What Church is Not

(the church has left the building)

The gathering together of believers for teaching, prayer and worship has been happening since the beginning of the church. They have gathered in homes, schools, public places, YMCAs, and church buildings. They have gathered in public and in private; in open celebration and in secret. The time of day or day of the week doesn’t really matter. The dress of the people, the kind of music played, the brand of coffee served are just details. The important thing is that people are gathering and the name of the Lord is being praised!

It’s important to also think about what church is not. It should not be the only place that we worship the Lord, the only place His name is praised. For we can praise Him in so many ways, by sharing the joys in our life with others, by remaining steadfast in the face of obstacles.

Psalm 150:6 “Let everything that has breath praise the Lord.”

Church should not be the only place we cast our burdens on the Lord in prayer. We can pray at bedtime, before meals, when we get up in the morning and when we drive to and from work (eyes open please.)

Thessalonians 5:16-18 “Be joyful always; pray continually; give thanks in all circumstances.”

Even more importantly, church should not be the only place we find our friends. We should be interacting with all kinds of people, in all kinds of circumstances. We are called to be salt and light to the world.

Matthew 5:16 “… let you light shine before men, that they may see your good works and praise your father in heaven”

Thanks for all you do.

Brian

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Ain't Nothin' Like the Real Thing

(on the 8th day God created the Hammond organ)

I’ve been a piano/keyboard player most of my life and I’ve played one of those instruments at church for as long as I can remember. At the last church I served we had a great piece of equipment that emulated the legendary Hammond B3 organ, (that sound you hear in so much of the music of the 60’s from groups like The Allman Brothers and the Spencer Davis Group.) I enjoyed that digital rendering and the color it added to the music.

But this past week I reached the pinnacle of keyboarding. Our new church in Toledo has a genuine Hammond B3, rescued from a garage in Oberlin, Ohio. And it was my first Sunday in the band. The digital sound I thought was so outstanding paled in comparison to playing with the Leslie speaker spinning in the cabinet a few feet away. There ain’t nothin’ like the real thing!

The children of Israel came to this same conclusion time after time after time in the Old Testament. God had miraculously brought them out of bondage in Egypt, taken them across the Red Sea, given them manna and quail, and led them to victory over their enemies. But they fell into the trap of chasing after cheap imitations; idols made of gold and wood and stone. When things finally reached the breaking point they would remember the one true God, the God of their fathers, and cry out in repentance. The love and protection would envelope them once again.

Remember, then and now…There ain’t nothin’ like the real thing!

Thanks for all you do.

Brian

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Starting Over

(preseason, postseason..... we count the same in God's family)

The baseball playoffs have begun and fans across the country are root, root, rooting for their home team. The teams play 162 games over parts of 6 months to earn their spot in the postseason. But all the records and statistics don’t count for a thing once the playoffs start. Everyone has to start over. Everyone gets to start over. A clean slate, everyone’s equal, all the stuff from the past doesn’t matter anymore. Whether you started fast and finished slow or vice versa, it doesn’t matter how you got there; it just matters that you did.

There are plenty of times where a writer of a New Testament book, or Jesus himself, will quote verses from the Old Testament. It’s a sure sign that the verse is very important. Hebrews 8:12 and Jeremiah 31:34 is one example: “For I will forgive their wickedness and remember their sins no more.”

You see, God has a “playoff” attitude towards our faith. Some people find it as children. Some people don’t get there until their deathbed. But it doesn’t matter how long it takes us to find our faith, it just matters that we do. And just like the playoffs, we all get to start over. Nothing held against us, all the records don’t count for a thing.

It’s still not too late to get on God’s postseason roster!

Thanks for all you do.

Brian

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On the Outside Looking in

(soooooo close... it's just not our year in Ohio)

I just happened to be in Cleveland today as the Indians are attempting to clinch a spot in the 2007 World Series. I walked the four blocks from the hotel to the ballpark and stood outside the fence peering wistfully into the game. I could see one of the small scoreboards, hear the radio play by play being piped in and see replays reflected on the glass of the left field restaurant. The roar of the crowd was deafening as I hung out on the street with several thousand of my closest friends!

But I’m sure it would have been better to actually be at the game, in a seat (or standing) and cheering for the home team. I could have been inside; the concierge at the hotel said he could get bleacher seats for “only” $185. I had the desire to be inside and I knew how to get there. The price was just too high.

The rejoicing in heaven will make that ballgame look funereal. Thank the Lord we don’t have to be on the outside looking in when that day comes. The way is very clear: “for God so loved the world that He gave His only son, that whoever believes in Him will have eternal life” John 3:16. The price is too high for us to pay alone, but our friend has picked up the tab!

Thanks for all you do.

Brian

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You have been Selected

(flying just isn't easy anymore)

I traveled this week to not one, but two conferences. They both related to the Christian Mission of the YMCA, which made the back-to-back nature tolerable, but little else was the same. Two cities, two time zones, two sponsors, two dress codes, you name it. Even two plane tickets; and there in lies the story.

Because my wife was to drive and meet me for the second event, my journey did not end where it started. Instead, I bought two one-way tickets; which earned me the opportunity to hear “you have been selected for security screening” at the Denver airport. The process turned out to be pretty simple; merely providing photo identification and having an airline representative enter a bunch of extra information into the computer prior to receiving my boarding pass.

It hadn’t occurred to me that one-way tickets would set off some kind of minor alarm, but in the times we live, I shouldn’t be surprised. I actually take comfort in the security that’s present in our airports. Sure you have to arrive earlier and the lines get long, but the payoff in peace of mind is worth it.

The end of life on earth is a one way ticket; either eternity with God or eternity without. But He provides a way for peace of mind and the process is pretty simple. Faith in Christ as our once and forever Savior is all we need.

And there aren’t any long lines!

Thanks for all you do.

Brian

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Forget the Box

(boxes shmoxes... believers need to think outside something else)

Imagine you were in a small boat on Lake Erie with your friends traveling to one of the islands. When the weather’s clear it’s a fun ride, but if a storm kicked up it would be a different story. Wind blowing, waves crashing, rain falling. Scary stuff. The best place to be in a storm is in the boat. I would be right there in the middle, hunkered down with a tarp over my head.

The disciples found themselves in a similar situation on the Sea of Galilee in John 6. The storm was raging all around and they were frightened. But then Jesus came to them walking on the water. In that instant the safest place was no longer in the boat. Rather it was out on the water, with the One who could tame the wind and the waves. It was counter intuitive, but true.

We’ve probably all heard the phrase “think outside the box.” I submit that in ministry and Christian organizations like the YMCA we need to forget the box. We need to think outside the boat. That’s where Jesus was; calling the disciples to come and join him. That’s where we, too, can meet him and do the amazingly powerful work he desires from us.

Throw off the tarp, look and listen and get ready to JUMP!


Brian

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