This is my devotional presentation for tomorrow's communion service at the Contact Church.
Since we observe communion every week at the Contact Church, sometimes Easter does not seem like a big deal to some of us. A few years ago, Bob Logsdon was on the stage asking the children, "What's special about Easter?" Our son Christopher responded, "It's when the Easter Bunny comes!" Our son had no idea that people associated Easter with a special Sunday each year on which we remember the resurrection of Jesus. After all, we make a point of remembering the death, burial, and resurrection of Christ during Sunday morning assemblies each week. Easter Sunday did not seem any different to him, except for hunting Easter eggs after lunch.
A few days ago, Americans observed Thanksgiving Day. We devoted some time on that day to thanking God for our blessings.
In some ways, the communion service is as much like Easter Sunday as Thanksgiving Day. In fact by the second century of the church, many Greek-speaking Christians were referring to the Lord's Supper as the Eucharist (a Greek word meaning thanksgiving). During the communion (or Eucharist), believers take the time to thank God for his goodness and his grace toward us. He has been good and gracious toward us in what he has done through his Son, Jesus Christ. Our Savior has experienced our humanity and our temptations. He has suffered for our sins. He has died in our place. He has felt the wrath of God for us. He has been raised from the dead, has ascended into heaven to rejoin his Father, and has promised to return for us so that we can enjoy eternal life with him, free from our sins and their consequences.
When we remember what Christ has done for us, the Lord's Supper truly becomes the Eucharist, an occasion for thanksgiving. As the angels proclaimed in Revelation 7:12, "Blessing and glory and wisdom and thanksgiving and honor and power and might be to our God forever and ever! Amen" (English Standard Version).
Showing posts with label Bob and Sarah Logsdon. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Bob and Sarah Logsdon. Show all posts
Saturday, November 28, 2009
Saturday, May 30, 2009
The Contact Church's Teen Girls Ministry
This is our friend and fellow Contact Church member Sarah Logsdon's post from http://urbanlogfamily.blogspot.com yesterday:
"It is hard to believe I am really done with teen girls ministry. It has been an unexpected blessing in my life, but it is definitely time to pass it on to someone else. I've been thinking about how much of what I have done has been with Miriam on my hip or sitting on my lap. It's been a struggle, for sure. I feel so blessed that Kaytie is around to continue working with these girls. It makes it much easier to let go. These girls have been (and will continue to be) so special to me. I'm glad I'll be around to see the next steps in their lives.
"The pictures are from our last Tuesday Bible study together. We finished our lessons on sexual purity and gave the girls an opportunity to sign pledge cards, promising to wait for marriage before having sex. Then the girls got to make bead necklaces or bracelets as reminders of this promise. Please pray for their courage in the face of temptation, and for Kaytie as she loves and listens and spends time with these girls.
"Thanks to all of you who have followed this girls ministry and helped in so many ways. Your prayers have been an encouragement. May God bless you as you minister to those in your corner of the world."
Tuesday, January 27, 2009
The Contact Church's Girls Choir and True Womanhood
The Girls Choir of the Contact Church of Christ (above)
"Likewise, teach the older women to be reverent in the way they live, not to be slanderers or addicted to much wine, but to teach what is good. Then they can train the younger women to love their husbands and children, to be self-controlled and pure, to be busy at home, to be kind, and to be subject to their husbands, so that no one will malign the word of God" (Titus 2:3-5).
While reading Nancy Leigh DeMoss' True Woman Manifesto (www.truewoman.com/assets/files/TW_Manifesto.pdf), I noticed this goal:
"Live out the mandate of Titus 2--as older women, modeling godliness and training younger women to be pleasing to God in every respect; as younger women, receiving instruction with meekness and humility and aspiring to become mature women of God who in turn will train the next generation."
Then, I read the Logsdon's post about the Contact Church's girls choir, and recognized that the women of the church are fulfilling that goal. See http://urbanlogfamily.blogspot.com/2009/01/choir.html for the story.
Tuesday, June 24, 2008
Would You Like to Help the Teen Girls of the Contact Church?
We received the following e-mail from Sarah Logsdon this morning:
Dear Friends and Supporters of Contact Church of Christ,
For the past three months our teen girls have been working to raise money for a trip to Houston. The purpose of the trip is to provide an opportunity for the girls to have new experiences, learn something of the world outside of Tulsa, and open their eyes to new possibilities. The girls, along with their chaperones (Darlene Lawrence, Cathy Gotcher, and Devin Dupree) hope to visit NASA's Houston Space Center and the Holocaust Museum, as well as journey to Galveston to see the ocean, something none of our girls have ever seen before.
We have had our car washes, bake sales, and a big thrift sale to raise money. The girls have worked hard to earn their way to Houston, and God has definitely blessed their efforts.
However, we are still several hundred dollars short of what we need to make this trip. This is where you can step in and help! We are having a "No Bake, Bake Sale." Instead of donating baked goods for us to sell, we are asking you to take the amount of money you would spend on sugar, eggs, butter, etc...and donate that to us. We are grateful for any amount you feel you can give.
Please mail all donations to:
Contact Church of Christ
ATTN: Teen Girls Ministry
1529 W. 49th Street
Tulsa, OK 74107
The girls leave on July 10th, so we need to wrap up our fundraising as soon as possible. Please mail all donations by this Friday, June 27th; however, we will continue accepting donations throughout the rest of the summer. Thank you for caring about these girls and helping to make this trip happen for them. We also ask that you offer up prayers for this trip and these special girls. We especially ask for prayers that this trip will provide them with a new vision of how God can work in their lives.
In Christ,
Sarah Logsdon
P.S. Attached is a picture of the girls who are going to Houston: Jeneva, Porsche, Brittany, Jimisha, and Breanna.
Friday, April 11, 2008
Dinner with the Contact Church's Supporters
"All they asked was that we should continue to remember the poor, the very thing I was eager to do" (Galatians 2:10, NIV).
The Contact Church of Christ started as an urban ministry. Before we were a church, we were a network of volunteers from area Churches of Christ who were working together to help the urban poor of Tulsa come to know Jesus Christ.
A little over 6 years ago, the church building at 49th and Tacoma in west Tulsa became available. At that point, the Tulsa Urban Ministry planted its first church, the Contact Church. We are a congregation specifically established to reach the urban poor with the good news of Christ.
Last night, we had a dinner to show appreciation to our supporters and volunteers from other churches. Janet, Christopher, and I sat at the table with Bob, Sarah, and Miriam Logsdon. Another man who looked somewhat familiar sat with us. He turned out to be the guest speaker for the evening, Anthony Wood. Anthony works with River City Ministries and the River City Church in Little Rock. Until a few years ago, he led Memphis Urban Ministry. He also happens to be a co-author of one of my favorite books: Up Close and Personal: Embracing the Poor. So it was nice to be able to get to know Anthony a little better and to hear him speak about becoming everything God wants us to be.
In closing this post, I would like to share this excerpt from his book:
"I (Anthony) grew up in a racist culture. My grandpa served as Deputy Sheriff of Boliver County, Mississippi, and later as Patrolman for the Clarksdale, Mississippi, Police Department during the fifties and sixties. He died when I was two years old. My basic memory of Grandpa centers on a dresser drawer full of guns, knives, billy clubs, and other weapons taken from criminals. After his death, Grandma would fascinate me by allowing me a peek into that drawer. Once I found an oddly shaped bullet. Grandma explained, 'Oh, that's the bullet from the only man your Grandpa ever shot.' Noticing the look of surprise on my face, she hurriedly added, 'But he shot him in the leg.' Struggling to satisfy a young boy's puzzlement, Grandma said, 'Oh, don't worry, he was only a n----r.'...
"I sat behind Cindy Minor in eleventh grade English. I kept our conversations to a minimum, unless no one else was in the room. As we talked before class one day, she offered me half her Snickers bar. As I silently reached out to break off a piece, someone walked into the room and groaned, 'Ugh.' You're gonna take that from her?'
"With my hands suspended in midair, I weighed Gene's comment. Should I eat a piece of candy touched by a black person or offend Cindy? My fingers never touched the chocolate. Cindy mumbled something like, 'I see.' Those two words were the last we ever exchanged...
"While in Alaska I met my wife, Candi. After our marriage, Candi got her first dose of bigotry in a most unexpected place one Wednesday night. Arriving late for Bible class one cool March evening (in Mississippi), we hurried into the worship service at a local church. We were greeted warmly by a brother at the door.
"A few moments later, a black couple arrived. We overheard them apologize for arriving late, but express their joy at finding a church. The same brother smiled and said, 'There's a church across town where you would feel more comfortable.' Their faces fell. They weren't welcome.
"That night, the Bible class studied the Great Commission. When the teacher, the same brother, got to the part about preaching the gospel to 'every creature,' he affirmed that we shouldn't be selective about the people we share the gospel with. The teacher smiled, looked directly at me and my wife, and explained, 'And blacks are creatures, too.' Their inconsistency between theology and practice reminded me of my own racist past and hardened my own commitment to see that multicolored Jesus.
"As I've come to understand the cross, I've become more aware of my own guilt with regard to racism and my own need to reconcile. The cross has freed me from my past. I no longer choose friends or work based on race. With Paul I say, 'We look at people no longer from a worldly point of view' (2 Cor 5:16)" (Up Close and Personal, pp. 68-70).
The Contact Church of Christ started as an urban ministry. Before we were a church, we were a network of volunteers from area Churches of Christ who were working together to help the urban poor of Tulsa come to know Jesus Christ.
A little over 6 years ago, the church building at 49th and Tacoma in west Tulsa became available. At that point, the Tulsa Urban Ministry planted its first church, the Contact Church. We are a congregation specifically established to reach the urban poor with the good news of Christ.
Last night, we had a dinner to show appreciation to our supporters and volunteers from other churches. Janet, Christopher, and I sat at the table with Bob, Sarah, and Miriam Logsdon. Another man who looked somewhat familiar sat with us. He turned out to be the guest speaker for the evening, Anthony Wood. Anthony works with River City Ministries and the River City Church in Little Rock. Until a few years ago, he led Memphis Urban Ministry. He also happens to be a co-author of one of my favorite books: Up Close and Personal: Embracing the Poor. So it was nice to be able to get to know Anthony a little better and to hear him speak about becoming everything God wants us to be.
In closing this post, I would like to share this excerpt from his book:
"I (Anthony) grew up in a racist culture. My grandpa served as Deputy Sheriff of Boliver County, Mississippi, and later as Patrolman for the Clarksdale, Mississippi, Police Department during the fifties and sixties. He died when I was two years old. My basic memory of Grandpa centers on a dresser drawer full of guns, knives, billy clubs, and other weapons taken from criminals. After his death, Grandma would fascinate me by allowing me a peek into that drawer. Once I found an oddly shaped bullet. Grandma explained, 'Oh, that's the bullet from the only man your Grandpa ever shot.' Noticing the look of surprise on my face, she hurriedly added, 'But he shot him in the leg.' Struggling to satisfy a young boy's puzzlement, Grandma said, 'Oh, don't worry, he was only a n----r.'...
"I sat behind Cindy Minor in eleventh grade English. I kept our conversations to a minimum, unless no one else was in the room. As we talked before class one day, she offered me half her Snickers bar. As I silently reached out to break off a piece, someone walked into the room and groaned, 'Ugh.' You're gonna take that from her?'
"With my hands suspended in midair, I weighed Gene's comment. Should I eat a piece of candy touched by a black person or offend Cindy? My fingers never touched the chocolate. Cindy mumbled something like, 'I see.' Those two words were the last we ever exchanged...
"While in Alaska I met my wife, Candi. After our marriage, Candi got her first dose of bigotry in a most unexpected place one Wednesday night. Arriving late for Bible class one cool March evening (in Mississippi), we hurried into the worship service at a local church. We were greeted warmly by a brother at the door.
"A few moments later, a black couple arrived. We overheard them apologize for arriving late, but express their joy at finding a church. The same brother smiled and said, 'There's a church across town where you would feel more comfortable.' Their faces fell. They weren't welcome.
"That night, the Bible class studied the Great Commission. When the teacher, the same brother, got to the part about preaching the gospel to 'every creature,' he affirmed that we shouldn't be selective about the people we share the gospel with. The teacher smiled, looked directly at me and my wife, and explained, 'And blacks are creatures, too.' Their inconsistency between theology and practice reminded me of my own racist past and hardened my own commitment to see that multicolored Jesus.
"As I've come to understand the cross, I've become more aware of my own guilt with regard to racism and my own need to reconcile. The cross has freed me from my past. I no longer choose friends or work based on race. With Paul I say, 'We look at people no longer from a worldly point of view' (2 Cor 5:16)" (Up Close and Personal, pp. 68-70).
Wednesday, January 09, 2008
Let Justice Roll
"But let justice roll on like a river,
righteousness like a never-failing stream" (Amos 5:24, NIV).
Bob and Sarah Logsdon share a story about one of our families in the Contact Church of Christ as they were trying to purchase a used car that they had saved for quite some time to buy. My emotions swing from grief to anger for them. Please read their story at http://urbanlogfamily.blogspot.com/2008/01/buying-car-in-hood.html.
On another note (but still dealing with injustice in our world), please scroll down to my post on January 6 about the ethnic violence in Kenya. Erik Tryggestad has updated his report for the Christian Chronicle. You may read the updated report using the same link that I placed on my blog on Sunday. Kenya needs our prayers and the churches need our help. Please keep praying for the people of Kenya.
righteousness like a never-failing stream" (Amos 5:24, NIV).
Bob and Sarah Logsdon share a story about one of our families in the Contact Church of Christ as they were trying to purchase a used car that they had saved for quite some time to buy. My emotions swing from grief to anger for them. Please read their story at http://urbanlogfamily.blogspot.com/2008/01/buying-car-in-hood.html.
On another note (but still dealing with injustice in our world), please scroll down to my post on January 6 about the ethnic violence in Kenya. Erik Tryggestad has updated his report for the Christian Chronicle. You may read the updated report using the same link that I placed on my blog on Sunday. Kenya needs our prayers and the churches need our help. Please keep praying for the people of Kenya.
Friday, August 31, 2007
Worth Reading
Today, I found two good articles worth reading on the Internet.
At http://www.christianitytoday.com/music/interviews/2005/bono-0805.html, rock star Bono discusses his views of Christ, grace, and karma. He understands the good news of Christ better than I ever expected. (I didn't even know that I had such a prejudiced view of European rock stars---assuming that they had no grasp of Jesus Christ---until Bono surprised me with his defense of basic Christianity. I guess that all of us have prejudices that we don't recognize until they are challenged.)
At http://urbanlogfamily.blogspot.com/2007/08/fetal-alcohol-syndrome.html, Sarah Logsdon discusses Fetal Alcohol Syndrome and the Contact Church of Christ. Her post was a very compassionate and thought-provoking piece about some of the problems faced by an urban ministry.
At http://www.christianitytoday.com/music/interviews/2005/bono-0805.html, rock star Bono discusses his views of Christ, grace, and karma. He understands the good news of Christ better than I ever expected. (I didn't even know that I had such a prejudiced view of European rock stars---assuming that they had no grasp of Jesus Christ---until Bono surprised me with his defense of basic Christianity. I guess that all of us have prejudices that we don't recognize until they are challenged.)
At http://urbanlogfamily.blogspot.com/2007/08/fetal-alcohol-syndrome.html, Sarah Logsdon discusses Fetal Alcohol Syndrome and the Contact Church of Christ. Her post was a very compassionate and thought-provoking piece about some of the problems faced by an urban ministry.
Saturday, March 24, 2007
International Soul Winning Workshop 2007
In my post earlier today, I mentioned that we have been attending the International Soul Winning Workshop. In addition to the session about mission work in Rwanda, we attended the Thursday evening session featuring Bruce Marchiano, the actor who played the role of Jesus in The Gospel of Matthew video series. However, we did not spend any more time listening to preachers. I'm sure that there were some good speakers, but most of our time was spent talking to old friends and buying books and music CDs.
I don't know what Janet bought, except for a couple of Watershed CDs. I bought Little Boys Bible Storybook for Fathers and Sons to read to Christopher before bedtime. I also purchased the New American Standard Bible/New International Version Parallel Bible, The College Press NIV Commentary Minor Prophets Volume 2, Igniting the Moral Courage of America by Dean Kilmer, and Sundays with Scottie by Milton Jones. I'm looking forward to reading all of them.
We were able to talk to several old friends who were members of Jenks Church with us a number of years ago. In addition, we saw many members of the Contact Church of Christ at the church's booth.
We also talked to some people from Cookson Hills Christian Ministries, Pioneer Bible Translators, and a few other ministries. For a few minutes this morning, we talked with Colleen Deloach (who serves as a missionary with her husband Steve in Guyana). Their son, Isaiah (whom they adopted in Guyana) is still doing well. The medication continues to keep his HIV undetectable. (I have always admired how they adopted a baby with HIV from Guyana. I believe Isaiah is 10 years old now.) I asked Colleen how old a child should be before taking him on a mission trip to Guyana, because I want to take Christopher some day. Although her children were about 5 when they first went, she suggested about 10 years old would be appropriate. So we have something to look forward to in a few more years.
Finally, we appreciated Sarah Logsdon watching Christopher at her house for a few hours on Friday. He loved taking care of Bob and Sarah's baby, Miriam. If you are reading this Sarah, thanks again!
I don't know what Janet bought, except for a couple of Watershed CDs. I bought Little Boys Bible Storybook for Fathers and Sons to read to Christopher before bedtime. I also purchased the New American Standard Bible/New International Version Parallel Bible, The College Press NIV Commentary Minor Prophets Volume 2, Igniting the Moral Courage of America by Dean Kilmer, and Sundays with Scottie by Milton Jones. I'm looking forward to reading all of them.
We were able to talk to several old friends who were members of Jenks Church with us a number of years ago. In addition, we saw many members of the Contact Church of Christ at the church's booth.
We also talked to some people from Cookson Hills Christian Ministries, Pioneer Bible Translators, and a few other ministries. For a few minutes this morning, we talked with Colleen Deloach (who serves as a missionary with her husband Steve in Guyana). Their son, Isaiah (whom they adopted in Guyana) is still doing well. The medication continues to keep his HIV undetectable. (I have always admired how they adopted a baby with HIV from Guyana. I believe Isaiah is 10 years old now.) I asked Colleen how old a child should be before taking him on a mission trip to Guyana, because I want to take Christopher some day. Although her children were about 5 when they first went, she suggested about 10 years old would be appropriate. So we have something to look forward to in a few more years.
Finally, we appreciated Sarah Logsdon watching Christopher at her house for a few hours on Friday. He loved taking care of Bob and Sarah's baby, Miriam. If you are reading this Sarah, thanks again!
Sunday, March 11, 2007
The Logsdons and Urban Ministry
"Reckless words pierce like a sword, but the tongue of the wise brings healing" (Proverbs 12:18, NIV).
Our friends Bob and Sarah Logsdon have just started a blog at http://urbanlogfamily.blogspot.com. Bob is our youth minister in the Contact Church of Christ. He and his wife are a great couple of devoted Christians.
In Bob's first post, he writes about an incident in which one of our youth threatened to shoot another of our youth. In his account, you will see Bob's courage, wisdom, and love. You will see the heart of an outstanding youth minister.
If anyone would like to support him and his family in their work, please click on the link to the Contact Church of Christ at the bottom of this page. You should find the church's phone number and mailing address.
Our friends Bob and Sarah Logsdon have just started a blog at http://urbanlogfamily.blogspot.com. Bob is our youth minister in the Contact Church of Christ. He and his wife are a great couple of devoted Christians.
In Bob's first post, he writes about an incident in which one of our youth threatened to shoot another of our youth. In his account, you will see Bob's courage, wisdom, and love. You will see the heart of an outstanding youth minister.
If anyone would like to support him and his family in their work, please click on the link to the Contact Church of Christ at the bottom of this page. You should find the church's phone number and mailing address.
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