In Matthew 26:34, Jesus tells Peter, “Truly, I tell you, this very night, before the rooster crows, you will deny me three times.” How often do we not heed God’s Word in particular situations in our lives? It is one thing for us to assent to what we believe; it is another thing altogether to live differently based on our beliefs. Peter said he would never disown Jesus; but when his trial came – when the moment of decision came for him, he denied Jesus not once, not twice but three times!
The problem was that Peter was not following close to Jesus and he was apparently by himself. Matthew Henry, an English commentator and Presbyterian pastor, suggests, “[Peter] sat without in the palace, among the servants of the High Priest. Note, Bad company is to many an occasion of sin; and those who needlessly thrust themselves into it, go upon the devil’s ground.”
Friends, in times of trial we need other brothers and sisters close to us – to support us and hold us accountable. We read on in Matthew 26:69, “and a servant girl came up to him and said, ‘You also were with Jesus the Galilean,’” It should have been the easiest thing in the world to stand up for Jesus to a servant girl, but Peter denies Jesus even to this common girl in the crowd.
How often have we denied Jesus in our conversations with people on the periphery of our lives? We read in verse 70, “But he denied it before them all, saying, ‘I do not know what you mean what you’re talking about,’” Peter goes on to deny Jesus two more times!
The immediate result of Peter’s triple denial of Jesus is the rooster’s crow. We read in Matthew 26:75, “And Peter remembered the saying of Jesus, “Before the rooster crows, you will deny me three times.” And he went out and wept bitterly.” As the IVP Bible Background Commentary suggests, “For most people in the ancient Mediterranean, rooster’s crowing marked daybreak.” This was a wake-up call for Peter of what Jesus had predicted. And, when Peter realized that Jesus’ words had come true, his response was to weep bitterly. Sorrow for sin needs to be real and BIG.
Friends, how many of us have denied Jesus? Maybe we haven’t outright denied Him, but we have not always lived up to what we say we believe! When those times of trial come, may we acknowledge our sin, stand firm in our faith, and stay close to Jesus!!
Worship
Pastor Glen will continue the sermon series on the powerful letter of the Apostle Paul to the Philippians. His sermon this Sunday is: “Resolving Conflict,” based on Philippians 4:2-3. Please read this text in preparation for worship!
DON’T FORGET TO SPRING FORWARD
Daylight Saving Time Starts THIS SUNDAY!! So, set your clocks forward 1 hour before you go to bed!!
Adult Sunday School
Our Adult Sunday school class will meet this Sunday at 9:30 a.m. in the large Sunday school room. Please join Janet Coiner and others for a wonderful time around God’s Word!! We will continue our study of the Acts of the Apostles. This Sunday we will focus on Acts 20: Paul’s Farewell Address!! Please bring your Bible.
Women’s Bible Study
Join us for our morning or evening Women’s Bible Study! A 7-week study by Jennifer Rothschild, “Missing Pieces”
When? Wednesday Mornings at 10:00 a.m. February 14th – March 27th
OR
Thursday Evenings at 6:30 p.m. February 8th – March 21st
Please contact Marty Porter at (540) 471-2619 with any questions.
Men’s Bible Study
Our Men’s Bible Study meets every Tuesday from 7:00 to 8:00 a.m. in the Community Room at Panera Bread. We are currently driving down Rt. 66, exploring the 66 books of the Bible. This Tuesday we explore 2 John. All men are invited and encouraged to join us!!
Tithes and Offerings
An offering box is available when you enter or exit the sanctuary. Additionally, Online Giving
Quarterly HCC Budget Review on Sunday, March 24th
Golden Oldies
March 13 from 2 to 4 pm, meet at Hope Community Church with our Kim Holman as the speaker. Come and learn about our Hope Community Church website! Bring your phones, tablets, or laptop computers. Also, please email Kim, vamountains@hotmail.com, so she can confirm that your correct email address is in the church directory. When you email her, in the email itself, type the address you want her to use. Each spouse can have their own login.
April 10 at 11:30 am. Dutch treat luncheon will be held at Sooner BBQ, Stuarts Draft.
May 8 at 10:30, meet at Panera Community Room with our speaker, Richard Ammons.
June 12 at 10:30, meet at Panera Community Room to play Bingo! We request for everyone to bring a wrapped gift so all can be winners! $10 max amount of gift. No meeting in July, as we will travel to Lancaster, PA. See Janet or Harold Coiner to sign up for the fun trip to see Daniel and Sound of Music!
Hope Security Team
Our Session agreed with a recommendation from the Security Team to have the church security system automatically re-arm each night at 10:30 p.m. Doing so will more fully ensure that the security system is armed during the overnight period just in case the last person leaving the church forgets to arm the system as they leave.
We DO want to continue to manually arm the DSC system as being done now with their assigned, uniquely issued user code (not the general code used in earlier times) when closing up the church.
The auto re-arming is simply a fail-safe. Should a person plan/expect to be in the building at 10:30 p.m, they need to alert Richard Ammons, Blake Porter, or Rod Campbell ahead of time so the re-arming will be delayed or canceled (it can be done remotely). Should you be in the building at 10:30 p.m. and have not arranged for a delay/cancellation, get to a panel and enter your assigned unique code at 10:30 p.m. or when the panel is alerting and being armed. Please stay at church and call one of the three contacts or wait for a Police Officer to arrive; he or she will want to be sure all is well and you are not a trespasser, etc.
Questions? Check with one of the three contacts (Richard, Blake, or Rod). Thanks so much! We desire for everyone to be safe when attending church services or other activities at our church facility!
Prayer Concerns and Praise Reports
Beginning THIS FRIDAY (March 8th) Janet Coiner will be stepping down as the Coordinator for the Prayer Requests and Praise Report to focus on her other church responsibilities. We are very grateful for the tireless work and sacrifice that she has given to coordinate this very important ministry. A big THANK YOU to Janet!!
Until someone in the congregation volunteers to be the coordinator of the Prayer Requests and Praise Report, HCC will follow these steps for sending and updating weekly prayer requests:
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- Janet Coiner will no longer receive prayer requests or praises by phone, text, or email beginning March 8th.
- All individual prayer requests, praises, and updates must be emailed to our church administration email address which is admin@hopechurchwaynesboro.org to be included in the weekly report.
- The weekly Prayer Requests and Praise Report will continue to be emailed to everyone on Thursday afternoon as usual.
- We make every effort to share all requests for prayers and understand that we need to make requests current and active as well. Beginning in March 2024, we will post each prayer request for a period of four weeks, unless we receive a request to keep a specific prayer request on the list or to update the prayer request. At the end of four weeks, there will be a section titled “Request Of Continuing Prayers” that will show a listing of names only. Thank you to everyone for the many ways in which your prayers uphold those on the prayer list.
Driver Assistance
If you or someone in our congregation needs a ride to a doctor’s appointment or other appointments, please call Tom Reider (540.649.5162). He has agreed to coordinate rides. He has a list of those who have volunteered to give those rides. We are grateful for this important ministry!!
Mission Corner
Love INC
Redemptive Compassion Class
Redemptive Compassion is an 8-week study offering a biblical perspective on how the church is called to holistically help people in need. Redemptive Compassion challenges many of the traditional ways of addressing needs through the following core principles:
1. Everyone has value … therefore,
2. We invest relationally in others
3. Everyone has capacity and potential
4. Mutual participation is required
5. We pray for wisdom and discernment
6. we serve in ways that transform
I hope these core values sound familiar to you! The cost for the class remains steady at $15, and this money pays for the book and other class materials. This class begins on March 6th and continues through April 24th.
Hands-on Ministry Opportunity
We have an exciting, hands-on, ministry opportunity! On Tuesday, March 12, we will provide dinner for the Love INC program at Tinkling Spring Presbyterian Church. We are making a baked potato bar. There is a sign-up sheet for items you can bring, or to volunteer to serve. We will need the following: baked potatoes, cookies or brownies (no nuts), chili, sour cream, cheese, bacon, butter, and onions. Also, we will need 12 people who can serve that evening. This will be a great way to not only serve but to get to know each other better. We look forward to you participating with us!
The Missions Team is active keeping in touch with our missionaries and other ministries. Please keep updated! You can visit our website and go to the Outreach page
March Birthdays
Alice Reider (3/13); Esther Danraj (3/18); Helen Ammons (3/22); Debby Ray (3/31)