4
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Vol. 44 May 21, 2019 Number 19
We “Need”
Barry Kennedy
When was the last time we made such a statement? Did we really take the time to
think, whether or not, we were telling the truth? Does it matter? There are many things in
life that we truly need. Air, water, food, shelter, clothing, and companionship. The problem
is that we often substitute wants for needs. When we find ourselves trading wants for needs
it tends to lead us into the area of discontentment. Paul emphasized the need for
contentment in the Christian’s life. “But godliness with contentment is great gain. For we
brought nothing into this world, and it is certain we can carry nothing out. And having food
and raiment let us be therewith content” (1 Timothy 6:6-8). Also, in his letter to the
Philippians, “Not that I speak in respect of want: for I have learned, in whatsoever state I
am, therewith to be content” (Philippians 4:11). When we take into consideration the terms
we often use, it may cause us to reconsider our choice of terminology. What then could we
say that we need?
The word need carries the idea of necessity. Need would describe something
without which one could not live or survive. With this understanding we need GOD.
Sometimes we ask the question, “Where would we be without God?” The fact is we would
not “be” without God (Genesis 1, 2). God is the source (John 1:1-5) as well as, the sustainer
of life (Acts 17:28; Hebrews 1:3). We need God in order to have salvation. The Father
desires fellowship with His creation. The problem is sin severs that fellowship (Isaiah 59:1,
2). Reconciliation is needed for a restoration of fellowship. God’s plan is salvation through
the sacrifice of His Son (John 3:16) and this message was delivered by inspiration of the
Holy Spirit (2Timothy 3:16, 17). Therefore, anyone should easily see the need for God,
considering “all have sinned and come short of the glory of God” (Romans 3:23).
When one contemplates his true needs in life; it should not take much effort to see
that we have a real need for COMPANIONSHIP. Think about how many mistakes there
have been made by people seeking companionship. One mistake may be throwing away our
self-esteem (Genesis 1:26). Self-esteem is an invaluable disposition. Of course, one should
never confuse self-esteem with arrogance. Humility is a characteristic of true Christianity
(James 4:10); however, we are not to belittle ourselves into a state of feeling worthless,
useless, or discarded. This disposition leads one into compromising convictions for the sake
of companionship. It is true that we need companionship, but in what way? God said, “It is
not good that man should be alone” (Genesis 2:18). True, but is it really a need that
everyone be married? Paul encouraged some in the Corinthian congregation to remain
single, due to the present distress (1 Corinthians 7). Is this a contradiction? Is Paul going
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ELDERS
Mike Childers..............397-6453
Dennis Hallmark .........255-5557
Mark Hitt.....................322-0917
Bobby Lindley.............260-9193
DEACONS
Wade Bryan.................419-5552
William Harris.............416-8149
Ricky Lindsey .............255-8136
Jeff Mansel..................871-0357
Jimmy Spearman.........840-8957
Michael Wilson ...........891-0891
PREACHER
Barry Kennedy ... (931)787-7108
SECRETARY
Renee Childers
Office...........................842-6116
Fax...............................842-7091
E-MAIL
eastmaincoc38804@gmail.com
WEB PAGE
eastmaincoc.com
SUNDAY SERVICES
Worship....................... 9:00 a.m.
Bible Classes............. 10:15 a.m.
Worship..................... 11:15 a.m.
Singing or Devotional
Last Sunday of the Month
MID-WEEK
SERVICES
Wednesday Classes .....7:00 p.m.
EAST MAIN CHURCH OF CHRIST
1606 East Main Street
P. O. Box 1761
Tupelo, Mississippi 38802
“Thou shalt observe to do all that they inform thee”
(Deut. 17:10)

--article continued from page 1--
against God in letter to the church in Corinth? Not in the
least! Paul is simply stating that having God as your
companion is far more needed than that of any earthly
relationship (Matthew 10:32-39). The Hebrew writer
(Largely believed to be Paul) emphasized how that
“marriage is honorable in all, and the bed undefiled”
(Hebrews 13:4). One must not compromise self-esteem
to ever win a spouse. It should be the case that our
spouse, or prospective spouse, encourages and elevates
our self-esteem. That is the true companionship that we
need and that is the true companionship that God offers
to all who follow Him (John 10:10).
Finally, we all need FORGIVENESS. We all
find ourselves having weak moments. Temptations are
everywhere and we need not forget that those temptations
that torture us the most, stem from our own lusts that
“war in our members” (James 4:1). James said that we
are tempted when we are drawn away of our own lusts
and enticed (James 1:14). The fact that we have our own
lusts and that we often give in to those lusts, lets each one
of us know the real need we have to be forgiven. Jesus
came to make that forgiveness available to all who will
obey Him (Hebrews 5:8, 9). We need salvation (the
forgiveness of sin) because our sins separate us from the
companionship that we had with the Almighty. We need
forgiveness of sin because without it we cannot have the
true self-esteem found only in the body of Christ. John
wrote it this way, “But if we walk in the light, as He is in
the light, we have fellowship one with another, and the
blood of Jesus Christ His Son cleanseth us from all sin”
(1John 1:7). We should see in this verse how all of our
needs are met. What do you need?
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Family Fellowship
Don’t forget that our
first “Family Fellowship”
will be held this Sunday,
May 26 from 8:15-8:45
a.m. in the multipurpose
room before worship services. Everyone in the
congregation is invited to come and enjoy a brief
period of Christian fellowship before we begin our
worship services. Donuts, fruit, juice & coffee will be
provided. Come and draw closer to your church
family!
Sympathy
Our sympathy is extended to Mark Hitt & Lori
Sheffield in the loss of their grandmother, Sarah
Grubbs, on May 16. Funeral services were held May
18 in New Albany.
Ladies’ Day
The North Hillcrest congregation in Aberdeen will
host a Ladies’ Day this Saturday, May 25 with Cathy
Turner & Darlene Fears speaking on “Living Godly in
an Ungodly World” (Titus 2:11-12). Registration will
begin at 9:00 a.m.
Thank You Notes
To our church family at East Main Church of Christ,
Thank you from the bottom of the Laney family’s
heart for the beautiful plant that you sent to us in the
passing of our loved one, Jody Laney.
We feel blessed to have always had a loving
church family in our lives. We will be forever
grateful how thoughtful you have been thru the years.
You are genuine! You are wonderful! Love in Christ,
The Laneys
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Dear faithful Ladies,
Thank you so much for a wonderful Ladies’ Day. I
enjoyed it so much. The speaker, prayers, songs, food
and friendship was great. Thank Patsy for the
pineapple cake. It and all the food were good. God
bless you all, and keep you safe, healthy, and happy.
In Christian love,
Anna Yancey
Mark Your Calendar
East Main’s VBS
June 2nd
-5th
6:30—8:00 pm
Classes for all ages, including adults!

Daily Bible Reading
May 22...........................................................Job 15-17
May 23...........................................................Job 18-19
May 24...........................................................Job 20-21
May 25...........................................................Job 22-24
May 26...........................................................Job 25-28
May 27...........................................................Job 29-31
May 28...........................................................Job 32-34
Birthdays &
Anniversaries
Birthdays: Avery Gilliland (May 22), Brooke
Roby (May 22), Zan Roby (May 24), Hattie
Sheffield (May 24), Cannon Funderburk (May
25), Gail Geno (May 26), Katie Bates (May 28).
Anniversaries: Harold & Zan Roby (May 24).
Our Sick
Jean Mounce will undergo surgery again Wed. at
UAB because she has a leak. They will have to totally
redo everything again. Please keep her in your
prayers. Twinette Wallace is home following surgery
last week to correct her A-fib problems with her heart.
Evelyn McEwen (Mary Ann Wallace’s mother) and
Jill Rice (Debbie Vines’ mother) continue at the
Sanctuary Hospice House. Don Blackwell is at the
Shepherd’s Center in Atlanta. Sherry Gregory, Wanda
Bishop’s sister-in-law, has been placed on home
hospice care. Billie McNutt’s sister, Mary Starz, is
home from the hospital for now but has a procedure
scheduled for later.
On-Going Illnesses
Laverne Raper, Frankie Estes, Donny Dulaney,
Adam McCurley, Linda McCurley, Mary Jordan,
Bretta Robinson, James Goddard, Bill Goff, Tommy
Goff, James Nichols, Sheba Tuggers, Leroy Brown,
Jadon Parish, Carol Nichols, Caroline Willis, Jerry
Smith, Mitch Maclean, Lee Graham, Randy Groover,
Penny Lane Geno
Nursing Homes
Nancy Haywood, Randy Attaway, Shirley
McCarthy, Mary Southern, Veona Harris
Maywood Christian
Camp
If you have not already registered for Maywood
Christian Camp, you should do so soon! Bunks are
filling up quickly. Go on-line today and register at
maywoodchristiancamp.com.

Summer Series
We will begin another summer series on Sunday morning during the Bible class hour on
Sunday, June 2. All of the adult classes and the 9th
-12th
grade class will meet in the
auditorium from Sunday, June 2 through Sunday, August 25. This year’s topic is “What
does the Bible say about “__________.” Below is a list of topics. (The college class will
continue to meet upstairs during the summer.)
Date Topic
2-Jun-19 #3
9-Jun-19 Angels
16-Jun-19 Water
23-Jun-19 Houses
30-Jun-19 Blood
7-Jul-19 Death
14-Jul-19 Monuments
21-Jul-19 Demons
28-Jul-19 Animals
4-Aug-19 #7
11-Aug-19 Mountains
18-Aug-19 Money
25-Aug-19 Trees
Men to Serve Sunday, May 26, 2019 a.m.
Announcements..............................Dennis Hallmark
Bible Reading.......................................... Larry Long
Opening Prayer .................................... Greg Hughes
Lord’s Supper
Perry Hand & Shawn Mounce
Serve Congregation, East Side:
Larry Bates, David Bates, Stuart Childers
Serve Congregation, West Side:
Tim Davis, Zach Tucker, Lee DuBois
Lead Singing..............................................Mark Hitt
Closing Prayer..................................... Dale Dulaney
Ushers ............David Ramseyer & Jimmy Spearman
Please meet in the library by 8:45 a.m.
Sunday Afternoon
Opening Prayer ..........................................Joe Smith
Closing Prayer.............................Hunter Underwood
Lead Singing..................................... Hugh Scribner
Wednesday, May 29, 2019
Prayer................................................Jacob Kennedy
Lead Singing........................................John Mounce
Contact Wade Bryan (419-5552) if unable to serve.
The elders kindly request that men leading in public
worship wear the best dress clothes they have.
Greeters .............................. Mike & Renee Childers
....................... Bobby Joe & Brenda Lindley
Prepare Lord’s Supper—May..........................James
& Sandra Simmons
Nursery.............................Amy & Katy Beth Voyles
Pantry........................................................ Dry beans
Attendance & Contribution
Mid-Week, 5-15-19..............................................186
Sunday 1st
Worship, 5-19-19 ...............................187
Sunday Bible Class ..............................................191
Sunday 2nd
Worship.............................................201
Contribution (budget $7,900)..........................$7,593