Assembly date: November 15, 2009

We extend a warm welcome to all of our members and guests today! If you are visiting, we invite you to fill out one of the white Communication Cards located in the rack on the back of the seats, and place it in the collection tray as it is passed, or hand it to one of our greeters at the Welcome Center in the Atrium. If you would like help in selecting a Bible class to attend this morning, information for youth and adult classes is available at the Welcome Center. Information for children’s classes is available at the HIS KIDS desk in the North Foyer, just outside the Auditorium.

Assembly Order • November 15, 2009
Worship Leader: Val Durrington
Come, Let Us All Unite to Sing
Welcome and Greeting
The Love of God

Family Concerns ~ Mary Lee Mattis
Pastoral Prayer ~ Jack Rich

Blessing of Clifton Wayne Hyatt,
son of Jason and Randi Hyatt

John 3:16 ~ HIS KIDS
Jesus Loves Me
Love Divine
How Great Is Your Love
The Lord’s Prayer

HIS KIDS Worship for 3 - 5 Year - Old Preschool Children
Blessed Be Your Name

“Indiscriminate Love” ~ Randy Harris
The Greatest Commands

Welcome to the Lord’s Table
Luke 14:15-24 ~ Sarah Frazier and Riley Fisher
Thoughts and Prayers ~ Dana Hood
More Like You
Oh, To Be Like Thee

Tithes and Offerings
Sack Sunday Announcement ~ Jim and Lana Trietsch

Forever
Benediction ~ Randy

Speaking next Sunday, November 22, ~ Joe Almanza

“Saying thank you is more than good manners. It is good spirituality.” ~Alfred Painter

“Rejoice in the Lord always; again I will say, rejoice. Let your gentleness be known to everyone. The Lord is near. Do not worry about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God. And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.” ~Philippians 4:4-7

“Gratitude ... goes beyond the ‘mine’ and ‘thine’ and claims the truth that all of life is a pure gift. In the past I always thought of gratitude as a spontaneous response to the awareness of gifts received, but now I realize that gratitude can also be lived as a discipline. The discipline of gratitude is the explicit effort to acknowledge that all I am and have is given to me as a gift of love, a gift to be celebrated with joy.” ~Henri J. M. Nouwen

THE DISCIPLINE OF GRATITUDE
In one of his Sunday morning sermons, Rev. Jerome D. Cooper reflected on the inner state of ingratitude: “Maybe it's our husband or our wife who is constantly working, blessing us and doing things for the sake of the family and for us, and we just think that is the way it is supposed to be. We expect it to happen and so we lose our thankfulness. We no longer see our spouse as a gift, but as an appendage that ought to be there. In fact, sometimes we might even think that we deserve more. A better wife, a better husband, better children, better parents, better friends, a better job, better pay, a better life. We think we deserve more and so we end up being completely unthankful and ungrateful for what we actually do have, because our expectation is that we ought to have more and better.”

Gratitude or ingratitude, it is not just a momentary emotional stance but a way of living and seeing. Thankfulness does demand our intentional care, but it is not simply a fleeting state of consciousness (or the basis for a holiday in November) but a spiritual discipline. It is a framework for seeing the world and perceiving its beauty. Gratitude or ingratitude has deep roots in our moral framework, they live or die in the soil of our most basic suppositions: “I deserve happiness.” “My family will always be here.” “All the things I have in my life are not items I have earned but gifts I have been given.”

In this way, being thankful is not simply the product of us being an optimistic or pessimistic person. Instead, it is a stance of appreciation for life’s grandeur and opens us to a maturing spirituality.

CONGREGATIONAL CARE MINISTRY
The Highland Prayer Ministry meets each Monday from 12:00 noon to 1:00 p.m. in the Prayer Room located on the north side of the building, next to the Playground. To leave a prayer request, call the Prayer Ministry Request Line at 672-3151. If you would like to have a loved one’s name placed on the Highland Connection prayer list, please contact Beth Reeves at 673-5295.

COMMUNITY MINISTRY
November 21: Freedom Fellowship Praise and Prayer Service
November 22: Thanksgiving Offering Sack Sunday
December 6: Christmas Blessing
December 10 - 12: The Christmas Store

Christmas Store Toy and Gift Drive 2009 Continues: Decorated Christmas boxes are available in the Atrium for your donations. Gifts are needed for all ages, children and adults. Suggested gift items include toys, bikes (all sizes), games, bath products, tools, electronics, watches, movies, music CD's, jewelry, children's books, and gift certificates to Wal-Mart, HEB and Target. If you would like to donate bicycles, please contact Joe Almanza at 669-1661 or jalmanza@highlandchurch.org to make arrangements for pickup. Reminder: Please bring gifts unwrapped and with the price tag attached if possible! Donations will be received through Wednesday, December 9.

FaithWorks is in need of additional volunteers to provide complete healthy lunches for November and December. If you would like to help, please contact Becky at 692-7658 or balmanza7@sbcglobal.net. Open dates include November 17, 24; and December 1, 2, 8, 9, 10, 15, and 17.

Freedom Fellowship will host a traditional thanksgiving dinner at the monthly Praise and Prayer Service on Saturday, November 21. Turkey and dressing will be provided. Please bring side dishes to share with neighbors and friends. The meal begins at 6:00 p.m. followed by the worship service from 7:00 - 8:30 p.m.

ADULT FAITH MINISTRY
SUNDAY MORNING UPDATE
Celebrate Jesus is a small class community for those who need support for hope and recovery from addictions. Joe and Becky Almanza lead this class in Room 106, located next to the Welcome Center in the Atrium.

Fiftysomething.com in Room 110 continues a series entitled, In View of God’s Mercy, led by Terry Pope.

Living in the Promise is a class for singles and couples of all ages that meets in Room 205. Tim Sensing continues teaching a study of II Corinthians.

WEEKDAY GROUPS
Tuesday Ladies Bible Class: Coffee and visiting begin at 9:00 a.m. and Bible studies begin at 9:30. Childcare will be available in Room 113, off the South Foyer. There are three class options: The At His Feet class, led by Lisa Wiggins, continues the Beth Moore study on Esther in Room 207. The General Class continues a series on “Living Faith,” led by Ann Lewis in Room 111. The Quilting Class is led by Martha May in Room 109.

Christians in Recovery: This small support group, led by Andrea Gette, meets on Wednesdays at 7:00 p.m. in Room 103.

Wising Up is a three-week video series by Beth Moore from the book of Proverbs. The series concludes this Monday at 7:00 p.m. in Room 207. Each video is 90 minutes and the study does not include a Participant’s Guide.

CAMPUS MINISTRY
Our Sunday Morning Gathering meets at 10:30 a.m. upstairs in Room 207 as we explore the book of Exodus. Join us as we grow in love for one another and for those in our community.

3D MINISTRY
ATTENTION DADS: The West Texas Girls Conference needs you! When the conference ends TODAY we need your help with clean-up. We have lots of decorations to take down and your help will be appreciated more than you know. When you pick up your daughter or even if you do not have a daughter at the conference, meet at 11:30 a.m. this morning at the Teague Special Events Center on the ACU campus, to help us clean up. The more help we have the faster we will get done! Thanks!

HUNGRY? Are you hungry for the Word? All high school students are invited to join Dava Lynn Sullivan and Sarah Campbell at 1201 Cedar Crest Drive TODAY, from 4:00 to 5:00 p.m. We will dive into the Word and some yummy dessert. We hope to see you there!

Middle School Muddle: We will be having our 2nd annual “Turkey Bowl” TODAY from 4:00 to 6:00 p.m. at the ACU Bowling Alley. Please bring canned food to donate and $3.00 to cover the cost of bowling.

Highland Praise Night: All Middle School and High School students are invited to the Highland Praise Night TONIGHT from 6:00 to 7:30 p.m. at the building.

HIS KIDS MINISTRY
HIS KIDS Worship: Pre-school children, ages 3 - 5, will meet this morning in Room 113, just off the South Foyer. Bring your child to be part of this time designed especially for preschool children!

Wednesday Night: First through fifth grade will meet in Room 112, across from the church offices. All other children’s classes meet in their regular classrooms.

Daughter/Mama PajamaRama: All girls, ages 3 years through 5th grade, and their moms are invited to this fun-filled evening. Join us this Friday, November 20, from 6:00 - 8:00 p.m. here at Highland. Wear pajamas and enjoy this night with friends, games, crafts, service, food, and lots of fun. Cost is $7.00 per person (scholarships available). Please RSVP to Summer at swalters@highlandchurch.org or 673-5295.

For Twos Only: Childcare is available for all two year-olds during worship. Younger Twos meet in Nursery E, off the South Foyer, and the Older Twos meet in the 2’s classroom, downstairs in the North Children’s Wing.

Nursery care is provided each Sunday in the attended Nursery Suite off the South Foyer. The Mom’s Nursery and Family Room are available for infants and toddlers accompanied by parents or grandparents.

HIGHLAND PRAISE NIGHT
Everyone is invited for a great time of praise and worship to our Lord tonight at 6:00 p.m. in the Highland Auditorium. Please come and join us for this time of worship and prayer.

PRISON MINISTRY CHRISTMAS SACK BLESSING
If you were unable to sign Christmas cards to the inmates last Sunday, a table in the Atrium will be set up once again this morning. This is a very simple way of blessing these individuals who have no opportunity for a traditional Christmas celebration and it is more special to them than you can know.

Come to see the Invisible Children Presentation this Wednesday from 7:00 – 8:00 p.m. Adults and university students meet in the Auditorium.

UPCOMING SUNDAY MORNING SPEAKERS
November 22…………………………Joe Almanza
November 29 ………………………Jeff Childers
December 6…………………………Randy Harris

HIGHLAND: GOD’S HELPERS
Congratulations to the Highland Church of Christ men's softball team, which captured the second consecutive Fall Church League title with a 21-15 victory over Pioneer Drive Baptist Church Green on Monday, November 2. The Highland team, which playfully calls itself HGH (Highland: God's Helpers), finished the Church 2 fall season with eight wins and two losses. Team players include Brandon Stover, Stephen Shewmaker, David Pittman, Ryan Quidley, Corey Patterson, Nathan Sanders, Jonathan Sharp, James Mayo, Garrett Sublette, Ryan Ware, Blaine Martin, Steven Rizzotto, Jeff Campbell, and Mark Lavender.

DWELLING IN THE WORD
Sunday: Psalm 96, 97; Acts 28:14-24; Luke 16:1-13
Monday: Psalm 99, 100; Revelation 20:7-15; Matthew 17: 1-13
Tuesday: Psalm 98; Revelation 21:1-8; Matthew 17:14-21
Wednesday: Psalm 101; Revelation 21:9-21; Matthew 17:22-27
Thursday: Psalm 105; Revelation 21:22 - 22:5; Matthew 18:1-9
Friday: Psalm 102; Revelation 22:6-13; Matthew 18:10-20
Saturday: Psalm 103; Revelation 22:14-21; Matthew 18:21-35