For those of you who are following the work of Jim and Gloria Harrington in Bucharest, Romania, we thought the following report would interest you.  It was filed by Dale & Imogene McAnulty, who are missionaries in Romania.

The conferences were a success and everyone arrived safely and I trust back home safely.  We had around 150 to attend and we all enjoyed the lessons presented by six preachers from Romania.  They have grown so much since the first year they each gave a lesson.  We thank God and praise Him for that.  The singing was great and the many prayers offered up were giving God the praise and thanks that He richly deserves.  It is good to hear men praying for others and acknowledging how blessed we are every day.

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Last night was our monthly “Questions & Answers” session.  Here’s one I didn’t have time to address during the evening worship hour:

“Please discuss the resurrection of the saints that occurred when Jesus died.”

The resurrection that is mentioned in the question is related in Matthew 27:50-53.  Matthew is the only gospel writer who mentions it, and he places it directly after the death of Jesus Christ.

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Last Sunday morning we discussed “Putting Christ Back in Our Worship.”  One thing that was not addressed is the degree to which the problem implied by the title of this lesson exists.  Is Christ truly absent from worship services in churches around the country?  More to the point, is he absent from your worship?

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Three presidential debates and one vice-presidential debate have concluded, and the pundits are in unanimous agreement over the results. For the most part, if you were in support of Obama before the debates, you are supporting Obama now.  And if you were a McCain supporter prior to the debates, you are probably still supporting McCain.

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The Lord’s church is doing good works, and, hopefully, we’re working as hard as we always have.  A single, average congregation of the Lord’s church participates in evangelistic campaigns, church retreats, foreign missions, friendship evangelism, and fellowship opportunities.  But with the mindset to work and the single greatest news known to man as our message, why isn’t Christianity flourishing throughout the world?  It might be because we wrestle with the task of prayer.

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Congratulations to new parents, Patrick and Amy Burch!  Their little girl, Kinley Jo Burch, was born today at 1:27 p.m.  She weighs 7 lbs., 11 oz.  and is 20″ long.

Yesterday’s lesson on “What Christians Do in an Economic Crisis” was timely, considering the gloomy economic news Americans have been getting over the last several weeks.  It’s going to take awhile for us to recover, so the points I shared yesterday bear repeating.

What do Christians do in the face of financial trouble?

1. They don’t panic.
2. They learn the end of greed.
3. They don’t lose their priorities.
4. They manage their money.
5. They seize opportunities.

As the stock market plummets, housing prices dive, the dollar slides, and failures occur in investment banking, Christians ought to show the world what faith can do in trying times.  By conducting ourselves in a Christian manner, we will get the world’s attention and give glory to God (Matt. 5:16).

Money management is a biblical concept (Prov. 13:18; 27:23-24).  It has never been easier to access financial resources now that so much has been made available on the Internet.  Need help making a budget?  Download a “Quickie Budget” and start today.  Looking for a one-stop resource for tips, interest and mortgage rates, stock values, advice, and commentary?  Go to www.bankrate.com.

It’s finally upon us!  The 2008 Fall Festival is scheduled for November 1st from 3 pm to 6 pm.  Plans are already underway, and sign-up sheets are posted in the foyer.  The event is for the entire congregation, plus friends and family.  In addition, because this is the same weekend as our Friends and Family Day (Nov. 2nd), we hope you can bring your visitors to also enjoy Ashville Road’s Fall Festival.  We always have a big crowd, and many volunteers are needed to help make this happen.  Here are five ways everyone can help prepare:

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Another week of bad news has gone by, leaving Americans uneasy and uncertain about the future.  Despite the $700 billion bailout bill that was passed through Congress, the economy is not picking up much steam.  The Presidential debates force us out of the contented states of our daily lives into national issues, and as we focus on these concerns, we are reminded that there are gloomy prospects on the horizon in addition to our financial woes: great social divides, the heartless slaughter of the unborn, homosexuality’s threat to the traditional family, terrorists who want to kill us, the possibility of more wars and attacks on American soil.

In times like these, America needs citizens who are brave.  William Barclay writes about an old family from central Scotland, the Buchanans, who had the motto Audaces iuvo, “I help the brave.”  This could be reworded in the popular proverb, “Fortune favors the brave.”  There is no doubt that the brave are rare, but good things abound wherever they can be found.

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