and mentally?
    • What would you consider as evidence of maturity and wisdom in your life?



    ANNOUNCEMENTS

    MEMORIAL ROLL SERVICE will be this Sunday, May 16 during the 10:00 am worship service.

    MISSION RALLY: There will be a Zone Mission Rally on Sunday, June 13 at 6:00pm. Rob and Cindy North, Directors of University Advancement at Africa Nazarene University, will be our special speakers.

    VACATION BIBLE SCHOOL! Vacation Bible School will be June 27 through June 30. Our friends from Penny Road Church of the Nazarene in North Carolina will be here to help us with VBS and several service projects around the building.


    CRISIS CARE KITS are needed for churches to distribute to people after storms and disasters. Directions on how you can help are here.

    DEBBIE WOODARD’S SUNDAY SCHOOL CLASS will begin meeting this Sunday, May 16 in person in the room beside the new office (will also still be on Zoom).

    WORKERS ARE NEEDED. Please let us know if you can help in the following areas...

    • the Children's Department.
    • to serve as ushers and greeters.


    CHURCH CENTER:     You are invited to join us on the Church Center app! Church Center is a place to connect with small groups and church events, send messages to your group, update your profile, and more! Download from the App Store and connect today. If you have trouble with setting up or updating your profile to keep your contact information up to date, see Jenn Houchin or Terri Ray.

    LIFE LINE SCREENING, the nation’s leading provider of preventive health screenings, will offer affordable, non-invasive and painless health screenings at Old Hickory Church of the Nazarene on Monday, June 21, 2021. More details including how to register is here.

    MEMBERSHIP CLASS: Connect with Pastor Mike if you would be interested in joining a membership class.

    FOOD PANTRY: The pantry is open on Wednesday from 5:00-7:00pm and Thursday from 10:00am-12:00pm and volunteers and donations are needed.

    COFFEE SHOP: Uncommon Grounds is open every Monday-Saturday from 7:00am-2:00pm. Invite a friend and use this great outreach to introduce the church to your friends.

    CHAIR YOGA: Exercise classes with Anita are held on Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays from 8:30-9:30am in the gym. Masks will be required & we will continue to social distance & sanitize our chairs. If you are interested in starting an exercise regime this year, please join us. We follow the silver sneakers protocol using a chair, including yoga, strength & balance, and we even do some "dancing to the oldies." Come join us... it's free & open to anyone.

    CAMP AT THE CREEK ‘21: High School is June 7-11; Middle School is June 14-18. See Brice for registration and scholarship information!

    CLASSES & STUDIES

    SUNDAYS
    Debbie Woodard leads the Young Adult class in person and via ZOOM for anyone who would like to join. They meet Sunday mornings at 9am in the classroom beside the new office.
    Meeting ID: 868 1977 8952
    Password: Bible101

    Kenneth Ray & Gracie Smith lead the Friendship Class in person and via ZOOM for anyone who would like to join. They meet Sunday mornings at 9am.
    Meeting ID: 846 6822 8046
    Password: Bible101

    Brice Rupert leads the Teens class in person at 9:00am in the Teen Room.

    SUNDAY MORNING WORSHIP begins at 10:00am in the sanctuary. The services will continue to be live streamed on Facebook and our website home page for those unable to be with us in the church building.

    To keep your safety a high priority, the Church Board has asked that we go back to our prior guidelines for seating in the sanctuary. If you are wearing a mask you are welcome to sit anywhere on the main floor. If you would prefer to not wear a mask, we ask that you please sit in the balcony. Thanks for your help as we do our best to keep everyone healthy.

    OH|KIDS CHURCH for K-5th grade meets during the worship hour at 10:00am with Pastor Maddie! They have moved to a new classroom, so Pastor Maddie will be waiting in the main lobby before service to take kids downstairs.


    TUESDAYS
    Coffee & Community Bible Study every other Tuesday at 9:30am in the Coffee Shop. Next meeting is on May 25.


    WEDNESDAYS
    Wednesday Night Bible Study with Debbie Woodard is on Facebook Live (from Debbie's page) at 6:30pm.


    THURSDAYS
    Richard leads prayer and devotional on Thursdays at 7:00 PM via ZOOM for anyone who would like to join.
    Meeting ID: 894 2501 3143
    Password: Prayer605



    « Loving God with Your Heart View All How to Make the Most of Your Abilities »

Old Hickory Facebook