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ORSHIP
The Kings Mountain Herald
June 15, 2006
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The other day I received a
copy of a denominational
news magazine that I read on
aregular basis. On the inside
I found a rather unflattering
photo of myself, accompa-
nied by an article about my
family and me. The editor of
this periodical is a new
friend, who came to visit
with me and talk about how
dealing with my son's
Muscular Dystrophy has
affected my ministry. I
thought it was a nice gesture
to be interviewed about this
topic, because I believe that
all of us are affected by the
challenges that we face.
Yet, I also believe that our
daily challenges can be
affected by the way we
choose to look at them.
About fifty years ago, a
British minister began to feel
very uncomfortable. This
particular minister was rela-
tively young and very active
physically, so it surprised
him when he began to expe-
rience discomfort in his
throat. Of course, any minis-
ter who happens to make a
living by using his or her
voice would feel frightened
with the sort of discomfort
that this minister was feeling.
Unfortunately, the discom-
Left to right, Eleyna, Philip, Andrew and Michelle D'Angelo
after the pre-school
graduation ceremony held at
Resurrection Lutheran School.
Soldier comes home for
daughter’s graduation
from Resurrection Lutheran
Eleyna D’Angelo will
never forget her pre-school
graduation; her father came
from Afghanistan to be
there.
Staff Sgt. Philip D'Angelo
with the 228th Signal
Brigade, from Spartanburg,
SC was able to secure leave
to allow him to be home in
time for the June 6th gradua-
tion at Resurrection
Lutheran School. He was
scheduled to leave Kabul on
Monday, May 29th, but
because of a lock-down fol-
lowing the recent riots in
Afghanistan, he was unable
to leave the city for 48 hours.
On Wednesday, he was
able to obtain passage to
Bagram; however, upon
arrival, his flight was can-
celed. The next part of his
journey sent him to Qatar
where he would be placed
on a stand-by flight to
Kuwait. Finally, on Sunday,
June 4, he boarded a flight
that brought him home to
North Carolina in time for
the graduation.
+ While on leave, in addition
to Eleyna’s graduation, his
family will also celebrate
their son Andrew’s christen-
ing and his first birthday.
Andrew was 10 weeks old
when SSG D’Angelo’s
deployment began.
This year’s class at
Resurrection is unique in
that two of the children have
fathers who are deployed
with the United States Army.
In addition to Staff Sgt.
D'Angelo, SGT Mark Smith
is stationed in Iraq with the
505th Engineering Battalion.
SGT Smith, whose son
Maverick also graduated
from pre-school, was able to
return on leave earlier in the
spring.
During weekly chapel
times the children have
prayed for their fathers, and
the others in the class have
prayed for their families.
The June 6th graduation
marks the fifth year that the
pre-school has been open.
During the ceremony, which
was held at 6:00 pm, four-
teen students received their
send-off to kindergarten.
As a ministry of
Resurrection Lutheran
Church, the school seeks to
provide high quality pre-
school education in a
Christian setting. Special
attention is paid to preparing
the children for kindergarten
and providing them a posi-
tive school experience. It
was obvious at the gradua-
tion that these children are
quite prepared for continu-
ing their education.
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and
fort wasn’t limited
to the minister's
throat, for in just a
matter of months he
began to notice that
he was tending to
drag one leg. His
doctor’s diagnosis
correctly revealed
that the minister
was suffering from
a progressive dis-
ease that caused his muscles
to atrophy. Regretfully, the
doctor told his patient that
his life was wasting away,
that he would soon find that
he could no longer walk or
use his arms, and that he
Jeff Hensley
Meditation
would eventually
no longer be able to
talk or swallow on
his own.
It was a ter-
rible blow, but the
pastor determined
that he was going to
be courageous and
put the time he had
left to good use, so
he worked furious-
ly. He wrote articles for reli-
gious publications, he wrote
books on the spiritual life,
and he helped organize
prayer groups throughout
his native England. And
when friends and others
offered him sympathy, he
would reply, “I'm only in the
kindergarten of suffering.”
As time passed, the minis-
ter lost more and more
strength until he could no
longer use his legs and was
unable to talk, but he was
still able to hold a pen and
write a few words. Then
came the season of Easter,
one of the most holy times of
the Christian year, and this
pastor knew in his heart that
this would be his last Easter,
so he took his pen in hand
and wrote down his inner-
most feelings. Included in
this writing was a remark-
able expression of faith that
went like this: “It is terrible
to awaken on Easter morning
and have no voice with
which to shout, ‘He is risen!’
But it would be still more ter-
rible to have a voice and not
want to shout.”
Though it is a frightful
thing to watch loved ones
suffer, it is truly inspiring to
see suffering believers who
continue to see their suffer-
ing through the eyes of faith.
Jeff Hensley is pastor of
Kings Mountain Baptist
Church.
Michael Casey Short ordination service
held Sunday at Second Baptist Church
Michael Casey Short was
ordained as a minister of the
gospel through the Southern
Baptist Convention during a
special service Sunday at
Second Baptist Church,
Kings Mountain.
Short has been an active
member of the church for 17
years. Pastor Lynn Crouch
presided over the service,
attended by church mem-
bers, family and close
friends.
Short shared his testimony
and call to the ministry, both
of which occurred at a young
age. He said it was at the age
of seven, that, during an
annual Vacation Bible
School, he accepted Jesus
Christ as his Lord and Savior.
Soon afterward, he spoke of
a call to the ministry that
would grow stronger with
time.
For the past 13 years Short
has been an active partici-
CHURCH BRIEFS
People Baptist Church,
1010 Groves St.,, Kings
Mountain, will hold
Vacation Bible School June
17 from 9 a.m.-5 p.m. There
will be classes for all ages,
including adults. For more
information call 704-739-
0398.
People’s Baptist Church,
1010 Groves St, Kings
Mountain, will have a spe-
cial Father's Day service
Sunday, June 18 at 11 a.m.
Speaker will be Layman Fred
Mitchell of Shiloh Baptist
Church, Shelby. For more
information call the church
at 704-739-0398.
Macedonia Baptist
Church, 1101 S.
Battleground Avenue, Kings
Mountain, will hold
Vacation Bible School June
25-30 from 6:30-8:45 pm. The
theme is “Trading Places -
Where Jesus Made a World
of Difference.” Rising
kindergarten through sixth
graders are invited. A nurs-
ery will be provided for
workers. For more informa-
tion call 704-739-6811.
Blessed Nations Church’s
Pastor Care Team will host
Pastor Noah J]. Gingles’
birthday celebration on
Saturday, June 24 at 6 pm at
Landmark Baptist Church
Family Center in Shelby. The
guest speaker will be
Overseer Terry Clark, Senior!
Pastor of Christ Harvest
Church, Charlotte. For more
information and to RSVP by
June 19 contact Sister
Cruceta Jeffeirs 704-481-0737
Peoples Baptist Church,
1010 Groves Street, will host
the third annual Gathering
June 19-23 at 7 p.m. nightly.
This is a gathering of the
faith-based believers of
Cleveland County. The com-
munity is invited to attend.
New Bynum’s Chapel
A.M.E. Zion Church, 213 N.
Cansler St., will host a health
awareness program Tuesday,
June 20 at 7 p.m. in the
Family Life Center. Dr.
Austin Osemeka will speak
on “Common Lower
Gastrointestinal Disorders.”
The program is free and the
public is invited.
Refreshments will be provid-
ed and door prizes will be
given. For more information
call 739-9586, 739-2606 or
730-0027.
VO
U
pant in the youth program
and has served on the staff as
Youth Minster since 2004. He
has accepted the position of
Minister of Music at Calvary
Baptist Church in Roanoke
Rapids, NC, effective June
25,
Short attributes his life and
ministry to “the hand of God
working through ordinary
people that were willing to
reach out and show me the
love of Christ.”
Eugene Curry won this lawn mower during a recent
drawing at Kings Mountain Chevrolet.
HOW TO REACH US
Contact the Herald at P.O. Box 769, Kings Mountain,
28086; call 704-739-7496, fax 704-739-0611 or Email gstew-
art@kingsmountainherald.com
IN
DECEPTION
Fact vs. Fiction: Your Guide to the Truth
Answering the Questions Everyone is Asking
First Wesleyan Chinn
505 N. Piedmont Ave.
Kings Mountain, NC
June 17th at 7pm the public is welcome.
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