The St. Martin's Prime Timers welcome you!

You are invited to join us each Sunday in the Payne Education Center from 10:10am to 10:50 in rooms 207-209.  Coffee and breakfast treats await you! And some good old fashioned Bible Study.

Its Our teacher for this Sunday was Prime Timer Skip Allen, leading us through the stormy waters of the Book of Job.

Prime Timers Good News

The Prime Timers Good News chicken, Henny Penny, accepts dollars so that members can bring their good news to class. Today Dr. Bill Moore gave thanks for his fiftieth anniversary of graduating from medical school. And in happy/sad news Sandy Wilkens told us her son survived a terrible accident, although he is still in considerable pain.

Living with Tragedy

Today's readings are from the Book of Job. This unique book of the bible presents some problems for people answering the three big questions:  who wrote it, when was it written and to whom was it addressed. Speculation has it written anywhere from 3 BC to 1500 BC! Most scholars believe it was written in either the Seventh or Eighth century BC. It is possible that the book has multiple authors, perhaps on for the middle part and one for the beginning and end.

The Book of Job is something like a sandwich, exposition at either end with poetry in the middle. This week teacher Skip Allen took us through the first half of the book, leaving poor Job in quite a sad state. As Skip said, next week the other Skip (Maryan) gets to put the pieces back together.

Job is a blameless and upright man, an example of God's work at its best. Satan essentially makes a bet with God that if he takes away everything God has blessed him with, Job will curse God to his face. God takes away everything Job has and Job will not curse God. So Satan suggests that God afflict Jobs body and this would do the trick. So God afflicts Job with boils and infirmities, and still he won't curse God.

The middle section of the book consists of the three friends, Eliphaz the Temanite, Bildad the Shuhite and Zophar the Naamathite, who can't believe what has afflicted Job. They engage in seven days of silence and then begin many chapters of discourse on the nature of God and suffering.

This is clearly a book of the Old Testament, with the Jewish idea that man could talk to God and reason with Him. It also heads straight for one of the major questions in religion:  why do bad things happen to good people? Skip Allen suggested that you should read the book of Job when you think things are bad in your life. 

Marty Smith then led the class in our healing prayer and Skip Allen then delivered a benediction prior to closing the session.

Prime Timers Contact names and numbers

Mentor

Rev. B. Massey Gentry
mgentry@stmartinsepiscopal.org

Leader

A view from the balcony at the new church.

The baptismal font at the back of the new church. The cover for this weighs 300 pounds!

The Lesson for Sunday, April 9th is titled "When All Seems Hopeless"

Key Verse:  Job 14:14

Focus of the Lesson:  When bad things happen, it can seem that things will never get better. How can our hope be renewed? These texts from Job affirm that, even when we feel hopeless, we can count on God to be good, just, and all-powerful.

The reading is Job 14:1-2, 11-17; 32:6, 8; 34:12; 37:14, 22. This text is from the New International Version^®.

 1 "Man born of woman
   is of few days and full of trouble.

2 He springs up like a flower and withers away;
   like a fleeting shadow, he does not endure.

11 As water disappears from the sea
  or a riverbed becomes parched and dry,

12 so man lies down and does not rise;
   till the heavens are no more, men will not awake
   or be roused from their sleep.

13 "If only you would hide me in the grave
   and conceal me till your anger has passed!
   If only you would set me a time
  and then remember me!

14 If a man dies, will he live again?
   All the days of my hard service
   I will wait for my renewal to come.

15 You will call and I will answer you;
   you will long for the creature your hands have made.

16 Surely then you will count my steps
  but not keep track of my sin.

17 My offenses will be sealed up in a bag;
   you will cover over my sin.

Job 32

6 So Elihu son of Barakel the Buzite said:
   "I am young in years,
     and you are old;
   that is why I was fearful,
     not daring to tell you what I know.

8 But it is the spirit in a man,
   the breath of the Almighty, that gives him
     understanding.

Job 34

12 It is unthinkable that God would do wrong,
    that the Almighty would pervert justice.

Job 37

14 "Listen to this, Job;
    stop and consider God's wonders.
22 Out of the north he comes in golden splendor;
    God comes in awesome majesty.

NIV®