Duty Roster

11/6:  Nursery-Kim, Kid's Church-Rona, Clean-Wilcox & Jamison, Greet-Nobles
11/13:  Nursery-Christine, Kid's Church-Sue, Clean-Horner & Swanson, Greet-Eddies
11/20:  Nursery-Mary, Kid's Church-Jim, Clean-Nobles, Greet-LeRoy & Maury
11/27:  Nursery-Melissa, Kid's Church-Dave E./Yvonne, Clean-Conklins, Greet-Jamisons

What's Happening This Month

Sundays:
8:45 Worship Team Practice
9:30 Sunday School
10:30 Worship
Fellowship follows Worship Service
6:30 Evening Bible Study
*November 20: 2:00 Kah Tai Ministry


Tuesdays:
4:00-6:30 Community Soup


Wednesdays:
8:00-4:00 OPHC
2, 9, 30:  6:15 Worship Team Practice
23:  Community Thanksgiving Service @ CUMC
*November 2 7:00 Elders
*November 9 7:00 Council


Thursdays:
11:00 Prayer Hour
3:00 Women's Bible Study
24:  Thanksgiving Day

Saturdays:
12:  8:00 Men's Breakfast @ IHOP
19.  8:00 Men's Breakfast @ Chimacum Cafe
       5:00 Harvest Dinner

Watch Your Mouth

Recently I heard on the radio that someone was “a marked man.”  I chuckled and thought how odd it was that a secular radio program was referencing the Bible.  Then I thought of all the hubbub that took place a few years ago about whether people should continue to wish others a merry Christmas.  So with that in mind, here’s a list of common expressions that come straight from the Bible.  Perhaps we should inform society where these sayings come from and warn all government officials and employees to avoid using them as we would not want to blur the line between church and state. (Sorry for the sarcasm.)

Nothing but Skin and Bones & I Escaped by the Skin of my Teeth, both from Job 19:19-20, “All my inward friends abhorred me: and they whom I loved are turned against me. My bone cleaveth to my skin and to my flesh, and I am escaped with the skin of my teeth.”
There's a Time and a Place for Everything, Eccl 3:1
Going the Extra Mile, Matt. 5:41
United we Stand, Divided we Fall, “And Jesus knew their thoughts, and said unto them, Every kingdom divided against itself is brought to desolation; and every city or house divided against itself shall not stand.” Matt. 12:25
Scapegoat, Lev. 16:9-10
Red Sky at Night, “He answered and said unto them, When it is evening, ye say, It will be fair weather: for the sky is red. And in the morning, It will be foul weather to day: for the sky is red and lowring. O ye hypocrites, ye can discern the face of the sky; but can ye not discern the signs of the times?” Matt. 16:2-3
Twinkling of an Eye, “In a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trump: for the trumpet shall sound, and the dead shall be raised incorruptible, and we shall be changed.”  1 Cor. 15:52
A Man After his Own Heart 1 Sam. 13:14
Drop in the Bucket, “Behold, the nations are as a drop of a bucket, and are counted as the small dust of the balance: behold, he taketh up the isles as a very little thing.” Isa. 40:15
Powers that Be, Rom. 13:2
A Little Bird Told Me, “Curse not the king, no not in thy thought; and curse not the rich in thy bedchamber: for a bird of the air shall carry the voice, and that which hath wings shall tell the matter.” Eccl. 10:20
Stumbling Block, “Jesus turned and said to Peter, "Get behind me, Satan! You are a stumbling block to me; you do not have in mind the things of God, but the things of men.” Matt. 16:23
A Gentle Answer Turns Away Wrath, Prov. 15:1
Time to be Born and a Time to Die, Eccl. 3:1-2
Rise and Shine, (surprised?) "Arise, shine, for your light has come, and the glory of the LORD rises upon you. Isa. 60:1
Spare the Rod, Spoil the Child, “He who spares the rod hates his son, but he who loves him is careful to discipline him.” Prov. 13:24 (But don’t beat your children!)
A Leopard Cannot Change its Spots, “Can the Ethiopian change his skin, or the leopard his spots? then may ye also do good, that are accustomed to do evil.” Jer. 13:23
Pride Comes Before a Fall, “Pride goeth before destruction, and an haughty spirit before a fall.” Prov. 16:18
By the Sweat of your Brow, “In the sweat of thy face shalt thou eat bread, till thou return unto the ground; for out of it wast thou taken: for dust thou art, and unto dust shalt thou return.” Gen. 3:19
Out of the Mouths of Babes, “Out of the mouth of babes and sucklings hast thou ordained strength…” Psalm 8:2
Bite the Dust, (Really it’s from the Bible) Psalm 72
The Blind Leading the Blind, Matt. 15:13-14
Eat Drink and Be Merry, Luke 12:19
Straight and narrow, Matt. 7:14
No Man is a Prophet in his Own Town, Mark 6:4
Head on a Platter, “And she came in straightway with haste unto the king, and asked, saying, I will that thou forthwith give me on a platter the head of John the Baptist.” Mark 6:25
Tearing Your Hair Out, “This news made me so angry that I ripped my clothes and tore hair from my head and beard. Then I just sat in shock” Ezra 9:3
The Truth Shall set you Free, John 8:32
He’d Sell His Birthright for a Bowl of Porridge, Gen. 25:31-34
Let Him without Sin Cast the First Stone, John 8:7
Apple of his Eye, “In a desert land he found him, in a barren and howling waste. He shielded him and cared for him; he guarded him as the apple of his eye.” Appears twice: Deut. 32:10 & Zec. 2:8
East of Eden, Gen. 4:16
Filthy Lucre, 1 Tim. 3:3
I'll Pin Him to the Wall, “Saul hurled the spear for he thought, “I will pin David to the wall.” But David escaped from his presence twice.” 1Sam. 18:11
Stranger in a strange land,  “…I have been a stranger in a strange land.” Ex. 2:22
Seek and Ye Shall Find, Matt. 7:7
A Law unto Himself, Rom. 2:14
Absent in Body, but Present in Spirit, Col. 2:5
At My Wit's End, “They reeled and staggered like drunken men; they were at their wits' end.” Psalm 107:27
You Don't Know the Half of It, (oh yeah! From when the Queen of Sheba visited Solomon.) “Indeed, not even half was told me; in wisdom and wealth you have far exceeded the report I heard.” 1 Kings 10: 7
Nothing New Under the Sun, Eccl. 1:9
Handwriting On the Wall, “In the same hour came forth the fingers of a man's hand, and wrote over against the candlestick upon the plaster of the wall of the king's palace: and the king saw the part of the hand that wrote.” Dan. 5:5
Knees Knocking Together, “Then the king's face grew pale and his thoughts alarmed him, and his hip joints went slack and his knees began knocking together.” Daniel 5:6
A Merry Heart is Good Medicine, Prov. 17. 22
A Good Name is Better than Money. Prov. 22. 1
A Thorn in the Flesh, 2 Cor. 12:7
Turn the Other Cheek, Matt. 5:39 & Luke 6:29
No Man Can Serve Two Masters, Matt. 6:24
Reap What You Sow, Gal. 6:7
It Rains on the Just and the Unjust, Matt. 5:45
Alpha and Omega, Rev. 1:8
Armageddon, Rev. 16:16
Fight the Good Fight, 1 Tim. 6:12
The Weaker Vessel, (hey, don’t blame me, I didn’t write it) 1 Peter 3:7
Fallen from Grace, Gal.5:4
Beat their Swords into Plowshares, Ish. 2:4 & Micah 4:3
Beat their Plowshares into Swords, (yep, both ways) Joel 3:10
Set your House in Order, Isa. 38:1
Be Fruitful and Multiply, Gen. 1:28
As Old as Methuselah, Gen. 5:27
The Fat of the Land, Gen. 45:18
A Land Flowing with Milk and Honey, Ex. 33:3
An Eye for an Eye, a Tooth for a Tooth, Ex. 21:24
Your Sin Will Find You Out, Num. 32:23
Turn the World Upside Down, Acts 17:6
God Forbid, Rom. 3:4
Take Root, 2 Kings 19:30
No Rest for the Wicked, Isa. 57: 21
A Fly in the Ointment, Eccl. 10:1
I am What I am, (yes sir, even Popeye quotes the Bible) 1 Cor. 15:10
By the Grace of God, also from 1 Cor 15:10
Feet of Clay, Daniel 2:33
Refused to Give Up the Ghost Job 3:11
The Salt of the Earth, Matt. 5:13
You Can't Put Words in my Mouth, Ex. 4:15
The Land of the Living, Job 28:13
Sour Grapes & To Set One's Teeth on Edge, “In those days they shall say no more, The fathers have eaten a sour grape, and the children's teeth are set on edge.” Jer. 31:29

This is nowhere near an exhaustive list, one researcher counted 257 of these colloquialisms.  If you recall, this started from my hearing, “A Marked Man” on the radio.  That has to do with the mark of Cain in Gen. 4:15.  This year is the 400^th anniversary of the completion of the King James Version of the Bible. Over these 400 years, the Bible has influenced the English language in an irreversible manner.  Quoting the Bible may not be politically correct, but it is a fact of our life.  So whenever you hear anyone use one of the above Bible quotes, be sure to respond with a hearty, “and God bless you too!”

Hope you have a happy and blessed Thanksgiving this year!
Pastor David

She Just Sat Down Close by Colleen

It was the fifth day of Vacation Bible School, it was prayer time for the staff and we were meeting in the office before classes started.  For some reason Pastor David had not arrived yet, but I felt we couldn’t wait any longer.  As was our custom, I began by sharing a story of someone who had encouraged me in my walk with the Lord.  On this morning I shared how my younger brother on many occasions would call me up and check on me, asking if there was a prayer need or just to share with me from the Word  as he felt God had told him to.  He was my younger brother and the one who had led me to the Lord.

He also was my prayer partner and a friend—God would put it on his heart to call me, and I really appreciated him.  By necessity, I did not have his number, so he told me, “Just tell God and He will tell me and I’ll call you.”  He always did within a matter of a few minutes or hours.  I shared how important his words, spoken and prayed out, were to me.  I then asked for prayer requests and we had just started to pray when Pastor David walked in the door.

I looked up and he motioned for me to come with him to his office.  I could see whatever he needed to share was not good news.  Excusing myself and asking someone else to handle the prayer requests for that morning, I followed him into his study.  I thought he would tell me his dad who was fighting cancer or my mother with her deteriorating health had taken a turn for the worse.  Not wanting him to say, I quickly ran a list out to him before he could speak fearing all the worst, but he just kept shaking his head no.  As my list lengthened, I knew before He spoke, what I dreaded to hear was the truth.

You see a few short weeks before my younger brother had called me to tell me he thought he was dying.  He just wanted to tell me that he loved me and wanted me to tell our family that he loved all of them too.  He also wanted me to tell those of them who didn’t know the Lord the message of salvation.  To make a long story short, I encouraged him to go to the local emergency room where they told him there was nothing wrong with him.  Now, three weeks later, they were wrong and unfortunately, he had been correct.  He had passed away with fatal cardiac arrhythmia.

The next few minutes were, spent praying and asking the Lord for His perspective.  Knowing I needed to complete what was to be our last day of VBS, I let the teachers know what had happened and asked if they would please give me a few moments alone.  I knew my brother would want nothing less than for VBS to continue as scheduled.  I went to the sanctuary sat at the piano played and prayed for a short while.  I felt a presence sit beside me.  Quietly a head was lain on my shoulder.  No words were spoken just a quiet sharing of hearts.  I had my eyes closed and continued playing “My Life is in You Lord,” while I asked God to give me what I needed to finish the day well, with our kids. 

That morning I planned to share the story of my younger brother leading me to the Lord with the children and now I was really going to need God’s strength.  I had wanted to tell them not to worry that they were just children sharing the message of salvation with their friends and family and that God would and could use them to speak for Him. Not sure who sat beside me, I eventually opened my eyes to see who had entered my silent world of grief.  Wouldn’t you know it and wasn’t it just like God to send one of His sweet young Christians.  Beautiful blue eyes, dark auburn hair, attached to a loving face, which reflected her heart.  She just came and sat quietly.  She had stepped boldly into the abyss of great loss and with wisdom beyond her years said nothing but spoke volumes.  For me it was very special that someone as young as she was would be so bold to enter that quiet place of raw pain. 

We are blessed with angels all around us who carry the message of God’s sustaining power and love.  Sometimes He lets us be the messengers and sometimes all we have to do is just sit silently.  She will always be a treasure in my heart and she was raised up to serve and love the Lord in this church.  Thanks again Nicole and a special thanks, to all of you who taught her over those years and prayed for her to be all that God planned for her to be.  All of you make a difference for God.

Special Thanks Shout Out

Thanks to Jamey Stamper and Enclume Design Products for the beautiful new pot rack that Pastor David helped install in our kitchen over the island!

Duty Roster

 9/4:  Nursery-Christine
         Children's Church-Normans
         Clean-Hays
         Greeters-Eddies

9/11:  Nursery-Mary
          Children's Church-Jim
          Clean-VanCamps
          Greeters-Gordons

9/18:  Nursery-Melissa
          Children's Church-Dave & Yvonne
          Clean-Wilcox & Jamison
          Greeters-Glessing & Lindell

9/25:  Nursery-Crystal
          Children's Church-Colleen
          Clean-Horner & Swanson
          Greeters-Jamisons

What's happening this month

Sundays:
8:45 Worship Team Practice
9:30 Sunday School
10:30 Worship
Fellowship follows Worship Service
6:30 Evening Bible Study
*September 18 2:00 Kah Tai Ministry
*September 25 no evening Bible Study


Wednesdays:
8:00-4:00 OPHC
6:15 Worship Team Practice
*September 7 10:00 Jeffco Prayer meets
*September 7 7:00 Elders
*September 14 7:00 Council


Thursdays:
11:00 Prayer Hour
1:00 Women's Bible Study

Saturdays:
8:00 Men's Breakfast @ Chimacum Cafe

Heaven: What’s the Bible have to say about it?

A couple years ago Don Piper wrote a book titled, “90 Minutes in Heaven”.   As the book begins, Piper is involved in a traffic accident.  Piper was assessed by paramedics on two separate occasions and pronounced as dead.  90 minutes later, he was found alive but badly injured.  During that 90 minutes Piper says he was in heaven.  The story is very compelling and believable.  The book is worth reading, though most of the pages cover Piper’s lengthy and difficult recovery.

Recently the book “Heaven is for Real” hit the store shelves.  This is the story of 5 year old Colton Burpo who visited heaven.  Colton had a terrible bout of appendicitis and during his surgery, he visited heaven.  As I read this story it was difficult to believe, it is definitely heaven from a child’s perspective.  But as the details are revealed, I found myself concluding there are just too many extenuating circumstance to brush it off as a dream or lie.  Heaven is for Real is also worth reading and the chapter titled, “Two Sisters” is extremely moving.  I suggest you read both of these small books.

With the old saying, “Believe half of what you see and nothing you hear” in mind, I thought it would be beneficial to consider some of what the Bible has to say about heaven. (Note all the italics in this article are mine and Scripture references are from the ESV.)The Bible tells us that God is the one who created the heavens and the earth.  Genesis 1:1 “In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth.”  But does that mean God created a place of eternal dwelling or that He created the sky?  To find the answer we look on.  1 Chronicles 29:11 says, “… for all that is in the heavens and in the earth is yours. Yours is the kingdom, O Lord, and you are exalted as head above all.”  Okay, that seems to confuse the issue.  “For all that is in the heavens and in the earth is yours;” does that mean everything in the sky is God’s?  The clouds, the Sun, the Moon, the Birds, etc., or is it referring to a loftier setting?

Take a look at 2 Chronicles 7:14, “if my people who are called by my name humble themselves, and pray and seek my face and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven and will forgive their sin and heal their land.”  This passage is often quoted in the midst of a prayer-will-fix-the-nation article.  That is a great application of the passage, but notice where the answer comes from, “heaven.”  Next we read Matthew 23:9, “… for you have one Father, who is in heaven.”  So that is more pointed, “Father in heaven,” does it mean God is in the sky?  No.  Add Ecclesiastes 5:2, “… for God is in heaven and you are on earth….”   Once when looking at a beam of sunlight shining through the clouds, one of my grandsons asked me, “Is that what God looks like?”  Sometimes the sky can remind us of God, but He lives beyond the sky.

The scriptures also refer to God as the "God of heaven."  For example, Nehemiah 1:5 says, “And I said, “O Lord God of heaven, the great and awesome God who keeps covenant and steadfast love with those who love him and keep his commandments.”  And Ezra 1:2, “… The Lord, the God of heaven, has given….”  Psalm 103:19 tells us, “The Lord has established his throne in the heavens….”  Psalm 14:2 says, “The Lord looks down from heaven on the children of man, to see if there are any who understand, who seek after God.”

Jesus declared that he is establishing, "the kingdom of heaven".  Matthew 4:17 is one example, “From that time Jesus began to preach, saying, “Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand.”   Matthew 5:19, “Therefore whoever relaxes one of the least of these commandments and teaches others to do the same will be called least in the kingdom of heaven, but whoever does them and teaches them will be called great in the kingdom of heaven.”  Finally, Jesus taught us in Matthew 6:9 to address God the Father as “Our Father in heaven ….”

Matthew 5:11-12 tells us there are things going on in heaven, “Blessed are you when others revile you and persecute you and utter all kinds of evil

 against you falsely on my account. Rejoice and be glad, for your reward is great in heaven ....”  Jesus instructed us to store up treasures in heaven in Matthew 6:19-20, “Do not lay up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy and where thieves break in and steal, but lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven….”  Jesus also said in Matthew 10:32, “So everyone who acknowledges me before men, I also will acknowledge before my Father who is in heaven.”  Luke 15:7 adds, “… there will be more joy in heaven over one sinner who repents than over ninety-nine righteous persons who need no repentance.”

                 There are not only things going on in heaven, Jesus came from and went to heaven.  John 6:38, “For I have come down from heaven, not to do my own will but the will of him who sent me.”  In Acts 1:11 we read, “… why do you stand looking into heaven? This Jesus, who was taken up from you into heaven, will come in the same way as you saw him go into heaven.”  In addition, according to Acts 7:55 Jesus is at the right hand of God, “… [Stephen] gazed into heaven and saw the glory of God, and Jesus standing at the right hand of God.” 

Not only is Jesus in heaven, it is the destination for those who belong to Christ.  2 Corinthians 5:1 tells us, “For we know that if the tent that is our earthly home is destroyed, we have a building from God, a house not made with hands, eternal in the heavens.”  Philippians 3:20 tells us, “But our citizenship is in heaven, and from it we await a Savior, the Lord Jesus Christ.”  2 Peter 3:13 tells us, “But according to his promise we are waiting for new heavens and a new earth in which righteousness dwells.”  Revelation 21:1-3, “Then I saw a new heaven and a new earth, for the first heaven and the first earth had passed away, and the sea was no more. And I saw the holy city, new Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, prepared as a bride adorned for her husband. And I heard a loud voice from the throne saying, “Behold, the dwelling place of God is with man. He will dwell with them, and they will be his people, and God himself will be with them as their God.”

What does heaven look like?  Revelation 21 gives us a sneak peek,

²And I saw the holy city, new Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, prepared as a bride adorned for her husband. ³And I heard a loud voice from the throne saying, “Behold, the dwelling place of God is with man. He will dwell with them, and they will be his people, and God himself will be with them as their God. ⁴He will wipe away every tear from their eyes, and death shall be no more, neither shall there be mourning, nor crying, nor pain anymore, for the former things have passed away.”  ⁶And he said to me, “It is done! I am the Alpha and the Omega, the beginning and the end. To the thirsty I will give from the spring of the water of life without payment. ⁷The one who conquers will have this heritage, and I will be his God and he will be my son.  ¹⁴And the wall of the city had twelve foundations, and on them were the twelve names of the twelve apostles of the Lamb.  ¹⁸The wall was built of jasper, while the city was pure gold, clear as glass. ¹⁹The foundations of the wall of the city were adorned with every kind of jewel. The first was jasper, the second sapphire, the third agate, the fourth emerald, ²⁰the fifth onyx, the sixth carnelian, the seventh chrysolite, the eighth beryl, the ninth topaz, the tenth chrysoprase, the eleventh jacinth, the twelfth amethyst. ²¹And the twelve gates were twelve pearls, each of the gates made of a single pearl, and the street of the city was pure gold, transparent as glass. ²²And I saw no temple in the city, for its temple is the Lord God the Almighty and the Lamb. ²³And the city has no need of sun or moon to shine on it, for the glory of God gives it light, and its lamp is the Lamb. ²⁴By its light will the nations walk, and the kings of the earth will bring their glory into it, ²⁵and its gates will never be shut by day—and there will be no night there. ²⁶They will bring into it the glory and the honor of the nations.

Finally, who will see heaven?  Not everyone.  Rev. 21:27, “But nothing unclean will ever enter it, nor anyone who does what is detestable or false, but only those who are written in the Lamb’s book of life.”  The faithless won’t see heaven.  Neither will the “cowardly, … the detestable, as for murderers, the sexually immoral, sorcerers, idolaters, and all liars, their portion will be in the lake that burns with fire and sulfur, which is the second death” (Rev. 21:8).  If you have not received Christ, your name is not in the Lamb’s book.  I encourage you to confess your sins, ask God for forgiveness, and pray that His Spirit would come into your heart and guide you to heaven!

-Pastor David

Community Soup

Due to economic short falls, Olycap, who has been providing Senior meals at the Tri Area Community Center for years, has cut back their meals from five days to three.  Homelessness and hunger are growing in our community.  We are seeking to fill the gap, at least on Tuesday evenings.  Our goal is to feed anyone who is hungry, not just one particular group.  There won’t be questions to answer or paperwork to fill out.  People can come in and have a simple, nutritious meal of soup and bread, and perhaps enjoy a conversation with friendly people (us!).

                 Several people have asked to help, and we need you all!  Surprisingly, this has been on the minds of many of us, so it’s great that we are uniting to help this effort along.  This is all new territory for me, and I welcome all help!  It’s an effort of faith, as there is a zero budget, and I for one, have zero experience in putting something like this together.  It feels like we are learning on our feet!

At this point we have submitted our permit application to the Jefferson County Health Department.  They are questioning whether  our septic system is adequate for the project we are taking on.   We are working on this, and hope to find a solution soon, at little or no expense.  The absence of a three compartment sink in the dishwashing area is also of concern, but they seem willing to work with us on this.

What can you do to help?

· PRAY:  Specifically that the issues with the county permit process will be worked out quickly and we can get started.  Pray for those who are planning to serve, and for the people we will serve.  Pray for the finances.

· Pick up bowls from garage sales, thrift stores, etc.  They don’t need to match.

· Donate financially if you can:  We need $221.00  just to finish the permit process, not including what it might cost to work out the septic issue.  We also need to purchase ingredients and a few other items.

· Get your Food Handler Permit:  this will be required of anyone who wants to work in the kitchen preparing and serving food.  See below for details on how to do this.

· Show up!  We’ll need people to cook, serve and clean up.  We’ll be using our dishwasher, and there will be some instruction on how to use it properly.

· Be willing to post flyers around the community, or even go door to door to get the word out.

There was a meeting on August 27 that was well attended, and since then, several more people have expressed interest in participating.  There’s a sign-up sheet in the foyer for anyone who’s interested.  Please sign up and don’t forget your phone number and email so we can contact you as we get closer.

What we’re thinking so far:

· Operating from 4:00 to 7:00 on Tuesdays

· Praying together as we begin preparation each week, for the blessing on the food, the workers and those we’ll be serving

· 2 shifts of workers:  1 to cook and serve early comers; 1 to serve later comers and do the cleanup, leaving the facility ready for use by OPHC the next day.

· Having a “house soup” and then another that changes weekly

· Tubs on the wheeled carts for people to bus their own dishes

· Sitting with our guests and getting to know them-being a friendly face

· Setting out a donation jar, but not considering donations to be required

Please be praying about this effort to reach out to our community, and consider taking part.  We welcome your help!  -Kim Wilcox

Food Worker Classes, Testing and Cards Now Available Online. Jefferson County Public Health has recently implemented an online option for food workers classes, tests & food worker permit cards. In the past, taking the class required a trip to one of the many locations that the class is offered. With the new option, food workers can take the class & test online, & if they pass the test, they can pay the $10.00 fee electronically by debit or credit card & print out their food worker card. The class is titled “Do it Right, Serve it Safe”. The web address is : https://www.foodworkercard.wa.gov. You can also get a copy of the booklet in the church office.

 Food Worker Classes, Testing and Cards Now Available Online.

Jefferson County Public Health has recently implemented an online option for food workers classes, tests & food worker permit cards. In the past, taking the class required a trip to one of the many locations that the class is offered. With the new option, food workers can take the class & test online, & if they pass the test, they can pay the $10.00 fee electronically by debit or credit card & print out their food worker card. The class is titled “Do it Right, Serve it Safe”.

The web address is :

https://www.foodworkercard.wa.gov.

You can also get a copy of the booklet in the church office.

Food Worker Classes, Testing and Cards Now Available Online. Jefferson County Public Health has recently implemented an online option for food workers classes, tests & food worker permit cards. In the past, taking the class required a trip to one of the many locations that the class is offered. With the new option, food workers can take the class & test online, & if they pass the test, they can pay the $10.00 fee electronically by debit or credit card & print out their food worker card. The class is titled “Do it Right, Serve it Safe”. The web address is : https://www.foodworkercard.wa.gov. You can also get a copy of the booklet in the church office.

12 Reasons I’m Not a Mormon by Pastor David

There are many topics I love to speak about and plenty more I seldom mention.  I bet you are the same.  The old adage, “It’s not polite to speak on politics, religion or money” seems to be a good standard to hold, if your only interest is in not making waves.  But if you don’t mind shaking things up a little, then those are the three you go for.  As a pastor, it seems impossible to me to avoid these topics.

                 When it comes to speaking on money, I think church leaders need to mention it frequently. There are 31,102 verses in the Bible, 2350 are concerning finances.  Though it’s not the main topic in scripture, it is a topic that’s addressed.  If you want to read about finances this month you’ll have to turn farther back in the newsletter and see the article I wrote there.

Politics is another dandy topic.  All you have to say is, “I vote Republican!” and instantly you will have a whole bunch of friends, just as many enemies and a bunch more that want to excuse themselves from the conversation.  Of course a popular statement is, “I don’t vote for the party, I vote for the man” (or woman as the case may be).  But a declaration like that will alienate the Republicans and Democrats.  The results of all this is: it’s bad manners to speak on politics, just as it’s also bad manners to pick a fight.   Certainly, a God fearing Bible loving Christian will always take note of Romans 13:1 before they trash talk the elected officials, “Let every person be subject to the governing authorities. For there is no authority except from God, and those that exist have been instituted by God.”   So politics is a dangerous topic.  Not only can you lose friends, you can also get God irritated with you.

This takes us to the third topic, religion.  I like to speak about the wonders of God’s love for us.  I enjoy telling misinformed people that God cares for them, loves them and guides them.  I even like to officiate most funerals, because there I can remind people of God’s love and the hope of heaven that lays after this life.

Sadly, it never takes long until the topic of God’s love shifts to man’s religion.  One opinion will often have an opposing opinion and the next thing you know you have gob of denominations and a church every two miles. 

I don’t like conflict, I enjoy life more when I am without conflict but for the life of me, I cannot figure out how to speak the truth, without at least occasionally mentioning some things that make others angry.  I don’t feel particularly bad about this because it seems Jesus had the same problem.  Along with saying, “Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven”¹, He also said, “Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you travel across sea and land to make a single proselyte, and when he becomes a proselyte, you make him twice as much a child of hell as yourselves”².  So to model ourselves after Jesus is to know the difference between right and wrong and speak the truth about both.

This leads me to this month’s topic, that Mormons aren’t Christians.   Mormons boast that they are Christians, do we take them at their word, or is there more to it than that?  The Mormons are also called, The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints or LDS for short.  Since I am writing an article instead of a book, this is not going to be detailed or exhaustive, but it will hit some of the high points and will hopefully prompt you to further research.  I know that some will stop reading now because they don’t like the idea of someone (me) slamming someone else (LDS) and I understand why you would.   Though the Bible teaches us not to be judgmental, it also teaches us to distinguish the truth from a lie and there are a lot of people who believe the LDS lie.  Here’s my list of reasons why I’m not a Mormon:

1.  LDS doctrine is like a cable with several twisted strands.  Some of the strands are wonderful, like the encouragement of family and the sense of community.  Some of the strands are corrupt.  Corrupt enough to earn the label of #2.

2. The LDS is a cult.  A cult is defined as a group of people having religious beliefs or practices regarded by others as strange or sinister.  Who gets to decide what’s “strange & sinister?  The original group.  Just as Christians are not a branch of Judaism, because the Jews won’t have us, Mormons are not Christian because the original Christians won’t have them.  What does LDS believe that is “strange or sinister?  See #3,

3.  Christians are never self-proclaimed, they are biblically defined.  That is, a person is not a Christian because they say they are.  A person is a Christian because they conform to and follow New Testament teaching. Such teachings as believing Jesus is the Messiah, they have asked Him into their hearts and they have become born-again.

4. LDS believe in the Bible, but only on their terms. To clarify the definition of a Christian various catechisms were written, most in the 16 &1700’s.  Some by Catholics, some by Presbyterians, by Lutherans and Orthodox, there are certain variances and there are some decisive similarities.  The purpose of the catechisms is to define what the Bible says about Christian beliefs.  So in short if you agree with the basics of the catechisms you are a Christian, if not, you are not.  For an example #5.

 5.  Failure to believe in The Trinity.  The Bible teaches God has revealed Himself to us by three means: The Father, the Son (Jesus) and the Holy Spirit.   We call this The Trinity.  Mormons are taught that the historic Christian position on the Trinity is false.  They believe that the Godhead is like a president and two counselors, the president being first in authority. God the Father is the president, and the Son and Holy Spirit are His two counselors.  That point alone disqualifies Mormons as Christians.  As #6 explains

6. LDS believe God to be someone or something other than what the Bible teaches.  People have no problem saying the Hindus and the Buddhists are not Christian because they believe in different gods.  The Mormons also define God as something different.  Why? #7.

7. Their sacred writings.  According to their 8th Article of Faith, “the Bible is the inspired Word of God in so far as it is translated correctly”.   But who gets to decide what’s “translated correctly”?  In Protestantism, the individual is encouraged to decide based on their convictions and research, not by edicts passed down from headquarters.  That sort of upper echelon control is scary.  Why?  #8 answers that.

8. More sacred books.  Along with the Bible, the Mormons believe that there are four other inspired writings: the Articles of Faith, Book of Mormon, Pearl of Great Price, and Doctrine and Covenants.  The Bible has undergone rigorous scrutiny in order to be considered God’s word.  The scrutiny included, (1)written by people recognized as prophets and apostles, (2)inspired by God, (3)recognized by men of God and (4)collected and preserved by the people of God.  The four LDS books fill none of this criteria.  By accepting those books they bring the Bible down to their level, rather than taking their faith up to the Bible’s level.  In addition #9.

9. The preeminent view of the KJV.  Don’t get me wrong the KJV is a great version of the Bible, but limiting your followers to one version smacks of censorship, if not book-burning.  Why trust scholars who were translating in 1611 and not ones who are still alive today?  Perhaps the answer is that they wouldn’t like the answer.  As in not liking #10.

10. The work of DNA.  Mainstream education has taught for years the Native Americans descended from eastern Siberia.  It is believed they traveled by way of an ice bridge to Alaska and migrated through the centuries south all the way to Cape Horn.  The Book of Mormon has quite another tale, the account of Israelites who traveled to the Americas in 586BC.  They sailed south around Africa past Australia and to Central America, over the generations these descendants became the “principle ancestors of the American Indians”³.  DNA research has proven the Native Americans descended from Siberia and the foundation of Mormonism to be false.

11. I have heard LDS members say, “read the Book of Mormon, pray earnestly and experience a warm sensation in your heart.”  As Christians, we are not called by God to follow feelings of intuition or warm sensations.  We are called to follow a living God, who answers prayers and changes lives.  Being born-again is not a feeling, it’s an event.  It changes everything.

12.  One thing I do believe about the LDS is that the angel Moroni did in fact visit Joseph Smith.  Sound crazy that I would admit to that?  It shouldn’t, it was prophesied in the Bible 2000 years ago.  Galatians 1:6-9,

“I am astonished that you are so quickly deserting him who called you in the grace of Christ and are turning to a different gospel— not that there is another one, but there are some who trouble you and want to distort the gospel of Christ. But even if we or an angel from heaven should preach to you a gospel contrary to the one we preached to you, let him be accursed. As we have said before, so now I say again: If anyone is preaching to you a gospel contrary to the one you received, let him be accursed.” 

There we have it, “even if we or an angel from heaven should preach to you a gospel contrary to the one we preached to you, let him be accursed.”  I just don’t think it can be any plainer than that.  Even The Book of Mormon boasts the subtitle, “Another Testament of Jesus Christ” (italics mine).

As a follower of Christ I have sought Him in many places and in many doctrines, that is why I believe what I believe.  Not because this is the church I grew up in, but because I have researched it and based my conclusions on that research.  LDS twists doctrines, discredit the Bible, accepts other writings above the Bible, believe in a god other than the God of the Bible, their entire faith is crumbled by DNA research, it is based on emotion and discredited by Holy Scripture.  The conclusion is not only that I will not follow LDS teaching, but I cannot understand why any literate person would ever believe Mormonism could be credible.

¹ Matthew 5

² Matthew 23

³ Book of Mormon Introduction 2^nd paragraph