Your private and public prayers are greatly appreciated.
Personal Studies
I had two studies with members of the church. With one family study, one of the other church members went with me to talk them about their lack of attendance. The study lasted nearly 2 hours ending with them stating that they would come on a more regular basis. They were faithful to their word for about 2 weeks and reverted back to their old behavior. With a female individual study, Rosemary went with me. Once we arrived, her male cousin was there. They expressed interest in having an independent study, but as of the end of the month they had not fulfilled their commitment. We will keep working with all of these individuals.
Planning for our September meeting with John Zellner
Several planning sessions were held to discuss our September meeting with John Zellner. One day John and I had lunch together and discussed the topics of the meeting. Our topic for the meeting will be, The Value of the Local Church, in which we talk about such things as the importance of coming to all the assemblies as well as everyone being actively involved in the work of the local church.
Radio Program
I finished my reading and commenting on the book of Romans on Wednesday before the Fourth of July holiday. On Thursday and Friday of that week I read and commented on the book of Jude. On the following Monday I started a study of the book of 1 Corinthians. My purpose for studying Jude was to talk about “the faith” and that we must “contend earnestly for the faith.” I thought this would be a good introduction to the book of 1 Corinthians and Paul’s apostleship. In that study I have emphasized the point that we need to limit our acts of worship and activities in our daily life to those authorized in the Bible. I am trying to strongly suggest to the audience that the Bible is to be our guide and not some latter day revelation or God speaking to us today.
Bible Class Material
Lessons from the book of Isaiah continue to be published on a per lesson basis.
Newspaper Articles
My bi-weekly articles continue to appear in the local newspaper. In phone conversation with the managing editor, he has indicated that the articles provide a service for the newspaper and that they are “inspiring.” My purpose is to strike an interest in someone so that they will come to the Lakeview church and investigate what we are doing.
The McPeaks
Katie continues her studies toward her master’s degree. Clayton continued his employment with Lowe’s. Charlie’s job with the construction company came to an end but he was able to spend some volunteer time with his alma mater high school band, during their “rookie camp.” Rosemary continued with her work at the VA hospital.
Thank you, brethren, for reading this report and all that you do for us. Knowing that you are there supporting us in ways other than financial is very comforting.