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Sunday Worship Services: Fuel for Your Spiritual Growth

Sunday Worship Services: Fuel for Your Spiritual Growth

Why Attend?

Have you ever pondered why Sunday worship services are so important to your Christian walk?

It’s more than just a weekly routine. It’s a community gathering where we can fellowship, grow, and find strength in God’s words.

“Let us not give up meeting together, as some are in the habit of doing, but encouraging one another – and all the more as you see the Day approaching.” – Hebrews 10:25. This scripture underscores the importance of communal worship. It’s not about just ticking a box every Sunday, but it’s about spiritual nourishment, unity, and growth.

Three Benefits of Attending Sunday Worship Services

#1 – Spiritual Growth

Sunday worship services provide an opportunity for you to delve deeper into God’s Word. It’s a chance to learn and grow in your understanding of the Bible, and in turn, grow closer to God.

Remember what the Bible says in 2 Timothy 3:16-17, “All Scripture is God-breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness, so that the servant of God may be thoroughly equipped for every good work.”

#2 – Fellowship and Community

When you regularly attend Sunday services, you become part of a community, a family, that supports and uplifts each other. Acts 2:46-47 speaks to this, “Every day they continued to meet together in the temple courts. They broke bread in their homes and ate together with glad and sincere hearts, praising God and enjoying the favor of all the people.”

#3 – Inspiration and Motivation

As Proverbs 27:17 puts it, “As iron sharpens iron, so one person sharpens another.” Through the shared experiences and unity with other believers, you’ll find encouragement and motivation to keep the faith, even in challenging times.

A Call to Action

Sunday worship services are a fundamental component of your journey as a Christian. They offer a space for reflection, fellowship, and learning. It’s where you are reminded of God’s love and grace.

So, are you ready to take this step towards personal and spiritual growth?

Will you make a commitment to join us every Sunday?

Remember, together we are stronger, together we grow. Let’s embark on this beautiful journey of faith, unity, and spiritual growth.

Your spiritual journey starts here. Your best life starts now.

Just some thoughts,

 

 

 

 

A Few Wednesday Thoughts

A Few Wednesday Thoughts

The video below is part of the message I delivered to the congregation on Wednesday Night. The message contains updates about the happenings of our congregation, but it also includes five points to consider on not giving up.

Since March 2020, many congregations have been dealing with the effects of the Coronavirus or COVID-19. It has been challenging for eldership to make the proper decisions relating to meeting or not meeting. Some congregations continued to meet, others went to an online or virtual service, and some went to parking lot services using an FM transmitter.

Each congregation chose the means necessary for the physical safety of their membership. The decisions were challenging. I know of elderships who stressed over the decisions and still do this day. The decisions were met with prayer for the proper decision and the effects it might have on the congregation.

While the elders were making tough decisions, the members were trying to decide how to keep in touch with one another while still maintaining the social distancing guidelines. Each state had their own social distancing guidelines and the federal government was busy adding suggestions. The guidelines meant smaller groups for some congregations and closed doors for others.

As our congregation has used virtual meetings and we also met back when able, However, because of an increase in local cases, along with members coming into contact with those effected by the Coronavirus/COVID-19, our elders have canceled our in-person meetings and go to an online, all-virtual format.

In these uncertain times, allow me a moment to share with you a few reminders:

    • The early church struggled through various physical persecutions and made it. We can make it through this too.
    • The church, throughout generations, has been met with great difficulties, yet it continues to grow and meet.
    • The church building is a building and it will be there when we get back to normal meeting times.
    • The members of the church should use technology to keep up with one another during this time.
    • It is important to maintain your Sunday and Wednesday routine to take advantage of online services.
    • Spend time in prayer daily.
    • Technology is a useful tool which can be used by members of the to continue to encourage and “fellowship.”

It is my hope that this video brought you motivation in this uncertain time. May each one of us continue to walk in the faith and find ourselves in the love of God.

Just my thoughts,

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ReThinking Worship

ReThinking Worship

From coffee cups, water bottles, and even snack containers; these are the items that litter many church auditoriums following brief periods of worship. Stuffed in the pockets of the seats are handwritten notes regarding the afternoon activities and future events of the day. In fact, the newest church seats resemble theatre seats equipped with cup holders more than the pews of piety from years past. The flashes of light against a screen, called PowerPoint, are the highlight of the service instead of humbly bowing before the Almighty.

Each Sunday for one hour members fill an auditorium for “worship.” For many, this may be the only time each week they worship God. For others, this will begin their week of worship. While each person may be drastically different, we all understand that worship is a part of our lives. The question may be, “How well do we respect our worship?”

My friends, I submit to you today, that we clearly see our respect for God in our worship of Him.

Let me pose a few questions for you to consider:

  • If our minds are not focused on the Father during the week, how can one hour on Sunday morning suffice?
  • If our worship is filled with what we want, when do we live in what God wants?
  • Do our children see us worshipping God, or respecting the world?

Hard questions deserve hard answers!

Take a moment and consider the words of A. W. Tozer this day:

“Christian churches have come to the dangerous time predicted long ago. It is a time when we can pat one another on the back, congratulate ourselves and join in the glad refrain, ‘We are rich, and increased in goods, and have need of nothing!’

“It certainly is true that hardly anything is missing from our churches these days—except the most important thing. We are missing the genuine and sacred offering of ourselves and our worship to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ.…

“My own loyalties and responsibilities are and always will be with the strongly evangelical, Bible-believing, Christ-honoring churches. We have been surging forward. We are building great churches and large congregations. We are boasting about high standards and we are talking a lot about revival.

“But I have a question and it is not just rhetoric: What has happened to our worship?”

 

A. W. Tozer, Whatever Happened to Worship (Camp Hill, PA: Christian Publications, 1985), 9–10. 

Morgan, R. J. (2000). Nelson’s complete book of stories, illustrations, and quotes (electronic ed.) (810). Nashville: Thomas Nelson Publishers.

 

Just some thoughts,

 

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July 19, 2020, Sunday Morning Powerpoint

July 19, 2020, Sunday Morning Powerpoint

If you have grown up in any religious group, you have heard about the Pharisees.

In fact, I bet whenever you read the Bible and you see the word Pharisee you take a deep breathe.

The Pharisees were a very strict group of law holders who followed Jesus to test, trap and maybe learn from Him. The first two seem to task priority over the learning, but they still followed Him at various times in Jesus’ ministry.

Sunday morning, the lesson discussed a common passage familiar too many. The Pharisees encounter Jesus after he performs some healings. The Pharisees and scribes make an issue of The disciples not washing their hands to the tradition of teh elders.

The Pharisees were known to elevate the teachings of their traditions over the commands of God. As Jesus answers their question, He adds to the discussion and questions their teachings.

Today, Christians need to consider this encounter Jesus has with the Pharisees and look at our beliefs.

Have Christians elevated their traditions over the commands of God?

Have Christians today used their traditions as a basis to forget the teachings of Jesus?

It is definitely something to consider today.

Here is Sunday Morning’s Lesson powerpoint:

You may download a copy to use for your studies and lesson presentation. No attribution is necessary.

To download you can click on the small “paper  looking” icon on the bottom right corner of the PowerPoint screen and choose “Download a Copy.”

Let us always strive to follow God over man.

Just some thoughts,

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John Wesley’s Rules for Singing

John Wesley’s Rules for Singing

Singing is powerful aspect of our worship that motivates one to a greater attitude and a greater desire to worship. Music has a tendency to transport the mind into a higher realm.

In 1780, John Wesley published his rules for singing as a part of a hymnal he produced that same year.. The list is fascinating and the points apply to this year even more than the year they were written. The list is contained below:

 

  • Learn these tunes before you learn any others; afterwards learn as many as you please.
  • Sing them exactly as they are printed here, without altering or mending them at all.
  • Sing all. See that you join with the congregation as frequently as you can.
  • Sing lustily and with a good courage. Beware of singing as if you were half dead, or half asleep.
  • Sing modestly. Do not bawl, so as to be heard above or distinct from the rest of the congregation.
  • Sing in tune. Whatever time is sung, be sure to keep with it. Do not run before or stay behind it. Take care not to sing too slow.
  • Above all sing spiritually. Have an eye to God in every word you sing. Aim at pleasing him more than yourself, or any other creature. In order to do this attend strictly to the sense of what you sing.

A few years before the hymnal was published, Mr. Wesley wrote his views on a new song in a journal entry dated, July 3, 1764,

“I seldom relish verses at first hearing. Till I have heard them over and over, they give me no pleasure, and they give me next to none when I have heard them a few times more, so as to be quite familiar.”

I find it interesting that emphasis John Wesley put on singing. He knew there are something about worshipping God in song that brought delight to the worship of God.

Just some thoughts,

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