Angel Tree



Men from College Church of Christ gather at Tannon Pafford's
home after an Angel Tree shopping excursion at Target on
Monday, Dec. 3, 2012
(Photo courtesy of Jonathan Waltiere)

A holiday tradition of fun, food, and fellowship was celebrated last night when men from College Church of Christ filled the aisles of Target at Willow and Herndon, comparing toys, tiaras, Barbies, board games and even make-up! Thanks, men, for your generous and fun-loving spirits to come out on a cold December night and buy gifts for children whose parents are in prison! And, thanks, Tannon and Theresa, for your hospitality and some great tri tip sandwiches!

"Then the righteous will answer him, 'Lord, when did we see you hungry and feed you, or thirsty and give you something to drink?  When did we see you a stranger and invite you in, or needing clothes and clothe you?  When did we see you sick or in prison and go to visit you?'
"The King will reply, 'I tell you the turh, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers of mine, you did for me.'" Matthew 25:37-40 (New International Version)

Watch for a video of the shopping trip, coming soon, thanks to videographers Amanda Ellington (also our video editor), Stacy Sholes and Carolyn Ocheltree (aka Three Chicks With SmartPhones in Target).  While the men dined on tri tip, we went to In 'N Out Burger and, in the true spirit of Christmas, ate with Santa Claus and were served by a man named Jesus!

Stacy Sholes and Santa Claus
(Photo Courtesy of Amanda Ellington)

--Posted by Mama O. 

 

Great Aunt Rachel Goldman's Visit

Great Aunt Rachel Goldman from Miami, Florida
shares "family stories" about Jacob

Great Aunt Rachel Goldman of Miami, Florida, visited the Ocheltree Shepherding Group on Sunday morning, sharing "family stories", the kind you only hear when you're a real "insider".  These stories, mind you, are taken from from Jewish tradition and commentators on Torah.  They are speculations on why things really happened as they did.  We cannot prove or disprove these theories.  But, why do we listen to the Jewish commentators?  Because this is their story!  Who is better prepared to share all the inside family stories than the family itself?

 

The stories, as shared briefly in Genesis 33-36 of the Bible, are scandalous.  A young woman, Dinah, is raped by the prince of a neighboring village.  When her powerful brothers hear of the outrage, they are incensed.  They practice subterfuge, at first appearing to agree to a marriage of their sister to her rapist.  They convince the young man that he and all the men of his village must undergo, shall we say, a minor surgical procedure--circumcision.  Then, three days later, while all the men are recovering, two of the brothers attack the village and kill the rapist, and kill all the other village men, in the process of rescuing their sister and vindicating her honor.

 

Here is one fascinating tidbit, gleaned from Jewish tradition: Dinah, the daughter of Leah and Jacob, actually began life as a male embryo. Tradition states that she became a female when her mother, Leah, prayed, thus exercising judgment (din), that her sister Rachel be allowed to have at least two of the 12 sons which everyone knew Jacob was supposed to have.  At this point, Leah had six sons and each of the maidservants had two sons.  If Rachel were not allowed to have two sons, she would not even be equal to the maidservants, according to Torah commentor Rashi. (Women in the Bible #5: Dinah by Dina Coopersmith, aish.com)

 

Another fascinating tidbit, again, gleaned from Jewish tradition, is that Dinah had a child as a result of being raped, a daughter named Osnat, who was adopted by Potiphar in Egypt and eventually was given to Joseph in marriage.  (Midrash -- Yalkut Shimoni 134) Osnat or Asenath--Genesis 41:50 is the mother of Joseph's two sons, for whom the Israelite tribes of Ephraim and Manasseh are named. (Women in the Bible #5: Dinah by Dina Coopersmith, aish.com)

 

As I said earlier, we cannot prove or disprove these theories.  But, it is interesting to hear the "story behind the story" in a family.  It often helps us understand a lot of things in the here-and-now.  And, certainly, we gain from these stories a sense of a God who loves His people unconditionally and redeems them from even the worst of situations--whether of their own making or at the hands of someone else.  Rape, Revenge and Redemption.  It's all there to read about in Genesis 33-36.

 

--Posted by Mama O.

 

 

 



Reunion, Rape and Revenge

Tomorrow's lesson on the life of Jacob promises to give everyone lots to think about.  We'll talk about some deep Jewish symbolism in Jacob and Esau's reunion: a precursor to Yom Kippur, or Day of Atonement, and the Festival of Booths, or Succoth.

We will ask the question, "What changed Esau's desire to get revenge on Jacob?"  He was headed in Jacob's direction with an army of 400 men.  But their acutal reunion was peaceful and brotherly.  Why?

Then, we move right into the hot topics of rape and responsibility and revenge and bastard children.  Jacob's family life continues to be colorful and, shall we say, morally ambiguous.  Is murder justified, sometimes, or never?

Since we are dealing with all "R" words here, can "Redemption" be woven into this tale?

Come tomorrow and we'll talk.  I learned some things during my research that were eye-opening, if not downright shocking.  I'm itching to share...10:45 a.m., Room 700.

--Posted by Mama O.

A Sign of Salvation

I was driving across town on Wednesday afternoon when I looked up into the cloud-darkened sky to see the most spectacular free show. I had to simply stop and thank God for it:

A small flock of ordinary pigeons was flying back and forth in front of a partial rainbow.  The birds were all different colors, but the pure white ones, especially, stood out against the dark background of the clouds. As I looked at the underside of those white wings, late afternoon sunlight hitting them, sharply contrasting with the dark sky and colors of the rainbow, I thought of Noah. and his family, staring at the first rainbow and soaking in God's promise to them, never to destroy the earth again with water.

When I arrived home, my 17-year-old son was wiping smoke off the kitchen ceiling from a small grease fire that had started when he was getting ready to fry tortillas.  After he finished airing out the house and cleaning up the kitchen, which was unharmed, we drove to church together.  I told him about the pigeons and the rainbow.

"Maybe it was God's way of telling you that no one would be hurt in the fire today," he speculated.

Maybe so.  The ancient world was judged and destroyed by water.  The modern world will be judged and destroyed by fire someday.  But not last Wednesday.

"...long ago by God's word the heavens existed and the earth was formed out of water and by water.  By these waters also the world of that time was deluged and destroyed.  By the same word the present heavens and earth are reserved for fire. being kept for the day of judgment and destruction of ungodly men."  2 Peter 3:5-7 (New Internernational Version)

So, in the meantime, we work with God, "who is patient with you, not wanting anyone to perish, but everyone to come to repentance."  Let's keep at that job, brothers and sisters--sharing God's love with people, giving them an opportunity to repent!

--Posted by Mama O.

Kitchen fire

Last night, upon entering the house, I asked, "What's that smell?  Is someone cooking something?"  As I came down the hall into the kitchen, my 17-year-old son was kneeling on the kitchen counter, using a rag to wipe smoke off the kitchen ceiling.

The story unfolded: He had been heating vegetable oil in a frying pan on the stove to cook some tortillas.  He left the kitchen momentarily (he thought), got distracted, and returned to flames from a grease fire licking up into the air.  He got the flames extinguished, something involving a hot frying pan and a swimming pool.  By the time I arrived home, every available door and window was open, every ceiling fan was going, carpets and upholstery had been treated with Febreze and he was wiping smoke off the ceiling of the kitchen.

My first response was anger and frustration.   But, because this is my fourth son and I've learned the destructive force of unbridled anger, I held my tongue and simply gathered the facts.  Then, I went to the back of the house to gather myself together.  As I was quiet before God and myself, I stopped to realize how responsible my 17-year-old son was being--to even notice the smoke on the kitchen ceiling, much less take the trouble to wipe it off.  I also realized that there were no injuries and the only property damage was a kitchen paint job that will need redoing (but was in line to be redone this year anyway).

I also recalled a story that has haunted me for years: I walked away from a pan of bacon on the stove when that 17-year-old boy was a baby in a swing, near the kitchen.  I got distracted and returned to an extremely hot pan.  It had not yet burst into flames, but could have very easily.  I learned a lesson that day. 

I learned another lesson yesterday.  I told Andrew that story, as scary as it still is to me.  I told him, "I owe you some mercy!" I thanked him for being so responsible and reassured him that the kitchen was due for some new paint, anyway.

Let's say a big "hooray" for the lessons gleaned from God's Word and from life itself:

"My dear brothers, take note of this: Everyone should be quick to listen, slow to speak and slow to become angry, for man's anger does not bring about the righteous life that God desires.
Who is wise and understanding among you?  Let him show it by his good life, by deeds done in the humility that comes from wisdom.  But the wisdom that coms from heaven is first of all pure; then peace-loving, considerate, submissive, full of mercy and good fruit, impartial and sincere."
James 1:19,20; 3:13,17 (New International Version)

--Posted by Mama O.

Dead Faith

"What good is it my brothers, if a man claims to have faith but has no deeds?   Can such faith save him?  Supoose a brother or sister is without clothes and daily food.  If one of you says to him, 'Go, I wish you well; keep warm and well fed,' but does noting about his physical needs, what good is it?  In the same way, faith by itself, if it is not accompanied by action, is dead."

  James 2:14-17 (New International Version)

 

Perhaps a story I heard a few years ago will help illustrate the "dead faith" James is warning against:

 

A man was describing a terrible car accident that had occurred on the street in front of his house the previous day.

 

"It was awful!" he told his friend. "Two cars crashed.  There were injured people lying in the street, blood everywhere!  But, I was proud of myself.  I remembered all my first aid training, how a person should put their head between their knees to keep from fainting over blood loss--and it worked.  I tried it and I didn't faint at the sight of all that blood!"

 

To put our faith into action in December, the Ocheltree Shepherding Group is participating in a number of projects:

 

1.  Our men will shop for Angel Tree recipients on Monday evening, Dec. 3, meeting in the new lobby of the church, heading to Target at Willow and Herndon and ending with dinner at the Pafford's home, 637 Everglade Ave., Clovis.  Please RSVP for dinner by texting or calling 970-1817 or 970-1816.

 

2.  We will collect new and used clothing and toys for the Ramirez family in Firebaugh to deliver for Christmas.  The mother, Gloria, wears Women's L or XL in fleece wear, the two boys, ages 5 and 6, wear 6, 6X or 7 in boy's clothes.  The girl, age 3, wears 3T clothing.  Warm clothing and shoes are needed.

 

3.  Bake cookies to be shared with the many volunteers who work all year with Habitat for Humanity.  Cookies should be dropped off at the church office, and clearly marked for "Habitat for Humanity" by 11 a.m. on Thursday, December 13.

 

4.  We will donate wrapping paper, gift bags, tissue, tape and ribbon to the Toys for Tots gift distribution party at the Mosqueda Center on Sunday, December 23, from 5-7 p.m. and be present to help with wrapping.  Donations can be deposited in the gift-wrapped box in our classroom throughout the month of December.  Our own Ashley Henderson with Reading and Beyond has invited us to be part of the this community project.

 

These are just a few of the things we are doing corporately, as a class.  I know each of us will be doing many things individually to offer "first aid" to a world that is "bleeding out" in need of Christ's love and salvation.  Keep the faith--and the works!

 

--Posted by Mama O.

The New T-Shirts Are Here!

Back view



Front view: College Church of Christ Service Department

They are here!  If we don't have your size, we can order it, all Adult and Children's sizes are available for $8 apiece!  Orange and blue are Pepperdine colors.  Wear them proudly and join us for one of our Service Projects.  Anyone is welcome to join us and to buy one of our shirts (or a dozen!) Our next scheduled project is Sunday, December 23, 5-7 p.m. at the Mosqueda Community Center, where we will be wrapping gifts for Toys for Tots.  Please bring in donations of gift wrap, tissue and gift bags during the month of December for this project!
T-shirt orders can be made in-class or by contacting Carolyn Ocheltree on our Facebook page: OcheltreeOcheltree.

--Posted by Mama O.