Category Archives: Church & Worship

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March 5, 2026

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Attitudes & Behavior, Challenges & Difficulty, Church & Worship, Holidays & Holy Days, Knowing Him, Prayer

SEEKING HIM DURING LENT

Then I turned my face to the Lord God, seeking him by prayer and pleas for mercy with fasting and sackcloth and ashes. [Daniel 9:3 (CSB)]

Even now—this is the Lord’s declaration—turn to me with all your heart, with fasting, weeping, and mourning. Tear your hearts, not just your clothes, and return to the Lord your God. For he is gracious and compassionate, slow to anger, abounding in faithful love, and he relents from sending disaster. [Joel 2:12-13 (CSB)]

MOCKINGBIRDWe’re two weeks into the season of Lent. While we typically associate this time before Easter with giving up something, it is more than simply abstaining or fasting from some thing or things. Fasting without prayer is nothing more than a diet and abstaining from some pleasure without prayer is more like dry January than a Lenten discipline! Without prayer, fasting and abstinence are physical acts but not spiritual ones! When we give up something for Lent, we need to deliberately and intentionally seek the Lord in prayer at the same time!

Faith is a living thing, and like all living things, it needs to be nurtured and fed to grow. During Lent, as we abstain from worldly things, we feast on the spiritual so that this season of self-denial becomes one of growth. Lent is the time to feed our faith with extra servings of prayer and Scripture along with Christian fellowship, praise, thanksgiving, and worship.

If we choose to observe Lent, there are a few words of warning. We must be cautious of spiritual pride—thinking we’re better or “more spiritual” than others who may not observe this season or might practice it in a different way. How we keep this season is between us and God and not to be compared to anyone else’s Lenten practice. We shouldn’t be like the proud Pharisee in Jesus’ parable who compared himself to the tax collector while boasting that he fasted twice a week and gave away a tenth of all he received. Spiritual pride means we’re looking at ourselves instead of the Lord. Jesus reminded His listeners that “everyone who exalts himself will be humbled, but the one who humbles himself will be exalted.” [Luke 18:14]

Just as self-denial is not a way to boost our egos, let us never make the mistake of thinking that giving up something for Lent has any merit as far as our salvation is concerned. Self-denial and fasting are not done to curry favor and earn ”brownie points” with God. Neither fasting nor abstinence give us special standing before God and they won’t make God love us any more than He already does!

Moreover, we must never give up something as a way of manipulating God into doing something for us; there no quid pro quo in God’s Kingdom! Fasting and abstinence won’t sprinkle spiritual vitamins and minerals on our prayers to give them extra power. We don’t adopt a spiritual discipline so God will do what we want—we do it so we’ll do what He wants! Fasting and abstaining change us, not God! They’re like cleaning our glasses so we better see God and cleaning the wax from our ears so that we hear Him more clearly. Rather than getting a better response to our prayers, self-denial leads to better prayers!

Finally, Jesus specifically warned us about the danger of hypocrisy while fasting. Lent’s purpose is not to impress others with our devotion. It’s personal and private—between us and God—it’s a secret commitment rather than a public display. May we always remember that we fast to please the Lord—not to impress others!

Prayer is reaching out after the unseen; fasting is letting go of all that is seen and temporal. Fasting helps express, deepen, confirm the resolution that we are ready to sacrifice anything, even ourselves to attain what we seek for the kingdom of God. [Andrew Murray]

Whenever you fast, don’t be gloomy like the hypocrites. For they disfigure their faces so that their fasting is obvious to people. Truly I tell you, they have their reward. But when you fast, put oil on your head and wash your face, so that your fasting isn’t obvious to others but to your Father who is in secret. And your Father who sees in secret will reward you. [Matthew 6:16-17(CSB)]

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February 16, 2026

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Attitudes & Behavior, Church & Worship, Holidays & Holy Days, Salvation: A New You, Temptation & Sin

THE SEASON OF LENT

Then Jesus left the Jordan, full of the Holy Spirit, and was led by the Spirit in the wilderness for forty days to be tempted by the devil. He ate nothing during those days, and when they were over, he was hungry. [Luke 4:1-2 (CSB)]

LITTLE BLUE HERONLent begins on Wednesday. Beginning with the solemn reminder that we are but dust and to dust we shall return and concluding with Christ’s victory over death on Easter Sunday, the season’s forty days represent the time the Lord spent alone in the wilderness, fasting in preparation for his ministry, and undergoing Satan’s temptations. A period of self-discipline and repentance, Lent often is observed by such things as contemplation, confession, prayer, fasting, moderation, service, and giving

Lent is a season of self-denial but not for the sake of self-denial; it’s about emptying ourselves as we take up our crosses to follow Jesus! Sometimes, we’re so full of ourselves, there’s not enough room for God. Lent is about having less of us so there is more of Him! We can choose to fast—which is abstaining from food—or choose to abstain from some pastime or habit that may be impeding our relationship with God. The purpose of fasting or abstaining is to develop a hunger for God that is greater than our craving for the temptations and pleasures of life.

Like the beginning of a new year, Lent affords us an opportunity to do some serious soul searching. Have we cooled in our devotion to the Lord and our enthusiasm for His work? Are we using our time, talents, and spiritual gifts as God wants them used? Is there anything hindering our relationship with the Lord? Do we need to realign our hearts and have a spiritual reset? If so, Lent is an opportune time to prayerfully turn away from the small pleasures, indulgences, and bad habits or influences that have distracted or derailed us spiritually. The self-denial of Lent is abstaining from anything (other than God) that ordinarily fills a need we have—whether food, drink, shopping, or some other indulgence or guilty pleasure. Giving us gratification and comfort, it is taking up space in our hearts that rightfully belongs to God!

Andrew Murray describes fasting this way: “Fasting helps express, deepens, confirms the resolution that we are ready to sacrifice anything, even ourselves, to attain what we seek for the kingdom of God.” Simply put, fasting and abstinence are ways to show God that He is more important to us than any pleasures of this world. Whether we give up certain foods or meals, computer games, Net Flix, social media, or our free time to work in the homeless shelter, Lent is a time to reorganize our priorities and put God where He rightfully belongs—in the center of our lives!

Nothing in Scripture demands Lent’s observance; if and how we observe Lent is a personal choice. Nevertheless, my prayer for you is that these next six weeks will be ones of spiritual renewal and growth.

Isn’t this the fast I choose: To break the chains of wickedness, to untie the ropes of the yoke, to set the oppressed free, and to tear off every yoke? Is it not to share your bread with the hungry, to bring the poor and homeless into your house, to clothe the naked when you see him, and not to ignore your own flesh and blood? [Isaiah 58:6-7 (CSB)]

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January 15, 2026

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Church & Worship, God's Plan, God's Word: The Bible, Salvation: A New You, Sharing Our Faith, Today: Make it Count

JUDGMENT DAY WILL COME

Then I saw a great white throne and him who was seated on it. From his presence earth and sky fled away, and no place was found for them. And I saw the dead, great and small, standing before the throne, and books were opened. Then another book was opened, which is the book of life. And the dead were judged by what was written in the books, according to what they had done. … And if anyone’s name was not found written in the book of life, he was thrown into the lake of fire.[Revelation 20:11-12,15 (ESV)]

Before stepping inside of the Bern Münster Cathedral, you’ll probably stop and stare at the archway above the main entrance. There you’ll see 294 carved sandstone figures in a graphic illustration of God’s final judgment when the wicked are separated from the righteous. To your right are the naked damned souls in the midst of flames while, on your left, the righteous stand clothed in white and marked with the seal of God on their foreheads. Lady Justice with her scales and the Archangel Michael with his sword stand in the center. The entire scene is surrounded by larger statues of various saints and martyrs as well as the five wise virgins and the five foolish ones who weren’t ready for the bridegroom’s return!

Crafted in the late 1400s, this powerful visual sermon brings to life the biblical scene from Revelation of Christ’s return to judge humanity. While we’re not likely to find anything like that in our modern churches, the last judgment was a common theme for church doorways in the Middle Ages. Most people were illiterate and depictions like this one instilled both devotion and a healthy dose of fear into the hearts of the faithful as they entered God’s house. Nevertheless, to us in the 21st century, Judgment Day seems an odd way to welcome people into church!

For the people of the Middle Ages, however, death was waiting just around the corner. Unpredictable, it took the young as easily as the old. Between 1347 and 1353, for example, the Black (bubonic) Plague wiped out as much as half of Europe’s population. Disease, poor nutrition, famine, lack of medical care, inadequate housing, and violent warfare meant the average life expectancy was as low as 30 years. Leprosy, influenza, tuberculosis, small pox, and dysentery ran rampant, maternal and infant mortality rates were high, and, with no vaccines, antiseptics, antibiotics, anesthesia, or proper sanitation, death was an everyday event. Surrounded by the dead daily, death simply was an unavoidable part of life and one expected sooner rather than later.

Along with Revelation’s joyful news of Christ’s return and the world set right, is the prophecy that there will be a final judgment which, depending on the person, can be good news or bad. For those who put their faith in Christ while alive, there is nothing to fear; Jesus is forever. But, for those who ignored previous warnings and failed to put their faith in Christ while living, there are no second chances; eternal hell awaits. That frightening scene over the doorway was a vivid reminder that the day was coming when Jesus would return—a day when He’ll send His followers to everlasting life and the others to everlasting torment. With stakes like that and death within sight, the cathedral’s entry reminded people to be prepared for the day of judgment. Perhaps it caused them to ponder where they would be standing when that day happened.

Here in the 21st century U.S., we live in a safer more sanitized world than medieval Europe—one far removed from the daily threat of death. Although we know we have an expiration date, unless we have a terminal diagnosis, that date seems far removed. Nevertheless, death is an inescapable part of life. Regardless of how rich, famous, or beautiful we might be, death awaits us all just as it did for the people of the Middle Ages.

Whether our last day on earth is accompanied by the coroner or the sound of trumpets at Jesus’ triumphant return, that doorway in Bern remains a powerful reminder that the day of reckoning will come. On Judgment Day, anyone who has lived will appear before the throne of God and be judged, but only those whose names are in the book of life will enter the new heaven and earth. The stakes are as high today as they were more than 600 years ago and death’s arrival remains unavoidable. It’s been said that many who plan to seek Christ at the 11th hour die at 10:30! Where will you stand when Judgment Day comes? Where will those we love be standing?

When the Son of Man comes in his glory, and all the angels with him, then he will sit on his glorious throne. Before him will be gathered all the nations, and he will separate people one from another as a shepherd separates the sheep from the goats. And he will place the sheep on his right, but the goats on the left. Then the King will say to those on his right, “Come, you who are blessed by my Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world.” … Then he will say to those on his left, “Depart from me, you cursed, into the eternal fire prepared for the devil and his angels.” [Matthew 25:31-34,41 (ESV)]

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January 5, 2026

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Attitudes & Behavior, Church & Worship, God's Grace & Love, Holidays & Holy Days, Today: Make it Count, Trusting God

MAKING IT HOLY

Lowdermilk Beach-NaplesRemember the Sabbath day, to keep it holy. Six days you shall labor, and do all your work, but the seventh day is a Sabbath to the Lord your God. On it you shall not do any work, you, or your son, or your daughter, your male servant, or your female servant, or your livestock, or the sojourner who is within your gates. [Exodus 20:8-10 (ESV)]

I’ve always thought of the first four commandments (only one God, no idols, not taking Lord’s name in vain, and keeping the Sabbath) as being about our relationship with God and the next six (honoring parents and the prohibitions on murder, adultery, stealing, false witness, and coveting) about our relationship with people. The fourth commandment, however, seems to be a bridge between the two sections because it has as much to do with people as it does with God. Reminding us that we have six days in the week for work, it tells us to stop work on the seventh and keep the day “holy.” Rather than a “thou shalt not” law, this commandment is a gift to us from God—it is the gift of rest and rejuvenation!

As happened with many of God’s commands, the Israelites took this simple law and added their own restrictions and interpretations. Wanting a clear definition of work, they categorized 39 kinds of activities considered work and then further defined prohibited activities within each category. What was supposed to be a blessing became an inconvenience! Since His hungry disciples plucked grain on the Sabbath and Jesus had no qualms about healing on the Sabbath, He often came into conflict with the Pharisees about His Sabbath observance (or lack thereof). When criticized, Jesus made it clear that the Sabbath was made for man and should not be an onerous legal requirement. The only Sabbath laws He and the disciples broke were the man-made ones of the Pharisees. Jesus, however, never said to ignore the Sabbath; after all, He was the “Lord of the Sabbath.”

For Jesus and the disciples, Saturday was the Sabbath day and it remains the Jewish day of worship and rest today. The mostly Jewish early church continued to worship on Saturday but, by the second century, Sunday (“the Lord’s Day”) became the day of worship. Some branches of Christianity continue to observe Saturday as their Sabbath but, for most of us, Sunday is our “Sabbath.”

In reality, other than possibly attending church, Sundays are pretty much like any other day of the week.  Parking lots are full at the grocery, hardware, and mall; cell phones and the internet keep us in touch with work; and the kids have sports and homework. Sundays have become the day to complete everything that didn’t get done during the week. With families scattered every which way, even the traditional Sunday dinner (complete with cousins and grandparents at the table) is but a distant memory. Regardless of which day of the week it is, have we missed some of the beauty of a Sabbath in our busyness?

Does keeping this day “holy” mean sitting quietly all day, reading nothing but Scripture, and doing nothing but praying? Could it be something more? Could keeping it holy simply mean that we rest from our ordinary work, dedicate the day to God, and intentionally make it different from the rest of our week? We can do that by taking something away (as did the Israelites with their many work prohibitions) or by adding something special to it.

Instead of my husband catching up on paperwork or me writing on Sundays, we try to trust God for enough hours in the other six days to do those things. In an attempt to disconnect from the busyness of the world and connect with one another, family, friends, and God, we try to deliberately set aside time for relaxation, laughter, fun, and fellowship by doing something out of the ordinary. That may be a bags tourney with neighbors, a barbecue for friends, or spending the afternoon at the zoo or botanical gardens. It also can be as simple as a game of Rummikub or cribbage or moving from the breakfast bar to the dining room table for a special “Sunday dinner.” Nevertheless, good intentions are not enough and, during the pre-holiday rush, we found ourselves “too busy” to stop and enjoy God’s gift and set His day apart. Perhaps, that’s why God made keeping holy the Sabbath a commandment rather than a suggestion!

How we set our Sabbath apart from the rest of the week in a way that both honors God and nurtures us will vary from family to family. It’s probably naïve to think children won’t have homework and working moms and dads won’t have to play catch-up with chores. Nevertheless, we must remember why God gave us this commandment. He wants us to recharge our batteries—to be still and know that He is God. The Sabbath is our time to rest from the week’s busyness, take a break from our daily routine, connect with one another, find joy in His creation, and rest in Him. When we neglect having a Sabbath, we neglect both God and ourselves and turn whatever it is we do the rest of the week into tedium and drudgery. God doesn’t need a Sabbath, but we surely do.

Thank you, God, for the gift of the Sabbath. May our Sabbaths be days of worship, renewal, connection, rest, peace, and joy.

A world without a Sabbath would be like a man without a smile, like a summer without flowers, and like a homestead without a garden. It is the joyous day of the whole week. [Henry Ward Beecher]

And he said to them, “The Sabbath was made for man, not man for the Sabbath. So the Son of Man is lord even of the Sabbath.” [Mark 2:27-28 (ESV)]

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December 25, 2025

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Attitudes & Behavior, Church & Worship, Holidays & Holy Days, Joy, Sharing Our Faith

CELEBRATE CHRISTMAS ALL YEAR LONG

But the angel reassured them. “Don’t be afraid!” he said. “I bring you good news that will bring great joy to all people. The Savior—yes, the Messiah, the Lord—has been born today in Bethlehem, the city of David! [Luke 2:10-11 (NLT)]

christmas cactus

Several years ago, I was given a Christmas cactus in early December. It had just started to blossom and, by Christmas, it was in full bloom and beautiful. A Christmas cactus typically goes dormant by Easter but mine bloomed until mid-May. The next year, it blossomed again at Christmas but the flowers weren’t as spectacular. It was dormant by February and didn’t survive the summer. Admittedly, I’m a neglectful gardener and my record with plants is dismal. That cactus actually lasted longer than any of my holiday poinsettias.

The spirit of Christmas shouldn’t end when the flowers drop from the Christmas cactus or poinsettia. Christmas shouldn’t be forgotten when the lights are packed away, the tree comes down, the ornaments and creche are stowed away for another year, or the peppermint bark is gone. We can’t leave the baby Jesus in the manger and forget that He grew, taught, led, healed, loved, forgave, suffered, died, rose, ascended into heaven, and will come again! We need to keep the spirit of Christmas alive in our hearts well beyond the time the toys break, the Christmas cookies are eaten, the holiday sweaters are back in the drawer, the poinsettia dies, and the Christmas cactus goes dormant. The spirit of Christmas—its joy and anticipation—the good news of the gospel message—shouldn’t be dependent upon the calendar. It should flower all year long! Of course, we must remember to fertilize and water it with God’s word and prayer.

A pastor friend keeps a small nativity out in her office all year long. It’s to remind her (and her visitors) that the manger is as important a symbol to Christianity as is the cross. If we have Jesus in our hearts, we can be Christmas people regardless of the season. May the spirit of hope, love, joy, and peace that is so present during Christmastime continue in our hearts all year long!

The immense step from the Babe at Bethlehem to the living, reigning triumphant Lord Jesus, returning to earth for His own people – that is the glorious truth proclaimed throughout Scripture. As the bells ring out the joys of Christmas, may we also be alert for the final trumpet that will announce His return, when we shall always be with Him. [Alan Redpath]

So the Word became human and made his home among us. He was full of unfailing love and faithfulness. And we have seen his glory, the glory of the Father’s one and only Son. [John 1:14 (NLT)]

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December 8, 2025

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Attitudes & Behavior, Bible Stories, Church & Worship, Obedience, Temptation & Sin

DEFILED (Part 1)

“The people of Judah have sinned before my very eyes,” says the Lord. “They have set up their abominable idols right in the Temple that bears my name, defiling it.” [Jeremiah 7:30 (NLT)]

The Levites (descendants of Jacob’s son Levi) were set aside for religious service. While all priests were Levites, not all Levites were priests. The most sacred tasks, like offering the sacrifices and conducting ceremonies, were reserved for the priests (kohanim) who were descendants of Aaron; the rest of the Levites supported the priests in their duties.

The Levites were not meek men. It was Levi and his brother Simeon who killed all the men of Shechem in retaliation for the rape of their sister. After the Israelites worshipped the golden calf, it was the Levites who gathered at Moses’ side. At his command, they slaughtered 3,000 of their fellow Israelites for their idolatry. [Exodus 32:26,28] Hardly what we’d think of as typical church workers, the Levites were a tribe of warriors.

In the last year of David’s reign, he gathered 38,000 Levite men and assigned them their duties. The first group oversaw the work of the house of the Lord. This included Aaron’s descendants who acted as priests while other Levites acted as caretakers, baked the sacred bread, checked weights and measures, and assisted the priests. Acting as officers, judges, and administrative officials, a second group of Levites were given duties away from the temple. A third group of Levites served as the Temple’s musicians and singers. As the gatekeepers, a fourth group of Levites guarded the Temple and its treasures and protected the it from theft, desecration, and impurity. On a rotating basis, they spent the night at the Temple safeguarding its treasures and then opened the Temple in the morning. No one, not even the king, was allowed to defile the temple.

Nevertheless, during the reign of Solomon’s son Rehoboam, King Shishak of Egypt carried off the temple’s treasures. 50 years after that, Judah’s King Asa sent what was left of the Temple’s riches to the King of Aram as tribute. Less than 40 years later, during Queen Athaliah’s reign, the temple was ransacked by her followers and parts of it were used to build a temple to Baal. About 100 years after that, King Ahaz presented temple treasures to the king of Assyria, moved the original bronze altar, replaced it with a replica of an Assyrian altar, and made offerings to the gods of Damascus. By the time of King Hezekiah (716-687 BC), people were worshipping the bronze serpent made by Moses. Although Hezekiah destroyed the serpent and had the Levites purify the Temple, his son, King Manasseh, desecrated the temple by erecting an Asherah pole and altars for star worship. By the time Josiah became king 75 years later, the Temple had fallen into disrepair, Baal and Asherah were worshipped there, the Ark had been removed, and the book of the law had been misplaced. Josiah again cleansed the temple but his reforms did not last and both the Temple and nation were defiled by sin.

Where were the gatekeepers and what were the rest of the Levites doing during 300 years of Temple sacrilege? They were the ancient version of pastors, elders, deacons, assistants, choir members, worship leaders, custodians, repairmen, security team, and church councils. While a few Levite prophets spoke in condemnation of the various abominations, other than their rebellion against Queen Athaliah, the Levites’ silence and apparent compliance throughout the books of Kings and Chronicles is reprehensible. What happened?

Today’s temple of God is Christ’s church and, sadly, His temple continues to be violated. Rather than Asherah poles and images of Baal, today’s defilement is far more subtle. It includes things like sexual exploitation, abuse of power, cover-ups, misuse of funds, false doctrine, hypocrisy, ignoring sin, putting numbers before discipleship or entertainment before worship, seeking financial gain rather than the glory of God, neglecting the call to service, replacing the gospel with pop psychology and feel good messages, overlooking malicious behavior, following personality rather than Christ, neglecting the sacraments, and allowing prayer or Bible study to be an afterthought. Nowadays, it’s not just the Levites who have been called to guard the gates of Christ’s church and protect its sanctity. As a part of the body of Christ, we all are called to keep His Church from being defiled, misused, or corrupted.

For the most part, the Levites silently stood by as they saw God’s temple being defiled. Let us never make the same mistake.

Don’t you realize that all of you together are the temple of God and that the Spirit of God lives in you? God will destroy anyone who destroys this temple. For God’s temple is holy, and you are that temple. Stop deceiving yourselves. If you think you are wise by this world’s standards, you need to become a fool to be truly wise. [1 Corinthians 3:16-18 (NLT)]

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