CSI: Easter

Easter is huge! Next to Christmas, Easter is the most celebrated holiday in the world. There is a good reason why so many people celebrate Easter. Historians and theologians have never come to a satisfactory conclusion for the reason the early church began celebrating Easter. Some evidence seems to suggest that Christians held the first Easter celebrations to differentiate their celebration of the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the Jewish celebration of Passover. Other evidence suggests that Emperor Constantine, desiring to promote Christianity and marginalize pagan activity, Christianized a pagan festival celebrating the earth's transition into spring.

As I said at the beginning, there is a good reason why so many people celebrate Easter the answer is Jesus Christ. While the origin of Easter may be in doubt, the reason for Easter is apparent, Christians desired to proclaim from highest height and in the loudest possible way the good news that Jesus Christ had risen from the dead! Scripture does not command us to celebrate Easter as a religious obligation however; scripture does allow us to celebrate such holidays. Paul writes to the Roman Christians,

"Who are you to judge someone else's servant? To his own master he stands or falls. And he will stand, for the Lord is able to make him stand. 5 One man considers one day more sacred than another; another man considers every day alike. Each one should be fully convinced in his own mind. 6 He who regards one day as special, does so to the Lord. He who eats meat, eats to the Lord, for he gives thanks to God; and he who abstains, does so to the Lord and gives thanks to God. 7 For none of us lives to himself alone and none of us dies to himself alone." (Romans 14:4-7)

From now until Easter Sunday, we have a unique evangelistic opportunity that will not be available again until Christmas. Your friends, family, neighbors, co-workers, anyone with a background in Christianity will be thinking about Christ and most likely desire to go to church somewhere. I encourage you to take advantage of this wonderful opportunity to help bring someone you love closer to and possibly into a relationship with Jesus Christ.

This Sunday we will begin a new sermon series at Waynesboro that will culminate on Easter, April 12^th. This series, CSI: Easter will take us on a Crime Scene Investigation of the cross. Did Jesus really die on the cross? Did he really rise from the dead or was his body simply stolen to create the illusion? We will look at these question plus many more with a critical eye. We will weigh the evidence from history, from critics, and from the bible; we will place them side by side and see which ones stand and which ones fall. If you invite your friends and family, they will be engaged by this honest look into Jesus Christ and they will be moved by the conclusion. Pick up the phone right now and invite someone this Sunday!

Mitchell

CYC '09 - Fellowship, Friends, and Fun

Christian Youth Conference is an annual event that takes place in Gatlinburg, TN put on by members of the churches of Christ.  This year was my first year attending CYC and the first year that the church at Waynesboro has ever sent a group, it will not be our last.  CYC was a positive and motivating experience for everyone who attended, not just the young people.  I highly recommend that you make plans now to attend next year.

Our trip afforded us with many opportunities I never imagined at first.  My first surprise was running into so many of you who are regular readers of this blog.  It was great to finally meet you all!  Blogging has added a new dimension to my ministry and has expanded my circle of friends (more about blogging in a few days).

We left Waynesboro on Thursday afternoon immediately following school, with the time change encountered as we hit east Tennessee is was past midnight when we finally got to our cabin.  This was the first "bonus" of the weekend, our cabin was awesome!  This thing was nice, it was big, and it had a pool table, air hockey, and foosball table; the kids (and some of the adults) kept those things hot all weekend!  Friday morning we all got ready and went to eat breakfast at the Log Cabin Restaurant (I recommend the Caribbean pancakes).  Following breakfast we went up the mountain to Ober Gatlinburg for some ice skating, we had a blast.  The rest of the day the kids and ladies all walked the streets of downtown Gatlinburg for the all important shopping session.  My friend, Sam Haines, and I hung out in lieu of shopping and just talked; we learned a lot about each other and became closer friends as a result.  Friday night was the first session of CYC and it started with a bang!  My favorite part was the singing, very moving!

Saturday was an early morning as we were in session by 8:00 AM for more motivational speakers and awesome singing until the lunch break at 11:30 AM.  We were so wore out from the day of travel on Thursday and our all day fun fest on Friday that we went back to the cabin, ordered pizza for lunch and basically "vegged out" the entire afternoon.  Saturday nights session of CYC was the best, more great singing capped off by a sermon by Lonnie Jones.  Lonnie is always great and this night he was exceptional.  I don't think I'll ever forget his story about the snake and the .45 pistol!  Hilarious! (Ask me or one of the others and we will be more than glad to share it with you.)  After the session we were invited to one of our Wayne County sister congregation's cabin for a devotional. (Collinwood's group was also invited.)  This was a great way to cap off the night, Clifton was a great host and this was a spectacular way of promoting unity within neighboring congregations.  I love all the brethren at Clifton and Collinwood, both congregations have been good to me and I always love speaking for them.  Hopefully, our efforts toward unity will continue and God will be glorified as a result.  Jake Wilbanks, one of Collinwood's teenagers and my cousin, spoke at the devotional.  I was taken aback by Jake's speaking ability!  He did an outstanding job and I pray that he continues to use his talents for the Lord.

Sunday Morning we again woke up early as we were hosting a worship service at our cabin.  Clifton's group came over to join us in worship as well as Will Tidwell and three students from Heritage Christian University.  Wes, one of the HCU students led singing for us, Jeff, another HCU student, led us in prayer, as well as Chad Love from Clifton.  I enjoyed speaking for the group in such a loving atmosphere.  We shared a meal and laughter before worship and the family feeling just seemed to carry over into the service.  It was great!

CYC provided an awesome opportunity for everyone involved to grow spiritually.  The structure of the conference provided the main spiritual food, however, the part I enjoyed the most was the fellowship with friends and learning more about my brothers and sisters in Christ.  If your congregation doesn't attend CYC then take it upon yourself to organize the trip next year, I guarantee it will be a huge success.  If you had the opportunity but didn't take it this year be sure not to miss it next year.  Just some "sage" advice from a one year CYC "veteran!"

Technorati Tags: blog,faith,Family Life Ministry,unity,youth,worship

Where Are Your Priorities?

The inspired writer of Hebrews spends a great deal of time in chapter ten explaining the blessings of the new covenant of Christ. "He sets aside the first to establish the second. And by that will, we have been made holy through the sacrifice of the body of Jesus Christ once for all" (Hebrews 10:9b-10). Because of the forgiveness of sins found in the blood of Christ, Christians can approach God with all boldness and confidence./1 It is in response to this new status that the Christian has certain obligations.
Christians are encouraged to "hold unswervingly to the hope we profess, for he who promised is faithful" ( Hebrews 10:23). We can trust in, know, and anticipate eternal life based simply on the fact of God's promise. "Christ is faithful as a son over God's house. And we are his house, if we hold on to our courage and the hope of which we boast" ( Hebrews 3:6). This confidence does not come from our own merit or achievement; it rests in the faithfulness of God. "For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith -- and this not from yourselves, it is the gift of God -- not by works, so that no one can boast. For we are God's workmanship, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do" ( Ephesians 2:8-10).
Christians are also commanded to "consider how we may spur one another on toward love and good deeds" ( Hebrews 10:24). The Hebrew writer's emphasis is not on what a believer gets from the church, but rather on what he contributes to the church. He emphasizes this with an appeal toward faithful attendance at all functions of the congregation. "Let us not give up meeting together, as some are in the habit of doing, but let us encourage one another" ( Hebrews 10:25). When we miss an assembly of the church, we are willingly ignoring God's commands. We are giving up meeting together. We are discouraging our brothers and sisters rather than encouraging and spurring one another on to love and good deeds. The proper attitude toward worship is found in the words of the psalmist, "I rejoiced with those who said to me, Let us go to the house of the LORD" ( Psalm 122:1).
Besides the fact that faithful attendance is commanded and encouraged by God, there are also some practical reasons why we should be committed to the assemblies of the saints. One study shows that if both Mom and Dad attend church regularly, 72% of their children remain faithful in attendance. If only Dad attends regularly, 55% remain faithful. If only Mom attends regularly, 15% remain faithful. If neither attends regularly, only 6% remain faithful./2 Most parents would never do anything detrimental to the life of their children, yet many parents do take chances with their children's spiritual lives.
It is time that God's family takes a serious look at their commitment to Christ and his church. Ask yourself this question and answer yourself honestly, "Would the same excuses you use to justify missing church services Sunday work on your boss Monday?" We spend too much time trying to figure out whether or not Bible Class, Sunday Night Worship or Wednesday Bible Study are mandatory or optional. It all boils down to priorities!
Where are your priorities?

1 Hebrews 10:19-22
2 Home Life Magazine August 2004

Proclaimers of His Majesty

"For we did not follow cunningly devised fables when we made known to you the power and coming of our Lord Jesus Christ, but were eyewitnesses of His majesty" ( 2 Peter 1:16).

Today I heard someone use the phrase "too close for comfort"; it was just after I had been contemplating the above verse penned by the Apostle Peter. As he continued, I began to ponder if it was not also true that we could get too comfortable because we are so close.

I live in the fabulous hills of Tennessee, snuggled between the legendary Civil War battlefield of Shiloh and the fabled Natchez Trace Parkway. About ten miles from my home is a naturally made land bridge and about thirty miles from my home is the birthplace of David Crockett, yet it has been years since I have visited any of these places. People travel for miles around to enjoy the beauty and history that surrounds me yet I am seemingly oblivious to it all.

A certain blindness comes from knowledge and familiarity. Unless we take the time to focus on something, it will never become a part of our life. Just because I own a beautiful flower garden does not mean that I have ever stopped to ponder the grandeur of the single rose.

As Christians, there is the danger of becoming comfortable with God.

As Christians we can get in a rut, we go to church, sing the songs, hear the sermons, read our Bibles, and pray our prayers, but none of it really makes a difference in our lives. Jesus told the Christians as Ephesus that this, basically, was their situation. They were doing all the things they were supposed to be doing yet Jesus says, "Nevertheless I have this against you, that you have left your first love" ( Revelation 2:4).

As Christians, we have something about which to be excited!

We need to let people know about the power and coming of our Lord Jesus Christ. While we are not in the position of Peter, where we can be eyewitnesses of his majesty, we certainly can be proclaimers of his majesty. We have a message worth sharing and that message is Christ's message.

We do not have to use "cunningly devised fables" or any other "heroic measures" when it comes to spreading the gospel. We have the power of God unto salvation if we will but use it to save those who are lost ( Romans 1:16). This power is the Bible and it is God's inspired word. "No prophecy of Scripture is of any private interpretation, for prophecy never came by the will of man, but holy men of God spoke as they were moved by the Holy Spirit ( 2 Peter 1:20,21).

There is nothing more precious, more glorious, more majestic than the word of God that can save mankind.

A proclaimer of the gospel, God wants you to be one; your neighbor is dying for you to be one.

Waynesboro church of Christ: Full of Faith

This past weekend was quite busy for the Waynesboro church of Christ. Four huge events converged into the “Perfect Storm” of church activities. Kicking off the weekend was a surprise birthday party for Obie Duncan. Obie’s family had a great party to celebrate his 95th birthday. Obie is one of a kind and he deserved that party. Occurring simultaneously with the birthday party was the Mobile Pantry. The Mobile Pantry has become a regular occurrence for the church through our Benevolence Ministry and our partnership with the Second Harvest Food Bank. The result of this partnership and the work of our volunteers was that about 150 people from our community were given over 10,000 lbs. of food! Our Benevolence Ministry is the most active ministry in the church as they are constantly helping people in the church and the community who have fallen on hard times. Richard McNabb, Jeff Duren, Charles Hunt, and Jerry Hollis are the deacons who work in this ministry, when you see them give them a pat on the back because they deserve it. As soon as the last boxes of food pulled away from the Fellowship Center, we shifted gears and started working on the next event. Our annual Veterans Day Remembrance was Saturday night and it was a huge success! Over 180 people attended the event highlighted by the fish fry. After eating, we honored the Veterans in attendance with a program put on by our children and each Veteran received a Flag lapel pin as a token of our appreciation. After only two years, this event has become a favorite among our members and the community. One woman told me that her husband (a Veteran) had been looking forward to this event for two months! Sheryl did a phenomenal job in putting this event together, it would have been a good event no matter who did it but because of her, it was great.
After the flurry of activity on Saturday, you would think that everyone would have been excited about going to worship Sunday, not so. Saturday’s excitement turned to Sunday’s gloom in a hurry. No one wanted to see the Morine’s leave Waynesboro and this day evidenced that feeling. Matthew’s sermon on Sunday morning walked us down memory lane bringing laughter and tears. It all ended on Sunday night with a good-bye meal for the Morines. Matthew and Charity loved the scrapbook (thank you Kim Bell and Kristen Duren!); it will bring back great memories for years to come.
I am so proud to be a member of and minister for the Waynesboro church of Christ! This congregation is full of faith as evidenced by the love that we show. This past weekend was a great example of our love for our neighbors as well as our love for each other.

“What good is it, my brothers, if a man claims to have faith but has no deeds? Can such faith save him? Suppose a brother or sister is without clothes and daily food. If one of you says to him. “Go, I wish you well; keep warm and well fed,” but does nothing about his physical needs, what good is it? In the same way, faith by itself, if it is not accompanied by action, is dead.” James 2:14-17

Worship Technology

The technological advances of our time absolutely amaze me. The one bit of technology that has taken the church by storm is PowerPoint (or other presentation software). During my previous ministry, as the pulpit minister for a congregation of about 70 members, we adopted this technology with the intent of enhancing the worship experience for our younger members. Much to my surprise, it wasn't the younger members who benefited the most from this aid to our worship.

The older members of our congregation, who we feared would be resistant to this addition, were thrilled! They could now follow along with the scriptures used in the sermon without having to look up the passages and the size of the font was much easier to read than even their large print bibles. The same result was seen with our announcements and bible study.

The congregation at Waynesboro is in the process of adding this technology and it got me to thinking about all the ways this one bit of technology can be used. Please take a minute and participate in the poll located in the menu bar to your right. While it's not possible to list every use churches make of PowerPoint, I have tried to list the major categories. If your congregation is using PowerPoint in a different way please leave a comment (or email me) with this information and tell me a little bit about how it is working and the level of success you are experiencing.

I'm also interested in who congregations are utilizing to "run" the technology. We are considering putting together a group of teens to work in this ministry as they seem to know more about computers and software than all of the rest of us combined. Let me know what you think.

Out of the Box: The Revival of Samuel

Last week at Waynesboro Matthew, our Pulpit Minister, and I started a series on revival. You can go to Matthew's Podcast to hear my sermon, Out of the Box: The Revival of Samuel. You can also check back each week to hear the rest of the series from Matthew. I hope you enjoy and would love to hear your comments either here or on the Podcast site. Podcast: Out of the Box: The Revival of Samuel

Stop "Going to Church"

I read an article this weekend written by Al Maxey titled "Being the Church" that got me to thinking about the vocabulary we use to describe things religious. While I don't always agree with Brother Maxey he does place things in front of you that force you to think. This is not a review of his article, just the result of the contemplation it spurred in my own mind.

Undoubtedly you have used or heard used the phrase, "going to Church" or its various forms. We know that when people use this terminology that they are most likely referring to the worship services. Growing up we always "went to Church." It wasn't until I went off to college at Lipscomb that I heard someone (a roommate) consistently identifying the worship for what it is. He was always going to worship or inquiring what time I wanted to get up to get ready to go worship.

I never have thought that getting the terminology correct was that important. My thought has always been that if the people with whom you are communicating understand you then there is no problem. For example, where I live, in Tennessee, if you invite someone to dinner then you have just set up a lunch date. The reason being is because it is common usage in our area to have breakfast, dinner, then supper. But if you ask someone unfamiliar with our regional terminology to go to dinner, they may assume you mean the evening meal. This thought has caused me to reconsider the language I will use when referencing the church and the worship of the church.

You may find yourself asking, "What is the big deal?" Well, it's not a "big" deal but it is a deal. It is not an issue of salvation but proper terminology certainly could give birth to fuller understanding and fuller understanding can lead to a stronger faith. Church is important. In fact, one cannot be saved and be outside the church. All the saved of the world, past and present, make up the church. Man has no say when it comes to the makeup of the church, the bible tells us that those who accept the gospel and are baptized are added to the church. (Acts 2:41) The church's worship of God is necessary but is only one action a Christian participates in as part of their walk with God.

When referencing the church their are several truths we can proclaim; we are the church, we can be a church, the church is made up of the saved, the church can "do" certain things but church is not something we "do," church is a living organism of which we are a part. Worship is one of those things that the church does, We (the church) worship God.

In the mind of many people, the church does not exist outside the confines of the four walls of a "church building." How sad! In actuality, the overwhelming majority of the works of the church takes place (or should) outside the confines of the building. Notice that I inserted the word "should," this is because some congregations (local churches) have either fallen into or purposely followed the way of the language we speak. These congregations indeed "go to church" twice on Sunday and once on Wednesday but when it comes to "being a church" their worship services are often the only evidence to which thay can point. When church becomes something we do instead of something we are, or when worship is the only practice we regularly take part in then we are in a pitiful condition.

Am I naive enough to think that our language is the sole cause of this attitude among us or that a change of terminology alone will miraculously solve the problem? Of course not, but there is validity to the saying, "as a man thinks, so is he." When we "go to church" then what we do when we get there becomes, for some, the very definition of church itself.

Let's stop "going to church" and start worshiping God. Let us stop playing church and start being church.