Sunday Call to Worship – Why the Change?
Published December 16, 2010 | 
Some of you have noticed that the elders have been doing the “call to worship” on Sunday mornings, and have asked us ‘why the change?’ We thought we should let you know what our plan is (a couple of you thought so too–thanks for the nudge).
The “call to worship” is really intended to be a short moment at the open of our corporate worship service where our minds, through biblical truth, are directed toward the glories of God in Christ, and away from ourselves (and others . . . and the clutter of life in general). Over the years it had kind of grown into a “mini bible study” presentation, often going longer than the intended time-slot. While the content and encourgements were generally good, the inconsistency of length makes it very difficult to plan and arrange the other aspects of the Sunday morning corporate worship. The “call to worship” was never intended to be a 3-point Bible lesson, with applications. Because this became a frequent example (more common than not), many of the men did not want to participate, thinking that they would not be able to prepare anything “worthy” of being a “call to worship.”
We have tried a number of things over the years to help prevent or curb this frequent pattern. We have a ‘guideline booklet’ that was either not being used, or not being paid attention to. We tried sending short email reminders of the purpose, goal, and approach for participating in this ministry. We have had personal conversations with many of you who participate in this ministry. We have been involved in the preparation process with some of you. All of these things have helped, but not really accomplished the goal of setting a consistent pattern, both for time and content.
So after some careful consideration of the issues, the elders thought it would be most helpful for us and for you, to simply set an example to follow. So, that is what we are trying to do over the next few months or so. We would like to show you how simple, helpful, and encouraging a brief but pithy call to worship can be. And we hope to demonstrate for everyone how focused we can become with a short bible reading, and a few pointed comments that focus our attention on a particular aspect of God’s character, person, power or work of salvation.
We are hoping that seeing this regular pattern of simple, direct, bible reading and brief reflection (over a longer period of time) will help those of you who encourage others through this ministry to imitate our example. And, more importantly, we want some of you men who haven’t wanted to participate, to see how simple and encouraging it can be, so that you will jump in too. We want to benefit from your brief reflections on the character and work of Christ too!
Our plan is to do this for a few more months, and then transition back to a pattern of having other men initiate our worship, and to lead us all into that experience by “calling” us to focus on Christ and His work through the Scriptures.
I think this addresses the questions that I have been asked, or that have made their way to me through others. If you have any other questions, please don’t hesitate to talk to Eric, Jon or me.
Blessings!
12 Days of Christmas Witnessing Ideas
Published December 9, 2010 | 12 Days of Christmas Witnessing Ideas
Christmas is an ideal time of the year to strike up a Christ-centered conversation with the people around us. Here are 12 ideas of how we can do this with our neighbors, friends, co-workers, and loved ones.
First day: Invite your neighbor(s) and their children to a gingerbread cookie bake. Tell the mom you are going to share the story of Jesus’s birth during that time.
Second day: Ask a loved one, “What do you suppose the song, ‘Joy to the World’ means when it says, “Joy to the world, the Lord has come, let earth receive her King. Let every heart prepare Him room …”
Third day: Invite friends to go see the lights at “LaSalette” in Enfield, NH (or the Christmas lights around your neighborhood). As you are riding in the car, ask them about Christmas. Discuss the manger scene.
Fourth day: Find a family in town that has small children and is in need. Bring them a small gift for Christmas and tell them about the love of Jesus Christ.
Fifth day: Put a Gospel tract in your Christmas cards.
Sixth day: Next time you are shopping, find a frazzled person that appears stressed out. Tell them that Jesus came to bring “peace on earth.” Ask them if you can pray with them that they would experience the peace of Christ.
Seventh day: Find a group of Christians to go caroling with you. After you sing a few carols at someone’s home, give an invitation to the church or an invitation to your home fellowship.
Eighth day: Invite someone to the Christmas Eve service at the church.
Ninth day: Shovel the walk for your neighbor. Tell them that the love of Christ compels you and that you wanted to do it because you are joyful about salvation in Christ (read the heraldry from the angels, Luke 2:8-14).
Tenth day: Visit a local nursing home. Ask the staff if there is anyone there that may want to be encouraged and may be looking for visitors. After you visit for a while, leave them something to read, such as the Gospel of John.
Eleventh day: Invite people to your home for a “reading of the Christmas story” fellowship that will be accompanied by coffee, hot cocoa (or cider) and dessert.
Twelfth day: Ask someone, “What is the meaning of the word “Immanuel?” and, “Why does Immanuel have to rescue captive Israel (in accordance with the song). Post the YouTube video “O Come O Come Emmanuel” on your Facebook site and ask your friends to post comments on the meaning of the lyrics.
This is not the time to get into arguments about the commercialism of Christmas or about other secular traditions surrounding the Advent. Instead, do your best to keep your conversations focused on Jesus Christ.
I hope this will help you in your ministry of reconciliation.
Blessings, Allen
The Self-Authenticating Word
Published December 8, 2010 | The following scenario was posed at the end of one of our Adult Bible Fellowships (not in this many words):
Suppose we are out sharing the Gospel and we tell someone that the Bible is the Word of God. We share with them that the very words of Scripture are actually God’s very words. It is as if God spoke to us directly in a book. Of course, we tell them this on very good authority, the Word of God itself which states this truth in numerous places (most notably 2 Timothy 3:16-17; Hebrews 1:1-2; and 2 Peter 1:21).
But, what do we do if the person does not receive this truth? What if they say, “I don’t believe that the Bible is the Word of God”, how then do we respond?
Here is a suggested three-step way to respond.
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Establish the Authority of the Bible: First and foremost, there is no authority higher than the Word of God. Therefore, there can be no authority that can validate the Bible as the Word of God. For example, if we were to say that the church is the authority that validates the authenticity of the Scriptures, then the church would be elevated in a higher place than the Word of God. This applies for all ways of attempting to validate the Bible through man-made methods (i.e, science, historical, philosophical, etc.). The Bible is the Word of God because it says so. The Bible is “self-authenticating. J. I. Packer writes, “God the Father is the giver of Holy Scripture; God the Son is the theme of Holy Scripture; and God the Spirit is the author, authenticator, and interpreter of Holy Scripture.”
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Speak to the Reliability of the Content: The Bible has proven itself to be completely reliable. There are no contradictions within the Bible. Also, the Bible is accurate scientifically, historically, and geographically. There have been those that have accused the Bible as having false information only to have history prove the accusation as being wrong. Each day that passes, the Bible continues to prove it is truthful and reliable.
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Solicit a Response: Because the Bible claims to be the very Word of God and because the Bible has proven itself to be reliable and accurate we need to seriously consider what the Bible is saying. If we approach the Bible as a science book, we will be disappointed because it is not intended to be a science book. Nor is the Bible intended to be read as a history book, philosophy book, or any as any other genre. The Bible is written as a communication from God to man, the Creator to the created being. We need to read the Bible with this view in mind. If we view the Bible with that premise, we will find that it does speak to our hearts and our minds and it does reveal to us who God is and what is mankind’s relationship to the Creator.
I hope this will help you as you seek to point people to the cross.
Blessings, Allen