Amelia Church of Christ - Christian Church in Amelia, OH near Cincinnati in Clermont County

The Church of the Louisville Slugger

Ralph Thomas had a bad night at church last week. It was bad enough to land him in the hospital. The Church of the Nazarene in West Palm Beach, Florida had recently been burglarized several times. The church had lost $25,000 worth of sound equipment in this string of robberies. The members of the church were fed up with these break-ins, so they hid out in the church building, armed with baseball bats. Sure enough, around 1:00 am they heard the sound of glass breaking. Ralph Thomas had broken a window and he was armed with “burglary tools.” The church members jumped him, beat him up, and hogtied him for the police!

There is a lesson here (I think). The members of this church were ready. We can debate whether or not this was the right way to handle the situation. But one thing you can’t dispute was their readiness. They were ready to greet this visitor to their church, and they definitely left an impression on him that won’t soon be forgotten.

Ralph Thomas

We’ve had a number of new faces in recent weeks. We need to be armed and ready to greet our guests. Armed with warm, welcoming smiles. Armed with helpfulness if they need assistance finding something. Armed with selflessness, ready to give up our parking space or our seat in the auditorium. Most of all, armed with love. If we do all the right things but our guests don’t feel loved and accepted, they won’t be back. However, if the Amelia Church of Christ continues to be a place of love, our growth will continue as well.

Ralph Thomas won’t soon forget his visit to this Florida church. We want our church to leave a lasting impression as well. Only instead of inflicting cuts, bruises, and broken bones, I want us to be known as a place of healing for hurting hearts and broken lives.

Armed & Ready,
Mike

Meet the Kemps

Andy & Rose Kemp officially joined our church family on March 5th. Andy & Rose have been married nearly 8 years. Andy is a flavoring factory worker and Rose is a project coordinator. Their children are Alicia (20), Andrew (16), and Katie (14). The Kemps also love animals. They currently have 4 cats and 2 dogs.

Fun fact about Andy & Rose: They were married by Andy’s father in a picnic area at East Fork. Their attire for the occasion was matching shorts and T-shirts. They were wed in the company of just their closest family and a pile of Lee’s Famous Recipe Chicken!

Lumi-"News"

CIY MONEY DUE - April 2nd, 2006
Just a gentle reminder to all students that your CIY money ($75.00) is due this Sunday - April 2nd. If you do not think that you will be able to afford the registration fee, but you still want to attend CIY, you need to speak with Brian this week.

HELP BUILD HOPE - April 1st, 2006
On Saturday, April 1st, the students of Luminous Student Ministries will engage in a service project at Eastside Christian Church where we will build pre-fab walls for Hurricane Katrina victims in New Orleans. This event will run from 12:00 - 5:30PM. Students need to be at Amelia no later than 12:15PM on Saturday and we will return to the church at 5:30PM.

S.P.A.M. (Seriously Pondering All of the Message) - April 2nd, 2006
Our Sunday School class, "S.P.A.M.," is continuing its Revelation study. This Sunday we will enter Revelation chapter eight. Don't miss it!

MONDAY ACTIVITIES (NITRO) - April 3rd, 2006
This coming week, our Monday activities will only run until 6PM. This is due to the church volleyball team playing their next game at 6:30PM. Come out and cheer us on.

QUEST - April 5th, 2006
Quest's secondary format will launch next week. Bring your friends and let's have some fun learning about God and how He can be served in our lives.

Upcoming Events

Daylight Savings Time begins Sunday, April 2nd. Don't forget to set you clocks ahead one hour.

Walk for Life Meeting - Sunday, April 2nd, after church in the auditorium

Golden Ambassadors Meeting, Thursday, April 6th, 1:00 pm at the home of Don & Eva Bright

Christian Crusaders Egg Hunt - Sunday, April 9th, 12:00pm at the church - everyone is invited to stay for lunch and ice cream.

ACC Websites:

• www.ameliachurchofchrist.com
• www.ameliakidzone.com
• www.ameliasportscamp.com
• www.ameliastudents.com
• www.ameliasmallgroups.com
• www.mikeedmisten.com