God’s Purpose For Marriage
“I am the vine; you are the branches. Whoever abides in me and I in him, he it is that bears much fruit, for apart from me you can do nothing.” (John 15:5, ESV)
Mini Devotional
A mini message to take with you this week to help you in your devotion to God.
GOD’S PURPOSE FOR MARRIAGE
Devotional by: Elijah Bell
This weekend (Friday evening and Saturday morning to be precise) the Holly Hill congregation will host a marriage seminar. The reason for the seminar is because we believe that marriages are worth saving, since marriage is an institution of God, and is the foundation for God’s plan for a functioning society.
The Bible has a lot to say about marriage, but if we go back to the very first marriage, the union between Adam and Eve in Genesis 1, we will see some important insights into the mind of God on what He thinks about the subject of marriage.
Genesis 1:27-28
"So God created man in his own image, in the image of God he created him; male and female he created them. And God blessed them. And God said to them, 'Be fruitful and multiply and fill the earth and subdue it, and have dominion over the fish of the sea and over the birds of the heavens and over every living thing that moves on the earth.'" (ESV)
Here are a few things that stand out:
First, the husband and wife are both made in the image of God.
“In the image of God he created him; male and female he created them.” When a marriage union is forged between a man and a woman, it is two unique and important pieces of God’s creation and image coming together for a greater purpose. Do you think of your marriage as a union between two reflections of God?
Second, God blesses marriages that align with His plan.
”And God blessed them.”
God could have skipped the uniting of the man and the woman and could have done something else entirely with His creation, but after the universe was complete, we see God getting to work right away putting this union in place because He knew it was THAT important. Why do you suppose God blessed the marriage? Because He understood that this union is the building block on which a functioning and healthy society is based, and the way in which He could bring about covenants with His people. God blesses marriage because He understands how important it is. Do we understand this same truth?
Third, God gave the man and woman a mission together.
”And God said to them, 'Be fruitful and multiply and fill the earth and subdue it’”
Marriage serves a purpose to unite two people made in the image of God in order to start shaping the world around them for the better. If you are married, do you think of your marriage as God’s way of blessing and shaping the world around you? Are you embracing the mission God has placed before you to create a better world through raising Godly children, being creative together, and taming what is unruly?
God has big plans for your marriage, and that’s why we believe marriages are worth saving. Please come to the marriage seminar this weekend, and be reminded how important marriage is, and start to be more intentional about how you think of your marriage in the eyes of God.
News
This section is for any special announcements that are not upcoming events or prayer requests.
Q&A Session With The Elders — Submit Your Questions
On Wednesday, the 25th, in place of the normal adult Bible class, the elders will be answering your questions regarding their plan for the future of Holly Hill as outlined in the recently released video. Please watch the video again by clicking the link below, and then submit your own questions using the anonymous submission box is in the lobby. All questions must be submitted by Sunday the 22nd.Watch the elder’s video here: https://www.hollyhillcoc.org/video
Remember To Register For Marriage Seminar
The marriage seminar starts THIS Friday! We need everyone who plans to attend to register quickly so we can have an accurate count. See the section on Upcoming Events below for the link to register.
Prayers
Here are some individuals that especially need our prayers this week. Please keep them in mind every time you pray.
Bob Tankersley
Phil Wilkins
Cathy Steele
Hank Schweickart & family - Passing of his mother Hilda
Jack Montooth
Upcoming Events
Here are some events that are coming up that you need to make space on your calendar for.
TOMORROW / SATURDAY, May 13-14 — His Shoes Her Shoes Marriage Seminar
Times: Friday, 6-9pm; Saturday, 9am-12pm
Wayne and Tami Roberts are coming to present a marriage seminar. On Saturday we will have coffee and donuts beforehand, and then afterward we will have a catered lunch provided free. Childcare will be provided both Friday night and Saturday morning. Registration will open soon, and end 3 days before the event begins. Please note that dinner is not provided Friday night. If you plan on coming, you must register here: https://forms.gle/hoqFbjVqGG3U59WF7
Wed., May 25th — Elder's Question And Answer Session
During the time we normally have Bible class, the elders will be doing a Q&A on their plans for the future of Holly Hill as was put forward in the recent elders’ video. Please come and hear the elders answering your questions. You can anonymously submit questions by using the box in the lobby.Sun, June 12th thru Wednesday, June 15th — Vacation Bible School
Theme: God's Great Treasure Hunt. We need volunteers for this. Please see details below.
How You Can Serve
There are a lot of ways you can get involved and do the work of God in our community!
For more information or for help signing up for any of these ministries, please call the church office at: (502) 227-7796.
Limited-Time Opportunities:
Avenues For Women Donations
Each Mother's Day we pass out Baby Bottles to use to collect money to benefit Avenues for Women. It is a community organization dedicated to working with women to choose life and providing a variety of services. They even work with men and post-abortion women. It has a Christ based focus. We started with 72 Baby Bottles. If you have not taken one yet, please get one out of the crates as you come in the main entrance. Let's each take one or two and have such a strong demand that we need even more bottles. The bottles are returned when they are filled. Just place in one of the crates. We try to have them in by Father's Day. Let's see if we can raise $2,000 for this great organization. Remember as Paul, inspired by the Holy Spirit, writes in I Corinthians 6:19: “Or do you not know that your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit within you, whom you have from God? You are not your own, for you were bought with a price. So glorify God in your body.”Thanks for your support.
In-Home Small Group Hosts Or Facilitators Needed
We need people to volunteer to host or facilitate one of the in-home small groups, which will be taking place as part of our revitalized Sunday evening activities. It would be once a month. To host, you only need to open up your home for a group of about 8-12 people. If you can facilitate a study, that means you’ll be the one showing the devotional video provided to you by one of the ministers, and helping to guide the discussion using the discussion questions provided.
Please contact Nick Gill if you are able to help with either or both of these.Volunteers To Provide Childcare During Marriage Seminar
As of right now, we only have one or two people signed up for watching kids during the marriage seminar. We plan to have many couples here from the community that may need childcare. Please let Kurt know if you can help!May Backpack Program
You can help by arriving early at the building around 5:45pm on Wednesdays in May to help pack the bags for the Backpack Program. For more info, see Tom or Sonia Roach.VBS Volunteers Needed
Hey Holly Hill! We are working hard to pull off an INCREDIBLE VBS June 12th-15th, 2022. Our Theme is God's Great Treasure Hunt! We are aiming for an AMAZING VBS this year and need EVERYONE'S help to pull it off. Here is a list of the volunteers that will be needed: Teachers, Teacher Helpers and Guides, Food helpers, Crafts, Security, Registration, Set up crew, and cleanup crew.
If you like to sign up please email me at kurt.montooth@gmail.com and sign up on following link!
https://www.signupgenius.com/go/60B0B4FAAAD28A5FC1-vbsvolunteersLet me know if you have any questions.
Baby Gift Card Collection
Barbara is collecting money for a baby gift card for Alyssa Anderson Hickey. Please give contributions to Barbara.
Long-Term Opportunities:
Greeter Ministry — We’re looking for people who are friendly and outgoing to welcome our guests and members each Sunday morning. If you are interested, contact Tom Owens.
Card Ministry — Every Sunday there are cards spread out on a table in the lobby that will be sent out to various church members and guests who need encouragement. You can help serve and encourage by making sure to sign these cards each week.
Casey Blessing Box — The Caseys are collecting items to give away to those in need in their Blessing Box.
Current items needed: Hygiene items, body wash, deodorant, razor, shampoo/conditioner, lotions, toilet paper, toilet bowl cleaner, washing detergent/fabric softener, paper towels, dish soap, anything to clean with or for personal care.
Shriners Children’s Hospital — Donna White is collecting soda can tabs to donate to the children’s hospital. Please leave your donations in the lobby.
Bible Class Review
A summary of what we’ve been learning about in our adult Bible classes.
Sunday Morning Class (10am):
Current Class: Making Disciples the Jesus Way. We have just finished up our section of the class on how to minister to people in chair 1, that is, people who have yet responded to Jesus challenge to “come and see.” Now we are about to begin part 2 of the class, which is on how we can move from chair 2 to chair 3, and look at biblical ways we can do that, as well as how to help other people move forward into the fullness of Christ as well.
Wednesday Evening Class (6:30pm):
Current Class: I and We: Practical Steps In Living Out Our Vision And Mission. The class is about to conclude, as we only have one more week left. Last night we had somewhat of a review as everyone talked about what they had learned from the class. Robert talked about the idea of how much of the Christian experience is a mystery, meaning we don’t fully understand how it works, but we participate in it regardless. We ended by talking about how we are the clay, and need to “get out on a limb” for God and start doing the things that make us uncomfortable to live out our mission.
Watch Previous Lessons In The Learning Center
To see the latest lessons in our video library, visit www.hollyhillcoc.org/learning-center
Please note: Sunday’s videos are uploaded on Tuesday each week, and Wednesday’s videos are uploaded on Friday.
Sermon Series Review
A quick review of where we are in our current sermon series, and where we’re going.
Our new sermon series starting Sunday will be called “Together As Family,” and will go from Mother’s Day thru Father’s Day.
PAST LESSONS:
Together As Family: God’s Plan For The Family
FUTURE LESSONS:
Together As Family: God’s Plan For Marriage
Together As Family: God’s Plan For Parenting
Together As Family: God’s Plan For Fatherhood
Together As Family: God’s Plan For Motherhood
Together As Family: God’s Plan For Children
You can rewatch all previous lessons at: hollyhillcoc.org/learning-center
Holly Hill Church of Christ
1020 Holly Hill Drive
Frankfort, KY 40601
Web: www.hollyhillcoc.org
Phone: (502) 227-7796
Email: hollyhillcoc@gmail.com
Service Times:
Sunday Bible Class: 10am
Sunday Morning Worship, 11am
Sunday Evening Worship, 6pm
Wednesday Evening Bible class: 6:30pm