Worship 4 Close In---Small Groups

When you get a chance to express yourself in a non-institutional way, let your hair down, be yourself and have that sense of trust that no matter what you say you'll be accepted, that is what a small group is all about. You have a group of people who let you be who you are, where you can open your heart with the issues and problems that beset your life so that give and take, challenge and correction (not criticism) love and caring make up the…

We're still pursuing the question, “What is the form of worship?” We want to dispel the notion that worship is 'going to church' to get a recharge for the life that takes place between Sunday services. In the second delving into worship I hope it was established firmly that worship is an attitude in our heart wherever, with whomever and whatever we're about. Also it was clear that we only touched the surface of personal worship since each one who reads this series has their own attitudinal…

What is the form of worship, the blueprint that gives us a handle on how we can be like Jesus in worship? Obviously the Lord Jesus is the educator. His lifetime actions show that everything He did was worship, that is, everything He did from teaching to His miracles He did was because He loved His Father. His Father was worth it, worthy of it, worth laying down His life for. He was practicing worth-ship, worship.…

Worship; Who, Why, What, When, Where and How?

We are blessed with 2000 years of history since the incarnation of Jesus, an event that has changed history. Just as three kings ventured to follow a distant star to find Him and worship Him so we too need to take a journey within and understand that worship is the elementary experience of bringing us to His feet that we may worship Him. But the currents of our surrounding culture can cause us to drift from what that means. Let's give…

In New York City the subway system runs on electrical power. You have the cars on the usual two rail wheel arrangement with an attached 'shoe' that receives power from an electrified third rail. All of the engine parts, gears and instruments depend on that received power. It's much like the old Lionel electric trains we used to get as gifts and play with as kids. You disconnect the train from the third rail and it stops. Push the transformer lever and it goes.

There is a real analogy…

How much money was blown on New Year's parties? How much time was spent on dancing, drinking and getting to the moment of midnight, the cheers, the cascading confetti, the pointed hats, the blaring orchestras and the annual reminder we are another year older and by gathering to sing Auld Lang Syne we can remove the numbing problems we left behind that evening? Perhaps, like some of us, you stayed in the comfort of home, went to bed early and got up the next day to your normal activities. I'm…

“Forget the former things; do not dwell on the past. See, I am doing a new thing!

Now it springs up; do you not perceive it? I am making a way in the wilderness and streams in the wasteland (Is.43:18-20 NIV).”

Remember this expression, “You can't see the forest for trees?” Well that's got to be applied to our preoccupation with time. We get bent out of shape by the concept that 'oh, oh, another year has past and a new one is here.' This means “time marches on” and we're trapped in…

“Forget the former things; do not dwell on the past. See, I am doing a new thing!

Now it springs up; do you not perceive it? I am making a way in the wilderness and streams in the wasteland (Is.43:18-20 NIV).”

How does this passage speak to us?

For those who understand its implications this is a new day, a new opportunity, a new time and a new place. There is a resurgent sense of the Holy Spirit and the open door to a restoration of God’s plan. Just as each Christmas…

While we have been concentrating on the Second Coming during Advent it is time we look at what it will produce in the present. It is why we continue to celebrate Christmas year after year. Because we are looking forward to Jesus returning it is that vision that gives us purpose in the present. This is what makes every next moment a living moment. Building on that expectation gives us the essence of our individuality, why we are here. It is to be like Him. When we become more like Him the…

The third part of the Blue Ridge parallel was building an accessible highway through the mountains. Here is where the vision and the planning became a reality. Here is where the idea, the organizing for the idea, the gathering of all the skills and equipment necessary actualized the idea. Here is where the idea became a hands-on day-to-day combination of all the administrative, leadership, engineering, supervising and specific tasks. Everything from project management to that guy with axe in…

The second part of the Blue Ridge parallel was putting people to work during the Great Depression. Having the vision for a highway needed planning, surveying, contractors, skilled artisans and a labor force to do the actual clearing and paving. It’s a massive wilderness to overcome. Facing seasonal changes, gathering the machinery, accommodating the needs for food, clothing and medical supplies presented an enormous challenge.

This is the same challenge the Body of Christ faces as it…

Let’s look again at the three-fold purpose of the Blue Ridge Parkway: first, preserving a way to behold the beauty of Creation for all future generations, second, putting people to work during the Great Depression and third, building an accessible road through the mountains.

Right now we will look at the first one, preserving a way to behold the beauty of Creation for all generations. The parallel here is to return humanity to its source, our Creator God. It’s interesting to note that…

“In those days John the Baptist came, preaching in the wilderness of Judea and saying, “Repent, for the kingdom of heaven has come near.” This is he who was spoken of through the prophet Isaiah: “A voice of one calling in the wilderness, ‘Prepare the way for the Lord, make straight paths for him (Mt.3:1-3 TNIV).’”

When the Blue Ridge Parkway was built in the 1930’s in Virginia and North Carolina through the Blue Ridge and Smoky Mountains, the forests, mountains and valleys were…

One thing we need to keep before us is that the Bible is spiritual history. It records the world's spiritual descent through sin and the spiritual recovery of its people through Jesus the Christ whose final judgment ends in the destruction of all that is evil. The lingering despot behind its collapse is the devil whose presence continues to assail the human heart but in a final cataclysm is eternally erased. This happens when the Lord Jesus returns.

In Advent we just need a bit of a…

One of our vacations a few years ago found us driving from North Carolina across the border into a remote part of Tennessee. As we moved toward the border we saw an increase in hillsides that had been stripped of timber. Crossing into Tennessee it became worse. It must have once been strip-mined. We arrived in a small town with buildings that looked beaten down and people actually looking as beaten as the buildings. We drove slowly down the main street, which curved to the right. I even hit…

Years ago on the Grand Ol' Opry there was a comedian named Stringbean. In his good old Tennessee drawl he'd let go a few rural wisdom remarks and end up his short skit by saying “Heart, heart, heart, heart” his voice fading to end it. Just being a good old country boy, obviously loved by all his Opry pals, led you to look forward to seeing him again. It seemed he had a warm and engaging heart.

Now shift.

I'm sure you've had the feeling when walking down a dark road that your…

In my trips to get new glasses the same procedure greets me. I'm put through a series of tests where the eye examiner probes with light techniques to determine the health of my eyes. Then a focus test is given to measure the strength of vision and a prescription is arrived at to make glasses that adjust sight to a relative 20/20 focus.

Advent is a good season to use the light of the Word to shine on our mind, heart and spirit and test their strength for spiritual insight and action.…

“We use our powerful God-tools for smashing warped philosophies, tearing down barriers erected against the truth of God, fitting every loose thought and emotion and impulse into the structure of life shaped by Christ (2Cor.10:5 The Message).”

Regardless of where a person is in mind, heart and spirit there are coping methods individuals use for self-protection. Self-protection is a product of sin. It arises out of the need to adjust to the world around us based on the fear of not…

On weekends when you go to a few of the big discount stores like Costco or BJ's there are people dressed as cooks at the end of some of the aisles preparing bits and pieces of different kinds of foods for you to taste. Their intention is to get you to buy a box or more of their product. If you like the flavor of the foretaste you'll want more. The idea is not only to get your family to enjoy it but also you might even be inspired to invite friends to share it at a party or…

The most important thing about preparation is what you are preparing for. Advent is a period of preparation for...? That's right, Jesus' return. Of course we are all getting ourselves ready for Christmas celebration at worship, family get-togethers, memories, the fireplace, the tree, carols and all the festivities that surround the expectation of the Savior's return. The last words of Scripture are, “Come Lord Jesus. The grace of the Lord Jesus be with God's people…