Southside Oracle Archive

Vol. 48, No. 39                  SOUTHSIDE ORACLE                     December 16, 2005

The Bulletin Board

Congregational Meeting - The congregational meeting last Sunday was well attended and followed a sandwich lunch after our single morning worship. The elders reported on matters discussed at the recent elders/ministers retreat. At that time a vision statement for the congregation was adopted which reads, "The Southside Church is - A family of God, rooted in Scripture, loving God and others." Further defining our role as a congregation the elders also presented a mission statement defining our objectives in serving God. It is -

The Southside family exists to

          * Praise the Father through the Son in the Spirit

          * Proclaim the gospel to the lost

          * Disciple those in the faith

          * Serve the community

Trustee Selection - At the congregational meeting trustees were chosen. Three who will serve for two years are Brad Stanger, Danny Giombi, Kevin Parker, and to serve for one year Tom Brockdorf. They will join John Dickson who has a remaining year to serve.

Christian Workers' Meeting - The next meeting will be at 9:00 a.m., Tuesday, December 2&, at 9:00 a.m. The speakers will be Daryl Miller on "The Prophet Zechariah," and Bobby Valentine on "Kingdom Ethics." All are invited to attend.

ATTENDANCE RECORD

Bible Bowl - Our tweens (or pre-teens) are hosting a Bible Bowl on the Gospel of Luke on Sunday, January 8th at 6:00 p.m. Teens and adults are challenged to put together teams of four members to compete. See the complete information posted on the bulletin board or contact John Giemza for details.

The Rochester College A Cappella Chorus will present a concert at the Northtown Church at 7:30 p.m., Thursday, January 5th. If you attend you will be enriched by the Christian music.

Parent to Parent 2000 is a special program designed to help parents in the rearing of their children. We have successfully offered this in the past and plan to repeat it in 2006. It is open to all parents regardless of religious faith and will meet weekly from 7:00 - 8:00 p.m. at the church building in the basement under the direction of John Giemza. This is separate from the study group that regularly meets at that time at the church building. If you can use some direction in the rearing of your children, this is for you. The program will begin January 11^th and run through March 1st on Wednesday evenings. Don't hesitate to attend because of a potential scheduling conflict with a study group that you may be a part of.

A service trip to the Dominican Republic is planned for July 12-19. This is open to those of all ages, but is especially designed for our youth. More details will be forthcoming soon. If you are interested, see Daryl Miller who is planning the trip.

We extend our sympathy to the Dicksons in the death last week of Elizabeth's uncle Leo.

Through the Eyes of God

"Zacchaeus was a wee little man, a wee little man was he..." It is hard to imagine how many times I sang that sang as a child. My picture of Zacchaeus was that of a short man who liked to climb trees! Undoubtedly that description was markedly different from the people who knew him in the town of Jericho. To them, Zacchaeus was a tax collector. He was full of greed and graft. He would steal from the poor to give to the rich, handsomely lining his own pockets along the way. He was wealthy - and hated because his wealth was accumulated at the expense of others.

One day Jesus came to town and he spotted Zacchaeus in a most undignified^­ position - up a tree? He knew of Zacchaeus' reputation, but when Jesus looked at him, he saw something different from the others. It was so different that he called

Zacchaeus down from the tree and invited himself over to his house as a guest. When the people objected, he told them what it was about this man that gave him a new perspective: "Today salvation has come to this house, because this man, too, is a son of Abraham" (Luke 19:9). As a result Zacchaeus became a changed man.

Sometimes I wonder if God looks at people the same way that I do. The person I see as mean or selfish or disrespectful - do these same qualities stand out with God? Or does He see someone who is kind or insecure or afraid, but is unable to express these emotions when he is around me? And how does God see me? I suspect He pays more attention to a heart that desires to serve Him than a life which is full of glitches and errors in the presence of others.

All of us live among imperfect people, ourselves included. Yet God is able to see beyond the imperfection to view our lives as they can be, not as they are. May He give us His eyes as we look at those around us.     __Dale Hawley

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