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When we give, blessings are multiplied

In his second letter to the Corinthians, Paul praises the generosity of the church at Macedonia. He uses their giving as an example to challenge the church at Corinth. He says gently to the Corinthians, “But since you excel in everything—in faith, in speech, in knowledge, in complete earnestness and in the love, we have kindled in you—see that you also excel in this grace of giving.” As Randy Alcorn points out, “Jesus said it is more blessed to give, but He never says why. Here’s my why behind his statement. When you keep what you have, you will be blessed. The more you ...

Religion briefs

Editor’s note: To submit a nonprofit announcement to The Sentinel’s Religion section, contact Erin Thompson at (717) 248-6741 or by email at ethompson@lewistownsentinel.com. Items also may be faxed to (717) 248-3481 or sent to The Sentinel, 352 Sixth Street, Lewistown, PA 17044. Items should arrive to The Sentinel by Wednesday afternoon for publication in the Saturday edition. Submissions will be published as space allows. The editor reserves the right to edit all submissions. ¯¯¯ Church to host special speakers REEDSVILLE — Schrader United Methodist Church will host the ...

Homeschooled duo to perform

BELLEVILLE — The Buffalo Mountain Bluegrass band will perform at Watts Memorial United Methodist Church in Belleville fron 5 to 7 p.m. Sept. 19. The event will be held inside if there is inclement weather. The band consists of home schooled sibling duo, Autumn and Canyon Moore. They have been performing music styles, including Bluegrass, Gospel, Civil War, Patriotic, Country, Irish and Scottish together since 2008. The duo performs regularly at a variety of venues, and are excited to share their love of music with others. For more information, visit www.buffalomountainbluegrass.com.

Building walls, lifting spirits

McALISTERVILLE — The congregation of Bunkertown Church of the Brethren came together this summer to build a wall that will be used to construct a home for a family in need. The wall will make a trek to West Point, Georgia with a hand full of local missionaries in October, where the house will be completed. The mission is through the Chattahoochee Fuller Center, part of a nationwide nonprofit that uses volunteers to build homes to fill a range of needs. The Fuller Center was founded by Millard Fuller — the same person who founded Habitat for Humanity. The idea started with ...

Lessons learned by ministry bloopers

I have been a pastor for over 13 years. While some would say I am just getting started, it is amazing to me how many stories I can recall — stories of failure, success, loss, pain, elation and everything in between. No doubt there are different categories, and I took the initiative to record some “blooper” stories from my own ministry. A “no show” at Thanksgiving I was just getting my feet wet as a pastor when I was invited to preach at a community Thanksgiving service in our area. I eagerly agreed and set to work preparing. The Sunday evening before Thanksgiving, my ...

Do suicidal thoughts reflect weak faith?

Only a few people knew Shannon’s secret. Shannon was a mother of three, the wife of a prominent real estate broker and church elder. Like her husband, Shannon was very involved in church as a deaconess and as part of the evangelism visitation team. Her church friends viewed her as a “super mom” who had it all together. Only a few of her closest friends from church, however, knew Shannon’s secret: Shannon struggled with deep bouts of depression — So deep that she tried three times to take her own life using prescription drug overdoses. One day, Shannon’s husband, Lyle, came ...