Merry Christmas

I wanted to take this opportunity to wish everyone a Merry Christmas! I hope and trust that this Sunday you will have a good day of worship as you remember and celebrate the Birth of our Savior!

Because this has been such a busy time of year, I am going to take a break from the blog until after the first of the year. Thank you for your support and prayers.

Will

The Reason for the Season?

Earlier today I asked the question "why are believers getting so upset about churches canceling church on Christmas Sunday morning?" I have been giving this question a lot of thought the past couple of days. I can see some issues that the church is going to have to face on December 25th. For example, finding enough volunteers to fill the various ministry needs for a Sunday service. It is challenging enough to staff a preschool department on a normal week much less on Christmas Sunday morning.

While I can understand many of the challenges that churches will face, I still really struggle with the idea of canceling church on Christmas Sunday morning. My biggest struggle is that we seem to be redefining Christmas in our culture. Are culture is trying to make this a family holiday rather than recognizing the spiritual significance of Christ's birth. Are we really saying that Christmas day is all about family? While I love my family and love to give them gifts, Christmas is about celebrating Christ's birth and I can't think of a better way to do that then in a worship service with our brothers and sisters in Christ.

It seems to me that those of us who have proclaimed "Jesus is the reason for the season" should remember that simple truth. It is my prayer that this Christmas you will be in church celebrating the birth of our Savior and Lord!

Will

No Respecter of Persons

This past Sunday was a busy day! After our Sunday morning worship service at Hickory Grove I went to Jackson Kentucky (a 2.5 hour drive) to officiate a funeral service for a wonderful member of our church who had passed away. By the time the services were concluded I didn't have time to make it back to "The Grove" for our evening worship service, so I ended up driving over to Anneville Baptist Church to attend their services.

Anneville Baptist is a wonderful church in Jackson County and a former pastor of mine serves currently as their pastor. Last night there was about 50 of us gathering in that sanctuary to worship. We sang some old hymns and then heard a stirring message from 2 Timothy. When I left their last night I felt like I had been to church!

You know, it is wonderful to see where all God shows up! I have been in some awesome worship services in churches that run thousands, but it is nice to know that God doesn't just show up in those churches. I am grateful that God is no respecter of persons and He blesses wherever He is exalted!

Will

Non-Sectarian Prayer?

Well jus this week a U.S. District Court Justice Hamilton made a ruling that angered many Christians, holding that prayers said at the start of Indiana House sessions must not mention Jesus Christ or advance any religion. Hamilton says a nonsectarian prayer is necessary if the practice, a 188-year tradition in Indiana, is to continue. His injunction stems from a lawsuit filed by the Indiana Civil Liberties Union on behalf of four people, including a Quaker lobbyist, who said they found the tradition of offering the usually Christian prayers offensive.

After reading this decision my first thought was "is it even possible to have an nonsectarian prayer?" Prayer by its very nature is a conversation with a specific deity. Whether a person is Muslim, Buddhist or Christian there is a specific deity to whom they are addressing. So I ask the question "is there such a thing as a nonsectarian prayer? I don't believe so.

What we have here is another pitiful attempt to remove Jesus from the public arena. Not only is the PC Grinch trying to steal Christmas this year, but he is working overtime to remove Jesus from the public entirely.

Will