Acappella Singing

Last Sunday I had the opportunity to speak to the First Presbyterian Church about churches of Christ and what we believe and practice. It was a great experience! One of the questions that was asked by an audience member was about our practice of acappella singing. I stated what our congregation teaches about the issue and why we have chosen to preserve that part of our faith heritage.

I don't want to debate the issue (there's enough people doing that); instead, I would like to pose this question to you blog-readers: What do you like about acappella singing in the corporate worship service?

Timeless Values

Last Saturday's Oklahoman newspaper printed an interview with Pepperdine University president Andrew Benton (who is an Oklahoma Christian alum). One of the questions was, "If you could take a young person for a long walk, what timeless values would you impart?" Benton's response was this: "I would say to them don't be in a hurry, that happiness is a decision that you make. It's not a destination. That some of the best adventures you'll have will be not in the arrival of someplace, but in the journey...and the people that you meet along the way."

Now it's your turn to answer the question. If you could take a young person for a long walk, what timeless values would you impart?

Perfect Churches?

From Eugene Peterson (via www.preachermike.com):

The churches of the Revelation show us that churches are not Victorian parlors where everything is always picked up and ready for guests. They are messy family rooms. Entering a person’s house unexpectedly, we are sometimes met with a barrage of apologies. St. John does not apologize. Things are out of order, to be sure, but that is what happens to churches that are lived in. They are not show rooms. They are living rooms, and if the persons living in them are sinners, there are going to be clothes scattered about, handprints on the woodwork, and mud on the carpet. For as long as Jesus insists on calling sinners and not the righteous to repentance – and there is no indication as yet that he has changed his policy in that regard – churches are going to be an embarrassment to the fastidious and an affront to the upright.

How to Solve a Problem among Believers

I received a great deal of feedback from Sunday's sermon and a few requests to post the outline on my blog. The sermon was anchored in Acts 15 where the "Council at Jerusalem" takes place to consider a disagreement about salvation that is taking place between Jewish Christians and Gentile Christians. While Acts 15 is a significant theological passage, the manner in which the Council deals with the problem that is presented provides some practical tips for us when we disagree with our brothers and sisters in Christ. Here's the outline:

How to Solve a Problem among Believers

1. Meet together (15:6, 33)
2. Identify the issue (15:6)
3. Respect each other as fellow believers (15:7,13,23 - the use of the term "brothers" signifies respect and a common spiritual bond)
4. Listen to each other (15:12)
5. Consider God's works (15:7-9) and Word (15:15-18)
6. Use rational judgment (15:19)
7. Don't overcomplicate the issue (15:20,28-29)
8. Convey your message in person (15:22)
9. Prove your sincerity through your actions (15:25-27 - the men chosen to be sent to the Gentiles had proved the sincerity of their faith through their actions and were respected for it)
10. If absolutely necessary, part ways without burning bridges (15:36-41)

Wounded Healers

I will be gone for a week attending a family reunion, so I will leave you with this devotional thought by Henri Nouwen:

Nobody escapes being wounded. We all are wounded people, whether physically, emotionally, mentally, or spiritually. The main question is not "How can we hide our wounds?" so we don't have to be embarrassed but "How can we put our woundedness in the service of others?" When our wounds cease to be a source of shame and become a source of healing, we have become wounded healers.

Jesus is God's wounded healer. Through his wounds we are healed. Jesus' suffering and death brought joy and life. His humiliation brought glory; his rejection brought a community of love. As followers of Jesus we can also allow our wounds to bring healing to others.

Think Right

I have mentioned Terry Rush's (www.terryrush.blogspot.com) blog before on my blog. I like to check it periodically because he directs many of his thoughts to younger ministers. This is a post he had up the other day on the connection between peace and how we think.

How we think feeds our path. Thinking is key. Defending sometimes requires no thinking. One can defend a doctrine because he believes he read a verse which says such, but doesn't bother to think about it. Simon of Luke 7 was passing judgment; but he wasn't thinking. To think does not prove a good day. It's how we think which helps us pass the test.

Philippians 4:4-9 is a passage regarding peace. Peace hinges on how we choose to think. If we let our mind dwell on the things which haven't worked, we will find ourselves possibly consumed with the ability to state facts but not hope. Yet, if we will practice the call of these verses to rehearse in our minds the things in life which are excellent, lovely, and worthy of praise, odd and wonderful life begins to flow from the exact same person. The way we think makes or breaks our lives.

To think well is not insurance against matters going wrong. It is training to see life through the storms arriving at the beauty of the rainbow which would not be there except for the unwanted storm. Lemons really do make lemonade when our thinking keeps from going sour!