Moms Connecting with Moms

When: 2nd Thursday of each month
Beginning September 11th

Time: 9:00 - 11:30 am

Where: The Attic - DeSoto Hills Baptist Church

Mission: Common Ground is for moms of all ages to connect with each other while celebrating the joys of motherhood in a Christ centered environment. Our desire is to encourage women in their roles as wives, mothers, friends and most importantly, children of God.

Nursery is provided.

Please sign up on the bulletin board located by the nursery check-in.

If you have questions, we have answers. DeSoto Hills continues to be a work in progress. It seems almost daily we are making changes to our present ministries or creating new ones to meet the ever-increasing needs of this congregation. However, in the midst of all this fine-tuning and jump-starting, there are some bedrock principles that do not change. They are foundational and they help us keep our spiritual equilibrium in a world that seems to be whirling out of control. Discovering DeSoto Hills is a four-session study designed to help you understand what makes us tick. We cover a wide variety of topics that I pray will not only be educational, but inspirational. It is an on going class that I teach and repeat every four weeks. Each session is really independent of the others so you can join us at any point and just keep coming until you finish all four sessions. Discovering DeSoto Hills is a part of our regular Wednesday night schedule. We will be meeting at 6:30 in room M215 (2nd Floor).

Standing on a Firm Foundation,

Bro. James

P.S.
Our regular Praise, Prayer, and Proclamation service resumes on September 3 at 6pm. This short service is designed to offer a time of fellowship, worship, prayer, and devotion prior to going into our small groups. Don’t let the size fool you. We may only spend 30 minutes together, but we try to make it a very meaningful time. We will pick up our study in the Psalms on the 3rd. See you there.

Experience has taught me that the Lord can teach us the most extraordinary lessons in the midst of the most ordinary settings.  His classroom is big - really big.  Class is always in session and there are numerous lessons to be learned for those who are paying attention.  I was reminded of this several weeks ago when I had a WOW moment while doing a menial task.   It was a Sunday night and I was tidying up the Grand Hall before the service.  It had been a busy day and the place was kind of cluttered.   While others were standing around visiting, I decided to remove an empty folding table that had been used earlier in the day, but was now taking some of the grandness out of the Grand Hall.  I flipped it on it side, folded the legs up and proceeded toward the back hall, half dragging and half carrying the table.  Just as I reached the hallway door, I heard a small, but clear voice say, “Do you want some help, Bro. James”?   I turned to find one of our 6^th grade boys eager an d waiting lend a hand.  As we moved the table down the hall, my WOW moment hit me.  This young man volunteered to help me because he is growing up in a family of “helpers”.  His parents, by example, have taught him and his siblings the meaning of serving others.  They are all workers.  Give them a job and it will be done right the first time.  If they are not assigned a job, they will be doing whatever they can to help out.  I looked out the door last Sunday and saw this young man’s dad sweeping off the sidewalk.  What I love about this family is not just what they do, but how they do it.  They work with a smile on their face and a spring in their step.  How about you today?  What are you passing on to the next generation?  If others are going to follow your example, what course are you laying out for them?

School is in Session,

Bro. James

It may be a well-worn cliché, but that does not make it any less true.  Time really does have a way of flying by.  In only a few short months, DeSoto Hills will celebrate her 2^nd birthday.   From the outset, we designed our Wednesday night activities a little differently in order to do a better job of discipleship.  We want to take the Lord at His word when He challenges us through the Great Commission to not only reach the world for Him, but also teach the world to follow Him.   Wednesdays have become a prime time for us to do just that.  Although our commitment remains the same, in September we are making some changes.  Our mid-week activities are taking on a new name with a new logo.  We call it 365 because He calls us to follow Him daily.  We hope to give you a wee kly experience that will help you in this daily endeavor.   We are also adding new classes that are designed to help you walk with and for the Lord in a more productive way.  Perhaps  the biggest and probably the most popular change we are making to Wednesday night is the new addition of FOOD!  Starting in September we will be serving a meal from 5:15 until 6:00 in the MPC, followed by our Praise, Prayer, and Proclamation service at 6:00 and our classes at 6:30.  I hope you will make a new commitment to make DeSoto Hills your Wednesday night place to be.

A Fellow Pilgrim,

Bro. James

It is a Lewis family tradition. Each year around the end of July, we head south to participate. It is a date we put on our calendar early and if at all possible, try to guard against any other conflicts. I go for only a day or two, while Kathy normally tries to stay a few more. I was introduced to this week- long event some 30 years ago when I met Kathy and with very few exceptions, have been attending ever since. Somehow, if you miss it, your summer seems a little cheated. What is it that faithfully draws so many to a hot and dusty (or muddy, if it rains) corner of our state each summer? It is none other than the Neshoba County Fair, appropriately nicknamed “Mississippi’s Giant House Party”. It is a fair complete with exhibits, rodeos, a midway, shows, and FOOD! But what sets this fair apart from others is the cabins. Row after row of them line every available inch of the fair grounds and have been owned by the same families for years. They st arted out rustic and some still are, but many have been renovated or replaced over the years to provide all, if not most, of the comforts of home. Kathy’s mom is from Neshoba County, so we have a family cabin to enjoy each summer. The old cabin her grandfather built years ago was replaced in recent years with a more modern three-story version with enough sleeping quarters to house a small army. Not much privacy, but that is part of the fair experience. It is that word “experience” that leads me to my point for this week’s nook. You cannot explain the fair - you have to experience it. This is also true with the Christian walk. We can talk until we are blue in the face, but until people step out by faith to experience the Lord, they will forever “miss out”. The fair is also a place that you want to experience with family. If you do not know anyone there, or have some connection with a cabin, I’m not sure it would be worth the drive, time, or money to go to these fairgrounds. DeSoto Hills is a family and I trust today that we are helping folks feel connected. It makes all the difference.

Ponderings from Cabin 90,

Bro. James