Hugs ‘n Mugs by Kathy Hinds

How easy it is to take for granted our freedom to worship God here in America! As we get ready to celebrate our country’s independence, it is a great time to reflect on what a privilege it is to be able to gather together to worship our glorious God and study His infallible, living and breathing, life-giving Word! I have recently experienced two stark reminders of the significance of this privilege. The first reminder came in the form of an article I read about a young mother who was imprisoned and sentenced to death by a Sudanese court for converting to Christianity. (Our Hugs ‘n Mugs group, like hundreds of thousands of Christians world-wide, have been praying for this young woman’s release.) The second vivid reminder came in the form of a book entitled The Heavenly Man, “the remarkable true story of Chinese Christian Brother Yun,” who suffered intensely brutal persecution (not only willingly, but joyfully!) for teaching and preaching the gospel of Jesus Christ in his country—what an amazing story!Having just finished our most recent Bible Study, “The Life of Jesus in You”, a study by Pastor Rick Warren based on the “Son of God” movie, we are taking the summer to enjoy some sweet fellowship time. We went to see a couple of movies, and had our own mini “Mom’s Night Out”. In addition, we have just begun a series of five summer cooking classes. What fun we had making chicken, ham, and tuna salads, pecan rolls, and watermelon boats! We are looking forward to making 4th of July candles and pretzel “sparklers” in our next class… a “backyard barbecue”!Our next “formal” Bible study, “Children of the Day,” a study of I and II Thessalonians by Beth Moore, will begin in September. I can’t wait to see what God has in store for us!