Happy New Year! 2022 Here We Come!

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SECOND’S GAZETTE STAFF Nadine O. Harris, MBA, Founder/Publisher Ferrari Y. Green, Production and Design

Editors: Sharon Durall, Jaylyn Harris, Kathy Jackson Sherry Joiner, Operations and Distribution

Contributors Peggy LaBon, Lois Gaston, Jessie Anderson, Vanessa Jenkins, Vera Reeves, Betty Thomas, Felicia Dickson, Keith D. Holmes, Judy McCulloch, Donna Burke, LaTricia Brown, Lula Boyer

Photographers: Adele Davis, Jerel McLendon

Children’s Church Consultant:

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o our families, parents, children, siblings, we at Second’s Gazette wish a very Happy New Year. We hope your goals will be reached with love and peace. We pray that your year is full of everything your heart desires and that God will be with you and help you overcome all your problems.

God will always be present in your life, you are His faithful people , He will preserve you if you are true to Him. Live every minute and all situations with God, be all in.

Happy New Year!

God never said that the journey would be easy, but He did say that the arrival would be worthwhile.

Happy New Year.

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Pa

stor Chris was out on the town in the month of December.

The men of SBC, the Brotherhood Laymen League hosted the Father’s Council in an ol’ fashion backyard BBQ. Can you imagine all the wisdom, jokes and great fellowship?

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n this outing Pastor Chris was accompanied by our First Lady, Lady Heather B to a Lunch outing with the Mother’s Council.

Wisdom, insight, laughs and kind expressions were shared, and looks like a good country meal may have filled their stomachs.

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NEED PRAYER, call the church office and obtain the telephone number of the Deacon according to the first letter of your last name (See below). If your name starts with ...

A Call Robert & Jessie Anderson B Dennis & JoAnne Craig, or Betty Brown or Rodney Bough C A.G. Harrison, or Shirley Robinson, or Larry & Deborah Hayes D James Harvey or Venda Hawkins E/F Ron & Lavonne Husband or Adrienne Hurst G Minnie Mannings or Valeria Burwell or Ellen Clark H George & Tamara Lewis or Thelma Jones I/J Ellis & Thelma Johnson or Eva McLaurin or Walter McDonald K/L/N/O/T Terrence Williams or Lonnie & Josephine Stokes M Chuck Williams or Melva Hill P/Q Carrie Walker or Nadine Harris R/S Larry Willis or Oscar Woodard U/V/W/X/Y/Z

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The Laughing Pew TM

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Happy New Year to All! Recovery in Process: Step 1 I pray that everyone is dwelling in the Spirit of the Lord and is doing well in body, mind, and spirit.

Last year was one we all needed to recover from, in one way or another, so I’m dedicating this year’s Footprints to the 12 steps of recovery and their Biblical influence.

Step 1- is admitting to being powerless over people, places and situations. One thing I’ve learned is that people will do, say or be any way they want to. We have no control over their behavior; however, we do have control over how we respond. Romans 7:18, “For I know that in me (that is, in my flesh) nothing good dwells; for to will is present with me, but how to perform what is good I do not find. With that being written, how can we attempt to control someone else when our flesh is constantly challenging us?”

The second part of Step 1 is having a life that is unmanageable. Usually, it’s drugs or alcohol that causes us to have an unmanageable life. But let me tell you, there are people in the world that just do not manage well - - money, relationships, residents, and their attitudes are awful, yet not clinically insane. They just don’t manage well.

The best way to adhere to Step 1 and having a desire to change is to find someone you love, and you know loves you, that will tell you the truth about yourself, and then offer to help. People in recovery have (or should have) a sponsor to help them work through this process, one step at a time.

If you know, like me, that there are areas in your life you want to change, ask the Lord to show you who will be of assistance to you. It’s also good to have someone who practices and believes the same faith as you. I’ve found that many people in recovery have various feelings about God, Jesus, and not to mention, the Holy Spirit. So, if you’re dealing with someone outside the family of Christ, we have to be gentle and kind. Remember what Jesus did when He healed and delivered people. He did it because they needed it. He showed unconditional love.

Let’s help make the year 2022 a year of healing, helping, and service to God’s people in any way we can. You will be blessed for your efforts.

In Christ, Peggy LaBon

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73% of churched Millennials believe they are gifted at sharing their faith, but half of them (47%) think it is wrong to share the faith with someone of a different faith.

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WELCOMES DONATIONS OF ANY SIZE Please make checks payable to

Second Baptist Church Second Baptist Church Diakona Nadine Harris John P. Harris, Sr. Lady Betty G. Dillard Mother Deloris Bridges Sherry Joiner Marcus & Ferrari Green Elder Robert Craig Dr. John & Apryl Harris Diakona Larry & Debra Hayes Ophelia M. Harris Diakona Carrie Walker Mother Mary Bourne Pastor James & Brenda Walker Diakona Mother Melva Hill Diakona Lonnie & Josephine Stokes

Donations can be dropped off at the SBC Bookstore.

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Being Neighborly The last time you moved into a new community, did your neighbors welcome you? From previous moves, I fondly recall receiving smiles, handshakes, baked goods and houseplants. Because one new neighborhood included two parsonages, I wasn’t surprised to receive invitations to worship. After that, I began anticipating similar invitations, even though we had a church home. We don’t always take our new neighbors up on the offers, but knowing that churchgoers live nearby is comforting.

When a new family moves into your neighborhood, how do you respond? Does it cross your mind to invite them to worship? Maybe they’re waiting for — even needing — that invitation. To ask, you don’t need to be a pastor or a member of the evangelism committee … just a friendly neighbor.

—Julie Lee O

Lord Jesus Christ, heavenly King, thank you for bringing both Jews and Gentiles to hear your voice.

Enable us to follow your holy Word, as those from the East followed the leading of a star. Give us grace to confess your holy name. Rule us by your Spirit, so that the joys of your birth may increase in us. Hear our prayers and cries. Accept our offerings, which you yourself have given us: the gold of our faith, the incense of our prayers, and the myrrh of our contrite hearts. Deliver us from the destructive ways of sin, and lead us in the ways of peace and in the paths of righteousness. Grant us all, when this life is done, a participation in the joys of the Year of Jubilee in heaven, where we shall praise and serve you and the Father who live and reign in unity with the Holy Spirit, now and forever.

Amen.

—Wilhelm Loeh (adapted)

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Biblical Resolutions

Facing the Future

Hold firmly to your faith (Hebrews 4:14) Assemble with the saints (Hebrews 10:25) Pray and thank God earnestly (1 Thessalonians 5:17-18) Petition God for great blessings (Malachi 3:10) Yield not to temptation (1 Thessalonians 5:22)

Don’t worry about the future. Worry quenches the work of grace within you. The future belongs to God. He is in charge of all things. Never secondguess him.

Notice opportunities to serve others (Galatians 6:10) Examine yourself daily (2 Corinthians 13:5) Work diligently for the Lord (1 Corinthians 15:58)

—François Fenelon

Yearn for righteousness (Matthew 5:6) Exercise godliness (1 Timothy 4:7) Aim for sinless perfection (Hebrews 6:1) Redeem the time, living wisely (Ephesians 5:15-16 —Gus Nichols (adapted)

Turning Back

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n 1569 Holland, Dirk Willems, a member of the Anabaptist (now known as Mennonite) church, was imprisoned for refusing to belong to the state church. He escaped and was running across a pond’s thin ice when the guard in pursuit fell through. Hearing the drowning man's cries, Willems turned back to rescue him, even though it meant his capture and subsequent execution.

Four centuries later, civil rights icon Martin Luther King Jr. urged us to love our enemies by not defeating them “when the opportunity presents itself.” Eventually we’ll have chances to get back at people who misuse or gossip about us, he said. But “the meaning of love” is in not doing so. “In the final analysis, love is not this sentimental something that we talk about,” said King. “It’s not merely an emotional something. Love is creative, understanding goodwill for all [people]. It is the refusal to defeat any individual.”

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NEW YORK — Amanda Gorman is ending her extraordinary year on a hopeful note.

The 23-year-old poet, whose reading of her own “The Hill We Climb” at President Joe Biden’s inauguration made her an international sensation, posted a new work and accompanying video Wednesday on Instagram to mark the end of 2021. “New Day’s Lyric” is a five-stanza, 48-line resolution with themes of struggle and healing known to admirers of “The Hill We Climb” and of her bestselling collection “Call Us What We Carry,” which came out in early December: READ MORE: Amanda Gorman’s poetic answer to pandemic grief: ‘Do not ignore the pain’ Gorman offered an alliterative response when asked what inspired “New Day’s Lyric,” telling the AP that she “wanted to write a lyric to honor the hardships, hurt, hope and healing of 2021 while also harkening the potential of 2022.”

“This is such a unique New Year’s Day, because even as we toast our glasses to the future, we still have our heads bowed for what has been lost,” she wrote. “I think one of the most important things the new year reminds us is of that old adage: This too shall pass.

You can’t relive the same day twice — meaning every dawn is a new one, and every year an opportunity to step into the light.”

In her Instagram post, Gorman urged readers to donate money to the International Rescue Committee (https://www.rescue.org) to help those affected by the coronavirus pandemic. Instagram’s parent company, Meta, has pledged $50,000 Ref: By — Hillel Italie, Associated Press

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Then shall the King say unto them on his right hand, Come, ye blessed of my Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world: For I was an hungered, and ye gave me meat: I was thirsty, and ye gave me drink: I was a stranger, and ye took me in: Naked, and ye clothed me: I was sick, and ye visited me: I was in prison, and ye came unto me. Matthew 25:34:-36

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J

anuary 2022! A new year, new beginnings, new plans, new adventures; however, the current health news in our nation has us concerned about things that started in 2020. So how do we stay healthy with this ongoing pandemic? By remembering the things, you should not forget!

“Be careful that you do not forget the Lord your God, failing to observe his commands, his laws and his decrees that I am giving you this day.” Deuteronomy 8:11 NIV As we move toward a third year of the COVID-19 pandemic, many of us are still spending a lot of time at home to minimize exposure to the virus that causes COVID-19. Yet with all these COVID-driven precautions, new health hazards may emerge.

Isolation and being at home can elicit the temptation to eat snacks high in sodium, junk food and low-quality meals that provide instant gratification for our taste buds rather than nutrient-dense whole foods. This is a challenge for many and it’s easy to become skeptical and anxious, but there are still some things that we have control over.

What are some other things we can do to maintain a healthy and active lifestyle while the world around us has adapted to limiting exposure to COVID-19?

1. Stay connected.

Physically distancing does not mean we have to be distanced emotionally or socially. Find creative ways to stay connected to family, friends and coworkers, especially when you feel alone or sense that others might be in need. Ideas to be social while distancing or staying home include: Pick up the phone and call loved ones when you think of them.

Write letters or send cards via email or through the mail.

Send text messages with funny memes or videos with a note that you are thinking of them.

Compile a COVID-19 care package and send it to a loved one.

2. Take care of yourself.

It’s important to take care of yourself all the time, but even more so during stressful times. If you have a "full cup," you can pour yourself into things like helping and taking care of others, working, managing stress, and dealing with the everyday events of life. To fill your cup, find those things that are soothing, relaxing and important to you. Examples of self-care include:     

Take a soothing bath or shower.

Get enough sleep. Sleep plays a vital role in good health throughout your life.

Read a book, read your Bible or listen to an audiobook. There are many free options available.

Start a new hobby such as coloring, painting, exercising, cooking, baking, journaling, drawing, memorizing scripture, etc.

Write a gratitude journal of three things you are grateful for each day. Recognizing the little things, such as a surprise phone call or favorite treat, can help your attitude and reduce stress.

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3. Remember COVID-19 Safety.

Wear a mask anytime you are around people you don’t live with. It’s one of the simplest ways to reduce the spread of COVID-19.

Wash hands frequently, especially before eating, when returning home, after using the restroom, before leaving your house and after sneezing, coughing or touching your mouth. The CDC has established that washing hands is one of the best ways to reduce the spread of germs and disease. In conjunction with masks, it will help reduce the risk of getting COVID-19.

Stay home if you feel sick. Even if you don’t have COVID-19, being sick can likely mean you have a suppressed immune system, which could make you more susceptible to COVID-19 if you come in contact with it.

Maintain a 6-foot space between you and others when outside of your home.

Limit time in stores and other enclosed locations. Use online shopping and curbside pickup when possible.

4. Build and maintain a healthy immune system.

Get adequate sleep. Most adults need 7 or more hours of sleep per night.

Eat a variety of nutritious foods, including 2 ½ - 3 cups of vegetables a day, whole grain foods, fruits and a variety of plant-based proteins.

Stay hydrated by drinking adequate amounts of water each day.

Exercise regularly for at least 30 minutes a day.

In conclusion, be sure to reach out to your health care team with any concerns. Many people have put off checkups for fear of COVID exposure at treatment facilities. Generally, everyone should routinely see their doctor, dentist, and eye doctor for preventive medical care which focuses on preventing health problems from occurring. Finally, vaccines remain the best public health measure to protect people from COVID-19, slow transmission, and reduce the likelihood of new variants emerging. COVID-19 vaccines are highly effective at preventing severe illness, hospitalizations, and death. Check with your health care provider and if advised - Get Vaccinated and Mask Up.

Live Life Healthy

Jessie Anderson, RN BSN

https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/variants/omicron-variant.html https://health.mil/News/Articles/2020/05/22/COVID-19-lifestyle-tips-to-stay-healthy-during-the-pandemic

• Remember and never doubt it: With God’s help you can do incredible things. Never think down; always

think up.

—Norman Vincent Peale • A Christian should be an alleluia from his head down to his feet.

—St. Augustine • The object of a New Year is not that we should have a new year. It is that we should have a new soul.

—G.K. Chesterton • The good neighbor looks beyond the external accidents, and discerns those inner qualities that make all [people] human and, therefore, brothers [and sisters].

—Martin Luther King Jr.

Penguin “Parable” During storms, emperor penguins huddle for warmth, taking turns at the center and on the perimeter of the group. While incubating eggs, up to 6,000 male penguins have been observed clustering for shelter against the harsh Antarctic winter. Partially grown chicks gather in protective “crèches” (French for “cribs”); often surrounded by a colony of adults, these groupings ward off predators and cold.

In stormy times, humans also need supportive groups; we can’t survive alone. A church family allows us to take turns giving and receiving care. Amid social upheaval, injustice, illness, natural disaster and any loss or crisis, God invites us to gather for protection and warmth. In the church community, we support and strengthen one another and are empowered to go out again into the less-sheltered world.

Come back to Christmas When January comes along, we can continue that sense of comfort and warmth that comes at Christmas by returning to the Christmas story, which gives us two great promises: God understands you, and God can redeem you.

I encourage people to make it a point to reread the Christmas story every month, and allow Christmas to be Christmas every month. We need to keep coming back to it.

—Max Lucado, Publishers Weekly interview

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‘A NEW STAR’ Second Baptist Church Inc. Childrens Ministry (SBCCM) Directed By: Dr. John P. Harris Jr. Children’s Ministry Director

Music by: Ms. Kathleen Dantzler

FILMING PRODUCTIONS Brother Ray Johnson

2021 NEW STAR CHRISTMAS PLAY CAST King Darren Rogers, Queen Brianna Smith, Jaden Bradford, Roxanne Johnson, Royelle Johnson, Enoch Simpson Keleigh Holmes, Neveah Jones, Christopher Bourne Jr., Kaylynn Westby, Cadence Jones, Darell ‘DJ’ Jones, Andrew Valdes, JayCee Marshall, Jaylynn Marshall, MaKeo Green, McKenzie Green SBC Nursery Boaz Simpson, Keirah Holmes, Abigail Hight, Avalina Valdes, Lafayette Hight Guest Apperance by: Pastor Christopher Bourne Sr. Diakonos Larry Willis, Diakonos Ron Husband, Diakonos Ron Demps, Dr. John P. Harris Jr.

SBC TEENS TRAIN PASSENGERS & THEATER Savannah Bourne John Harris III Katherine Thomas Jaylyn Harris Nicole Matthews Tamia Walton

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Bibles, All Occasion Cards, Gifts, Children’s Books, Big Bible Cover Selection, Large Print and Extra Large Print Bibles, Life Application and Study Bibles, Children’s Bibles, Candles, Jewelry, Devotionals. Purse and Credit Card Holders Special Orders and beautiful imprinting, Gift Wrapping 2BC T-shirts, Customized Tees Wheel Chair Accessible

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