Life, Liberty and a 911 Carrera
In an opening prologue to worship this Sunday, Ebenezer Diabene, LPC’s newest American citizen, will read a portion of the Declaration of Independence. Among the words Ebenezer will say are these, “We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness.” Continue reading
Having a 100,000 Mile Warranty Doesn’t Mean You Don’t Need an Oil Change…
According to Facebook, Going to church doesn't make you a Christian any more than standing in a garage makes you a car.” Some of my Facebook friends are among the 471,426. The phrase was originally coined by Billy Sunday who used it frequently as one of his famous one-lines in his evangelistic meetings. His line was, “Going to church doesn't make you a Christian any more than going to a garage makes you an automobile.” Continue reading
Good Dads Spotted
(Scroll down for your homework assignment)
Have you noticed those good dads out there? You know, they still outnumber the deadbeats. But the number of deadbeats has been rising and the number of good dads has been sinking. The signs aren’t good.
Cumulative effects are tricky things. One Big Mac once in awhile won’t hurt you. Neither will two. But the cumulative effect of too many Big Macs may be clogged arteries and a national epidemic of obesity. Not doing your homework once in the semester may not hurt you. Twice may change your grade and not doing it ever probably means a failed course. Continue reading
In Sure and Certain Hope
As we gather tomorrow as a worshiping community to “give witness to the resurrection” and to remember the life of Lynne Ferguson, we do one of the most important and, indeed, one of the most deeply joyful things the church ever does. Christian funerals are a gift from God and in the midst of sorrows, tears, laughter and joy, they should be gratefully accepted as such.
As the church gathers for a funeral, there are three primary tasks before us:
Say it ain’t so, Al and Tipper
Here’s what this post is not about. It is not about politics, global warming, stolen elections or inventing the internet. It is not about you.
Conversation about divorce, with real names attached, easily degrades into arm chair analysis about the particulars, his fault or hers, and what really happened. Al and Tipper Gore’s divorce is about real people, but unless you know a lot more than I know, let’s not analyze the particulars.
Conversation about divorce, any conversation about divorce, is instantly personal. Who among us has not been touched, probably hurt, by divorce? Perhaps our own, but certainly within the circle of close family and friends. It is no secret that Scripture does not view divorce in a positive light. At best divorce is understood to be given by God because of the hardness of our hearts (Mark 10:1-9). Many who read this post, LPC folks and others, know divorce all too well, its pain, but maybe also, the painful grace that it was during a particularly graceless season of life and certainly God’s grace in its aftermath, no matter what its circumstances. But this is not about your divorce or your friend’s divorce, the details and particulars, the justification or not.
This post is about marriage. Continue reading