02.24.09
Posted in Family, Missions at 9:00 am by Administrator
A Congregational Pastor in New England in the late 1700’s, early 1800’s, along with his wife, raised a family of several children, as the scripture says, “in the nurture and admonition of the Lord”. This included faithful church attendance of course and daily Bible-readings at the dinner table. One of those children had a particularly sharp mind and wound up attending Brown University and graduating as the Valedictorian in his class. Unfortunately, as so many young men since him, he was robbed of his faith by his professors and peers and became a Christ-rejecting Deist. At the urging of his father to enter the ministry the young man exploded with anger in the presence of his mother, denouncing their faith and declaring his highly-educated, Christless view of religion. That young man left home shortly after that to chase his dream of being a playwright in New York City. After a string of failures he headed west only to be faced with the death of his best-friend from college, the very person from whom he had adopted his deist views. The questions that the death of his friend raised in this young man’s mind would not let him rest and he at last returned home and then went on to Seminary as an unsaved enquirer, where he would be gloriously saved. That same young man would return home shortly thereafter and join the very church that his father pastored, accepting the church and the faith that he had renounced years earlier.
I discovered this story today in a biography that our family is reading, and it was a reminder of the many wayward children and hurting parents that I know. While the story did not recall the prayers of that Congregational pastor and his wife, I sure believe they were praying. Don’t stop praying for those children! Your family may get their miracle yet, just like the Judson family. As heartwarming as the story is, I must say that the young man mentioned above did not stay in that little Congregational church. He would eventually leave home and country to be the first American foreign missionary: Adoniram Judson, missionary to Burma.
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02.23.09
Posted in Church at 12:29 pm by Administrator
We had a tremendous day in church yesterday, including a great service last night. We did something we haven’t done before. When we visited Romania last Summer I was interested in their pattern for Sunday Morning Bible Study at one of the churches that we visited. There was one man in particular that was the primary teacher and moderator, but all the other teaching men in the church contributed as the passage was taught. Yesterday, I assigned a passage in the morning service for the men to read over and study and then we all took turns in the evening service, each man with a comment standing at their own seat, to exposit the passage. It went very well and was a great time. The passage was from First John One and the theme was on fellowship. We were reminded that our fellowship with God is the most promise thing that we possess in this world.
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02.14.09
Posted in Uncategorized at 8:57 pm by Administrator
The fact is, that unless Christ comes shortly (which is a very good possibility), our friends, families, and loved ones will some day lay us in the ground, memorialize our life, and bid us good-bye as far as this life is concerned. I’ve been to some funerals that were so much like going to a good church service that you left praising and glorifying God. It is a genuine blessing to be able to actually celebrate the home-going of some precious aged saint that had a clearly Christian testimony and leaves behind a rich spiritual heritage. I’ve been to some other funerals where the sooner you could get out of there the better, because there was no doubt you were dealing with someone that was in hell as the funeral was being conducted. But there’s a third sort of funeral that, as far as I’m concerned, is just about as uncomfortable as the funeral of a lost man. That is the passing of someone that had exposure to the truth and at one time made a “decision” for Christ, and yet lived as if they were lost till the day they died.
I don’t know about you, but I want there to be know doubt about whether I was saved or not when people show up to my funeral. I’m preaching my funeral everyday, and so are you. Men and women that were in the presence of Jesus Christ in the Bible and received his grace were changed forever. The world is not actually interested in a Christian’s doctrinal statement, they’re just curious as to whether that professing Christian has actually been changed by Jesus Christ. The lost world is looking for the proof of a changed life.
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