Happy Mother's Day

What do you give to a person who has given so much? When I think about those who sacrifice so much, I think mothers would be close to the top of that list. I am not sure you can truly appreciate all the time and effort it takes to raise a child until you perform that task. How do we say thank you? Cards, calls, and candy are all nice, but what might the Bible teach us?

Ephesians 6:1 says, “Children, obey your parents in the Lord.” What good does it do to buy a card from the store yet refuse to do what she says? How about the gift of obey what she says to us? That is a gift that keeps on giving and one I am sure she will love.

Ephesians 6:2 says, “Honor your father and mother.” Parents are old and do not know how to have any fun. I know that is what some think. Most parents love you more than you will ever know and are probably trying to do the best they can to help you succeed in life. The very least we could do is truly honor them.

Proverbs 10:1 says, “A foolish son is a grief to his mother.” Let’s live such good lives that it brings honor to our mothers. Some of the shining moments a parent has are when someone might say, “Is that your child?” in relation to something good or, “I just want to tell you how wonderful your child is doing.” Let’s not bring them grief by the way we live but joy.

Proverbs 31:28 says, “Her children rise up and bless her.” When you think about all a mom does, it can be exhausting. Do we ever stop to say thank you? Thank you for cooking this meal for us. (And don’t complain about what has been fixed.) Thank you for washing my clothes. (And don’t complain about having to put them up.) A thank you can go a long way.

Thank you to all the mothers out there, and God bless you as you raise children for God!

Changing the Inside

My favorite football team is the Denver Broncos. I have been a fan for a long time. It all  probably started when I was in middle school. I have seen good times and bad times. The last few years would be some of those bad times. I thought we had something going last year only to falter at the end. O well, there is always next year. I hope those in charge are trying to help us get better, but what my team is talking about today is jerseys. Yes, those things they wear on game days. We have new ones for the first time in like twenty-five years. It can be exciting to get new uniforms and will probably make the team a lot of money, but what is that going to do for us if we cannot win ball games? Are we going to say, “Well, at least we looked good losing”? I see a principle at play here that I see in our world. It is easier to fix the outside versus the inside.

It is easier to get new clothes or a different car than to produce the fruit of the spirit in my life. It is easier to have surgery to “fix” something than to cleanse the sinful things from my heart. It is easier to shave, get a hair cut, or put on make-up than to change to become Christ-like. So often our world is concerned about the outward and not the inward. You see it on magazine covers. The magazines that sell are the ones with people with the best body or face, not the ones with the greatest character. The internet and especially social media are concerned with the perfect picture or video. Ever wonder how long or how many times it took them to get that picture or video? Here we are, sitting in our imperfect worlds, envying the fake reality of social media. As Christians let us be more concerned with putting off the old self and putting on the new self (Ephesians 4:22-24). That is trying to look more like Jesus.

The Mission

I do not know if you have noticed them, but some of the banners from the mission launch have been put up around the building. They are a good reminder of what the elders have asked us to  focus on. I thought it might be a good time for us to be reminded of these things in this space.

The elders have said that this is our vision: The Huntingdon church of Christ is a family of Christ followers, bound together by our love for Jesus Christ and His Word, reflecting God’s love, grace, and truth in everything that we do. Our mission is to love and glorify God in all that we do (Matthew 22:37), love and serve others (Matthew 22:39), and share the good news (Matthew 28:19-20). They want us to focus doing these things in five areas. Worship, serve, evangelism, grow, and connect are the areas they have asked us to focus on.

I guess the question before us is - How are we doing? Is my love for God driving me to glorify Him in worship? Is my love for God causing me to grow to be like Jesus, or am I the same person I was six months ago? Is my love for God causing me to love my fellow man by serving those inside and outside of the body of Christ? Is my love for God causing me to love my brother or sister in Christ and grow in our bond with one another, or am I more connected to those outside the body of Christ? These are just a few of the questions that can help us to decide if we are carrying out the vision the elders have set before us.

On a personal note, I feel like I see some of these things going on here. I saw it in our kids at Lads to Leaders. I have seen it in the great fellowship after services. The list could go on and on. Thank you for helping make the Huntingdon church of Christ the best it can be. Keep it up!