The End of the World as we know it?

I was reading an article lately that was discussing the decline at night church attendance. In previous generations, a variety of churches held service both Sunday morning and Sunday evening. It was typically the case that a core group of those who attended the morning service also attended the evening one. It was rare for people to attend only the evening service, and many of those who regularly attended the morning service rarely, if ever, would attend the night service as well. As time passed, some smaller churches began to lose the enthusiasm for this second service and eventually cancelled it. Other churches decided to change the evening service into something different, like a Bible study or a worship service.
In the article, one preacher was lamenting the loss of these traditional second Sunday services as a sign of Apostasy and perhaps a glimpse that the End Times are at hand. Needless to say, I was surprised to see such significance directed toward an issue that many would see as an inevitable conclusion in a society where people are constantly on the go and over-extended with commitments. It is indeed true that Sunday isn’t the “day of rest” that it may have been in the past, and it is true that going to church a second time each Sunday isn’t a priority for many Christians today, but is this truly a sign of the impending crumbling of the American Church? That alarm has been sounded in the past, only to be proven premature. The American Church, like the Church in many nations throughout history, has had its ups and down, has gone through periods of growth and contraction, and has changed in style and appearance while maintaining its overall Gospel mission.
A sign of the End Times? No. Don’t be ridiculous. Not only is that day and hour unknown (and unknowable), but making a change in HOW the Church conducts its Gospel mission equivalent with the Church failing in its calling is a mistake. The Church has changed in the past, it will change in the future. Our mission is to ensure that the Church remains true to its calling no matter when or where it meets.

A seed planted years ago...

When I was in college I spent some time working with three siblings whose family situation brought them to the attention of the community mental health organization. I was given the chance to work with these kids and try to be a type of big brother for them for about a year. When it was over I lost track of them...just recently I received a letter from the youngest of these three who had experienced an even more difficult childhood after I finished working with them. Long story short, this young many is about two years into a prison term at the prison about six miles from my home. It has been about 13 years since I had heard from any of them, but this young many remembered me and wanted to see if I could help him with the upcoming transition to the life he hopes to lead after his release. I don't think that the work that I did was all that special; I was just trying to be one small influence for good in the lives of these kids who sadly had none. And yet, the Lord planted a seed in this young man's heart. Now an opportunity for the both of us appears. I have the chance to pick up where I left off and once again try to be a good influence in this man's (now, he was a kid before) life. As a pastor I can also get in to visit him as well, something I hope to do soon.
How do we know what the Lord has in store for us? How do we know what will happen to the seeds that we scatter? The answer is that we don't know. The only thing for certain is that if we don't take the chance and sow some seed, nothing will grow. If we do step out of our comfort zone; take some chances, and see what the Lord will do, amazing things can happen. Remember, God wants you to plant some seeds, he's the master farmer, he'll make them grow.

In EVERYTHING Give Thanks??

I Thessalonians 5:18 says, "give thanks in all circumstances, for this is God's will for you in Christ Jesus." While on vacation in St. Ignace over Labor Day weekend with my wife, my parents, and about 35 other people from the Saranac/Clarksville area it came to my attention that Jay Frank (the son of the pastor of my home church while I was growing up) was giving thanks for the weather before our group meals despite the fact that the weather sucked. We had all driven up to Northern Michigan to enjoy the great outdoors and the outdoors was having the last laugh. It was cold, it was raining, and very few people were all that thrilled about it. And yet, before each meal, Jay would specifically give thanks for the weather along with the food and the fellowship, etc. After this had happened a couple of times, someone said to me, "he really shouldn't give thanks for this weather, God will think we like it"...the whole thing was good natured; funny actually, and when I prayed for the next meal I didn't make mention of the weather (which at the time was getting better, but not out of the woods yet) and followed it up by telling Jay that his previous thanks for the miserable weather hadn't been received with much enthusiasm...While this whole thing was just good natured fun during a time of vacation, it begs the question. Are we REALLY supposed to give thanks to the Lord in ALL things? Doesn't God know that I'm not happy with this or that current situation; how can he expect me to thank him for it? In the end, the reason that we do give thanks to the Lord in All things is because we're not thanking God for the circumstances (good or bad); we're thanking God for being who he is; for giving us life and for caring enough about our lives to send His Son to redeem us from sin. When you look at the big picture like that, you can still thank God for his goodness, his love, his mercy, his grace; despite the times when life is anything but good.