A CLAY JAR

Back when I was in school we had art classes throughout elementary (primary) school and even on into high school (secondary).  If you are like me and had to take those classes, you had the experience of making a clay pot.  I well remember one I made.  It was supposed to be a cabbage (who knows why...).  I never did feel satisfied with my art projects but my mother liked it and kept it for years!  She finally gave it back to me when she had to downsize for moving into a small home.  For Mom's sake, I kept it around (not on display!).  

How many of you decided to keep your most precious treasures in the clay pot you made?  You can purchase a clay pot in the garden center.  Would you put your valuables in that clay pot?  

I venture to say that we are all aware of the fragility of a clay pot.  Probably we have all managed to break one sometime over the years.  We wouldn't consider keeping a treasure in such a pot.  

Now, consider 2 Corinthians 4:5-7: For what we proclaim is not ourselves, but Jesus Christ as Lord, with ourselves as your servants for Jesus’ sake.  For God, who said, “Let light shine out of darkness,” has shone in our hearts to give the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ.  But we have this treasure in jars of clay, to show that the surpassing power belongs to God and not to us.

What!?  This great treasure is in jars of clay!!  God's people are the jars of clay!  I am a clay jar!  So are you!  We are fragile, breakable, and pretty much ordinary.  Yet, God chose to give us the great treasure of the gospel.

We are weak so that God's power can be seen clearly.  Everyone of us is nothing more than clay.  But we have a great treasure.  Praise God!  

This scripture came to mind during our Sunday morning Bible class.  We were talking about the story of Moses needing help to hold up the staff of God while the Israelites were in battle with the Amalekites.  Every time Moses' arms got tired and the staff of God was lowered, the battle turned in favor of the Amalekites.  When Moses' held up the staff of God the Israelites prevailed.  I certainly don't know the reasons why it happened that way but one reason may be so that the Israelites would clearly see that they were weak without God working through them.  They were clay.

When we are weak the power of God can be more clearly seen.  Rejoice in being a clay jar for God!

 HOME WORSHIP

My last post on worship set my mind to thinking about family or home worship.  I believe this is something that is extremely neglected by many who call themselves Christians.  There may be those who just don't think it matters (can they really be called Christians?).  I think more often there are many Christians who have become overcommitted and allowed their children to become overcommitted.  They just don't have enough time.

I have heard it said that every one of us has 24 hours every day.  We manage to make time for the things we really want to do.  Maybe the biggest problem is a lack of desire to worship.

We each have to evaluate our lives.  Do we make time to worship with our family every day?  Do we love God so much that worship is our natural response?  Do we need to make changes in our use of time?  

I have no idea where you stand.  I urge you to think and pray about this.  I have decided to use this post to help those who would really like to have home worship but just don't have any idea how to begin.

Let me tell you about our journey in this regard.  

I remember when we were first married we purchased an NIV New Testament (at that time the Old Testament had not yet been completed).  We read together from that most evenings before going to sleep.  As I recall after all these years, we were not very consistent in that.  

When we had two little children we had a Bible story book with short readings.  Each evening as we were putting the boys to bed we would sit with them and read one of those stories.  We always sang the song "All Things Bright and Beautiful" with them and then had a short prayer.  This was a special time for us but as we moved and our lives changed we had a difficult time keeping consistent with this as well.

Move ahead to when the boys were a little older and another little one joined the family.  We resumed those special times of worship.  We tried to keep things as simple as possible so the children could understand.  As the boys grew older we continued this practice and moved to reading directly from the Bible as they were more able to understand.  

When the boys learned to read we bought several copies of the Bible and several song books to keep in our living room.  Every evening we brought out the Bibles and song books.  After the reading each child was allowed to choose a song for us to sing.  We would end with prayer and then it was bedtime.  

This time was indeed a great blessing to our family.  When we had visitors they joined us in our worship.  As the children grew into adults and left home, we continued the practice and when the children and grandchildren visited they joined in.  

Now that we are back to just the two of us at home, we do things a little differently.  We are able to read scripture, sing and pray after our breakfast since we work from home.  That morning worship is a great blessing often leading to discussion of some aspect of the passage read or the meaning of a hymn.  

We still continue our evening worship.  We sometimes choose a basic commentary on a book of the Bible or some other helpful book to read through together.  Sometimes we read from the Psalms.  We still praise God in song and finish with prayer.

I share this with you to help you see that it doesn't have to be complicated.  We are commanded to teach our children.  Fathers are to bring up children in the Lord.  We have a responsibility and worship with our children and discussion of basic teachings is a large part of that.

However, family worship doesn't have to end when the children leave home.  It doesn't have to end when one spouse goes on ahead to the Savior.  Don't give up in discouragement when it doesn't immediately become a habit.  How can we not worship the One who has done everything for us?  

 "Proper" Worship

    If you grew up in the church of Christ you most likely were taught in Bible class about the "five acts of worship"  (We do love our fives, 😊) :  Singing, praying, giving, communion, preaching.  So, yesterday was Sunday.  How did I do?  I joined in the singing of the congregation 🗹 , I joined in prayer 🗹, I put my money in the plate 🗹, I took communion 🗹, I heard a sermon 🗹.  All five checked.  I must have worshipped "properly."  

    Don't mistake me, all of these items are important parts of worship.  Can we say that we have worshipped just because we physically did all of these things?  Who seems to be the focus of the above checklist?  Is it really all about me??

    Consider the words of Jesus to the Samaritan woman:  But the hour is coming, and is now here, when the true worshipers will worship the Father in spirit and truth, for the Father is seeking such people to worship him. God is spirit, and those who worship him must worship in spirit and truth.” John 4:23-24 (ESV)

    Jesus says that true worship is in spirit and in truth.  Worship is so much more than just going through the correct motions.  Let's go back to our list.  When I joined in the singing yesterday, did I think about what I was saying and to whom I was speaking?  Did I sing with my heart as well as my voice?  Did I worry more about how I sounded than about honoring God?  

    When someone led in prayer, did my mind wander off to Sunday dinner?  Did I consider to whom we were speaking?  Did I sound the amen in my heart?  

    What about giving?  Was it intentional?  Did I just look to see if I had any spare change in my wallet?  Did I consider the joy of coming before God with something to give?  Was I thankful that I was not empty-handed?  Had I happily planned all week long how much I was going to give during the worship?  Did I consider how much I have been given?

    When it came time to take communion, did I stop to think about the One who willingly took all my sins and was killed for my sake?  Did I remember?  Did I recall that Jesus asked us to remember what he did for us until he comes again?  Did I stop to think of Isaiah 53:6 "All we like sheep have gone astray, we have turned every one to his own way, and the Lord has laid on him the iniquity of us all."?  Did I grieve over my sins which killed the Son of God?  Did I rejoice in humility that he saved me?

    Then the sermon.  We usually have more trouble considering how listening to a sermon fits into worship.  I was blessed to hear a sermon which was fully based on scripture.  Did I carefully listen to each scripture as it was read?  Did I take notes so that I could remember what was said and review it later?  Did I take pains to keep my focus?  Did I remember that even though a man prepared and spoke the sermon, he was bringing the very words of God?  Did I find my heart rejoicing in the word of life?  Even the sermon should draw us to praise.

    "Proper" worship is not always easy.  Satan tries to distract us and keep us from truly worshipping.  He knows that we gain so much strength to carry on from worship.  Don't give up.  Remember to worship Him every day!  There is always a blessing in "proper" worship.

 Don't Spread Poison!

And the tongue is a fire, a world of unrighteousness. The tongue is set among our members, staining the whole body, setting on fire the entire course of life, and set on fire by hell. For every kind of beast and bird, of reptile and sea creature, can be tamed and has been tamed by mankind, but no human being can tame the tongue. It is a restless evil, full of deadly poison. James 3:6-8 (ESV)

It was the end of a beautiful Sunday full of worship and praise.  Our Sunday evening worship had just ended.  We were spending a little extra time visiting since some who had been out of town for a long time were back with us.  It was such a joy to be together.

One man mentioned that he was working on a project and was needing a little extra computer expertise.  Another brother suggested that he contact D______.  Then it happened.  Someone asked how D______ was doing.  He heard that he had (committed a public sin) some time back.  The poison was released.  One brother tried to help by saying that D______ had made a public confession and repented and was now active with his home congregation.  But the damage was done.  Not everyone in the group knew about D_______'s sin before that evening.  But now they did.  

Don't get me wrong.  The brother who said that is a good, kind person.  But he spoke without thinking.  He could have simply asked how D_______ was doing and left it at that.  There was no reason to rehash the sin.  

James tells us that no human being can tame the tongue.  The tongue may be small but it is dangerous and full of poison.  

The whole day of worship was tainted by the poison that came from the tongue of this brother.  Personally, I was devastated.  I had to work hard to get out of the discouragement brought on by the poison.  I knew that the brother who said that did not say it with evil intent.  That is the danger of the tongue.

I have heard it said that you can't put toothpaste back in its tube once it has been squeezed out.  In the same way you cannot unsay words.

You brood of vipers! How can you speak good, when you are evil? For out of the abundance of the heart the mouth speaks. The good person out of his good treasure brings forth good, and the evil person out of his evil treasure brings forth evil.  Matthew 12:34-35 (ESV)

Jesus tells us that what is in our hearts determines what comes out when we speak.  We must get to the root of the problem.  Children are born with completely pure hearts.  As they grow and are in the world some weeds come in.  We do not have completely pure hearts.  It is what we must strive for.  We must do what it takes to fill our hearts with the things we want others to hear when we speak.  Those pesky weeds will cause us problems and we will sin with our tongues.  It happens but we must not be complacent about it.

When I was a young child I was taught a little verse in school.  It was designed to help us learn to cross the street safely.  "Stop, look and listen before you cross the street."  That is valuable advice to protect us from injury.  I would like to adapt that to how we use our tongues.  Stop before you speak and think about it.  Look at what you are about to say.  Listen to the Holy Spirit.  This plan can help us avoiding spilling poison into our conversations.

Spend a lot of time in God's word and fill your heart up with the good things you want to speak.  Spend a lot of time in prayer.  Let God help you tame the tongue.  You can't do it alone.  

 What Are You Thinking?

Floods, fires, riots, earthquakes, wars, bombs falling, planes crashing, immorality exalted, Christians persecuted....  The news is full of bad stuff.  It is so easy to get discouraged and feel like there is no hope for this world.  We can let our minds get so full of all the bad news and all the stress that we think of those things.  Yet, what does scripture tell us?

Finally, brothers, whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is just, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is commendable, if there is any excellence, if there is anything worthy of praise, think about these things.  Philippians 4:8 (ESV)  

These words were written by the Apostle Paul.  He gives us a blueprint for our thoughts.  There is nothing in there about all the bad stuff in the world.  Don't think that this had to be easy for Paul.  He lived in a time when the emperor of Rome ruled over the world he knew.  Christians were persecuted.  Paul himself had been beaten and left for dead.  He was arrested for something he did not do and left in prison long after he should have been released.  He was even abandoned by people he trusted.  He lived in the city of Corinth for a year and a half.  Corinth was a horrifically evil city.  Most around him worshipped the emperor and idols.  Yet, in the midst of this evil world, Paul said to think about the things that are true, honorable, just, pure, lovely, commendable, excellent and praiseworthy.

We cannot just ignore all the evil around us, all the suffering.  We must pray about these things but we must also look for the good.  I read a post by one of the preachers in Ukraine recently.  He was rejoicing in the midst of the terrible war because of all those who put on Christ in the past year.  He said that more people had come to Christ since the beginning of the war than in the ten years previous.  There is something lovely, excellent and praiseworthy.  God's people are working.  God is opening hearts.

The stories of self-sacrifice, courage and kindness are there.  Look for those things.  Focus on those things while praying for relief.  Of course, we will think about the things that are happening around us but we must not let our thoughts focus and dwell on the negative.  

Be careful what you put into your mind.  If you choose entertainment that is full of violence
and immorality you will certainly have difficulty thinking about the things listed in Philippians 4:8.  Watch how you feed your mind and spirit.  

See what you can find to think about today.  Look for the good news.  Keep your focus where it needs to be.

Water

We have been having a lot of rain here lately.  That is normal since it is the rainy season but it got me thinking about water.

The average human body is made up of about 60% - 70% water.  The human brain is made up of approximately 85% water.  Without a regular intake of water we develop problems.  I found this information online:  "Lack of water to the brain can cause numerous symptoms including problems with focus, memory, brain fatigue and brain fog, as well as headaches, sleep issues, anger, depression, and many more."  Water is vital.

It is also true that many, if not most, people do not drink enough water.  I have heard that the average adult loses about 80 ounces of water a day, but most take in only about 32 ounces.  Not sure how accurate these statistics are but the fact is that we need water.  We cannot live without water.  We will die without water.

Following the disastrous earthquake in Turkey earlier this week rescuers have been searching for survivors.  Doctors warn that the longer those survivors go without receiving water, the less likely they are to survive.  Being cut off from water means certain death if it continues.

Now, this is not a blog about our physical health.  Why would I be talking about water?

As Christians we must take in the water of life, the living water.  We cannot live without it.  The symptoms caused by lack of this precious water are much worse than the above mentioned physical symptoms from lack of physical water.

Jesus told the woman at the well to ask him for living water. "Jesus answered her, “If you knew the gift of God, and who it is that is saying to you, ‘Give me a drink,’ you would have asked him, and he would have given you living water.” John 4:10 (ESV)

What is this "living water?"  Wells in ancient Israel were of two types.  Some were more like what we might call a cistern.  They contained water but it was not being constantly renewed.  Other times when a well was dug it tapped into an underground spring or other source of water and was constantly renewed.  The water was always fresh and never stagnant.  The woman at the well was told to ask for continually renewed water.  

Later in the same passage we read these words: "Jesus said to her, “Everyone who drinks of this water will be thirsty again, but whoever drinks of the water that I will give him will never be thirsty again. The water that I will give him will become in him a spring of water welling up to eternal life.” John 4:13-14 (ESV)  

Jesus is the source of the living water.  The Old Testament also talks about the source of living water.  "for my people have committed two evils: they have forsaken me, the fountain of living waters, and hewed out cisterns for themselves, broken cisterns that can hold no water." Jeremiah 2:13 (ESV)  "O LORD, the hope of Israel, all who forsake you shall be put to shame; those who turn away from you shall be written in the earth, for they have forsaken the LORD, the fountain of living water." Jeremiah 17:13 (ESV)

God himself says he is the fountain of living waters.  God's people had forsaken that fountain.  There is no hope for spiritual survival when we cut ourselves off from the source of water.  

Keep in touch with Jesus.  He provides that water that is constantly being renewed.  When Christ is in us that water leads us to eternal life.  Without that water we are doomed.

Amazing Grace 

It is a well-known story.  John Newton was the captain of a slave trading vessel.  He was
involved in a horrendous business.  He became a Christian and God changed him completely.  John Newton wrote a hymn that is sung all over the world--Amazing Grace.  

In that hymn we find the words, "Amazing Grace, how sweet the sound, that saved a wretch like me."  John Newton had no doubt that before he came in contact with the wonderful grace of God, he was a wretch.  Dictionary.com defines wretch this way, 1. a deplorably unfortunate or unhappy person.  2. a person of despicable or base character.   I sure am glad I was never a wretch.  Oh, wait a minute.  I was!  

We don't like to think about ourselves as ever being a wretch.  Isaac Watts wrote the hymn, "Alas, and Did My Savior Bleed"  in which he has the line "would He devote that sacred head for such a worm as I."  Some modern hymnals have changed the line to say, "such a ONE as I."  Why? 

We don't like to say anything too negative about ourselves.  We tend to excuse our failings and sins and look around to see that we are not as bad as other people around us.  We need to admit that without Jesus we are wretched, poor and blind (see Rev. 3:17).  

A few years ago I came across this little saying, "You will never be amazed by grace until you are stunned by your own sinfulness."  I have not been able to discover the source of this quote but it is so true.  Many of us go through life thinking that God bestowed his grace on us because we are so good, so faithful, so much better than other people.  Grace doesn't really mean so much to us when we feel that way.  We need to realize that we absolutely do not deserve the grace of God.  

Consider what God has done for you and then consider how far short you fall, how often you deny him, how many times you fail to do what you know you should do or you do what you know you should not do.  Think about this and be stunned that you, in spite of the love of God, are a terrible sinner-- a wretch, a worm.

Then, consider that by the grace God gives, you are forgiven.  You have a new life.  You are covered by the blood of Jesus.  God looks at you and sees the righteousness of Jesus.  Now that is amazing!