Rules of Engagement

I saw this post that was shared by several of my friends on Facebook: “My husband has three rules of engagement when we go to church. 1. An alone person in our gathering is an emergency. 2. Friends can wait. 3. Introduce a newcomer to someone else. Let’s all be missionaries at church today!” It can be a scary thing to visit a church where you do not know anyone. What will it be like, where do I sit, where are the restrooms? There is nothing like finding a friendly person to answer our questions and help us out. How can we, as the church in Huntingdon, be a warm, friendly congregation?

First, we need to look for those who are alone. Loneliness is a big problem in our world. I need to look around and find those who do not have anyone they are sitting with or talking to. Ask questions about them. You might find you have something in common with them. Use that information to talk with them the next week (Ecclesiastes 4:9-12).

If I am going to follow the first rule, I will have to follow the second rule. It is easy to talk to and visit friends and family. If we really want to be a friendly church, not one that is just friendly to each other, then we have to go beyond our people. It is not as easy and can be a little scary to talk to those we do not know as well, but we just might find a new friend and make an eternal difference.

Lastly, when you talk to new folks, go beyond “Hi” or “How are you?” Where do you live? Where do you work? What grades are your kids in? Use that information to connect them to others. Sister so-and-so lives on that road, and introduce them. Brother so-and-so works there, and introduce them. This is the so-and-so family, and their daughter is in that grade.

The important point is that we are missionaries, and one of those mission fields just might be our assemblies.

Time is the Story

by Brooks Jackson

It's that time of year again! School is back in session, which also means I am back at it with graduate school classes (*written with sarcastic enthusiasm*)! In case you don't know, I am a student at Freed-Hardeman's Graduate School of Theology, where I am pursuing a master's in Pastoral Care and Counseling. Pastoral counseling is a unique form of psychotherapy that uses spiritual resources as well as psychological understanding for healing and growth.

As you can imagine, the Pastoral Care and Counseling master's has included a mixture of counseling classes and Bible classes. This semester, one of the three counseling classes I'm taking is called Life-Cycle Development; in this class, we're learning about the different stages of life (e.g birth, childhood, adolescence, adulthood, ect.) and how each phase of life brings unique challenges, opportunities, and psychological needs.

Our first class session for Life-Cycle Development was this past Monday night. During class, our professor showed us a video about an old documentary titled Seven Up! Seven Up! is a film that follows different individuals thoughout their lives every seven years, from age seven and onward. In the video, one phrase really stuck out to me that I thought carried significant spiritual undertones and application: "Time is the story. We are the characters."

The phrase "time is the story, and we are the characters" suggest that time is like a narrative unfolding, with each of us playing a unique role in that story. It highlights the idea that our lives are part of a larger, ongoing story where we are active participants, influencing the narrative through our actions, decisions, and interactions with others. What in the world does any of this have to do with our faith?

The idea that time is the story and we are the characters challenges us to live purposefully, recognizing that our faith calls us to actively participate in the sotry God is writing. This perspective encourages us to trust in God's guidance, seek to fulfill our God-gives roles, and understand that our lives have eternal significance within His greater narrative. "For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works" (Ephesians 2:10 ESV).

Football Time in Tennessee

It is crazy to think that it is almost football time in Tennessee. The Pro Football Hall of Fame game was the other day, and training camps are in full swing. I heard the high school had a scrimmage the other day. The University of Tennessee kicks off their season on August 31st. What I want to do in this article is take some football terminology and think about it biblically.

We all need to be cheerleaders and have cheerleaders in our lives. What I mean by that is that we all need to be encouraged and be encouragers. Hebrews 3:13

An interception is when the defense catches the ball intended for an offensive player. We need to intercept those who are on the devil’s side before it is too late. Galatians 6:1

You only have so much time in the game before it is over, so you have to have clock management. We only have so much time in this life, and we need to manage it for the glory of God. Ephesians 5:15-16

The offense only has four downs to get ten yards so they can keep the ball. The only way to get a touchdown is to advance the ball. We need to keep advancing (growing) in life. 2 Peter 3:18

A blitz is when the defense tries to send more players than the offense can block so they can get to the quarterback. The devil will try to blitz us. 1 Peter 5:8

The offense has two main ways of moving the ball: run or pass. We need to be passing our faith on to others. Matthew 28:19-20

Sometimes in the game someone will call a timeout to talk to the team or let them rest. We need a spiritual timeout from the world sometimes. Take time to study. Acts 17:11

The best way to score more points than your opponent is by scoring a touchdown. Some might refer to the end zone (where you score a touchdown) as the promised land. Our goal is the promised land, also. Revelation 21:1-7