verse4today: "Be joyful in hope, patient in affliction, faithful in prayer" (Romans 12:12).
Posted on 2010-07-29 via Twitter
One of the benefits of a One Year Bible is that it leads me to very interesting stories in Scripture that I might otherwise overlook. Today I experienced that benefit in the story of Joash the king and Jehoida the priest (II Chronicles 24-25). Here are a few excerpts: "Joash was seven years old when he become king, and he reigned in Jerusalem forty years... He did what was right in the eyes of the Lord all … Read More …
"Spies who had been facing years of incarceration in the US and Russia came in from the cold (this past Friday) as they traveled in opposite directions around the globe.” Ten headed eastward to Moscow and four, who had been in detention in Russia, began journeys to new lives in the West. “The extraordinary exchange unfolded... after all 10 spies, whose deep-cover ring had been blown open by US authorities nearly two weeks ago, pled guilty in … Read More …
Not sure why, but this past Sunday I cut a page out of my sermon. Perhaps I wanted to leave time for the testimonies which followed, even though all but one were NOT planned. Perhaps I was afraid to drive the point home, afraid to offend someone. Whatever the reason, I thought the blog would provide a venue to deliver that which I failed to deliver this past Sunday. Here it is: Friends, Pentecost was the greatest … Read More …
Trinity Christian College student, Julianne Woodroof, recently wrote a poem entitled "Roots." She read it during Living Hope's May 16 gathering. You may listen to is by clicking here, and you may also read it: she is beautiful branches dripping with glossy leaves boasting blooming flowers bowed low with the weight of her beauty serene and still, glowing softly in morning springtime sun no hint of the rot that lies beneath, creeping even … Read More …
A bunch of books have been written and sermons preached about discipleship, but Joshua offers a description that may be as good as any other. One day he called out the Reubenites, the Gadites, and but half of the tribe of Manasseh. Once assembled, he encouraged them to follow the Lord with these words: "Love the Lord your God, walk in all his ways, obey his commands, hold fast to him, and serve him with all your heart and all … Read More …
In today's reading from the One Year Bible, Joshua discovers that Achan violated the covenant of the Lord. He offers Achan the opportunity to confess his sins with these words: "Give glory to the Lord, the God of Israel, and give him praise. Tell me what you have done; do not hide it from me" (Joshua 7:19). Then Achan confesses his sin and endures his punishment. My reading of that verse follows a conversation I shared … Read More …
Who names a son "Judas"? The answer is clear: No one! Yet, who names a son "Peter"? The answer is just as clear: a whole lot of people. Why would we never name a son "Judas," but choose to name a son "Peter"? Both men were apostles of Jesus Christ. Both men left all to follow Christ. Both men held positions of influence among the apostles. Both men witnessed wondrous miracles and heard amazing teachings. Furthermore, … Read More …
The One Year Bible recently brought me to the book of Deuteronomy (a book I would seldom, if ever, read without the encouragement of the One Year Bible). In Deuteronomy 5:23-27 I found these words of Moses to God's people, words by which he describes the reception of the Ten Commandments: "When you heard the voice out of the darkness, while the mountain was ablaze with fire, all the leading men of your tribes and elders came … Read More …
Just over twenty-nine years ago, I preached my second funeral as a pastor. The first was, as pastors like to say, "easy." I led a memorial service for an aged saint who died peacefully and quickly in the Lord. The second was a "tragedy" (the word we use for an untimely death), the funeral of a teenager who died in a snowmobile accident. It was during that memorial service I embraced my identity as a pastor-preacher. Up to … Read More …
The more I think about it, the more remarkable it becomes. My dad never missed a Christmas with his family. As a result, I enjoyed fifty-four Christmas Days with my father. Take a snap shot of each Christmas day in my life and you will find my dad (as well as my mom). He never missed one with me, nor I with him - until this year for my dad passed away on April 26, 2009. A fifty-four … Read More …
This past Sunday my sermon series - His Journey. Your Life. - brought me to Luke 4:14-30, where we find Jesus going home to Nazareth to speak in the synagogue on Sabbath day. All began well enough. Jesus stood, as was the custom when reading scripture, and opened a scroll to Isaiah 61:1-2, where he read these words: "The Spirit of the Lord is on me, because he has anointed me to preach good news to the poor. He has sent … Read More …
The creation stories in Genesis 1 & 2 of the Bible teach us many basic truths, including this one: we were created to live as communal, not solitary, creatures. Created in the image of a Triune God who enjoys eternal fellowship, we were created to enjoy relationships with other human beings. Toward that end, God has graced our lives with a variety of relationships, including friendships. Years ago author James Sparks, in his book Friendship After Forty, identified … Read More …
Our Father in heaven, what shall we render to You for the Gift of gifts, Your own dear Son, begotten, not created, our Redeemer, Substitute. Herein is wonder of wonders: He came below to raise us above, was born like us that we might become like Him. Herein is love; when we cannot rise to Him, He draws near on wings of grace, to raise us to Himself. O God, take us in spirit to the … Read More …
Many people want God but aren't so sure - or are real sure - that they don't want the local church. That's understandable. Carlo Caretto, the great Italian spiritual writer, spoke for many of us when he wrote these words: "How much I must criticize you, my church and yet how much I love you. How you have made me to suffer and yet how much I owe you. I should like to see you destroyed and yet … Read More …
Why pray? I tried to answer that question in my sermon this past Sunday. In that message I offered five reasons to pray, though given time, I would have added one more to the list. So, here are my six reasons to pray, although I am guessing there may be more: Because prayer is natural for human beings created in the image of a Triune God. As St. Augustine said better than anyone: Our hearts are restless until they … Read More …
I came across The Marks of God's Children by a sixteen-century Dutch Calvinist pastor named Jean Taffin, who wrote during a season of persecution upon Protestant Christians in that part of the world now known as the Netherlands. This book, which reads like a pastor's manual, offers encouragement to believers wrestling with the tough questions of the faith: Why suffering? Where is God in all this? Why hasn't God answered my prayers? How can I be assured that … Read More …
From time to time, I come across writings that prompt fear about preaching, like Jeremiah's words to the prophets kicking around Jerusalem: "I did not send these prophets, yet they have run with their message; I did not speak to them, yet they have prophesied" (Jeremiah 23:21). Then, in words which suggest things haven't changed much over the last 2,500 years, the Lord says through Jeremiah, "I have heard what the preachers say who speak in my name. They say … Read More …
A friend recently pointed me to The Holy Longing: The Search For A Christian Spirituality by Ronald Rolheiser, a contemporary Roman Catholic author who writes for those followers of Jesus who struggle with following Jesus. In this book, Rolheiser, among other things, writes about the current struggle with spirituality, as well as some of its essentials. In the process, he pens a chapter entitled "A Spirituality of Eccesiology." In this chapter, he speaks to my situation as the pastor of … Read More …
Can't seem to get past what seems to be a contradiction between the desire of many pastors to count the number of worshipers each Sunday (coupled with the requirement by many denominational agencies to report attendance) and the story of King David counting his army. In I Chronicles 20:1 we read, "Satan rose up against Israel and incited David to take a census of Israel. So David said to Joab. the commander of the tropps, 'Go and count … Read More …
H2O: At some time in your academic training you learned that H2O may appear in three different forms: water, ice, or vapor. You also learned that it can only appear in one form at a time; that H2O cannot simultaneously be both ice and water. You also learned that the three aspects of H2O share essential attributes, like hydrogen and oxygen, but also hold distinguishable characteristics that allow us to identify one form of H2O as water and another as ice. THE CHURCH: In the New … Read More …
Pop recording artist, Burt Bacharach, wrote a love song subsequently recorded by Dionne Warwick, Luther Van Dross, and others. It’s title is a play on words with keen insight - "A House Is Not A Home." The words go something like this: "A chair is still a chair even when there is no one sitting there, but a chair is not a house, and a house is not a home." If a house were a home, … Read More …
During the last half of the 20th century in America, the evangelical church became big business and its congregations became supermarkets dispensing religious goods to hungry consumers. Local congregations opened their doors seven days a week, inviting members and guests to participate in any number of programs, from Bible studies to aerobics. The increase in programs required more staff; more staff required more money for salaries; more money for salaries required higher offerings; higher offerings required more people in the pews; more people in … Read More …
If you witnessed the inauguration of Barack Obama as our 44th president, either in person or through the television, you are mostlikely proud to be an American. We live in a country where the peaceful transition of power is expected, and where an outgoing and an incoming president embrace one another with sincere affection. We live in a country with meaningful traditions which link us to the past while we enter the future. We live in a country where people of color … Read More …
A few years back, Stephen Covey published his incredibly popular Seven Habits of Highly Effective People, a self-help book now published in 34 languages. The success of Covey's book has led to copy cats like Seven Habits of Highly Effective Parents or Teens or Freshmen or Consultants or _____________ (you fill in the blank). This past week, while preparing for my "Hope for the Home" series of messages, I ran into an unusual copycat: Seven Habits of Highly … Read More …
“Rejoice with those who rejoice,” wrote the apostle Paul (Romans 12:15). It sounds simple enough, but it not always as easy as it sounds. Sure, if we share a common experience it’s pretty easy. A mother, for example, may easily rejoice with a first-time mother by drawing on the memories of her joy when she gave birth to her first child. And we can even rejoice with those with whom we share a vaguely … Read More …
Interestingly, I did not read those words in a book on contemporary Christian worship. "Don't Mess With The Organ" formed the header of an article in the November 10 issue of the Chicago Tribune, an article about the Chicago Black Hawks, one of the “original six” teams in the National Hockey League. The heart of the article dealt with the sites and sounds of a National Hockey League game at the United Center. One of the sub-titles … Read More …
While some may not take advantage of the opportunity, planting a new congregation allows for careful evaluation of every idea for a new ministry or initiative - BEFORE launching it. As a person who never grows tired of asking "Why," I find this opportunity envigorating. So, when asked about the launching of a particulate ministry, I counter with a simple question - "Why?" Take a ministry as prevalent and popular as Sunday School, which is a relatively modern ministry, … Read More …
Over the last 100 years, nearly every industry has experienced significant change. Take the ice business as an example. My grandfather was an ice man. It was a good job for a dependable man who loved hard work. In the early years of his business, he delivered blocks of ice (like the man in the picture). Early in the morning, he went to the ice house, loaded his truck with 300 pound blocks of ice, and … Read More …
Welcome to the Web site of the Living Hope Church, a new congregation that gathers weekly in the southwest suburbs of Chicago. If you have been thinking that the next chapter in your spiritual journey includes a deeper relationship with Christ’s church, then you may want to check us out. We’re not for everybody, but we may be just right for you. And when you come, we pledge to meet you right where you are at … Read More …
"Faith, hope and love remain, but the greatest of these is love." Perhaps you have heard those words. They come from the pen of the apostle Paul and are recorded in his first letter to the Corinthians (13:13). Recently, I landed on that verse as I was developing a lesson on hope for what matters in life. That verse prompted a simple question in my mind: "How do I distinguish between faith, hope and love?" While … Read More …
And I am not referring to winning the World Series; that's but a dream. I am not referring to the fact that the Cubs sent eight players to Major League Baseball's annual All-Star Game: Geovany Soto, Kosuke Fukudome, Alfonso Soriano, Carlos Zambrano, Kerry Wood, Ryan Dempster, Carolos Marmol, and Aramis Ramirez. I am referring to the fact that those eight players hail from six different countries. There was one Cub each from Puerto Rico, Japan, Venezuala, … Read More …
This past week I heard a great story about an American Christian couple living in Lithuania contemplating adoption. God had blessed this couple with three biological children but, through their volunteer interaction with a local orphanage, the couple wondered if God would have them provide a loving home for one or more additional children. As they prayerfully considered this option, they concluded that they would adopt another child, but, then, they couldn't decide whether to adopt … Read More …
In Engaging with God: A Biblical Theology of Worship, author David Peterson summarizes one message of the Old Testament prophetic books: "These deal with the introduction of pagan ideas and practices into Israelite worship, or the attempt to worship other gods whilst still claiming to serve the Lord...." (pg 45). Reading those words I could not help but think about an experience this past Independence Day week-end while worshiping as a guest in an American Evangelical … Read More …
I bought into it - hook, line and sinker. I am referring to the 7/24 model of church life which proposes that the church, like a gas station, be open for business seven days a week, twenty-four hours a day. In this model, we measure congregational vitality by the number of cars that drive in and out of the church parking lot each week, and also by the number of volunteers corralled to sustain the ministries … Read More …
Can't think of another time when I preached with a child in my arms, but it happened this past week when Olivia made her way to me during the weekly gathering of Living Hope Church. What else could I do? Send her away? And what message would that haven given? So, I picked her up, held her, and continued to speak. Now as I look back, with the benefit of a photo, something about that experience … Read More …
Living Hope Church intends to be a multi-ethnic community of Christ’s followers who develop and enjoy community shaped by Scripture. That dream, however, is a strategy, not a goal. Our goal is to partner with our Triune God who is about creating a people with representatives from every tribe and nation. Toward that goal, we have adopted the strategy of multi-ethnicity, one we believe possible because of our location in an ethnically diverse community, but only … Read More …
While God the Father heard the prayer of God the Son and through God the Spirit graced us with a sevenfold unity (Ephesians 4:4-6), we must still work at maintaining unity. The big question then is "How?" In many settings, the answer to that question is that unity comes through uniformity. In other words, unity comes when everyone acts the same, thinks the same, looks the same. In such a setting, individuals who wish to become … Read More …
The emerging "Living Hope Church" gathered for the third time this past Sunday afternoon when 50 people, representing several "tribes and nations," came together in the dining hall of the Chicago Christian High School (Palos Heights, IL) for a "providential feast" (the calvinist version of "Pot-Luck Dinner"). After a great dinner, we enjoyed a time of worship which culminated with the Sacrament of the Lord's Supper. The evening also included teaching on unity with diversity. Here's … Read More …
It has been observed that Jesus talks about money more than any other subject. I wonder if the apostles write about the communal life of believers more than any other subject. They get at that subject in many ways, such as comparing the human body to the church (I Corinthians 12, Romans 12, Ephesians 4). They also seldom miss an opportunity to call believers to improve their relationships with "one another." In fact, a fun and … Read More …
This past Sunday, 53 pioneers gathered on the campus of Trinity Christian College to pray and think about the emerging Living Hope Church, a suburban, multi-ethnic congregation in the Calvinist tradition with dreams of embodying four specific goals: passionate worship, relevant teaching, authentic community, and dynamic partnership with God. Each one of those goals holds its own set of challenges. In the coming weeks, we will look at each one of them. Last Sunday we … Read More …
Last night I met with 50 people in the Van Namen Recital Hall on the campus of Trinity Christian College in Palos Heights to talk, sing, pray, and dream about a vision for a new kind of church in the southwest suburbs of Chicago. We had a great night. During our time together, which included Pastor Karen Williams (photo) leading us in worship, Pastor Pagel Williams leading us in prayer, Darryl Petty and the band … Read More …