Worship
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The Numbers on the Board
51. 45. 37. Have you guessed what those numbers are? They are not (as far as I know) the combination needed to open a safe somewhere. They are not winning lottery numbers. They are not any number of things you may be thinking. We could go on and on with various possibilities, but it’s probably better not to do that. They are the numbers I observed on “the board” of a small rural church building not long ago. You do know what I mean by “the board,” don’t you? It is the board that is placed in the front of many places of worship. Sometimes, it is one of two boards.…
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A Picture That Made Me Ashamed
I doubt I’m in the minority of preachers when I say that I don’t really enjoy preaching on attendance. It would seem to be just about the most basic concept of the faith; after all, it’s just showing up. However, it seems that it was an issue even in the First Century. After all, the “attendance verse” that everyone seems to know–Hebrews 10:25–even says that, back then, “forsaking” was “the habit of some.” Still, even though I mention it in sermons at times, I don’t enjoy feeling like I have to do so. It would seem that just being present should be a given for those who claim to love…
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That Was God’s Gift to Us
While our youth group was on retreat this last weekend, they had a devotional outside under the stars. I was told that it was a beautiful night and the stars were shining brightly. Our youth and family minister told everyone to look up at the sky. When they did that, a falling star raced across the sky. One of our little girls made the statement that serves as the title for this post – “That was God’s gift to us tonight.” What a precious thought from a six year old! It caused me to take pause and think about all of the gifts just like this one that we take for granted.…
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Reverence for the Father
I was blessed to be asked to speak this last weekend at the Cane Ridge Restoration Lectureship held at the North Lexington church of Christ in Lexington Kentucky. It was a great gathering of fellow Christians and the lessons were outstanding. The North Lexington congregation is to be praised for their planning and execution of this lectureship. The singing was outstanding and their hospitality was beyond measure. The theme for the lectureship was “He Opened HIs Mouth and Spoke.” Of course, the text for the lessons all came from the Sermon on the Mount in Matthew 5, 6, and 7. Each speaker was assigned one of the Beatitudes and a…
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Worshiping or Hanging Out
I was doing a little research recently about various religious groups. To be totally honest, it was not an in-depth or scholarly process, but I did learn a few things that were of interest to me. Maybe one of those things will be of interest to you. When I was looking at some information about one particular religious group, I learned that one of the expectations for their members is that they are not to cross their legs during a worship service. That practice is seen as a sign of disrespect. As I continued to read about this, I learned that, like many things in today’s world, that rule is…