Scripture Reading: Matthew 11:1-19
A gentleman from Tempe, Arizona tells of the time he gave the children’s sermon at church. He had used the term, “the 3 R’s,” before realizing the children might not know what I meant. So he asked, “Can anyone tell me what the ‘3 R’s’ stand for?” One of the boys who was always the first to respond, raised his hand. “Rinse, reuse, recycle.” —James West, Tempe, Arizona, “Kids of the Kingdom,” Christian Reader.
Times have changed. Children today are oblivious to what was common and everyday for us just a generation back. Children take for granted Read more…
Scripture Reading: Hebrews 9:24-28 (NRSV)
I don’t know if you remember this but a year ago or so I made a brief comment in the newsletter about our pews. We had been discussing for quite some time their condition and the significant expense of getting them refinished or at least purchasing new pew cushions. We even discussed a more expensive option of buying new pews. I was not particularly excited about causing conflict but I suggested that before we decided to spend the tens of thousands of dollars on the pews we should consider the possibility of getting the kind of chairs now in many of the newer sanctuaries. Fortunately, that debate never came to be. Read more…
Scripture Reading: Proverbs 1:20-23; Mark 8:27-38
My pastor friend put sanitary hot air hand dryers in the rest rooms at his church and after two weeks, took them out. I asked him why and he confessed that they worked fine, but when he went in there he saw a sign that read, “For a sample of this week’s sermon, push the button.”
Have you ever played the “what if” game? What if I had said yes to that promotion? What if I had not moved to Rapid City? What if I had swallowed my pride and asked for directions? What if I had stuck with my piano lessons? What if I had listened better? It’s kind of like the “if only” game but with far less regret. The difference between the two becomes even more evident when we turn them to the future. There’s a sense of defeat and regret when we say such things as “if only I could afford to go to college” or “if only I was more disciplined.” When the “what if” game is played properly it contains much more promise – “What if I go to college – what difference would that make?” “What if I had practiced harder?” becomes “what if I practice harder?” “What if I had listened better?” becomes “what if I listen better?” Read more…
Scripture Reading: Ephesians 4:11-16
Three store owners shared adjacent storefronts in the same building. Times were tough. In hopes of picking up sales, the owner of the shop at one end of the building put a sign over his front entrance that said, YEAR-END CLEARANCE!!! At the other end of the building, another owner responded with his own sign: ANNUAL CLOSE-OUT. The owner of the store in the middle knew he had to act fast or he’d lose business. After careful consideration, he hung a larger sign over his front door that read, MAIN ENTRANCE. – Ivan R. Misner, Ph.D., The World’s Best Known Marketing Secret (Bard Press, 1997), p.30-31
