Newspaper Page Text
October 8, 2008
Reporter
PAGE 11A
Pastor’s Column
The truth as far as I can tell
O ne of my favorite Bible verses
is Revelation 3:20, “Look!
Here I stand at the door and
knock. If you hear me calling
and open the door, I will come
in, and we will share a meal as friends.”
This verse helped me make the decision to
receive Christ as my Lord and Savior. I
imagined Jesus Christ standing at the
door of my heart, knocking. I wanted Je
sus to come in and be Lord of my life and
to help clean me up from the inside out.
So I knelt and prayed something like this:
“Lord, thank you for taking the punish
ment for my sins. I know that I could nev
er be fit for heaven without you. So, I in
vite you into my life to be my Lord and
Savior.”
Many people in our generation
“invite” Jesus to come into their
heart and be Lord; but when the
time comes to actually let him be
Lord and follow his leadership, they
are reluctant to let Jesus be in
charge. Here’s a story I call “the
Parable of the Broken Invitation...”
To what shall I compare the people
of this generation? They are like a
man who invited a friend to come
over and have dinner. As the time
for dinner began to draw near, he
noticed that his home was a mess.
His messy home had never bothered
him before—he was quite comfort
able with his sloppy lifestyle.
However, the thought of his friend
finding out he was slob was unbear
able. At first, he tried to pick up the
place, but there was junk cluttered
everywhere and he was soon over
whelmed. “Why in the world did I
Chris and
invite my friend over?” he
thought. “Now he’s gonna
come here and see what a
mess I truly am. I’ll
never get this mess
cleaned up in time.”
As he cleaned frantical
ly, shoving stuff into clos
ets and under beds, he
also began to think,
“When my friend gets
here, I’ll have to entertain
him. It would be impolite
to expect him to do what
ever I want to do. I
should ask him what he
wants to do. What if he
wants to do something I
don’t care for? Oh, why in
the world did I invite him to my
home? I could have just kept our
friendship at a safe distance by see
ing him out in public every once and
a while where I could protect my
image a little.”
The more the man thought, the
more irrational his concerns became
until he was actually getting angry
at his friend. “I sure am going to a
lot of trouble for his sake! I can’t
believe he’s causing me so much
trouble.” Finally, it was too much
and he gave up. He walked back to
his bedroom and slammed the door
shut—angry at himself for inviting
his friend and angry at his friend for
causing so much trouble.
When the time came, the man’s
friend arrived and began knocking
on the door, but no one answered.
He knocked and knocked, but no one
came. He stood outside knocking
NOTICE OF PROPERTY
TAX INCREASE
The City of Forsyth has tentatively adopted a
millage rate which will require an increase in property
taxes by .497 percent (the percentage increase over the
roll-back rate).
All concerned citizens are invited to the public
healings on this tax increase to be held at City Hall
Council Chambers in Forsyth, Georgia, on October 7,
2008 at 7:00 PM, and on October 14, 2008 at 4:00
PM, and on October 21, 2008 at 6:30 PM.
This 16th day of September, 2008
Mayor and Council of the City of Forsyth
Kelly Mullis of Mt. Zion UMC.
and wondering why his friend would
n’t open the door and let him in. “He
invited me for dinner, didn’t he?”
Silly story, huh. Unfortunately,
many people act this way. They
invite Jesus, but they don’t really let
him in. Inviting Christ to come into
your heart is good, but you also have
to let him actually come in. That
means letting him see the mess
you’ve made of things, allowing him
to instruct you on how to clean it up,
and rolling up your sleeves and
doing the spiritual work he asks you
to do. Of course, I’m no expert and
certainly don’t claim to know every
thing, but that’s the Truth as far as I
can tell...
Rev. Chris Mullis is the president of
the Monroe County Ministerial
Association and the pastor of Mt
Zion United Methodist Church locat
ed at 40 Rumble Rd in Smarr.
Caldwell Veterinary Hospital, LLC
951 Hwy 41 South • Forsyth • 478-994-8228
S
V
. A
New Harvest is ‘raising the roof’
New Harvest Church of
God is raising money to
put a new roof on the
church and parsonage.
New Harvest is selling
Color Craft portrait
coupons through Nov. 1.
Each coupon is $10 and
includes a 10 x 13 portrait.
The church is also selling
Little Piggy BBQ plates.
The cost of the plates are
$7. Tickets will be sold
through Oct. 24. The
plates will be available for
pick up on Nov. 1.
New Harvest is also
holding a “Kiss the Pig”
contest. The contestants
for this event include the
pastor Mark Moore and his
wife, Melissa Moore, youth
directors Danny and Tomi
Adams and Christian
Education Board Director,
Tina McMurray. The
blessed person to “Kiss the
Pig” depends on your dona
tions and your votes at
www.NewHarvestChurchof
God.com. All donations
are tax deductible.
For more information on
these fund raisers and
church activities or to pur
chase tickets and coupons
or make donations, call
Tina McMurray at 478-
957-7299 or visit
www.NewHarvestChurchof
God.com.
Now Accepting New Patients.
Please call for an appointment or stop by.
■ Routine and emergency house calls are available day or night.
' Preventative medicine, including vaccinations and flea, tick
and heartworm medications.
' Comprehensive medical management, including diseases such
as diabetes and heart disease.
' Surgery
' House calls always available.
Also Boarding and Grooming
www.caldwellvet.com
478-994-8228 • butlercaldwell@bellsouth.net
Fall brings festivals
Oct. 11
New Beginning CH
Church fall festival
New Beginning CH
Church is having a fall fes
tival from 8 a.m. to 2 p.m.
Saturday, Oct. 11. Come
shop in the Christmas
Shop for gifts, arrange
ments and homebaked
goodies. There will also be
yard sale items and a food
shop featuring breakfast
and lunch items. Everyone
is invited to join the fun
and festivities.
Nov. 1
New Harvest
Church of God
to host first festival
New Harvest Church of
God will be hosting its
first annual “New Harvest
Fest” at 10 a.m. Saturday,
Nov. 1 with a day full of
gospel singing featuring
Heaven’s Treasures, New
Again, Damascus Road,
New Beginnings
Pentecostal Church and
New Harvest Church of
God Singers, among other
talent. The church will also
be having arts and crafts,
bake sale, games and a
whole lot more. Bring the
whole family and come for
a day of worship and fun.
PREGNANT?
1 We care about you! 1
free pregnancy test
counseling & referrals
pregnancy, STD,&
abortion information
parenting classes
maternity clothes
& baby needs
All services are free and confidential
THE PREGNANCY CENTER
not a medical clinic
478-994-3173
Mon, Tues, & Thurs 10 - 4:30
www.pregnancycentermonroecounty.org
Please bring your lawn
chairs. All proceeds for
this event will go toward
the roof on the church and
parsonage. For more infor
mation please call Sis.
Tina McMurray at 478-
957-7299 or visit us at
www.NewHarvestChurchof
God.com.
High Falls Baptist
Hallelujah Festival
First Baptist Church of
High Falls will be presnet-
ing Hallelujah Festival
2008 from 3-7 p.m.
singing, arts and crafts,
homemade goodies and a
yard sale. There is no
charge, but donation boxes
will be set up for the food
pantry ministry to help
meet the needs of the com
munity. Bring non-perish
able items to donate.
X
BARBARA STARR
BASWELL
TAX COMMISSIONER
McCAIN
rPAL IN
s,G NS ARE IN!
Monroe County GOP Campaign HQ Open!
199 E Main St
PigglyWig
Monday, Tuesday and Thursday 5-8 pm.
Refreshments served.
Questions? Call 478-994-4206.
I respectfully ash for your voir and
support in the 200H Campaign for
Monroe County Tax C.omnnssioner.
- 1 JG/.! tV r //
Your Best Choice For Tax Commissioner
For More Information Please Visit
www.barbarabaswell.com
• More than 30 Years of public
accounting and management
experience.
• Appointed County Clerk in 2005.
» Current Chief Finance Officer of
Monroe County.
» Certified as Governmental County Clerk Your Vote and Support Will Be
& Finance officer. Greatly Appreciated
• Life long resident of Monroe County ^. ■ -
devoted wife, mother and |\ O VC 111 D C T 4 til
community servant.
Vote Early/Absentee at the Monroe County Registrar's office
550 N. Lee Street, Forsyth
-Avoid long lines at the polls-
-Be Sure to Have Picture ID-