Church Blog (Page 5)

This Sunday I will partake of the Lord’s Supper for the 3,819th time. I vividly remember the first time I sat at His table and meditated on all that Jesus had done for me. I have never tired of that time of meditation, and communion is even more moving now than it was that first time. There are some things that we must never count as ordinary and outdated. Consider these timeless, eternal truths that are part of our soul.…

Every parent (and probably every teacher) knows what this is like. You tell your kid to do something and the immediate response is something like, “Ok, but first I’m going to do this other thing.” What’s going on in that response? “This other thing” has taken priority over whatever the child has been instructed to do. The child thinks he/she knows better than the parent and that what he/she wants to do is more important. Fortunately, kids grow out of…

As Israel’s “old” and final judge was nearing his last days, the elders of Israel gathered to Samuel and made their demands. The first thing they basically said was, “We don’t want you or your sons!” And then they laid out this directive, “Now make us a king to judge us like all the nations” (1 Sam. 8:5). Notice several things about this demand. Their timeframe for this change was “now.” They were done waiting. They wanted satisfaction to their…

Sometimes we mistakenly think of the magnitude of sins in a wrong way. We talk of “little” sins as being those which really do not “count” because they seem so innocent when compared to major blunders which only the most ungodly do. The Catholic Church even has the same view of sins which are characterized as venial and mortal sins. When one has this mindset, he struggles to figure out how eating fruit from a tree in the Garden of…

It is remarkable that we so often overlook the importance of those who are standing in the shadows. Yet their impact on the lives of all those around them can shape the future far more than those who stand in the limelight and the center of the stage. Take a moment to focus on one of the most unheralded heroes of the Bible. That person is the mother of David, the most widely known individual in the history of the…

I am not sure the first time I heard the saying, “God is good all the time and all the time God is good.” Recently, I have been thinking about these words, and they have become even more meaningful to me. May I share with you some of the ways I have been using this phrase and how it has helped me? God Is Faithful, All the Time—All the Time, God Is Faithful Throughout the Bible, there is the assurance…

Is anything too hard for God? Throughout the Bible we see story after story of the miracles of God. One of the most memorable is the story of Shadrach, Meshach, and Abed-Nego in the fiery furnace. In chapter 3 of Daniel, the Babylonian king, Nebuchadnezzar, erected a massive image of gold and commanded all of his subjects to worship it. Anyone who failed would be thrown into the fiery furnace. Soon, word reached Nebuchadnezzar that three Jews were refusing to…

As Jesus entered His last week before the cross, He entered the city of Jerusalem. Inside the temple complex, He “began to drive out those who bought and sold in the temple, and overturned the tables of the money changers and the seats of those who sold doves” (Mark 11:15). He had done this at the beginning of His ministry (John 2:13- 17), and now His “Father’s house” was being abused again. Jesus did not just show His disapproval for…

The grandeur of Israel with their renowned leader, Moses, does not end when Moses ascends to the peaks of Mt. Nebo to view the Promised Land. It does not end when God takes the body of Moses and buries it in an unmarked tomb. The reality is that far greater days lay ahead for Israel under a new leader, Joshua the son of Nun. Joshua, A Chosen Vessel The reality is that we know so very little about this great…

I remember a game I played as a child, but I am not sure what it was called. I think it was called “Follow the Leader,” where one child became the leader and whatever he did had to be exactly duplicated in all those other children who were following the leader. If he jumped, they jumped. If he turned in a circle, they turned in a circle. If he walked backwards, they walked backwards. If he did all three in…

The topic of hate generates all sorts of thoughts and emotions. Unfortunately, we are living in a culture right now that is engulfed in bitter, bitter hatred. And, as much as some might try to rationalize their hatred for certain individuals, there is nothing rational about people hating people. How is a Christian to live in this kind of environment? Too often we “get sucked in” and begin to imitate the behavior (and the hatred) that we see around us.…

What was it? Was it a health scare or diagnosis or uncertainty that grabbed you and wouldn’t turn your mind loose? Was it the sudden death of someone dear to you? Was it the dissolving of your marriage? Was it the unexpected revelation from a family member or friend that stunned your senses? You’ve been there. What was it that got you staggering a bit emotionally, mentally and even spiritually? How did you handle it? How did you get through…