steele hill e-news
Friday, September 15, 2023
Steele Hill A.M.E. Zion Church
Rev. Sandra Sistare, Pastor
By definition, hope is the optimistic expectation for a certain thing to happen. As Christians, hope is our way of expressing confidence in God’s promises. It’s the part of our faith that focuses on the future and the firm belief that whatever it holds, God will keep true to his promise.
Unlike other books in the bible, the book of Psalms speaks about personal experiences. Its verses convey the author’s innermost thoughts, faith, desperation, and hope for the future. But most importantly, it teaches us about how to hold on to hope even when we couldn’t find a reason to.
So whenever you feel discouraged and feel like giving up, know that you can always find hope in the words of God. Be like King David who, in his Psalms to God, still managed to fight for hope even after going through a lot of suffering.
Psalms of Hope
Let the morning bring me word of your unfailing love, for I have put my trust in you. Show me the way I should go, for to you I entrust my life. – Psalm 143:8
I lift up my eyes to the mountains – where does my help come from? My help comes from the Lord, the Maker of heaven and earth. – Psalm 121:1-2
The Lord is my light and my salvation—whom shall I fear? The Lord is the stronghold of my life—of whom shall I be afraid? – Psalm 27:1
Sometimes we come to life’s crossroads
And we view what we think it the end.
But God has a much wider vision
And He knows that it’s only a bend—
The road will go on and get smoother
And after we’ve stopped for a rest,
The path that lies hidden beyond us
Is often the path that is best.
So rest and relax and grow stronger,
Let go and let God share your load
And have faith in a brighter tomorrow.
You’ve just come to a bend in the road.
– “Bend in the Road” by Helen Steiner Rice
Sunday School
Faith, Hope and Love
Lesson 3 - September 17, 2023 - 9:45 AM
Adult General Lesson Title: Jesus Gives God Glory
Adult Topic: Who Is Trustworthy?
Background Scripture: John 7: 14 - 24
Home Daily Bible Reading
Friday, September 15 Deuteronomy 4: 1 -14 Obedience Shows Wisdom and Discernment
Saturday, September 16 Psalm 119: 113 - 128 God, Teach Us Your Statutes
Sunday, September 17 John 7: 14 - 24 Jesus Speaks to Glorify the Father
Lancaster District Conference and Church School Convention
Thursday, Sept. 21 - Saturday, Sept. 23, 2023
Host Church: Steele Hill A.M.E. Zion Church
Schedule
Thursday, Sept. 21 - 6:30 PM - Oratorical Contest
Friday, Sept. 22 - 9:00 AM - 4:00 PM - District Conference
Friday, Sept. 22 - 4:00 - 5:00 PM - Missionary Meeting
Saturday, September 23 - 10:00 AM - Penny Brigade/Church School Convention
Little Miss Chloe Holmes is our church representative for Steele Hill. Please show your love and support by helping her bring home the title of the Lancaster District Penny Brigade Winner for 2023! Donations can be deposited in the Penny Brigade Collection Jar in the vestibule or Givelify (Envelope: Penny Brigade) Thank You, Robin Kirk & #TeamChloe
Okay Steele Hill, You Know What We Do
Large church and small church FRIENDLY competition!
The church with the largest attendance at Church School Convention will receive $200 toward a children, youth or young adult ministry project! Outline of project with follow up review of success of project and pictures required. Winners will also receive a pizza party or “Ice Cream Blast” for the children/youth at their church!
Attendance will be based on church check in/sign-in rosters from 9:45 am– 10 am at the beginning of the convention.
IMPORTANT: COVID protocols will be in place. Please wear a mask and sign in with your name, telephone number and church. Thank You!
Lancaster County School District
The Lancaster County School Board has narrowed down to five finalists for the superintendent's position. So far two of the candidates have met with the community. The other three meetings are forthcoming soon. You can watch a replay of those two candidate meetings here:
Happy Belated! September 10 Sharon Smith
Happy Belated! September 11 Nathaniel Barber, Jr.
September 15 Sanders Gabriel
September 17 Malik Zimmerman
September 19 Doris Weathers
September 19 Whitney D. Massey
September 21 Melvin Witherspoon
September 23 Fred & Renee Witherspoon
60 years after 16th Street Baptist Church bombing, "5th Little Girl" still fighting for justice
12 Years Old, Going To Church To Learn About God
Friday, September 15, marks 60 years since the 16th Street Baptist Church bombing in Birmingham, Alabama, one of the darkest days of the civil rights struggle. Sarah Rudolph Collins, a 72-year-old survivor, tells CBS News about the struggles of living with the traumatic event. CBS News' Elise Preston reports.
Still I Rise
By MAYA ANGELOU
You may write me down in history
With your bitter, twisted lies,
You may trod me in the very dirt
But still, like dust, I'll rise.
Does my sassiness upset you?
Why are you beset with gloom?
’Cause I walk like I've got oil wells
Pumping in my living room.
Just like moons and like suns,
With the certainty of tides,
Just like hopes springing high,
Still I'll rise.
Did you want to see me broken?
Bowed head and lowered eyes?
Shoulders falling down like teardrops,
Weakened by my soulful cries?
Does my haughtiness offend you?
Don't you take it awful hard
’Cause I laugh like I've got gold mines
Diggin’ in my own backyard.
You may shoot me with your words,
You may cut me with your eyes,
You may kill me with your hatefulness,
But still, like air, I’ll rise.
Out of the huts of history’s shame
I rise
Up from a past that’s rooted in pain
I rise
I'm a black ocean, leaping and wide,
Welling and swelling I bear in the tide.
Leaving behind nights of terror and fear
I rise
Into a daybreak that’s wondrously clear
I rise
Bringing the gifts that my ancestors gave,
I am the dream and the hope of the slave.
I rise
I rise
I rise.
Maya Angelou, "Still I Rise" from And Still I Rise: A Book of Poems. Copyright © 1978 by Maya Angelou. Used by permission of Random House, an imprint and division of Penguin Random House LLC. All rights reserved.
Source: The Complete Collected Poems of Maya Angelou (1994)