For many years, churches of all types and denominations have spent the bulk of their attention, time and resources on what takes place in their church facilities on Sunday mornings, calling these events worship services.  Connecting worship to an event and calling it a “worship service” has contributed to a distortion of the true meaning of Christian worship. The confusion becomes dangerous when these Sunday gatherings, some complete with state-of-the-art sound systems, and audiovisual equipment, become the primary focal point of our Christian life, and the centerpiece of our church’s image before the community.  As an example, news reporters often refer to our church building as “houses of worship.”

To be sure, worship does take place every Sunday morning in church facilities across this nation and the world.  Calling these gatherings “worship services” obscures the Biblical definition of worship.  You do not find the term worship service anywhere in the New Testament. On the other hand, you do find the phrase “service of worship.”  In Romans 12:1 (NASB), Paul wrote, “Therefore I urge you, brethren, by the mercies of God, to present your bodies a living and holy sacrifice, acceptable to God, which is your spiritual service of worship.”  Our “service of worship” according to this passage refers to giving our bodies as a living sacrifice to God.  Worship therefore, is not a service to attend, but rather a sacrifice to render to God.

There is great value in gathering together for worship services on Sunday.  Hebrews 10:24-25 says we should “consider how to stimulate one another to love and good deeds, not forsaking our own assembling together, as is the habit of some.”  In this passage, the “assembling together” is for mutual edification and encouragement, not for worship.

Worship therefore, is much more than a gathering of believers.  In the most basic sense of the word it means to bring God honor, praise and glory, an attitude of the heart lived out in daily actions that glorify God.  Jesus said it like this, “let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works and glorify your Father which is in heaven.” (Matthew 5:16)

Yes, gathering with other followers of Jesus is important. However, we must guard against reducing worship to an event, a song, a feeling, or a gathering of people.   Genuine, biblical worship starts in our hearts and finds expression through our service to God each day, not just in a “worship service” on Sunday.

I believe churches would have a greater impact on their communities if they spent as much of their resources helping members discover how to worship God through daily service, as they do helping them attend and enjoy worship services on Sunday.

What does worship look like for us?  Is it a weekly worship service we attend or is it a daily service of worship we give?

Just as the light from a distant star continues to shine long after its life span, so it is with us. Long after we are gone, the light from our lives will shine on through many generations.  What kind of light shines from our lives?  Is it the kind of light Jesus spoke about in Matthew 5:16?  He said, “Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works, and glorify your Father which is in Heaven.”

I reflected about light and the legacy of light during a memorial service a couple of weeks ago. I was reminded death is not the end, but rather the beginning. The memorial service was actually a celebration of the life of Mrs. Sara Kanoy Parker, the widow of Dr. Leroy Parker, a well known Baptist pastor in our area.

Her legacy will live on for years through her children, grandchildren and great-grandchildren, through endowments created in her name, and the life-changing influence she had in the lives of hundreds and thousands of women and children through her work in the Women’s Missionary Union and the local churches she served. Her 91 years here on earth was just the beginning!

Many of you can perhaps think of people in your family history, from whom the light of their legacy continues to shine.  My great-great grandfather, Richard G. Doyle, pastor, church planter, and supporter of missions, is someone I treasure as a light from the past.  His love for sharing the message of Christ led him to take an unpopular stand for missions, a stand that cost him the support of his home church.  They accused him of, “having fraternized with missionary preachers, and allowed them to preach in his church.” (A History of Kentucky Baptists from 1769 to 1885).

I think of A. B. Lamastus, my great grandfather on my mother’s side.  I remember attending his funeral in1965, and I recall my mother telling me about this dear man, a deacon, and charter member of the Walnut Grove Baptist Church in Dickson, TN, who felt called to take young pastors under his wing and teach them the “art of soul winning.”  Before “Pap” Lamastus died at 95, he held the record for attendance at the annual association meetings – in 59 years he only missed one meeting of the Judson Baptist Association.

Forgive the personal references, but they go to show how our lives will influence others far beyond the limits of our lifetime on earth.  This is a fact we cannot ignore.

Another example of a light from the past that continues to shine, is the great revivalist and preacher of two centuries ago, Jonathan Edwards.  The legacy left by the Edwards family demonstrates the effect of a gospel-centered home.  Of the four hundred known descendants of Jonathan and Sara Edwards, fourteen became college presidents; roughly, one hundred became professors, another one hundred ministers, and about the same number became lawyers or judges. Nearly sixty became doctors, and others were authors or editors. The Edwards family pictures Proverbs 22:6: “Train up a child in the way he should go; and when he is old, he will not depart from it.”

Paul wrote to the Philippians about the fact that our lives as followers of Christ should shine as luminaries or stars in a dark world. (Philippians 2).

What legacy will be left behind by the light shining from your life today?  Perhaps, a better question is, how and where is your light shining today?  Because, the light you shine today will impact others for generations to come.

This commercial reminded me of how from time to time, my granddaughters created imaginary playmates. During our visits to see them in Atlanta, we often have a tea party with the girls.  The youngest, Emma-Kate loved to invite her imaginary friend to join us for those special occasions. I was always amazed at the different names she would create for her friends. Like the tea party, the imaginary friend is part of her make-believe world.

Who is God to you? Is He some kind of imaginary friend a person creates? Is belief in God something you grow out of when you get older like a childhood fantasy? How do you view God, and most importantly how do you relate to Him?

Do you wrestle with the question about what it means to pray and talk to God?  I do. Defining and explaining the experience of prayer has been difficult for me. This may sound strange coming from someone who prays daily, and has given several sermons and Bible studies on the subject.  During my formative years growing up in Kentucky, we sang an old gospel song entitled, “Just a Little Talk with Jesus.”  According to the words of this song, regardless of the problems you are experiencing, just a little talk with Jesus “makes it right.”  I always felt the theology behind this song trivialized our relationship with God, the Creator and Sustainer of the universe.  Prayer and conversation with the Heavenly Father for me is much more than “just a little talk with Jesus.”  However, what is it exactly? What does it mean to “pray without ceasing?” (1 Thes. 5:17)

Recently someone gave me a book that helped me define and explain what it means to live a life in constant conversation with God.  More Than Ordinary:  Enjoying Life with God, by Doug Sherman, paints a picture of what it means to “walk with God,” and enjoy life with Him.  His simple yet powerful insights about prayer and daily conversation with God are both informative and inspirational.

This is one of those books you’ll read over and over because it makes you examine and re-examine what you believe about God, and how that belief translates into daily actions and choices that honor and exalt the name of Jesus.

Many say they are followers of Jesus, but live stale, lackluster lives, moving through their daily routines, never experiencing what Jesus said in John 10:10 – “I have come that they may have life and have it in abundance.”  There are also many who live in such a way that “knowing God” looks more like a child’s imaginary friend.  In other words, their talk about God, does not match how they live. Their attitudes, choices, relationships and moral values do not match what Jesus taught and lived. God is there to make them feel good, but has no claim on their lives.

One of the main reasons I recommend this book is because of its practical suggestions and insights on walking with God. After taking the first six chapters to describe what an intimate, personal relationship with God looks like, in the final three chapters, the author explores specific ways to walk by faith, worship and praise God, surrender to His leadership, and ultimately enjoy an exciting and fulfilling relationship with Him. In other words, this is a book about how to make life an adventure through a daily, intimate, relationship with God.

In the final analysis, I can say with absolute confidence, God is not my imaginary friend; He is the amazing God of glory and majesty. He is the Eternal Creator and Sustainer of the universe who is “relentless in revealing His greatness and goodness to us throughout every day.” (p. 99) He is the One who guides my life each day, with whom I enjoy an amazing friendship, and through whom life is an extraordinary adventure.

The reason this program is so popular is, at least in part, because we believe everyone deserves a place to call his or her own – a home, a place where family dreams are made, and futures are built.  Having a house or a home is more than just a luxury in our culture. It’s a place for security, protection and building life-long relationships.

Building someone a house, especially if that someone is a very deserving individual, is something that attracts attention.  Habitat for Humanity is one of the most respected non-profit organizations today.  They have built homes from literally thousands of people and inspired volunteers worldwide.

House building, an important metaphor in the writings of the Apostle Paul, describes what believers are supposed to do for each other.   The word is translated “build up” or “edify” and is used at least six times in the letter to the Ephesians.

It was a common term used to describe the actual building of a house.  Paul used it to talk about what we should do for each other.  To “build up” a brother or sister in the faith means to use words and actions that encourage, uplift and strengthen them.  Literally, we are to “build a house” for them with our love and kindness.

“Let no corrupt communication proceed out of your mouth, but that which is good to the use of edifying, that it may minister grace unto the hearers.”  (Ephesians 4:16 KJV)

Just as a carpenter plans well for the construction of a home by selecting the right materials, we must carefully choose our words and reactions to those around us.  In a sense, we are building houses in the way we treat each other, houses that will provide safety, security and hope. We “minister grace” through our words.

This spiritual house-building is not optional.  It is critically important for the entire body of Christ.  In Ephesians 4:12, Paul talks about the “perfecting” of the saints and the “building up” of the body of Christ.   The word “perfecting” is a rare medical term also translated as “mending.”  The building up of the church comes from the healthy mending of each member.  Later in the same chapter (v. 16), the Apostle suggests that only as every member “supplies” what they are designed to give, can the body of Christ build itself up in love and grow into the “full measure of the stature of Christ.”

What are you building through your words, and through the way you treat others? Are you building them up or tearing them down?  Do your words build healthy relationship or do they contribute to broken relationships?

Suddenly, all the dots connected in my mind, and to say the least, I was overwhelmed. This wasn’t just another patient. I remembered, ten years ago, when a medical team I was on, stopped to look at a six-year-old boy standing beside the road going up to Camp Bethel. I recalled the slim figure of this little boy, much smaller than the other children. He was lethargic, and didn’t run and jump like the other children around him. I remembered it like it was yesterday, putting my hand on his chest, and actually feeling the swishing of the blood moving back and forth from one side of his heart to the other. His congenital heart defect should have been repaired soon after birth, but he wasn’t born in a hospital, and his family lived in abject poverty. We all thought there was no hope he’d ever get the surgery he so desperately needed.

Other memories came flooding back. I remember the team’s commitment to do everything possible to get this little guy back to the United States for his surgery. I recall the physician on our team telling us if Brian didn’t get the surgery, he would not live past his fifteenth birthday. I remember the months and months of prayers, and the futileattempts to get paperwork signed, doctor’s permissions, visas and such. Nothing worked. Then, after two years of unsuccessfulattempts to get this child to the United States to have his surgery, he and his mother suddenly disappeared. They moved to a different part of Honduras, and we lost contact with them. I often wondered what happened to him, and indeed, if he was still alive.

Now, ten years later, that same little boy stood before me. Through joyful tears, I asked him how he got the surgery. He couldn’t tell me exactly how it came about, but a medical team from the United States came to Honduras last month and repaired his heart defect. He came by the clinic that day to thank us for our prayers. He and his mother had moved from Tegucigalpa to a place near the U.S. military base where someone from the hospital near the base discovered Brian, and took an interest in his condition.

Although he didn’t know the details of how and who, what he did know was many people had prayed for him, and God has answered those prayers. He knew ten years ago his grandmother and other relatives were not followers of Jesus. He knew growing up that a lot of badthings took place in the house where five to ten families lived. He knew some of his uncles and cousins were still in prison because of the things that had happened then. And, most importantly, he knew Christ had transformed his family. He came to the clinic that day to say thank you, and to give God the praise for what He had done.

He couldn’t explain why, but he knows God spared his life – something even more difficult for him to understand when he thinks about his nine year-old cousin, Christian, who is dying of cancer in the same house.

As I reflect on how God answers prayer, I am amazed, and humbled. I’m amazed at how God uses different people, from different places, at different times, to fulfill His sovereign purpose. I’m humbled that God in His sovereignty would allow us to participate in bringing about physical and spiritual healing to one single family, and one single person in a world filled with so many hurting and suffering people.

Yes, it’s just one boy, and one family in one small, country, Honduras. In some ways it seems like so little in the face of such overwhelming need around the globe. But, that’s how the world is transformed, one person at a time.

Jesus was always there for the least of society. Can we do less?

Then the righteous will answer Him, “Lord, when did we see You hungry, and feed You, or thirsty, and give You something to drink? And when did we see You a stranger, and invite You in, or naked, and clothe You? When did we see You sick, or in prison, and come to You?” The King will answer and say to them, “Truly I say to you, to the extent that you did it to one of these brothers of Mine, even the least of them, you did it to Me.”

Matthew 25:37-40 (NASB)

The problem is the soil. Jesus told a parable about a man sowing seed, and how the seed fell in four different types of soil: hard soil by the roadside, shallow, rocky soil, weed-contaminated soil, and good, fertile soil. Although it is known as the parable of the sower, in reality, it is a parable about soil. The soil represents the human heart, the place where God’s Word is sown daily. The yield of the crop is directly related to the condition of the soil. (Mark 4:1-20)

Parables are literary word pictures. They relate profound truths through common objects or stories. The focus of this parable is the condition of the soil where God’s Word falls. Some hearts, like the soil by the roadside, are hardened and unreceptive. When our hearts are hardened, Word of God doesn’t penetrate, and is swept away before it has a chance to produce fruit.

When our hearts are like the shallow, rocky soil, they may appear to produce good fruit, but the lack of strong roots makes them vulnerable to the blistering heat of persecution, and to the raging winds of tribulation, and the fruit does not last.

The most troublesome soil is the soil contaminated with weeds. You can’t see the weeds, but they are present. And, just like the weeds in my front yard, they don’t show up until it’s too late to stop them. According to this parable, they choke out what the seeds produce, and render the soil sterile and useless.

Then, there is the good soil. In the good soil, all things that are of God grow and flourish, because they are grounded in the Word of God, and fed daily by the Holy Spirit. Good soil is to be cherished.

This parable does not draw a line between unbelievers and believers. Actually, anyone of us could have one or more of these bad-soil conditions in our hearts at the same time. A lack of faith can make our heart hard just as it did the first followers of Jesus. (Mark 6:52 & 8:17). A lack of depth in our walk with God can make our hearts fickle and flighty, and our temporary joy turns to disappointing failure at the first sight of trouble or opposition. There may be a lot of emotion, but little depth. And emotion alone cannot withstand the storms of life. While a hardened heart, like soil by the roadside, is difficult to penetrate, and rocky soil is difficult to recognize, weed-contaminated soil is the most difficult to deal with. As Jesus described it, this soil is filled with the deception of riches, our love and desire for things for things, and the worries of life. (Mark 4:19) These “weeds” choke out God’s Word and render our lives sterile. Jesus had harsh words for fruitless branches. He said, “A branch that does not bear fruit is taken away . . . cut off and thrown into the fire.” (John 15:1-11) It is only in the good soil that we bear the fruit of the Holy Spirit. But, good soil doesn’t come easily.

Do you ever wonder why we don’t see more fruitfulness in our churches? Could it be the condition of the soil . . . our hearts? Are our hearts are hardened, our commitments shallow, and our lives are full of weeds that choke out God’s Word? Bad soil can show up anywhere, at anytime! So, how’s the soil where you and I live today?

If our soil is bad, what we do about it? Here are a couple of remedies from God’s word:

• For hard soil, God says, “Break up your fallow ground . . .” (Jeremiah 4:3)
• For shallow soil, the Psalmist cried, “Search me, O God, and know my heart . . .” (Psalms 139:23)
• For contaminated soil, King David prayed, “Create in me a clean heart O God . . .” (Psalms 51:10)
• But when there is good soil, we can “hear the word, accept it, and produce a crop – thirty, sixty or even a hundred fold.” (Mark 4:20)

The condition of our heart (soil) is God’s biggest concern, and changing our heart is His greatest joy!

Having been to Honduras a number of times, I was used to cold showers, roosters crowing at 4 am, and creeping creatures like spiders and scorpions. However, even with my past experience, this week was one of the most uncomfortable weeks I have ever spent anywhere.

Everyone in our group was plagued daily by tiny, little insects. You couldn’t see them, and you didn’t even know they’d bit you until your skin began to itch. No one, not even the locals, knew what they were. Their bite wasn’t poisonous, and we weren’t in any danger of getting sick, but the itching drove us crazy! Nothing we did seemed to deter them. If fact, I think they loved the insect repellant as much as they loved our fair complexions!

A couple of days into the trip, as we were treating over 100 patients a day in the medical clinic, itching like crazy, and bone tired, I remembered the statement about comfort and character. I didn’t go to Honduras to be comfortable, and God never promised I would be comfortable serving Him. In fact, He told those who wanted to follow Him to expect to be treated the same way He was treated. Then He added, “Unless you take up your cross and die daily, you cannot be My disciples.”

When I thought about what Jesus went through on the cross, my itching body and my tired feet didn’t seem so important. They really weren’t much at all-just minor inconveniences—- in comparison to all the suffering Jesus did for me. God had used those little critters to teach me an important lesson.

Most, if not all, of the 97 people in our group were experiencing the same insect attacks, but, to my surprise, the young people weren’t complaining!   When they returned to the camp each night after a day of missions, I heard testimony after testimony about what God had done that day. Then I realized again, it wasn’t about comfort, but about character . . . about what God was doing to shape their lives for their future in His Kingdom.

It is so easy to focus on whether or not we are comfortable, and complain when we’re not. That’s exactly what the enemy wants – to get us so attuned to our own comfort that we forget about our character, and the character of others. I’m glad God is always focused on the condition of my heart, gets me out of my comfort zone, and does whatever it takes to shape my character into the person He designed me to be.

One of the teenagers said it best in a poem she wrote toward the end of the week:

Not Forgotten

Little eyes staring
Little feet, no shoes
Hands, so dirty
Clothes so worn

Bumpy roads
not paved
houses, no doors
that have dirt floors

Joy when given hugs
Eyes excited to play
Full of energy
Ready to be lead

Prayers going out
People being saved
Holding heads high
Humbly committing to the Lord

Not proud,
Not boastful
ready to change
Thanks God, Thanks God, that’s why I came.

Victoria Bilton,  Deep Impact, Honduras-2011

How is your character shaping up today? 

This book is the product of the author’s quest and passion to find a way to do small group beyond the usual, “huddle and cuddle” Bible studies or self-help groups. His twenty-plus years of searching for effective ways to do small groups led him to the principles and practices found in this book.  The author, M. Scott Boren, takes a totally different angle from the normal books that talk about strategies, technical skills and knowledge about the dynamics of small groups.  What you find here is an attempt to reframe the entire discussion of small group experience.

His book is divided in to two parts.  Part one lays the foundation for becoming missional, and what that looks like within the context of a small group.  The author begins by identifying the life rhythms of small group life – rhythms that tells a story unique to each group.  According to the author, all small groups play rhythms that tell one or more of the following stories

• The story of personal improvement
• The story of life-style adjustment
• The story of relational re-vision
• The story of missional re-creation

The goal of the small group leader is to guide the group make the kind of “music” that makes a difference in the world.  In other words, to “learn the musical rhythms that line up with what it means to be the people of God.”  These rhythms often conflict and run counter to those played by our culture and in this way, create both a challenge and a barrier for the small group.

The second part of the book contains the “meat” or what the author believes it means to be missional as a small group.  Essentially, he answers these two questions. What’s the difference between the normal small group and the mission small group?  What does it look like to live out our faith in a missional small group?

The author identifies three life-rhythms present in missional groups:  1) missional communion, 2) missional relating, and 3) missional engagement.   The remainder of the book is devoted to explaining these rhythms and identifying the principles and practices that create and enhance these rhythms in the small group.  When a group is able to play all three rhythms, the group is able to join God in His mission in the world – becoming truly missional at heart.  It is no longer about the individual, or even the group, but about what God is doing in our world.

In my opinion, this section is worth the price of the book.  In one sense of the word, these are practical spiritual disciplines for missional groups.   This is not a book about structures or curriculums, and it isn’t a book that will help you answer the question, “How can I make my small group grow?”  But it is a book that will help you reframe your thinking about what small groups are, and how they connect, or fail to connect with real life, and most importantly how they do or do not reflect the missional heart of God.

This is a “must read” for leaders who are involved in small groups, and for pastors and staff who are interested in starting small groups in their churches.   

Reviewed by:

Larry Doyle
Director of Missions
Piedmont Baptist Association

A football in my hand is worth about $45. That same football in the hand of Tom Brady is worth about 72 million, according to his contract with the New England Patriots. A tennis racquet in my hand is worth about $200.   A tennis racquet in the hand of Pete Sampras was worth a little over $43 million dollars (total career prize winnings).

Five loaves and two fish in our hands is enough for a couple of fish sandwiches, but in the hands of Jesus, it is a banquet for more than five thousand people.

With a few nails in my hand, I might be able to build a birdhouse. A few nails in Jesus’ hand brought about redemption and salvation for the entire world.

The potential value of things such as a football, a tennis racquet, five loaves of bread and a couple of fish, or a few nails depend upon the person who holds them in their hand.

The same is true when it comes to our lives. Jesus said each one of His sheep is securely placed in His hands, and in the hands of His Father.

“My sheep hear My voice, and I know them, and they follow Me; and I give eternal life to them, and they will never perish; and no one will snatch them out of My hand. My Father, who has given them to Me, is greater than all; and no one is able to snatch them out of the Father’s hand. I and the Father are one.”

John 10:27-30 (NASB)

This truth not only tells us we are safe, but also reminds us of the great potential in each one of our lives because we are in the Father’s hands. What can be accomplished through your life and mine changes dramatically when our lives are in His hands.

If you’ve watched any TV at all, you can probably finish this slogan from a well-known insurance company, “You’re in good hands with . . .” They are also known as the good hands company.

The reality is, the only hands that are truly good are God’s hands!

As followers of Christ, we are securely placed in the Father’s hands, and because we are in His hands, our lives have unlimited potential. Paul was so certain of this, he confidently declared, “I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me.” (Philippians 4:13).

Are we aware of our potential and of our value by simply being in God’s hands?

I’ve often thought about this statement and wondered why our churches don’t have this kind of impact. I dare say, few churches today can be accused of “turning the world upside down.”

I am convinced we’ll never turn our world upside down until we turn the church inside out! The fatal flaw of most churches today is our inward focus. What happens on the inside of our organizations and buildings dominates our time, and eats up our resources. Most church conflicts (fights) are not about ministry and missions, but about personal preferences and control. The sad truth is the average church in America spends 85% or more of their budget on staff and buildings.

Turning a church inside out however, is not easy. It isn’t just a matter of reprioritizing resources and budgets. It is more than just doing more missional things in the community. Although values and priorities are important, nothing will change until we have a seismic shift in our understanding of what it means to be church.

The single greatest barrier to becoming an inside-out church is our model or paradigm of church – that is, how we see ourselves. As one of my seminary professors said many years ago, “The greatest challenge facing the church today is not that we are unable to meet our budget, or that attendance is down, but that we do not know who we are, or what we are to become as the people of God.” (Findley Edge – The Greening of the Church, 1972). As someone else said, “The church is suffering from an identity crisis.”

Since Constantine made Christianity the religion of the Roman Empire, the primary paradigm of church has been the model of people gathering in structures designed for worship and fellowship. Since then, most of the energy and resources of the church have been spent inside organizations and structures. This “gathered paradigm” of church continues to define how we do church today. Gathering to fellowship and worship is necessary, not to mention biblical. However, our gathering is not our reason for existence!

Simply put, there are two ways to view the church. We can view the church as a group of people who gather on a regular basis for worship and fellowship, and occasionally scatter to do good things in the world, or we see the church as a group of people scattered to impact and transform the world that also gathers for worship and fellowship. In one view, the priority is gathering and in the other it’s scattering. One looks more like an institution, and the other a movement.

Gathering and scattering are both necessary, but it is the way we scatter that gives meaning and purpose to the reason we gather! Not vice-versa. In other words, what happens inside our gatherings must never take priority over what happens outside our gatherings. Salt looks good in the salt shaker, but it only fulfills its purpose when it leaves the safety of the shaker. And, keeping the salt shaker filled is not the ultimate goal.

This missional identity of the church is explored in detail in Alan Hirsch’s book, The Forgotten Ways. He says, “We have become so numbed by the opiate of institutional religion that we have simple lost contact with the memory of what we can, and ought, to be.”

The key to turning the world upside down is turning the church inside out, and that will never happen until we see the church as missional. It is not that the church has a mission, but that the mission (Missio Dei) has a church. Our very existence is about being on mission in a world where God is reconciling the world to Himself. (2 Cor. 5: 19)

What are we doing to turn our churches inside out?