I’m conducting the funeral tomorrow for the son of a neighbour. When the funeral home called me, I was surprised; he was young – younger than me.
His heart simply gave out on him. It was all so sudden.
I’ve often said, “Tomorrow is not promised.” I’m sure I didn’t come up with that, but it’s true. By all means, we should plan for retirement, and plan for the future, but we should by all means keep in mind that tomorrow is not promised.
I once knew a man who saved all his hopes and dreams for travel until after he retired. He died six months after he retired.
Tomorrow is not promised.
That’s why it’s so important to be in relationship with the Lord now. Some will say they’ll wait until later in life to make amends with their Creator, since they presume that he would only want to cramp their style in the meantime. (Spoiler: that’s not really the case.)
But tomorrow is not promised. Restore your broken relationships, for your sake and theirs. Keep short accounts. And come to Jesus today. His hand is extended already, waiting to receive you by faith, and to offer you the joy of his salvation. (To learn more, click here.)
“Seek the Lord while you can find him. Call on him now while he is near. Let the wicked change their ways and banish the very thought of doing wrong. Let them turn to the Lord that he may have mercy on them. Yes, turn to our God, for he will forgive generously” (Isaiah 55.6-7, NLT).
In today’s service, we hear a message called “Have a Heart!” from Matthew 5.13-16, in which we learn about how important it is for followers of Jesus to have a heart for evangelism. The message begins at 21:19.
Reuben Morgan, a musician who is part of the Hillsong Church movement that began in Australia, penned these simple words. Meditate on this short prayer to centre your day in the Lord.
This is my desire
To honour You;
Lord, with all my heart
I worship You.
All I have within me,
I give You praise.
All that I adore
Is in You.
Lord, I give You my heart,
I give You my soul,
I live for you alone.
Every breath that I take,
Every moment I’m awake,
Lord, have Your way in me.
“I will give you a new heart, and I will put a new spirit in you. I will take out your stony, stubborn heart and give you a tender, responsive heart.And I will put my Spirit in you so that you will follow my decrees and be careful to obey my regulations” (Ezekiel 36.26-27, NLT).
In this service, we delve into Acts 10 to learn how the church is called to be a vehicle for God’s movement in the world. What does Peter’s encounter with Cornelius teach us about being the church in our time? Have a listen and find out. The message starts at 20:16.
For some people, the one day that’s scarier than Friday the 13th is Friday the 14th…when the 14th lands on a Friday in February! (Okay, there’s also tax deadline day, but that’s another story.)
Yes, it’s Valentine’s Day.
As a child, I remember that it was customary to bring a valentine for everybody in my class at school. Looking back, I think that seemed a bit artificial, but there was value in leaving no one out. At the same time, I sort of wished I could have just brought one valentine…usually for the prettiest girl in the class.
Though Valentine’s Day is in no particular way a Christian feast day – not even among most of those who celebrate saints’ days – my childhood experience does reflect something of God’s view on love. That is, God has a valentine for everybody. After all, Jesus said that God so loved the world – not a select few. God’s love for everybody is what sent his only Son into the world…that whoever believes in him will have eternal life.
Here’s a way I’ve seen it depicted visually. Spend a few minutes pondering this image, and give thanks to God that he sent you a valentine in Jesus. Will you send one back to him?
I received word this evening of the death of my favourite centenarian. She was a friend, a counsellor, and a true Barnabas, a real encourager. And she was my honorary grandmother.
I met Eleanor when she was but a young thing, aged 77. She was a member of the search team that called me to a congregation I served. At the time I was being interviewed, she was simply another member of that team. But when my call was processed, she was part of the group that came to support the call. After the call was sustained, I escorted the group out of the church where we were meeting, and she said to me, “I’d like to be a grandma to you if that’s okay.”
I readily accepted.
Little did I know how much I would come to appreciate her wisdom, her faith and faithfulness, and even just her presence. She had a spiritual gift of hospitality that manifested itself in countless ways, not least of which were leading and hosting two small groups for the church, and welcoming her Pastor at anytime of the day or night, with the promise of being able to put up my feet, sip on a wee dram, and share what was going on – good or bad.
She was a faithful member of the Session (the elders’ board) during my entire tenure, and always had a wise word to offer to whatever issue was being deliberated.
When the Lord led my wife and me to serve another church, and our house sold and closed the day before my last Sunday, Eleanor put us up for the night before my final service. We have kept in touch ever since. In more recent years, our keeping in touch has been limited to telephone calls, usually on her birthday or mine, since they are a day apart (plus a few years!).
I spoke with her on my birthday, not quite two months ago. I was not surprised I could not reach her on her birthday, since I expected she was being well feted by her caring family, for one who turns one hundred years old ought to be celebrated! And she wisely went to bed early that night.
I have always wished that the Lord would bless every church I served with an Eleanor. In fact, I wish that every church ‘period’ would have an Eleanor, for every pastor and every church need people who will provide calm wisdom, a loving smile, and an open door.
Eleanor provided all that, and more. I will miss her.
I am teary for me, and for her close family and friends. But I am not sad for her. For though she has seen ‘through a glass darkly’ as the old King James put it, now she sees ‘face to face’. The Lord Jesus, whom she served so well, has welcomed her to her eternal home.
As they say good-bye to Eleanor, her family will sing a song that probably is not often sung at funerals. It is a song that I introduced to the church in which we were co-labourers, and one that she so loved that I remember her saying, perhaps 20 years ago or more, “I want this sung at my funeral.”
It’s not a song about being sad.
It’s not about gardens or flowers.
It’s about Jesus.
The Eleanor I knew centred her life on Jesus. So it’s very appropriate that her send-off should include something that turns the attention of those present to the Lord she loved and served.
I’ll append a YouTube video below that plays you the song and displays the Jesus-centred lyrics. It was written by Graham Kendrick, a British Christian musician. It’s called “Shine, Jesus, Shine.”
Jesus shone through Eleanor in a way to which I can merely aspire.
I pray that her family and friends will take comfort in the grace of the Lord Jesus that shone through Eleanor.
In this worship gathering, we hear a message from John 21 about how obeying Jesus can bring wonderful results, and how the apostle Peter was restored in his relationship with Jesus. If you’ve ever wondered if your sin is too great to be forgiven, you need to watch this video. The message begins at 37:59.
Our congregation’s LifeConnect Groups have all stumbled on one verse that’s giving us a challenge this week. It’s John 20.23, which was part of our Scripture focus last Sunday: “If you forgive anyone’s sins, they are forgiven. If you do not forgive them, they are not forgiven” (NLT). Jesus said this to the disciples immediately after breathing on them and giving them the Holy Spirit.
It kind of sounds like it could be a power trip, doesn’t it? If Jesus has given his followers the power to forgive or not forgive anyone’s sins, that suggests that we could decide who’s in and who’s out. But I don’t think that’s where Jesus was going with it. There are a couple of levels of understanding this verse that may be encouraging to us.
First, it can be seen as an approach to personal peace. By that, I mean that when we forgive others for their sins against us, we are set free from bondage to the transgression. But when we don’t forgive, it’s another story. Somebody once said that holding a grudge is like drinking poison and expecting the other person to die. Seems silly when it’s put that way, right? But a lot of people refuse to forgive even when the other party seeks it, and that is the poison.
But did you know you can forgive the other person even when she or he doesn’t ask for it? I’ve had to do that a few times in my life, where someone has not acknowledged wrongdoing against me, but in order to move on with life, I’ve had to forgive that person in my mind and in my spirit. Even though there may be a sense of injustice about that, it sets you free, and that’s what matters.
The other approach to John 20.23 is to be reminded that Jesus invites us to be partners in forgiveness as we proclaim the gospel to others. Jesus offers forgiveness of sin that lasts for eternity, and when we share our relationship with him, that opens a door for those people to receive forgiveness of sin.
Of course, a literal reading of the verse suggests that the disciples – and perhaps through them, we – have the power to forgive others’ sins. While I believe we are empowered to do that in terms of our sins against each other, I can’t see any biblical evidence that suggests we are empowered to offer eternal forgiveness of sin. That’s Jesus’ job, since he paid the price for our sin at Calvary.
But it’s still through our faith-sharing efforts that doors open for Jesus’ forgiveness to be received. And that’s why it’s so important for us to talk about our relationship with the Lord. As the apostle Paul tells the Corinthian church, “Because we understand our fearful responsibility to the Lord, we work hard to persuade others….So we are Christ’s ambassadors; God is making his appeal through us. We speak for Christ when we plead, ‘Come back to God!’” (2 Corinthians 5.11, 20, NLT).
Who knows whose life you may affect by your faithfulness in speaking about God’s love?
Whether it’s dealing with social media skirmishes or where to bring your doubts, this message has a word from God for you! Called “(Not) Seeing Is Believing”, it begins at 27:45. It’s based on John 20.19-31.
Passionately His 