Newspaper Page Text
November 21, 2012
PAGE 7B
Pastor’s Corner
Reporter
Will you give thanks for hard things too?
BY FR. THEOPHAN BUCK
t is a custom in many households to
pause just before the Thanksgiving
meal and to have each person
around the table recount
specific things that he is
thankful for in the past year.
Most of us would have long lists:
family around the table, a roof
over our heads, food on the table,
our overall needs being met; there
are so many reasons for us to give
thanks.
On the other hand, it would be
downright shocking to hear
thanks offered for newly diag
nosed cancer, for the recent loss
of their job, or for other major
family calamities. These are
things that in general people are
not thankful for.
However, as Christians, Biblically
speaking, we are called to be thankful for
everything: the good, the bad, our bless
ings and curses. The New Testament is
full of passages that imply that we should
be thankful for all things. In Matthew 5,
our Lord tells us that we are “blessed”
when we are reviled, persecuted, and
unjustly slandered for His name sake. I
don’t know about you, but I am not a
happy camper when reviled, persecuted
or unjustly slandered. Yet, instead of
defending ourselves, complaining, or
despairing, our Lord tells us that we
should “rejoice and be exceedingly
glad” because our reward will be
great in Heaven.
The Apostle Paul has a lot to
say about being thankful for our
tribulations. In 1 Thessalonians
5:16 the St. Paul tells us to
“rejoice always, pray without
ceasing, in everything give
thanks; for this is the will of God
in Christ Jesus for you.” He
speaks this way again in
Ephesians 5:20 when he tells us
to “give thanks always for all
things to God the Father in the
name of our Lord Jesus Christ.”
Paul writes from prison: “Be
anxious for nothing, but in everything by
prayer and supplication, with thanksgiv
ing, let your requests be made known to
God”(Philippians 4:6).
From these passages and many more
one would get the impression that the
proper response to all that is given to us,
whether we consider it positive or nega
tive, is to give thanks to God. Being
thankful in all things is “the Christian
thing to do.” However, for most of us this
is a fanciful religious platitude at best.
Why is it that we can only thank God
for what we perceive as good and not for
those things which cause us suffering?
One reason is that our perspective is fall
en and worldly; it is pragmatically based
on the idea that real life is about pleas
ure and the avoidance of pain. Pain and
suffering are often viewed as meaning
less, alien parts of life which are to be
avoided at any cost.
Another reason for our lack of thankful
ness in hard times is that much of our
suffering is caused because we have our
own plans, desires and goals. Often times
we take for granted the short life we have
been given until we are rudely awakened
by suffering, which lets us know that our
plans do not dictate the movement of the
cosmos around us.
The view of pain and suffering in the
New Testament is very different than the
fallen worldly perspective. Our Lord’s
example clearly teaches us that true life
is not simply about pursuing pleasure
and avoiding pain. The Lord that
Christians follow was the man of many
sorrows who was persecuted and then
murdered in a most painful way; “who,
when He was reviled, did not revile in
return; when He suffered, He did not
threaten, but committed Himself to Him
who judges righteously”(1 Peter 2:23).
Like our Lord, those of us who are
Christians are asked to empty ourselves
of our plans and desires and to put our
selves completely in God’s hands with the
promise that “all things work together for
good to those who love God” (Romans
8:28).
Everything we receive comes from God,
no matter what the secondary source may
be. All that is given by God is useful for
our growth and salvation. The famous
Orthodox theologian Alexander
Schmemann wrote, “A Christian is the
one who, wherever he looks, finds Christ
and rejoices in Him.” May God give us
eyes to see and ears to hear so that we
can find Christ in all things, even in our
suffering, so that we can appropriately
give thanks for all things in Christ Jesus
our Lord.
The Pastor’s Corner is sponsored by the
Monroe Cou ty Ministerial Association.
FatherTheophan Buck is the pastor of St.
Innocent Orthodox Church in
Bolingbroke.
Fr. Theophan
Buck
3 on 3 tourney for missions
New Providence Baptist
Church in Smarr will host
a 3 on 3 basketball
tournament on
Saturday, Dec. 1
at Pine Forest
Baptist
Church in
Macon to
raise money
for missions.
For teams
that register
before Nov. 22
the cost is just
$30, after Nov. 22 it's $40
per team. No more than
four players per
team and play
ers must be
at least 14
years old.
Games
start on
Dec. 1 at
9 a.m. at
Pine
Forest,
which is
located on 1848
Tucker Road in Macon. To
register go to www.npbcs-
marr.com/bt.
First, second and third
place teams will win
prizes.
All proceeds will help
benefit the New
Providence Missions Team
on its trip to El Salvador.
For more information call
Pam Thompson at 994-
8742 or Jeff Stark at 538-
4445.
Prizes for
1st, 2nd & 3rd
place teams!!
is
3 on 3
Basketball
Tournament
All proceeds to benefit the
NPBC El Salvador Missions Team
OFFICIAL USE ONLY:
Date Reg:
Date Pd:
Cash Check PayPal
Name:
Address:
Home Phone: Cell Phone:
Email:
Team Name:
Cost:
$30 per team on/before Nov 22 nd
$40 per team after Nov 22 nd
NO MORE than 4 players per team
Players must be at least 14yrs old
Date:
Saturday, December 1st
Registration starts at 8am
Games start at 9am
Location:
Pine Forest Baptist Church
1848 Tucker Rd
Macon, GA31220
478 788-3883
For Information, Call:
Pam Thompson 478 994-8742
Jeff Stark 478 538-4445
Phillip Johnson 478 960-9852
New Providence 478 994-2545
To Register:
GO ONLINE
www.npbcsmarr.com/bt
OR
SEND FORM & PAYMENT TO
New Providence Baptist
2560 Hwy 41 South
Forsyth, GA 31029
Providence.
B A PT 1ST CHUR CH Of S MARR
A Cru« Cumpru'iMi Liocui Oiuri b
Forsyth UMC youth attend
Creative Ministry Festival
The FISH Stix from Forsyth United Methodist Church at
tended the Creative Ministry Festival in Marietta this past
weekend. They performed a dowel stick routine to the song
"Arise My Love". They won a silver award and "People's
Choice" award. Sherry Waldorf is the director. Pictured are,
left to right,: front, Katrina Young, Stephanie Pierotti,
Kennedy Finch, Katie Britt, Sherry Waldorf, Beau Watson;
middle: Aaron Berkebile, Abby Watson, Macy Morris,
Catherine Stevick, Payton Waldorf, Judy Waldorf; back:
Brycen Young, Preston Waldorf, Cathy Stevick.
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WINDOWS • SIDING • GUTTERS • DOORS
Hearing Tests
Set For
Senior Citizens
MON, WED, & FRI
Free hearing tests will be given
at the Beltone Hearing Aid
Office in Macon on
Monday, Wednesday and Friday,
9AM-5PM. It is located at
686 First Street.
Richard Bullington our
Hearing Instrument Specialist
is on staff to help you with
your hearing healthcare needs.
Everyone who has trouble hear
ing or who has loved ones with
hearing difficulty is welcome to
take advantage of this service.
Some of the causes of hearing
loss will be explained and
recommendations will be
made. Test results will reveal if
medical treatment or hearing
aids will help.
Yearly testing is recommended,
especially for those with
hearing difficulty. Current
hearing aid users and those
who have been told previously
nothing could be done for
them should be tested to
determine if new technology
would benefit them.
Call today to schedule your appointment
478-743-1452.
CONCURRENT NOTICE TO PUBLIC OF NO SIGNIFICANT IMPACT ON THE
ENVIRONMENT AND NOTICE OF REQUEST FOR RELEASE OF FUNDS
Monroe County Date of Publication: November 21, 2012
38 W. Main Street
Forsyth, GA31029
478-994-7000
TO ALL INTERESTED AGENCIES, GROUPS AND PERSONS
On or about December 7, 2012 Monroe County will request the Georgia Department of Community Affairs
(DCA) to release Federal Funds under Title I of the Housing and Community Development Act of 1974, as amended,
for the following project: Monroe County Community Development Block Grant (CDBG) - water line extension in
eastern Monroe County.
FINDING OF NO SIGNIFICANT IMPACT (FONSI)
It has been determined that such request for release of funds will not constitute an action significantly affecting
the quality of the human environment and, accordingly, Monroe County has decided not to prepare an Environmen
tal Impact statement under the National Environmental Policy Act of 1960 (PL91-190). The reasons for such
decision not to prepare such a Statement are as follows: No significant impact on the environment is anticipated.
An Environmental Review Record respecting the proposed project has been made by Monroe County which
documents the environmental review of the project and more fully sets forth the reasons why such Statement is
not required. This Environmental Review Record is on file at the Middle Georgia Regional Commission and is
available for public examination and copying upon request between the hours of 8:00 a.m. and 5:00 p.m.
No further environmental review of such project is proposed to be conducted prior to the request for release of
Federal funds.
PUBLIC COMMENTS ON FONSI
All interested agencies, groups and persons disagreeing with this decision are invited to submit written
comments for consideration by the Monroe County Commissioners Office. Such written comments should be
received at 38 W. Main Street, Forsyth, GA 31029, on or before 5:00 PM on December 6,2012 All such comments
so received will be considered and the County will not request the release of Federal funds or take any administra
tive action on the proposed project prior to the date specified in the preceding sentence.
NOTICE OF INTENT TO REQUEST RELEASE OF FUNDS (N0I/RR0F)
At least one day after the termination of the public comment period for the FONSI but not before comments on
the FONSI have been considered and resolved and confirmation received from SHPO, Monroe County will submit
a Request for Release of Funds (RR0F) and Certification to DCA. By so doing, Monroe County will ask DCA to allow
it to commit funds to this project certifying that (1) it has performed the environmental review prescribed by HUD
regulations (“Environmental Review Procedures for Title I Community Development Block Grant (CDBG) Program”
- 24 CFR part 58), and (2) the Certifying Officer, Chairman James Vaughn, consents to accept the jurisdiction of
the Federal Courts if an action is brought to enforce responsibilities in relation to the environmental review or
resulting decision-making and action. The legal effect of the certification is that by approving it, DCA will have
satisfied its responsibilities under the National Environmental Act thus allowing Monroe County to commit CDBG
funds to this project.
OBJECTION TO RELEASE OF FUNDS
DCA will accept objection to this approval of the release of funds and the certification only if it is on one of the
following bases: a) that the certification was not in fact executed by the Certifying Officer; or b) that applicant’s
Environmental Review Record for the project indicated omission of a required decision, finding, or step applicable
to the project in the environmental review process. Objections must be prepared and submitted in accordance with
the required procedure (24 CFR Part 58) and may be addressed to DCA at CDBG Section, 60 Executive Park South,
Atlanta, GA 30329-2231.
Objections to the release of funds on bases other than those stated above will not be considered by the State.
No objection received after December 21,2012 will be considered by DCA.
Monroe County
Chairman James Vaughn
38 W. Main Street
Forsyth, GA. 31029