The Messenger edition of
DEACONS ON CALL
Buddy Montgomery, Neal Anderson,
Joe Phil Whitten
The Baptist Record
First Baptist Church, Pontotoc, MS
31 Washington St.
662-489-1346 [email protected]
Rev. Mickey Gentry-Senior Adults
Rev. Justin Cobb-Youth
Parson to Person
In Robert Frost’s “The Road Not Taken” talks
about a guy coming to a fork in the road. He had to
make a decision. So, he made the decision. And, I’m
not sure that he’s okay with the decision he made. He
ends the poem with “I shall be telling this with a sigh
somewhere ages and ages hence.” A “sigh?” Are you
kidding me?! You mean to tell me that this dude has
some regret about the road not taken?! Absolutely.
For every single individual high school graduating senior, they face a fork in the road. They cannot
stay in high school. They must make a decision. They
must move forward.
Their decisions have life consequence to them.
A sad reality of life is that there are really not many “do-overs” in life.
Now, one can always start again with Jesus. But life moves forward
never backward. You can’t change the past or re-live the past. I do believe that one can start over from where you are now. But no one can go
backward and start over from where they were. We all must move forward from where we are now.
Frost recognized this in this poem when he wrote, “Yet knowing how way leads on to way I doubted if I should ever come back.”
Now look, Senior, you can always come back home. And there
will always be class reunions. But even at the class reunions, things
won’t be the same. Y’all all will be a little older, have life experiences
and possibly families of your own. One can never really “go back.”
Again, life moves forward. Your life moves forward.
But what if you make a bad decision? What if you go down a
path you wish you hadn’t?
My answer is two-fold. One, if you make a bad decision - welcome to the human race. Bad decisions happen to good people. If you
make a bad decision, you are no different than any of the rest of us.
The second part of my answer is found in another poem by Walt
Whitman. At the end of his poem “Oh Me! Oh Life!” he asked a question about what good is there in this life. Then he answers about what is
good with these words, “That you are here -, that life exists and identity”
and then he adds some pretty powerful words, “That the powerful play
goes on and you may contribute a verse.” There’s a lot of grace and responsibility in those words.
“The powerful play goes on.” It ain’t over. Even after a bad
decision, life is not over. And with the dawn of each new day is the opportunity to put more and more distance between you and the bad decision. That’s gracious and we all should take on that responsibility.
“And you may contribute a verse.” Your life is still a life of
purpose, even after a bad decision. And your life can be used for the
greater good in life. You can actually contribute.
Being able to make a positive contribution with your life, even
after a bad decision, is especially true when you put your life into the
hands of Jesus. Romans 8:28 says, “And we know that all things work
together for good to them that love God, to them who are called according to His purpose.” God can work, even with bad decisions, and make
some thing good come out of it.
But we do not have to go down the detour of bad decisions. Let
us follow Jesus and go down the paths of righteousness. Let us not get
ahead of Him. Let’s let Him go before us and call us to places when He
calls us.
May our testimonies be: Two roads diverged in a wood, and I - I
took the one God traveled by and that has made all the difference.
Walking on,
Ken
The Doctor is IN!
*Dr. Fun is Wednesday
night activities for kids in
Kindergarten—6th grade*
Wed, May 17-Gym Night
Wed, May 24-Handball
in the Gym
Wed, May 31-HopTown
(Cost: $3/child)
Summer Singers,
Some’r Not
Join us in the choir loft
on Sundays (begins
Sunday, May 21)
at 5:30pm for
Summer
Singers!
May 18, 2017
It’s a BOY!!!
You are invited to a
Baby Shower
honoring
Kristen Laprade Johnson
on
Sunday, May 21, 2017
from 1:30pm-3:00pm
in the Fellowship Hall.
Kristen is registered
at Babies’R’Us &
Amazon.Com
DEACONS MEETING
Su n d ay, May 21
at 4:00p m
in t h e Yo u t h Ro o m
Senior Adults
Luncheon May 22
Special Guest—Buddy
Smith of AFA & AFR
Pot Luck at Noon
Toyota Day Trip
Tour Toyota Plant
June 8 leave at 8:30am
Vacation Bible School
June 12-16
OFFICE CLOSED
Ou r ch u r ch o f f ice w ill b e
8:30am-12:00pm
clo sed Mo n , May 29
K-6th grades
in o b ser van ce o f
Mem o r ial Day
Volunteers Needed!!
FBC Children’s Camp
July 5-7, 2017 at
Tishomingo State Park $120
(If you are entering)
Girls & Boys 4th-6th Grade
Crafts, Swimming, Canoeing,
Swinging Bridge, Disc Golf, Camp Fires,
Bible Study, & lots more fun stuff!
Call to sign your child(ren) up by May 31st
You are invited
to a Bridal Tea
honoring
Miss Alisha Trimble,
Bride-elect of
Kirkland Tucker
on Sunday, June 4, 2017
from 1:30pm-3:o0pm
in the Fellowship Hall.
Alisha is registered at
The Gift Shop, JC Penney,
& Wal-Mart
11:00 a.m.
*Steve Montgomery, Phillip Cox,
Robbie McCord, Bryan Warren,
Richie Chrestman, Terry Wood
6:30 p.m.
Dr. Lewis Harrell-Evangelism/Discipleship
Dr. Ken Hester, Pastor
Vol. 21 No.20
Contact Person for this Week:
Ben Hill @ 419-1664
NURSERY WORKERS
FOR
SUNDAY, MAY 21, 2017
11:00am
Katherine Downing,
Lori, Autumn, Olivia Patterson,
Rusty & Haylee Collums
Ben & Brittany Hill
6:30pm
Brittany Hill,
Susan Welch
*Howard Hill, AM Norwood,
Mark Patterson, Carl Jones,
Mark Vandiver, Jay Reeder
Vital Signs
Vital
Signs
SUNDAY, MAY 14, 2017...
Adults…………………………..221
Youth…………………………….50
Children………………………….41
Preschool………………………...25
On Campus Total...………….....337
Graceland…….….………………17
Jail………………………………..0
Total Bible Study……................354
11:00 a.m. Worship…………..355
First Day………………………..0
Total…………………………....355
THE PEOPLE GAVE...
Regular Offering……….$11,608.25
Designated…………...….....$200.00
Total Offering…………..$11,808.25
AS OF MARCH 2017 BUS. MTG...
Budget YTD ……….....$297,143.25
Giving YTD.………....$310,679.15
Schedule
SUNDAY, MAY 21
9:45 Sunday School
11:00 Morning Worship Service
1:30 Baby Shower for K. Johnson
4:30 Deacons Meeting in Youth Rm
5:30 Summer Singers Rehearsal
6:30 Evening Worship Service
MONDAY, MAY 22
6:30 Men’s Prayer Breakfast
10:00 Staff Meeting
WEDNESDAY, MAY 24
6:30 Prayer Meeting, Dr. Fun,
Revolution, Sanctuary Choir
Rehearsal