Author ArchiveBe Strong…Don’t be Afraid – February 2K12 Youthful Expression
Sunday, February 5th, 2012
by Eryck McCown
Deuteronomy 31:6 says, “Be strong and of a good courage, fear not, nor be afraid of them: for the LORD thy God, he it is that doth go with thee; he will not fail thee, nor forsake thee.” Here the Bible says you don’t have to be afraid. God is with you and will not fail you. We have to stay strong and we have to only fear God. Joshua 1:9 says, “Have not I commanded thee? Be strong and of a good courage; be not afraid, neither be thou dismayed: for the LORD thy God is with thee whithersoever thou goest.” Here God is telling Joshua to go and take the Israelites to the promise land. He tells Joshua not to be afraid because God will be with him. You must have faith to not fear. 1 Corinthians 16:13, “Watch ye, stand fast in the faith, quit you like men, be strong”. Isaiah 41:10, the Bible says, “Fear thou not; for I am with thee: be not dismayed; for I am thy God: I will strengthen thee; yea, I will help thee; yea, I will uphold thee with the right hand of my righteousness.” In the Bible, there are many verses that talk about faith, being strong and not being afraid. Read some of these verses and apply them to your life. God Is Faithful – February 2K12 WTLB
Wednesday, February 1st, 2012
by Sis. Josie Manrique As I sit and think of the goodness of the Lord, I will never forget what He has done for me. I love the way He brings to my remembrance what He has delivered me from. As I sit and ponder my life, just three years ago until now, it's amazing what has happened. Although I have been saved for over six years, there was a period about three years ago that I kind of went back into some of my old habits. After doing this for about five or six months, I was sitting in church and my pastor in North Carolina was talking about God being able to see everything, this really didn’t mean anything to me until she singled me out and said, “Josie even though you are living in another city and I can’t see you, God can!” God had used her to speak directly to me, so right then I knew it was Him talking. This made me do a self evaluation. I looked into the mirror and did not like what was looking back at me. It was at that time I had to ask God for forgiveness and straighten up, but this wasn’t like the previous times whenever I had asked for forgiveness I was more sincere and I know that God honored that. I started taking advantage of the slow time on Sundays and asking my boss could I leave early to go to church, I noticed that when I made time for God, He made a way for me, which was easier than my own way. I then prayed to God that if He blessed me with Sundays off that I would go to church every Sunday. Soon after I was granted Sundays off and I made sure I was at church every Sunday and every other opportunity I could go. I had to be faithful to my word because God had been faithful to His, and I must admit that sometimes I really didn’t feel like going, but something I had heard got stuck in my spirit, “THE BLESSING IS IN THE PRESSING”. From then until now, God has blessed me with positions that I am not required to work Sundays. He is just so amazing, awesome and magnificent! If I could give the readers a few words to live by, they would be that God is a faithful God. As you have witnessed through my testimony, when you are sincere with God and acknowledge your wrong doing, He can help you to make it right. I just thank God that He has never took His hand off of me, even when I turned my back on Him. I thank God for my testimony. The Great Perception
Wednesday, February 1st, 2012
Acts 10:34-36 – 34Then Peter opened his mouth, and said, Of a truth I perceive that God is no respecter of persons: 35But in every nation he that feareth him, and worketh righteousness, is accepted with him. 36The word which God sent unto the children of Israel, preaching peace by Jesus Christ: (he is Lord of all:)
Stop and think about the stop light, gas mask, open heart surgery, iron, vacuum cleaner, helicopter and so many more inventions that would not be here today if those of that ethnicity had not been allowed to contribute to mankind. The doctrine or practice of exclusion did not begin here in the United States. At one time the Bible tells us the early church (which consisted of Jews) was under the assumption that to be adopted into the family of God via Jesus Christ also required a conversion into Judaism. Yes – that’s right; not only adult males had to be circumcised, but they only had limited access to the temple. In our text today the Lord revealed to Peter that He was not a respecter of persons. If you take the time to read the Scriptures, you’ll find that the Lord gave Peter the vision of the various types of meat three times!! In other words, God wanted to make sure Peter got the message before he was sent to Cornelius.
In the early days of the Church Of God In Christ, there was a debate over our form of worship. There were those who advocated a more reserved style of worship. The music should not be too loud. Only a piano was allowed. Hand clapping and spontaneous praise was taboo and rejoicing in the spirit (some folks call it “shouting”) was out of the question. Bishop Mason protested and held firm that God was receptive to other types of praise and worship – as long as the vessels were holy and sincere. History records in the early days of our Church, there were as many Caucasian members as there was Negro. However, because of southern segregation laws, many of the Caucasian brothers left in 1914 and started the Assemblies of God.
Later this year we will have other multi-cultural events to celebrate the many ethnicities God has sent to our church – Caucasians, Jamaicans, Dominicans, Puerto Ricans, Trinidadians, Mauritians and even people from Illinois! Aren’t you thankful you did not have to change your look, dress, language or neighborhood to be received by Jesus? The only change God requires is the one that occurs in our hearts! I pray as you meet new people from different backgrounds and ethnic groups, you don’t make the mistake Peter made. God has room and makes room for everyone. He is not bound by race, gender or social economic status. He does not care who your parents are or where you came from. He’s not concerned about your political party affiliation or if you are liberal or conservative. All He wants is an opportunity to clean and change your heart, and then He’ll make room for you. He will adopt you into His family. I perceive He’s adding to His family even now – I cannot wait to meet some more of my family members! I bless you in the name of the Lord! Elder Eddie B Pruitte, Jr. Only One Lamb – February 2K12 WOTM
Wednesday, February 1st, 2012
I can see Him coming in the clouds so bright and shining. Only one lamb counts. It's written all about Him in the greatest book ever written. Which was inspired by the Alpha and Omega, if u take a look… When our pastor preaches about Him, we can't help but clap our hands and move our feet. I can see Him coming in the air so bright and shining. Only one lamb counts. With verbal praises, clapping hands, and stomping feet. I can't stop reading this incredible book. From Luke to Matthew to Peter and John, I flip the pages to Revelation. I can see Him coming between the Cloud and Sun so bright and shining. His mouth speaks the truth and wisdom in perfect form, clean and sharp as a double edge sword. Only one lamb standing, Only one lamb counts. by Bro. Tafari Manrique 1st Lady’s Blog – The Last Generation of Kick the Can
Wednesday, February 1st, 2012
I love the old television show Twilight Zone and one of my favorite episodes is entitled “Kick the Can.” I love this episode because it is so nostalgic of my youth. I have always said that if I wrote a book I would call it The Last Generation of Kick the Can. My generation seems to be the last one which actually played games like dodge ball, tag, jacks, hop scotch and kick the can. Kids today are preoccupied with technology; they love video and computer games. The only video game I remember growing up with was Atari, a very primitive version of today’s games.
Like many parents of my generation, I spent much money buying my daughters everything “I didn’t have” while I was growing up, not realizing that I was doing them a disservice. By giving them all of those extra “things,” I destroyed a part of their creativity. When I was growing up kids made up their own fun. Our parents were not able to afford expensive toys so we made up simple games. But, it was different with my daughters. When I would ask them to go out to play, they would say, “what will we play?” I would ask them to make up a game and they could not think of any. Some basic things we learned as children have not been handed down to our own kids. The children of Israel found themselves in a similar embarrassing situation. Somewhere along the way they forgot to pass on their beliefs and traditions to their children. The Bible records that “there rose up a generation that did not know God” (Judges 2:10). When they looked at their younger generation they realized that they did not possess the same values of their forefathers. The best thing we can do for our children and grandchildren is to teach them our values and traditions. These lasting pieces will die with us if we do not take the time to teach them now. It is my endeavor to do as much as I can to reverse this. So next time your child or grandchild says, “let play the Wii!” take them outside and teach them how to play kick the can. C. H. Mason Bible College – Spring 2012
Tuesday, January 24th, 2012
Holiness Tabernacle will be offering the following Church Of God In Christ C.H. Mason Bible College class during the Spring 2012 session:
You may register below or call 703-497-7928 for more information. REGISTER TODAYMy Tribute To Mother Veronica Moses – January 2K12 Youthful Expressions
Saturday, January 7th, 2012
To tell you more about my grandmother, she had three children, David Moses, Venessa Alexander, and Mary King. All of them became successful in life and were very helpful to her. In the middle of 2006 and 2007, Veronica Moses lost one of her grandsons, Akim King. She was very hurt to lose her grandson who she taught and took care of when his parents went to work. One of her greatest loss was her husband, Hilary Moses around the same time her grandson died. That was a very hard time for my grandma so we helped her through it. She still stood strong. She was a very upright person. She blocked out the friends she had before she met my grandfather to take care of her family. My grandmother was born in Trinidad, a very beautiful place. She grew up there and so did her kids. She did the best for them when she could. As for her grandchildren, she loved us a lot and we knew it. She started to go to church with me, my mom and my dad in 2009, and so did the rest of her kids. She loved our pastor; he is a very nice man. She loved to give our pastor a kiss. She took him in like one of her own. Her and our pastor had very good relationship. On November 24, 2011, my grandmother, Veronica Moses, passed away. We were not going to celebrate thanksgiving, but we knew she would want us to, so we did. Veronica Moses, you will always be in our hearts no matter what. Thank you for what you have done for me. May you be in a better place.
The Part That Is Rarely Told – Christmas Play Recap
Saturday, January 7th, 2012
by Sis. Delia Pruitte
On Sunday, December 18, Holiness Tabernacle held its annual Christmas program. Although both young and old look forward to the event, no one was more excited and nervous as HTC’s youth. This was their opportunity to showcase their thespian talents, and to show their parents and the congregation how hard they had been working since October.
After warming up the congregation with a few favorite Christmas hymns, Elder and Sister Green introduced the youngest HTC’s members. The Sunshine Band (children ages 2-12) proudly displayed the Christmas artwork they created for their parents. They then allowed the congregation a peek into what their Sunday School class is like through singing and reciting songs they had learned. They finished up by presenting birthday presents to baby Jesus, such as their hearts and their praise. After a few more selections, it was time for the main play of the night, “The Part That is Rarely Told.” This year’s main play was written by one of Holiness Tabernacle’s own, Sister DeAnna Pruitte. Sister Pruitte penned the play over seven years ago at the age of 14. “I wanted highlight certain parts of the Christmas story that people present inaccurately, such as the number of wise men, or the age of Jesus when they arrived. People always assume there were 3 wise men, and that they arrived at the manger scene the same time as the shepherds. That’s not what the Bible says. Jesus was actually a young child, and not a baby by the time the wise men arrived. And the Bible never mentions exactly how many wise men there were. ” The youth performed wonderfully, providing a good mixture of humor and Bible quotation. No sooner had they sat down than a restlessness began to spread through the crowd, namely among the children and teenagers. As Pastor and First Lady Pruitte took the mic, the excitement grew tangible. “As we do every year, it’s time to pass out presents!” declared Pastor Pruitte to the joyful audience. “No one here will leave without something in their hand.” True to their word, every person in the congregation, whether they were young or old, member of the church, or member of the community, received a gift. When the benediction was given, several dozens of presents were distributed, and there was a smile on every face. Once again, HTC succeeded in being a blessing to all who walked through the door. And that is the part that is rarely told.
God Never Makes Mistakes – January 2K12 WTLB
Tuesday, January 3rd, 2012
Reflecting on the past year and anticipating the New Year I was reminded of a story I read about a king who did not believe in God. However the king owned a slave who did believe in God. In every unpleasant situation that the king experienced his slave would say, “My king, do not be discouraged, because everything God does is perfect, He makes no mistakes!”
Furious and without showing any form of gratitude for being saved, the king said, “Is God good? If He was good, I would not have been attacked and lost a finger!” The king’s slave replied, “My king, despite all these things, I can only tell you that God is good and He knows “Why” of all these things. What God does is perfect. He is never wrong!” Outraged by his slave’s response, the king ordered the arrest of his slave. Later, the king left for another hunting trip, but on this trip the king was captured by savages who practiced the sacrificing humans for sacrifices. The savages took the king to the altar ready to sacrifice him when all of a sudden it was discovered by the savages that their victim was missing a finger, making the king according to them unfit to be offered to their gods. The king was released and upon his return to the palace he authorized the release of his slave, received him with gratitude and said, “God was really good to me! I was almost killed by wild men, but for the lack of a single finger, I was let go! But I have one question, if God is so good, why did He allow me to put you in jail?” His slave replied, “My king, if I had gone with you in this hunt I would have been sacrificed for you because I have no missing finger. Therefore, remember everything God does is perfect. He is never wrong!” Things and situations may have occurred in 2011 which we don’t understand why or how it could be a part of God’s plan or will for our lives, but as we enter into 2012 think on scriptures such as Jeremiah 29:11 “For I know the thoughts that I think toward you, saith the Lord, thoughts of peace, and not of evil, to give you an expected end”, and Roman 8:28 “And we know that all things work together for good to them that love God, to them who are the called according to his purpose.” Always remember God is good, God is perfect and He never, never makes mistakes! -Mother Freda Benjamim
Preparing For The Overflow
Tuesday, January 3rd, 2012
Ephesians 3:20 – 20Now unto him that is able to do exceeding abundantly above all that we ask or think, according to the power that worketh in us. II Kings 4:1-7 – 1Now there cried a certain woman of the wives of the sons of the prophets unto Elisha, saying, Thy servant my husband is dead; and thou knowest that thy servant did fear the LORD: and the creditor is come to take unto him my two sons to be bondmen. 2And Elisha said unto her, What shall I do for thee? tell me, what hast thou in the house? And she said, Thine handmaid hath not any thing in the house, save a pot of oil. 3Then he said, Go, borrow thee vessels abroad of all thy neighbours, even empty vessels; borrow not a few. 4And when thou art come in, thou shalt shut the door upon thee and upon thy sons, and shalt pour out into all those vessels, and thou shalt set aside that which is full.5 So she went from him, and shut the door upon her and upon her sons, who brought the vessels to her; and she poured out. 6And it came to pass, when the vessels were full, that she said unto her son, Bring me yet a vessel. And he said unto her, There is not a vessel more. And the oil stayed. 7Then she came and told the man of God. And he said, Go, sell the oil, and pay thy debt, and live thou and thy children of the rest. Preparing For The Overflow
The Lord reminded me that Holiness Tabernacle experienced a record setting year in 2011. Despite the never ending reports of the effects of the ongoing recession, we experienced growth. We witnessed membership growth, financial growth and ministry growth. The saints testified of new jobs, advances in their careers, graduation with advanced degrees, increases in their pay and the purchase of new homes. We even had a member testify she was given a brand new car by her daughter without even asking. I testified that the Lord healed my mother from dementia! Yes He is awesome. Through these and other examples, the Lord impressed upon me the importance of getting and keeping our minds focused on what His Word declares and not what people say around us. Stop and consider how much negativity is spoken into us each day of our lives – with little effort, it creeps into our sub-conscious and we accept it as the gospel. For example, late each autumn we begin to hear it is cold and flu season. Pretty soon we begin to expect to catch a cold. We even go to the pharmacy and purchase cold and flu medicines to “prepare” for an oncoming sickness because we were told to expect a sickness. The media or marketers tell us this person is good or this style is what everyone should have – and we believe it. However, God ordained us to live at a different level than the world. That’s why He called and ordained for us to be: peculiar people, of a royal priesthood, a chosen generation (I Peter 2:9). God never intended for His people to experience what the world does. Do you recall when the children of Israel were enslaved by the Egyptians? The Bible records that the first nine plagues sent by God impacted Egypt. However, where the Israelites lived in Goshen, the plagues never touched them. Have you forgotten how God sustained Elijah and the widow during the time of famine? Did not God bless and prosper Egypt (who opened their borders to Israel via Joseph) and keep them during famine? Did not God bless Daniel and the three Hebrew boys because they refused to eat the king’s meat? I could cite other examples, but I believe you get the point. So why do we submit ourselves to accept what the world dictates to us? Because we are continually bombarded with a message from the world that goes directly against what God says, and we buy into what the world says. Have you ever wondered why young men sag their pants and show their underwear? It’s because they have been told this is a cool style; and they believed it. Have you ever wondered why young women allow young men to call them out of their names and refer to them in a derogatory way? Because someone told them this was how they were supposed to be treated. God is not bound by our circumstances. He is not controlled by time, distance, weather or an economy. Before you think I have gone mad – I am fully aware that the world economy is in a bad state. I understand that the real estate market, the issues with our automobile manufacturers and our airline industry are all suffering. I understand that the cost of fighting two wars in the Middle East has had a tremendous drain on our nation’s coffers. However, these circumstances do not take precedence over what the Lord said about me. The only thing that can hinder the Lord working for my behalf is me! My pastor – Bishop Thomas – spoke a word in my life last year. “Brother Pruitte, as I was sitting in your pulpit and looked out the window, the Lord showed me that He was going to give you all of that property around you. He showed you building a larger church and other buildings. The Lord also told me that the only persons that can stop you are you and your wife”. I cannot tell you the number of times those words came back to my mind last year. It seemed as though every time a major project surfaced, the Lord would open doors and make ways. However, I had to keep my mind in a position to receive. In the II Kings text referenced above, the widow was in tremendous debt. It was a fact; she was behind in her bills. It was a fact; the creditors were going to take her sons as collateral. It was a fact; if her sons were taken away, she would lose her status in society. Please note, God never told you to ignore facts – but it is also a fact, God’s Word supersedes facts! Elisha asked her what she needed and she explained her situation. He then told her to go and gather all the pots she could find. Note, she had something to begin with. It’s amazing how we want God to do everything for us, and we offer Him nothing. Can’t we even offer Him praise? Or a holy life? Or a consistent prayer life? Next she instructed her sons to go to the neighbors and borrow all of the pots they would offer. Again, notice how she involved her family in their deliverance. It grieves me to see parents who never involve their children in their salvation. The children are not introduced to Christ at an early age. Even as they get older, our children that live in our homes tell us what they will and won’t do in church. Next, the Bible says when they had collected all of the pots they could (sounds as if they were aggressive in their quest for deliverance), the widow gathered her sons and the pots in their house and shut the door! What a statement! She decided to keep stuff out of her home that might jeopardize their deliverance. How much further along would we be if we shut some people, activity, thoughts, memories, music and whatever else you could think of out of our lives. Think about how many sources speak negativity and failure into our lives, and the influence it has on us. It affects our faith, our focus on God and our walk with Jesus. We need to shut it out! By now you know how the story ends. The Lord miraculously fills every empty pot with oil. Soon, she has enough oil to not only pay her creditors, but also enough for her and her sons to live. Did I tell you what the Lord showed me the empty pots represented? An open heart free of junk people deposit in us! The widow prepared for an overflow at the words of the man of God. My friends, for me this is going to be an even greater year! I am expecting to accomplish even more. You can go ahead and continue to live at the level people told you to. But as for me and my house (the Pruitte household and Holiness Tabernacle), we are preparing for an overflow from God. I pray that you will shut your mind, heart and ears to what those ungodly sources are directing your way, and prepare to receive from a God that delights in blessing His people regardless of the conditions! I pray you will have a Happy and Blessed 2012 – and I bless you in the name of the Lord! Eddie B Pruitte, Jr.
|
|||||||||||||||||
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
I now know that when Pastor Pruitte tells us that we need to be in church faithfully, it is not because he wants the seats to be filled, but it is for our own good. I had moved and started a new job and it required me to work weekends, so I was missing Sunday services and sometimes Bible study during the week. Even though I read the Bible daily, it still wasn’t enough to keep the flesh under subjection. I started back hanging out with the partying crowd and trying to fit in. God had already delivered me from drinking but because my spirit was not getting fed, the flesh took over and I started drinking again. I had convinced myself that I didn’t do it that often and I wasn’t getting drunk so it’s okay (the devil is a liar).
Despite its cold weather, the month of February is one that I enjoy because of Black History Month. Here at Holiness Tabernacle we celebrate the many accomplishments and contributions people of African descent have made to our society. Throughout the month we’ll have different programs and events to celebrate different individuals both past and present. I always marvel at the things God can do through people – despite the seemingly insurmountable odds and circumstances that are against them.
Even after witnessing the entire house of Cornelius being filled with the Holy Ghost and speaking in unknown tongues, Peter still struggled with the acceptance of gentiles. Even though Peter made the great observation that God was not a respecter of persons, the apostle Paul tells us later that he withstood Peter face to face about his behavior towards gentile Christians (Galatians 2:11). Have you ever wondered how our lives would be if salvation would have been limited to Jews? There would be no Catholic Church. Great men of God such as Martin Luther, John and Charles Wesley, John Calvin and yes, the founding father of the Church Of God In Christ – Bishop Charles Harrison Mason – would not have had an opportunity to come to Christ and spread the gospel.
I am so glad Bishop Mason held firm; if not artist such as The Clark Sisters, Fred Hammond, Edwin, Walter and Tramaine Hawkins, Andrea Crouch, The Winans, Vanessa Bell Armstrong and Dr. Judith McAllister may not have been able to exercise their gifts. We would not be blessed with what God had birthed in them.
I never really got much into the arcades when they started popping up around my old neighborhood. I was content to continue playing jacks. When my own daughters were younger, I had an embarrassing moment. I have always kept my childhood jacks in a small box in my dresser drawer. One summer day I decided to take them out and play with them on the porch; I used to be pretty good at jacks. Two of my daughters happened to come outside and see me playing with the jacks and remarked, “hey mom, what is that?” I felt so embarrassed. I could not believe that my daughters had not heard of jacks before. I felt that I had let them down by not passing on this small tradition and teaching them this simple game I played so often as a child.
Dear Holiness Tabernacle Church Of God In Christ, I am writing a tribute on Veronica Moses. I am Deion Moses. I am one out of ten of Veronica Moses’ grandchildren. My grandmother was a very nice lady, stood strong, and was a very independent person. Veronica Moses was an “on the move” person. When she was very young she could do many things and move a lot faster. Then she began to get sick and grow old. But yet her grandchildren always stood by her side no matter what. We all loved her very dearly. Whenever she needed anything, one of us was always there to help her. 
One day the king took his slave with him on a hunting trip. Along the way a wild animal attacked the king. The king’s slave managed to save the king’s life and kill the wild animal, but he was unable to prevent the king from losing a finger in the attack.
Let me begin by wishing all of you a Happy New Year!! In some ways I hate to see 2011 go – for my family and I it was a great year. In fact, for the Holiness Tabernacle family it was a tremendous year. We saw God keep His promise and He performed some pretty awesome feats through our Church. From our expanded Food Distribution ministry, to our record setting Turkey Give Away, to our contributions to the Jurisdictional Missions Department and our support for National Lay Member Rally, God tremendously blessed us. However, during Early Morning Prayer last week, the Lord seized my attention and pointed me in the direction of the theme He wants us to focus on this year. |
 |
 |
 |
Copyright ©2012 All Rights Reserved. Holiness Tabernacle COGIC. Designed by 