Southside Church of Christ
800 Elmira Avenue
Durham, NC 27707
info@sside.org | www.sside.org
919.688.3535 STAFF
Orlander R. Thomas
Senior Minister
William A. Stephens
Minister Emeritus
D’Andrea Fanning
Director of Ministry Operations & Non-Profit
Candice P. Blount
Church Administrator
Quentella Williams
Executive Assistant
DEACONS
John Alcox
Anthony Green, Sr.
Arthur Hackney
John Mathis
Chester Mayfield, Jr.
Roger McDougal
Joe Williams
Keith Wright
WEEKLY NEWSLETTER
W E E K L Y W O R D Recognize
By RICKI FULLERDuring the very early years of my childhood life, I was tremendously/uncommonly afraid of the dark Even during daylight hours, if a room was dark, this little girl was purely terrified And, to make matters worse, it appeared that because my behavior was governed by incessant fear, my uncle recognized my fear and made it his business to exacerbate/aggravate my situation [he was 1-1/2 years my senior; we grew up together like siblings] He would see me approaching an area and would hide in a dark spot, and jump out from that spot with a loud scary voice at which time, I lost it! That was so funny to him due to the fact that I reacted the same way each and every time he did it. One would think that I would have recognized the pattern of fear which overwhelmed me so I would no longer be frightened
By the time I reached the middle years in elementary school, I learned to not live in that fear arena Truly, darkness was not an attractive environment/experience for me
Yet, I was able to function much better after heeding encouraging words from the adults around me, and from lessons in Sunday School and VBS I recognized that GOD was my Protector by my exposure to, and participating in, the ‘What I Can Circle’ that was held bi-monthly on Sunday afternoons.
Comparatively, my behaviors were similar to those of the eagle who thought he was a chicken Once he saw other territories different from the chicken coop, he was able to recognize his ability to soar above his misjudged identity/issues Thus, for many of us, we recognize our potentials for success when we are exposed to GOD, and are taught to believe in and trust Him in every area/aspect of our lives
Such teaching, usually, results in believers being pointed to the right pathways per GOD’s wisdom/guidance He devised for each individual (Psalm 119:105)
We are under the Love, Tutelage,Protection, and Guidance of our Sovereign GOD Who has plans for each of us Those plans include us releasing the prevalence of fear/ darkness/doom, and recognizing the importance of trusting and praising GOD in every aspect of our lives regardless of what may be happening (Habakkuk3:16-19) Upon recognizing His Sovereignty, Love, Faithfulness we then, are able to effectively worship Him through prayer and pleasing sacrifice to Him It turns out that our sacrifice of praise helps us revere and have faith in GOD to the extent that we tell-rely on Him for everything (I Peter 5:6-7)!
Thank You, Lord, for intimately knowing who we are and what we, each, are capable of due to Your intention when You created humans (Jeremiah 29:11-13; Genesis 1:26-31) As evidenced in Habakkuk’s declaration, You allow each of us to go through our fearful/trying times as You transform them into our ‘high places’ of spiritual growth while keeping us steady/ sturdy as we are being tried/tested!
Lord, thank You for guiding us to eventually, and always, Recognize You!
**3RD ORLANDER THOMAS
**4TH
DOROTHY HOLMAN
**5TH
JOEL BISHOP
DOCK CULVER
IRENE JACKSON
CHESTER MAYFIELD JR
**6TH
JACQUELINE MAYO
**7TH
ALVIN HESTER
LETEALIA OLIVER
**10TH
NETTIE ALLEN
LAJEANIA DIXON
KANYA STILES
**12TH
KRISTI DAVIS
ARTURO WATSON
QUENTELLA WILLIAMS
**13TH
CHRISTOPHER BURGESS
SHERMAN CARTER
ISAAC CASTRO
BRIAN SUMMERS
**14TH
CAITLIN LEGGETT
JYNELLE BEASLEY
JASPER GORHAM
22ND
YVETTE HOLDER
JAMIR LEE
JAMISON SPEED
23RD
QUENTIN GERMAIN
MALEIKA TWITTY
24TH
ALEXIS HOLLAND
BOBBY SINGLETON
27TH
MARCUS HAWLEY
CANDICE BLOUNT
31ST EVON PALMER
LORRAINE WILLIAMS
P E T I T I O N S
May 12, 2024
N N O U N C E M E N T S
Church of Christ
