Glorify and worship God by attending church

Statistics show that many people consider themselves Christians but have no desire to attend worship services on a regular basis. It is troubling to me that those who claim Jesus as their Lord and Savior cannot spend an hour in worship of Him on a weekly basis. 

Many churches have tried to keep up with the times by offering people contemporary services with less and less traditional worship and in that, some people have attended services who wouldn't ordinarily come. But it seems to me that people are missing the purpose of the "church." 

Church services were designed, not to please people, but to please our Creator. We are made in God's image and He has placed in each one of us a void which can only be filled with Him. That void can only be filled with worship of Him. 

It's a cop-out for people to say that they avoid church because it is filled with hypocrites. In my estimation, those who attend church regularly are there because they want to glorify God and they are being obedient servants.

When the early Christians were waiting anxiously for Christ's return, they met on a regular basis to fellowship, worship God and share the good news with one another. In the book of Hebrews, the writer addresses some concerns because some folks in the church seemed to think it unnecessary to meet. He reminded them of the sacrifice and Lordship of Jesus Christ and the importance of worship.

"Therefore, brothers, since we have confidence to enter the Most Holy Place by the blood of Jesus, by a new and living way opened for us through the curtain, that is, His body, and since we have a great priest over the house of God, let us draw near to God with sincere heart in full assurance of faith, having our hearts sprinkled to cleanse us from a guilty conscience and having our bodies washed with pure water. Let us hold unswervingly to the hope we profess, for he who promised is faithful. And let us consider how we may spur one another on toward love and good deeds. Let us not give up meeting together, as some are in the habit of doing, but let us encourage one another – and all the more as you see the Day approaching." Hebrews 10:19-25

It only hurts the "church" and those who are in need of encouragement when Christians fail to attend worship services. 

If I sound like I'm on my soap box, I guess it's because I am. For too many years, especially in the USA, too many people have wanted their names on church rolls, they want to get married in the church and they want a Christian burial, but other than showing up on Christmas and Easter, they never darken the doors of the sanctuary. 

Christians who fail to go to "church" have failed God. They have also failed their children, their fellow Christians and those who look at them as examples of Christianity. 

When I go to church on Sunday morning, I do it as an obligation to God. I'm not there to hear and critique the music or the preaching, I'm there to worship God – period. Over the years I've found that I can worship God in small congregations, in large congregations; whether singing contemporary music or traditional hymns; worship is an attitude of the heart and corporate worship is good for God to see and will uplift your heart because it affirms your beliefs and gives you an opportunity to share your heart with like-minded people.

If I've stepped on someone's toes with this message, then I guess you needed to have your toes stepped on! If I've enlightened you and placed a desire in you to attend worship services, then I'm overjoyed! God doesn't really ask much from those who believe in Christ Jesus, but He is worthy of worship; He is worthy of praise; He alone is worthy of an hour of your time each week. 

May the Lord bless all who attend church on a regular basis – may you continue to grow in grace and knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. 

Biblical teamwork

I have been thinking quite a bit about people working together as a team to accomplish a set goal. In my line of work, it's everyone working to put together a newspaper twice a week. It takes advertising people, graphic arts designers, writers, editors and finally the people who run the press to put all of the elements together for the finished product.

As I looked through my Bible this week, I noticed that there were many times that the people of God pulled together to complete a project. One of the most impressive, was when the tribes of Israel built the tabernacle according to the Lord's specifications. 

The Lord told Moses to have the people bring offerings of gold, silver and bronze; blue, purple and scarlet yarn and fine linen; goat hair, ram skins dyed red and hides of sea cows; acacia wood; olive oil; spices; onyx stones and other gems. Then God instructed Moses exactly how the tabernacle should be built.

Craftsmen of all sorts were needed to complete the task. They had a goal to reach and with each one completing their own work, the tabernacle was complete.

Their team work wasn't finished though, because whenever the Lord said it was time to move on, each tribe was assigned a specific task to disassemble and carry the tabernacle to the new location. 

There were many instances of men working side by side through battles. Some were called to march into the war zone and others were needed to carry supplies, provide food, shelter and first aid for those who endured the battle.

Nehemiah enlisted the support of high priests and the remnants of the tribes of Israel to help reconstruct the wall of Jerusalem and erect the broken gates. Those men had to accomplish the task under threat of death. While some worked on the construction, others stood behind them with their weapons ready to defend their brothers. Both jobs were equally important to get the job done.

Jesus himself built a team of 12 hand-picked disciples to assist him in the work he was doing. There were times when jealousy and anger was evident within the group, but if the team hadn't done their assigned work, we wouldn't be followers of Christ today. 

The Apostle Paul never went on a mission alone, he always took others along with him for support and encouragement. He depended on the assistance of others as he fulfilled his mission from God.

We are created to share our talents and abilities for the good of others. One of the best illustrations of teamwork is Paul explaining to the Corinthian church that the foundation of the church is Christ. The teaching he (Paul) brought to the church added to the foundation and the teachings of Apollos added a different dimension. He also explained that the church is like one body with all the members adding their own special gifts to create a healthy church.

When everyone shares their gifts, whatever they may be, and they are used in conjunction with the gifts of others, we have created a tabernacle where the Almighty God is pleased to dwell.

If you don't know what your gifts might be, ask God to reveal them to you and guide you into ways in which to share what you have to offer. 

"The man who plants and the one who waters have one purpose, and each will be rewarded according to his own labor. For we are God's fellow workers; you are God's field, God's building." 1 Corinthians 3:7-9

Heaven is for real!

This week a very learned man shared his opinion that there is no heaven. World renowned theoretical physicist Stephen Hawking claims that heaven is a fairy tale for people afraid of the dark. 

My first reaction to his claim was to pray for God to reveal Himself to Mr. Hawking and then scripture came to mind. 

The Apostle Paul told the church members in Corinth that the message of the cross is foolishness to those who are perishing, but to us who are being saved it is the power of God. He then referred Christians to Isaiah 29:14 which reads, "I will destroy the wisdom of the wise, And bring to nothing the understanding of the prudent."

1 Corinthians 1:20-25 reads, "Where is the wise? Where is the scribe? Where is the disputer of this age? Has not God made foolish the wisdom of this world? For since, in the wisdom of God, the world through wisdom did not know God, it pleased God through the foolishness of the message preached to save those who believe. For Jews request a sign, and Greeks seek after wisdom; but we preach Christ crucified, to the Jews a stumbling block and to the Greeks foolishness, but to those who are called, both Jews and Greeks, Christ the power of God and the wisdom of God. Because the foolishness of God is wiser than men, and the weakness of God is stronger than men."

Mr. Hawking isn't a believer but he is a very intelligent man. According to scripture, "the man without the Spirit does not accept the things that come from the Spirit of God, for they are foolishness to him, and he cannot understand them, because they are spiritually discerned." 1 Corinthians 2:14

Mr. Hawking is living proof that someone can be very intelligent and yet miss the whole point of eternity. How very sad that he believes that when he's dead–it's all over.

As Christians, we believe in eternal life because we believe that Jesus was truly the Messiah, that He made atonement for our sins when He died on the cross and that He was resurrected through the power of God's Holy Spirit. Jesus told us that He was going to prepare a place for us and that He would one day come back to take us there. That place is in heaven and the disciple John tries to describe it in the book of Revelation. I believe it defies description–John couldn't find the words to explain what heaven is like. 

Paul also said that God has chosen the foolish things of the world to put to shame the wise and God has chosen the weak things of the world to put to shame the things which are mighty. 

Mr. Hawking may have been somewhat right about one thing without his really knowing it. He said that people who believe in heaven are afraid of the dark. Those who have the Spirit of God within them know that God is light and we will forever be in His light when we arrive in heaven. Scripture tells us that those who don't have God's Spirit are living in darkness. As believers, I suppose you could say we have a fear of the dark, but it's less of a fear and more of a desire to live in the light of God. Those who choose not to believe in God have no fear of the dark because they are already living there, they are comfortable where they are. They have nothing to compare the darkness to.

I may be foolish in the eyes of the world, but I truly believe in heaven and look forward to the day when I'll get to see the mansion that is being prepared for me. Paul put it best when he said, "Absent from the body, present with the Lord." Amen, brother Paul!

God is a faithful provider

A quick glimpse through the Bible is our assurance that God is a God who provides. His promises tell us that He will never leave us nor forsake us and that He will provide for His people.

In Genesis 22:8 Abraham reminds his son, Isaac, that God will provide the lamb for the burnt offering. Abraham was being obedient, he was willing to sacrifice his son because God had asked him. But Abraham knew God's character well enough to know that He was able to do the impossible. Isaac was born to Abraham and Sarah in their advanced years. Their son was the result of a fulfilled promise by God Almighty.

God did provide the lamb for the sacrifice and Isaac's life was spared because Abraham was obedient. His first priority was to God.

I have been out of work now for 13 months. During that time, God has provided for all our needs. We have not lost our home, we've never gone hungry, we've had shoes and clothing and we've always had enough to pay our bills. I've seen God's provision in my life on a daily basis. Although there have been days when I doubted if we would have enough, I've never stopped believing that God heard my prayers. Last week I was asked to return to a former job and I have accepted. God has provided this job for me and I give praise Him.

There are so many ways that God provides for us. We often think of provision in a monetary or physical sense, but the Bible teaches us that God provides redemption for His people. The precious blood of Jesus Christ has provided all we need to receive forgiveness of our sins and eternal life. 

God's grace provides a way for us to triumph over temptation and enables us to stand through the trials that we encounter. 

God's love for us provides us with more than enough love to pass along to others. 

The Jewish people have called God, Jehovah Jireh, the Lord will provide. 

If you have any doubts about God's provision, open your Bible to the following verses and fill your heart with His word about provision. Read Isaiah 43:20; Jonah 1:17, 4:6-8; 1 Timothy 6:17 and 1 Peter 4:11.

Think back over the past few months–how many times has Jehovah Jireh taken care of your needs? Praise Him for His mercy and great love.

Prayer event was great

Finding 3 praise band played for us.

I just wanted to update everyone about our National Day of Prayer event in Brown County Ohio. We had a good crowd, the weather was perfect and prayers were offered for the seven centers of power!

We had a variety of music. From praise and worship, to traditional hymns and a banjo ballad!

Wesley O'Hara played his banjo.

God was glorified on courthouse square in Georgetown, Ohio last night by all who participated in the event.





God's word was read by all those in attendance and our voices filled the square with a sweet sound!


We estimate between 300 - 400 people were there for the observance! Praise God!

The crowd waits for the prayers to begin.

National Day of Prayer

Today we observe a National Day of Prayer in the United States of America. This is a day set aside to seek God's guidance and mercy for the nation.

If ever our nation needed to seek God, it is now. We have experienced growing numbers of unemployment, severe weather affecting the lives of many, increased prices for gasoline and food and wickedness seems to be spreading like wildfire.

I am one of the coordinators for the National Day of Prayer in Brown County Ohio and our task force has spent the past five months working to promote the events we have planned for today. Our main objective is to glorify God Almighty in Brown County.

We have selected people who have a heart for prayer to pray for the seven centers of power within our nation. The centers of power include: families, churches, the government, the military, the media, area businesses and schools. These are the centers which make our nation strong. Having Christians working within these centers of power is vital if we are to remain a Christian nation.

As I write this blog today, there are hundreds gathered in our nation's capitol seeking God's direction and guidance for our country. It is indeed a privilege and an honor to call upon God.

The theme for this year is taken from Psalm 91:2–"I will say to the Lord, 'my refuge and my fortress, my God in whom I trust'."

Holy God, We praise You today and recognize You as our creator, our refuge and our fortress. Your word says that You will never leave us nor forsake us and we are standing on the promises of Your word today. Amen

One of the highlights of our observance in Brown County is a simultaneous Bible reading. All those in attendance bring their Bibles and chairs and sit in the street in front of the county courthouse. At a specific time, everyone will open their Bibles and read scripture out loud–all at the same time. The entire Bible will be read by 350 people in 15 minutes. It is a moving experience and I know that it is pleasing to God's ears to hear His word read by all those present.

If you live in the USA and would like to participate in the NDOP visit this website to find an event near you http://nationaldayofprayer.org/about/find-an-event/

May God continue to bless the USA and may the USA bless God!

Focus on God for a great beginning

Women of Faith wanted to know–How do you start your day? How's that working for you?

I start my day with a cup of home-brewed Starbucks and my devotions. I use several different devotional books to help get me on the right track. I found that after awhile I get into a "devotional rut" and have started to add a little variation. 

I use a journal to record notable events and prayers for those who are in my heart but I also now pray in color on occasion. This is a wonderful way to be creative while focusing on God and praying for the needs of others. I've included a picture from my praying in color journal. 

It's really easy for me to get sidetracked while I'm praying and reading scripture so I keep a piece of scrap paper handy to write down the things that pop into my head so I can remember them and deal with them later. 

When my dog starts snoring as she lays on the floor by my chair I often break into a song of praise. My singing isn't the greatest and that usually wakes her up. God doesn't mind that my voice is creaky–He's listening to my heart.

Before I open my Bible I ask God's Spirit to show me something new, teach me what I need to learn and I often have to ask for forgiveness for messing up the day before. Often as I pray, I will hear the Spirit direct me to send someone a card or give something to someone. 

There have been days when I had to be out the door early and didn't take time for devotions, but I know that God understands. He wants my undivided attention and usually I can give Him at least a half hour of uninterrupted time. It's the best part of my day!