A Note From the Pastor
January 29, 2009
My house was filled with jubilation this morning as my kids learned that school was closed again today. There is something about the cancellation of school, no matter the reason, that causes children to rejoice! It is like a victory in the minds of students everywhere against the establishment… the embodiment that all youth must succesfully pass through on their way to adulthood.
We sometimes wish for things that bring immediate satisfaction that in the long run will give us a disadvantage or will have to be made up. It is not that breaks or times of relief can’t be beneficial, but we must be careful about short cuts that are harmful. Sometimes the things we learn from an uncomfortable lesson or a difficult test in life prepares us for the harsher realities in the future. And if we bypass that learning time, we are unprepared for the next test. Nor will we be able to sluff the final, and there are no retakes.
I am eager to learn all
that you want me to do;
help me to understand
more and more.” Psalm 119:32 CEV
A Note From the Pastor
January 24, 2009
A friend of mine visited our church this past weekend. He actually works as a consultant at times and is brought in to evaluate every aspect of a church including how the service is conducted. While at lunch with him, I asked him to share his assessment of TCOC. He was very positive. He loved the spirit of our church; he said it was an exciting and alive atmosphere. He was very impressed with our worship and felt like it was mixed well. He had never heard of an intermission during service but he loved it. In fact, he got on the phone and called a couple of friends to share the idea with them during our intermission. However, there was one negative comment that he made. And this review really surprised me. He said he didn’t think our church was very friendly. He noticed they were very friendly with each other, but didn’t seem to reach out to the new people. He said there were only three people that came up and shook hands with him and welcomed him, even after I had pointed out his friendship from the pulpit. Those three people were me, Sherri, and Shawn.
Though I believe our church is friendly, there are times when we don’t take full advantage of the opportunities we have in our services to encourage others and build one another up. I hope this was just a freak coincidence. But, just in case, I want to remind us of how reaching beyond ourselves makes a huge difference, permanently impacting the kingdom of God. In fact, my friend stated that perhaps his experience was just an anomaly. But in order to be sure, let’s purpose in our hearts that we will make every effort to greet newcomers, learn new names, and to make everyone feel welcome.
“Practice hospitality to one another (those of the household of faith). [Be hospitable, be a lover of strangers, with brotherly affection for the unknown guests, the foreigners, the poor, and all others who come your way who are of Christ's body.] And [in each instance] do it ungrudgingly (cordially and graciously, without complaining but as representing Him).” 1 Peter 4:9 AMP
I’m back…
January 16, 2009
The family and I took a short sabbatical over the holidays. It was a refreshing time and much needed. I will be sharing about this time through my upcoming sermons and blogs.
