Saturday, September 21, 2013

You are a Shining Christian Light!


     Hope everyone had a good week this past week.  It’s Saturday evening and I’m just now writing by blog for the week.  The Razorbacks just blew a big league against a team in New Jersey.  Well, it’s football.  There’s a winner and a loser in every game.  I do like winning.  The Enola Church of Christ is doing well.  We have had a busy week with several of our members participating in the Faulkner County Fair in Conway.  I enjoyed watching them with present their animals for the competition.  There were plenty of ribbons, buckles, and congratulations to be handed out.  Hard work and dedication always pay off.  Sometimes the payoff is a ribbon, a buckle, an award, and even a college scholarship.  At other times the payoff is simply the feeling of accomplishment you have when you know you did your very best.  To every Christian who let their light shine this week at home, at school, at work, or in the community where you live; thank you and God bless you.

     Our lesson in the morning (Sunday, 22nd) is entitled “The Facts of Life – Hell is Real and How I know.”  I know this is not a topic that any of us are particularly interested in, but hell is a real place and will one day be the eternal home for those who do not know God and to those who have not obeyed the gospel of Jesus Christ.  You can read this in 2 Thessalonians 1:7-10.  Either the Bible is right or wrong.  I believe that the Bible is truth.  Was Jesus mistaken?  Was Jesus wrong?  Was Jesus deceiving us?  Was Jesus lying when He spoke of hell?  Well, if hell is not real, what can we conclude about Jesus?  No.  Jesus was not mistaken.  He is not wrong.  He isn’t deceiving us.  He is not lying.  He is the Way.  He is the Truth.  He is the Life.  No one comes to the Father except through Him.  You can read this in John 14:6.

     Jesus asks every Christian to love others as He loves us.  You can read about this in John 13:34-35.  Just how did Jesus show and share His love.  How does He love?  On Sunday evening we are thinking about how Jesus loved and then asking ourselves if we are loving the way He loves.  I want to love like He does.  He is our Shepherd.  We are following Him.

     I love Wednesday evenings at the Enola Church of Christ.  After Monday, Tuesday, and Wednesday at work, don’t you need a boost to your faith, hope, and love?  I certainly do.  And Wednesdays at Enola is just what I need.  We meet at 7:00 p.m. for only an hour.  We sing a few songs together.  We mention those who are need and pray for them.  We read the Bible and study it together.  On the last Wednesday in the month we have a “singing.”   I know how it is.  After a long day of work, it is sometimes hard to find the energy to get home just in time to head out for Bible study.  Believe me, when you do, you’ll find that your decision will be rewarded with a stronger faith in God, a deeper love for Jesus and your fellow Christian brothers and sister, and a happy heart.  Come out and see.  You’ll be so very glad you did.

     Hey!  How about a trivia question for you to research and answer every blog?  We have a Bible trivia question every week at Enola.  I’ll include it in my blog.  Here it is.  I hope enjoy it.  I’ll include the answer in next week’s blog.

A certain man ran for his life.  He slept under a tree. He prayed.  He ate two super nutritious meals.

Who was he?

Why was he running? 

What kind of tree? 

What did he pray for? 

When was the next time he ate?

Tuesday, September 10, 2013

Are you sleeping well at night?


     The days are flying by.  September 10th and still almost 100 degrees up in the country.  I hear that cooler weather is coming our way.  I’m ready.  Aren’t you?  We had another great day this past Sunday (8th) meeting with fellow Christians and guests (139) studying the Bible, remembering Jesus in communion, honoring God, and having our faith strengthened in worship.  I hope you are putting first things first.  God should always be first in life and living.  Life is simple.  We are the ones who complicate things.  We want too much.  We try too hard.  We make mountains out of molehills and molehills out of mountains.  We often say “Yes” when we should say “No.”  Then we say “No” when we should say “Yes.”  We speak when silence would have been so much better.  We are silent when a word fitly spoken would have been so right.  Now be honest.  Just how much of our precious time do we spend “surfing?”  You know what I’m talking about.  It could be “channel surfing” or “internet surfing.”  What about Facebook, Twitter, or Ebay?  Note that I wrote the word “we” rather than “you.”  It could be that couples forget how to communicate with each other because…really…how can two people communicate with her on one computer or Nook or IPad or IPhone and him on another all while the TV is noisily booming in the room.  What would happen at your house if you turned everything off, the TV, the computer, the cell phone (at least silenced it), the videogames, and any other electronic device.  When was the last time you heard silence.  What would you do?  Would you think to pray?  Would you look, actually look at your husband or wife, or at your children to love them and appreciate the beauty of the people around you, the people who love you and whom you love?  Would you think about God?  How blessed you are?  It could be that this is exactly what you and I need to do to clear our minds and our lives of all the clutter that makes life so complicated.  Try it.  Don’t be afraid.  Not too long ago I was in my office and had one of our Christian brothers stop in for a little advice.  He told me that he wasn’t sleeping very well at night.  He said that it took him several hours to get his mind settled so he could sleep and even then his sleep was often restless.  I asked him what he did just before he retired to bed.  His answer was his problem.  The last thing he did before he retired to bed was watch the evening news.  Now don’t get me wrong.  We need to stay informed about the world around us.  I suggested that he watch the morning news or maybe the early evening news and then before retiring to bed that he rest his thoughts on what is most important in life.  To me I often think of my grandchildren.  I think of Saturday’s soccer game when my seven year old grandson scored five (That is right) five goals.  I was there and enjoyed every moment of the game, even though it was 99 degrees in the shade.  I think of my eight year old granddaughter who just lost her second front tooth.  The image of her big smile will forever be etched in my mind.  I think of my 3 years old granddaughter has she rushes into my arms all the while yelling “PopPop, PopPop, you love me so much.”  Now that is the way to retire to bed at night, thinking of the precious, priceless, most important things in life.  As you can see, I sleep very well every night.  Sin always stands in the way of our peace and happiness.  This coming Sunday morning our sermon series will continue on “The Facts of Life.”  We have already looked at two facts of life; Life is Short and Eternity is Long.  This week we will look at Fact #3 – Sin is Terrible.  Sin IS terrible.  Sin will take you further than you wanted to go.  Sin will keep you longer than you wanted to stay.  Sin will cost you more than you were willing to spend.  When you are ready to let go of sin, sin is not ready to let go of you.  When you or I look at sin, we see power, prestige, position, or pleasure.  When God looks at sin, he sees His Son hanging, dying on the Old Rugged Cross.  Oh, that we would realize just how terrible sin really is.

Enough for tonight.  Know that Jesus Christ is the answer to sin.  John 3:16-17 is so simple and so wonderful.  I am a Christian.  Please think about becoming a Christian too.  It’s not complicated.  People complicate the plan of salvation.  God simplified it.  Believe in Jesus Christ.  Repent of your sins that have caused you so much trouble.  Confess Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior, the Son of God.  Be baptized into Christ, immersed in water so that sin will be washed away. 

Monday, September 2, 2013

Singing or Playing?


     Hello from up in the country, Enola, Arkansas and the Enola Church of Christ.  We had another great day this past Sunday (1st) with 137 assembled together for Bible study, fellowship, and worship.  Everyone seemed to be excited to be back into the “old school” routine.  After all, it’s September!  Gary Beeson did an outstanding job directing the service as we sang psalms, hymns, and spiritual songs with melody in our hearts to God.  We always sing this way; in spirit and in truth, without a piano or an organ, without guitars, percussion, or any other mechanical instrument of music.  We specifically choose to worship God this way.  Why?  Well, when I read the Bible I find that Jesus and the disciples sang a hymn (Matthew 26:30).  You will not find a place in the Bible where Jesus ever played an instrument or was in a service where instruments were played or commanded or even inferred that mechanical instruments of music could be used in worship.  When Paul wrote to the Christians in 1 Corinthians 14:15, he mentioned singing.  He wrote, “What is the conclusion then?  I will pray with the spirit, and I will pray with the understanding.  I will sing with the spirit, and I will sing with the understanding.”  Very simple.  Paul once again writes about singing in Ephesians 5.  In verse 8-10 he writes; “For you were once in darkness, but now you are light in the Lord.  Walk as children of light (for the fruit of the Spirit is in all goodness, righteousness, and truth), finding out what is acceptable to the Lord.”  Did you see that?  Finding out what is acceptable to the Lord…”  Now read chapter 5, verse 17. “Therefore do not be unwise, but understand what the will of the Lord is.”  Read that again.  Is anyone interested in this modern day of ours what the will of the Lord is, or what is acceptable to the Lord?  In verse 19 we can read about singing, not playing instruments.  In his letter to the church of Christ at Colosse we see that Paul once again wrote about singing.  In chapter 3, verse 15 he writes, “And let the peace of God rule your hearts, to which also you were called in one body; and be thankful.”  One body!  Of course we know that the “one body” is the church that Jesus built (Ephesians 1:22-23).  The very next verse (16) Paul writes, “Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly in all wisdom, teaching and admonishing one another in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing with grace in your hearts to the Lord.”  Once again, let me ask:  Did you read about any instrument of music?

     I realize that King David in the Old Testament loved instruments of music and included various mechanical instruments of music in temple worship.  We no longer live under the authority of the law, the prophets, the psalms, or the proverbs.  We live under the authority of Jesus Christ.  He has all authority (Matthew 28:18).  God has spoken to us today not through the law or the prophets, but through His Son, Jesus Christ (Hebrews 1:1-2).  When Jesus was transfigured in the presence of Peter, James, and John in Matthew 17, Peter said to Jesus, “If You wish, let us make three tabernacles; one for You, one for Moses, and one for Elijah.”  Note what happened next.  God spoke from heaven and said, “This is My beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased.  Hear Him.”  Did you catch that?  Who is it we are to hear today?  Moses?  No.  Elijah?  No.  Jesus.  Absolutely.  James wrote about singing in such simple terms.  In James 5:13 we read, “Is anyone among you suffering?  Let him pray.  Is anyone among you cheerful?  Let him sing psalms.”

     Believe me.  I understand that mechanical instruments of music can create much excitement and can be played in such a way or in such combinations that our emotions can be moved to tears or to great joy.   Just think about it though.  When it comes to what we do when we meet together for worship, who are we trying to please or impress:  People?  Ourselves?  Or God?  I also understand that some people are very talented when it comes to playing the piano, the guitar, the drums, or other instruments.  Play these instruments at home, at school, at work, or for your pleasure, but when the church comes together to worship God, let us put aside these things and our own desire to be seen and heard and applauded in order to worship Him in the way that pleases Him.

     This coming Sunday (9th) we will continue in our series “The Facts of Life” and think about how long eternity is.  Yes.  Life is short.  And eternity is mighty long.  Our suffering in this short life cannot be compared to the peace and joy we will experience in heaven forever.  On Sunday evening we will have a very special guest preacher; Brother Bill Cline with Truth for Today.  May God bless us as we put Him first in life and living every day.