“For I know him, that he will command his children and his household after him, and they shall keep the way of the LORD, to do justice and judgment; that the LORD may bring upon Abraham that which he hath spoken of him.”

How many of us, as the fathers of our children, can honestly say that the Lord can trust us to command our children and our households?  How many of us fathers can honestly say that we have been trustworthy stewards of the children that have been placed into our care by our loving Heavenly Father?  Will we, as fathers, keep the way of the Lord?  Will we, as fathers,  teach our children to keep the way of the Lord?

In Zondervan’s Expository Dictionary of Bible Words by Lawrence O. Richards,  the fathers in Old Testament times carried out different roles.  “He was the head of the house”, and as such, he also made the spiritual decisions for his house, as in Joshua 24:15.  The father, with the mother, were to be “respected and honored by their children” (Exodus 20:12;  Deuteronomy 5:16 .

The responsibility of spiritual guidance was laid upon the fathers.  Look at Exodus 13:14; Deuteronomy 6:4-9; Deut. 6:20-25; Deut 11:18-21; Deut 32:7; Deut. 32:45-47; Isaiah 38:19.

So let’s bring this to a conclusion and make some valid points:

1.  God said He knew Abraham, that he would “command his children and his household after him” (Genesis 18:19).

2. What does God know about you?   He knows everything!   And He will hold us, the fathers, accountable for everything we teach our children, both by our words and our actions.  (Ephesians 6:4; Colossians 3:21).

3. You may think that God won’t see you, but He sees everything and will make us accountable for every thought, word, or deed! (Hebrews 4:13; Ecclesiastes 12:13,14).

4.  And since He will hold us accountable, He will also judge us by Jesus Christ – Acts 17:30,31).  Jesus said that the word that He has spoken will judge in that day (John 12:47, 48.)   And there are two appointments that we will never miss — two appointments for which we will never be late:  our death, and the Day of Judgement (Hebrews 9:27;  2 Corinthians 5:10, 11).

So, if you are showing your sons and daughters, by your example,  that you are a “man’s man” by drinking your malt liquor, by smoking that joint, by cussing out your neighbor, by hitting your wife, or beating your kids to within an inch of their lives … then you are sadly mistaken …  and you are living a life that won’t lead to Heaven.

REAL MEN LOVE JESUS!  … and Jesus said that if you love Him, you will keep His commandments (Matthew 7:21; John 14:15, 21, 23-24; John 15:14).

If you, Dad, are doing any of these sins, or if you are committing any sins, then you need to come to Jesus Christ right now.  And you can’t come to Him by praying the so-called “Sinner’s Prayer”.   Search throughout the entire New Testament, and you will NEVER see where a person became a Christian by praying a “Sinner’s Prayer” — because it’s NOT THERE!  It’s just simply not in the New Testament.

Dads, get your life right now by hearing the gospel of Jesus Christ (Romans 10:14-15) and by obeying the gospel of Jesus Christ (Hebrews 5:9; 2 Thessalonians 1:7-9).

God has already sent His Son to die on the cross for our sins,shedding His blood for many for the remission of sins (John 19:34; Matthew 26:28; Romans 5:6-10; Hebrews 9:14, 22; Revelation 1:5).

Now, this is what you need to do for the salvation of your soul:  Believe in Jesus Christ, and then lovingly obey Him (Believing – John 20:30,31; Mark 16:15,16 – and Obeying – Matthew 7:21; John 14:15,21; John 15:10,14; Hebrews 5:9).

a. Hear the gospel of Jesus Christ (1 Corinthians 15:1-5; Romans 10:17; Romans 1:16).

b. Believe that Jesus is the Son of God (John 3:16; John 8:24; Hebrews 11:6).

c.  Repent of your sins (Luke 13:3,5; Matthew 9:13; Acts 17:30).

d.  Confess your belief that Jesus is the Son of God  (Matthew 10:32,33; Acts 8:37; Romans 10:9,10).

e. Be baptized for the remission (forgiveness) of your sins (Mark 16:16; Acts 2:38; Acts 22:16; Romans 6:3-6; 1 Peter 3:21,22; Colossians 2:12, Galatians 3:26,27).)

f.  And then, be faithful to Jesus for the rest of your life, and He will give you the crown of life! (Revelations 2:10).

Fathers, do you want your children to live a life full of guilt, misery, and shame because they were influenced by you to live a life of sin?  Do you want them to follow your example ?… and end up just like you on a road that will never lead to Heaven?

Dads, get your life right with Christ, and leave them not only a good name, but also leave them a spiritual heritage in the Lord.

Faithful Fathers Following Christ — that’s what our wives, our families, our children, and our communities need to see.   Come to Jesus right now.

Brother Williams is a graduate of Southwestern Christian College in Terrell, TX.
He is the Youth Minister at East Side Church of Christ in Austin, TX.

Schedule of Services
Sunday Bible Class – 10:00 am
Sunday Worship – 11:00 am & 2:30 pm
Mon, Tues, & Wed Nights at 7:30 pm
Office: 806-894-1989
Email: northsidechurchofChrist@live.com
Website: http://northsidechurchofChrist.wordpress.com

(The Fellowship Meal will be after the Sunday AM Worship from 12:30 pm to 2:15pm.  It will be at the Carver Center, just one block north of the church building.)

Our church building is located at the corner of West Monroe Street and Martin Luther King Blvd (some map websites may still have Martin Luther King Blvd listed as “Lucille Street”), and we are across the street from L.G. Griffin Park.  The building is just 3 blocks north of the intersection of Texas State Hwy. 114 & Martin Luther King Blvd.   This intersection is 1/2 mile west of the intersection at Hwy 114 and College Ave (you will see a Town and Country convenience store at this intersection).

You’ll receive a warm welcome at Northside Church of Christ.   There are no strangers at Northside,  just friends we haven’t met!

May all glory, praise, and honor go to our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ!!

Northside Church of Christ had a fantastic VBS during the week of June 1st! It was great to see all that attended this year. I want to thank all of our members who turned out and supported the Vacation Bible School with their tireless, generous, and selfless work! Thanks to everyone for their abundant prayers to God our Father for blessing us with this ministry!
From the preparations to the handing out of refreshments, we thank God for everyone that helped! For every deed and every helping hand, no matter how great or how small, be assured that the Lord noticed every kind word and deed and He will not forget what you have done for His Son, the Lord Jesus Christ. It was a real blessing from the Lord to see the participation from our members, and it was such wonderful encouragement from God to see everyone working together for Jesus!

We really had a treat seeing the children – most of whom were from the neighborhood – getting to know all about Jesus and how to become “Fishers of Men” (Matthew 4:19). When asked if anyone knew what “Fishers of Men” meant, one of the youth replied, “Fishers of men means fishing for souls!” — What marvelous insight! So we used that phrase — “Fishers of men means fishing for souls!” — as one of our “catch” phrases during VBS… (pun intended).

… And talk about the singing! I think the children had never heard of most of the “standard” VBS songs, but by Friday night the kids had memorized about 10 of the songs, and singing their hearts out on every one! The most requested songs were “Roll the Gospel Chariot Along” and “I’m in the Lord’s Army”. Yes sir!!

Also, we thank God for the parents and families of the children. Some of the parents either stayed for the adult class and either helped with serving refreshments or in other kind and generous ways. And the children were so nice and well-behaved! Kids don’t get good manners accidentally .. it takes loving parents, grand-parents, and families who sacrifice for their kids, who actively nurture and love their children so they can turn out to be such polite, courteous, respectful and loving young children.

I also want to thank the VBS teachers who did such wonderful jobs this year. All of you are dedicated servants of Jesus Christ! – may God bless you all!

Also, thanks to Brother Dent for building our VBS sign, and thanks to David and Gary for bringing their ladder to put up the blue and white streamers around the building!

Here are the attendance totals for every night:
Monday night – 32; Tuesday night – 35; Wednesday night – 43; Thursday night – 35 (some children had baseball games), and Friday night – 48!

And last but not least … we appreciate the time, energy, and selfless work of the Lambert Book House for producing the “Fishing with the Master” VBS series for 2009. You guys are great! Also, thanks to Melody and Monte of the Bible Barn for ordering our materials!

And above and far beyond everything that has been said so far — let us not forget from Whom all our blessings flow! Thanks be to our mighty Father in Heaven for letting us plant the gospel of Jesus Christ into the hearts of men, women, boys, and girls in the great city of Levelland, Texas! To God be the glory for now and forever more!!!

Northside Church of Christ
530 West Monroe St., P.O. Box 671
Levelland, TX 79336
Office: 806-894-1989
Email: northsidechurchofChrist@live.com

And let us all, as Christians, continue to serve our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ here in West Texas, and throughout the world, standing fast in one spirit and with one mind striving together for the faith of the gospel (Philippians 1:27).

The Apostle Paul, being inspired by the Holy Spirit, also wrote the following words to the church of Christ in Philippi:

Philippians 1:3-7 (KJV)

3 I thank my God upon every remembrance of you,

4 Always in every prayer of mine for you all making request with joy,

5 For your fellowship in the gospel from the first day until now;

6 Being confident of this very thing, that he which hath begun a good work in you will perform it until the day of Jesus Christ:

7 Even as it is meet for me to think this of you all, because I have you in my heart; inasmuch as both in my bonds, and in the defence and confirmation of the gospel, ye all are partakers of my grace.

We want to thank the following congregations who attended our 25th Annual Ladies’ Day at Northside Church of Christ:

Amarillo.TX

North Heights Church of Christ

Anton, TX

Church of Christ

Levelland, TX

Austin Street Church of Christ
Cactus Drive Church of Christ
Northside Church of Christ

Lubbock, TX

Church of Christ at Manhattan Heights
Greenlawn Church of Christ
Parkway Drive Church of Christ
20th & Birch Church of Christ

Midland, TX

Church of Christ East Side
Fairmont Park Church of Christ
Lamesa Road Church of Christ
Lee Street Church of Christ
Northside Church of Christ

Odessa, TX

Highland & Bunche Church of Christ
Texas & Clements Church of Christ

Plainview, TX

Austin Heights Church of Christ

San Antonio, TX

Dellcrest Church of Christ

Slaton, TX

Division Street Church of Christ
Ivory Street Church of Christ

We also want to acknowledge the nice letter that we received from the Sisters at Scharbauer Street Church of Christ in Hobbs, New Mexico. They were providentially hindered from attending our Ladies’ Day this year, but we pray that they will be able to attend in the future, Lord willing.

10 Who can find a virtuous wife? For her worth is far above rubies.
11 The heart of her husband safely trusts her; So he will have no lack of gain.
12 She does him good and not evil All the days of her life.
13 She seeks wool and flax, And willingly works with her hands.
14 She is like the merchant ships, She brings her food from afar.
15 She also rises while it is yet night, And provides food for her household, And a portion for her maidservants.
16 She considers a field and buys it; From her profits she plants a vineyard.
17 She girds herself with strength, And strengthens her arms.
18 She perceives that her merchandise is good, And her lamp does not go out by night.
19 She stretches out her hands to the distaff, And her hand holds the spindle.
20 She extends her hand to the poor, Yes, she reaches out her hands to the needy.
21 She is not afraid of snow for her household, For all her household is clothed with scarlet.
22 She makes tapestry for herself; Her clothing is fine linen and purple.
23 Her husband is known in the gates, When he sits among the elders of the land.
24 She makes linen garments and sells them, And supplies sashes for the merchants.
25 Strength and honor are her clothing; She shall rejoice in time to come.
26 She opens her mouth with wisdom, And on her tongue is the law of kindness.
27 She watches over the ways of her household, And does not eat the bread of idleness.
28 Her children rise up and call her blessed; Her husband also, and he praises her:
29 “Many daughters have done well, But you excel them all.”
30 Charm is deceitful and beauty is passing, But a woman who fears the Lord, she shall be praised.
31 Give her of the fruit of her hands, And let her own works praise her in the gates.

Northside Church of Christ will be having our Vacation Bible School, Monday through Friday, June 1st – 5th, 2009, from 7:00 PM to 8:30 PM. There will be classes for all ages, including an Adult class. The theme this year will be “Fishing With the Master”.

Invite your friends and neighbors while we learn more about Jesus!

Northside Church of Christ
530 West Monroe St., P.O. Box 671
Levelland, TX 79336

Office: 806-894-1989

northsidechurchofchristprays@yahoo.com

It is with great honor that the Northside Church of Christ presents its 25th Annual Ladies’ Day on Saturday, May 23, 2009.  We are planning to have a morning of edifying, biblical teachings and would be honored to have you present.  

This year’s theme, “The Wise Woman Builds Her House,” will be presented by our dynamic speaker, Sis. Gloria Davis of the Dellcrest Church of Christ in San Antonio, TX.  Our reference scripture is Proverbs 14:1.  Besides the biblical lessons, there will be singing (group, solo, congregational, etc.) that is sure to lift your spirit.

Registration is scheduled to begin at 8:30 AM with the program beginning at 9:00 AM.  Lord willing, we should finish the event around 12:00 noon.  Lunch will follow immediately after the program.  We pray that you’ll join us for this timely and much-needed lesson from God’s word.

 Please mark your calendars for Saturday, May 23, 2009 from 8:30 AM until 12:00 noon.  Bless us with your presence! 

Lovingly,

Northside Church of Christ,  Levelland, TX

Ladies’ Bible Class

Office:  806-894-1989

2nd Contact # 806-894-9035  

You are encouraged to visit with us!
Sunday Morning Bible Class: 10:00 AM
Sunday Morning Worship: 11:00 AM
Sunday Evening Worship: 5:00 PM
Wednesday Bible Study: 7:00 PM
All- Day Fellowship: Every First Sunday