Today was a fun way to preach a sermon. I enjoy having conversations with my father about topics like evangelism where we talk about the past as well as the present. My hope was that by including others in our "private conversation" the conversation itself might continue after the service. Hopefully, the point was made that by working together we all play significant roles in helping people come to know Jesus. While the teaching role is vital to the process, it will go nowhere unless others are involved making friends, building relationships, drawing others into their circles of acquaintances, etc....
One thing that has impressed me in the book of Acts is that no one is ever converted to Christ without another human becoming involved. You don't see angels preaching or an audible voice from the sky teaching the Gospel. For some reason God has ordered things so that the message of his son must be communicated by one human being to another. What gifts has God given you to help others come to know him?
Sunday, November 30, 2008
Sunday, November 23, 2008
Give Thanks in All Circumstances
As I have often said before, Thanksgiving is my favorite holiday. It's wonderful to have a day devoted to being with family and giving thanks to God for all his blessings. I thought today's worship service was a wonderful way for the family of God to prepare their hearts and minds for the week ahead. The singing was heartfelt, upbeat, and meaningful. We got to celebrate the wedding anniversary's of two couples who have set the bar high for the rest of us by their long term faithfulness to their wedding vows. We shared in the Word together as well as our weekly "Table of Thanksgiving" where we come each week to meet with our Lord and rejoice in his love for us. Finally, we got to join in our special contribution. We were going to announce the amount given at the end of the service but it took longer to count than anticipated. However, when the total is announced next week it will be somewhere over $50,000. May you all have a Thanksgiving Day that is filled with gratitude to God for the blessings he continually gives to us.
Monday, November 17, 2008
The End Result of Praying
After church Sunday I left to take a study retreat. Internet access is limited and I am currently sitting outside something called the "Activity Outpost" since it is not yet open and is the only place around here (Flint, Texas) that has wireless service. My fingers are feeling a little stiff and I have to keep retyping my letters! I will be studying the whole concept surrounding the Second Coming of Jesus (resurrection of the dead, judgment, Heaven, Hell, etc.). Next year I would like for us to focus our attention on Jesus' return and what that means for how we are to live in the present. I think I will preach a series with a title slightly modified from one of Stephen Covey's principles: "Living with the End in Mind."
I thought Saturday's prayer retreat and Sunday's service were just outstanding. The retreat was truly the culmination of having a year where we were devoted to prayer. We all experienced a taste of the unity I talked about in the sermon. When we unite our hearts in prayer, opening ourselves to one another and to God, we share in the unity of Father, Son, and Spirit. We were made to enjoy these kind of relationships.
Ending the sermon time focusing on the addition of our new administration deacons and the partnership we have with Hilltop, hopefully emphasized that God answers our prayers by giving us opportunity to join Him in his work. I am so thankful that He has given us the eyes to see what he's doing and allowed us to take part. I never would have thought I would see a church reorganization in such a positive light, but it has become obvious to me that what we are currently involved in will truly allow us to focus on the truly important matters instead of being continually focused on the urgent.
Well the sun is now bright, my fingers have thawed and it's time to go back to my studying!
I thought Saturday's prayer retreat and Sunday's service were just outstanding. The retreat was truly the culmination of having a year where we were devoted to prayer. We all experienced a taste of the unity I talked about in the sermon. When we unite our hearts in prayer, opening ourselves to one another and to God, we share in the unity of Father, Son, and Spirit. We were made to enjoy these kind of relationships.
Ending the sermon time focusing on the addition of our new administration deacons and the partnership we have with Hilltop, hopefully emphasized that God answers our prayers by giving us opportunity to join Him in his work. I am so thankful that He has given us the eyes to see what he's doing and allowed us to take part. I never would have thought I would see a church reorganization in such a positive light, but it has become obvious to me that what we are currently involved in will truly allow us to focus on the truly important matters instead of being continually focused on the urgent.
Well the sun is now bright, my fingers have thawed and it's time to go back to my studying!
Sunday, November 9, 2008
Powerful Praying
Two comments about my sermon that were pointed out to me more than once:
1. "Did you know that you said, 'Eat more and exercise less' at the end of your sermon?"
I knew that I said something wrong but was not sure what it was. When in doubt, my preferred option is to just keep moving forward. But thank you to the people who came and told me what I had said. Otherwise I might have never known why the conclusion to my sermon was so funny.
2. "Talking about overeating is not appropriate on the Sunday of the monthly pot luck."
There is no Sunday in America when it is appropriate to talk about overeating. I was going to save today's sermon for the U.S. national day of fasting - but realized that we have no such day on our calender.
In spite of the above, I thought it was a wonderful day. There was an encouraging prayer time at 8:15. The chorus included some of our teenagers for the first time, and sounded wonderful! We had a great visitor/new member lunch after church. And now I think I'll take an afternoon siesta before a busy evening.
1. "Did you know that you said, 'Eat more and exercise less' at the end of your sermon?"
I knew that I said something wrong but was not sure what it was. When in doubt, my preferred option is to just keep moving forward. But thank you to the people who came and told me what I had said. Otherwise I might have never known why the conclusion to my sermon was so funny.
2. "Talking about overeating is not appropriate on the Sunday of the monthly pot luck."
There is no Sunday in America when it is appropriate to talk about overeating. I was going to save today's sermon for the U.S. national day of fasting - but realized that we have no such day on our calender.
In spite of the above, I thought it was a wonderful day. There was an encouraging prayer time at 8:15. The chorus included some of our teenagers for the first time, and sounded wonderful! We had a great visitor/new member lunch after church. And now I think I'll take an afternoon siesta before a busy evening.
Sunday, November 2, 2008
Praying in Community
One cannot read the book of Acts without being impressed at the amount of corporate prayer in which the church is engaged. In fact, the two priorities of Acts 6:4 are seen everywhere in the book: "the prayer and the ministry of the word." When these are working well, things like, an internal benevolence program, can really be beneficial.
I have often wondered if the reason the church today is not impacting society the way the early Christians did, is because of the lack of attention given to community prayer. The first disciples viewed prayer as priority. They prayed as if they really expected God to do something. Prayer was for them their connection to their leader - the Lord Jesus Christ! What blessings is God holding in reserve for his people when we learn to call upon Him as they did?
I have often wondered if the reason the church today is not impacting society the way the early Christians did, is because of the lack of attention given to community prayer. The first disciples viewed prayer as priority. They prayed as if they really expected God to do something. Prayer was for them their connection to their leader - the Lord Jesus Christ! What blessings is God holding in reserve for his people when we learn to call upon Him as they did?
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