HINDS COUNTY GAZETTE
Contact
P.O. Box 729-110 Pt. Gibson St. - Raymond, MS 39154
(601) 783-2441
From the Pastor’s Pen:
“Blessed...” (Matthew 6:25)
Zachery Byrd
“Therefore I tell you, do not be anxious about your life, what you will eat or what you will drink, nor about your body, what you will put on. Is not life more than food, and the body more than
clothing?”
(Matthew 6:25)
When God formed Adam, He breathed into him the breath of life, and he became a living creature. Adam had both a body and a soul. Now, for many readers, these are the fundamentals of human existences; however, the fundamentals are not funded well in our modern society. Rarely do we consider the existence of both body and soul. For those who do, how often do we deny its existence? Here is a test question - when is the last time you’ve consciously thought of how to care for your soul? Many of us are pulling out our sweaters and jackets, looking for pre-split firewood, and filling our propane tanks for winter, but how well do we prepare the soul for suffering?
“The body is more than clothing.” The body is more than what is on it; the body is also what is in it. In the new heavens and the new earth, we will get new bodies, but we will not get new souls. Seeing we only have one, don’t you think it’s important? Even more so, Christ died for your soul. Not only is it important, it is valuable - worth the precious blood of Christ. As Isaac Watts sang, “Were the whole realm of nature mine, that were a present far too small; love so amazing so divine, demands my soul, my life, my all.” He who made a soul of such importance and paid such a high price to redeem what was already His, will He not also care for the remainder of you?
The God who pays such a high price for our souls will care for our bodies as well. As much as I personally want you all to get a full night’s sleep, take your vitamins, and a baby aspirin, God tells us more often to care for our souls. To be anxious about our souls is of first importance and would do wonders for our bodies. I have done my fair share of funerals with godly men and women who rejoiced in their suffering, and I’ve done my fair share of visits with the exact opposite. What’s the difference? Soul care. Reader, the outer man is decaying, so are you seeing the inner man renewed day by day? Can you testify to the work of God’s Spirit in your soul? Though the tree is old, is the sap still green? Do you produce fruit down to old age (Ps. 92:14)?
As a reminder, Bethesda Presbyterian Church (6688 Canada Cross Road, Edwards, MS 39066) is hosting their 194th Homecoming on Saturday, October 9th at 11:00am. All are invited to worship with us and to eat fresh fried catfish and fixings afterwards. If you cannot make it to worship, come eat with us! This is a time to celebrate God’s faithfulness, and what better way to celebrate it than faith, fellowship, and fried fish?