EVENTS
--The Maplewood church of Christ will be holding our Eighth Annual Gospel Singing on Friday, April 4 at the Maplewood Community Center.
--5TH Minnesota Bible Lecture, May 17, 2008. View web site here.
PRAYERS
C. Reynolds from Indiana is having skin cancer removed this week.
Keep the ladies who are pregnant in your prayers.
GOD GIVES HAPPINESS
From the Times Online comes news that: "The new generation of antidepressant drugs work no better than a placebo for the majority of patients with mild or even severe depression, comprehensive research of clinical trials has found."1 This news has got to make you a little sad and a little mad. If it's true, people have a right to be mad for being scammed. It's sad because a lot of people are depending on the medicine. Apparently, some people get some relief from these meds. But there are studies to show that people are helped by the placebos too. And one study on placebos, found that more expensive placebo "meds" were more effective than the less costly ones. A 10-cent pill doesn't kill pain as well as a $2.50 pill, even when they are identical placebos, according to a provocative study by Dan Ariely, a behavioral economist at Duke University.2 Can you figure that one out? To say the least, there is much that is not known. In the meantime, there are a lot of lonely, sad, anxious, fearful, angry, worried, and even suicidal people who are just learning that the drugs work no better than do the placebos. And the placebos don't have side effects.
The Apostle Paul says that God promises to give you peace that surpasses comprehension and it will guard your hearts and minds in Christ Jesus, Phil. 4:6ff. The word "peace" means "one, quietness, or rest" according to Strong's. Our world tries to explain every malady as a chemical imbalance, but surely God has some help for these things. Christians should not forget or doubt that real happiness is from God. The church is not in the drug business. It is in the business of pointing people to "the God of peace", the true source of happiness and peace. The world is not going to what God can give; that's the job of church and of individual Christians. God is getting little credit for the true happiness that most Christians enjoy. God knows the key to happiness and joy. Knowing God's promises and being able to cast our worries on Him is a source of true strength. We need to be encouraging people to read their Bibles, to pray, and to give thanks to Him. He cares for you. Think about good stuff. Make the choice to focus your mind on positive things like the promises of God's salvation. Hang around godly people and find someone who you can confide in. Think on what is good, right, just, holy, and decent and pray to God about these things with thanksgiving. Read Philippians 4:6-10 and meditate on those words. Come to church and get involved. Look for a chance to serve and help someone and then give God the glory for it. God is going to bless you and make you happy.
This map indicates the general location of visitors to our site in the last three weeks. There were multiple hits by most. For example 30 from the Pennsylvania visitor. The cropped map doesn't show the visitors from India, Ivory Coast, Germany and other places around the world. Some of these are looking for the church in Owatonna.
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1. "Depression drugs don't work, finds data review"
WHAT MUST I DO TO BE SAVED?
Lesson 1: Our Eternal Salvation
Lesson 2: God's Warning
Lesson 3: Eternity
Lesson 4: Our Sin Problem
Lesson 5: The Nature of God
Lesson 6: Christ Has Paid Our Penalty
Lesson 7: The Grace of God
Lesson 8: Thinking Back
Lesson 9: Doing God's Will
Lesson 10: Believe in God and in Christ
Lesson 11: Repentance
Lesson 12: Confessing Christ
Lesson 13: Must We Be Baptized To Be Saved?
Lesson 14: Must We Be Baptized For the Forgiveness of Our Sins?
Lesson 15: The Cleansing Blood of Christ
Lesson 16: Becoming a Child of God
Lesson 17: Baptized Into Christ
Lesson 18: Obedience To The Gospel
Lesson 19: Baptism Is Immersion
Lesson 20: Infants Are Not Lost
Lesson 21: Man Is Not To Change What God Says
Lesson 22: The Lord's Church, Part A
Lesson 23: The Lord's Church, Part B
Lesson 24: The Lord's Church, Part C
Lesson 25: Summary