Dear Readers of PCN,
So we have heard that April showers brings May flowers. For some of us
April also brought a higher concern with our financial situations. A few
more headaches that we did not expect. Maybe April brought more storms
than we thought we could handle; which may have flooded our so called "flowers",
also known as our "blessings." Instead of flowers this May, perhaps
the yard of your life was filled with weeds instead of flowers. The blessings
may have felt like curses. But my dear Friends, God said that He would
never give us more than we can bare! How amazing He is to have given us
this promise, amongst our dreary days.
I pray that what you find in this issue will be a hidden blessing like
the blooms of tea-roses in a spring garden.
Sincerely Your Sister in Christ,
Cassandra E. Philogene
Editor in Chief
Patmos Chapel Newsletter
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| A look back to step forward |
SOJOURNER TRUTH -
Written by Olive Gilbert, based on information provided by Sojourner Truth. 1850
SOJOURNER TRUTH -
Written by Olive Gilbert, based on information provided by Sojourner Truth. 1850 |
 THE subject of this biography, SOJOURNER TRUTH, as she now calls herself-but whose name, originally, was Isabella-was
born, as near as she can now calculate, between the years 1797 and 1800.
She was the daughter of James and Betsey, slaves of one Colonel Ardinburgh,
Hurley, Ulster County, New York...In process of time, Isabella found herself the mother of five children,
and she rejoiced in being permitted to be the instrument of increasing
the property of her oppressors! Think, dear reader, without a blush, if
you can, for one moment, of a mother thus willingly, and with pride, laying
her own children, the 'flesh of her flesh,' on the altar of slavery-a sacrifice
to the bloody Moloch! But we must remember that beings capable of such
sacrifices are not mothers; they are only 'things,' 'chattels,' 'property.'
But since that time, the subject of this narrative has made some advances
from a state of chattelism towards that of a woman and a mother; and she
now looks back upon her thoughts and feelings there, in her state of ignorance
and degradation, as one does on the dark imagery of a fitful dream. One
moment it seems but a frightful illusion; again it appears a terrible reality.
I would to God it were but a dreamy myth, and not, as it now stands, a
horrid reality to some three millions of chattelized human beings. I have
already alluded to her care not to teach her children to steal, by her
example; and she says, with groanings that cannot be written, 'The Lord
only knows how many times I let my children go hungry, rather than take
secretly the bread I liked not to ask for.' All parents who annul their
preceptive teachings by their daily practices would do well to profit by
her example..
When Isabella went to the field to work, she used to put her infant in
a basket, tying a rope to each handle, and suspending the basket to a branch
of a tree, set another small child to swing it. It was thus secure from
reptiles and was easily administered to, and even lulled to sleep, by a
child too young for other labors..
The question in her mind, and one not easily solved, now was, 'How can
I get away?'
Stay tune for the conclusion. Can't wait? Check out the entire Biography
at:
The Narrative of Sojourner Truth
*Information where facts have been obtained are available upon request
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Recently a friend of mine decided to rent an apartment. This would be her
first time moving out of home. She is in her mid twenties and is a college
graduate, well in her right to move out and strike it on her own. She asked
me if I would like to come "apartment shopping" with her. I,
of course, agreed. While we went from location to location, I could not
believe at all the wonderful places we were looking at. What also did not
slip by me was the fact that the places we saw offered so much more than
what my current place of residence offered. What bothered me more was not
that my dwelling place had less to offer, but that I was jealous! Yes I
will say it. The green eyed monster attacked me and I let it. When the
Bible stated in the Ten Commandments:
"You shall not covet your neighbor's house. You shall not covet your
neighbor's wife, or his manservant or maidservant, his ox or donkey, or
anything that belongs to your neighbor." Exodus 20: 17 NIV
Right there the first line states 'You shall not covet your neighbor's house'! In all seriousness I was breaking the ten commandments. How many times
do we think that we are doing well in abiding with the laws and regulations
from God and that we are "Good Christians"? We do not kill, steal
or lie (white lies count). We keep the Sabbath. Honor our parents and elders;
not to mention we serve only God. God states the He Himself is a Jealous
God. Because He desires what is His. When we become jealous, it is because
we desire something that is not ours. Do we even remember the last commandment?
What happens when we are too busy trying to keep up with the 'Jones'? or
trying to achieve the "American Dream"? What does The Bible tells
us about such "things":
"But godliness with contentment is great gain. For we brought nothing into
the world, and we can take nothing out of it. But if we have food and clothing,
we will be content with that. People who want to get rich fall into temptation
and a trap and into many foolish and harmful desires that plunge men into
ruin and destruction. For the love of money is a root of all kinds of evil.
Some people, eager for money, have wandered from the faith and pierced
themselves with many griefs. 1Timothy 6: 6 - 10 NIV
This is not to say that God does not want us to be wealthy or have nice
things. He just doesn't want it taking over our lives! He has bigger and
better plans for us that we know not about. If we run around wasting all
the time that He has given us trying to "get ours", what will
we have left to give to Him? |
Religious Liberty
& Jeremiah Wright - By: Fredrick A. Russell is a president of the Allegheny West Conference, with headquarters in Columbus, Ohio. |
ALMOST A YEAR AFTER THE HEIGHT OF THE JEREMIAH WRIGHT CONTROVERSY, I'm
still wondering how, in the midst of one of the more controversial periods
in our nation's recent history, we might have missed a very subtle and
little recognizable outcome arising out of the sad saga involving Jeremiah Wright. Wright is no hero in this story—not by a long shot, but the events surrounding
his sojourn in the media portend something ominous when it comes to religious
liberty.
Come on, Russell, you think. How do you get anything regarding religious
liberty out of Jeremiah Wright, of all people?
Well, stay with me as I briefly unpack what I see as one of the major
threats to religious liberty I've come across recently. And our church
is in the "crosshairs" with its implications.
If you live in the United States and don't know who Jeremiah Wright is,
you've had to be living in a vacuum over the last year or two. Video recordings
of some of his more controversial statements played endlessly over the
news for weeks during last year's U.S. presidential campaign. This was
especially so with his "hot" critiques of the United States.
To be fair and balanced, the selected comments that aired didn't always
provide the full context for what he was saying. But with or without the
context, the excerpts from some of his sermons were clearly controversial
and genuinely offended a lot of people. Yet, given the diversity of thought
in the country, others affirmed what he said.
 On the surface, what occurred seems like an open-and-shut case. The headline
writes itself: "Controversial preacher uses his pulpit to rant against
the United States." But when one views this matter through the lens
of religious liberty, another aspect might need to be considered: the right
to express one's personal religious views in a house of worship without
fear of external censure or threat. What played out in the media (intensified by the fact that it was
a presidential candidate's pastor and church) was at times a harsh media
and societal reaction to words spoken in the pulpit of a church. This issue
cannot be limited to agreement or disagreement over Wright's words, but
focuses on his right to speak them without outside interference, notwithstanding
the serious disagreement or even the impact on a presidential candidacy.
Whenever the media and outside forces begin to attack people for what they
say in church, it clearly portends danger for any church that may speak
things that the wider culture may view as unacceptable.
Whether you think Jeremiah Wright was right or wrong in his comments
is something each per-son has to weigh on their own. But we as a church,
at least from a religious liberty perspective, must understand the wider
implications as to how this can affect us in the not-too-distant future.
For instance, let someone get hold of some of the statements regarding
the United States in the powerfully insightful book The Great Controversy. Those statements placed in devious hands and used at an opportune (or
inopportune) moment can be distorted and taken out of context to make our
church appear to be out of step with cultural and national norms.
More to the point is the fact that our church's prophetic understanding
leads us to believe that there is coming a time when we, too, will be singled
out for speaking what we believe; so much so that it brings us into disfavor
with the masses. We may even be categorized as unpatriotic. I predict that
if this happens the media will play these "statements" again
and again—whipping the masses into such a furor that it just might usher
in, along with other events, a time of trouble such as has never been seen
before.
The point: We don't have to agree with Jeremiah Wright; we can even think
he's dead wrong. But from a religious liberty perspective, we have a responsibility
to defend his right even to be wrong, especially within the walls of his
own church.
This article was taken from the Adventist Review Online Newsletter. The
link is listed below:
http://www.adventistreview.org/issue.php?issue=2009-1514&page=23
| Do you want to talk about a topic? Or respond to any of the pieces that
you see in PCN? Click Here to have your ideas heard today! |
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• As the Pastor Ponders
• Truth Comes to the U.S. Capitol - CNN special
• Inside Anointed Praise with the President
• AWAKE FROM YOUR SLUMBER!
• Highlight on Ellen G. White
• A Tribute to Mothers
• Download of the Month
• Spoke Word
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Dear Family,
Job is a character whose very life from the time that we are introduced
to him as a man is full of incredible highs and lows. In Job chapter
1 he appears to be on top of the world and at the top of his game.
He’s got God, wealth, health, reputation, a loving wife and ten children.
What more could he ask for? However, things take a nose dive in a
matter of verses. Everything is snatched away and he’s left with
a multitude of questions and no real understanding as to why he’s suffering.
It is interesting how the devil attacked Job in an attempt to get him to
question and doubt God. He attacks us in the same way in an attempt to get us to doubt God’s sovereignty by employing
eight tactics.
1. He steals our livelihood 1:3, 11)
2. He causes catastrophes to destroy our possessions (1:16)
3. He messes with our children and sometimes murders them and those closest
to us (1:18, 19)
4. He generates mental and spiritual anguish (chapters 6 & 7)
5. He attacks our health (2:4-8)
6. He uses our spouse or those closest to us to question God (2: 9)
7. He motivates our friends to be there for us but sometimes to question
our integrity (2:11-13; chapters 4, 8, and 11 etc)
8. He attempts to get us to sin (1:9-11, 22; 2:4, 5, 10)
The thing that is encouraging to each of us is that regardless of Satan’s
attacks, Job did not sin against God. He held firm to his faith in
the Lord. Like Job we must hold firm to our conviction that the Lord
does not place more on our plate than we are able to eat or more on us
than we are able to bear with Him.
Greetings in Christ,
Pastor Dade
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Truth comes to the U.S. Capitol - By Kristi Keck
An exert from CNN.com |
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(CNN) -- After a nearly decade-long effort, the National Congress of Black Women
on Tuesday honored Sojourner Truth by making her the first African-American
woman to have a memorial bust in the U.S. Capitol.
Truth, whose given name was Isabella Baumfree, was a slave who became one
of the most respected abolitionists and women's rights activists.
"One could only imagine what Sojourner Truth, an outspoken, tell-it-like-it-is
kind of woman ... what she would have to say about this incredible gathering,"
first lady Michelle Obama said at the Celebration of Truth ceremony. "We
are all here because, as my husband says time and time again, we stand
on the shoulders of giants like Sojourner Truth.". . .
Dignitaries and congressional leaders, including Senate Majority Leader
Harry Reid, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, Senate Republican Leader Mitch
McConnell, House Republican Leader John Boehner and Secretary of State
Hillary Clinton, attended the ceremony marking the unveiling of the statue.
Along with musical performances, actress Cicely Tyson recited "Ain't
I A Woman," Truth's famous 1851 speech to a women's rights convention. . .
"What a wonderful day it is to be here in Emancipation Hall for this
great occasion when Sojourner Truth takes her rightful place alongside
the heroes who have helped to shape our nation's history," Clinton
said. . .
The bronze statue, which was crafted by Los Angeles, California, sculptor
Artis Lane, will stand in Emancipation Hall at the Capitol Visitor Center.
"All the visitors in the U.S. Capitol will hear the story of brave
women who endured the greatest of humanity's indignities. They'll hear
the story of Sojourner Truth, who didn't allow those indignities to destroy
her spirit, who fought for her own freedom and then used her powers ...
to help others," Michelle Obama said.
"The power of this bust will not just be in the metal that delineates
Sojourner Truth's face; it will also be in the message that defines her
legacy. Forevermore, in the halls of one of our country's greatest monuments
of liberty and equality, justice and freedom, Sojourner Truth's story will
be told again and again and again and again." . . .
You can find this article in it's entirety at http://www.cnn.com/2009/POLITICS/04/28/sojourner.truth/
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| Inside Anointed Praise- With the President |
....Information on what our Youth are doing Today
.If you missed April's Issue written by Eddie Ashley the President of Patmos
Chapel's Anointed Praise, then you have missed out on something amazing!
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“We Fight Even When All Seems Lost”
The devil is constantly busy. He holds a strategy in mind that many
of us underestimate the brilliance of. He is one that will never rest until
he feels like he has won. We at Patmos Chapel S.D.A Church are living witnesses
that the devil is taking his work to the next level with a little more
aggression. Many people fail to understand who the most specific targets
are. Yes, he will come after adults, but we feel as if the biggest targets
are us young people; Anointed Praise.
We as a young teenage choir have the gift from God to not only to touch
lives but also save them. Each and every member of Anointed Praise is here
because they have individual testimonies and this is the way that they
let God know how they feel. They each have had their share of trials and
tribulations that may have brought them to their breaking point and the
only thing that makes them feel whole again is being in that choir and
singing praises to God. Singing these songs brings a certain feeling amongst
our hearts that words cannot explain. That’s when emotions begin to show
on our faces. We fight to hold back the tears as we pray that God saves
our church and our families. Anointed Praise has become a family of its
own. And because of the dedicated hearts we have been truly blessed.
Anointed Praise participated in a Battle of the Choirs and came out victorious.
As a result of that, on May 5th we are in a recording session with Bobby
Jones on Bobby Jones Gospel that will air all over the world. We have many
trips planned this year. We are going to Atlanta Georgia, Macon Georgia,
Savannah Georgia, Quitman Georgia, and Tampa Florida. We can truly say
that through this controversy, God still takes time to bless us so that
we can bless you. There are times where we come to church feeling empty.
We feel as if our cups couldn’t be drier. But when the words “God Restores”
rang out, we get a feeling of completion; a feeling that many of us yearn
to have and struggle to keep. The thing about Anointed Praise is that we
continue to fight even when all seems lost because we know that with God,
all things are possible. We ask that you all keep us in your prayers that
we may continue to do God’s work to the best of our abilities.
Thank you and to God be the glory.
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AWAKE FROM YOUR SLUMBER!
Cassandra E. Philogene |
Friends the time has come so that you "do this, understanding the present
time. The hour has come for you to wake up from your slumber, because our salvation
is nearer now than when we first believed. The night is nearly over; the day is almost here. So let us put aside
the deeds of darkness and put on the armor of light. Let us behave decently,
as in the daytime, not in orgies and drunkenness, not in sexual immorality
and debauchery, not in dissension and jealousy. Rather, clothe yourselves
with the Lord Jesus Christ, and do not think about how to gratify the desires
of the sinful nature." Romans 13: 11 - 14
Christ is soon to return. Please recall what the Lord said:
"No one knows about that day or hour, not even the angels in heaven,
nor the Son, but only the Father. As it was in the days of Noah, so it
will be at the coming of the Son of Man. For in the days before the flood,
people were eating and drinking, marrying and giving in marriage, up to
the day Noah entered the ark; and they knew nothing about what would happen
until the flood came and took them all away. That is how it will be at
the coming of the Son of Man. Matthew 24: 37
See what is going around in our own back yard:
SAN DIEGO -- A local pastor and his wife claim they were interrogated by a San Diego
County official, who then threatened them with escalating fines if they
continued to hold Bible studies in their home, 10News reported.Attorney
Dean Broyles of The Western Center For Law & Policy was shocked with
what happened to the pastor and his wife.Broyles said, "The county
asked, 'Do you have a regular meeting in your home?' She said, 'Yes.' 'Do
you say amen?' 'Yes.' 'Do you pray?' 'Yes.' 'Do you say praise the Lord?'
'Yes.'" The county employee notified the couple that the small Bible
study, with an average of 15 people attending, was in violation of County
regulations, according to Broyles.Broyles said a few days later the couple
received a written warning that listed "unlawful use of land"
and told them to "stop religious assembly or apply for a major use
permit" -- a process that could cost tens of thousands of dollars.
Those who are fighting the freedom for people to assembly in their homes
to spread the gospel are doing it because "the sinful mind is hostile
to God. It does not submit to God's law, nor can it do so." Romans
8: 7 NIV
For entire story: http://www.10news.com/news/19562217/detail.html
The Devil has plans so that we remain in a stupor so that we may be caught
off guard:"Therefore keep watch, because you do not know on what day
your Lord will come. But understand this: If the owner of the house had
known at what time of night the thief was coming, he would have kept watch
and would not have let his house be broken into. So you also must be ready,
because the Son of Man will come at an hour when you do not expect him.
Matthew 24: 42 - 44
I pray that His coming will not be an alarm waking you from your slumber,
but an amazing appointment that you have awaited for!
Cassandra E. Philogene is the Editor for the Patmos Chapel Newsletter.
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| Ellen Gould White - Arthur L. White |
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..The following summary is a piece gathered from the Ellen G. White Estate.
In this article exert you will be able to look perhaps a little deeper
in the life of the woman that so much circled her life, when perhaps she
was probably the simplest of them all... - CEP.
In brief, she was a woman of remarkable spiritual gifts who lived most of her life during the nineteenth century (1827-1915), yet through
her writings she is still making a revolutionary impact on millions of
people around the world. During her lifetime she wrote more than
5,000
periodical articles and 40 books; but today, including compilations from
her 50,000 pages of manuscript, more than 100 titles are available in English.
She is the most translated woman writer in the entire history of literature,
and the most translated American author of either gender. Her writings
cover a broad range of subjects, including religion, education, social
relationships, evangelism, prophecy, publishing, nutrition, and management.
Her life-changing masterpiece on successful Christian living,Steps to Christ,
has been published in more than 140 languages.
In 1891 Ellen White appealed to church leaders to begin educational and
evangelistic work on behalf of the Black race in America's South. Three
years later, one of her sons, James Edson White, built a Mississippi River
steamboat and used it for about a decade as a floating mission for Blacks
in Mississippi and Tennessee. In 1895 and 1896 she wrote articles in the
"Review and Herald" continuing to urge that efforts be made
for
Blacks in the South, and from time to time she sent messages of counsel
and encouragement to workers in that field. She gave strong support to
the establishment of Oakwood College, in Huntsville, Alabama, which was
founded for the purpose of educating young African-Americans. In 1904 she
gave a speech to its students and teachers, declaring," It was God's
purpose that the school should be placed here." Throughout the remaining
years of her life, she maintained a deep interest and concern for the church
work among Blacks in the southern States.
To see the article in its' entirety: http://www.whiteestate.org/about/egwbio.asp#african
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| A Tribute to Mothers: |
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“Mother”
"She is clothed with strength and dignity; she can laugh at the days to
come. She speaks with wisdom, and faithful instruction is on her tongue.
She watches over the affairs of her household and does not eat the bread
of idleness. Her children arise and call her blessed; her husband also,
and he praises her: "Many women do noble things, but you surpass them
all."
Proverbs 31: 25 - 29 NIV
It is true
I was created in you.
It is also true
That you were created for me.
I owned your voice.
It was shaped and tuned to soothe me.
Your arms were molded Into a cradle to hold me, to rock me.
The scent of your body was the air
Perfumed for me to breathe.
Mother,
During these early, dearest days
I did not dream that you had
A large life which included me,
For I had a life
Which was only you.
An exert from the book Mother: A Cradle to Hold Me By Maya Angelou
Please let those who have been mother's to you know how much you love and
appreciate them every day
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